Forward
The following accounts of this book were written in response to multiple questions posed by my students as to the role I played during the events which occurred during the days of my youth. My boss, Professor Oscar Pine, Headmaster of Beacon, with the aid of a majority of my colleagues and friends, assisted in the chronicling of the events in which I was absent. Being the resident combat professor at Beacon, I must confess that much of the combat detailed in this book may not be one hundred percent accurate due to my imperfect memory. Be that as it may, I have done my upmost to portray the following events as accurately as possible. And while some such events elude me, I am proud to say that much of the dialogue written is completely accurate.
Ch. 1
My earliest memory was that of meeting my cousins for the first time. These memories are little more than simple flashes and faces, but my father later gave me a detailed account of that day which engraved itself in my memory. It was in the early weeks of Spring, and my mother had just passed away; leaving me with my then grieving father. I have no memory of my mother, and my father never spoke of her; never even carried a picture of her. All I that have ever learned of her is that she and my father were forced to love each other from afar, due to my father's semblance of Misfortune. My semblance was much like my father's in the sense that it was what is known as a passive semblance. However, my semblance was also my father's polar opposite; while his was Misfortune, mine was Luck. This was what allowed my father and I to spend so much time together: we canceled each other out. My first flash of memory was that of seeing the exterior of my cousin's house for the first time; a spacious log cabin, which to a three year old appeared enormous, and seemed to emanate a sense of tranquility. My father and I ascended the steps of the porch, and stood before the wooden door. I timidly cowered behind the legs of my father as he grinned his usual grin and rapped his hand on the door.
My the next image I clearly remember is the curious face of my cousin, Yang, opening the door. Yang's eyes widened as she looked up at my father, her look of curiosity being replaced by a look of excitement. A broad smile shone on her face as she began bouncing up and down in an awkward dance of joy.
"Unca Qwow!" the blonde child shouted, diving into a hug which my father returned.
"Hey Firecracker, your parents in?" My dad asked, releasing her.
The girl responded with an enthusiastic nod, before turning to me. My old man noticed this and smiled.
"I'll introduce you two in a minute, can you get them? Your parents?"
It was then that a new voice came from within the house, a voice that still rings through my head.
"Sweetie, who is it?" The woman was nearly ethereal in appearance. A garbed in a white cloak, silver eyes, and red and black hair. At her side she held a baby, my younger cousin, Ruby.
"Hey Summ, been a while hasn't it?" My father asked, smiling a pained smile.
That was the day I met the rest of my family. That was the day my true story began.
O
Sobs and wails permeated the air as tears welled up in my eyes. Summer Rose was dead. My cousin's mother was dead. My aunt was dead. The choked sobs of Uncle Tai chilled me to the bone. It always seemed unnatural to see a grown man be turned into such a broken creature; encased in a pitiful shell of a man. Amongst the choked sobs, he would let out a haunting guttural growl of distress; a sound which seemed almost inhuman. My cousins bawled, digging their stubby fingers into the tattered white cloak. My father's hitched breathing somehow still audible through the cacophony of cries. I myself sat on the sofa beside my dad, clutching Aunty Summ's broken weapon, Thorned Rose.
It was my dad who had delivered us the news, having just returned from that disastrous mission. He had dropped me off here before leaving with Aunty Summ. I clutched Thorned Rose close to my chest; standing up from my seat, I shambled clumsily over to my beloved cousins. They took no notice of my presence, that is, until I drew them both into a tight embrace. The girls and I had always been as close as siblings; I had spent most of my time here whenever my dad had a mission. Summer had always been the mother I never had, seeing that my dad never spoke of my real one. I had now effectively lost two mothers; though admittedly, one of which I had never known. Yang and Ruby clutched onto me in a death grip, my pained whimpers drowned out by the soul crushing laments of the mourning family.
It was then that I silently pledged a lifelong vow: As long as I draw breath, as long as my heart beats, as long as my soul resides within me, I shall let no harm come to what family I have left. It was that day, the day that shattered my world, that I decided my destiny.
