Birds Of A Feather

by JoyfullyMellowTyrant

Chapter 3: Blue Jeans And Slippers, Pt. 2

Summary:

Lots of stuff happens. Mainly because of alcohol.

Notes:

Sliding in at the very last minute, chapter 3. This was super rushed, but I'm still feeling pretty good about it overall, though it's a bit patchy in places. Prob. not going to be as polished over all, but close enough

Big, big shout out to Xekstrin, who agreed to beta for this chapter. Also, some other people whos names I don't actually know who helped out. This probably never would have been finished in time without them.

Once everyone cooled down and they got past the initial drama, the party turned out to be pretty nice, actually. Yang, along with everyone else she’s pretty sure, had kind of assumed it was over and ruined already, but Summer soldiered on with the kind of do-or-die determination normally reserved for heroes in movies, and somehow managed to drag all of them along with her.  

They hadn't bothered coming up with anything huge. Tai hung up a banner that said ‘Happy 29th!', which actually managed to drag a tiny grin from her mother. Summer brought out a cake brimming with candles that she claimed to have baked herself, but that, according to Ruby’s quietly muttered aside, she'd actually bought from the store and then smudged the frosting to make it look more homemade. There was a small pile of presents lined up on the dining room table, which made Yang feel a bit guilty for not buying one, until she remembered that Raven had managed to quit her job by taking advantage of the fact that her daughter got run over by a car. 

They sprawled out on the couches and watched reruns of soppy old shows that, according to Summer's very energetic insistence, Raven had loved in college, and that had Yang rapidly revising her opinion of her mother. The older trio very quickly forgot about their children, mostly arguing about whether or not they had actually liked these things and how much, or denying that they'd ever even seen them at all. They switched between different ones without much thought, jumping whole seasons each time someone made an offhand comment about that one scene, or 'do you remember this episode’, and very quickly left Yang in the dust.   

At the start of it all, Summer had conceded that yes, it was Raven’s birthday, and so she could drink if she wanted to, but had been adamant about stopping her from drinking herself under the table again. They'd managed to reach a compromise that everyone- not just Raven, because her mother was a petty bitch that way- could only drink one glass of liquor per hour, and had to tide themselves over with lighter drinks in the meantime, or just soda and water. And then right away Summer had to add a bunch more rules, as the others immediately began trying to poke holes in it. Her mom was the worst, and had just claimed the entire bottle as her glass, which met a flat ‘no’ from both Summer and Yang.  

On the upside, it seemed like there was a good chance her mom wouldn't be sleeping in her own bed tonight, so Yang could just crash in the guest room instead of Ruby’s.  

It started off innocently enough. A small brush here, a hand on the shoulder there. Just little, familiar touches. Summer had, somehow, managed to wrangle both Raven and Tai into sitting on the shorter couch/loveseat, before promptly plopping herself on her other side, leaving her squished between them with practically no space to herself, pinning her in place.  

Her mother resisted admirably, at first. Swatting away hands and throwing elbows anytime someone got too close, making a valiant effort to pretend that she was the only one sitting on the couch. But in the few minutes it had taken for Summer to return after running to salvage her smoldering counter, she’d managed to get quite the head start on everyone else drinking, and she was finally starting to slow, looking like she was having trouble keeping her eyes open. By the time ten o’clock rolled around she was halfway down the couch, bare feet propped against the edge of the table, slouched over and resting her head on Summer’s shoulder, seeming half asleep. 

Oh, it wasn’t obvious. Her head was still laid firmly back against the couch, and at first glance it would probably look accidental, like there just wasn’t enough space to keep apart. But her temple was pressed against her arm, and she was turned just a little too much towards Summer, leaning into the hip closer to her. 

Tai had taken advantage of her distraction to finally break free of his little corner of the couch and steal some space for himself, turning and wriggling over towards the middle. And, coincidentally, tucked right up behind her. Just- right up on in there. 

Not one of the three of them seemed to find any of this notable in the slightest, and it was right about then that Yang had her sinking moment of realization. 

Her mother, Raven Branwen, was drunk, sleepy, and fucking cuddling with both her ex husband and his wife, right there on the couch in front of her.  

And then, after the better part of twenty minutes of shifting her weight and shuffling around trying to get comfortable, she seemed to finally just give up entirely and turned sideways, flopping backwards across both their laps. 

Summer laughed delightedly as Raven’s head and shoulders landed on top of her legs, raising her arms to avoid spilling her drink. 

“Oh, I know you haven't drank that much, Raven.” She rebuked her. And then immediately ruined it by resting her glass on top of her, effectively pinning her in place unless she wanted to get wet. Her other hand fell on top of her head, combing through her hair in what looked like a familiar motion.  

“Mm. I'm getting old. Can't drink like I used to.” Raven drawled lazily, letting her eyes slide shut. Which was absolute bullshit, no matter how you looked at it. 

Taiyang spoke up then, looking down at the woman sprawled across his legs with lips twitching in amusement. "Honestly, your tolerance was never that great, Rae." The alcohol seemed to have calmed the worst of his nerves, especially now that the three of them were seemingly sliding back into familiar territory. The fact that this territory was flirting with his ex-wife apparently didn't occur to them. 

Her mom lifted a leg, shaking it insistently in his face. Yang kind of thought she was trying to kick him, honestly, but he only blinked and pulled back for a second before catching her ankle, bringing it down to his lap. He tucked his bottle between her hip and the couch cushion without seeming to think about it, before rolling her pant leg up to her knee and wrapping his fingers around her shin, beginning to knead at her muscles. 

Her mom shifted her weight, grunting without opening her eyes. “You used to give better massages, Tai.” She said, matter of fact despite the slight slur to her words. “You’ve been letting him off too easily, Summer.” 

Tai just hummed quietly, adjusting his hold and sliding his thumbs along the side of her calf. “Your legs are smoother than before.” He noted, sounding like he was half talking to himself. 

“Lotion and a juice diet.” 

“Whiskey isn’t juice, Raven.” Summer said, flicking her forehead affectionately. 

“She adds the whiskey to it.” Yang muttered towards the floor, hands pressed together on either side of her nose. “Sometimes. Usually it’s vodka.” 

Summer twitched a little, shooting her a slightly startled look, and Yang realized that the woman had literally, genuinely forgotten that she was sitting there, barely three feet away.  

“It has better flavor.” Her mom muttered from the couch, seamlessly overlooking the actual issue without any shame at all and dragging their attention back to her. 

Yang wasn’t entirely sober, but she was also painfully not drunk, casting everything into sharp, awful clarity. The fact that this was the most relaxed she had ever seen her mother in her entire life, full stop, was just salt in the wound. 

"So." Ruby started from where she was sat across from then, looking like she was trying and failing not to stare at the gooey puddle their parents were melting into on the couch. "What is it you do again, Raven?" And in a normal conversation, that might have been a good segue to move the conversation on to something better. 

Unfortunately for her, Yang already knew the question was a dead end from the start. "Yeah, mom. What exactly do you do?" 

“Put up with you." She mumbled back, and let go of her drink with one hand to flip a single finger in her direction. 

Tai snorted, but Summer immediately slapped it down. “You shouldn’t talk to your daughter that way, Raven.” She said sternly.  

“Especially when she’s the one paying your bills.” Yang added, narrowing her eyes at her.  

The effort was wasted, as her mother didn't so much as glance in her direction. “I don’t have bills anymore.” She fired back. “If you were going to threaten me, you should have done it before paying all of them off.” And despite being flat on her back, she didn't spill a drop when she tilted her drink back. Because she was talented like that.  

Summer pulled the glass out of her hand, dodged her flailing grabs to set it on the  table out of her reach, and then bent over her, silencing her protests with a finger across her lips. "Raven. Apologize to your daughter." She ordered, and there was a warning note in her tone. 

Predictably, her mom's only response was to dig her trench deeper. "No." She mumbled against her finger, red eyes narrowing up at her defiantly. 

"Tai." Summer commanded, and he responded immediately. Before Raven could react, he snaked his arm around her ankles to hold them in place, and then started tickling the bottoms of her feet. 

She shrieked, nearly leaving the couch from how hard she bucked upwards, but Summer dove on top of her and pinned her down, laughing all the while, and Yang could just already tell that this could only go downhill from here. 

She was right. A few minutes later and they were still going, her mother practically buried beneath the two of them, snarling curses between fits of forced laughter and thrashing wildly. Tai had shifted so that he was kneeling on top of her legs with his back to them, using his whole body to pin them down, while still somehow managing to keep tickling her. Meanwhile, Summer had her from behind in what looked like half a koala hug and half a strangle hold, wrapped bodily around her to hold her in place. Her flushed face shone with sweat, there was a dark spot on her cheek where her mom had managed to headbutt her, and angry red scratch marks covered her arms and the side of her neck, but she looked like she was having the time of her life and had yet to stop laughing since the start. 

Finally, her mom managed to get her legs free. Yanking them out from under Tai, she pulled her knees all the way to her chest before slamming both heels right into his ass, hard enough to not only plant him face-first into the ground, but to also topple both her and Summer off their precarious perch on the arm of the tiny couch, dumping all three of them to the floor. 

They were out of sight from her angle, but Yang could still see limbs thrashing above the edge of the table, Summer shrieking in delight while Raven hissed furiously, and the table rattled as they slammed into it, tipping over bottles and cans, sending them rolling across the surface.  

