In The Silence Of The Night

It had been bothering him more and more recently, the fact that he could provide nothing but bad luck. He hated his semblance, even when it was on his side. Now that his nieces were here and Ozpin had asked him to stay in Vale for a little while, he feared that his presence would cause too much negativity all around him. Glasses falling and shattering on the hard ground did not concern him as much as it used to, but every time he was around Ruby or Yang or anyone else he cared about most, he was so afraid something terrible was bound to happen.

The clear poison he allowed into his body certainly helped, it took away the worrying part of his brain and paralyzed a part of his thoughts. It was soothing, but it wouldn't serve as a life-long solution for his burden. He knew, but right now the future wasn't his concern. He sighed, feeling close to giving up on looking for reasons to stay alive. His hand moved to the neck of the bottle of vodka he was holding and moved it back up to his mouth, like an automatic mechanism. The liquid burned in his throat, reminding him there was a physical pain worse than the torture he was exercising on his brain. He hissed, goosebumps crawled over his body as the wind blew his way. It was cold, for a summer night. He should go back inside, but his body felt too heavy for his legs to carry.

His free hand moved to his buttons, knocking over the empty bottle next to him in the process, undoing the top button as an inner heatwave rushed through him. It was nicer than the cold, this byproduct of the alcohol, though temporarily. But the Albatross didn't bother to close the buttons again when the warmth faded and his skin met the cold temperature of the night again. His hand rested on his thigh while he let his head fall to meet the wall behind him. Planning on counting the stars, his eyelids grew too heavy for him to keep count. The bottle met his lips again as a fresh amount of the clear blend filled his body, in an awful attempt of staying awake.

The headmaster of Beacon Academy was drowned in his own thoughts when he absently poured himself yet another cup of coffee. Walking back to his office, he passed a window looking over the drunk Huntsman. Ozpin noticed him sitting there, seemingly drowning in his own misery with a much clearer liquid than he himself did. He opened the window and tried his best to climb out of it as smoothly as possible. The chill of the night made him shiver, but it didn't stop the mentor to walk over to his dearest colleague to sit down next to him. Their bodies touched in a way of keeping each other warm, though Ozpin's back was far more straight than Qrow's. 

The scruffy man had followed every single one of Ozpin's movements, expecting him to say something. He merely sat down and took a sip of his freshly poured coffee. He moved his hand to let the contents stir, quietly staring at the hot liquid that kept him awake.

"Since when do you stay up late?" Qrow's voice was raspy and his throat burned from the lack of use. Ozpin looked up at the sky, smiled to himself and answered, "I am always up late, but I rarely ever go up to the roof to go stargazing, a shame really." 

Qrow chuckled, followed by a silence overtaking their lack of subjects to talk about. His heartbeat calmed down, the peacefulness of the dark scenery around him and the presence of the tranquilizing man next to him eased his mind. Maybe life wasn't half bad.

It could have been minutes, but it might as well have been hours before Qrows hand moved back up to his mouth to refill the poisonous liquid pouring through his veins. Ozpin watched the agonizingly slow process through the corner of his eyes. He remained silent as his hand moved to stop it. The younger man froze when their hands touched, looking up at the grey-haired man next to him, he sighed, "Oz..." 

The man in question didn't move a muscle, or even directly looked at him. It worked, for some reason, the silence killing him as the bad luck charm put down the bottle. He applied just too much pressure, as the glass shattered when it hit the ground, the little amount of sustenance that was left spilled on the floor. Qrow looked at it and sighed deeply, "Dammit."  

Ozpin smiled and laughed quietly, his hands folding into his lap as he looked away from the tragedy, "It's gotten worse, hasn't it?" He asked.

Qrow looked at him and nodded softly, "I-I'm scared." He let his shoulders hang and shifted his legs, "If I break this bottle by putting it down, and I've knocked over the other one over already... I don't know, I just feel like I can't do anything right anymore. I grant people pain and suffering for no reason, and I can't even explain it all. I feel ashamed any time something small randomly occurs, knowing it's my fault but I could never take full blame for it. I don't want this, I didn't ask for this. Why couldn't I just have gotten reflexes or something as a semblance? Or none at all, the hell do I care." 

Ozpin smiled, the saddest smile Qrow had ever seen in his life, "I can imagine how you feel." 

"I just... I don't want anything bad to happen to anyone. I don't want to cause other people harm, don't want to be a bane to someone's life." He went with his fingers through his hair, letting his arm rest on his head. The man next to him looked at the mess on his side, he saw one of his most trusted men in one of his darkest days.

"Qrow, I-" I need you here.

"It's fine." I know.

"I guess everyone has a burden to carry."

