Chapter 1: One is Lost

Remnant...

Qrow Branwen kept himself concealed as he trekked his way through the thick of the forest. He was nearing a nearby town. Once he got there, he would check in for the day and figure out just what he was doing right now.

This wasn't a contract, just him going off on his own for once.

Well… he went off on his own a lot now. He needed to in order to vent his annoyance, his anger, his every negative emotions somewhere. Better that the Grimm and other evil dudes receive it rather than a unfortunate passer-byer

Things for Team STRQ were tense. Raven had just vanished from their lives altogether without so much as a goodbye. To say that Taiyang was unhappy was hardly doing justice. He was positively brimming with probably every single negative emotion possible. The scythe-wielder was sure that every Grimm in the world could feel Taiyang's emotional pain it was that potent.

Qrow didn't know his sister's reasons for leaving Taiyang at the most critical part of her relationship with his fellow huntsman. Their daughter had been born not two weeks ago, Yang Xiao Long, and even Qrow had to admit that it was truly a sight to beholden. Why had Raven done this, abandoned her love? Did she even care? Would she come back?

A part of him had an idea of why Raven had left, but he hadn't been in contact with her since her disappearance. The thought of trying to get in touch had been rolling in his mind, but Qrow wasn't sure if it was even worth it. She could disappear at will and keep herself hidden for as long as she desired. She was always good at being elusive, as was he.

The only reason that they weren't in even worse condition than they were now was Summer's support. That woman knew how to keep the together despite the loss of their teammate. She was probably feeling some of her own pain, but for the sake of being a leader, Summer pushed aside her pain and focused on her remaining two teammates. The woman took care of them all so much.

Taiyang was strong, but he would no doubt need the support of his team leader in order to get through this time of being a father. His life had been changed for the better and for the worse. He was a father, but now his significant other was gone. Still, he was trying to make an effort, because his daughter was depending on him.

And Qrow, he tried to play his sister's disappearance off, but even Summer knew he was in a bad place along with the rest of them. More and more, he had gone out more by himself to keep himself in check. He had taken far more missions than he really needed to. It was for the better.

And if he wasn't doing this or contracts, then he was drinking, a fairly new habit to be sure, but one that Qrow was slowly developing it into a staying one. He knew this, and yet it didn't do anything to make him stop. Nobody was going to tell him that he was wrong, and that was just fine with him. He would be allowed to drink in peace.

Or as close to peace as a huntsman could hope to get considering the things that he'd seen already in the short time as a licensed huntsman.

He still had a flask with him in the event that he had off time, but when he was doing his job, he remained sober. He might be fine drunk for the most part, but out here, he had a self-proclaimed "job" to do, and he intended to see it through.

So here he was, finding his way to this nearby town. These woods, while not thick with Grimm, did still harbor a few here and there. A few were hardly any challenge for him. He'd already killed a King Taijitu and five Beowolves; the only thing wrong was the slight blood smudges on his weapon.

He'd have to clean that up later.

His scroll told him that he was within five miles of the village. It was a bit of a relief to know this. Qrow didn't know how long he'd been walking like this, but it was best to just get there and see if anyone needed help. Maybe there was a bar he could sulk in for a few hours. Then a simple room to sleep in would be welcome.

Good plan. Then he could get back to the real work that Ozpin would call him for. That man always had a job for him.

The reason that Qrow hadn't turned into a crow and flown the way was because he wasn't a lazy person with his semblance. This wasn't an impossible journey to begin with, and he only used his alternate form for those extra-long journeys.

Looking ahead, he could see a hill up ahead. Good, a bit of height would tell him just how far he had to go in order to get to where he needed to go.

A short hike, and Qrow stopped, narrowing his eyes to look into the distance.

A smoke cloud.

He looked again.

A thick smoke cloud of white.

Like the kinds that were very big, large enough to be dangerous and lethal.

That thought made Qrow take off at blinding speeds. He still had at least several more miles to go before he actually was at the location of the town. He had to use his aura to start bouncing from tree to tree while gaining more momentum with each leap.

Come on, Qrow. Get your rear in gear.

Fires of this magnitude were not often heard of, but that didn't make them any less false. This one was though, this couldn't be from natural causes though. It had to be the work of someone, Human or Faunus. There was no lightning storm in the area and it was hardly dry out.

Qrow banished his questions to the pit and pushed forward.

The first thing that came to mind when he entered the "town" was that whatever fire was here was now gone. Whatever was left was ash and dust and debris. The only thing living were Grimm, and they were prowling the area, taking in carcasses of the people who weren't lucky enough to survive. In fact, it might be accurate to say that there were no survivors whatsoever.

That made Qrow angry.

Pulling his weapon out, Qrow silently charged a pack of Beowolves. He didn't even flinch as he cut them down one by one systematically. Several Ursai tried to ambush him from behind, so he quickly switched to gun form and blasted them both at point-black range. Two headless bodies fell to the ground before dissolving. A Griffon tried to take his head off in mid-flight, but Qrow simply adjusted his so that the flying monster was sliced deftly in two right down the middle.

