Raven X Reader

Requiem of a Huntsman

"Ow!" Her head jerks over my way and before I can say anything she slashes the air and portals away. Damn it! Why does she always avoid me? I'm her daughter for Oum's sake! What's worst is I can't even hit anything to vent! Well, I can at least see what brought her all the way here. I walk over to where she was and look at the photo. In it, there's my dad, Taiyang, mom or Summer, Raven, and uncle Qrow. Usual team STRQ set up. What catches my eye, however, is a fifth person in the photo. In the photo, the fifth person is standing in the middle of dad and mother with the hilt of a greatsword in his hands and the blade in the earth. He stands about as tall as mother and has nicely cut (H/C). Like everyone else in the photo, he is smiling but instead of the weak smile of Summer or the cocky smile of uncle Qrow he has a big toothy grin on his face. In short, he looks like someone I would want to hang out with. Just as I lean in to examine the picture more a voice comes from nowhere.

"It's a lovely picture isn't it Miss Xiao Long?" Startled I jump back and see Professor Ozpin standing there with his cane in one hand and a mug of coffee in the other. Really coffee at this time? He takes a sip before moving closer to the photograph.

"Um yeah, I guess." I nervously rub the back of my neck. This can't be good. I mean getting caught is pretty bad especially if it is by Professor Goodwitch but at least with the other teachers you can expect what will happen. With Headmaster Ozpin I am totally in the dark. He doesn't seem angry though and right now he seems more interested in the photo of Team STRQ plus that other guy. Great something he has in common with mother. Still looking at the photo he speaks.

"So what brings you here at this time of night? I would think given your narcoleptic tendencies in class I thought you would try to get as much beauty sleep as possible." Okay, how did he know about that? Never mind he's Ozpin. He knows just about everything that goes on here I the academy. Hesitantly I respond.

"Well, I woke up earlier and couldn't really go back to sleep so I thought I might take a walk you know?" He smiled a little at that.

"And you decided to take said walk in the "Hall of the Fallen"? You have a very strange taste in where you chose to take strolls." He takes another sip of his coffee.

"Well I thought I saw someone come in here and I decided to follow." After saying that I realize just how weird that sounds. Oh, I just decided to walk around campus in the middle of the night and follow people around. Smooth Yang, real smooth. Ozpin, however, doesn't seem upset with my comment and continues to look at the picture.

"I see well commendable as that may be it is not your job to deal with trespassers on the campus. Next time you may happen upon this you should try to inform a faculty member instead of resorting to a form of vigilantism."

"Yes, sir." Well, he's just giving me a little lecture so far. I might get off the hook.

"Miss Xiao Long if I may ask another question, have you by chance ever seen this photo before?"

"No, sir. I have seen one where the middle guy isn't in the picture, though." Ozpin gains a sad smile at that.

"Do you want to hear the story behind that?" Weird but whatever.

"Um sure. Why not?"

"As is tradition teams tend to take pictures together for when they enter the academy and when they graduate the academy. This helps to show how much one changes from their stay here at Beacon." I try not to roll my eyes at this. I already know this. We had to do that too. We actually had to retake our photo a lot because something either wasn't exactly how Weiss wanted it or Ruby would suddenly move at the last second. That was a long day.

"But..." Ozpin then pulls me out of my thoughts and then lingers there as if he knew I wasn't focusing on his story. After a minute longer he continues, "Do you know what happens when there is no team and it is just one person?" What? A one person team? Isn't that a bit of an oxymoron? Also doesn't that go against the whole "power through teamwork" message or whatever it is?

"No, I don't know. I didn't even know that there can be a solo person team."

"There have been very few in all of the schools' histories actuality and the few tend to be special cases at that. But yes there have been one person teams." He takes another sip from his trademark mug. Seriously how is he not like Dr. Oobleck and bouncing off the walls like a madman? "Usually when that happens the solo person just takes a picture alone like the young man in the picture would have done if it was not for an old student of mine. Team STRQ had just taken their picture and were leaving when the youth stepped up for his picture. Before he could, however, Ms. Raven Branwen stopped him and insisted that she be in the picture with him." I perked up when I hear this. Did she know this guy? How? Why? Next thing I start to do is form questions of him. Who is he? Where is he now? Can he be the reason mother left? Before I can continue though Ozpin picks up where he left off. "After that Ms. Rose" he points towards mom in the picture, "thought that was a great idea and had everyone else in the team take the picture with the young man so that he wouldn't be alone. That is why there are two pictures of team STRQ." Thinking for a minute I then look at Ozpin.

"So where is he?" The professor's face grows solemn.

"Many years ago today the young man in the photo before us gave his life in protecting a town from a Grimm incursion." Oh... So that's why mother was here. "I remember when they came back. Team STRQ was never quite the same again. I can not say that I blame them, however, losing one of your own be they a teammate, classmate, or a student can be traumatic." He spoke those words slowly as if to calm himself down from doing something. Tentatively I ask.

"So you have lost students before?" For the first time since arriving, he looks away from the photo and glances at me before going back to the picture.

"Yes and fellow huntsmen. It comes with the territory. Though I am ashamed to admit I have lost too many." Grief covers his face as he speaks. Hesitantly I continue.

"Does it ever get any easier?" Not even a second goes by after I say that do I regret it immediately and barely a second goes by before I get a response.

"Miss Xiao Long I live in constant fear of the day that I learn of the death of a student or of a fellow huntsman and I do not shed a tear." His voice holds no anger but does carry authority in it suggesting that I don't push the subject much farther. I hang my head.

"I'm sorry professor I didn't-" He cuts me off before I can finish.

"There is nothing to be sorry about. You asked a question and I gave an answer." He then takes a deep breath and finally turns away from the photograph and faces me. "Now how about I walk you back to your team's dorm. We wouldn't want Professor Goodwitch to catch you out at this late hour now would we?" Shaking my head I reply.

"No sir we would definitely not want that to happen." He smiles and then turns to leave as I follow closely behind. Before I go though I take a look at the little plaque underneath the photo.

In Memory of

(Y/N) (L/N)

Hunter, Student, and most importantly of all

A Friend

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Well that is that. My first story is now complete. Got to say it was pretty fun doing this. Also I know the image does not really relate too much to the content of the story but I found it and thought it was funny. I realized that the image that I was going to use originally, would actually fit with a later story if anyone would like to read that. Also I get that Yang calling Raven "mother" and Summer "mom" might be a little confusing but I figured given that Summer raised Yang that she would see Summer as more of a motherly figure and I always thought that the word "mom" had a nicer connotation to it then the word "mother". So anyways have a great day/evening depending on where/when you are reading this.