Briefly, her mom managed to get on top, her sweaty face rising into view as she struggled upright, slapping at Summer's reaching hands. But then Tai appeared again, scooping her up in a bear hug from behind that pinned her arms to her sides just as Summer managed to sink her fingers into the collar of her shirt. They both pulled at the same time, and the sound of ripping fabric filled the room as the neckline of her shirt tore open, stretching out wide nearly halfway to her stomach. And then Raven lifted a leg and braced a foot against the edge of the table with her teeth bared, shoving off it with a snarl, and her shirt tore the rest of the way as she and Tai went tumbling backward, leaving a shredded chunk of fabric behind in Summer's hand. 

The floor shook as they crashed down in a hissing, thrashing heap somewhere behind the couch, and Yang just dropped her elbows onto her knees and covered her face with her hands. Kill me, she prayed.  

There was a noise to the side and she glanced over to see Ruby with her eyes turned towards the floor, hands clasped in front of her face and thumbs digging into her forehead.  

Their eyes met. Ruby watched her consideringly for a long moment, before finally angling her head, tilting it towards the door.  

Wanna get out of here?   

It was a bad idea. Like, a really bad idea. Worse than coming back here, even.  

Yang hardly thought about it for a second before shoving herself to her feet, and Ruby mirrored her without hesitation.  

The three on the floor didn’t even glance in their direction as they made their way across the room. The last thing Yang saw was her shirtless mother writhing around half on top of Tai, swinging at his head furiously with one hand and clinging to his shirt with the other to hold herself in place, while Summer stood behind her, gripping two fistfuls of her pant leg and trying to yank her off. 

Stepping out into the night, Ruby mercifully shut the door behind them and sighed, shoulders dropping like a weight had been let off them.  

“God, I hate this family.” She exhaled. Behind them, the muffled sounds of struggling continued on unabated. 

Yang shoved her hands into the pockets of her jacket, watching her uncertainly from a few feet away, trying to figure out where exactly she fell in that statement. “In my defense, I didn't know about that.”  

“Really?” Ruby didn't glance in her direction, just started walking down the driveway. “They wouldn't shut up about her.”  

“Really?” Yang followed, faintly intrigued, faintly disgusted.  

“Yeah.”  

That was all. Yang realized, belatedly, that she probably didn't want to talk about it. Or anything, for that matter. Not with her, at least. Not right now, especially. 

Her next breath hissed across her tongue as she exhaled, and she let her shoulders sag. Dammit. So much for keeping her distance. That particular plan had lasted all of five hours, before her mom had smashed it to pieces with the world’s worst alcohol-fueled twenty year old rerun. 

And now here she was, back in Vale, wandering down a road in the middle of the night next to Ruby again, with one too many glasses of whiskey down her throat and tension winding itself along her spine. Right back where she’d started.  

Lights were few and far between- "Turtles," Ruby said shortly, and Yang let it drop. Her skin was dark in the dim glow of the distant lights, and her hair shifted in phases between black and crimson each time they passed one. She was thankful that Ruby lived further away from the ocean. Not far- maybe three or four blocks. It was still walking distance, easy. But far enough that the street lamps were just street lamps, and the tang of salt was muffled by the smells of the city. Buildings blocked out most of the sky, and it was overcast anyway, only patches of stars visible between the clouds, slowly sliding above their heads.  

Ruby continued to silently brood as they walked, staring down at her feet, focus seemingly turned inwards. She didn't seem mad, exactly. Just more like the alcohol had ended up making her mood worse rather than better. Still, it didn't exactly make for great company, and the silence ate at her, quickly becoming suffocating, even in the open air. 

Finally, Yang sucked in a breath, cheeks puffing as she blew it out through her lips. “So. Weather's nice here.”  

There was a long pause. And then Ruby snorted. Loudly. 

She pressed her hand to her mouth when she did it again, shoulders shaking as she hunched over, bracing herself against the railing lining the road. And then her control cracked and she was laughing, the bright sound echoing through the empty streets like peals of thunder. And just like that, the tension evaporated to nothing. 

Yang's own lips wiggled, and then it was her turn to snort, before devolving into giggles. And then a noise burst past Ruby’s lips that sounded a bit like a cow getting punched in the gut, and she had to bend over, bracing herself against her knees as her laughter just got worse. 

Ruby wiped the back of her hand across her eyes. “Did you- did you just- ask me about- the fucking weather ?” She gasped, mirth still bubbling past her lips. She turned so that she was sagging against the railing like they were ropes in a ring, eyes bright and watery, grinning at her. “Seriously? Is that where we're at?”  

“Well, you weren't exactly contributing.” Yang fired back, unable to help but stare. She suddenly wished she could see Ruby box. “One of us had to pick up the slack, and I think we both knew it was going to be me.”  

“ ’Pick up the slack.’” Ruby repeated disbelievingly. “Is that what you call that? Remind me never to go mountain climbing with you, or you'll just drop me right off the fucking cliff.”  

Another snort burst out of her, and Yang moved to clutch the railing next to Ruby's hand to keep from falling from laughing, smiling down at her. Ruby returned the look, needing to tilt her head back to meet her eyes, and Yang suddenly noticed just how close they were. She was basically pinning her to the rail, boxing her in and leaning over her. If Ruby just straightened up they'd be touching. She should move away.   

She didn’t. She tilted her head to the side and saw the realization flash through Ruby's eyes as well, silver darkening to steely gray.  

Yang hesitated.  

Ruby caught it. The heat in her stare slowed, and she tilted her head a fraction back, meeting her eyes.   

“We should stop.” She observed neutrally. It was not a protest, and she didn’t pull away, meeting her gaze unflinchingly. 

Not a protest. But still, a reminder. Blowing out a breath, Yang pushed off the railing, straightening up and taking a step back. Ruby watched silently, and it wasn’t impossible to guess what she was thinking. She straightened as well, rolling her neck and stuffing her hands into the pockets of her jeans.  

1-0   

They thought it at the same time. She could practically hear Ruby's voice in her head, saying it right along with her.  

They both paused, glancing over at each other. There was a long beat of silence, underscored with tension that wasn’t quite sober enough to reach awkward. And then Ruby’s lips twitched, and the moment broke. Yang relaxed, setting her foot down and continuing to walk, Ruby trailing at her side.  

“What was the score last time?” It would probably be better to start fresh. She’d bet hard cash that neither of them had a single clue where they had ended up at. But a tiny, persistent part of Yang couldn't help but want to cling to the points, to the memories wound up together with their old score, and she was just drunk enough not to say no. 

“I was winning.” Ruby said confidently, and Yang rolled her eyes.  

“Yeah, but a number. You got one of those?”  

“1000-0.”  

Yang snorted, tossing her a look. “Please. We both know I didn’t have zero points.”  

Ruby’s eyes darkened and she looked right back, meeting her with a smirk. “And we both know I had more.”  

Something zinged down her spine, blooming out through her stomach, and Yang coughed, looking away. Ruby’s smirk widened, not backing down.  

2-0   

 

Gradually, they moved away from the center of the buildings, naturally drifting towards the sound of people and music. The place they ended up wasn’t exactly what she would call ‘downtown’. Not compared to Mistral, at least. The whole thing was, maybe, five blocks wide, and the people started to fizzle out after walking more than two or three away from the main road. But it was definitely some kind of commercial area, with little shops and restaurants pressed right up against each other, competing for space to line up along the cobblestone sidewalks. 

Ruby seemed familiar enough with it, meandering along the road beside her, occasionally stopping to wander into some of the shops they passed, and Yang followed easily after. There weren’t crowds, per se, but it was a Sunday, and plenty of people milled about around them in little groups, most looking about as aimless as the pair of them. 

Eventually, the road curved. Before it had been running parallel with the beach, but now it turned towards it, and she could see the shadowed mass of the ocean in the distance. Gradually the buildings began to thin out, space opening between them, and a faint scent of rain dampened the air. The moon hung low in the sky, a waning gibbous that was bright enough to filter through the patchwork of clouds, casting silver lights on the crests of ocean waves. 

‘ Gibbous’ . Fuck, she was getting poetic. That was a bad sign. 

It was hard to keep track of time, with Ruby. Each time she glanced at a clock it seemed like the hands had moved far more than they had any right to since the last time she’d looked. But, it had already been nearly two hours, by her best estimate. Assuming the woman back there was still her mother, that was two more topped off glasses of liquor down her throat, and it was coming up on one in the morning. That had to be enough to put her to sleep. 

Yang nudged Ruby with an elbow to get her attention, tilting her head down the road. “Wanna head back?” 

Ruby made a noncommittal noise, throwing a glance back the way they’d come. “What do you think the chances are that our parents are having sex right now?”  

Yang groaned, dropping her face into her hands. “Fuck, don't say shit like that. This family is already weird enough without them starting a three-way in the living room.”  

She realized what she'd said a moment too late. The easy loose feeling that had settled in her chest stalled, and she paused, shooting Ruby a glance.  

But she didn't look offended, just bared her teeth in something that could have been a grin. “We’re all just a bunch of narcissists.” She agreed. “Can't keep away from each other.”  

That was certainly one way of putting it. Yang hid a grimace by turning her face away, blowing out a short breath. “So, is that a no?” 

