DISCLAIMER: This is a story from a different perspective of an OCC. RWBY and all RWBY characters are owned by Rooster Teeth.
Addition voice actor and actress for any OC has been noted beside the character to help imagery.
Option music for immersion in order:
*1 Forever Fall Pt.1
*2 Caffeine (Casey Williams)
*3 I Burn (Casey Williams)
*4 The Shining Beacon Pt.2
*5 Glow (Most Emotional Music Ever)
A Shower in the Forest
*1
A fall wind blows into the crimson leaf trees, stirring the leaves into a dance within the Forest of Forever Fall. The beautiful forest is serene during the day and under the full moon, absolutely captivating. The ground covered in layers of leaves, the cliffs and hills, everything is illuminated under the starless sky, even the Grimm that patrol it. Ursa both thin and fat travel in small packs, Beowolf prowling within the small shades of trees, their red eyes scouting for prey and other Grimm, the alpha howling into the night sky. Across the bright moon, a Nevermore flies across its surface, gliding unchallenged while scanning the ground looking across all it can see, its sights focusing so well that it did not seeing a bright star flickering in the sky. The star flickers and grows brighter, its color changing slowly from white to orange and red like a small flame. The star became bigger and bigger like a shooting star, light trailing behind it until it goes from being like a shooting star to a meteor.
The meteor is small in size and flies at an angle coming down fast and making direct impact with the Nevermore, the bird twisting out of control and crashes into the trees below screeching, the meteor skimming the trees before landing with a brilliant explosion of red, orange, and fallen leaves. The flames from the fallen meteor formed a trail to where it's fallen, a groove dug deep into the ground leading to it. However, the hole where it landed, or supposed to have landed, is empty. Grim surround the crater, sniffing the singed air and looking up to sky, their red eyes scanning everything. A Beowolf howls, running quickly through the trees while its pack followed, heading into a clearing to find one human walking from the direction they came from.
The smaller Ursa roar at the hooded individual, his black full body cloak swaying in the breeze. The edged of his cloak are singed, as if on fire with embers flaking off at a constant but the cloak never fades. It covers most of his body, all but the legs and large shining black sheath on his back. The ornate sheath is 5 feet long and a foot wide, a golden feather engraved at the sheath's center. The hilt is silver, moonlight gleaming from the shine and polish, with a black chain going from its handle to the man's arm, wrapping around the right arm from over the shoulder. The Beowolves run around and circle the man, Ursa forming a line and roaring at him, the man reaching back and grabbing a hold of the hilt with his right tan skinned hand. Pulling the sword out, its onyx colored blade reflects the moonlight, a small hole near the hilt followed by a faint zigzag leading from the hole up to the very tip of the blade. Its finish is smooth, both sides of the blade sharp making it out to be a lethal 2 edged sword. He places the sword across his shoulders, wind blowing his hood off revealing his face.
His jet black hair is wild and shoulder length, a silver bit of hair on the top left side of his hair mixed in. *2 His face is young and smooth, his eyes closed as wind blew more leaves by his darker toned skin and his breathing is controlled. A Beowolf howls, running from the pack and runs at him, jumping up into the air claws and fangs bared, the young man opening his eyes revealing crimson red iris eyes. He immediately turns around and brings the sword right down the middle of the Beowolf's head to the tail, the 2 halves landing on both sides of him. He pulls up his sword and puts it back on his shoulders, more Beowolves running at him. Bringing the sword around, it slices through them as they come 2 at a time, cutting off their heads then kicking those heads into other Beowolf, knocking them back.
He throws his sword into the seemingly endless herd of Beowolves, the sword piercing through with the chain extended behind it. The chain stops after 6 feet of chain and is pulled back after the sword pierces a Beowolf, bringing it back and he swings the sword around into the air behind him, hitting another in mid jump, cutting through them both. The sword is pulled back to him, an Ursa running straight at him and he blocks an incoming swipe, sending him back a bit. The man runs back at the Ursa, back flips, kicking the maw of the Ursa straight up forcing it to stand, then takes his sword and impales the Grimm. Using both hands, he grabs the hilt of his sword and forces it apart, the Ursa dropping in 2 halves and the man standing with 2 swords identical with one another, slender on one side and ridged on the other. The holes ignite with a flame causing the slender sides to engulf themselves in a unique golden flame, the crimson leaves around him kicking up from the heat.
