Remember Us
A RWBY Short Fiction
BY: WOLF Drc
Ah, I remember graduation day, the excitement, the constant day-dreaming. We celebrated, joked about what we were going to do now that we were Huntresses. Weiss was strongly encouraged to return to Atlas, join the military as a specialist. But she denied it, she stayed with us.
After Beacon we chose to stay together, stay a team. Go and fight wherever we were needed, when we were needed. We joined the Beacon Huntsman & Huntress Service; most of our work came through that. Whenever there is a problem within our Kingdom, or anywhere else really.
People contacted Beacon, we get dispatched... it's a pretty simple system. We worked for... Well, anyone that needed it, often small outer towns needed assistance more than the larger settlements. God, I remember the feeling I had in my stomach when we were called to assist in the extermination of a large Grimm pack attacking the northern region.
The call came in; we grabbed our gear, got in a ship and forged on to our objective. I cannot say I wasn't nervous. Actually, being a Huntress, knowing that you're the only thing stopping entire towns from being destroyed, the only thing to save people from dying. A responsibility we thought we'd felt before, but no. When we were students, we had backup, other students, Huntsmen, Huntresses. But now, we're the Huntresses, there was no backup.
We got the job done. I remember spotting a kid crying in front of a cremated house. I rushed over to her; she turned and looked at me... Her eyes were red; tears soaked her cheeks, poor kid. She asked me if I could fix it, if her mommy was alive. I felt helpless; I couldn't fix what damage was done... I later discovered her mother had been killed. Her father died shortly after she was born. He was a local police officer, he died in a shootout. Poor kid was going to be put in an adoption facility.
Years went by... Every mission we would witness something new, we've seen so many atrocities that, it made us callous, made us stoic, it almost removes our sense in humanity, our emotions. When we were at Beacon, we saw death sure... But it was a rarity, and generally accidents. But we never saw civilians, children... being ripped apart. No, we never saw that. Pyrrha's death stunned us, but didn't have the looming effects that the other horrors scorched us, Pyrrha turned to ashes, I watched it happen... but she wasn't torn to shreds, or gutted alive, like others we've seen.
Grimm guts never bothered me, the guts of an innocent person, now that's different. Hell, I realized why Qrow became an alcoholic; Qrow was like me when he graduated. He wanted to help anyone and everyone he could, he wanted to fight, protect, taste victory. And he did, but at a cost, the cost of losing what innocence he had left. But, I mean I don't always stew inside a shell of misery, sometimes I remember who I use to be... I don't always think about my service, I still try and have fun. Fun, numbs the pain, for a short time. I never really was a drinker; I have my share here and there. You need something to distract your mind. While I have changed from my time at Beacon.
I grew older, more mature... I didn't want what I have seen to change who I am. It left scars, it's given me nightmares, it's kept me awake at night... but then, I remember all the good we've done. All those who looked up at us and thanked us, for we saved them. This returns me to myself... but I cannot escape my emotions inside. Who I was when I was a student still beckons, she's not gone... But, sometimes, she hides away, and my demons, my fears... come to play.
But, I remember them... All of em'... How could I not? You cannot un-see what burns a hole in your heart. I see death now and, well, it's just, death... nothing else to it. Everybody I see, I simply see the faces of the others I have seen die. Often I see the children, unfortunately. But, at the same time, the horrors we saw drove us, pushed us to work harder and harder to save those in need. We still cared about them, and it's the idea of saving them from what can and has happened to others, that drives us. I smile every time I think of those we've saved. I don't regret my choices, deep down we knew this is how our world was. We stood to face it, that's what we're here for... I love my job, I have regrets, but becoming a Huntress isn't one of em'... I just, wish things were different.
I remember every detail of them as well... Yang, Blake, Weiss... hell, I remember it all, every last gruesome second, every last goddamn bit of it. I see it in my dreams... Oh, how I wish to dream again, just once more, of something other than death. Some Huntsmen and Huntresses didn't get as damaged as we did; we chose to respond to the most gruesome events, mainly because that's where help was beckoned the most. It changes nothing, I still remember.
Blake, I remember her... she was the first to go. Blake was, quite, calm, and didn't talk much. But with time, Blake grew accustom to us. There was conflict; her White Fang past didn't sit well with Weiss, but, well really nothing did. Blake died 5 years after graduation... she was 26.
I remember that cold winter's night; Blake was heading on a rescue mission. A transport ship crashed somewhere in the East, she was sent to rescue the crew, a radioman reported 22 injured crewman still alive inside the ship. She rushed to the scene, but the Grimm beat her to it. She kept her microphone on in order to communicate with us while she searched. Blake walked directly into an ambush; she described Grimm pouring out from the depths of the forest and surrounding the crash. Nevermore, Ursa's and Beowulf's, an army of the bastards.
