AN: I own nothing except for the time spent to actually write this...come to think of it, I don't even own time. So yeah I own nothing basically ^.^ Enjoy~!
Memoirs of Summer Rose
"Yang! Yang!" Ruby called out as she walked through the house. "Hey, come on! Dad said to clean up the attic while he was gone!"
She made her way up to the second floor with an annoyed look on her face. "YANG!" the girl called out again as her frustration mounted, and she turned around.
"Zwei," she addressed the small dog following her. "Do me a favor and go find Yang." She knelt down and petted him once. "Let her know I'll be upstairs cleaning the attic."
A bark of agreement came from the family Corgi as he began sniffing the ground, looking for a scent to track his objective.
Ruby sighed as she reluctantly pulled the ladder down and made her way into the dusty attic, the smell of old furniture assailing her senses.
"Bleh..." she wafted her hand in front of her while maneuvering towards an old desk. "I'm so going to get her for this one..."
A small grumble escaped her lips as she surveyed the amount of work she needed to do. "Might as well get started."
She psyched herself up and started dusting off the table in front of her when a small pile of books fell to the floor. They landed with a clatter, throwing up a cloud of unsettled dust around them.
"Oh, wonderful" she sarcastically stated between coughs as the dust entered her lungs. "Stupid old books."
She reached down to pick them up when she noticed a white rose embroidered on the cover of one of them. Intrigued, she picked it up for closer examination and noticed that it had seen its fair amount of usage - like it had been on an adventure of its own.
Curiosity caused the girl to open the cover and look inside. "This diary belongs to Summer Rose of Team STRQ ('Stark')" were the first words that greeted her.
"Mom..." Ruby breathed out as she looked around for a place to sit and began sifting through the pages.
~xX*Xx~
June 6th Year 58.
"Graduation is just around the corner." the words began. "I'm kind of nervous as to what our final exam is going to be. The professors say that each team will be given their own mission and will have a week to complete it.
Our instructor, Professor Lylis Azuria, wasn't going easy on any of us at all. Ever since she took her position as headmaster of Beacon Academy, it seems like she's been pushing us harder and harder. She says that our team will do fine, but...I'm not so sure.
I mean, we have Raven Branwen, who is just amazing with her Odachi. She has been the brains of our team, always trying to keep things logical and in order. She does seem like a well-rounded person, but she does have her quirks.
We have Taiyang Xiao Long who is the brawler-type and rightfully so, as he and Raven get into a lot of fights - and I do mean a lot of fights - be it with each other or together against another team. For the life of me, I cannot understand why he picks on her so much. He abuses the fact that she hates to lose and uses that to provoke her into a confrontation. It's like watching a schoolboy teasing the girl he likes.
Next we have Qrow Branwen, Raven's twin brother. He is your typical cool-headed and nonchalant individual, however his main flaw is that he doesn't seem to know when to shut up. I can't recall the number of times we had to do extra work because he couldn't keep his opinions to himself. His passive attitude doesn't quite help with situations either, but his abilities with the scythe are unrivaled.
Then there is me, Summer Rose. The poor little girl stuck with being the leader. I feel more like a babysitter than a leader, though; cleaning up the messes Tai and Raven leave behind, trying to force Qrow to study so he can pass to the next grade, answering to Professor Azuria when the team gets into trouble...oh boy.
All in all though, I love working with these guys. I say we round each other out. It would be nice to stay together even after graduation."
"You about ready?" Raven called from the doorway of the room. "The Headmaster wants all graduating students to gather in the auditorium."
"I'll be right there." Summer nodded as she put down her pen. Raven's eyes followed her movements as she stood and carefully stored her diary inside her white cloak.
"I don't think I've ever seen you go anywhere without that book," Raven teased. "If I didn't know any better, I would say that you're hiding all your secret fantasies in there." she leaned in close in a feigned attempt to snatch the book.
"It's just a diary, Raven" she responded. "Who knows? Maybe when we have kids someday they will want to hear about all the adventures and headaches you guys gave me." Summer elbowed her partner jokingly as they left the room.
"You do know that Tai starts all those fights, right?" the red-eyed girl sighed.
