Chapter 3: Chapter 3: A family
by UnknownkingfromAO3
The early Morning sun shone down on a car that bounced down the dirt road in the outskirts of Patch. It had been a long ride back to Vale from Atlas. Cinder had fallen asleep more than once during the trip down. Now the young girl was looking out the window with mild interest.
Hopefully, they'd find a family not too far away, but Summer know it was Cinder's decision on where she wanted to stay.
Her scroll buzzed as Tai probably sent another text to her. She had told him she would be back today and about the company she was bringing with her. She hoped Cinder got along with Ruby and Yang. Those two could be a handful at times.
"So… you're married to your old teammate?" Cinder asked. She had seemed interested in the huntress business.
"Yep!" Summer said cheerfully. "Been married for a while. I have two kids who are a few years younger than you. My oldest is six years younger then you. My youngest is eight years younger." Cinder grunted in acknowledgement, then turned back to the window.
After another half an hour of painfully awkward attempts at conversation by Summer, they arrived at the house in the woods.
"We're here!" She said as she unbuckled her seatbelt. "Ready to meet your house mates for the next couple weeks?" Cinder sighed heavily.
"Only if I have too." She said uncomfortably.
Summer smiled as Cinder got out of the car. She clearly hadn't had much experience in interacting with other kids. Or if she had, it hadn't been very pleasant.
"Mommy!"
Summer's thoughts were interrupted when a red ball of energy crashed into her chest. Behind her, Summer saw Cinder's hand fly to her swords. "Ruby! What's got you all worked up? I was only gone a week!" She laughed as Ruby hugged her tighter.
"Too long!" Ruby's voice was muffled as her face was pressed against Summer's stomach. "Dad doesn't make cookies like you!"
Summer laughed as she stroked her daughter's head lovingly. "Okay, will make cookies sometime this week." She said, out of the corner of her eye, she saw Cinder relax as she realized this girl wasn't an enemy.
"Welcome home, Summer." A tall blonde man walked out of the house and hugged both Ruby and Summer. Cinder was surprised by the blatant show of affection. Most of the couples she had seen weren't very… grab ass, she chose to put it.
"Uga! Daddy! Can't breathe!" Ruby said as she wiggled out from her parents embrace. "Hehe! Sorry Ruby. I just missed your mom so much." Tai replied playfully. The he turned his attention back to Summer.
"Yang's inside getting dressed. You caught us in the middle of bath time, but I think she'll be out soon." He leaned in and kissed Summer along her neck. Making the huntress laugh. "Tai. Calm down! Not in front of the children."
"Eww! You guys are gross!" Ruby said, sticking out her tongue. And for once Cinder had to agree. She never understood what was romantic about pressing your dirty lips against another person.
"Mom!"
Another girl raced out of the house and launched herself onto Summer. She was dripping wet, save for her clothes (not that they'd stay that way for long.) and hadn't bothered to put on shoes.
Summer didn't seem to care about the water and spun the blonde girl around before settling her back down. "Wow! You're getting big! Another few years and I won't be able to do that anymore!" The girl laughed happily as she snuggled into her mother's chest.
Cinder raised an eyebrow as she remembered the overhead take down Summer had used in her, but chose not to comment. She guessed this is how normal families behaved.
"Dad said you were bringing back a surprise!" Ruby said excitedly. "What is it!? Dad was super vague about it! Is it some kind of rare Atlesian dust? Or a new cloak!? Tell me! Tell me!" Ruby was jumping up and down in excitement. Summer looked a bit uncomfortable as Ruby began rambling off more and more weird things from Atlas.
Deciding to step in and save Summer some embarrassment, Cinder stepped forward and loudly cleared her throat.
The family of four looked up at the girl standing next to the car. Cinder saw a mix of reactions from the different members.
Summer smiled warmly, just like she always did. For some reason, it was starting to make Cinder feel bad about using her like a puppet and taking advantage of her kindness.
The only man in the family, Tai, if Cinder remember correctly. Was giving her an equally warm smile. She wondered if being as kind as they were gullible was just something that ran in the family.