Meanwhile, the Nevermore begins stirring, standing up slowly, ruffling its feathers and chirping out a roar like cry. More Ursa rush the man, only to get jumped on and helps to launch him into the air. Beowolf jump over the Ursa, the man cutting them like butter with the flaming swords. He twists with them coming back down, cutting through the Grimm then as he lands, extends the right blade with the chain still connected into the Ursa he jumped off of. He yanks the sword back, bringing the corpse with it and cuts through it down the middle with the other sword. The Nevermore flies up into the sky and finds him immediately, flapping its wings at him sending deadly feather tips at him. He takes the sword with the chain and twirls it in front of him, a flame like shield covering him, burning any feathers that came his way. He twirls the sword over his head then sends it forward and catches it, causing a slice a flame to arc across the leaf covered ground and cuts through a chunk of Grimm. Every Ursa and Beowolf that tried attacking him is cut instinctively, dismembered and beheaded until only a few remained.
The Nevermore above dives down close to the ground, opening its mouth as it tries to ram him. He takes both of his swords and crosses them in front of his chest, sliding them against each other as he bends toward the bird as if he is holding his stomach. As it gets close, he slashes both of his swords to send flames at the Nevermore, both of them bold and crossed, hitting the Nevermore in the mask and staggers it. It tries to flap upward, stirring the leaves up with it and the man grabs its left talon. It flies up and eclipses the moon, the sudden stop making him jerk up. He uses the momentum, getting above the soaring bird and twirls his sword on the chain and creates a swirling flame around him, coming back down and brings down both swords on its head, bringing it down from the sky trailing with flames. When they land, the swords crack but don't shatter its mask. The remaining Beowolves run all around him, the man focusing and the flames on the sword glow even brighter.
The Nevermore gets back up slowly and as it gets up and starts to ascend, he puts the swords together, places the linked sword into the sheath and the Beowolves jump into the air. Just before they make contact, he pulls the sword covered in flames out over his head and slashes everything around him, obliterating the Beowolves and cutting the Nevermore's belly and wings up. He turns away from them, walking away as leaves fall all around them, sliding the sword into its sheath as cindered remains fall from the sky. The Nevermore crashed into the ground behind him as he is walking, groaning with its mask half broken.
The man stops and looks back at the Nevermore covered in red leaves and scars, its eyes slowly going dim. He turns back and walks back to it and slowly approaches it, its eyes looking directly at him. He places his left hand onto the bird's mask and looks at it closely. Behind him from within 2 trees, he hears crunching leaves as something approaches them. The thing turns out to be a woman with round glasses, a white frilly shirt with a bit of bust showing, a purple cape and black long skirt.
"Do you know who I am?" She speaks in a stern voice, clearly older and wiser than he looks. He does not respond, the woman looking at him up and down. "Guess not… I am Glynda Goodwitch."
"…" The young man looks back at her and then back to the Nevermore.
"You've no manners, either." Glynda slowly walks to him, her blonde hair perfectly made into a bun bouncing slightly, minding the Nevermore he's touching. "I've come to investigate the meteor that fell and I saw this Grimm fall from the sky after it was struck. However, when I went to the sight of the fall, there was nothing there but fire and turned up leaves."
He still pays her little mind it seems, going into his hood and pulling out a thin black chain and throwing it around the neck of the Nevermore.
"That is a Nevermore, one of the most dangerous Grimm out here. Surely, you saw the Grimm get struck with the meteor, so do you know where its remains are?" Glynda still received no response, crossing her arms under her breasts frowning. "How about something more direct? Are YOU the fallen star?" The young man stops, looking back at her.
(Voice of Robert McCollum) "What difference does it make?" He responded, his voice as stern as hers while young.
"Well you are trespassing on these grounds, so I would say plenty." Glynda pulls out a small pointer stick, aiming it at him.
"Glynda, please be a little bit more hospitable." Glynda turns around and sees an older man with wild strands of grey hair in a green suit behind her. He walks with a cane and a coffee in a white mug in his free left hand.
"Headmaster, what are you doing out here?" Glynda asks him as he walks closer, the Headmaster sipping his coffee.