The immediate area was clear, but Qrow had a sneaking suspicion that there were more somewhere. So he kept his weapon in-hand as he made his way into the town.

Noting a few bodies, Qrow kneeled down to inspect what he was looking at. Human, looked to be in the mid to late 30's, not much different than Qrow's age. Blond hair, slight stubble. It looked like he was dead from so many bite wounds, and judging by the blood trail, he was no doubt dragged out by the Grimm

Another body, this one a Human woman. She looked to be a similar age. Her hair was brunette-colored instead of blonde. Like the other body, she was riddled with multiple bite marks.

Qrow noticed the two of them had rings on their fingers. They were a married couple. That hurt him just a little bit more, the reminder that the Grimm had torn apart another family. His grip on his longsword tightened.

Then he heard something that he least expected to hear in this death hold: the cries of a baby. It was instantly recognizable.

Without even really considering what he was doing, Qrow jumped to his feet and followed the trail of sounds to find a partially-collapsed building, partly smoking, but still standing somehow.

Qrow quickly tore open the door to get inside, heedless of any damage that he may have been causing. He walked in to see what had once been a waiting area and a clerk desk. This was a motel of some kind.

The cries were near. Qrow put a hand to the walls to listen. On the other side of this wall, there was that cry.

Grabbing his weapon, Qrow slashed very carefully so as to give anyone else who was potentially on the other side a notice that he was there.

When the wall collapsed, Qrow took a look in. There was no one else in the room, but it was trashed as was the rest of the building. Blood stains were covering virtually all of what was left of the decorations and the bed.

And sitting on a nearby dresser was a baby crib. Qrow tentatively took a step forward, lowering his weapon. The crying had stopped.

And he looked into the crib.

There was a baby, probably not much older than maybe a month or two. Certainly not a newborn, Qrow could tell for certain even with his very limited baby knowledge. Its eyes looked to him, and Qrow couldn't help but marvel at the sight. The eyes were sapphire-blue, darker than Taiyang's eyes.

Then Qrow had a realization: were those bodies he came across outside happen to be this little guy's parents?

If so, well that wasn't good.

Then another thought crossed his mind: how had his parents been torn apart but he remained intact, and calm?

Somehow, that wasn't right. At all. Qrow stared harder at the baby, and the kid stopped crying to notice him, and then reached out.

Qrow looked positively at a loss.

What the hell was he suppose to do with this boy?

He was sure it was a boy given the lack of anything on the crib to indicate a girl. He didn't really want to find out.

Okay, he needed help to figure out what to do with this kid.

So back to Patch?

That pretty much summed it up.

Qrow hesitantly took hold of the baby, fearing that he'd cause the little thing to cry or make a fuss. He knew just how bad they could be.

And to his surprise, nothing happened. The baby didn't even so much as give off the impression of being upset. So Qrow checked to make sure nothing had changed.

What he saw instead was now one eye was his normal blue color while the other was red like his own. The baby stared back, still not in a happy mood, but not exactly sad either.

Okay… Qrow thought. Now I'm a babysitter. Literally.

How grossly degrading.

Sighing to himself, Qrow carefully secured the bundle in his arms. He'd do a final sweep around the town and see what else there was left, if anything.

An interesting day? Qrow could argue yes and no.

(X)(X)(X)(X)

Summer Rose looked out the window as she gently held Yang in her arms. It was a rather rainy day out today, not exactly the best way to start off the weekend. She had forgotten to check the weather before she made plans to be out today.

It wasn't like her to forget to do things, but with everything going on as of late, she felt that a little slack for herself was warranted.

It had a been a tough few weeks thus far. Raven was gone for god knows what reason, Taiyang was trying to care for Yang but also still trying to recover from their losses. Qrow was… acting more angry than what was normal for him. He'd been out on at least twelve missions and all in rapid succession and without a break. He hadn't been home for several days.

Summer knew that Qrow would come back, but she still worried about him. Perhaps he was trying to find his sister. That would make sense, but that scenario seemed unlikely given the fact that he hadn't even mentioned Raven.

Yang began to whimper again, and Summer jumped back into what she was doing. She quickly grabbed the baby formula bottle she had prepared and fed Yang. The little girl accepted this with much enthusiasm. her lilac eyes showing just how much she loved being fed.

Then the door slammed open, which jolted Summer, and she prepared herself to fight even with Yang in her hands.

Instead of an enemy or a Grimm, there was Qrow, who carried a strange look. His cape was covering his front rather than hanging like it normally should. It looked like he was carrying something with two hands.

"Qrow!" Summer looked angry. "Where the hell have you been? You can't just go dark like that for days on end!"

"Yeah, about that," Qrow spoke. "We've got a bit of a situation on our hands."