She got her answers when she looked at the elder child. Her happy expression had changed to a shock one, then an angry and hurt one. It was clear she didn't like Cinder, and the feeling was mutual.
But the last and youngest girl of the family expression didn't change in the slightest. Her eyes shone like a mirror and her excitement wasn't dominating. In fact, it looked like it had just hit its peak.
"Aaaaahhhhhh!" In the blink of an eye, Ruby had thrown herself at Cinder, moving at speeds that caught the older girl off guard.
"Wow! You're so pretty! Why are you with mom!? Did you live in Atlas!? What's it like there!? Is it true you ride on penguins!? Yang says that's impossible, but she's never been there so she wouldn't know!" Ruby attached herself to Cinder's arm where she bounced excitedly.
Cinder found herself slightly taken aback. She hadn't expected a volley of questions from the six year old, but then Ruby saw her swords and her questions started in earnest. "Oh! Are those your swords!? Are you a huntress!? What's it like being a huntress in Atlas!? Do you work for the military or are you more like mom!? What kind of missions have you been on!? Have you ever seen a Leviathan!? Can you show me how you defeated it!? Wait! Can you teach me!? Mom and dad have tried, but I just can't get the hang of dual blades or gauntlets! So I was hoping to find another teacher! Oh! I know! We can be best friends! Paint our nails and talk about cute animals all night! Can-!"
"Ruby. Give her some space. You're going to pull her arm off!" Tai said as he approached with Summer at his side. "She just had a twenty hour long flight, and it's nine in the morning. She needs her rest." Ruby pouted, but let go of Cinder's arm and gave her some space.
"Cinder. Meet my daughters, Yang and Ruby. And of course, my husband, Tai Xiao long. This is my immediate family." Summer said with a smile. "And we'll be taking care of you while we get things sorted out about finding you a new home." With that Summer turned back to her family.
"Girls, this is Cinder. She's a few years older than you and will be staying with us for a little while. I expected you to treat her with respect." Ruby waved happily at Cinder. She had Summer's bright smile plastered on her face, giving her the appearance of a mini Summer.
Yang, on the other hand, didn't look happy at all. In fact, she looked as angry as ever. "Your name's Cinder? What kind of name is that?" She asked rudely.
"Yang!" Summer chastised. "I don't remember raising you to be so dis-!" Cinder suddenly cut in before she could finish scolding her. "Got my name from rubbing hot coals into other people's eyes. A trick I have no problem showing you if you continue to be a bitch."
Yang visibly took a step back in surprise. She hadn't been expecting Cinder to bite back right away.
"Cinder! Language!" Summer chastised. She gave Cinder a hard look. Cinder got the message in her glare. Don't insult my family.
Deciding it wasn't worth being sent back to Atlas, she sighed and lowered her head in apology. "Sorry. I lost my temper. It won't happen again." Cinder stayed in the position of submission she had been taught as she waited to be forgiven or punished. Either way, it couldn't be worse than what she had already endured.
Summer's gaze softened. She reminded herself that Cinder had been a slave her entire life and would probably take a long time before she learned not to bite back at ever slight challenge from someone who she viewed as an equal came her way.
She was about to tell the girl she didn't need to bow or anything, but little Ruby beat her to the punch in her own Ruby way.
"Wow! She acts like a princess!" All eyes turned to Ruby, whose eyes were shining with wonder. "Yang, she acted like the princess in that show! Where she bowed when apologizing and was formal and stuff! Mom! Is Cinder a princess?"
Summer opened her mouth to reply, when a soft sound caught her attention. Cinder was struggling to stop a set of giggles that were trying to escape.
"God no!" Cinder said as she fought off her own laughter. "Not even remotely! I worked around princesses, so I was taught to behave this way. I'm not some stuck up snob who live a life of luxury in a tower while waiting for a prince!" Cinder couldn't stop the laughter anymore and doubled over clutching her stomach as her entire body shook with her laughter. Summer couldn't help but think it was a beautiful sound.