“That’s a no, yes.” Ruby answered, amusement bubbling in her voice. 

They continued wandering about for a bit, no real destination in mind, just a couple lost souls searching for a place to collapse. Ruby asked her if there was somewhere she wanted to go, and Yang's vague answer of 'not a bar’ was accepted with just a nod. 

Which was how they ended up at a restaurant instead. Ruby’s eyes lit on it in the distance, sitting near the end of the road. “You hungry?” 

Yang followed her gaze and shrugged. “I mean, not really.” There’d been plenty of food at the house. And, unlike her daughter, Summer had apparently worked out how to boil a pot of water without seeing it on fire. “Anywhere else to go?” 

“Well, unless you want to get a hotel-“ 

“Nope.” Yang cut her off immediately, stamping down on whatever else might have come next. She took those words at exactly surface level, resolutely not looking for anything under the surface, turning and marching towards the restaurant.  

Ruby trotted to catch up, laughing quietly as she fell in beside her. Yang didn’t look for anything in that, either. 

The Sandy Pelican sat near the water, though the view of the beach was a bit ruined by the parking lot set directly in front of it. They didn’t get to see it, anyways, since the booth their server guided them to was set in the back corner, next to a window that only gave them a view of the street.  

He left them there, with menus and a pair of waters that was apparently purely complimentary. Some kind of soft pop was drifting out from the speaker above them, quiet enough to be nearly swallowed by the sound of conversation filling the room, and she only caught one in every four words or so. 

She was pretty sure it was local, considering she’d never heard of any other restaurant by the same name. Still, it was big- two stories, with an upstairs patio for sitting outside, plus more tables that spilled out into a small rock garden in the back. It seemed pretty popular, with more than half the tables full, even so late at night. 

Most importantly, it wasn’t any kind of bar, or club, or tavern. It did serve alcohol, though, and her eyes caught on the options, throat suddenly feeling parched.  

Her resolve not to get any was shaky at best, and crumbled the moment she opened her mouth to order.  

“I'll take a Red Sun.” She said. Beer was basically water, anyways. She wasn't going to get drunk from just sipping on a couple bottles.  

“Make it two.” Ruby added, and Yang twitched, turning to look at her. 

"What?" Ruby asked. "If you're drinking, I'm drinking."  

Yang considered pointing out the many, many reasons that was a bad idea, but held her tongue. Instead she just sat back with a shrug, popping her straw into her mouth and taking a draw of water. "Whatever. Your funeral, Xiao-Long."  

There was a long beat of silence from the other side of the table. Yang didn’t pay much attention to it, busying herself with flicking through the menu. But then, “Rose.”  

Yang looked up, straw in her teeth. “What?”  

“You called me Xiao-Long.” Ruby explained, looking at her oddly. “My last name is Rose.” 

Her brows pulled down in confusion. “You took your mom’s name?”  

“My parents aren’t married.” She explained, and there was a strange note in her tone.  

Yang lowered her glass and looked at her askance from across the table. “What, really? Why not?” She distinctly remembered Summer saying they were on more than one occasion. And they certainly had the look down. 

Ruby watched her closely, waiting for her to take another drink before finally answering. “Because he’s still married to your mom.”  

The cold water stung her lungs as she inhaled, and Yang spewed it out her nose and mouth. It was pure luck that she avoided soaking herself, the hand she instinctively slapped across her face already holding a napkin, and Ruby watched her choke with a slowly spreading grin.  

“She never told you?” Ruby asked, disbelief and delight warring in her voice.  

"No, she didn't-" Yang coughed, hacking up more liquid. “I mean- she didn’t- she doesn’t fucking talk about him, ok?” She pulled her hair behind her head, staring down at the table. “Fuck. Seriously?” Her mind was spinning, throwing out snapshots of Raven on that little couch with the two of them back at the house, and fuck, she was going to murder her mother. 

Their beers arrived, giving her a few moments to recover. Clearing her throat one more time, she blew out a breath, sitting back.  

“Your mom left in a hurry.” Ruby began explaining unsteadily, laughter still bubbling in her voice. “She didn’t, uh. She didn’t really stick around to make it official, ya know? Just packed everything up and disappeared. My dad- or one of them at least- filed for divorce, but she was gone before they had the chance to sign the papers.”  

That made more sense, at least. Yang managed to relax, easing herself back against her seat. God. They really did just keep finding new ways to stack more plotlines into this Broadway play production level melodrama.  

She rubbed her hands across her face before dropping them to the table with a sigh. “So our parents are still married.” Yang mused. She turned that over in her head. “She’s cheated on him a lot .”  

Ruby scoffed at her from behind the rim of her bottle. “Please. She’s not the one that had another kid after she left.” She said, tipping it back and opening her mouth, draining the rest of it. Yang hadn’t realized how far along she was. And then she went to take a drink, and realized that she, too, was already holding an empty bottle. Her water was also nearly gone, she noticed. She stared down at them, wondering where it all had disappeared to. 

Their waiter was, tragically, extremely diligent, and appeared almost the same second she set her bottle down on the table, sweeping it up and offering them both another. Yang wavered, tempted- but then Ruby reached out and snagged one, and she caved. 

Yang dug out a wad of bills from her jacket, sliding it towards him as she accepted hers. It was a pretty generous tip, but like it or not he was just doing his job, so she figured he deserved it. She distractedly waved away his thanks as she settled back, still focused on Ruby across the table.  

"So, if your parents aren't married." She started, because yeah, she was still caught up on that. "Do they just, like- what, say they are?"  

Ruby nodded patiently. Sorta like she'd probably had this conversation before. What a fucking twist. “Yeah. It’s, like, as official as it can get without being official. They tell everyone they’re married, got rings, have an anniversary. My mom even had her name legally changed to his, some time after I was born. They might as well be.” She shrugged. “I mean, it’s just some piece of paper that says they aren’t, ya know? It never really bothered me. They love each other, they live together, they share everything. That’s what’s important, right?”  

"Sure. I guess." Yang agreed, distracted. Her brow furrowed. "But, like. Twenty years, and they still haven't managed it? Couldn't he just, I dunno, mail it to her?" 

She shook her head. "They couldn't find her. She was- pretty hecking thorough. They tried to track her phone, once.” Ruby added with a sudden grin, leaning an elbow on the table and twisting around on the bench halfway towards her. “They told me they found it underneath a dumpster in a back alley in Vacuo. It was in a plastic bag, along with a photo book full of nothing but pictures of her flipping them off.”  

Yang snorted. And then couldn’t help but bend forward and cover her eyes with a hand, shoulders shaking as she laughed helplessly. Ruby joined her a moment later, hunching forwards on her elbows.  

“Fucking- seriously?” Yang half gasped a full minute later, wiping the heel of her palm across her eyes.  

“Yeah.” Ruby grinned at her, eyes bright. “Your mom sure knows how to burn a bridge, Yang.”  

“Apparently.” Yang leaned back, lips still twitching in disbelief. "Damn. She is such a bitch. " She couldn’t quite keep the admiration from leaking into her tone. 

“It’s kinda inspiring, honestly.” Ruby agreed. "Like, they said she'd even plugged it into a power pack so it wouldn't run out of battery before they found it. She literally made them travel all the way to the other side of the world just to tell them to fuck off." 

"And now they've probably got her handcuffed to their bed." Yang's lips peeled back in something that was half a grin, half a grimace. "That's gonna be a hell of a rodeo." Too bad it was her mom. The thought made the grimace win out, and she rubbed at her nose like she could wipe it away before tilting her chin up and draining the rest of her beer.  

Judging by the look on Ruby's face, she was going through a similar thought process. She gulped down her bottle as well, blowing out a long sigh into the air when she was finished, before setting it down on the table in front of her with a quiet click. 

And then she snorted. 

"Jesus." She snickered, and her voice cracked, trying to turn to giggles. "This- this family is so fucked."  

It was like it was infectious. Yang started to giggle too, which only made Ruby giggle harder. They gradually grew louder as it rebounded back and forth, until finally they were bent over and clutching their sides, pounding on the table as they laughed helplessly at the absurdity of it all. 

Their waiter arrived somewhere in the middle of it all, looking faintly concerned, and that just made them laugh louder. 

 

It felt like she blinked, and suddenly an hour had passed.  

They’d ordered a plate of nachos after Ruby said she was getting hungry, and at some point they’d switched from Red Suns to Golden Apples. Yang hadn’t been keeping track of the number of bottles they were on, which was very probably a bad idea in hindsight, because she was at the point where her face was starting to go numb and they didn't seem to be slowing down. She also probably shouldn’t keep tipping their waiter each time he brought drinks, because if he’d been dutiful before then he was fucking dedicated now, watching them like a hawk from the corner of the room. She’d even caught some of the other servers watching them from the corners of their eyes, seemingly waiting for any opening to slip in and steal their table from him, because Yang hadn’t been the least bit subtle while tossing cash his way, and she’d probably already thrown away a good two hundred lien by now. 

"If you guys are sticking around for a while." Ruby was saying in a musing tone, tracing a finger around the condensation that had dripped down onto the table. "You wanna come watch me run? Track season's starting in a few weeks. I should, uh, probably stop drinking these soon." She noted somewhat sheepishly, tilting her bottle back and eyeing the label. "Detox sucks."  