"Fucking semblances." He sighed, his fists forming and knuckles turning awfully bright. "I am a catastrophe, I bring pain, misfortune in all ways and I break everything. I didn't ask for this and I don't- I can't stand people getting hurt in any way because of something I can't control." The trainwreck took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down as Ozpin's fingers curled around his fist. He wasn't used to this, this loving kind of physical contact. Ozpin was so sincere and patient, listened to him ramble for the next hour or so. With calming words wrapped like gifts in the pretty sentences he formed, Qrow started to feel like he mattered again.

Like his semblance didn't define him, as much as he thought it did.

In the silence of the night, the green-clothed man created a safe environment where Qrow could freely speak his mind. No one would judge him here. It's a strange thing to wish to die, but it's not uncommon or wrong. For Qrow, it meant that he felt lost, directionless. As if he brings a dark fog with him, coloring the lives of everyone around him with misery. Whether they deserved it or not. But some people dare to look past it, to focus on the good intentions that Qrow gained.

Ozpin was one of those people.

The night had fallen, the talk about emotions had exhausted him. Qrow whispered a soft, "Thanks, Oz," before he gave into the unbearable weight of his eyelids. His head felt heavy as well. He moved his head to the side and let it rest on the shoulder next to himself to rest. Ozpin flinched when Qrow's head fell on his shoulder, but couldn't resist smiling. With a small blush spreading across his cheeks, he noticed the open invitation that was Qrow's hand and took it, delicately caressing every small wrinkle and crook on it and softly playing with the white rings.

As if a huge weight had been lifted off of Qrow's broad shoulders, he permitted himself to fall into a real deep slumber. Feeling safer than ever before.

The headmaster was far from tired, the caffeine pumping through his veins kept him awake. He looked down at his hand, holding the one of the sad man next to him, a smile never left his face as he let his eyes wander off to his school. The last person he had expected to wander around the walls of Beacon at this time, appeared in the corner of his eye when she climbed out of that window. Her eyes seemed ready for bloodshed, darkened by the bags under her eyes representing the lack of sleep she's had the past few days. She was tired, at loss of words and looking for the right ones. She was interrupted in her line of thought when her boss moved a finger up to his lips and whispered, "Glynda, would you be so kind as to fetch me some pillows and a blanket?" 

She seemed to have found the words she was looking for when she crossed her arms and sniffed. However, the death glare Ozpin gave her made very clear that this was so not the time to complain. She rolled her eyes and left, not a single word having left her mouth as she came back mere minutes later with a fair amount of pillows and warm blankets. She even helped him put the pillows behind both Qrow and Ozpin's back, as Ozpin refused to let Qrow's hand go. For Ozpin, he now sat in a much more comfortable position and unfolded the blanket to spread it over the legs of both men. She left with a sigh, realizing it would be better for both their sakes if she'd ask for details tomorrow. Right now, she could use some sleep.

As could the headmaster himself. Now warmer and more comfortable, he was unwilling to leave Qrow alone or put effort into lifting him up to bed - that was too risky, he was sleeping so peacefully as of right now - he, too, decided it was about time to get himself some rest.

Qrow regretted opening his eyes when he met the bright sun, blinding him. The early morning sun shone a yellow hue on over the two cursed men on Beacon's rooftop. He grunted, turned his head away from the light source. Only then was it he realized he was laying on Ozpin's lap, a hand softly rushing through the greying mess that was his hair. A light pink blush spread across his cheeks as he sought eye-contact with the man above him. Ozpin smiled when he noticed, "Good morning, did you sleep well?" 

Qrow's smile grew uncontrollably big as he bit his lip softly, "Yeah, thanks again."

"Glynda is making us coffee, she'll be here any second. Are you feeling better?" His hand stopped moving, why did his hand stop moving?

"Headache, but I'll manage." Qrow slumped his head over Ozpins legs and focused his eyes on the hand, like a dog begging for attention.

Ozpin raised his eyebrow, smiling and started to move his hand again. Stop drinking so much, but Qrow ignored it for now. This moment was pleasant. Everything was alright, even if this moment would last mere minutes. He opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted by the noises  Glynda made as she climbed out of the window. She cursed quietly, followed by "The things I do for this job." 
In her hands, she held two cups of coffee, handing them both to the men crazy enough to spend their night on the roof. Qrow moved to sit straight and quickly claimed the spot next to Ozpin. He smirked a nasty grin when he retrieved the cup, "You're too kind, Glyn," as he blew in the mug to let the contents cool down. Ozpin was not bothered by the heat and took a sip immediately. Glynda rolled her eyes at Ozpins smile and left again, cursing at the windows for their size.

There they were, two damned men, sitting on a rooftop with a blanket and a cup of coffee to keep both their skin as their insides warm, staring at the sun rising in front of them. The yellow hue blended so very well with the bright blue sky, coloring the night away only to wait for it to come back.

Qrow smiled to himself, it may be ridiculous, but there was nothing more he could ask for at this moment.

"Thanks for everything, Oz."