"I merely wanted to see what you were up to. I sent you quite some time ago so I thought you were in some trouble, perhaps." He gets in front of her and pushes up his reading glasses up on his nose. "That's quite the Grimm you have there. Grimm are creatures attracted to negative emotions, panic, and other negativity that plaque humanity. They seek to destroy everything that we have created since the dawn of man, in fact."
"Everyone knows that, sir." Glynda chimes in, looking between him and the stranger.
"They lack a soul as well." The Headmaster finishes.
"But they do not lack intellect and judgment." The stranger says to him. "This… Grimm, can still be used with the right purpose, you merely have to give it to them."
"That's preposterous!" Glynda yells, glaring at the man uneasy. "Grimm exist to drive humanity to extinction. They attack without warning and kill mindlessly."
"And in this world, do you not have people that do the same?" He makes eye contact with her and looks back at the Nevermore. "You look like you've done your fair share of killing too."
"Why you! I will not-"
"Glynda, relax. He's got a point and if you keep this up, more Grimm will show up." The Headmaster pulls out a small white rectangular device from his jacket and opens it up sideways, a holographic screen appearing. "I've got a question for you: Where did you learn how to fight?" He turns the screen of his scroll to show the stranger fighting the Grimm with his weapon. "I'd really like to know. Not to mention the very big and unique sword you wield with such ease."
"I taught myself." He loops the chain into itself, making a knot around the Nevermore's neck. "As is the weapon I forged."
"Oh? What is your name? I'd hate to refer to you as the cloaked guy or stranger."
"The name's Tai."
"I see. What school do you come from, or what land? Surely you've been to a school of some sort."
"No, I am from none of the schools. I taught myself the art of fighting, that's all."
"Self taught enough to take down a Nevermore is enough for me. What is it that brings you here, if you are this falling 'star' per say."
"If you honestly believe that, I am looking for something important."
"I see. I take it you do not know who I am, correct?"
"Not a clue."
"I am Professor Ozpin, headmaster of Beacon Academy. I run a school to train future Huntsmen and Huntresses to protect this world from the creatures of Grimm." He passes Glynda the scroll, sipping his coffee some more. "We only accept top tier students and put them into rigorous training, coming from all demographics."
"Are you asking me to go?"
"I'm asking you to consider it. It's just north of where you are, and the opening ceremony starts up tomorrow at 10 am. I will make arrangements just in case you decide to come."
"You're asking someone who could be a threat to every student in the school. Please, reconsider." Glynda pleads, the professor turning around and walking away from Tai.
"Glynda, you see a meteor come from the sky and a young man with undeniable power standing before you. I see a student who can be taught the ways of the world and directed into a goal we can all share."
"Gr… I'll trust you, but I will make sure to keep my eyes on him at all times." Glynda looks back at Tai, then down to the footage captured from him fighting.
"If he is as hostile as you made him out to be, he could have easily attacked us instead of talking." He takes tips his cup up and finishes his coffee. "Pay attention to the footage. Tell me what you find odd."
Glynda looks through it as they walks, scanning the screen for anything. "I don't see anything stranger than usual."
"Pay attention to the leaves, then tell me what you see."
"Ok…" She looks closer at all the leaves around Tai, his flaming sword stirring them up as he cuts through Grimm. "The leaves are not burning…" With his fire slicing through flesh, when embers hit the ground, they simmered out, but did not leave any scorch marks.
"This whole forest should be on fire. Yet, not one leaf is burned from his sword. I think we should not judge him so straightforwardly. Don't you agree?"
"Hmm…" Glynda continues to look through the footage, noting every leaf she could see did not ignite when they naturally should have.
Tai returns to the spot he originally came from when he fell, looking around at the destruction surrounding him and starts to walk into the groove. He stops mid stride however after a sudden chill came over him. He plants his foot back and stands there, the wind blowing in the sound of silence. Placing the hood over his head again, he looks toward his left and nothing happens for a few seconds. He continues to look but nothing still and then looks away, beginning to walk. Stepping once then twice, a large red oval portal with swirling crimson rip out of the air to his left and cause him to stop again.