We sat there, helpless as we listened on the com. Blake fought for a solid 30 minutes. By 31 minutes... she was gone. We heard her wailing, screaming in pain and yelling for help. The sound of blood and bone cracking, the coms cut, and our ears were met by the chill of dead-air… Yang beckoned Blake, she never replied. Yang began to cry as she called for her. As we made our approach to the crash site, we saw the tattered and torn body of our teammate scattered across the field.
Yang ran out from the ship, and searched for something to cling onto… but nothing could be identified, so she just keeled in a spattered pool of red, and cried. I just, stood there, stunned, I dropped to my knees like my sister, and cried with her, what else could I do? Yang would never be the same again. We had a funeral; Jaune sent me a letter, but didn't attend, Weiss, Sun, Ozpin, Qrow came... everyone else was away, or dead. We cremated her, there simply wasn't enough left to bury. Yang kept some ashes, she put them inside her necklace. It was a nice memorial to her fallen partner. Jaune apologized as well as he could, he wasn't much help.
Blake's grave now sits at the Beacon Cemetery for Fallen Warriors.
Her grave reads:
R.I.P
Huntress, Blake Belladonna
"Remember me for who I was, not what I was"
Weiss, I remember her... How could I not. Ha-ha, I remember how she was before we graduated. She got better by-the-way; she wasn't as bossy, as bitchy. She matured like her sister, grew into her shoes quite well. Winter died 4 years after we graduated. Weiss didn't cry... she became, angry. But I couldn't blame her... Her idol, someone she always looked up to, die like a common soldier... she felt weak, for the first time in her life she'd truly came face-to-face with reality. For the first time, she'd witnessed her mortality. That anyone, and everyone, we know and care about can just... die... and there wasn't a damn thing you could do about it.
Weiss died 3 years after Blake, at the age of 29... I remember hearing her voice over the com. She was shouting for assistance, she actually sounded, frightened. Weiss reported that she was ambushed. White Fang, and a lot of them. Her cover had been blown; she was on an undercover mission. The White Fang don't take lightly to being spied on... she called for backup, but by the time we arrived there was nothing we could do.
She was just, laying there... her lifeless body, white and red... she was face-first on the cement, in a pool of her own blood. I ran to her, shouting her name... no reply. I reached her; I dropped to my knees and flipper her over. Ruthless, savage... no mercy. They beat her, stomped her, cut her, and stabbed her... broken bones, bruises, cuts, slits, stab wounds. Her throat was slit, I don't know if they did that before she was dead, or after... doesn't really matter though.
Yang tried to pull me away, but I wouldn't let go... how could she be dead? She couldn't be dead, not Weiss. I cried, and cried... nothing can prepare you for that, simply nothing. Someone you've trained with, fought with, lived with... dead among the battlefield, it's simply incomprehensible.
We had her funeral on a Saturday, early morning, back in Atlas. She was buried in the Schnee Family Cemetery. Her father gave a nice speech... It was a closed casket. A crushed skull and a slit throat isn't something easily covered by makeup. Her service was, quite, I couldn't express the pain I felt for losing my partner.
After the service Mr. Schnee invited Yang and I into his study. We sat down; he sat in his chair and just, talked to us. Asked us about Weiss, how she was, asked us to tell stories. We told jokes, stories, spoke of good times. He told us stories of Weiss when she was a little girl; he even showed us pictures of her when she was a baby. Ha-ha, hard to believe such a little thing grew into a strong Huntress. The old man smiled at the pictures, you could see in his eyes he wanted to cry, but he didn't, he wouldn't.
After Weiss left for Beacon, she grew distant from her father. It had been over a year since they last spoke. He attempted to contact her, but she'd never pick up. A part of me felt awful for him, Weiss tried so hard to prove she didn't need him. In doing this, she completely cut the connection between father and daughter. This separation hurt him much more than Weiss ever realized. I will always remember what he said to us, "I'd give anything to take it all back... to start over, but I cannot. My actions, my blindness... drove her away. It was my fault, and only my fault."
As time passed, we stopped mourning Weiss and Blake. We remembered them as the friends and warriors they were. We talked about them, joked about them, told stories. Weiss and Blake were long far gone, but we didn't forget her. We kept fighting, in their names we kept fighting.
Weiss's grave now sits at the Schnee Family Cemetery...
She has another gravestone at the Beacon Cemetery for Fallen Warriors.
Her grave reads:
R.I.P
Huntress, Weiss Schnee
"For in the face of adversity, we found strength"
Yang, well she died 4 years after Weiss, at 33. I cannot describe the pain I felt that day. I watched her die, I watched as her aura crackled and burned, claiming her as well. She died slow, I tried to save her... but, I couldn't.
