Chapter 1: Afraid

Nate Winters, Helena Ashley, Lucas Bean, Fortuna Wolfe"

"The four of you retrieved the black king pieces. From this day forward, you will work as Team WHLF, lead by Nate Winters..."

Nate wakes up, quickly moving away from the back of his seat as soon as he gets back to his senses and leaning to check the window next to him.

The sky is still enveloped in the darkness of the night. The Drakken Airship is flying above the clouds, barely illuminated by the light of Remnant's shattered moon.

Most of its passengers are calmly sleeping in their seats, while others check their Scrolls, playing games or checking files on them.

Nate, barely conscious, stretches his arm, looking at the watch on his wrist. An old mechanical watch with a leather strap. An old gift from the old man.

It's half past nine in the night...

"I guess I could call them", he mumbles as he takes out his Scroll from one of the many pockets of his coat, dialling a number. As he calls it, the call starts ringing already. The receiver immediately picks up.

The sore voice of a girl comes out from the Scroll. "Who am I talking to?"

Nate recognizes the voice and smiles. "Good evening, Bianca. I do hope I did not disturb you"

The girl soundly jumps from where she was still and sounding cheerful as she heard Nate's voice. "Nate? Is that really you? Oh. It's so good to hear from you"

"Likewise, Bianca", Nate says, still smiling. "How's your sister?"

"She's fine"

"Have you talked to her?"

She doesn't reply for a couple of minutes. As her silence persists, Nate decides to intervene.

"Is something wrong?"

His voice startles Bianca who lets out a scared hiccup.

"Why did you speak up, all of sudden?", she asks, irritated.

"Well, excuse me if you went silent the whole time"

"I still can't talk to her. Are you satisfied?" she says in the same upset tone, only to return into a concerned one soon after. "Fortuna is always busy with her work. She basically has no time for me"

"Also?" he asks.

"What?" she asks as well.

"That doesn't sound like the only thing that is concerning you right now"

"How can you tell?" she teasingly asks.

"Because last time I asked you about Fortuna, you took less time to reply"

A tone of exasperation is heard in her voice. "You and your far-fetched details"

"Well? " he stubbornly asks once again.

"There... Has been an outbreak", she admits, in an uneasy tone. "They made a lot of fuss, but among the many instruments that we have here, they took the only thing that we didn't want to be public yet"

"Which is?"

Bianca stays silent once again.

NATE soundly spells each word of his next question. "What. Was. It?"

"... I can't tell you", she replies, sighing. "Listen, this is supposed to be a secret project. I can't tell anyone"

"What? Not even your best friend?" he sarcastically asks, emphasizing 'best friend' in the process. "Anyway, I need another crate of ammo, blank shots and Dust vials"

"How did you run out of them already?" she exclaims in surprise. "You're always the careful type when it comes with ammo management"

"I know", he replies, neutral to her outburst. "Also, I need a new blade"

"Ok. Hold it right there", she angrily interrupts. "What made you basically destroy Crimson Night and run out of ammo?"

"White Fang", he shortly replies. "And... the Grimms"

Bianca seems to calm down as she sighs at the answer. "That's all?"

"That's all"

"Alright. Where do you want me to send it?"

"Beacon"

Another moment of silence starts between the two but it's Bianca who resumes the talking. "Ok. What happened?"

"You should know what happened, Bianca", he replies, smiling. "After all, you're the one that gave professor Ozpin my number"

Her tone turns in awe as he says so. "How did you know that?!"

"You're the only one who could either have forwarded the call to Fortuna or sent him my number yourself, given the Scroll that you're currently using is hers. I'm betting all my money on the last theory. What are you even doing in her room?"

"Well..."

NATE sighs in pity. "There was a thunderstorm before, wasn't it? How long did it last? "

"What? No, there isn't-..."

Her reply is shortly interrupted by a sudden thunder to which Bianca immediately yelps in fear.

"... yes, there is. It has been six hours now", she pouts, clearly on the verge of sobbing. "Come on, now. Laugh"

"Why should I?", he says, smiling. "That's what makes you cute"

"Oh, shut it", she says, stuffing her head on a pillow next to her. After a while she raises her head, talking to Nate once again. "Anyway, what did he ask you?"

