Part One: Headcanons: A Relationship with Qrow
What have I been asked for?
What have I not been asked for?
Have some Qrow Relationship Headcanons, Part Two!
Okay I said he wasn't a big crier but let me clarify something because by some standards, he really isn't, but comparatively–
(Listen growing up in the tribe + the anxiety he developed from dealing with his semblance combined into a trainwreck of emotional processing issues, so he very often struggles to cry when all he wants to do is have a breakdown, but–)
He sniffles and tries to hide tears when it's not the time for this, dammit, but the second he's alone with you it's big fat tears and heaving sobs against your shoulder and shaking so hard and for so long that he's wrung out and lethargic for the rest of the day because he has such a hard time crying that when he finally gets to, it's like a dam has broken.
He brings you shinies that he finds. Not any shinies, not foil wrappers and coke cans, but brass buttons and lost earrings and colored glass and anything that catches the light that is also interesting, and you can use them to decorate or craft into something else or keep in a jar because these are tokens of affection but also evidence of his funny little bird habits that he denies having, ha
"I'm not actually a bird; I don't nest," he says, building a nest, which he will nest in.
Soft things soft things soft things, all together, meant to be a safe soft space, the places where The Best Cuddles happen, just hold him there until he doesn't feel like a mess.
Play. With. His. Hair. Pls.
He wants to feed you let him feed you. Or at least let him pay for the freaking pizza, okay, it makes him feel good about himself.
Nobody messes with you, because everybody knows about Qrow. Just saying.
Mmmm ravens and crows both mate for life and that translates in his human brain much more strongly than anyone would guess.
He's gonna keep you, he has too, he's never been this close with anyone before and he doesn't know how the hell he's supposed to let go if you ever decide that this isn't working out–
(There's a ring in a box that he's too scared to touch, so he waits and he waits and he hopes that you might bring it up first because how is he supposed to be braver than the knot of fear in his chest?)
He can't fly with you so he settles for a fast drive on a country road with the top down so that he can feel the wind on his face while you're by his side, but he'd do anything to give you a chance to fly.
He's good at fixing things because he was so sick of breaking everything around him and you can feel it in the rough calluses of his hands, where the work was put into making himself dangerous and effective and efficient, but he's so gentle when he touches you that it takes time for you to get used to it.
He sees you holding Yang and Ruby, tucked in at your sides, and he melts buttery-soft around the edges.
The girls adore you and end up in your house a lot because apparently anybody who can get Qrow to be a sober, not-entirely-depressed person is the responsible babysitter version of the "It's free real estate!" meme, according to Tai.
(Hey guess what, Qrow's semblance doesn't act up as much when he's emotionally stable! Who would have thought!!)
But you embrace your role as the fun aunt and treat Ruby and Yang like the darlings they are, recruiting them to help you make sweets or cheer Qrow up or play very, very important games of hide-and-seek.
He is big spoon. He is little spoon. He is whichever spoon. Pls, spoon. Big spoon kisses and nuzzles the back of your head and plays with your hair and holds you. Little spoon holds your hand and curls up against you like he wants you to squish him down small.
Play fighting. Play dancing? Both? Maybe. Hard to tell.
Sings. Hums. Catches little bits of birdsong while he's in one form and translates them into something comprehensible when he's human. Mostly for you.
Ohhhhhh boy does he dote on you when you don't feel well.
He might tease you a bit at first when he thinks you're just being a wimp, but if you're actually sick or hurt or on your period, he is Nurse Qrow, to the rescue.
I'm not saying that he's good at it, I'm just saying he does it.
He can bring you water and cuddle you and make sure you're comfortable but all the food is gonna be takeout and leftovers because he doesn't trust himself to boil water, okay. His semblance isn't trustworthy and he won't tempt fate with chicken noodle soup.
You don't "go out" on dates very often because it's safer to keep Qrow in a space that you've sort of baby-proofed. You have mastered stay-at-home romantic dates, and Qrow actually loves them because he's a sap and also because dinners by candlelight and making a blanket fort and pretending it's a movie theater is… well, in the tribe, romantic pairings were a battle. This is so different and, quite frankly, the height of romance, as far as Qrow is concerned. He's convinced that you're spoiling him.
So he spoils you in return, but the the ring in the box burns and he can't stand not knowing–
He cuddles and kisses and hides his blush against your neck as he tries to find words but can't, so he just pulls out the box and hopes that you'll understand when the ring inside gleams and glitters in the dim light all he can bear to say is, "Please."