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In Close Quarters
"Oh. You're still alive."
"Don't sound so disappointed, I might think you don't like me."
Winter groaned, rolling her eyes and crossing her arms. 'Like him?' She couldn't stand the man standing in front of her- his easygoing arrogance radiated off of his slouching form as he leaned one elbow against the railing leading up to the elevator.
"What are you even doing here, Qrow Branwen?" she muttered bitterly. Even seeing the man made her blood boil, the memory of the tongue-lashing General Ironwood had given her the day before still ever-present in her mind. At the thought of the reprimanding of a lifetime, Qrow's relaxed manner was driving her mad. How dare this man have made such a fool of her the day before, and yet still have the gall to stand there as if he had done nothing wrong?!
It wasn't like it was the first time he had picked a fight with her. Ever since they had first met four years earlier, when he had been on a mission that brought him to Atlas while she was still a cadet, he had been condescending and egotistical, sparring with her almost as a joke after riling her up by insulting her family name. The thought of their most recent encounter struck a chord of shame in her heart. Although she knew how he liked to get under her skin, how could she still react like a petulant child every time? She fell into his trap constantly, and it drove her mad.
In just a breath, she made up her mind. "I'm taking the stairs," she huffed, stomping away with her head held as high as possible. She didn't want him to get to her, but between letting her annoyance show and spending more time with him, she'd give up a bit of her pride to escape his insufferable smirk any day.
Unfortunately, she barely got five steps away when his low, gravelly voice chuckled, "Y'know there aren't any stairs heading up to the very top. At least, none for public use."
And so, she was forced to spin on one high-heeled boot and walk back, keeping her face as neutral as possible. Do not pout, Winter, she told herself primly. Do not let this man make a fool of you further. You are better than that- than him. So, she returned to her previous position, standing at ease with her hands clasped behind her back. She closed her eyes as the elevator slowly made its way back down from the top, the dinging of the bell as it passed every floor nothing but a metronome maintaining the rhythm of her annoyance.
Finally, the lift arrived at the ground floor of the CCT. She waltzed gracefully in, pivoting on her heel to face the door. Pressing the button, she returned to standing at ease, closing her eyes once more. She needed to be alert and ready for the briefing to follow.
Much to her chagrin, she heard heavy footsteps saunter in as well, Qrow pressing the button after her. She opened an eye to peek at the buttons. Please be going up just a few floors…
…and he was going up to the very top floor, to Professor Ozpin's office. Of course she'd be stuck with him the entire ride up.
"So, did ol' Jimmy call you up?" the man asked after a moment.
She growled tightly, "Address him by name and rank, civilian."
"Oh- oh, I'm sorry, Little Miss Soldier," Qrow chuckled, placing a hand against his chest in mock-earnestness, a little bit of sorrow painted on his features as a joke. "Did-" he cleared his throat overdramatically, "-did General Jam- Jim- Jimothy Ironwood-"
"What is wrong with you?" she hissed, on edge.
At that, the man leaned his head back with a hearty, throaty laugh. "Ah, just messing with you," he teased, waving his hand light-heartedly. "Did your beloved General James Ironwood call you in?"
She scoffed. "He did, although I don't know why that concerns you." She turned away from him, focusing her gaze on buttons in front of her.
The man clicked his tongue. "Can't you recognize small talk? I don't know if you've realized, but this elevator ain't the fastest thing in the world." Almost as if to punctuate his point, the box chimed on the seventh floor, then after almost five seconds, it chimed once more. Her destination was over fifteen floors above their current location. This was going to be a long ride.
She paused, looking over him fully. He was dressed in his usual manner, with his fitting grey blazer, straight-legged slacks, and fluttering, tattered red cape. He looked so odd- nothing like the prim figures she was used to dealing with in Atlas. He was fit, though- she had to admit that. Even through his slightly rumpled clothing, his muscles pushed through lightly, ringed hands strong as they hung at his sides. Her eyes trailed up to his face, taking in the highly unprofessional five o'clock shadow (did the man even know what a razor was? It was 9 AM!) and the slightly gaunt, high cheekbones. She frowned. He wasn't wrinkled at all, despite what his grey-streaked hair might indicate- he was clearly around the same age as the General, but there was a wisdom to the set of his jaw, something that wasn't learned in any Academy. Hm. Her eyes slowly drifted up to his, falling upon-
-and he was watching her through this whole examination, a knowing smirk on his lips, red eyes mischievous and inviting.
She looked back to the front, puffing out her chest as if on parade. "Excuse me. I wasn't trained to deal with… ruffians."