*3 From this portal, nothing happens for a short time until a woman standing tall walks through it. She has raven black hair down to her lower back with a mask covering her face. It was small and merely covers her like a masquerade mask only it was similar to the mask the Nevermore has on its face. Her skin seems pale white and she wears a shallow cut black dress, five necklaces with an assortment of beads, a red girdle-belt, and a pair of matching gauntlets. She is armed with a long sheath black in color held up by a handle built into it. The woman grabs the handle of the weapon and slowly pulls out a long red imbued blade, the portal closing behind her as she does. Her sword is a long single edge blade and while pointed towards him, he pulls out his own once more.
Without a single motion, she blindingly appeared behind him and swings her sword 1 handed down on his head and he puts up his sword and blocks her with one hand, the collision breaking the ground around them. The weight shifts off of his blade and she kicks the center of his back, sending him into the crater he was in with power, sending up a dust cloud.
I didn't expect that kind of power… He walks from the crater seemingly unharmed, sword over his shoulder and stops to look at her. Bending low, Tai dashes straight at her, the woman holding the sword with 2 hands and braces herself with her legs bent. She swings downward as he gets close but Tai uses the back of his hand to swat it away from his head and grabs her neck, pushing her into and through a tree into another, holding her against it. She barely grunts and grabs his arm with his free hand, Tai keeping a solid grip. He aims the butt of his sword at her mask and as he lunges to break her mask, she dips down and avoids it, slashing upwards kicking up dust and solid ground in a single swing. Flipping down to a normal standing position, Tai stares at her under his hood.
She slides the sword into its sheath and bends down low, jetting toward him inhumanly and he holds his sword down in front of him, blocking a slash as she zoomed past him while pulling out her sword. However, she turns and chains it with another slash at his back and goes back and forth with blinding speed and then stops behind him. She slides her open sword back into the sheath and as it clicks, red slashes of fire ignite around Tai and explode. She stands up straight and looks back at the fire and smoke, examining it closely.
"…I thought you were strong enough to…" She quietly cuts herself off and looks down. From the cloud a long black linked chain shoots out and extends to her mask, hitting her directly and sends her jarring back while holding the mask with one hand. The chain retracts as it hits and the fire and smoke twirl around the spot, clearing up to reveal Tai as he walks towards her.
"Alright. Now tell me what this is about, or I will go for more than your mask." Tai warns, putting his sword back up against his shoulder. She stops moving, half the mask shattering to the ground, showing him crimson red eyes. She does not respond, sliding the sword back into the sheath and holds it as if she would lunge again. Tai just stares, a gold flame filling the hole within his onyx colored sword. The blades ignite and he takes a single step, swinging his sword down from his shoulder sending an abundance of gold fire crashing down on her. Waiting a few seconds, the fire starts to clear and she was no longer there. She is within the trees behind him and slashes out, her own flames cutting toward him and he somersaults over it, the fire crashing into the dirt and sends more flying. He looks back to her and her to him, making eye contact. Dashing to him, Tai turns toward her and lunges the tip of the sword at him.
Right as the tip gets an inch from his neck, she stops, standing there with the leaves catching up from the wind and he just looks down at her. The other half of the mask falls off and shows her whole face to him, not knowing why she was masked in the first place but now he knows what she looks like.
"Hmph…" She huffs low, turning away from him and slashes at the air, creating another black and crimson portal before her. She begins to walk away, Tai not stopping her until she gets close.
"Will you say who you are?" He asks, the woman not moving.
"…" She turns her lead to look over her shoulder, an ominous yet calm look on her face. "…you may be strong enough…" With that, she turns away from him and walks into the portal, the portal closing moments later.
"…" Tai turns away from where she was and makes his way back to the Nevermore to ready himself for the coming day.
The next morning…
*4
The sun is high in the air, the partially cloudy day covering a large flying object over a vast ocean. It is a large silver airship, 4 axils of wings, 2 on both sides with 3 large thrusters flying the ship forward, its bottom containing windows holding students within the air craft. These students are heading toward a large academy surrounded by luscious green foliage with intricate buildings connected with one another with smaller columns and at its front are landing docks, welcoming the ones carried inside. As the students got off of the ship, from the sky behind them a large bird soars high in the clouds. While the events below happen, a miniature explosion catches its eyes and it continues to fly around to the west side of the docks, the bird identified as a Nevermore. The Nevermore comes from the clouds and comes close to the trees, flapping its large wings to land safely.
