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When she had moved out it had been on the conditions of needing space, living with two siblings, their Dad, and the occasional Uncle who looked more like a bird than a man on most days to a two-bedroom apartment which they could barely afford on a firefighter’s salary made conditions, to be horrifically vague, rough.
Cinder knew she had never been the best eldest, she would sneak out often from the home which had been offered to her, she smoked, she drank, the first job she got was much less to prove to Tai and Qrow she could be responsible as much as it was to feed her wants rather than their needs.
But somehow, whether through idiocy or some feckless emotion the pair of older men had for her, she never found her key to their apartment going out of use. She always received a holiday invitation, and the countless times she saw her sisters would always include the telltale “Dad says hi!” From one of the two of them.
She had gone to school, university feeling more like a chore than a challenge but she eventually got a degree. Criminal Justice, funny enough, but the pain of finding a job in Vale with such a degree was not lost on her; it would have been easier to commit a crime, get caught, and treat the interrogation thereafter like an interview.
When she had landed a steady job in some office she barely could remember the name of, it was tedious and nightmarish work which was only made better by the smoker’s ledge two feet from her desk, did she move out. She left the couch she had in place for a bed, the bath-shower she had used since she was two, and the congested stench of someone’s BO in the air for an actual apartment.
By no means was it any better than what she had lived in with her family, but it was hers. She had a bed, with covers and pillows, a bathroom with a standing shower and plenty of room for her own kit of makeup and various other cruel medicines and fixers which she did not have to hide from anyone. A kitchen where she could prepare whatever meal she wanted at sizes which were not for a whole family. But most importantly she had a couch and a television to which she could decompress without someone talking her head off with nauseating nonsense.
Or, well, that was the idea.
Cinder had just gotten home from a long and cruel day, though they were all becoming that at this point. The elevator was getting maintenance, because of course it was, so she had to hike up the four flights of stairs to her room. She had taken her heels off a long while ago, leaving her in her blackened socks and her office wear. Some brief deep red undershirt and blackened slacks, her leather jacket was folded over her arm alongside her shoes and briefcase, which at least gave her comfort as she dragged herself upwards.
Coming to her floor with a harsh heaving sigh, her offhand patting her pockets just to preemptively chase off the fear of leaving her keys in her car and needing to go on that whole crusade again.
The gentle clinking of metal on metal from the pocket let her wash of black hair drop down with a sigh, stepping up and out of the stairwell and onto her floor. The tile work touched her sore feet with an immediate ping of relief, the welcome chill rushing through her sore legs; ignoring how just moments ago she was blistering with horror at the idea of a snowfall this evening over the radio.
Her shoulder slackened heavily with each step she took. Her offhand grabbing tight to the keys from her pocket as her other arm crossed tight over her middle, being mindful not to drop any of her belongings for the fear of needing to lean down to pick them up.
Something warm was needed tonight, perhaps she should finally use those mushrooms and steak she bought before they went bad. She could enjoy those with a little bit of a drink, Oum, maybe that would chase away the deplorable conversations she had with morons today.
Fantasising did her good enough pleasure for the brief few steps from the stairwell, passed the blockaded elevator, and onto her room ahead. The off white walls did this place such a disservice, like some sort of psych ward for tenants, but the enamel engrained upon it did at least feel comforting to her hand as she allowed it to ride alongside her between the space of her neighbour’s door and her own.
The image of her couch already nestling well in her mind, falling upon it, perhaps she would not even eat tonight and just fall there. She could wake up early, make a larger meal before work then she thought as her hand went from the wall and the outline of her door.
Her key clinked off of the door and made for its hole when she heard it. She specifically had gone after this apartment for its special sound proofing, supposedly it was supposed to be good enough to prevent even a headboard slamming against a wall from disturbing the next neighbour over. Yet, standing at her door, she swore she could hear yelps, laughter, and…
”Oh, you have got to be kidding.” Grunting, Cinder’s expression flashed between exhausted and a scowl, turning over her key and pressing the door open. The sounds immediately hit her, the shouts of the voices she knew all too well, the noise of her TV playing something it most assuredly did not usually.