O
Eleven years had passed since that day, and I must admit, things were going quite well. By the time I had turned seventeen, my life had been fairly eventful. Several years prior I had assisted both Yang and Ruby in the construction of their weapons, Crescent Rose and Ember Cilica. I myself had crafted my own weapon, Ashen Talon, two years before their own. Suffice to say, I was what some would call a prodigy. Now, I must admit I was not a fan of that description, as I myself normally disliked the concept of someone naturally better than one who had put an extensive amount of effort into their work. However, due to my later extensive experience interacting with a multitude of prodigies over my time at Beacon, my feelings on the matter had eventually dissolved completely. Now as to those of you who know nothing of who I am (despite my relative fame due to in part many of the events chronicled in this book), my notoriety had begun a few years prior to my enrollment in Beacon. The beginning of said notoriety came about when I had consecutively won several regional championships only to lose to one certain opponent. That later became only another notch on my belt, as I occasionally would assist my father in his missions; the adventures we had together could have filled an entire book on their own! As my adventures progressed, I also developed a deep love for music which eventually led me to unintentionally begin a secondary career as a musician. I usually preferred blues, somber themes, and woeful ballads, however I did have the tendency to venture out in favor of whatever mood I found myself in at the time. This too manifested greatly, in the form of me signing on to a record deal at Fourth Man Records Studio in Vale. Of course not all of my songs could be preformed solo, so I set off in search of additional accompaniments, which I eventually found upon discovering the band, known at the time as The Stale Air. Eventually, Hawke and the Stale Air was plastered all throughout Vale and much of the other kingdoms. After some time however, my father decided to enroll me into Beacon Academy, therefor bringing my blossoming musical career to a grinding halt...This was not well received by fans... It is worthy of note that in terms of prior education, my father saw fit apply a rigorous 'home school' regimen which we practiced whenever we had the time. It is due to this that I gained entry to Beacon. Many would assume that I would hold such a move against my father, however nothing could be farther from the truth. While I enjoyed my work as a musician, I only ever saw it as a hobby that had been blown way out of proportion. Becoming a Huntsman had always been my chief aspiration, so being told I was to attend the great Beacon Academy was a dream come true.
It was two days before I was to go to Beacon that my greatest adventure truly began in earnest. It was a Saturday and I honestly, irrevocably, still to this day, have not a single inkling of how I got myself in the predicament I now found myself in.
"I'm telling you, I don't know if I'm going back or not! Being a Huntsman is a pretty time consuming job!" I cried anxiously, fruitlessly struggling to avoid the paparazzi.
Yes; somehow, someway, the vultures found me finishing stocking up on ammo and supplies for upcoming school year in a store name From Dust Till Dawn. I muttered a heartfelt apology to the old store clerk as the horde filled into the store. Paparazzi's like this had become a familiar occurrence for me at this point, much to my chagrin; the evils of fame.
"What would it take for you to take music back up again?" A ram Faunus reporter asked.
I sighed exasperatedly, "I'm not sure, I never really saw it as an actual career anyway. Being a Huntsman's always been my dream."
"What are your thoughts on the Faunus rights movement or the White Fang?" Another reporter asked, causing many more to begin squawking in agreement.
I sighed again; I had been asked this question and dodged it so many times that I had finally had enough. I turned to the reporter schooling my features and squaring my shoulders, taking in a deep breath.
"The Faunus' pleas are valid and back when the White Fang was a peaceful organization they honestly had a good thing going. But now that they've turned violent, I think they've lost a lot of traction. Equality can't be achieved through fear, that only breeds further resentment. I really do hope a group shows up that represents the Faunus the right way, peacefully. I'm sorry, but that's all the time I can give ya, if you'll excuse me."
I pushed myself out of the store and into the street where my ride was waiting. My first car was an Altesian 234 Coyote, the king of all sports cars. Twin-turbo v12 twelve engine, clocking in a max speed of 238 mph, and capable of going 0-60 in 1.6 seconds; every part of the beautiful machine was hand crafted... The music industry pays well... The mob trailed behind me as I pressed the button on my key chain remotely opening the passenger side door and dove in. Letting out a fatigued cheer of triumph, I clumsily crawled over to the driver's seat and buckled myself in.
With no chosen destination, I resigned myself to simply drive in a random direction. For a few hours into the night, I drove around the docks aimlessly until a call came in on my Scroll.
"Yoho?" I greeted, answering the Scroll.
"Hawke! You'll never guess what happened!" A shrill voice excitedly spoke.
"Hello to you too Petals. Alright ...umm… lemme guess...You finally pulled off the neck spin trick I
showed you?" I asked expectantly.
"What? No! I'd rather not behead myself thanks! No, it has to do with Beacon!" My younger cousin, Ruby, sputtered before egging me on.
"The academy?" I asked, genuinely curious at this point.
"Yup!" Came her answer.
"It closed down?"
"Nope!"
"Uhh. Yang's application got rejected?" I joked, knowing that it was fairly unlikely…
Now that I think about it; knowing Yang, it could very well have happened!
"Noooooo~." She replied, drawing out her answer in a tone of uncertanty.
"They're housing aliens?"
"No! Ugh! You're not even trying anymore are you?!" She accused, teetering on the brink of aggrivation.
"Gave up after the first try." I chuckled.
"Ugh! Hawke this is serious!" She cried.
"I highly doubt that anything relating to you is serious." I teased.
"Hawke!" She begged.
I chuckled to myself, knowing that my little game had gone on long enough.
"Okay, okay. What?"
"I'm going to Beacon!" Ruby squealed out.
Now, at the time, I had thought that she meant she was promised acceptance when she graduated Signal in two years… I was grievously mistaken.
"That's great! Yang and I can show you around when you get there!"
"We can look around together! I'm coming with you guys!"
What?
"...Petals… You're fifteen… and still in Signal." I say
"I know! I stopped a robbery and Professor Ozpin saw it, and he let me into Beacon early!"
Hearing this, I only had one response.
"OOOOOOOOOZZZZZPIIIIIIIIIIIINNNN!"