"Cinder, we've prepared a room for you during your stay. Would you like me to show you?" Tai asked kindly. "We can get your stuff there and then you can relax before lunch. Or do you want to eat first? Summer had mentioned you two had breakfast during your flight, but if you're still hungry, I can whip you up something."
"Room! If that's okay with you." While Cinder didn't have much (literally the clothes on her back, her two swords, and a hygiene kit Summer had bought her earlier that morning.) she desperately wanted to rest. And while she wouldn't admit it, she wanted to know what a normal girl's room would look like.
Tai smiled and gestured for her to follow, which she happily did. He leads her inside and up a flight of stairs.
Her temporary room was made up of a bed, an end table, a desk and a few shelves with…dirty magazines on them?
"Oh! You weren't supposed to see that!" Tai quickly ran over, grabbed a bin on the floor and began scoping the magazines into it.
"It's fine. Used to see them all the time back at my last job." Cinder said. "I don't care if you jerk off to women in there when Summer isn't looking." Despite her words, she was slightly annoyed that he wasn't happy to have someone like Summer warming his bed.
"Oh no. This belongs to my brother in law." Tai said. To Cinder's surprise, he didn't sound panicked or offended. In fact, either he was the best liar in the kingdom, or it actually was his brother in law's.
"He stays here sometimes and brings his magazines with him regardless of how many times I've told him we have kids." He grinned as he turned back to Cinder. "Between you and me, I've always been looking for an excuse to throw these in the bin. Maybe then he'll remember not to leave his stuff here if it's not child friendly."
Cinder giggled at his words, before catching herself and straightening up. What was she doing? She couldn't trust them, remember? Just get adopted by some sorry sod, then survive the next few years and it's freedom! That's all that matters. That's all you can do. Remember, people only ever look out for themselves. And so you have to look out for yourself.
"I'm just kidding!" Tai noticed her sudden shift because his demeanor had changed to a more distant one. "I'm going to send them back to him! I'm not that mean." He gave her a smile as he walked to the door.
"The room's yours. Feel free to do whatever you want with it. If you need any help just ask." Tai said kindly. "I'll bring some food up shortly. Although I hope you don't mind grilled chicken. That's all I had time for." He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly as he slipped out, leaving Cinder alone.
Cinder unceremoniously dumped her stuff onto the ground. She hadn't meant to offend Tai. She actually liked him, as far as it goes. He wasn't as intolerable as several other husbands she had met at the Glass Unicorn. In fact, many have gone there to cheat behind their wives backs. She had always assumed that was just how marriage was, but after seeing this family she couldn't help but wonder if they were unique or this was normal.
She threw her face first onto the bed. She'd think about it later. Right now she was dead tired. How did sitting on an airship make you so exhausted? She knew Tai would be up shortly with food, and if she was found sleeping she probably wouldn't get any, but she had gotten good at sleeping with an ear open before, a quick nap wouldn't hurt. She normally woke up as soon as the door-handle was turned.
Cinder closed her eyes and was out within seconds.
A few hours later.
Summer was making burgers for lunch. Everyone would have enough lettuce, onions, and tomatoes. Tai had taken Ruby outside to try and show her the basics of gauntlets while Yang watched, leaving her with their new puppy Zwei.
The little Corgi was sitting on his bed staring at her with his best sad dog impression. She knew he was perfectly feed, but she still took some leftovers to his bowl and subtly dropped them in without anyone the wise-
"Mom?"
Summer jumped as Yang reentered the house. She could be surprisingly sneaky when she wanted to be.
"Yes dear?" She asked as she hid the leftover behind her back. She had a flashback to when Raven had caught her having a midnight snack. That had quickly escalated into her being forced into an extreme exercise routine by her partner that only ended when she had promised not to touch the cookie jar after five pm. A promise she maintains to this day. Thinking back on it, Raven had always been the one to keep her in line, despite the fact she had been named leader. Guess sometimes you just need the polar opposite to set you straight. Maybe when Yang got into Beacon she'd find someone who could quell her temper. She still had some anger management issues that needed to be-
"Mom! Your spacing out again." Yang said, causing Summer to snap back to reality. "Don't worry, I won't tell dad your giving Zwei human food again."
