Hey everyone, sorry for the delay. I know I've posted several chapters for each OC in the past - first Ryu, then Gwen, and then Neos. Now it's Damien's turn. What story will he get? Find out now...

In the downtown area of Vale, Damien sighed to himself as he walked along the crowd by himself. For the first time since the teams were formed, he had some time all to himself. Gwen and Ryu were spending more time with one another, while Neos and Naomi were doing the same - only with more zeal. Yang and Iskandar were at Dr. Nahyuta's office getting some treatment from their sparring match with Ron LeRouge the previous night, as the rest of Team RWBY went out shopping along with Francesca and Leonidas. Team BLSS ended up in detention due to Rockwell playing music too loudly, and Team CFVY was in the middle of preparing for an upcoming special mission, leaving the crimson haired lad to reflect on that had happened so far in the first semester. However, he was unaware that a masked individual watched behind him from afar.

"Man, I can't believe it's been almost two months since I was made leader of Team DRGN." He thought to himself. "And yet, so much has happened during this time..." Damien walked over to a small café, as he purchased a sandwich. He walked near some docks, as he continued to ponder while he ate. He thought about the incidents that happened with his friends and teammates; such as Ryu and Lee's conflict between each other, as well as Gwen's inner dilemma with herself. While he was glad they were able to overcome their issues, he still couldn't stop thinking about whether he could have done something himself to help out.

As he traveled down the docks, while he saw some clouds forming above, he remembered the moment back during their first lecture; he wanted to try his best to be a good leader - especially since he recalled how Weiss and Leonidas had past issues with their respective leaders. He also remembered the leadership Ron displayed when protecting his Bastard Beowolves. "I mean, there is nothing wrong with having fun, but I want to be responsible at the same time." The crimson haired lad thought to himself.

After Damien finished his sandwich and threw the wrapper in the trash, he stood at the edge of the dock, as he watched the waves form in the breeze. He then closed his eyes as he reminisced about how he lost his composure against Team CRDL a while back. He wanted to stand up for Cardin's harassment against Velvet, mainly because it reminded him so much of his past.

FLASHBACK

His mind raced back as a six-year old Damien was relentlessly bullied by some older children simply because of the fact that he had Faunus blood within him. He also remembered how one of them threw a rock at his face, leaving a nasty cut on his cheek. However, the night after that incident, he was comforted by his mother, Hotaru. He cried into her shoulder, as she hugged him lovingly, and spoke a phrase that she would always utter to him. "Be strong, my little flame. Never let your embers die out..." She would then kiss his forehead, and promise she would never leave him.

Unfortunately, that promise was eventually broken on a night he would never forget. During that moment, a masked assassin, who was after the young Damien at the time, relentlessly fought against his mother, who tried her hardest to fend out her son's killer. "Ngh! Damien, save yourself!" Hotaru yelled out, as she kicked the assassin back.

However, Damien wanted to help out no matter what. As the killer got the better of her, he charged at them while he shouted. "LEAVE MY MAMA ALONE!"

The assassin turned towards the little boy, while Hotaru looked on in horror. "DAMIEN NOO!" She screamed. She dashed in front of her son to shield him, but that gave the killer a chance to fatally wound her.

Damien screamed as his mother fell forward in her own blood, as his killer quickly fled the scene once they heard more people approaching. He cried endlessly as he tried to wake his mother up, before he blacked out.

END OF FLASHBACK

Damien opened his eyes as the sound of thunder snapped him out of it. He growled as he pulled out his family photo, before he muttered to himself. "It's been over eleven years, and yet I still can't get over this darkness inside me." He touched his mother's face on the picture, as a single rain drop pelted the paper.

The masked individual slowly approached from behind him, as she spoke up. "Lost in thoughts, are we?" She spoke up.

Damien straightened his head up, as he hid the photo in his jacket before he turned around. "Who are you?!"

"I am just a simple Huntress patrolling these docks. Let's leave it at that." She spoke up. "You appear to be uneasy."

