Not that it isn't obvious, but I just need to clarify a few things.
Everything I know about RWBY canon is through fanfiction. As a result, I have no idea what I'm doing. Yes, I'm writing a fanfiction about a show I haven't even watched. I'm a rebel, the system can go fsck itself. (That's a Linux joke. I'm that much of a nerd.)
This story is alternate-universe. Partially because, well, there's a new main character related to the other main characters, and partially because, as I just said, I haven't actually watched RWBY so I really don't know the canon too well.
Jay will probably come off as a Mary Sue. This is probably accidental, if it happens; I've been on an "overpowered anime protagonist" kick so we'll see how much transfers over. Also, again, no idea what the power level is like in canon.
one: take these broken wings and learn to fly
The path ahead was blanketed in inches of snow. Jay pushed onward, regardless, ignoring the bitter cold covering her limbs, lugging a large steel pipe behind her. Exhausted, Jay's breath came out in shudders as she worked her way towards the end of the path, towards a house she barely remembered from an address and instructions she was never meant to receive.
Half-remembering a soft lullaby, she hummed it under her breath as every step through the thick snow caused exhaustion to set in further and further.
Arriving at the house, Jay knocked on the door, her exhaustion forcing shaking hands to weakly hit the wood. At the lack of response, Jay tried again. It was on the fifth try that Jay finally got a response, the door opening smoothly, and a face popping out through the doorway.
A face suspiciously like her own, with piercing red eyes instead of storming grey.
The man narrowed his eyes, and then his eyes widened as Jay lifted up the pipe, preparing to swing. He slammed the door shut as Jay brought the pipe down, leaving a small dent in the wood. As Jay attempted to drag the pipe up again, the man opened the door again, kicking Jay out of the entryway, and grabbed a stick of some kind, leaping out himself.
Jay struggled to stand, and the man kicked her again, pushing her to the ground and forcing her to drop her pipe. Standing over her cloaked visage, weapon over his head, he prepared to swing it down before visibly recoiling after looking at her face.
"You...you're just a kid," he said in a deep, raspy voice, slowly bringing down his weapon.
Jay kicked him in the shin, causing him to flinch, but she struggled to climb back into a standing position. As she shook with exhaustion, the man picked her up by the cloak, and ignoring her feeble yelps of protest, dragged her into the house.
"Tai," he shouted, but Jay continued weakly flailing about, before the bone-deep exhaustion finally overrode her willpower, and she passed out.
Jay woke up warm and cozy, which instantly put her on edge. Her eyes shot open and she went ramrod straight, before she hurled herself out of the couch she was laying on. Falling straight to the floor, she heard a distant clatter and footsteps as she struggled to stand, before big hands grabbed her from her underarms and lifted her up and back onto the couch. Bewildered, Jay looked at the man.
His hair was thick with yellow locks and an unshaven face, with eyes bluer than the sky, and although his eyes held a sort of sadness to them, his grin was as bright as the sun. "Hey there, kiddo. You okay?"
Jay wanted to just stare at him, to embrace the feeling of literal sunshine emanating from his face, but then the man with her face walked into the room. Something in her face must have shifted, because the two men looked warily at each other, and then at her. Jay forced herself to relax, unclenching her fists and staring at the marks her fingernails left on her palms.
"My name is Jay," she said as calmly as possible, as if reciting a script. "I was born to...Summer Rose and...Qrow Branwen. I was in an...orphanage for...seven years." She took a pause, watching as both of the men's faces shifted several colors. "Summer Rose lives on...the island of Patch, in...Vale." She recited the address she knew so well and the red-eyed man's face took on a sickly glow.
"How..." The man with her face licked his lips. "How do you know all of that? Who told you?"
Jay stared blankly at the man she knew was Qrow. "You're my father, aren't you?"
Qrow collapsed into a chair and the other man looked at him, concerned and angry. "This, she's, with Summer?!" the man hissed out. "When, where, how?"
