Chapter Text
Yang groaned as she woke up, she was used to waking up early, just not in the middle of the night. The noises from the barn meant something spooked the animals. Ignoring her body's calls to go back to sleep, she pulled up some pants, tucking her nightgown under the waistband as much as she could. Making her way to the kitchen, she pulled out a lantern and a double barrel shotgun from the closet.
"Another coyote?" Ruby asked, rubbing her eyes as she walked in.
"Probably." Yang said, putting some shells into the gun. "Go back to sleep, I'll take care of it."
Yang rolled her eyes as her sister mumbled a response and turned back to go to bed. Lighting the lantern, Yang slung the door open and made her way over to the barn. Looking over the barn door, Yang felt an uneasy feeling at what she found.
The lock had been broken open, with a hammer discarded on the ground.
"Shit, better not be one of Torchwick's boys trying to steal from us again." Yang groaned pushing the door open, gun in hand.
Even with the lantern, Yang couldn't exactly see pretty far into the barn. She could barely make out the silhouette of someone by the animals, trying to shush them.
"Alright, whatever Torchwick is paying ya, it probably ain't worth some buckshot." Yang called out, startling the figure.
"Please, I'm not trying to cause trouble." The figure said, backing away.
Yang got a better look at the person, making out what looked like a dress. Whoever she was, she disitting dn't dress like a thief.
"Look, it doesn't matter much why you're here." Yang said, lowering the shotgun and stepping a bit closer. "Probably could have helped your case if you didn't break the lock."
As Yang backed up, the woman stepped back a bit more. Yang could get a better look at her, the dark hair framing around her face and cat ears pressing down against her head. She stopped walking forward when she got a good view of her face. The frightened, golden eyes made Yang's breath catch in her throat, and the fading bruise on her cheek made her blood boil.
"Are you alright, miss?" Yang asked, dropping the gun and offering her hand. "Is someone after you?"
"I'm fine." The woman said, rather quickly. "I-We just needed to-"
"We?" Yang asked, catching her slip-up.
The woman's eyes widened and opened her mouth to start when a noise caught both of their attentions.
The sound of a crying baby.
The woman rushed over to a pile of hay, leaning over something she had put there. Yang followed her, not wanting to push any boundaries.
"It's alright, I'm here. Momma's here." The woman cooed to a dog-eared baby, bundled up in a blanket.
Yang began to put some pieces together as to why she was here.
"It's... uh... it'll probably be better for both of you to stay in the house tonight." Yang said, rubbing the back of her neck. "Probably warmer than the barn, and smells better."
The woman turned towards Yang, surprised by the suggestion. "I broke into your barn and you're offering me a place to stay?"
"Ma taught me to be polite." Yang said. "Besides, I can't exactly sleep knowing I didn't at least offer to help a mom and her kid."
"My name is Blake." She said, picking up her child. "This is Vermillion, I call her Milly for short."
Yang took a step closer, looking over the child. "It's a beautiful name. Mine's Yang."
"Other than you, is there anyone I need to worry about here?" Blake asked, starting to walk out of the barn.
"Well, there's my sister Ruby, but she's pretty easygoing." Yang said, picking up the gun and taking the lead to the house. "My dad, Taiyang, owns the farm, and he'll understand letting you stay the night. There's also my uncle Qrow, he does quite a bit of work around here when he's not drinking. When he is, he's pretty lazy."
Blake nodded along, making sure Milly was safe from the cold night. Stepping into the house behind Yang, she watched as she unloaded the gun and put it away.
"Can't be too careful, sorry if I startled you earlier." Yang said, leading Blake down the hall. "Was expecting a coyote or something."
"It's fine. I was a bit desperate to find somewhere for us to stay." Blake said, holding Milly close to her.
"If you don't mind me asking, where'd the two of you come from?" Yang asked, opening up the door to the guest room. "You don't need to answer if it's too much."
"Haven. But I'm originally from Menagerie." Blake said, sitting down on the side of the bed.
Yang's eyes threw open in surprise. "Haven's a day's ride by horse. You alright?"
"I'll be better now that I'm away from..." Blake stopped herself from saying more. "I just need to send a message to my parents and I'll be out of your hair as soon as possible."
Yang took a drawer out of the dresser and put a pillow along the bottom of it to make a makeshift crib. She didn't want to press for more answers.
"Beacon's a pretty good town." Yang said, setting the drawer down. "I can bring you over tomorrow after I get some work done so you can send a telegram over."
"Thank you." Blake said, softly putting her baby down.
"Let me go get you a nightshirt or something to sleep in." Yang said, backing into the door as she began to walk away.
Blake took her shoes off, rubbing her feet and feeling the blisters starting to form from her travel. She reached up to her cheek, wincing at the light pain that remained. She was almost free.
Yang came back soon after, a nightshirt in hand for her.
"Sorry if it's a little big, figured one of mine would fit better." Yang said, handing it over.
"Again, thank you. I'll try to pay you back for this, one day." Blake said, her fingers brushing against Yang's as she took the shirt.
"You don't need to pay for anything." Yang said, pulling her hands back. "It's my pleasure to help someone in need."
Blake breathed a sigh of relief, feeling a bit of weight lift off of her. "I've probably kept you up long enough."
"Right, I'll make sure to make extra stuff for breakfast if you wanna sleep in." Yang said, stepping to the doorway. "Good night, Blake."
Blake held the nightshirt close to her chest, it felt strange to have genuine kindness again. "Good night, Yang." She whispered, unsure if she was worthy of saying her name.
"Well, at least it wasn't a coyote." Ruby said, shoveling away some cow droppings. "I'm surprised she made it this far."
"Yeah, I'm gonna help her get to town, maybe pick up some more clothes for her to wear until she gets some more help." Yang said, leaning against her shovel. "It seems like she's been through a lot."
"Ma would probably do the same thing." Ruby said. "She'd be pretty happy with you. What did dad say when you told him about it?"
Yang dropped her shovel, realizing what she forgot to do. "FUCK!"
Ruby watched as her sister ran back towards the house. This was going to be a fun day.
Inside the house, Blake spoonfed Milly some oatmeal, her own plate of food sitting in front of her.
Waking up this morning, she was happy knowing she had put distance between them and him. She pushed the memories of him away, intent on keeping her daughter safe.
Caught in her thoughts, Blake barely noticed the man walk into the kitchen. Judging from his hair, this was Taiyang, who hadn't noticed her yet. Instead, he poured himself a cup of coffee from the kettle before leaning back against the counter to sip it.
And that's when he noticed Blake sitting there.
"Hello." Tai said in a drawn out manner.
"Hi." Blake gave an awkward wave.
Tai's gaze drifted to Milly as he set his cup down. "Please tell me you're not looking for my brother-in-law."
"No. I'm not." Blake said, unsure of where the question was going.
"Good. Cause if you were I was gonna have some words with him." Tai said, sighing in relief. "You look about as old as my one daughter, and you have a kid. That would cross a line or two for him."
Suddenly, Yang pushed the door open, startling both of them.
"Dad, I can explain." Yang said quickly.
Looking between Yang and Blake, Tai's confusion began to grow a bit. "Please do, cause I'm not sure what's going on anymore."