Summer blinked, then rubbed her head sheepishly. "Oh. Haha… How long have you known I've been….. you know….. feeding the dog human stuff?" Summer blushed deeply. And here she was thinking she had been so good at hiding it.
"Since we got him." Yang replied dryly as she sat down at her place mat.
Summer was caught off guard by Yang's indifferent tone. Normally she'd be super hyper and outgoing.
"Yang, dear. Is something wrong?" She asked, and Yang balled her hand into a fist. Obviously something was.
And Summer had a good guess what.
"Yang. Is it Cinder? Is she what's been bothering you?" There was a short pause, then Yang nodded. Summer frowned slightly. Yang didn't normally dislike people she had just met. At least, not without reason. But try as she might, Summer couldn't think of anything Cinder had done to her eldest daughter.
"Yang, why don't you like her? Was it because of what she said when she first arrived? She didn't mean it. She only reacted that way because she felt like you threatened her. Why don't you try getting to know her? I'm sure she's very nice…underneath all her toughness." Yang didn't look up, instead fixing her gaze on the table. Whatever was bothering her clearly wasn't going to be fixed by a simple conversation with the older girl.
After a painful silence as Summer waited for Yang to talk, said girl bit her lip before finally airing her grievances.
"Why did you bring her to Patch?" Yang asked. "Couldn't she have found a home in Atlas? Stayed with a relative or something? Why are you making her your responsibility?" Summer's eyes softened. She knew where this was going. The poor girl had just found out that Summer wasn't her biological mother and was now suffering an identity crisis.
Summer walked over and pulled her daughter into a hug. "Oh, Yang. I'm not trying to replace you. Nothing could make me want to replace you. It's that Cinder doesn't have any family, and there's nobody there to hug her and make her feel safe. She needs some kindness in her life, but you my daughter. And nothing will chant that." Summer kissed Yang's forehead as the girl started to cry. "You'll always be my sunny dragon."
Yang snuggled deeper into her mother as she let her insecurities out with each tear. Yang had always hated crying, but she was still a child. Sometimes the big scary world was too much for her.
"Ummm…. Should I come back later?"
Summer and Yang looked up to see Cinder at the top of the stairs, holding the plate that Tai had taken up to her earlier.
"Nope. You can do whatever." Yang said as she quickly wiggled out of Summer's embrace. 'She always had to look cool around others.' Summer thought to herself. 'An eight year old shouldn't be so obsessed with her image.'
Cinder walked over to the sink and began cleaning the plate. Summer looked back to Yang, but saw the girl run back outside. She sighed heavily. Ever since the revelation, Yang had been somewhat distant from the rest of the family. She just hoped the girl would go back to her old self soon. She hated seeing her daughter in pain and being unable to help.
"Umm. Is the food supposed to be smoking like this? Because that's normally a bad sign."
Summer's eyes widened, and she rushed back to the stove. Sure enough, the food had burnt on the sides. Quick as she could, Summer removed them from the stove and set them aside.
After a quick examination, Summer let out a sigh of relief. Only the sides had burned, so the meal was still salvageable. Thank goodness Cinder had-
Wait a moment. How had Cinder spotted the burning food so fast? It wasn't super obvious as the meat wasn't very burnt. In fact, Summer was pretty sure she would have trouble spotting it if she hadn't been the one doing the cooking.
"Spent a lot of time in the kitchen." Cinder answered Summer's unspoken question. "Got a good sense of when the food was ready because the cooks were too scared to mess up even once. I'm not familiar with what you're cooking, but I imagine it follows the same principles as other stuff I've seen."
"Wow. Just….wow." Summer said. She was starting to feel inadequate at her house keeping standards. Slave or not, Cinder clearly knew her stuff.
The family sat around the table happily enjoying the slightly well burgers.