"To teach at Beacon... I think"

"He asked YOU", she starts, sounding unsurprised. "A dropout at the age of 16... to teach at Beacon"

"Yeah... doesn't it sound fishy?", he asks with an overacting curiosity.

"It does", she replies. "Nonetheless, I think he has a valid reason to take you as a teacher. After all, your ability as a Hunter is surprising, given the age you entered in Beacon..."

"Speaking of age", he says while rustling his backpack. From it, he takes out a green-coloured file filled with papers. "He got my sisters in Beacon"

"Oh. Congratulations". She pauses for a second, resuming with a confused tone. "Wait. Did you say 'sisters', and not 'sister'? Isn't Ruby only...?"

"Yes, she is"

"Huh". Bianca spins on a chair which constantly creaks at the sudden movements. After a couple more spins, she stops, resuming her talk. "Guess you can no longer brag about being the Prodigy Hunter"

"Oh. Shut it"

Bianca starts laughing at Nate who feels more uncomfortable as her laughter keeps going.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry". She coughs a couple of times before returning back to a calmer tone. "You still can't stand that nickname, can you?"

"As a matter of fact, I loathe it", he answers. "It wasn't a title I asked for, to begin with. And I can't believe that professor Ozpin just went along with it"

"Well. You did your fair share of achievements in Beacon, along with Fortuna and..."

Bianca immediately silences herself. "Oh, yeah. Sorry"

"Don't be", he replies, making a melancholic smile. "How many years has it been? Two? Three?"

"Four years. Tomorrow", she calmly says. "Nate, I know what you're thinking. It wasn't your fault"

"It wasn't me, it wasn't me", he repeats, annoyed. "You know what happened that night. Fortuna told you, right? It is MY burden"

"I know about that night. But a thing that wasn't in your control doesn't automatically mean that you're the one to blame"

NATE sighs at that statement, putting his Scroll away, before putting it next to his ear once again.

"How long will it take for the equipment to get to Beacon?"

"It will arrive tomorrow", she replies. A nearly inaudible chuckle comes from Bianca's mouth. "I thought you trusted our delivery services"

"I still do. Don't worry", he says, smiling.

Suddenly, another voice comes out from Bianca's side of the call. "Bianca, are you here?"

"Miss Locke?", she replies, surprised. "What is it?"

"It's Sirius, Bianca. I don't know how to calm him down", she says, sighing. "I'm no nanny. You should know that"

"I understand, Cherry. Just give me a couple of seconds"

"Sorry, Nate. I have to hang up", she concludes. "You'll have your equipment tomorrow. I promise it"

"Don't worry. Take your time", he replies. "How much do I owe you?"

"Given the fact that you are one of our favourite customers, it will be the usual discounted price"

"Come on, Bianca. There's no nee-..."

"I. Insist", she replies with an impatient tone. "By the way, my cousin will be studying at Beacon too. Do me a favour and keep an eye on her"

"Wait, what do you mean by that?" No response. A click concludes the call. Nate removes his Scroll from his ear to check the display, confirming the interruption.

"You could have least told me her name", he sighs, putting his Scroll back in his coat's pocket. "I have never met your cousin. How am I supposed to recognize her?"

Recognizing the fact that he will not receive answers by talking to himself, he focuses back on the green file he has on his lap.

As he opens it, it reveals a handful of handwritten letters, all written by the same person: uncle Qrow.

Nate takes the first one which is deemed to be the most recent of the pile. As he checks the date, he closes the file, putting it back in his bag.

The letter reads as follows:

Hey there, pipsqueak.

I heard that you just returned from Atlas. I honestly don't know what convinces you to visit that every month. But I suppose, being the grown man that you seem to be, it makes you hide some secrets from your family.

Anyway, Ruby is doing well. Yang too.
For some reason, Ruby decided to follow my footsteps on using one of the most dangerous weapons ever designed. I never thought that she would be able to handle it but she did. Flying colours, unexpectedly.

Yang, instead, got admitted in Beacon. Convinced as always, that girl. But I suppose that's what makes her run through everything. I always ask myself how Tai managed to control her after all these years.