“Why would I want to watch you run in circles?” Yang laughed, and hoped it hid the fact that she was hedging around the question. Making plans to meet in the future was bad. She wasn’t supposed to do that, she remembered, though at that moment the why of it skated past her, just out of reach. 

“Because I’m really good at it.” Ruby insisted, leaning in, eyes all wide, shining silver. “Like, really, really good. Maybe the best in the whole world.”  

“The best in the world at running in circles.” Yang grinned. “What a vast and varied skill set you have. I’m sure companies are just lining up outside your door to give you a job.”  

“I don’t need a job.” Ruby retorted easily, resting her cheek on her fist and rolling her head to the side, grinning at her and just looking absolutely fucking adorable. “I’ve got you, rich girl.”  

“So, what, you’re just going to mooch off me for the rest of our lives?” Yang asked wryly, matching her and resting her chin on the back of her hand, rolling the base of her bottle around on the table between her fingers. 

“Seems to work alright for your mom.” 

“She’s family.” 

“So am I.” Ruby countered, and Yang stumbled, nearly losing her grip on her bottle. 

It was so easy, to forget that Ruby was her sister. She had to keep reminding herself of it every few minutes, or else it might slip away completely. Her brain just couldn't quite compute ‘Ruby’s dad’ and ‘her dad’ into ‘our dad’, and it was really messing with her head right now. 

She cleared her throat awkwardly, sitting back to gain some space. “Maybe you should come to Mistral next time instead." She deflected. "It's got some pretty cool stuff. I could show you around.” 

Ruby hummed noncommitally. “Hn. Maybe in the summer. Some of us still have these things called responsibilities. Plus, we still don’t actually know where you guys live.” She added pointedly, shooting her a look. 

Yang didn’t so much as blink. “We know.” 

Ruby blew out a frustrated hiss. “Fine. Be that way.” She grouched, slouching back on her bench with a pout on her lips that was just begging to be wiped away, and Yang distracted herself by waving down their waiter for another set of beers. 

 

Another blink, another hour. The rest of the room was nothing but a low buzz around them, muted colors and shapes sliding along their peripheries, never touching. 

Yang remembered, distantly, that at the start of the night she’d resolved not to get too drunk, because Drunk Yang was stupid and impulsive and horny, and had absolutely terrible situational awareness. 

The thought didn’t quite manage to reach the surface as she found herself sticking a straw down the neck of a fresh beer and tipping it back, shotgunning the whole bottle in one go like some dumb teenager just because she could feel Ruby’s eyes on her. 

She was still watching from across the table when she lowered it again, one eyebrow cocked questioningly. It had been a while since she’d done that, and Yang nearly coughed and ruined it, but she managed to hold it in, wiping her hand across her mouth, grinning at her. “I learned that in college.”  

Ruby’s eyebrow dropped, and she sent her a look. “Please. I learned that in high school.” And then proceeded to pop a straw into her own drink and do the same, throat working as she drained the entire thing in about a second flat.  

And really, that was just a fucking challenge, wasn’t it? Their poor waiter was literally running back and forth between their table and the back to keep up by now. Yang didn’t even look at the notes she fished out of her wallet before shoving them towards him, grabbing her new bottle and dragging it towards her across the table. “Highschool, huh? That was, what, two years ago for you?” 

“Four.” Ruby bared her teeth. “Guess you need to go back and learn to count, miss college drop out.” 

"And apparently you need to stay in a bit longer, short fry." Yang parried, straightening her spine and pressing a hand dramatically to her chest. " I have got a batch degree." 

"In what?" 

"Sports science." 

Ruby stumbled in her momentum, falling forwards and blowing out a laugh all over the table. "What? The heck kinda made up major is sports science?" 

"The kind they give to athletes so they don't fail out of the team." Yang admitted easily. "What's yours?" 

"Art theory." She answered primly, and it was Yang's turn to fall over herself laughing, bending down and bracing her forehead against the top of her bottle as her shoulders shook. "Fucking seriously? And you were giving me shit?" 

"I get to give you shit." Ruby said, planting an elbow on the table and pointing at her challengingly with the hand holding her beer. "Art theory is studying the classics. Sports science is- what? Studying the angle and velocity of a football?" 

"It's worse than that." 

"How can it be worse?" 

Yang took a deep breath to steady herself, flattening her expression and speaking in a lecturing tone. "Sports science studies how the healthy human body works during exercise, and how sport and physical activity promotes health and performance from cellular to whole body perspectives." 

Ruby stared. "What?" She asked, utterly baffled. "What can you do with that?" 

Yang's lips wriggled. "Not a damn thing." She managed, and then practically collapsed in on herself from laughing so hard.  

Ruby joined her nearly simultaneously, laughing hard enough to spill beer all over her hand and wrist, until she was wiping tears from her eyes and gasping for air, and Yang was so, so lucky that the table was too wide for her to lean across, because if she could she didn't think she'd have been able to stop herself from kissing her. 

The thought didn't have the dampening effect it probably should have. Yang wasn't slowed down at all as they finally got themselves under control again, straightening up and leaning in over the table challengingly.  

"Come on. Sports science versus art theory." She started, but then paused, considering. "Wait. You don't even have your degree yet, do you?" 

"Like it makes a difference, Sports Theory ." Ruby snipped, but Yang could tell she'd struck a nerve. Her grin widened. Point for her. 22-24. She dragged her bottle to rest directly in front of her and wrapped her fist around it, straw at the ready. "Let's go then, Highschool Diploma."  

"If that's the contest, then my diploma already wins." Ruby shot back, mirroring her. "Winner gets a thousand lien." 

"Ok, one: you don't have a thousand lien, and two: I already have many, many thousands of lien."  

Ruby blew out a loud raspberry towards her but didn't try to contest the point. "Fine. What then?" 

“Winner gets the bed.” Yang challenged daringly, the warmth buzzing beneath her skin making her bold.  

It hit the room like a gauntlet being tossed on the table, and Ruby’s eyes flashed dangerously. “Loser sleeps on the couch?” She questioned without looking away, already slotting her straw into a fresh beer. 

Yang's grin sharpened. "The floor." 

"Oh-ho- ho." Ruby's smile looked like it should have fangs, dark hair falling in her face making silver eyes burn. "You sure your crappy bones can handle that, lefty? I've got an old dog bed you can use if that arm gets sore." 

"Oh, you little shit." Yang growled, lifting her bottle. "You are sleeping outside ."  

They clinked their bottles together, and then tilted them back, gulping them down as fast as they could. 

The first round was too close to tell who finished first. So was the second, and the third, and they really should probably have a referee to judge this, because neither of them was willing to admit defeat. By now even Yang could tell things were spiraling out of control. They were running a collision course, toeing a thin, thin line, and Yang just couldn't make herself stop. 

Eventually, though, they both finally realized that neither of them was keeping track of the contest anymore, and at this point they were just chugging beers like madwomen for no good reason. Yang closed their considerable tab sometime before three in the morning, and they waved a jaunty goodbye to their sweaty but significantly wealthier waiter before stumbling out into the night again. 

Yang's head wasn't quite spinning yet, but there was a good chance that was just because the alcohol in her stomach hadn’t had the chance to be metabolized yet. One of Ruby’s slippers snagged on the paving stones on her next step, and Yang reflexively reached out to catch her, wrapping her hands around her shoulders and setting her on her feet again. “You good?” 

“Yup.” Ruby’s head bobbed deeply a few times before she blinked up at her, silver eyes wide and bright in the moonlight. “You good?” 

“Yup.” Yang confirmed. “Wanna head home?” 

Ruby bobbed her head again. “Yup.” She rose up on her toes and tilted her head to the side, looking over Yang’s shoulder. “It’s that way, right?” 

“That’s the ocean, Ruby.” Yang said with amusement, and turned her around to face the other direction. “That way.” 

“Ohhh.” Ruby said, and then giggled. “Thanks.” 

Yang’s hand stayed on her shoulder as they started walking back. It took her nearly three blocks to remember to remove it. 

 

They wandered back down the way they’d come, following the road’s slowly curving path. The streets were far more empty now, the crowd having trickled away some time while they were distracted. The windows of most of the buildings they passed were dark and shuttered, doors closed and locked. There was still music coming from a couple bars, lights spilling out into the night as they passed, but their call wasn’t as tempting as it might have been on another night, and the two of them walked past without a glance inside. 

The route back to the house was longer than she remembered. Maybe two miles from where they started, all the way back at the beach. The walk helped to clear her head a bit, her feet feeling steadier on the ground, and by the time they were filing up the driveway she thought the worst of it had passed, and she was feeling ready to surrender the bed to Ruby so she could just collapse onto the couch and sleep. 

Unfortunately, there was one last little obstacle in the way of that plan. 

Ruby opened the front door. And then closed it.

She stared at it for a drawn out moment, and then her shoulders rose as she took a deep breath before stepping back, turning around again. “We should go someplace else.”  

It took Yang a second to understand. She’d nearly forgotten about their parents. Her face flattened to match Ruby’s. “Seriously? She couldn’t even last one night?” 

“Couldn’t even make it off the couch.” Ruby informed her oh so helpfully, and Yang groaned, massaging her temples in irritation. She just wanted to fucking sleep. “Back door?” 

There was a joke there, but thankfully Ruby didn’t take it. “Locked.” She said, shaking her head. “We never open it. So are the windows, probably. And I don’t have my key.” 