Cinder, the wicked devil… she killed her. We'd finally tracked Cinder down after she'd been on the run for years after another attempted city-wide assault, we cornered her by the docks, the moonlight sparkled off the water as we fought. She fought hard, but ultimately we cut her down. Yang, Cinder and I were beaten to hell, all of our Aura's were depleted, Yang ambled to Cinder's side… I don't know if it was to arrest her, or to kill her. Either way, Cinder caught her off guard... I watched her cast Yang a-blaze. Once the fire swallowed her, there was nothing I could do. Cinder laughed, I silenced her... her head came off in-a simple swing.
I bolted to Yang, she cried out to the sky in pain. I tried to put it out, but it wouldn't stop. Nothing I did worked, I felt so useless, watching her die like that. She fell to the ground; the ammunition from her gauntlets caught fire and exploded. Taking her arms with them... I called for assistance; they arrived 20 minutes later. Eventually the flames extinguished, Yang lied there groaning and crying. I knelt aside her, I was in hysterics. I didn't know what to do, so I just, cried, and said, "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry Yang!"
She could barely talk, but she smiled at me, and whispered "Ruby... remember all the good times. Don't remember me like this, remember me as I was. I love you sis, I love you." As I cried, I replied, "You can't die, not you, Yang please!" Yang shushed me upon saying, "Ruby, I would rather die than live this way... I will die free, not in some hospital bed. I will die free, I will see them again, Blake and Weiss... I will see them again." I couldn't stop crying, my throat burned, my heart beat like a drum. Her final words, "Next time we meet, we'll be together forever, all of us. I love you little sis, I-I love... you."
That was it... she went limp... I paused for a moment, medical personnel surrounded me, but didn't move in to help. Something snapped, I cried out to the sky, "Why! Why fucking why! Goddamn this fucking world! Goddamn it all!" I collapsed into a ball of woe and rage, I sat there crying and crying. Another ship landed 30-yards away from me; Our father, bolted out of the ship and halted a few feet away. I looked up at him, locking eye contact. Words cannot express the pain I saw in his eyes. He fell, and cried out to the sky, as the rain began to fall.
We had a funeral; all of Beacon's staff was in attendance. Jaune came, for the first time since graduation I saw him... the rest of team JNPR was gone, I knew not where, he didn't say... Taiyang, Qrow... and Raven came as well. After, we cremated her... I sent her ashes into the wind, so she could be free. I will never forget that day. I still see her in my dreams. I miss my sister, but this is the life we chose... she died doing what she believed in, as she said, she died free.
Yang's grave now sits at the Beacon Cemetery for Fallen Warriors.
Her grave reads:
R.I.P
Huntress, Yang Xiao Long
"Now, I venture into a new fray."
I miss Yang... I miss Blake, I miss Weiss... I miss them all, I remember them all... They fell among the battlefield. I stood; they stood among-st the storm and died like heroes in the rain. We saved thousands in our time as Huntresses, we faced the challenges that none dared to face. And, like true warriors, we will fall defending those who cannot defend themselves. Unfortunately, the real world isn't the same as a fairy tail... that's why we're here... to make it better.
Epilogue
Ruby Rose died 3 years after Yang. She died in a battle defending a village outside of Vale. She was successful in keeping a large group of Grimm out of the city until it was evacuated. She died, protecting those who could not protect themselves. Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna and Yang Xiao Long will go down in history, and will be remembered forever. A large service was held at Beacon academy for Ruby.
She was buried in two locations, one at the Beacon Cemetery for Fallen Warriors, the other, aside her mother.
Both graves read:
R.I.P
Huntress, Ruby Rose
"Thus kindly, we scattered"
This piece was found in Ruby Rose's nightstand. It is unknown when, or why she wrote it.
A memorial was made for team RWBY and placed in front of Beacon Academy. It was constructed in memory of the 4 Huntresses who all died to protecting humanity.
The memorial reads:
We remember Team RWBY for their acts of heroism in the face of danger.
These 4 Huntresses answered the call for help, no matter what the cost.
They swore to protect, and defend, any and all in need.
One-by-one, they fell defending this oath.
We thank them, and remember them.
バラのようなレッド
Huntress
Ruby Rose
-Passed at the age of 34-
"Thus kindly, we scattered"
雪のように白いです
Huntress
Weiss Schnee
-Passed at the age of 29-
"For in the face of adversity, we found strength"
ブラックのような夜
Huntress
Blake Belladonna
-Passed at the age of 26-
"Remember me for who I was, not what I was"
イエローのような金
Huntress
Yang Xiao Long
-Passed at the age of 33-
"Now, I venture into a new fray"
We thank you for your service, and hope you find your way home.
私たちはあなたのサービスのためにあなたに感謝し、あなたが家あなたの方法を見つけることを願っています
END
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I know, this story isn't new... I am updating it to let you know 2 things, that im not dead, and that I plan to start making stories again! I made a new short... very short, short story out now! Called, Pyrrha
Check it out!
For ideas, feel free to PM me! I am always open to listen!