As for Tai, you already know how is he.
Between teaching at Signal and going out for a mission...
You should really get back here, you know? A good family reunion. Just don't invite me.

At that line, Nate emits a stifled laugh.

I guess that's it for now. See you soon, pipsqueak. Your family misses you, remember that.

Your uncle,
Qrow

P.S.: Replying to your last letter. No, I won't put my flask on a shelf and stop drinking.
I appreciate the concern. But no. Just no.

Upon ending reading the content of the letter, he makes a sigh of relief, reaching out his bag once again. This time, however, he pulls out an empty paper.

After meticulously and carefully folding the letter and putting it in a pocket, he takes out a pen from another one.

He unlocks the shelf in front of himself, putting the empty paper on it and starting to write on it.

Hello, old man.

It's me again. But I guess that by the time this letter reaches you, either you'll be too drunk to read it or you'll be heading out for another of the many top secret missions that you seem to keep hidden. I can't tell the reason behind all this secrecy of yours. So I'll just brush it off.

So. Where do I begin?

Well. First of all, one of my teammates' sister sold out my number to Ozpin. Three months of hiding, spoiled by a single call. If you're asking why I went into hiding is because your last lead from two letters ago was a trap set by the White Fang.
I'm not blaming you. They knew more than you gave to me. Someone tipped them off. That someone wants me. I don't know for what reason. But I won't give him the opportunity to catch me.

If you're asking why Beacon's headmaster called me is because he wants me to come to Beacon.

"To teach", he says. He asked a DROPOUT to teach at Beacon. For what reason, first of all?

You and Ozpin know well the truth behind the "Prodigy Hunter", as many civilians love to call me with. And I'm still angry at you two for not stopping me from falsifying my Huntsman license. If you think that would have thought me something, then you can shove that lesson up your...

He stops for a couple of seconds. After taking a deep breath, he looks again at the last line he wrote and cancelling it with a line.

You and Ozpin know well the truth behind the "Prodigy Hunter", as many civilians love to call me with. The fact that I falsified a license to become a proper Huntsman. You might still hate me for that. But staying inside the walls of the Academy was too much. And my teammates knew that. You knew that. Professor Ozpin knew that.

Four years ago I abandoned a friend. Killed by the same ability that I let loose five years earlier.

I was afraid. I am afraid. Staying at Beacon wouldn't have helped.

I wanted answers. I needed to find out what caused all of this. Why are the Grimms acting differently with me?

The information that I've gathered since I left was just a tiny fraction. Explaining how my abilities work and all. You know the details.

Then that last track that you gave me was the last. The one where the White Fang ambushed me. It was burned to the ground. Literally. And I could hear the screams inside.

And then I saw them. A whole family inside. Two kids, hidden under a blanket. And their father, holding him and protecting them.

Then he noticed me. We looked at each other for a split second, before he pushed his kids to the exit. He looked at me with the same pitch black eyes that I have. And then the roof collapsed on him.

I rushed back to Mistral, holding the two kids by their tiny hands, popping out from the blanket. I kept it on them not only because I didn't want them to see their house on fire. But because I was afraid of seeing their eyes. And I didn't have the guts to tell them that their eyes might be a curse.

And now that I'm writing this, that fire that killed their father reminds me of the one that killed my parents. The only memory I have of them. Before Tai found me.

In the end, you never gave me further leads. Most likely because that man was the last one of them. But I suppose that this ability of mine wasn't ever supposed to surface.

That's why I decided to interrupt my searches. To lay low for a while.

Thank you, Qrow. For helping me out, even after all my wrongdoings.

Your nephew,
Nate

P.S.: Thanks for the watch.

Nate takes an envelope from his bag. After writing down the details about uncle Qrow, he folds his letter, putting it inside the envelope, closing it.

He takes another look at his watch. Thirty minutes have passed.

"I guess I'll take a nap", he says, as he turns his head to the window, slowly closing his eyes. He tries to think about what he was dreaming earlier. But his tired brain couldn't think about it enough.

Before he slips back in his sleep, he feels something in the pocket where he put his uncle's letter. Something small and hard. Like an old chess piece...