Yang groaned again, louder, dropping down into a crouch and digging her palms into her eyes despairingly. “Fuck. We really are going to be sleeping outside.”  

The night had been going so well, too. Drank some drinks, had some laughs, didn’t fuck her sister. Just banging on all cylinders, really. 

There was a thump from inside that sounded like a body hitting the ground, and they both twitched. “Seems like we might.” Ruby commiserated, and stuck out a hand towards her. “But let’s not do it here, ‘k?” 

Yang grasped it, letting herself be hauled up, and together they started back down the drive, wandering out into the streets again. 

They were both way too buzzed to make more alcohol a good idea. But when Ruby leaned over and nudged her arm, angling her head towards a gas station on the other side of the road, Yang just nodded along and followed after as she hopped off the curb. 

And if, maybe, deep down, buried underneath everything else, some part her was just hoping they’d get drunk enough to do something stupid, she didn’t acknowledge it enough to give the idea any traction. 

The lighting inside the gas station was stark white after the dark streets, abandoned except for a sullen looking cashier leaning heavily on the counter at the front. Yang trailed along as Ruby cut a path towards the refrigerated section. She’d kind of just been expecting to find beers, but apparently Vale was a bit more lax with it’s alcohol laws, because there was a whole shelf of liquors near the back. Yang naturally gravitated towards the bottle of bourbon she saw sitting near the top, but Ruby tugged her around before she reached it, pointing out a liter of something clear. 

“It's from Menagerie.” Ruby explained as Yang retrieved it from the fridge and examined the bottle, turning it in her hands. “They call it rice wine.” 

“Oh.” Her interest dimmed. Wine had never done much for her. Still, Ruby seemed excited about it, so she rang it up, and then they spilled back out into the night again. 

There was nowhere to really go- pretty much everything was closed by now. Briefly, they thought about heading back to the restaurant to waste away the rest of the night, but it was quickly decided that it was too far away, so instead they just wandered in the opposite direction. 

They finally ended up dragging to a stop at a bench at the edge of the beach, set on the edge of a sidewalk that pressed right up against the sand. There was a small but steady breeze coming off of the ocean to cool the air, and the crash of waves hitting the shore drifted towards them across the sand. 

Ruby plopped down on it with a loud sigh, leaning back and kicking her slippers off. “Come on.” She patted the seat next to her. “Pretty sure we’re going to be here a while, so,” She shrugged, cracking the top off the bottle. Taking a shallow swig, she sighed again, relaxing back and offering it towards her. 

Yang took it, still eyeing it skeptically. Ruby was watching, though, and it wasn’t like there was anything else to do, so with a mental shrug she tipped it back. 

It tasted- she didn’t really know. Sweet, in a sort of not-sugary way. Warm, almost, despite the fact that it was still chilled from the fridge. Sort of forgettable, but not bad. More mild than bland. 

She liked it, she decided. She took another, deeper drink, letting it sit in her mouth for a few seconds, swirling it around her tongue. 

Ruby shifted her weight on the bench, rolling to half turn towards her and lifting her eyebrows. “Uh, you might want to slow down a bit.” She cautioned. “It’s not as weak as it tastes.” 

Yang shrugged her off. “It’s fine.” She said. “I’m barely even drunk anymore.” They’d meandered about for nearly three miles by her estimate, and the beers were nothing but soft static beneath her skin. 

Ruby made a little noise of disbelief as she watched her take a third pull, but just sat back against the bench. “If you say so.” She said, not objecting again. Flinging a hand out, she wiggled her fingers towards her. “Gimme some first, if you’re gonna drain the whole thing like that.” 

Yang smirked but obliged, leaning against the back of the bench and passing it forwards. 

 

“Who the fuck.” Yang asked into the night air a half an hour later. “Called this stuff wine?” 

Yang might be willing to admit, with some convincing, that gulping down a bunch of unknown alcohol after riding a buzz for the better part of six hours may, possibly, have not been the most well thought out of plans.  

Currently, she was sitting on the bench, staring out at the black ocean without seeing anything, holding perfectly still and hoping it would help with the way her head felt like it might fall off and roll away at any moment.  

Ruby snickered from someplace outside of her field of view. “That’s what it is, Yang.” 

“Lies.” 

A finger poked at her arm, jostling her. “Just because you’re a lightweight doesn’t change the facts.” The finger prodded again, harder, nearly tipping her over, and Yang had to clamp a hand on the back of the bench to stay upright, feeling the world spin. Ruby laughed, and Yang did her best to glower in the direction it came from. 

Rice wine was bullshit, she decided. 

They were apparently supposed to use these little cups the size of shot glasses to drink it, according to Ruby, and in hindsight that really should have been a bigger tip off than it was that just taking swigs straight from the bottle instead was going to be a bad idea. Then again, she’d also said you were supposed to drink it warm, and that just sounded objectively stupid, so it really wasn’t Yang’s fault for ignoring her. 

“If this is wine.” She decided, after much grueling, laborious thought. “I wanna drink some actual alcohol from Menagerie. That stuff must be awesome." 

Ruby laughed again, louder, and then a hand abruptly shoved at her shoulder. Yang's fingers slipped on the back of the bench, and she went toppling to the side. She only barely managed to stop herself from falling all together by hooking her foot under the edge of the seat, leaving her dangling precariously over the edge of the bench. 

"Wow." Ruby's voice came from higher up, and then she entered her view, walking around towards her. She dropped down into a crouch in front of her face, and Yang blinked at her, trying to make her eyes focus. Ruby snickered, poking her in the forehead, making her sway. "I think I win this round, Yang." 

"No." Yang denied stubbornly. It was ruined by the fact that her foot slipped as she spoke, and she began slowly sliding to the ground despite her best efforts. "No. This isn't fair. I was tricked. Bamboozled-" 

Her foot finally slipped free entirely, and then her back hit the sidewalk hard enough to force a burst of air out of her chest. 

From the corner of her eye, she saw Ruby snort so hard she tipped over backwards, having to catch herself with a hand behind her. "Oh yeah." She snickered. "It was utter shenanigans. Complete flimflammery. A total boondoggle." 

"Exactly." Yang agreed, pleased, and Ruby snorted again. 

“Fine.” She conceded, and rocked forwards onto her knees, bending over Yang and tugging her upright by her jacket. “I guess I should have said something when you started chugging it. The score is probably moot by now, anyway.” 

Yang nodded in agreement, liking the sound of that. Mostly because she was pretty sure the night hadn’t been going in her favor. Even before she drank herself halfway to paralysis. 

Ruby pulled her around until she was sitting up again, settling her back against the edge of the bench. Hands pressed against her shoulders for a moment to make sure she was steady, and then Ruby stood. "Stay there. I’ll be back in a minute." 

"What?" Yang jolted out of her sleepy daze, managing to roll over onto her side, looking in the direction of her voice. "Wait." She stretched a hand out blindly across the sandy cement. "Seriously? You can't just- can't just leave me here-” 

She lost balance and flopped over onto her side again, and somehow the jolt startled her into laughing. She tried to speak again, but the words just broke down into more breathless giggles, because God, she was so fucked right now. Her back bounced against the concrete as she lay there cackling like an idiot, covering her face with her arms as she continued to shake helplessly. 

“Yang.” Came the sigh from somewhere above her, sounding annoyed, but also mixed with unwilling amusement. Sand crunched next to her, and Yang turned, lashing out. Her hands found Ruby’s ankle and she latched on, clamping her fingers around it. 

“Oh my God.” Ruby knelt down next to her, trying to tug her off, but Yang held tight. “Seriously, I’m going to be right back.” 

“No.” 

“Yang.”  

“No.”  

“Ugh.” Ruby sighed in disgust, before finally giving up. “Fine. Come on then, you overgrown baby.” 

Ruby gripped her by the wrists and planted her feet, leaning back and hauling her upright. Yang swayed dangerously, and probably would have fallen, but Ruby caught her before she could, sliding into her side and pulling Yang’s arm over her shoulders.  

Yang’s feet kept dragging against the sidewalk as they staggered along, making them tip dangerously more than once, but somehow Ruby managed to keep them from falling. 

She lowered Yang to the ground when they arrived, propping her up against a wall. Next to a vending machine, she noted. It was brighter here, a light hanging nearly directly overhead. Some kind of little pavilion, with a roof stretched out over their heads, and she could see a deserted parking lot laid out in front of her. 

Ruby dug through Yang’s pockets after she put her down, searching until she found her wallet. Opening it, she thumbed through it and pulled out the handful of bills still remaining before tossing it back onto her lap, standing. Yang closed her hand around it, and then tilted her head back, peering up at her. “Are you robbing me right now?” 

“Shut up.” Ruby groused, kicking her just a little too hard in the ankle. “If you’re gonna make me haul you all the way over here, then you’re gonna pay.” 

That sounded fair enough. Yang tugged her jacket around until she could stuff her wallet into one of the pockets, and then relaxed back against the wall, letting her eyes slide shut. 

The vending machine shook next to her, followed by two loud thunks. She heard Ruby kneel down in front of her, and then she caught her wrist, pulling it up. A can was pressed into her hand, and Yang wrapped her fingers around it by force of habit. Opening her eyes, she blinked down at it. “What is this?”  

