Special thanks to the 2013 Americorps graduation ceremony for giving me some inspiration for the speech.

5 AP (40 years before team RWBY)

Ozpin was terrified. In 5 minutes he would have to stand in front of over 2000 people and give a speech. He had 5 minutes to give it and he had only written 5 sentences. He looked into the mirror as he tied his tie and begged himself to stop sweating. He stuffed the folded piece of paper with what he had scribbled for his speech on it in his coat pocket. He wrapped a scarf around his neck and put on his hat and glasses before he heard a familiar voice behind him.

Peter spoke to the nervous wreck that stood before him looking into the mirror "You should try your best to not drown before you speak to the masses my friend."

Ozpin turned around and chortled "You try opening a school without doing the same. It's not as easy as it appears." Port smiled through his moustache and chuckled to himself before placing a reassuring hand on the shoulder closest to him.

Peter spoke in a calm voice "You are one of the two greatest men I have ever had the honor to have met. You survived the great war. You survived the greatest form of loss. And most astonishingly you survived my own wrath. You can survive a few dozen nosey reporters for the next 5 minutes. Ozpin grew the seed of a half-hearted smile and nodded slowly.

He walked out to the podium and took in the view. There were about 2 rows of reporters at the front of the crowd. Behind them was a row of officials and politicians who stood with a glow of arrogance about them. After that were the children and their parents. Many of the smaller children sat on their father's shoulders. And at the back were the masses, a horde of over a thousand people who had no apparent purpose for even being present.

Ozpin cleared his throat to test the microphone. He pulled the crumpled wad of paper from his pocket and started reading "5 years ago the world was close to ruin. The armies were all dead and the monsters were stronger than ever. Hunters and huntresses were the last hope for humanity. We were vastly outnumbered. No one had told us how to do what we had to do."

He realized that he had run out of scripted speech. He paused for a moment before he tore the slip of paper in half and let it fall to the ground. He looked up at the cameras before him and laughed at his own unpreparedness. He loosened his scarf as he continued "My partner was one of the greatest huntresses that I've ever known. She was smart, she was wise, and she was truly a good human being above all else."

He dropped his scarf to the ground and started to remove his coat as he continued "She was of the belief that had the huntsmen had proper education and training the war might have been easier on us all." Ozpin looked at his feet for a moment in reflection before taking off his hat and loosening his tie "When she suggested the idea of starting a school to train warriors into becoming huntsmen I thought she was crazy. I thought the task was insurmountable for even the greatest of teachers."

He was sweating like a madman but this was more important than that. His eyes were widened and his heart was beating at combat rates "But the more I thought about it the more I realized how much said school could do for the world. We would no longer have to worry about our children being eaten in the big city. We would no longer have to watch our backs every second of every day for fear that this will be the day we've waited for, this will be the day we die."

He pulled a chair up to the podium "But now, in a few years once my school has its first graduates, we won't have to worry so much any more. There will be someone else watching out for us. This new generation of huntsmen will change the world. I'm telling you today that that will be the day we've all waited for, the day of life, the day of peace, the day that no-one dies at the hands of Grimm or man"

He took off his tie and started on one of his shoes as he removed the Mic from the stand and brought it closer "And I feel that it is important to state that this will not be a military venture. I feel that more official sources of protection have failed us in some way. We are still alive, but at what cost?" He got to work on the other shoe after placing his glasses on the podium.

"People are scared of the dark. They're scared of each other. They're scared to leave their own homes. We are alive, but we never get to live anymore." Ozpin stood and started to pace "I'd like to quote an old friend of mine if I may, Arthur Arc. He once said to me 'No true victory can ever come from the military. The only true victory is peace, and that the military simply cannot provide under the nature of what it is."

He stopped and stood, staring into the souls of the people present " 'For perhaps victory lies in the simpler things that they have long forgotten, things that require a smaller and more honest soul.' I believe in all these things. I believe that a new era is upon us, A new era of great peace. And I believe that this will be the day we've waited for. For this is the day that humanity stands up and says 'no, I may fall, but not today, it won't be by your hand' "

Ozpin ran his fingers through his hair before sitting down for his final statement "I'd like to read you the first draft for the pledge that all graduates must take at beacon. I will not be ordering my students to do anything. They will forge their own strategies and they will direct their own actions as they see fit within the confines of the oath. It's not quite finished so I'm open to criticism after the ceremony"

"I will uphold the well-being of human kind in all its forms above all else.

I will maintain life and all its freedoms.

Thirdly I will protect myself and my fellow huntsmen for the future betterment of the world.

I will be present to assist whenever I know that I am needed.

And lastly I will pursue my own contentedness for as far as it does not exceed the higher priorities."

"I'd like to take this oath now along with whoever chooses to join me." Ozpin stood and raised his hand as he repeated the oath with his eyes closed. When he opened them he saw that every single person in the audience had taken the oath with him. He turned towards Port who had his hand held high and smiled. He then looked at his watch and saw that he was 10 minutes over his speech limit.

Ozpin quickly walked to the podium and replaced the Mic on the stand. "Thank you" he spoke as he grabbed the giant scissors next to him and walked over to cut the ribbon holding the front gate closed. He looked back at the crowd behind him and smiled at them as he dug his bare feet into the ground. He shouted as he cut the ribbon "Welcome to Beacon!"

3 years earlier

Ozpin stood on the plot of land that would have once been his future. All he could think of was the past. He stood on the grass looking over beacon cliffs unsure about what he would do with the land he had purchased. He turned to Peter who had appeared behind him and then turned back to overlooking the cliff. Port looked at him worriedly "I didn't know you were this depressed. You know you can always be a farmer or something."

Ozpin looked at him confusedly before his eyes widened "no no no! I'm not up here for that." Ozpin explained "I bought this land with her. Now what do I do with it?" Port nodded "it's a beautiful plot of land, very spacious. I'm sure you'll think of something." Ozpin smiled back at his friend as an idea came to him "She had always liked the idea of starting a school. I think I should honor that wish." Port gave him a reassuring smile "I think she'd like that."

Up next: 18 years later