Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY. If I did then I'd probably have a team based on X-Men characters.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Years Later
Yang's POV
I woke up to darkness. Looking around my dorm I notice that everyone else is still asleep. Grabbing my scroll off of the nightstand I check the time. It reads 12:21 a.m. Great, I can't sleep and it is nowhere near sunrise. With my team asleep it is not like I can watch some videos off the internet or pull a Blakey and read a book. Looks like I'm just stuck here forced to do nothing until sunrise. Hey at least it's Saturday so it's not like I have to go to any classes groggy. Though maybe it wouldn't be so bad if I was in Professor Port's class. His lectures always put me right to sleep. Well, some time has got to have passed right? Right. Let's check out the old scroll and see what's up. 12:22 a.m.... Shit. Welp, this ain't working might as well do something. Quietly I hop out of my bed and make my way to the closet that Blake and I share and quickly grab some clothes to go outside. Can't go walking around the school grounds at night semi-naked. I will already be breaking enough rules as is. Once dressed I tip toe my way out the dorm. Just as I am closing the door the hinges creak. Crap! Ruby shoots up from her bed. I freeze there with everything but my foot outside the door. Ruby rubs her face and mutters something about cookies and falls back down in her bed. Quickly and quietly I close the door. Once in the hall, I let out a breath that I didn't know I was holding. At least I'm out of there. Now all I got to do is not get caught, though most of the teachers who patrol the halls are pretty cool and will only scold me at worst. Well, all but Professor Goodwitch. I shudder at the thought. Better be careful just in case it's her night as hall monitor.
As I move through the halls I realize just how creepy the school can get here at night. All the old fashioned architecture really doesn't help things. As I exit the building I feel the cool night air rush over me. Ahh, that feels nice. Looking up at the sky I notice the shattered side of the moon showing. Explains why it was dark inside. Well at least the darkness will help hide me but it will also make it easier for others to hide. I will probably stick out more given my usual attire. On second thought though I really should have worn a darker set of clothes. Bright yellow and orange really don't blend with shadows particularly well. Just as I am musing this over some movement caught my eye. Looking over in the direction I can faintly make out a figure. Who or what is that? Can't be a Grimm it's too small. Maybe it's another student who can't sleep. The figure begins to move again. Oh, what the heck I might as well follow it. Not like I got anything else better to do. Quickly I follow the figure move from shadow to shadow. Weird how it seems to know where it's going. Maybe it really is a student. Just then we make it to a building that I didn't know the school even had. It looks like a... tomb? Maybe that's why I haven't really seemed to notice it. But why would Beacon have a tomb? This is a school after all and tombs don't tend to be very appropriate for that kind of environment. This seems to be the place though because the figure has stopped moving. It stands in the shadows for a minute probably making sure it is not being followed. After that, if finally steps out of the shadows and into the light of the shattered moon giving me the chance to get a good look at them. The figure is a woman in a black and red outfit. There's a long thing attached to the side of her waist probably a weapon. Going up her body I see that she's got a mane of hair going down her back. Ha, it kinda looks like mine only it's...black.... Is... Is that her? No, it can't be. Why would she be here? The person then turns her head and I get a glimpse of her face or should I say her mask. Oh Oum it is her. Before I could do anything she sprints towards the building and enters. I need to get in there. I can't lose her.
Rushing across the courtyard I enter the building. There is one windowless hallway that leads from the door. There are some ceiling lights every few feet. A dim light is coming in from the very end that looks to lead into a larger room. Moving down the hall I notice the lack of decorations of any sorts. The floor is just as dull as the rest of the hallway being a simple tile pattern. Once I'm at the end of the hall I see the room that it leads into and it is massive! Scattered throughout the room are little display cases that show off all sorts of things like broken weapons. The back wall was filled with photos of different people. Underneath each photo was a little plaque with what I guess are names of the people in the photos. I realized why this place kinda looked like a tomb. This is where they pay tribute to fallen hunters and huntresses. Looking along the wall I see my mother standing over in a corner. She must be here for Summer. Just as I am reaching her I hit my foot on one of the podiums.
"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
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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.