“Double espresso red bull.” Ruby dropped back and flopped onto the ground, sitting with her legs crossed as she cracked open her own can. “I really need you to wake up, ‘cause I’m not dragging your metal ass all the way back to the house by myself.” 

She didn’t really want to be awake right now. But then, she also didn’t really want to pass out next to what was probably a public restroom, now that she thought about it, so she just nodded and pressed it to her teeth. 

They fell into silence, sitting across from each other and drinking their cans. Ruby was watching her like she was ready to shake her awake if she started to fall asleep, but Yang just stared past her towards the road, watching the occasional car drive past. The waves crashed in the distance, the wind whistled faintly through the pavilion, and the clouds had finally blown away, leaving the sky empty and clear. 

"Plus." Yang spoke up suddenly a minute later, speaking towards the empty lot. "I drank more than you, anyways. That means I win." 

“Oh my God.” Ruby said, sounding half an inch away from laughing at her again. "Fine.” She rolled to her feet and then lifted one leg, nudging her in the ribs with a toe. “Alright, miss champion. If you can walk back to the bench by yourself, you can have the win." 

Dang. "Let me finish this first." Yang diverted, shaking her can at her. 

"Why?" 

"Because I'm going to spill it when I fall over." 

Ruby did laugh then, taking a couple steps back until she could sag against one of the columns at the edge of the pavilion, waiting. Yang tried to drink slowly, hoping without much hope that the world would stop moving around her if she managed to stay there a few minutes longer.  

Surprisingly though, it actually seemed to work. By the time she tossed the can away, she was feeling awake enough to at least focus on what was directly in front of her. 

With caffeine in her veins, Yang managed to totter her way to her feet. One of her legs gave out, but she caught herself on the wall and shoved herself upright again, locking her knees. Ruby looked faintly impressed. 

More confident now, she started forward. She overbalanced and nearly tipped, but managed to angle herself towards one of the posts, bracing her arm against it for a moment before shrugging away, and kept going. 

It was a long, arduous journey, filled with many perilous pitfalls and patches of sand, but in the end she did actually manage to walk all the way back to the bench without falling. 

She flopped back against it victoriously, sprawling out and crowing with satisfaction, and Ruby huffed from where she was standing a few feet back. She couldn’t hide her smile, though, and Yang grinned up at her impishly, feeling far too proud of herself. 

Ruby rolled her eyes as she perched next to her. “I’m still winning, Yang.” She told her, leaning over and flicking her on the forehead. 

Yang didn't falter, grinning up at her. “You said.” She reminded her with great relish. “That the rest of the score was moot.” 

“ Ugh.” Ruby growled, sagging in her seat. “You suck.”  

She was pouting again. The sight of it made Yang laugh, and Ruby grumbled under her breath, slouching lower and taking a sip from her can. 

Yang watched her sulk with a smile. She’d popped another button open on her shirt, Yang noted, tugging her sleeves halfway to her elbows in the warm night air. Her skin looked pale in the dark, seeming almost white against the black of her shirt.  

Taking a risk, she leaned over. She’d meant to just nudge Ruby with her elbow, but felt herself starting to lose her balance and changed course, planting it on her shoulder instead. “Hey.” Yang jostled her lightly, grinning when she continued to glower forwards, refusing to look at her. “Come on. Losing to me isn’t so bad. I mean, it’s not like it’s never happened before.” 

“Shut up, Yang.” Ruby tried to shove her off, but Yang just leaned further into it, using her weight to stay in place. 

“What are you so mad about, Art? I mean, I know I’m going to be sleeping in your bed while you’re laying out in the front lawn, but-” 

Ruby shrugged her shoulder roughly, knocking her elbow off, and Yang squawked as she overbalanced, falling forwards. She landed halfway across Ruby’s lap, who immediately began slapping at her, and Yang laughed, raising her arms to defend herself. 

"You-" Ruby growled, pounding her fists against them. "You. Are. Awful." She yanked at Yang's wrists to try to pull them away, swinging furiously at her head. "You are the worst-" 

Realizing that she wasn't going to be able to make it upright again, Yang changed tactics. Catching Ruby's arms, she threw her weight back and to the side, rolling off the edge of the bench and dragging Ruby with her. 

It was Ruby's turn to squawk as they tipped off the side, landing heavily on the ground. Yang tried to steal the advantage and roll on top, but she was already moving, shoving her away. Even drunk off her ass Yang would have the advantage in a wrestling match, so Ruby did her best to escape before she was trapped. 

She managed to scramble to her feet, turning to run, but Yang just barely snagged her ankle, tripping her onto the ground with a squeal. 

She reeled her in, hand over hand on her leg, dragging her closer. But then Ruby twisted around, landing a solid kick on her shoulder with a bare foot, and she lost her grip.  

Ruby slithered away quick as a flash, and Yang lunged after her, swiping at her leg desperately. She just managed to brush her heel, and she had a brief moment of hope as Ruby stumbled, but then she caught herself on her hands and darted away towards the beach.  

Yang shoved herself up, trying to follow, and made it about eight stumbling steps before falling on her face in the sand. 

Ruby laughed delightedly somewhere ahead, and Yang peeled herself up, shaking her head and wiping her face clean, spitting out sand. 

"What's wrong, Yang?" Ruby teased. Close. Yang turned and leapt in her direction like some kind of overweight bullfrog, hands outstretched.  

Ruby practically danced away, skipping back across the sand with her arms linked behind her. A wide grin split her face, and her skin flashing bright against black hair and black shirt and black ocean, burning her eyes like the stars against the deep black sky.  

It pulled at Yang like a red flag to a bull, and she hauled herself to her feet again with a growl, giving chase. 

It was utterly hopeless from the very start. Ruby quite literally ran circles around her, bare feet kicking up arcs of sand as she flitted about, while Yang could only lumber after her, spending half as much time on the ground as she did on her feet. 

It was as they were circling back around towards the bench, though, that Yang got the reminder that inebriated as she was, Ruby wasn't exactly stone cold sober either. As she was running ahead, her foot seemed to slip on the sand and she went staggering sideways. She managed to stay on her feet for nearly half a dozen steps before finally going down, landing lengthwise across the sidewalk. 

Yang quite literally dove on the opportunity, lunging forwards and catching her by the ankles. Ruby shrieked, kicking wildly to try to break free, but Yang didn't give her the chance, dragging her down and climbing up her body until she was on top of her. 

Ruby writhed beneath her, kicking and bucking her hips, pounding at her shoulders, but Yang hardly budged an inch. Finally she gave up and flopped back against the sidewalk, breathing hard. 

"Dang it." She gasped out, sounding utterly spent, face flushed and sweating. She was laughing, though, tiny breathless giggles that managed to escape as she panted. The bottom of her shirt had ridden up, showing the edge of her ribs as her lungs swelled, and the unbuttoned collar of her shirt hung wide as her chest heaved for air. Her bra was black, too. 

She slapped at Yang one more time, bringing her fist down on the top of her head. “You are- fucking- awful.”  

Yang grinned, bending down to brace her elbow on the sidewalk next to her head. “But I’m you’re awful.” 

Ruby gasped out another breathless laugh, letting her arms drop to the ground. “You’re- an idiot.” 

Yang just grinned wider. “But I’m you’re-” She started, only to splutter and laugh when Ruby lifted a knee, digging it into her stomach. 

There was a smudge on the corner of Ruby's mouth, a bit of sand stuck to her cheek from when she'd fallen. Too easy, too drunk, too natural, Yang’s hand rose to touch her jaw, wiping it away with a thumb, still laughing.  

Ruby stopped.  

A second later realization hit her like a bullet, and Yang froze, fingers still laying against her cheek. 

She was laying on top of her. Their hips were pressed together, legs tangled. Ruby’s shirt was nearly halfway open, wide enough that she could see the swell of her breasts around the top, and she could feel her heartbeat thumping against her stomach.  

Their faces were close enough for their breaths to tangle in the air between them, and Yang watched her pupils swell wide as they stared into her own. Ruby’s neck worked as she swallowed, and then her lips parted as her tongue slipped out, wetting them. 

Yang stayed frozen, muscles stiff. Seconds ticked past without either of them moving. The moment slipped away, heat dimming to something softer, and still they stayed there, locked in a shadowed tableau. 

Yang swallowed. Not just 'Ruby's dad', she reminded herself again. Our dad. Her sister. She let out a shaky breath and focused on that thought. Firming her resolve, she started pulling back-  

And Ruby lunged forwards. 

It was like the tiny movement had triggered her instinct to strike, and suddenly Ruby was latching onto her head, shoving herself up and pulling Yang in to meet her. Their mouths crashed together hard enough to hurt, pain ringing in her head and making her gasp, and Ruby dove in, sinking her fingers into her hair and curling towards her. 

She and Ruby had been circling each other all night, like a pair of stars caught in each other's orbit, being dragged closer and closer until they collide, and the meeting of their lips was the impact that sparked the supernova. Heat exploded outwards from her lips, rushing into her skull, pouring down her spine, filling her all the way to her toes until she thought she would burst. Senses narrowed down to pure contact, and the world went spinning away without them, leaving them alone.  

Her back hit the ground and she realized Ruby had flipped them over, kneeling on top of her and crushing her head into the cement from how hard she kissed her. One of Ruby’s hands gripped the edge of the bench, the other a gripping a fistful of her hair and dragging her closer, Ruby’s mouth moving against hers like she’d suddenly realized that she was drowning and Yang was the only source of air.  