"And you let yourself get egged on by his childish taunts."
"I don't 'let myself'! That man is just insufferable sometimes!" she growled lightly. "Someone needs to put him in his place!"
"You should be more laidback like your brother."
"You mean be as lazy and uncaring as my brother?" Raven rolled her eyes. "I wonder how we could be related, sometimes."
"Ow, that hurts" a third voice greeted them from the side.
"Oh, speak of the devil..."
"Now, now." Summer walked between them and interlinked her arms with theirs. "We're about to spend a week together outside of school. Let's at least make it outside of the auditorium without weapons being drawn."
She glanced at both of them in turn with a look that left no room for argument. "Ok?"
"Ok..." Raven reluctantly backed down.
"Whatever you say, mom" Qrow sighed and let himself be dragged as the three of them gathered with the rest of the graduating classes.
"Well look at this" Taiyang greeted his team as they arrived at his location. "You two get in trouble again?" He smirked at the Branwen twins.
"Don't start," Summer warned, releasing Qrow but maintaining her grip on Raven. "If any of you make a scene here, you're in charge of your own dinner. Got it?"
"Your dark side is showing again" Taiyang stated as he backed down.
"I do not have a dark side!"
"You guys are as energetic as always." another voice greeted them.
"Oh, its you, Ozpin" Qrow looked over, stifling a yawn. "Still stuck reading those books?"
"Well, I do plan on becoming headmaster someday." He adjusted his glasses. "It takes more than brute strength to make it in this world you know."
"Baaaah," Qrow waved it off and took a seat. "Wake me up when it's finally over."
"Qrow!" Raven freed herself from Summer's arm and took a step forward.
"It's fine" Ozpin responded "It would be nice though to have him more interested in the current world around us."
"Well by the way he is acting, when he grows up, he's going to be a drunk." she shook her head in defeat.
"Let it go." Taiyang joined in "Besides, we need someone to round out our group and we only need one smart person in the bunch anyway... right, 'Number 2'?" he grinned.
Raven turned her attention to the one mocking her. "You cheated in that last test and you know it!"
"I did not cheat!" Taiyang countered. "I merely turned my paper in before you did and I did a few extra practice questions on the side, so of course they were going to give me first place."
Raven growled. "You know, you make me-"
"Silence please!" A voice echoed through the room from the center stage. "Everyone take your seats."
"Guess I'd better go," Ozpin nodded to the group. "Good luck out there."
"Same to you." Summer smiled before shooting a slightly menacing glare towards her teammates. "Sit." she commanded, getting immediate action as a result.
"Good morning," Professor Azuria tapped the microphone "Good morning" she repeated after it cleared up. "Congratulations to you for making it this far." She smiled slightly as she gazed around the room.
"You all have sacrificed much during your time here - some of you have even sacrificed everything. Yet, you all stand here today as proud members of an elite group that is dedicated to keeping the people safe. As you all know, nearly sixty years ago we fought in one of the largest battles to ever face our world. While we did eventually manage peace, it came at a terrible cost. Now, as the world takes a moment to reflect on their actions, we Hunters will step out and protect it."
She nodded to her right. "Allow me to clear up the rumors regarding your final exam." She stated as mission panels began to fill up the walls of the auditorium. "Much like your field trips over the past few years, you will be partaking in missions throughout the world, however...unlike the years before, you will not have a professional Hunter with you."
Small murmurs echoed throughout the room as some students were uneasy, some even worried, while others were ecstatic about the sudden rise in difficulty. The professor continued,
"Persistence and teamwork have carried you all far, but the things that greet you outside of the protection of the kingdoms will not care. We have been building you all up for this moment. Each year, we provided a Hunter for you to follow, but each year we interfered less and less, allowing you all to slowly develop your skills. Now is the culmination of everything you have learned. Now is your first chance to step forward as true Hunters."
She paused momentarily and looked out into the crowd of students in order to emphasize the point. "Remember your training...and you will make it back alive. Good luck, fellow Hunters."
Silence filled the room with only the Professor Azuria's steps echoing as she walked away from center stage. The air felt heavy as the headmaster's words sank in to each and every student. Slowly but surely the groups began to disperse, causing the area to become alive once again. The students walked up to different panels and began analyzing the missions available to them.
"Well, that wasn't really uplifting." Taiyang stated.
"It is the truth though." Raven answered.
"So what mission should we take?" Summer asked as she looked around and noticed segments of panels dimming. "We should probably decide soon as there are very little left."
"I'd like to go exploring." was the first suggestion stated by Taiyang.
"I for one would like to just watch over some grandma's house" Qrow waved his hand from his seat, half asleep
"Ignoring my brother," Raven cut in "I would like to do some research into the Grimm."
"Research? You can do that in the library!" Taiyang glanced over "Come on! We should go on an adventure! It's our first real tour as hunters and you want to study?!"
"The more we study about the Grimm, the better off we will be when we encounter them."
"This is why you'll always be number 2," Taiyang sighed "You can't always plan for the Grimm. They won't fit into your nice clean timetable. You have to learn to be flexible! Come on, live a little!"
"We'd have been dead many times over if we had just done things your way!" came the counter. "I swear, do you adventurous types ever think things through?!"
"He's right, you think too much." Qrow joined in.
"And you don't think at all!" Raven speared over.
"My headaches are coming back..." Summer massaged her temples. "Ok, enough." she stated. "We need to look around and decide what to do before...oh crap."
The four of them looked around the entire auditorium and noticed that literally all of the available missions were dimly lit, stating that they had already been claimed. On top of that, everyone else had already cleared out and headed back to their rooms to prepare.
"Wonderful..." a exasperated sigh escaped her lips "Now I gotta go talk to the headmaster and hope that we didn't just flunk our final exam."
"Way to go, Tai." Raven shook her head.
"Hey, you were part of this too!" he countered.
"Why don't you two just get married already?" Qrow called off from the side.
"Silence, you!" the two of them barked in unison.
"I'm leaving..." Summer shook her head and began walking to the door, leaving her argumentative team behind.
~xX*Xx~
"Professor," Summer called from the other side of the door. "Are you there?"
"Come in." a voice answered.
The young girl sighed to herself momentarily before turning the handle and entering the headmaster's room.
"What can I do for you, Ms. Rose?" Professor Azuria looked up from her seat.
"Well, professor...my team was being...my team so-"
"Ah, so you were the ones unfortunate enough to not get an assignment." She pressed a button to her left which brought up a scrolling list of all the missions and teams doing them. "I see."
"Does this mean we flunked?" Worry began to form on Summer's face.
The professor sighed as she pondered the situation, her silence causing her student to squirm as the agonizing seconds passed. She reached over to the side and pressed a button. "Ozpin." she spoke into it. "Bring me case file #18-23-2-25." She leaned back in her chair "Sit."
"Thank you." she nodded and sat down as the door opened behind her, Ozpin carrying a single red folder with him.
"Summer," He stopped abruptly, obviously surprised. "What are you doing here?" He looked at the folder and then to the headmaster. "Oh," He turned back to Summer "So you're the team that didn't get any of the choices."
He continued to the desk and handed the file to its recipient. "What happened?"
"You know my team..."
"I see."
"Now then," Lylis interrupted. "This is case file 'Ruby'."
"Ruby?" Summer raised an eyebrow.
"R-W-B-Y" to be exact "Ozpin answered "The numbers correspond to its position in the alphabet."
"It's a small file I've been working on" the Headmaster continued "since the fall of Mountain Glenn."
"We'll take it!" Summer jumped up.
Lylis raised an eyebrow. "You have not even heard the details."
"Beggars can't be choosers" Summer replied, leaning forward on the table. "We'll take it."
"Very well..." Professor Azuria slid the case file forward. "I will give you more details in the morning."
She released the file before standing up. "Good luck...Summer Rose."
A/N: Well here it is! This was done as a request. I hope this start is up to your liking ^.^ I am so sorry I have been ghosting for quite a bit, but real life has been...well real life. I still don't know how far this is going to go, but I am trying my best to link it with the actual story as much as possible so it actually flows better. But hey improvements are always welcome! Hit the button below and let me know will ya? Thanks!