"Look, okay, we thought she was going to be fine in the orphanage," Qrow said, lifting up his hands. "We couldn't tell you because, well, Raven, and we couldn't just keep it-" he looked at Jay, "-her, so what were we supposed to do?"
The other man's face went bright red, in what Jay instinctively knew was anger. She cringed and hunched over, trying to make herself smaller, as the man raged. "You didn't even think about me, huh?! You had no right-" He blinked, caught his breath, and said, "Seven. Seven years. This was before Ruby."
Qrow cringed himself. "This was before you and Summer, even. I think Yang was half a year old when she was born."
"...how did I not notice?" the blond man finally said.
"I think you were still figuring out why Raven left," Qrow said, calmly now that it seemed the worst of the other man's temper faded. Jay slowly unfurled herself. "This was around the time you had your first depression, but look, Tai, we didn't want her. Summer and I both agreed what had to be done; I suggested abortion, but you know Summer, she didn't agree, she would never agree."
"You don't love me," Jay said. Both men winced. "You never loved me, or wanted me." It wasn't a question.
Qrow hesitated, before saying, "...no." He rubbed the back of his neck. "No, I don't."
Jay simply nodded.
The other man, Tai, looked between the two, looking appalled. "Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, Qrow, you can't just say that to your kid!"
Jay looked at her feet. "The matron always said I was unlovable," she admitted, then jumped at the sound of a crack coming from Tai. She looked at him, and saw a giant split in the armrest he was sitting in.
Qrow blinked, then leaned forward, confused and horrified. "I never said that."
"Jay, sweetie, what are you talking about?" Tai said, trying to hold the armrest together with his bare hands.
Jay hesitated, wondering whether or not to actually elaborate, but the earnest look on the sunshine man's face convinced her, so, looking at her wringing hands, she explained the orphanage's behavior.
By the end of her explanation, Tai looked absolutely furious, and Jay instinctively winced at that, but she looked at Qrow and cringed even harder. Qrow's face could have been carved in granite with how solid he looked, but the cold, dark glint of his glare promised a type of pain Jay didn't want to think about.
Tai stood up. "Qrow, what was that orphanage called? I'm going to give them a piece of my mind."
"No need," Qrow said, voice as cold as ice, and Jay jumped at the sound. "I'll be right back."
Tai and Qrow shared a look, and Tai nodded. "Take as long as you need."
Qrow smiled. Jay was terrified just looking at it peripherally. "You know me so well."
Jay looked at her hands again. "I'm sorry."
A large hand stuck out and rested on her head. She looked up to see the man with her face look at her with something akin to kindness. "Don't be. It's not your fault."
Jay wanted to protest, to explain, to say anything at all, but the warmth of her father's hand on her head made her lean in, instinctively craving more. Sadly, after a few seconds, her father removed his hand and walked away.
The sunshine man looked at Jay, warm and inviting, and said, "If you'd like to stay, we have more than enough room for you."
Jay looked at him and nodded. "Thank you, sir, but I wouldn't want to impose."
Tai blinked, then flashed a grin. "Y'know, you sound way older than you actually are."
Jay averted her eyes. "I'm sorry."
In the corner of her eye, she saw a large object come towards her, so she flinched instinctively. The large object wrapped around her back, and she realized shortly after that it was only Tai's arm wrapping around her. She looked at Tai, sitting next to her, and saw the hint of sadness masked beneath the grin on his face.
"You're seven, right?" Tai asked, looking straight into Jay's eyes.
"Ah...yes," Jay squeaked out, unnerved and awed by the sheer force of Tai's presence.
Tai hummed, looking forward. "I've got two daughters. One's eight, and she's like me-blonde, brash, and beautiful." He grinned again, looking at Jay, who blushed. "The other's six, and she's more like her mom-your mom, Summer." He looked forward again, ignoring Jay's blush. "I think you'll like them. They might take a bit to get used to you, but I'm sure they'll love you too."
"I..." Jay looked at her hands. "Thank you for the optimism, but I don't think they'll like me at all. I'm just imposing on your hospitality, after all."