It took her effort to place her bag down, stow her key away, and open the brief closet by her door. Her shoes clicked onto the rack therein where they were supposed to be, but finding their spot had been taken by a pair of rather dusty looking runners; she would ignore the boots beside the rack for now just to not explode another gasket.
Scowling all the more so as she saw that, upon looking up from the rack, that in line with her various other coats and jackets she had acquired with her hefty salary, the dull yellow letterman was hanging right next to the brilliantly red mackinaw jacket.
Cinder held her gaze on those two pieces for a moment, golden eyes almost burning with their focus, before she spat a sigh, grabbed another hanger, delicately placed her jacket upon it, removed her house shoes, and slid the closet shut. Taking up her briefcase, weighing heavy in her hand, as she drew her other hand to her face. Sighing as she drew it up and over and backward through her mane of blackened hair, the scowl reinforcing itself naturally as she heard her couch squeak against the floor alongside another hailing noise of shouting and speaker wailing.
With a flurry she slid her feet into the blackened slippers, walking then with a brisk pace out of the entryway and around the corner; finally allowing her a full view of her living room and the uninvited guests she had been unknowingly hosting.
Her sisters were sitting on her couch, the pillows and other accessories for it laying strewn between them, as they shouted and gawked at her TV. From where Cinder stood she could see they had brought over a game console, a snide colourful thing, which Cinder could fully make out that they were playing some sort of fighting game.
“Quick, friggen, spamming that dude.” Yang gurgled, fully leaning forward onto her knees, the rattle of her controller’s plastic snapping back and forth. “It’s so stupid, Ruby, come on.”
“Block it then.” Ruby snapped back, laughing as she did so. The youngest reclining much further back into the couch as she clearly delved into her smugness. “Or, I don’t know, why don’t you try and get better at the game?” Laughing again in a far sharper manner as her character spiked Yang’s off of the map.
Cinder groaned as she watched a sign flash which read five-nine, the pair had clearly been there for a long while. Worse yet they had not heard her come in. “You know when I gave you two a key,” Cinder said, a distinct tone to her making the pair of younger women jump, as Cinder crossed from the entryway over to her kitchen, “I did so on the expectation it was for emergencies, not just crashing here.”
Her voice dawdled off as she came to her island, placing her briefcase atop it, and seeing the pair of pizza boxes left astray. Flicking one of them open with a half interested look in her eyes, half eaten but a kind she did not horrifically hate. Removing her wallet, keys, and phone and placing them aimlessly on the island askew from the boxes.
“Heya, Cin!” Ruby yelled out, flicking a glance over to the eldest of the three from where she reclined. “How’re you doing?” She asked, innocent enough, though most things the girl did Cinder was convinced were.
“What’s up?” The other sister, however, barely changed her tone or removed her eyes from the TV. “Ruby, oh my Oum, quit it.” Still distinctly enamoured with the screen and game they were playing; apparently looking to get a jump on Ruby but by the telltale sound of it Ruby was back to spamming her controller.
Cinder grumbled, her lips twisting something sour, as she sighed and rounded her kitchen. “Why are you two here?” She bellowed, “And turn that thing down.” Pointing with a threatening finger, “This place is soundproofed but holy shit I need to hear myself think.”
It drew a laugh from Ruby and a small huff from Yang, but they obeyed well enough anyway. Taking up the TV’s remote then turning the volume a considerable way down, Ruby then gently placed it back on the table before them.
“Dad is on the late shift tonight and tomorrow, got called in cause someone called out sick.” Yang sighed, evidently losing this battle again as another flash and low volume noise outlined five-ten. “And Qrow is out of town marking exams, won’t be back until tomorrow night.” Shrugging then as she threw her controller gently to the side of her, hitting Ruby’s leg.