Cinder had a chair pulled up for her, and she sat silently as she listened to the rest of the family talking. Or more accurately, listened to Ruby rambling. Seriously, this girl didn't shut up.
"And as the sorcerer took his wife's hand and they casted a spell that caused the Nevermore to cave in on itself. Then together they floated up into the sky as the villagers realized they were saved! The villagers actually built him a statue along with his wife. And the two lived happily ever after! It was actually inspired by a real event! Apparently, according to legend, the woman and man had four children and they had their parents magic!" Ruby was bouncing up and down in her seat. Whatever this show she was watching was called, Cinder made a mental note to never talk to Ruby about it.
"That's ridiculous!" Yang said. And Cinder found herself agreeing. "Nobody can be immortal or just cause a Nevermore to cave in on itself! There's no way that really happened. It's just like the Werewolf of Patch or the man with two souls, a fairytale."
"But the guy on tv said it was real!" Ruby protested. "He said it was a real legend from the village. That doesn't make it real." Yang shot back and Ruby puffed up her cheeks in a pout.
Cinder rolled her eyes as she knew where this was going. She honestly couldn't believe how childish Ruby could be. And she had only known her a few hours.
"Well how about Cinder decides if it's true or not!" Cinder choked on her food at Ruby's suggestion. She did not want to be a part of this conversation.
"Leave me out of thi-!"
"Oh come on! You think the girl who's never been out of Atlas would know better than me?" Yang said boastfully. "She wouldn't have ever heard of the place, let alone know about the history!"
Cinder scowled. She hadn't wanted to be apart of Ruby's childishness, but now she wanted to shut the blonde brat's mouth.
"Actually, a lot of legends have a base in fact. It probably happened at one point or another." Cinder said glaring right at Yang. "The magic they used was probably just an incredibly powerful psychokinesis semblance."
Yang glared at Cinder who smirked triumphantly. Meanwhile, Summer and Tai looked at her impressed.
"Oh yeah! That's two too one! It totally happened!" Ruby let out a cheer. "You never thought of psychok…..psycho….umm." Ruby struggled to figure out what Cinder had actually said.
"psychokinesis, honey." Summer said. "It's the ability to move something with your mind." She turned to look at Cinder, her face showed how impressed she was.
"Cinder! That was very impressive. Where did you learn about that?" She asked.
Cinder gave a shrug. "A customer had a semblance like that. He was a regular and an unbearable blowhard, wouldn't shut up about his adventures. Drove some of the other customers insane dealing with him."
"Wow! Your so smart!" Ruby said as she attached herself to Cinder's arm. "Can you please be my new sister!? Yang's always teasing me about my height! Or saying that my shows aren't real! But you're not mean like she is! Pleasssssssssseeeeeeeeeee! I'll be the best sister you've ever had!"
Summer put a hand on Ruby's shoulder. "Now, now. You'll hurt Yang's feeling talking like that." She said as she eased the girl off Cinder.
"But Cinder is sooo cool!" Ruby protested. "She's like the coolest sister someone could ask for! All Yang ever does is make fun of me! Or paint my wagon yellow! Or put my stuff grimm on the top shelf so I can't reach it! She's mean and Cinder is cooler! I wish I had a sister like her!"
Crash!
Summer threw herself in front of Ruby as Yang hurled her plate at her younger sister. It shattered against her aura, but thankfully, none of the shards got close to Ruby.
Yang was shaking, Summer saw she was struggling to hold back tears as her eyes flash crimson. "Yeah, well, nobody would ever want a stupid brat like for a sister!" Yang yelled at Ruby, who's eyes widened in surprise.
"Your stupid and gullible! You believe everything you see on tv! You're a big baby who still wets the bed and only eats sweets! And still believes fairytales count as reading!" Yang angrily grabbed her glass and made to throw it as well, but was stopped when Tai grabbed her. He lifted her up and took her away from the table, so she couldn't throw anything else at her sister.
Yang struggled and flailed as Tai tried to calm her down, but Yang wasn't listening. Her red eyes were fixed on Cinder and Ruby.