The Grimm has a chain wrapped around its neck, rattling as a person jumps down from its back. Still in his hood, Tai looks back to the Nevermore and holds up his left hand, the Nevermore bending down and he rubs its cracked mask.
"Wait here." He commands it, turning away and takes a few steps before he hears bushes stirring in front of him. "You are Glynda, correct?" He identifies her before she comes through, picking out a few leaves from her skirt.
"That's to you." She corrects him, holding a brown hardcover in her right hand.
"Whatever."
"If it were up to me, you wouldn't even be here right now. However, the Headmaster sees something other than your attitude and the fact you may still be dangerous so I can't do much."
"Did you come to evaluate me or just to say hi?" The Nevermore begins to stir and starts to spread its wings to attack but Tai looks back at it and the chain begins to burn, causing it to halt. "Get down." He commands and the Grimm begins to cringe, buckle then lies on its belly, nesting in its feathers starting to rest.
"I came to make sure no scene was caused and to direct you to the hall." Glynda points her stick at the Nevermore, Tai watching her carefully.
"I am capable of handling things, that's why I'm out here and not at your front door."
"I still have to make sure no one sees this Grimm on school grounds. It's against everything we do here… but I have to hide it." A purple beam flies out of her wand like pointer, wrapping around the Nevermore and creating a façade so it looks like a big boulder. "As long as the Grimm doesn't move much, it will stay hidden. You have 30 minutes to get to the hall, welcome to Beacon." Glynda turns away walks back through the small bushes again heading toward the school.
Tai looks back at the disguise then walks in the same direction, walking through trees until he sees white pavement and a bench. He holds his sheath on his side and takes a seat on the bench, sitting back on it and looks straight up to the sky.
"So this place isn't too different from the others… Humans with a different origin and different threats but in the end, they are the same core as the rest of them. I just have to find the small change that makes them, them. Perhaps that Headmaster is more than what he looks, or odd things happen so often that a meteor is the least of their concerns. They call the creatures Grimm, empty evil vessels that prey on people. My guess is that it's been a long battle between them, and they are right. I just hope the Nevermore creature is as big of a threat as they say, because if there are things bigger than that, I am going to have trouble." Students pass by, chatting with one another and laughing, all but the one which is on her own.
She has a light olive complexion, amber eyes, and long black hair walking slowly toward his direction. She has a black bow or ribbon on her head, a black button vest with coattails showing her midriff with white shorts that have zippers in the front of each leg. Wearing a black scarf, black stockings, and a black detached sleeve with a silver band on her right arm, he pays closer attention to her bow. It seemed slightly out of place for the outfit, and her eyes look sharper than a normal human's eye. As she walks passed in, he raises his left hand.
"Excuse me." He manages to get her attention, the young woman turning to him in her black heels. "Do you know how far the main hall is from here?" He stands up, putting the sheath back onto his back.
"Not far. Follow this path and you'll be there in a few minutes." She points down the path they are on.
"I see, then I might as well go with you since I am guessing you have to be there too." Tai starts walking in the direction she pointed, the girl rolling her eyes then walking behind him. "Tell me, are the humans around here always so accepting of people who are… different?"
"…" She looks at the back of his hood, wondering what he is getting at. "What do you mean?"
"Well, I don't think I am like them. However, I got into this school with strange circumstances." Tai clarifies.
"Are you a Faunus or something?" He turns his head to her, looking her in her eyes.
A Faunus…?
"What's a Faunus?" He asks, however he changed his tone to a more curious.
"The Faunus is a race that looks human and has animalistic physical traits. Just in case you didn't know." She replied sarcastically, shaking her head as she walked.
"Are you a Faunus?"
"No."
"Hmm…ok." A wind blows, Tai seeing more students in sight along with the 2 big doors to the main area. "You got a name?"
"It's Blake." She opens up a small book and flips past a few pages while she's walking.
"Name's Tai." He turns around to her and slows his steps, stopping behind her. "Hope we meet again, Kitten."
"Huh?" Blake turns around immediately to look at him, but he is gone. She looks around through the mobbing students, moving with them uneasy until they all filed into the hall.