The youngest flashed a smug smile at the blonde, who flipped her off in return. “So we just thought we’d swing by where it is safe and warm.” Ruby looked back to Cinder, batting her lashes as she did so. “Y’know, like you told us we could if we ever needed to have a place?”
“Yeah.” Cinder scoffed, reaching to one of her tallest cabinets and producing a bottle of whiskey from it. Mercifully the cretins had not been into this yet, though she doubted either of them could reach it. “But being alone in an apartment is not what I would call unsafe, how did you even get let in by the desk?” She shook her head, turning and glancing over her shoulder.
“Tuckson likes us.” Yang replied, pressing herself to stand with a hearty stretch, tapping Ruby on the knee in due course. “And he knows we’re your darling little sisters.”
She sighed, “Yeah, and anything you two do is on my ass.” Cinder turned back, pouring a healthy amount of the bottle into an Augustine glass.
“Which is looking larger every time we see you.” Yang muttered with a leaking sarcastic snarl. “Did you choose to dress up like some mid-life crisis lawyer off of TV or is it a part of the uniform?” The blonde all but fell into a lean on the kitchen island behind Cinder as Ruby similarly hurried over beside her middle sister.
“Oh don’t be mean, it’s a good look.” Ruby laughed with an eye roll, laying on top of Yang practically. “I like the glossy red, it really brings out the bitch in your eyes.”
“You two are doing a terrible impression of people who want to keep their key.” Cinder snarled, turning back around. Leaning backward on the granite behind her as she drew one arm across her and held her glass in the air. “And you two are ones to talk, you ate half of two pizzas between the two of you and I saw your jackets and boots in the hall.” Making a small gesture to the entryway. “You look like you just rolled off of the truck from Clint’s Outdoor Apparel and Dad’s R Us.”
Yang smirked and flexed, “Yeah but we pull those looks off.” As Ruby just laughed at the commentary, letting Cinder roll her eyes before clapping a hand to the island. “Anyway, we didn’t want to pick through your food so we got our own.” Gesturing to the boxes, “Is it alright if we leave them here?”
“Like you would have the choice?” Cinder asked briefly, making a show of pressing off of the other counter and walking the brief step to the island. “Solved my dinner issues, I suppose.”
“What happened to ‘cooking just for yourself from now on’?” Ruby chirped, smirking as she removed herself from Yang’s back and stood on her own, crossing her arms with a prodding sort of look to her. “Or did you miss everyone’s compliments on the cooking?
A scoff drifted from her as she dragged the other pizza box open, spotting the basically untouched pineapple and ham with mushroom and unlocking a craving she did not know she had. “Well partially, you two did never end up shutting up about those meals.”
Yang laughed as Ruby cringed at the pizza, though she shrugged all the same. “I mean you and Dad were the cooks for a reason, now we’re tapping in a lot more.” She flicked her hand between her and Ruby.
“It is easy to make starving animals love you.” She prodded, taking a bite of the still warm slice, Cinder then using her drink to gesture between the pair. “Just make sure to properly season everything and make sure any meat you use is thoroughly cooked through.”
“Instructions unclear, eating medium rare chicken.” Ruby coughed out a snarky smile, though that just made Cinder shake her head and Yang snicker. “But y’know we are getting the hang of it, even brought by some leftovers for you.” Cinder’s brow flexed as Ruby nodded to the fridge.
Turning for the appliance and setting down her drink, Cinder all too quickly opened it and was faced down with a rather robust container. Removing it briefly from the ledge it was on to read the writing written on tape. “Mac N’ Sausage?” She smiled briefly. “I am glad you two still remember some of the classics.”
“Well, it was all you ever made for like five years.” Yang swaggered her shoulders a little bit, “But we made a ton, turns out watching someone make enough food for six people kinda is hard to shake off.” She added with a small wave as Cinder slid the container back into the fridge and sealed it.
“I appreciate the gesture.” Cinder hummed, she had to ignore how the container looked rather full compared to it being ‘just leftovers’. “I hardly have the time to cook in the week, though I suppose,” she gestured to the pizza, “I will not for the next little while, anyway.”