Kissing Ruby was like coming home. The feeling settled over her body, sank down through muscle and flesh, lodging itself in her bones. Yang’s hands rose without waiting for permission, gripping her hips before sliding upwards, dragging sand across her skin. Her fingers slid beneath her shirt, and a button popped as she forced her way further up, digging her nails into the hills of her spine, feeling the thundering of her heart and the heaving of her lungs beneath her palms. She brushed the strap of Ruby’s bra, and she wrapped her fingers around it, ready to rip it away- 

And then someone coughed from beside them.  

It took a second for the sound to register, and Yang paused, confused. And then the heat surging through her turned straight to ice, nearly numbing her with the shock of it, and she jerked away. Ruby did the same, shoving off Yang's shoulders and staggering unsteadily backwards, until she stepped off the sidewalk and her heel caught in the sand, dumping her right on her ass.  

A police officer was standing a few feet away, where he’d come from and how long he’d been there a complete mystery. He rubbed a thumb across his nose, looking very contrite. “Sorry, ladies.” He said, and sounded honestly apologetic. “But this is a public place. If you want to- continue.” He shrugged his shoulders, sucking on his cheek. “You’ve got to go someplace inside.” 

Yang stared at him, body frozen while her mind whirled. Did he live around here? Did Ruby Know him? Did he know Ruby? Did he know Tai ? Would he recognize them if he saw them together? Her mouth flapped silently, throat too tight to make a sound. 

Ruby stood, wiped the sand off her jeans, and turned and walked away. 

 It jolted her into movement again, and she scrambled to her feet. She spotted Ruby's slippers, sitting forgotten next to the bench. She bent to scoop them up as she passed, shooting one more look over her shoulder at the cop still standing there before hurrying after her. 

Ruby hadn’t waited for her and was already halfway down the block by the time she caught up. She didn’t glance in her direction as she slowed down, falling into step beside her.  

Yang winced. Not a great sign. 

She kicked herself, silently berating her own impulsiveness. Stupid, stupid, stupid. She’d known running off into the night with Ruby was stupid, known getting drunk was worse. And still, it had taken her all of an hour to be chugging alcohol and getting wasted like an idiot. 

Ruby still hadn’t so much as flicked an eye towards her. Yang shoved her hands into her jacket, hunching her shoulders. Fucking idiot. She sucked in a deep breath. "Ruby-" 

"Shut up." 

Well, that lasted long. Yang retreated into silence, falling back a couple steps so that she was trailing along behind her. 

At least the shock had managed to snap her back to being sober. The haze in her head was still there, but the prospect of sinking back into it was far less enticing than it had been a few minutes ago. 

Obviously, Ruby was still attracted to her. But even more obviously, she wasn’t interested in it going anywhere. She’d decided to do the smart thing- the right thing, and just back off, just let it die. She’d even been nice about it, even tried to stay friends with her, despite the fact Yang seemingly couldn’t go five minutes without flirting obnoxiously with her. 

Not anymore, though. Seemed like Yang had well and truly fucked this up now. She cursed her own utter lack of self-restraint as they continued their silent walk back to the house. She blamed her mom for that, though she knew that was a cop-out even as she thought. It wasn’t her mom that had pinned Ruby to the ground and kissed her, knowing even as she did it that it was the last thing in the world she should ever consider doing. 

Ruby paused for a second on the last corner, hesitating. And then she took a sharp turn, heading down the road, away from the house. Yang hesitated a moment, uncertain if she should let her go or not, but in the end she had to follow, if only because Ruby hadn’t outright told her to fuck off yet. 

They headed towards the same gas station they'd gone into before. It was still open, but Ruby walked past the door without a glance, circling around the side. 

There were a few extra parking spots at the back, empty except for one car she figured was probably the cashier's. A fence pressed right up against the edge of the property, ten feet high and so overgrown with vines to turn it into a wall. There were no lights back here, the only illumination coming from a single street lamp over twenty feet away, leaving everything to be swallowed in shadow. 

Finally, Ruby stopped, facing away and leaning a shoulder against the wall. Yang trailed a few more steps closer before stopping, leaving a bit of space between them. 

She couldn't see Ruby's face in the dark. The silence stretched on as she waited, but Ruby only continued to simply stand there with her arms wrapped around herself, staring off at the thin strip of road visible around the edge of the building. Seconds continued to be dragged by, one painful tick of the clock after another, until finally she couldn't wait anymore. 

“Listen.” Yang started. “I'm really sorry about back there-“  

And then Ruby turned around, reached up to grab Yang’s hair, dragged her head down and kissed her.  

There was one single moment of stiffening, bone locking surprise, and then she melted.  

The slippers fell from her fingers. She never heard them hit the ground, arms already rising to wrap around Ruby, like it was the most basic of instincts, like they'd been genetically coded to pull her as close as possible, and then closer still. 

Finally Ruby broke away, lips red and wet, hair scattered across her face and breathing hard. She watched her for a long moment, still in Yang's arms, finger still gripping her hair, not saying anything.  

And then finally she tilted her head, angling back towards the street. “You still want the bed?” She asked quietly. 

It clogged up the air in Yang’s throat, made her tongue stick to the top of her mouth and turned words impossible. So instead she answered by tightening her grip on Ruby’s hips, pulling her in close and bending down to kiss her again. 

 

The living room was abandoned when they crept back inside, the TV still playing forgotten, empty bottles and cans littered across the table and floor.  

Ruby reached back and took her by the wrist, leading her across the room, up the stairs, down the hall, the two of them dashing through the darkened house as quietly as possible until Ruby stopped in front of a door and cracked it open, slipping inside and dragging Yang through behind her.  

Yang hardly saw the room; there was the faint impression of some kind of banner hanging like curtains in front of the window, of Christmas lights dangling loosely from the walls washing the room in a dim red and a lava lamp sitting on the desk, but all her focus was spent on the bed directly across from her. 

Ruby’s back hit the mattress, and she was already yanking at the button of her jeans, shoving them down her hips. Yang kicked her shoes away as she walked forwards, ripping her jacket off and dropping it behind her, but then she was out of time because she had already reached Ruby, and she wasn't going to waste one more second without touching her. 

She bent down, falling forwards and diving back into her. She slid her hand under her shirt, pressed a palm flat to Ruby’s stomach, heard her gasp next to her ear at the touch, and it was like coming to life again. It was like seeing the world in color for the first time, after months and months of washed out hues and faded sunlight without Ruby there to brighten it. She was hyper aware of every place their skin touched, sparks pouring into her with each brush off contact, filling her up and drowning her head in a mind in a haze. 

She slid her hand down to grip her hip, wrapped her other hand around her back, dragging her closer and pressing her lips against Ruby’s neck, and the sheer relief of it was beyond anything she could have imagined. She gripped the edge of her shirt, yanking it open with the sound of tearing fabric and buttons flying, and Ruby was already arching her back off the mattress even before they had settled, reaching behind her to fumble the clasp of her bra and shrug out down her arms, flinging it away. 

But the call she heard was different, lower, and Yang slid her hand down her stomach. Ruby stuttered to a stop and groaned as her fingers slipped beneath her underwear, between her legs. Her nails bit into the back of Yang’s neck, half finished words falling past her lips as Yang stroked over her. Her thumb found her clit, rubbing it in small, fast circles, and Ruby went rigid, voice choking off as she bit her lip to keep it back. 

She was soaking wet, and when Yang finally pulled back and lined up her fingers they slid in so easily she shuddered, sinking inside her in one smooth push. She changed her angle, searching for the spot she knew was there, and then Ruby’s spine was arching off the sheets, nails scratching at the back of Yang’s neck as her mouth stretched wide, and Yang bent down to cover with her own, swallowing the noises that tried to escape. 

“Fuck, Yang.” Ruby gasped against her. The words were filled with all the silences of the last two months, all the things that hadn't dared to be said. She struggled with them now, mouth contorting around them, eyes wide and desperate. “Fuck, Yang I- I-“  

“I know.” Yang assured her lowly. “I know.” She worked her fingers faster, sliding a hand up to cradle the back of her head, drawing her in closer. “It’s ok, Ruby. Just let it go.” 

Ruby shuddered as she came, curling in towards Yang and pressing her face to her chest to muffle herself. 

It was almost a full minute later before she finally slowed, and Yang gripped a handful of her hair, tugging her head back so she could kiss her again. There was a tiny voice buzzing at the back of her head, still. That this was wrong, that she was disgusting, that she needed to stop, this could only ever end badly for both of them. But it was so faint and so far away, and so, so easily covered by the way Ruby raised her chin, using the hands on her neck to pull herself up. 

Fingers caught hold of the edge of her shirt, tugging at it insistently, and Yang finally broke their kiss to lean back, raising her arms to let Ruby tug it up and off. A hand found her hair again, and Yang didn’t resist as she was pulled down onto the bed, and Ruby immediately rolled over on top of her. She kissed her again, hard, but pulled back after only a few seconds. 

She shuffled lower, between Yang’s legs. “Stay there.” She whispered lowly, tugging at the button of Yang’s pants. She pulled it free, and then sank her fingers into her waistband. “It’s my turn.” 