"What situation?" Summer narrowed her eyes. "Raven?"

"Forget about Raven," he dismissed angrily. "This is the problem."

Qrow unraveled the cloak and let it fall down his back. And Summer looked at what he was holding in his arms and her eyes widened in shock.

"Qrow," Summer looked shaken. "What is…"

"Found him in a destroyed village," he answered. "Grimm everywhere, but somehow this kid's still alive."

"Parents," Summer asked.

"Dead."

Her face paled in horror. This baby would never know his parents? What kind of cruel fate was deserving of anyone?

"What's going on?" Taiyang entered the kitchen.

"Taiyang, here." Summer offered Yang to him.

He took his daughter, his expression still confused. Then he looked at what Qrow was holding, and he too reacted as Summer had moments ago.

"Qrow," Taiyang began.

"You can tell Tai about it later," Summer interrupted. "Give him here."

Qrow carefully handed the baby to Summer, who carefully examined the new guest.

"You poor thing," she cooed. "I'm so sorry for your loss."

He didn't cry, and even stranger, Summer looked into his eyes, one clearly a unique sapphire-blue while the other was dark silver like her own eye.

That could wait for later.

"Qrow, get me some formula," Summer ordered.

"You got it." Qrow immediately set out to do what she said.

The cloaked woman continued to hold their newest charge. From one crisis to another. One child and a lost teammate was already putting a strain on their already-dented morale. Just how much more pressure could they take?

"So what now," Taiyang asked, still holding Yang.

Summer stared at the boy who didn't even have a name. Maybe at one point his parents had named him. But now it may as well be lost with them.

When she gently touched a finger, the bundle managed to grab her finger with a tiny hand.

That was all it took for her smile to return to her face.

"You're serious about this," Taiyang questioned. "Are you sure about this, Summer?"

"He looks like a younger you," she looked to him. "Tell me you don't see a bit of resemblance."

He moved closer in order to look at the tiny baby that his leader held; now that he thought of it, the kid did bear a bit of a resemblance to him. It was uncanny.

"Alright," he conceded. "I admit, he's like a mini-me."

Both of them watched the baby boy with wider smiles on their faces. Another memeber to add to their family?

It seemed so.

Then the eye that was Summer's color shifted to the sky-blue of Taiyang's eyes. Both of the hunters puzzled at this.

"You saw that right?" Tai's brow furrowed.

"Yeah, I did," Summer replied.

The eye shifted again, this time with a split color. Half of the iris was dark silver while the other half was sky-blue.

"What are we trying to figure out?" Qrow returned with a new bottle of formula.

"Did you notice this color-changing eye, Qrow," Summer inquired.

"No," he said. "But it was red like mine when I first touched him."

The scythe-wielding huntsman stepped up to offer her the bottle, and she accepted.

"Do you see what we see?" She gestured to the boy.

All three of them looked to baby, whose eye was now split three ways into their eye colors, a third red, a third silver, and a third blue.

"Wait," Qrow whispered. "This must be a semblance."

"Who unlocks an aura this young?" Taiyang rocked Yang. "Babies don't need aura."

"But it might've saved his life," Qrow explained. "He must somehow connect to those in close proximity. That could explain why the Grimm didn't tear him apart."

"That doesn't really explain much," Summer shook her head. "And right now, I just want to feed him and get him to sleep. We can work out the details later."

Despite acting unnaturally serene for a baby, he did accept the formula as much as Yang had. Still a baby with needs at its core.

"And if we're going to take him in, we need to name him." Summer looked to Taiyang and Qrow. "Ideas?"

The two huntsman looked to each other, then stared off into space. Neither of them seemed to have an idea. Leave it to her teammates to think up of a name.

Summer sighed.

"Fine. I guess I'll think of one. How about…"

She paused in thought.

"Jay."

"That's actually not a bad one," Tai commented. "I like it. It matches his eyes. So who's family name are we putting to him?"

"You found him, Qrow," Summer jabbed. "He takes your family name."

"Great," Qrow sighed. "Now I'm a parent."

"You'll get into the role," Tai chuckled. "I know we are."

"I very much doubt it," Qrow muttered. "I'm not parent material."

"Life makes you do things you never expect," Summer whispered.

The woman looked to Jay, who watched her with multicolored eyes.

"Hey there, Jay. I know that may not be your name you were given at birth, but we'll give you a home here."

Jay responded with a tighter grip on the bottle.

Memories could wait.

Hello my readers. Welcome to a story that's going to be so wacky in a way. This is AU as you've already guessed. From now on, Jaune Arc is now Jay Branwen. Remember that as I move forward. I've got some cool ideas planned, and I hope to make it one fun story.

That being said, leave a review if you loved this pilot chapter. If you hated it, let me know why. If you loved, then all the better! Feedback and criticism is appreciated.

I hope you enjoyed reading, and remember, prosperity is full of friends.

Peace!