“What?” Yang chuckled, “Not gonna hose down four slices in one sitting like you used to?”
She did try and laugh at the thought, though subconsciously patting her stomach already just at the thought. “No, I do actually have something to watch my figure for now.”
“Oh?” Chirping again with a rather taut smirk, leaning on one arm to the table, Ruby glanced between Yang and Cinder, “What for? Is the office doing a swimsuit shoot?” Which drew a choked sort of laugh from Yang and another groan from Cinder.
“Aha ha ha.” Cinder mocked, taking a sip of her drink in the process. “What a wonder that Dad’s comedy skills went to her and you got Qrow’s.” Flashing a hand to Yang and Ruby in equal measure; making both of the girls look wounded in the process. Then draining the remainder of her whiskey before gesturing between the two of them. “Now, do either of you want a drink?”
“I feel like I need something to forget the idea of me sharing Dad’s jokes?” Yang yelped, hanging off of the island as she crouched, her eyes barely peeking over the edge of the granite. Ruby had done the same, though she had fallen into a chair behind her with a little more form than her sister.
Going back to the tall cupboard, rolling her eyes in the process as she placed the whiskey bottle back within it, and retrieved instead a bottle of red wine. “Don’t feel too bad, at least that book nerd likes puns.” She chuckled under her breath, rinsing out her former glass and retrieving two more.
The pair of sisters drew themselves back onto the table more properly, Ruby actually sitting in her chair as Yang similarly drew one out and set herself into it.
A sort of whistful look took to Yang as she hummed, smiling dumbly with a wandering tone. “She does though, which is nuts.” Chuckling as Cinder scoffed and set one glass of the red in front of her. “She laughed at a cat pun I made for five minutes on our last date.”
The blonde’s hand snaked around her glass, spinning the red fluid within it as she continued to look wistfully off into the air. Though the other pair just managed to look at her like a horror show as Cinder set down a drink in front of Ruby.
“I still cannot believe you two have crushes on people who you are actively dating.” Cinder scowled, taking hold of her own glass and sipping leisurely from it. Still letting her eyes linger over the rim of her drink towards Yang’s bumbling expression.
Though Ruby merely shrugged. “Isn’t it the point of a good relationship to be thoroughly invested in some?” She chuckled with a confused lilt for a moment. “Like every day I am just thankful Weiss and I met in some election class on history, what are the odds of an engineer and a poli-sci person even meeting otherwise?”
Another flippant eye roll bled from Cinder and allowed her to land on Ruby. “Oh, please.” Cinder coughed, “Little Winter would have been lost in that class with how she rambles, she’s lucky someone who can actually plan things like you came along.” A pointed gesture to Ruby coming from Cinder then. “She may be smart, but if she is anything like her sister she needs to be reigned in from doing everything.”
“Speaking of…” Ruby coughed, kicking Yang from her stupor underneath the island with a not so silent thud. Her sister spinning on her with a startled glance, which Ruby had to nod towards Cinder to affirm her meaning, before Yang cleared her throat with a nod.
“So how is your and Miss Schnee’s thing?” Ruby asked, both of the younger pair turning to Cinder with admittedly very needy looking eyes. The pair taking sips of their drinks in the process causing Cinder to blink in response.
“Fine… Why?” Cinder narrowed her eyes and furrowed her brow.
Yang shrugged, placing her drink down and leaning her head slightly forward. “Well, I mean it’s far from me to say, but according to Ruby, Weiss says some odd things.”
Cinder’s attention turned to the red-black haired sister. “Oh?”
Placing her drink down and slightly aside, Ruby was quick to raise her hands in a defensive manner. “Well it’s not that, it’s nothing bad, come on.” She chuckled, “Way to paint me into a corner, Yang.” Glaring with a souring smile out of the corner of her eye to her sister.
“Your words, not mine.” Yang coughed into her cup.
“Spit it out, Red.” Cinder said, her hands falling to the table wide and positioning her with a far more intimidating presence.