On top of the hall building, Tai stands near the glass looking into the room filled with all new students, wind blowing gently some more.
"A human with traits like an animal. Yet she is one, but will not admit to it. If I had to guess, they have some bad blood together. Or they could be a rare species. After all, I've looked at most of these students but I've only seen one other, a girl with rabbit ears. I thought they were some aesthetics or something, but I guess they are real." He remembers when the wind blew, the bow on Blake's head barely moving, no matter how gentle the breeze it should not have resisted so well.
"You are dismissed." Tai looks down at the glass and kneels to peer through it, seeing Professor Ozpin on a stage walking away from a microphone with Glynda at it.
"Looks like I missed the speech. But it will be ok, I don't think I missed much." The professor pushes his glasses back onto his nose, looking up directly at him. He smiles and nods, carefully walking off the stage. "Hm… He's just a bit wiser than I gave him credit for." He looks left some more and sees Glynda also looking up at him with a frown on her face. Rolling his eyes, Tai jumps down from the roof and lands quietly, walking away as the doors open once again. As some students scattered about, he explores the school grounds thoroughly, taking his time as the sun is high all the way till it sets.
*5
Walking back to the bench where he first came, he sees a girl with extremely long blond hair and an orange scarf. Her complexion is a bit darker than Blake's but not by much, definitely top heavy wearing a yellow tank top with a brown short sleeve jacket and black shorts with a brown belt around her hips. She looks up toward Tai with her lavender eyes and raises an eyebrow.
"You're not shady at all there, Mister." She shakes her head and points a thumb at herself. "Name's Yang."
"Well Yang, I think if I were really shady, I'd just walk by and say nothing at all." Tai replies.
"That's true. I didn't see you at the announcement this morning. I think I would remember an all black hood."
"I was there, but I don't think anyone knew except for a few people." Tai shrugs, looking at the opening between the trees he came from.
"You do know we have to sleep inside for tonight right? We'll get assigned dorms and stuff tomorrow. And that weapon you got there, its huge."
"It is a custom job, it took quite a while to make it."
"You made your own weapon too? My baby sister did the same thing, so I want to say you went to the same school as her?"
"No, afraid not."
"Hmm, well then what school did you come from?"
"If I told you, I wouldn't be a shady guy, now would I?"
"Riiiiight." Yang giggles and shakes her head. "I'll just refer to you as the mysterious man now."
"Got it. You may want to go inside now, right? I'm sure you have people waiting for you." He turns away from her and walks into the trees, disappearing from sight.
"Catch you later!" Yang waves at him and gets up from the bench.
Within the trees, Tai approaches a large boulder and looks around it. He reaches up to it and the illusion fades, the Nevermore looking down at him with its glowing red eyes. That Yang... she looks like the woman from yesterday. It could be her, or someone like her relative. I should have asked while I was there. I'll find out some other time.
"You take orders well, I guess we should go further from here as well. I don't want anyone to see you since this is a Grimm free place and I don't need to get another Nevermore." He jumps onto it and the Nevermore spreads it gigantic wings. Before it could take off, Tai looks to his left and sees Glynda Goodwitch again. "First to greet me and the last, you've impeccable timing, ."
"Tomorrow, you are to report to the front once more." She looks up at him and pushes her glasses higher. "The initiation will begin in the morning and you need to be registered just like the rest of the students."
"Treating me like a student now? It warms my heart."
"You are my student and you will behave and be disciplined as such. Do you understand me?" She speaks with authority in her voice, Tai chuckling and shaking his head.
"Don't worry, I'll be there. I wouldn't want to disappoint a lady, would I?" The Nevermore begins flapping, picking them up into the air and Glynda continues to glare at him. "This place is too interesting, so you have nothing to worry about. As long as no one comes after me, I will not harm anyone." The Nevermore takes off, flying upward into the sky and twists around toward the more forest like area. "These people are going to be fun to fight, but for now, I have to lay low and remember my objective. As long as it's done, everything will be fine."
~Fin~
Author's Notes
This is my first attempt on a RWBY story. On top of that, this is actually canon to the story itself WITHOUT altering any key events. I am open to any criticism and would love any feedback. I have more chapters planned out weekly and I hope to become better over time. Thank you very much for making it to this point and I will catch y'all later.
Stay classy.