"Ruffians?" Qrow roared with laughter once more. "That's a new one! I'd expected 'bastard' from one of his lackeys, but hey, that's cute. You really are more fun that your 'commanding officer', kid."
Winter's eye twitched. His laughter rang in her ears, echoing long after he quieted back down. It was an odd sound- low and throaty and… oddly enough, soothing. She shook the thought out of her head almost instantly. I clearly didn't sleep well last night, she thought, pinching the bridge of her nose. I should rectify that later. Maybe I can find a gap of time before I visit Weiss today.
Suddenly, the entire world seemed to shake. They were nearly at her destination, based on the numbers on the screen- but instead of arriving at the next floor, the wires suspending the elevator creaked and groaned, ghastly wails echoing up through the elevator shaft as the entire mechanism ground to a halt. She braced herself, maintaining her balance, clenching her hands tight behind her back, trying to retain her dignity in front of the older man. She could hear him giggling stupidly behind her when the screeching finally abated, and the elevator stopped moving entirely. "Oh, wow. I thought I told Oz we should get the maintenance guys on this thing a while ago." Stepping forward beside Winter, he leaned around her, reaching out one long, lean arm to press the elevator's help button. "Hello? There's two us in the elevator- we're sorta stuck here," he chuckled into the speaker.
Immediately, the help staff on call responded, "Sorry about that. Please remain calm- we'll send people to get that elevator up and running right away!"
"Thanks," he purred into the speaker before straightening up again. Winter flinched automatically as his arm brushed hers while he retreated back into the corner of the elevator he had occupied previously.
All was quiet. "So we're stuck. Fantastic."
"Uh, yeah, did you miss my plea for help?" the man said airily. She rolled her eyes, but held her stance true. She didn't need to engage with someone who obviously had so much contempt for not only her, but her leadership too.
But the more she thought about it, the more confused she was. "Why do you hate General Ironwood so much?" she asked before she could help herself. It truly baffled her- based on their sparring yesterday, along with every single other time, the man was clearly a skilled fighter. He hadn't even been trying yesterday! And yet, he had forced her back with such ease, dancing around her blows with nothing but a smile on his face and a lilt in his step. He hadn't even unleashed his true weapon, whereas she had resorted to using a summoning glyph! So why did such a formidable opponent detest her commanding officer?
"Because he's a sellout," Qrow replied almost instantly.
She bristled. "Sold out to what?"
Qrow reached into his jacket, and to her disgust, he pulled out his flask. Taking a quick swig of whatever poison he carried, he said loftily, "If you don't know already, then I ain't telling you. Only Oz can bring people in." Frowning, the man added, "Fat good it did bringing James in." His eyes narrowed, but as Winter watched, his expression shifted from absolute ease to worry, disappointment. He looked genuinely troubled, a stark difference to the constantly fickle man she had grown to detest so highly.
What in the world is Qrow's mission? She had asked General Ironwood numerous times that same question throughout her military career, but the man had never answered her. But she just had to know- what good did the man before her do for the world that forced even Professor Ozpin, headmaster of the strongest Huntsmen Academy, to rely on him so completely despite his drunkenness?
But there was a softness to him, too. When she had been leaving the central courtyard the day before, she had seen how tenderly he had addressed little Ruby. She had seen the warmth in his face as his niece had hung off his arm excitedly. It was so different from the man Winter had thought she already knew- that smile had been so loving, so utterly distant from the arrogance he always showed her.
Which smile was his real one?
"Why did you pick that fight yesterday?" she asked, voice barely a whisper.
He shrugged ruefully. "I'm… not sure. Spent time in the bar before that. Then, I saw your damn ship, and realized James was here, and…" He snorted. "What better way to annoy him than by making him look like a fool in front of the 'people he's here to protect'?"
Just like that, the sweet moment was gone. "You used me to make the Atlesian Military look bad?" she roared, furious in an instant. Any warmth or curiosity she felt towards him drained away. She leaned back against the opposite wall of the stuck elevator, keeping as far away from him as possible. Scum. Absolutely awful. What does anyone see in him?
He snapped out of his thoughtful trance, cocking his head as he looked over her uniform. Out of the blue, he commented, "Y'know, your little sis is friends with my niece. Tell her to lay off it, okay?" He snorted. "She's… apparently a little uptight."
"Watch your mouth about Weiss," Winter demanded instantly. No one spoke poorly of her younger sister. She'd never say it aloud, but Weiss was single-handedly the most important person in the world to her- no one talked down to her, not in front of Winter.
Qrow recognized her sensitivity to the topic immediately. His eyes narrowed, a devilish grin quirking his lips. "Oh, you're a protective big sis? I wouldn't have pegged you at that. Fair enough." He tucked his hands into his pockets casually, crossing his ankles. "Sure, sure. Ruby seems to love the kid anyways, so she can't be a bad kid."