Ruby, once more, waved her hands ahead of her. “All Weiss said was her sister was working more now!” She laughed off her voice, doing her best to ignore her own panic as she locked eyes with Cinder’s golden glare. “And she was more distant than she usually is, just things Weiss noticed.”
Cinder held the pair's eyes for a moment more, like a shark on the edge of visibility in the water—waiting to see if it would strike or move on in feeling—forcing their bodies warm.
But, oddly, after perhaps a few moments of glaring, Ruby swore she watched as Cinder took a nervous gulp of air.
“Odd.” Cinder nodded, removing her hands from the table and taking up her glass again. “No, I haven’t noticed anything.” Shaking her head with a little bit of a spittle in her breath, before sipping again from the red.
“Woah woah, hold on.” Yang leaned forward as she spoke, pointing slightly as her other hand held onto the glass. “What was that, that little pause you did.”
Shaking her head, Cinder coughed. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“No, I saw it too.” Ruby nodded her head side to side in a goading manner, “Come on, Cinder, you can tell us anything which is bothering you.” She laughed slightly, glancing at Yang before returning to their eldest. “Come on, it's probably nothing serious, man?”
“Says you,” shaking her head with a brief huff, Cinder glanced between the pair before narrowing on Ruby, “the worst thing you have to be concerned with currently is grades and hanging around, don’t make me laugh.”
“Wow,” Yang chuffed, rising in her seat a bit, “really aggro for not a lot of reason.” Narrowing her sights on Cinder, a glare which was quickly returned by the eldest, though Ruby’s hand was quick to land on Yang’s arm and reel her back into the seat.
“Which is usually what she does when something is actually very stressful.” Ruby said with a purposeful glance to Yang, “It’s alright.” Before she turned back to Cinder. “Y’know we’re not scared of you, right?” She coughed a laugh, Cinder hated how much alike the youngest was to her in oh so many ways. “So why don’t you just spit out what actually is going on if you know anything about Winter or…” she made a small but frantic gesture in the air. “Or whatever is going on with you?”
“Nothing is going on.” Cinder said in a far quickened tone, shoving the remnants of her aimless aside slice of pizza into her gullet before she tore into the box again. The pair watched as Cinder chewed on one slice and spoke in a very uncouth manner, “Nothing is happening, you’re being paranoid.” Before quickly biting into the second.
“Wow, it’s like watching an animal documentary.” Yang muttered under her breath, lifting her glass again as she shook her head. “Come watch this snake eat twice its own body weight in one meal.” She paraphrased with a small but forced laugh before shaking her head.
“Sis,” Yang continued, “if there is actually something serious going on which would be good for us to know about, then please just say something.” They could hear Cinder gulp the awkward sized portion down, doing their best not to cringe as she coughed and took another drink. “And if there is nothing to worry about, would you at least do a better job of convincing us otherwise?”
Both Yang and Ruby held their attention on Cinder for a moment. The older sister’s form crumbled in on itself it looked like. Her glass was still in her hand but she folded forward onto the island with a heavy lean, slouching on top of her elbows as her hair flowed over and down, obscuring her face for a moment before she took a breath and looked up.
“Nothing is going on.” She nodded with a tightly drawn lip, the corners of which fought to upturn into a smile. “I’m tired from work, probably have a headache from the cold, and plan to spend tomorrow working from home.” The last part was a slight lie, but the prospect of it was growing more entertaining in her head every passing moment speaking with her siblings.
For a split second the pair of sisters looked at her, they were even in height for the first time in a while with them sitting and Cinder slouching over, allowing them all to flick between one another with some half effort.
“We worry a lot, you know.” Ruby smiled, watching as Yang nodded in concert, Cinder’s tight lips going loose and losing their small smile. “Just, I mean we see you only when we swing around or like a party.” She shrugged. “Weird to go from bickering over who is showering first to kinda nothing?”
Cinder nodded with a little shrug, “But isn’t the shower always warm now?”
“That’s not the point, Cinder.” Yang sighed, shaking her head a touch as she did so.