"Your a stupid baby who everyone find annoying and nobody likes!" She yelled over Tai. "You're a weak, fat baby who'll never get into Beacon! Your always stealing my toys! And I- I hate you!"
"Yang!" Tai yelled, but her foot kicked him hard in the stomach letting Yang wiggle out of his grasp and run upside. Cinder heard a door slam as Summer ran up after her calling out for her daughter, but Yang didn't respond and Cinder guessed she had locked her door to keep her out.
Tai, Cinder, and Ruby sat in stunned silence, then.
"Wwwwwaaaaahhhhh! Yang you're so stupid! Wwwwaaaahhhh!" Ruby broke down balling next to Cinder. Fat tears rolled down her face as she let out long, loud wails.
Tai rushed over to his daughter and pulled her into a tight hug. Her cries became muffled as buried her face into his chest.
Cinder found herself unsure of what to do. To say this was uncomfortable was an understatement. She didn't know what to do under these circumstances.
Deciding to make herself busy, Cinder got up and walked over to the closet under the stairs she had seen earlier. She returned with a broom and dustbin and began sweeping up the glass, desperately trying to look anywhere but at the crying girl and her father.
She finished quickly and went to throw it away in the living room trash can. There was probably one closer, but she hadn't seen one when she arrived.
As she shook the glass into the trash, something caught her eye. On the shelf next to the window was a stuffed Beowolf sitting on the shelf, hardly the top, but well out of reach for a six year old girl.
She picked it up and noticed how worn it was. This must be the toy Yang would move. She stared at it, contemplating on what to do. She didn't want to get dragged into the family drama. Best to leave it here until Summer or Tai got it down.
But as she moved to put it back and ugly feelings took root in her stomach. This felt wrong.
She shook her head trying to get rid of it. This was no different than any other day. She just had to keep looking out for herself. No one else mattered. That's how she had always gotten by, and that's how she would always get by. On her own with no one else to drag her down.
But as Ruby's cries continued to echo throughout the house, the feeling in Cinder's stomach only seemed to increase.
With a sigh, she turned back to the kitchen, the stuffed toy still in her hand, and made her way back to the young girl.
When she arrived back at the table, she saw neither Tai nor Ruby had moved much. She approached them, unsure how to announce herself. Fortunately, she was saved the trouble as Tai looked at her.
Cinder held the toy out to Tai, while refusing to make eye contact. He smiled and took it from her, then lowered it to his daughter.
Ruby looked up for a second and saw her toy. She took it and hugged it to her chest, her cries becoming quieter, but she still chose to stay in Tai's embrace.
Cinder felt a warmth inside her chest. She had never felt like this before, and she wasn't sure why but she couldn't keep a smile off her face. It was stupid, but she was glad Ruby had started to calm down. But there was something else burning in the pit of her stomach. One she was very familiar with.
"Thank you." Cinder jumped as Tai spoke. She looked down at him to see a warm smile across his face. "You're a kind girl, Cinder. You just need to show it more."
Cinder felt her face heat up, and she looked away. "I had just did that so Ruby would shut up." She thought to herself, but she kept that to herself. Instead, she gave a non-answer in as dry of a tone as she could."Whatever." Then turned and left Tai to continue comforting Ruby.
As she left the kitchen, Cinder ran into Summer as she came down the stairs looking dejected. Cinder guessed Yang wasn't in the talking mood.
Summer forced a smile as she approached Cinder. "Sorry you got dragged into that." She apologized. "She's normally not like that. I'll talk to her later. Do you want-?"
"Don't worry about me." Cinder said as she walked past Summer towards her room. "Go calm Ruby down. She got her stuffed toy, but she's still pretty upset. I'm going to bed. It's been a long day." Without another word, Cinder left Summer standing stunned on the stairs as she walked into her room and closed the door behind her.
Once inside, Cinder threw herself onto the bed. She focused on the other feeling took hold of her guts, the one she was very familiar with. Jealousy.
Jealousy and loneliness.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone