AN: So here's that prequel I mentioned that for Lightforge. For new readers, this follows the Lightforge AU that I've created. If you go to my profile, you can find the original. For Lightforge readers, Requiem will follow the story of STRQ, mostly through Raven's eyes. I do intend for this to have a more romance feel than Lightforge does and it does feel bittersweet at times, especially for those who have read Lightforge. You guys are already aware of the Team STRQ's fate. While Lightforge will discuss what happens to them, Requiem will go into more detail. It will also give a better explanation of some things that are going on in the world that directly affects the girls Lightforge. Last but not least, while this is technically a PolyParents thing, it mostly focuses on Rosebird. Anyway, enjoy! You guys get the prologue and Chapter 1 today!

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I'm a monster… Or so I've always been told. We're filthy creatures that were kept in secret for ages, but unlike so many others, we chose to walk among the humans. My brother says that my pride will cost me everything, but what is there for me to lose? The clan is the only thing that comes before that part of me and I will not clip my treasured wings as readily as he will.

Standing on the ledge of the tallest, she never felt as alive as when she basked under the moon's light. The night wind rustled her hair, freeing a frayed feather from her locks. The lone pinion danced past her crimson eyes and she caught it, letting her lips curve with elation. While others found discomfort in molting, she felt a deep sense of pride toward her lineage and she bore the pristine dark feathers and piercing red eyes her family was known for.

Clad in a crimson and black kimono, it would be Raven who would lead her people into the world they so rightfully deserved, and those damn hunters would fall beneath her power. She would be feared and her little brother, even if it was by only five minutes, would have to eat his words. For 12 years, he had maintained that her desires not pointless, but he would regret the love he had for the humans that cast them out. As a twin, he truly contrasted to her in all the ways that mattered most… but his existence would always be included in her dream. He was her other half – the one that kept her grounded.

Turning around, she leaned off the edge and plunged toward the city streets. It was such a rush, feeling the cool wind whipping through her hair. The sound was almost static, letting go of any thoughts that lingered from her days. As much as it was an addiction, it was an escape that provided a much needed release she couldn't find anywhere else, nor would she try. Spreading her arms, she closed her eyes to bask in the currents of air as they washed against her skin… Just a moment more and she would be ready… But suddenly, the rush of wind came to a stop.

Opening her eyes slowly, she found herself frozen in mid-air. The world has been washed of color, like an old still frame and everything was just as rigid. She attempted to move, but her body met her with complete resistance. It was like waking from a bad dream, but her body was still asleep… except she was stuck in mid-air. The pale adolescent shifted her eyes to the fingertips of her right hand, but it was another kind of movement that attracted her sights.

In this frozen otherworld of grayscale colors, there was only one thing with any color. An equally pale figure cloaked in white ascended toward her. As she was taken their arms, a splash of red hair billowed from within the confines of the hood. As they touched her, they resumed their fall and the world returned to its previous state of moody colors.

"Hey!" It was a young girl's voice. "Be careful! You could have died!"

"Get your hands off me!" Raven kicked her legs out, causing the stranger in white to lose their balance and ultimately drop her.

Expecting to hit the ground immediately, Raven found that the fall was a much further drop than she anticipated. Evidently, her so-called hero had chosen to land on a lamp pole. After dropping her, the strange had latched onto the pole in an attempt at self-preservation and let Raven plummet the rest of the way.

"Ow!"

"Oh my God!" In show of athleticism, the stranger dropped from the pole. Latching on to the lamp, she used her weight to swing herself around and shifted herself to the pole, spinning as she slid her way down the post in what Raven deemed to be showing off. The acrobat ran over to Raven, taking one of her hands in her own. "Are you okay? I'm so sorry!"

"Don't touch me!" Who the hell did this kid think they were?! Maybe if she glared at them hard enough, they'd get the hint… and that is just what Raven did, but she was met with something surprising.

The way they glinted in the moonlight… This little human's eyes… They glowed with an ethereal silver that reflected her own equally bright red orbs, and in that moment, she was faced with the knowledge that these eyes would haunt her every waking moment. The girl smiled at her in a way that no human ever had… but weren't they supposed to hate her kind?… Was she able to tell? As if to answer her thoughts, the wind rustled the feathers of her crown… Of course, she knew.

"It isn't safe to be out here." Any of the girl's distinctive features remained hidden beneath her hood as she reached out to her. When Raven flinched, the girl hesitated and waited for even the slightest form of acknowledgement, and it came from a barely noticeable softening of Raven's eyes. "Woooooow, they're so pretty!" The girl lightly touched the tip of one of the rich, black feathers hidden throughout her equally dark tresses. Opposed to the color scheme of her previous plumage, it was a shock to see that this girl picked it out so easily. Normally, she would have slapped the girl's hand away, but those eyes lured her into sense mutual trust… So she relaxed and let her touch them further.

"Summer!" A voice called out a name and Raven's eyes widened as the girl looked behind her in response. Not more humans! Surely they would try to harm her. At her current age and skill, she wasn't prepared to face possible hunters. "Summer, where are you?" So that was this girl's name. Raven took one last look at the girl in white and burned the image into her mind before she quietly fled.

"Over here," Summer called out. Flashlight beams danced around as their owners ran towards her voice.

"What were you doing, child?" A man ran up to her with a young blonde boy.

"I made a new friend! See!" She turned to show them the girl, but she had vanished.

"Child, don't run off!" The older man scolded her. "You nearly scared us to death! Just think of the consequences if you should die! Perish the thought!"

"But I'm serious! There was a girl that fell off that building!" Summer threw her hands down in emphasis. "And I saved her."

"Riiiiiight," the little boy crossed his arm behind her. "We can play Heroes and Hunters later."

"I'm not lying, Tai!" Summer crossed her arms and pouted, looking at the buildings they passed as she followed them. They came upon an alleyway lined with trashcans and a curious sight for her. Small birds picked at the trash – many that she had seen throughout the city - but what caught her eye was a large black bird with red eyes that followed her curiously. It tapped its toes on the aluminum trash can with an almost human-like gesture.

Uuuroooooork! It called out to her before it flapped its wings and took off for the sky. Summer giggled to herself, never taking her eyes off the bird as it circled around high above them. It must have been so wonderful to be free to roam the skies like that. The bird continued to follow them all the way back to their home, perching itself on a nearby post. Summer ran up to it excitedly, but the bird on cocked its head curiously at her.

"Summer, get away from that buzzard!" A buzzard?! She wasn't a buzzard! "Damn scavengers just sit there waiting for scraps. Shoo shoo!" Heart beating against her chest, she flapped her wings violently as the man tried to grab her.

"Stop! Get out of here, birdie!" Summer dove into the man's waist, jerking him away from the bird and giving it time to flee.

Smack!

The bird looked back in enough time to see the man strike this strange human girl and landed in a nearby tree. He yelled at her until the blonde boy came to her rescue, taking the next blow he delivered. Irritated, the man stormed away and it looked like Summer was crying into the boy's arms… Maybe there were some good humans out there, but surely; age and more punishment would teach that strange girl that Raven was the sort of monster that needed hunting… After all, that's exactly where Raven was firmly perched in the food chain.

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AN: I think I'll have a lot of fun with writing Raven as I go. Anyway, the next chapter fast forwards to a few years after this!