Flicking her hands up slightly, Cinder scoffed. “We text every day?” Taking another sip of her drink. “Sorry? We also talk every day, much too much if I have to say so.” She laughed a little in the process. “I’m not sure about you, but my phone is usually filled with work emails, meetings, and texts from-.”
A warbling noise drew all three of their eyes to the side. Watching as Cinder’s phone, which she had laid on the table now where Ruby sat, buzzing weakly in front of the youngest sibling.
Cinder did not give it much thought until she watched Ruby pick the phone up, look at it inquisitively and then show it to Yang. “Oh, wow.” Yang laughed, shaking her head with a soft shake of her head.
“What?” Cinder scoffed, “Is it Dad?” She blustered shortly.
Ruby coughed a laugh, shaking her head, as she turned the phone around and presented it to its owner. While she considered herself a decently proud person, when she evidently did not seize the phone immediately when it began buzzing, all notion of that quality collapsed into panic.
On the phone’s screen was a rather spectacular photo of Winter Schnee, they had gone to a bar and the orange lighting made the woman look all the more amazing in Cinder’s mind so she snapped the photo. But the name, gods why did she choose it, Snowflake sat there with a pair of the namesake’s emojis.
Cinder gulped again, “I, uh…” Her hand moved to slow as she reached up and out for the device. “I think I need to take this-.”
“Oh, we got it.” Ruby laughed, turning the phone over and pulling it back into her and Yang. Swiping to answer the thing and turning the call onto its speaker.
From the phone, barely waiting for the other end of the call to speak, Winter’s voice bled through. “Good Oum, I have had the shittiest day you could imagine,” her voice biting and snappy, “I had to deal with four morons in sales again today, what is the purpose of legal if they just keep allowing our products to just be lied about by our own company for sales?” The trio did not even have time to get a word in before Winter took another breath and hissed. “It’s whatever, gods, but annoying. Anyway, Ashes, I was just calling to make sure we are still okay with the move in date we set for next week? I’ve been all over the place packing and preparing but I got the movers to come around mine in the morning and then we should have stuff in your apartment by the end of the day.”
Cinder was quickly turning more and more pale, she had grown so distracted by hearing Winter’s voice in her addled state that it took her another moment to realise that Ruby and Yang were turning their attention fully from the phone and to her.
“You two are moving in together?!” Ruby shouted with as much ceremony as the girl lacked.
All four of them were quiet then.
“Miss Rose?” It sounded like Winter stopped in her tracks, choking the name out.
Cinder swallowed, leaning closer to the phone as she coughed. “H-hey, Darling.” She spasmed a smile which looked all but glued to her. “So the girls are here and put you on speaker. Yeah, the move in still looks good to me.”
The hand holding the phone dropped to the table, phone going with it, as Ruby’s jaw dropped open wide. Yang to the side similarly allowed her mouth to hang open but with a distinct smile to her, the blonde’s hands raising in excited fists and shaking slightly in the air.
“I see…” Winter’s voice bled back into the room. “I should… Call back later then.” Choking slightly as she did so by the sounds of it. “O-oh, are we still getting drinks tomorrow night?”
Cinder, turning more red by the moment, and allowing her head to fall into her hands and cover her eyes from the egregious looks from her sisters, added some charm to her voice. “Of course, no better way to spend a Friday than with you, Winter.”
“Alright.” Winter coughed, swallowing again. “Then, have a good night. I will talk to you later.” A nervous stutter in her voice. “Good evening, Miss Rose, Miss Xiao-Long-.” She barely got the names out before the call ended.
“You’re moving in together?!” Ruby repeated in a yelp, Yang leaping up from her chair—just barely avoiding knocking it over—as a loud but bouncing cheer came from her.
The blonde rounding the table and laughing, shaking her elder sister by the shoulders as she bounced. “Let’s freaking go, Ashes!” She cheered, shaking Cinder all the more so as the red of her shirt was beginning to be challenged by that of her skin.