Yang made no protest as her pants were tugged over her hips, down her legs and kicked away. Her underwear was next, but it didn’t quite make it to the floor, tangling around one of her ankles no matter how she tried to shake it off. 

And then Ruby was kneeling down at the edge of the bed below her, lifting her legs up to settle them over her shoulders, and the minor annoyance was blown away to ashes as her lips touched her pussy. 

Yang gasped aloud, legs kicking in the air above the floor, and Ruby wrapped her arms around them to hold them still, nails digging into her thighs. Her tongue pressed flat, dragging up in a long, slow stroke before lips wrapped around her clit and sucked, and Yang clutched at the sheets with one hand while clamping the other over her mouth, her muffled moans filtering past her fingers to drift through the air, pressing dangerously against the walls. 

Ruby let go, breathing out a tiny laugh, and the sound was close enough to shiver across her skin, sinking through and spreading out like a heat wave. “Having trouble, Yang?” She murmured quietly, silver eyes glinting between her legs in the dim red light of the room. “I can gag you if you need some help.” 

Yang squeezed her own eyes shut, and wondered if the feeling squeezing up against her heart was her going insane. 

 

---

 

The next morning found Yang sat next to her mother at the table, both of them hunched over in near identical positions, with their elbows on the table and their heads in their hands.  

Summer bustled around the kitchen, bouncing from side to side, keeping half a dozen things going at once, save the smells of cooking food wafted through the house, mixing together. 

For once, Yang wasn’t interested. Her stomach felt like it was one hard knot, twisting in on itself ever tighter, and it was only partly because of the slight hangover pulsing behind her temples. 

Something had changed last night. She wasn’t sure what. She didn't know, but she got the feeling it was big, and bad, and probably something that should never, ever have been touched. 

The fact that she couldn't make herself regret it kind of just made it worse. 

But, there was a slight comfort in knowing that she wasn't the only one who had fucked up royally last night, at least.

Her mom looked- wrecked, basically. Her hair was wet, but it seemed more like she’d fallen in a lake than taken a shower. It was tangled, there were red marks tracked across her arms, her shirt was too small, and, Yang noted, inside out. She had already been there when Yang sat down, and hadn’t moved an inch from her slumped over pose in the time since. 

Summer was just about the opposite. She was practically singing, doing a little spin now and again as she worked. Not even the solid black ring still on her counter seemed to be able to dampen her mood, though she did take the time to set a platter over it. Her own shirt was actually the right side round, but looked like it was a size too big, and it was loose around her shoulders. Her hair was tied up in a sloppy bun behind her head, and it really made the bite mark on the back of her neck basically impossible to ignore. Yang’s eyes followed it as she shuffled around the stove, flipping eggs and sliding bacon onto a plate.  

She hummed low in her throat, sliding her eyes over towards her mom. 

“Good night?”  

“Go fuck yourself.”  

There was movement from the stairs. Ruby walked down them slowly, hair still wet from a shower, skin tinted slightly red from the hot water. Her eyes swept across the room, searching until they found hers, and then they stopped. Her face was expressionless as she made her way across the room towards her, but she didn’t seem upset, and she didn’t shy away, dropping into the seat across from her. She was wearing a button up shirt again, but this time it was tucked right up to the underside of her chin, hiding her neck. The sight of it made Yang’s own neck itch beneath the scarf she had wrapped around it. Their eyes met again, and then Yang dropped her face, looking away.  

“Good night?” Her mom muttered acidly.  

Yang sighed, pressing her knuckles to her eyes.  “Why are you such a bitch, mom.”  

Ruby’s blank mask finally cracked, and she snorted, a tiny grin tugging at the corner of her lips. 

Summer came trotting over with a smile, plates of food piled along her arms, and she really wasn’t making any effort at all to hide that hickey riding along her collar. Ruby just looked at it and sighed before taking her plate silently, shoving a piece of bacon into her mouth.  

Summer settled a hand on Raven’s shoulders and dipped down to press a quick kiss to her cheek as she slid her plate in front of her, and her mother glowered down at the food like it had personally offended her.  

"Mom." Ruby called sourly from her spot at the table. "Still right here." 

"There's nothing wrong with reuniting with an old friend, Ruby." 

"Uh huh. And how many other 'friends' do you and dad have?" 

"Oh, plenty." Summer said easily, and Yang watched her mother's head snap towards her. "But not like Raven, here." She continued on. "She's family." Summer patted Raven on the head reassuringly, but the smile she favored her with as she placed a cup in front of her was just a little too teasing to pass for innocent. 

Her mom sank down her chair, pulling it towards her and grumbling into it as she took a drink. And then paused, face nose wrinkling up as she pulled back. "What is this?"  

"Water." Summer answered as she breezed away. "You drink too much, Raven. It's not good for you."  

Yang raised her head, looking over hopefully. "Can I get one of those?" 

Summer tutted happily as she flipped a set of hash browns. "See? You should listen to Yang more-" 

"She is not better than me." Raven cut in flatly, and Yang winced, sinking lower in her chair. 

Summer shot her a narrow-eyed look. "At least she still has her manners. In fact." She straightened up and turned, propping her pan on her hip and leveling a pointed stare on her from across the room. "Isn't there something you wanted to say to your daughter, Raven?" 

Her mom didn't look up from where she was trying to glare a hole in the table, speaking like she was reading off a script. "I am very sorry for my behavior last night, Yang. It was insensitive to you, and it won't happen again." 

Yang stared. "The fuck did they do to you?" 

Summer positively cackled from the kitchen, and her mother just dropped her head to the table with a thud. 

Ruby only snorted, eyeing the top of her head. "So this is how you guys treat family, huh?" 

"It's how you treat family." Raven shot back. It was mumbled it into the table, too quiet for Summer to hear, but Yang still felt blood rush to her face, and she ducked her head, hiding it in her arms. 

But Ruby actually laughed under her breath. “Guess so.” She agreed, just as quiet, and when Yang peeked over the edge of her arms she was watching her, lips still curled up. Her face heated again, and she retreated back into hiding. 

A plate clicked against the table in front of her, along with another glass of water. Summer’s hand pressed against her back, and felt her leaning over her. "Oh Yang, you look awful. I’m sorry, we really didn’t mean to kick you out like that. Were you and Ruby up all night?” 

Yang thought her face might be on fire by now. She slid deeper down, doing her best to sink straight through the table. 

It only got worse when Ruby spoke up from across from her, amusement in her tone. “Not quite. She fell asleep for maybe an hour or so. I stayed up.” The last part was tacked on at the end, obviously directed towards her, and Yang would have flipped her off if Summer wasn’t still hovering over her. 

“I’m so sorry, dear. You and Raven can sleep in today. Ruby,” Her hand lifted away as she straightened, turning on her daughter. “You have to be in class in twenty minutes, so we’d better leave now. You can eat on the way.” She told her, and Ruby hummed agreeably.  

Summer’s footsteps retreated towards the front door, and keys jangled. “I’ll be in the car, Ruby. Tai is still upstairs.” She called back, the last bit aimed towards them. “He should be up soon, but if you need anything feel free to go get him.” 

Yang was fairly certain you could put a gun to her head and she still wouldn’t enter that room, but she didn’t argue. The door swung open before a car rumbled to life in the driveway, and she sighed in relief, finally straightening. 

A hand settled on Yang's shoulder. She turned towards it, just in time to meet Ruby as she leaned in.  

Ruby kissed her, on the lips, right there in the kitchen, not even trying to be subtle.   

She pulled away a moment later, gave her shoulder a quick squeeze, and then walked past her out of the room after Summer.  

Yang stared after her even after the door closed behind her, still frozen with her hand half raised towards her. 

“We’re fucked.” Her mom said flatly from behind her.  

And really, Yang couldn’t argue with that. 

Notes:

15,000 words in a week(ish) isn't bad, imo. Originally this was supposed to have some extra scenes, but I had to cut some chunks off. One of those was the smut scene, which is really short and ends pretty abruptly I know, but I literally just finished this and the plot took priority (blasphemy), and, if we're being honest, sex scenes don't usually add much to the narrative.

Yet again, I started late, finished late, and had to shove this out the door before it was really finished, but it seems to have worked out so for so I'm still hopeful, even if I wish I could work on it more.

Again, please tell me your favorite bits, least favorite, etc. Also, tell me how you feel like it stacks up to the other two, because like I said I was rushing hard.
And when I say 'least favorite parts', I'm being genuine. Criticism is welcomed. Just pick one negative and throw it in there. No one like to leave bad reviews on this site for some reason XD

Notes:

This is how I imagine Raven would act if she didn't have the stress relief of just murdering everyone who annoyed her.

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I really don't like the last bit of this, starting from when Summer shows up. It's basically a Frankenstein-type monster, patched together from six different drafts.
But I only just finished this last night, and I needed to sleep, so this is what you get. Maybe I'll fix it one day.
 

Also, if anyone is wondering, the drink 'Two Roses' is just a rip off of the actual whiskey called 'Four Roses'. Try it, it's pretty good.

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Since people are asking, I do have vague plans for a second chapter, but I haven't even really started writing it. It probably will get a follow up eventually, but not for a while yet.

Thank you to everyone who reviewed. Know that I do read and appreciate every one, even if I don't reply. I just don't like artificially inflating the review count with my own reviews.