"Weiss will be an amazing Huntress."
"I'm sure she will. Better than ol' James, anyways."
She stiffened, hand gripping the hilt of her saber momentarily. "Say what you will about me," she muttered testily, "but don't insult General Ironwood." The man was her role-model, her mentor- no matter what situation of 'selling out' Qrow was speaking of, there was absolutely no reason for the man to be so antagonistic towards her superior.
"Oh really?" He raised a brow, leaning back against the wall, crossing his arms. "And how're you gonna do that…"
She practically screamed in anger as she saw his thin lips quirk upwards, forming the words slowly, deliberately, thick lashes hanging heavy over blood-red eyes.
"…Ice Queen."
"How dare you keep calling me that?" she screeched, losing her sense of decorum completely. Why bother trying to maintain it, anyways? This ingrate was clearly undeserving of her respect! How could he just talk to her as if nothing had happened, even though she had clearly been threatened to be sent back to Atlas of all things if she 'didn't clean up her professionalism'?!
And yet, it was clear- this man hadn't suffered any repercussions for their fight! Yes, she had started it- yes, she had been the one to continue it- okay, and yes, she probably could've just ignored him and walked away, but goddammit he deserved a thrashing!
The more she thought about it, the angrier she grew. Was it because she was a woman that she wasn't allowed to fight in public? She had to maintain her poise, whereas he was allowed to get away with anything because 'that's what men do'? "And you think that you're so special because of whatever missions Professor Ozpin sends you on?!" By now, her chest was heaving with exertion, rage oozing out of every word. She punctuated each syllable with another stab of an accusing finger towards him, stepping closer and closer until she was jabbing her finger into his chest. In a distant corner of her mind, she recognized that the man wasn't even flinching at the attack, at her sudden proximity. All she honed in on was the fact that his smirk was growing even broader as she grew closer, ever confident even in the face of her rage.
Finally, she snapped. She felt every vein straining against her skin, frustration coursing through her body, alighting every nerve ending as she took one final step towards him, tilting her face upwards as she cried, "Wipe that snide smile off your-"
And then, she froze.
Somewhere along the way, she stopped realizing just how close she had gotten to him. Now, her face was a scant few inches away from his, close enough that she could see every hair of stubble on his chin, feel his breath upon her cheek, fresh and clean and (surprisingly) only slightly tinted with the scent of whiskey, almost pleasantly so. The sensation of his breath against her skin raised the hairs along her arms and the back of her neck, and she shuddered on instinct.
"Whaddya need, Winter Schnee?" he breathed, raising a brow, peering down a perfectly straight nose through heavy-lidded eyes. She gulped unconsciously, her own wide-eyed gaze transfixed on his, unable to tear her eyes away.
That was the first time he had ever said her full name.
…Has he always been this attractive? Wait, what?! Qrow Branwen wasn't 'attractive'- he was rude and unsightly, drunken and discourteous and disgusting and-
And his tongue flicked out of parted lips to moisten them, and she stopped breathing.
Suddenly, the elevator shook and trembled, and in a few seconds, the doors opened to General Ironwood's temporary office. She sprang away from the taller man as if burned, dropping her eyes to the floor and straightening out her uniform. Without casting him a second glance, she marched out of the door, saluting primly as the elevator began to shut, continuing its ascent.
"See ya around, Ice Queen," she heard Qrow drawl lazily through the closing elevator doors.
She shivered.
General Ironwood shook his head wearily, leaning against his desk. "You're late, Schnee."
"Sorry sir," she said automatically. "I entered the CCT precisely two minutes after your summons, sir. The elevator was stuck for a few minutes."
The man paused, concern in his eyes. "You were stuck in the elevator? I didn't realize it was stopped for so long. Don't worry about it, we have time." He paused, softening for a moment. "Sch- Winter. Are you alright?"
"Yessir, I'm fine."
"You're… you're very red. Are you feeling well?"
Her eyes shot wide open. The moment he drew attention to it, the heat in her cheeks and ears shot to the forefront of her mind. That man… damnit. She stuttered, "I'm- I'm fine sir. Don't worry. What did you need me for?"
With doubt still lingering in his gaze, he turned back to his large holo-screen, where the current positions of the Atlesian fleet were indicated upon a large map. As he began explaining their current troop positions and her duties for the day, she tuned out his words slowly, letting her mind drift back to the smirking man in the elevator.
He's still a disgrace to the Huntsmen name, she thought bitterly. Her heart still fluttered at the memory of her name on his lips. She'd never admit it, though.
-fin-