"Where did you learn those words?" Tai asked, but answered himself before Jay could. "Ah, right, orphanage." Tai nodded to himself, then looked at Jay. "Look, if my kids don't like you, that's fine, I'll be a bit disappointed in them but it's nothing big. But, you're family, and I'm not leaving you out in the cold."
"I...family," Jay said, looking at her hands. Her eyes felt misty, so she blinked harder. "Family. I've never had a family." She felt her nose fill with mucus, so she started sniffing.
Tai looked at Jay, and then shifted his position so that he covered Jay entirely with his embrace. "I think I know what you're feeling, and I'm going to let you know this, because I'm absolutely sure they said the opposite in that orphanage: Jay, it's okay to cry."
"Crying is a weakness," Jay said, even as she fought the tears threatening to come out of her face. "Crying is a waste of time, and it doesn't do anything."
Tai lowered his voice and moved his head closer into the embrace. "Crying will make you feel better, so of course it's worth it."
"But I'm wor-" Jay started to say, but then hiccuped. Tai only hugged her harder. "Worthless, stupid, useless..."
"You are loved. You are wanted. You are home, Jay. You are safe, now, and it's okay to cry."
At those words, delivered so kindly by this ball of radiance, Jay wept in her uncle's arms. Home. Safety. Being wanted. Having worth.
This is all I've ever wanted.
Jay woke up warm and cozy, which instantly put her on edge. Her eyes shot open and she went ramrod straight, before she hurled herself out of the couch she was laying on. Falling straight to the floor, she heard a distant clatter and footsteps as she struggled to stand.
Looking up, she saw an angel, come down from the heavens to bless the world with divine light. Her radiant blonde hair flowed down like tempestuous rivers, and her vivid lilac eyes shone brighter than the brightest star.
"Hi!" the blonde chirped. "I'm Yang, this is Ruby! You're Jay, right?"
Jay could only nod as the divine angel talked to her, a lowly earth-bound sinner. Oh, to have been blessed with such divine providence!
"Well, it's nice to meet you! Dad said that you're gonna be living here for a while, so that's cool."
Jay nodded, feeling a little sick. How could she say anything to such glorious radiance?
"Wanna play a game? Ruby and I were just gonna play some 'hunt the Grimm.'"
The smaller girl behind the angel chimed in with a soft, excited, "Hunt!"
Jay just blinked.
Yang's grin seemed more forced as she asked, "...you gonna say anything?"
"Are you an angel?" Jay blurted out without thinking.
"Uhhhhhhhh-" Yang stood there, bewildered. "What...?"
Jay merely stared at this luciferous angel, who shifted on her feet uncomfortably.
"...may I hug you?" Jay said, again without thinking.
Yang looked a little wary. "Uh...sure?"
Jay slowly, methodically clasped her arms around Yang's torso, slowly leaning into the embrace. Suddenly, the smaller girl pushed Jay out of the way with a firm, "No!
"Ya gotta hug her like this!" Ruby grabbed what she could reach of Yang's torso and placed her face in Yang's stomach.
"I...I see," Jay said, bewildered. She tried again, her height easily allowing her to tower over Ruby and place her face in Yang's chest. "...Like this?"
"Mm-hmm!" Ruby nodded.
"I see." Jay leaned in more and felt Yang's arm on her back. "...this is nice."
Yang coughed with a sheepish grin and a luminescent blush. Suddenly, they heard the click of a camera, and the three of them turned to see Tai with a dopey grin on his face.
"My sweet, precious girls~! I'm so glad you're bonding!"
Yang raised her fist at her dad, but Jay just continued to hug and nuzzle her. After a short while, Yang just sighed and put her unopened fist around her new sister.
Tai looked at the three of them, but his face softened when he looked at Jay. "Remember, Jay, it's okay to cry," he said quietly.
Jay only nodded against Yang's chest. Suddenly, she felt a hand on her thigh, and looked over to see Ruby sucking her thumb and grabbing on.
Yang smiled and grabbed Ruby so they could group together to have a three-way hug. After a moment, Jay slowly placed her free hand on Ruby's back.
Tai just continued taking pictures.