Ruby Rose was the youngest of the four. One of the brightest young minds at Beacon, but with all the energy of the average 15-year-old, she was thrust into this position after the events at her school. She had witnessed the untimely end of two close friends in the past days, or so it felt like. She was put into a stress-induced coma after a power she wasn't fully aware of, freezing a Grimm and putting it in stasis, wreaking whatever else havoc her uncle and dad haven't told her. Everything just went white, and she woke up in bed in her own home. She had seen her older sister, her loving older sister, with a bandaged, amputated arm, due to the reckless indiscriminate blade of Blake's former partner, Adam. She wasn't out for revenge, no. She wanted justice.

Nora Valkyrie was a strong, joyful woman, and almost never a frown to be shown. She carried herself proudly and swung her hammer Magnhild with grace. After the events at Beacon, seeing her friends hurt and learning the fate of her teammate, she hasn't been her usual self. Yet still quick to laugh and bursting with excess energy in every way, she was by no means indefatigable. Everyone had their own reason for fighting, but she was just happy her friends could still fight.

Jaune Arc was tall, blonde, and broken. He had been left to pick up the pieces after his Pyrrha was killed, by the ruthless Cinder, self-proclaimed "future queen of Remnant." The last time he ever saw his dearest, she landed a kiss on his lips and left for the tower, strapping him into an "escape pod" to attempt to duel this being of seemingly overflowing power. Jaune had told Ruby to save her, for he knew she was in way over her head for once. But she was just too late. Jaune can't blame her, but he can blame himself. If he had just defended the doorway in the underground room, the arrow would have never flown true, and the fall maiden would never have died. Then Pyrrha could be here, and Beacon could still be around. But all he knew was he had to press on, and avenge the death of the woman who believed in him when no one else would.

Lie Ren was a Lie, a line of monks who valued harmony and balance over all other aspects. His training lent him a great deal of mastery with kama, a type of short blade. He would incorporate this into his weapon of choice, pistols with blades on the bottom for quick swings and deflection. At the battle of Beacon, he saw Nora get injured, and his internal balance was disrupted for the first time since attending Beacon. Now he's with her to join Ruby and Jaune to avenge their former teammate, with the hopes to once again restore harmony and peace to the land of Remnant.

"Goodbye mom. I'll make you proud, I promise."

Ruby lifted herself up and headed toward her new teammates. Jaune looked especially somber, as Ruby explained a bit about her own mother and how she still went to the grave for inspiration when she needed it.

"Mom always told me I could go to her for help." Ruby put up a small smile as she led the team back into the forest.

Summer Rose was buried on the viewpoint at the edge of the Cliffside Forest. Ruby was only 13 when her mother passed, and Yang was still at Signal as well. While Yang had been pretty well about it, stagnant with grief for a week, Ruby had taken it a lot harder. To her, she felt abandoned. To lose her mother at what felt like far too young an age. Yang had seen the disappearance of her own mother, Raven Branwen quite a bit earlier, but was used to Summer as a motherly figure in her life that she too could seek for sage advice. While Ruby never met Raven, she was blissfully unaware that Yang had a different mom until about the age of 10, when her Uncle Qrow informed her. Qrow Branwen was direct brother to Raven, and therefore also Ruby's half-uncle, but it mattered not. She would often see him as a second father to seek advice from when her own dad couldn't give a sufficient advice. Ruby did not prefer one over the other, but the fact she had this choice was invaluable.

Little is known about the circumstances surrounding Summer's death, as both Qrow and Taiyang Xiao Long, their shared father, would only state that she died on a mission. They refused to say what the mission was about or even who or what slayed her. But they did state that she died protecting Ruby in a way, which is what she'd always wanted.

"How's your sister, Ruby?" Jaune asked, carefully. It was a touchy subject still, but he felt his new leader couldn't focus properly without her being alright.

"She's still getting used to the arm." Ruby clarified, "Her writing is getting a lot better, to say the least. Dad's been gentle."

Jaune nodded as he grabbed his sword from the snow and walked beside Ruby, with Nora and Ren behind them. The four had become collectively known as Team RNJR, pronounced 'ranger,' following the typical naming conventions of hunters and huntresses. Jaune was more than welcome, practically begging, for Ruby to lead them. He cited his state of mind after the loss of Pyrrha to be his reason for the request, when in actuality it was only partially so. Jaune just didn't want his own failures to cause another teammate's untimely end. He couldn't bear to have even more blood on his hands.

He felt as if his own infidelity played a role in this. Guard the hallway. Ozpin had been clear and concise with the instruction. But Jaune was curious about the process in the tubes behind him, so he let his guard down. Part of being a hunter is the diligence and attention needed to properly have an awareness of all surrounding areas, and not focus on just one at a time. But he only had one doorway to watch, and therefore no excuse.

Nora and Ren had also been hurt during a battle at Beacon, before being saved by Velvet Scarletina, a rabbit Faunus with the ability to copy any weapon or ability she had photographed, but just once. After the incident, they became even closer with each other, barely leaving one another's side. They had been close friends since childhood, especially considering they were both orphans.

Qrow had imparted Ruby on some advice that his search for answers on Cinder Fall, that bitch, who had deemed herself the future queen, to Haven. Ruby had talked it over with the team and decided that the best course of action would be to continue Qrow's work, as he now had to continue in Ozpin's stead, tending to what remained of the school and leading the survivors in a sense, which meant he needed to find a way to contact them. With the tower gone, communications over the air were stopped entirely, so he had his work cut out for him.

RNJR collectively agreed that they would need to seriously up their strategy if they were to somehow survive whatever Cinder could have up her sleeve in Haven. None of the team members have ever been there, so there was little to go on, and without an airship in operation due to the drop of the communications tower, they'd likely need another form of transport or as a last resort, walk the many miles necessary. Everyone had a reason for being here, and they would do their duty with due diligence.

Ruby recommended her father for strategic advice, of which, he was able to impart on them the wisdom of quick adaptations. They had learned to play off each other's strengths, and the past week had been absolute hell. Early mornings and late nights spent in the clearing by the Xiao Long household, where RNJR had been staying. Ren and Nora had no home to go to any longer, and Jaune had no way of letting his parents and siblings know that he was okay.

But they had already said their good byes to Ruby's family. Qrow was already on a trek to the city to rebuild Beacon from rubble, all while trying to avoid the Grimm. And Taiyang was trying so desperately to bring his daughter Yang's blissful jollity back. So Ruby did as her mother would have done in her stead. She lifted her head, put one foot in front of the other, and pressed forward, as every Rose before her had done. She gave the word, with authority and conviction:

"Team RNJR, let's move."