STRQ: Tales of the Old Huntsmen
AN: This chapter title, living proof that you don't have to watch Game of Thrones, to make a Game of Thrones reference. In all seriousness I had pretty cool ideas for this chapter, but I'm not sure how it'll turn out.
Chapter 14: House of STRQ
It was a time of celebration. After today, Tai would officially be a huntsman. It had taken four, long, agonizing years, but they did it. Team STRQ was graduating. They had already gone on plenty of missions, killed impossibly huge monsters, stopped criminal empires and garnered quite the reputation. In short, none of the four members would ever have to worry about not getting job offers.
Really, Tai felt sort of left out. Raven was already a living legend, Summer was valedictorian and Qrow had become Ozpin's right hand man. But Tai, he was the other guy. He wasn't ever invited for idle chatter with the headmaster. He never got to have dinner with councilmen. Children of Vale never asked for his autograph. He was still in the top five for the class overall, team STRQ was just that good. Nothing could ever stop them.
So Tai sat there in his chair. He listened to councilmen and professors speak before Summer would take the stage. He pictured what his life would be like. Summer had been the one to plan it out. She nearly broke down crying when she started writing her speech last week. She realized that as soon as she leaves Beacon she'd be alone. Her best friend on Patch had her own growing family to raise. Her Granny, had passed away just a year earlier. All she had left was an empty house in the middle of the woods. And when she started preparing, and started writing a speech about the future, it all dawned on her.
So team STRQ were going to stick together. It wasn't uncommon, at least for recent graduates. They had just spent the last four years living together in the same room. It was only natural to share a three-bedroom house. All three other members agreed to it. At least until they decide they're fed up with each other and go their spate ways. Which Tai didn't see happening anytime soon. They had all become inseparable. Tai followed Raven like a puppy, both Branwens followed Summer around the same, and Summer usually followed Tai in the same manner.
Tai was pulled from his thoughts when Summer took the stage. She looked great in her green graduation robes. She frantically gathered her note cards and coughed into the mic. She starred awkwardly at the crowd as she composed herself.
"Friends, fellow students, teachers, and other designated officials. My name is Summer Rose. Today, my team and I, as well as a dozen other individuals are becoming official Huntsmen. We all have our reasons, we all have our goals, we all have our dreams. But I wanted to tell you…that I'm not usually one for talk. I'm not one for big pretty speeches. But what I am for…are stories."
"So let me tell you a story. At the end of the Great War, the strongest warriors in Remnant united to defeat a horde of Grimm that threatened to consume the entire world. This group included knights, generals, royalty, nobility, lowly guardians, heroes of legend, and heroes long forgotten. They united, not under a flag, but under an ideal. An ideal that humanity is not only stronger together, but only strong together. An ideal that all men and women were worth saving. Regardless of whether they were from Mantle, Vale, Mistral, Vacuo, or outside kingdom borders. Regardless of if they were men or women, rich or poor, young or old, nobility or peasant, black or white, full human or Faunas." She let that last part sink in, much to the dismay of a large portion of the crowd. Summer bit her lip before she proceeded.
"I believe, just as my parents and their parents before them believed, that being a hero isn't about glory, or freedom, or winning. It's about doing everything in your power to help as many people as you can whenever you need to, not when it's convenient. I don't know why all of you are here, and if you're reasoning is different than mine that's fine. But I know why I am here. I am here to do everything in my power, to bring as much light to the world in this dark time. Three years ago, after the Vytal Festival, I was asked to use my power, my personality, the fact that so many people were already adoring me, to quell the riots caused by the Faunas Liberation Front." There was subtle chatter in the crowds.
"There is evil in the world. And some of it is in us humans, and when I say humans I mean full humans and Faunas. We become so comfortable in our lives, that we ignore the cries of others. We forget, that despite whatever differences we have, the Grimm don't care. They see us all as prey. And the more we divide ourselves. The more we put arbitrary borders in our sub-groups, the easier we make the Grimm's goal. And keeping that from happening, is the first and foremost job of a huntsmen."
"I wanted to end with some thanks. Thank you Taiyang, for being the best friend I could have asked for. Over the years we've pulled each other's fat out of the fire. Your jokes and comments made even the most stressful and life threatening situations so much fun. Thank you Raven, for being the sister I never had. These last four years have been eye opening. You taught me what it means to have conviction. You opened my eyes to so much wrong in the world and I solemnly believe that together, we can make it so much better. Thank you Qrow, for helping me get Raven out of her shell. Thank you for being my best friend. Thank you for being my partner. If the cards fell differently, I can see myself getting along with others outside of Tai and Raven, but I can't picture any of it working without you. If Raven and Tai are the hands and body, and I'm the soul, you are the brains. And don't let anyone tell you otherwise."
"Thank you Glynda, I look forward to seeing your speech here in two years. When you first introduced yourself and Octavia, and said how much you looked up to my team, I actually ran back into my room and cried tears of joy. And I want to say, that I'm proud of how much you've grown these last two years."
"Thank you Professors, especially you Ozpin, for pushing me further than I ever thought I could go. I could never have imagined that this world was so big. But you gave me a glimpse of it. And I want to see more."
"This isn't the end, it's a new chapter. I think I speak on behalf of the entire class when I say this. I am ready for the world. My time here is just a foundation. Just like how combat school prepared me us for Beacon so too does Beacon prepare us for the hard lessons, the real world. Thank you, and have a nice day."
She gave a bow to a loud applause. After the ceremony, they all went back to the room and packed their bags. Tai said goodbye to his family as they boarded the plane to Patch. Once there, their lives as adults and huntsmen would begin.
They spent months together on Patch. They were rarely all four there at the same time though. They kept themselves busy with missions and mostly used Summer's childhood home as just a base of operations. But even with that, so long as they had that home to return to, they were still inseparable.
AN: And that's it for this chapter. There was another bit, but I decided to save it for the beginning of next chapter. You know, a certain pairing getting romantically involved… But next chapter isn't going to have a behemoth monologue in it so it'll probably work better for that. I really wanted to build up the idea that they see themselves as untouchable. Because, if you couldn't tell by Summer's involvement in my other two stories, the point of her character (as I see it) is that she's the ultimate symbol of no huntsmen being safe. Please review, follow and favorite.