"Yeah, thank you for noticing." Damien muttered. "*Sigh* I'm sorry about that. There is just so much on my mind."

As it started to rain the masked Huntress spoke up. "Perhaps we should continue our conversation under some cover." She motioned, as the two of them dashed under the roof of a nearby building.

Damien looked at her mask. "You don't want to take your mask off?"

She shook her head. "I've no intention of doing that. It's better this way..."

The crimson haired lad was puzzled by this. "I see. I won't inquire about this."

"Is that so? That does not shade myself as distrustful to you?" She mused. "You are quite opening to strangers - though that is quite the risky trait."

"I don't worry about that. It's a bad habit, I can admit, but I usually don't focus on the negative aspects of others." Damien shrugged. "Something I learned from my mother in the past."

The masked woman paused, before she spoke. "Is that so? Well, she sounds like quite the kind-hearted woman."

"Yeah... She was." Damien sighed. "When she was alive that is..." He whispered.

"Oh? Does that mean she is...?" The masked lady spoke, as Damien nodded. "Hmm, I'm sorry to hear that. So, does her passing have anything to do with your turmoil?"

Damien thought for a bit, as he confessed. "Well, part of it." Before he continued, a thought occurred to him. "Hang on, you never told me your name."

The masked huntress looked through her mask. "My name? Certainly, you may call me... Hau." She thought up.

"Hau, eh? All right then." Damien nodded. "Anyways, the other thing that is bugging me is my capability as a leader."

"Leader?" Hau questioned.

"Oh, right. I'm Damien Crimson, the leader of a first-year team in Beacon Academy known as Team DRGN. I wanted to be a capable, and respectable, leader to my best extent." Damien explained. "Honestly, I don't know what it truly means to be a good leader - should I be fun and outgoing like Ruby, or should I be a strong and protective like Iskandar? Perhaps I should try and have a deeper family bond between teammates like Janey, or maybe I should act more responsibly like Coco?" Damien thought out loud. "Tell me, what makes a leader?"

Hau thought carefully, before she answered. "I cannot give you a definitive answer, because every leader behaves differently after all. It is up to you to figure how you can be an effective leader, Damien."

Damien sighed. "That figures...

"Tell me this, have you confided in your teammates or your friends about the feelings inside you? Have you even once told the others about your dilemma?" Hau sternly wondered.

Damien bit his lip, before he exhaled. "I have not."

"And why is that?" The masked huntress raised her voice.

"Because my issues belong to myself, and mine alone." The crimson haired lad explained. "I can't allow myself to burden myself with the past."

"And do you really think that is going to help you down the road?!" Hau started to get angry.

"I don't care what it takes, I have to be strong!" Damien got irate as well.

"Strong? For whose sake?!" Hau yelled. "For your friends... or yours?!"

Damien trembled, as her words struck a chord inside him. "For my sake..." He fell to his knees. "Ever since that moment years ago, when my mother was killed, I felt weak. I wanted so desperately to save her, but I was powerless to do anything. I wanted to become stronger protect others who were just like me, but at the same time, I didn't want to be someone who could be pushed around." It was then that a single tear rolled down his cheek, as he clenched his hands and pounded the ground. "Maybe I'm not qualified to be a Huntsman; how can I protect anyone, if I can't even overcome my own inner demons?!"

As Damien laid in sorrow, Hau knelt and wiped his tear away. "You are wrong, Damien. You are stronger than you think. But you mustn't forget that one's true strength is based on the bonds with their comrades. After all, every one of your friends didn't overcome their issues by themselves, now did they?" She explained. "You should never preserve your own torment, but rather, ask your friends to help break through the internal struggle of yours. Not only that, but you cannot allow your past to haunt you - what happened there is not your fault, and you needn't blame yourself for it."

Damien looked at the masked being. "But can I really overcome it? What if it's just too much?!"

"Nothing is too much when you have your friends by your side." Hau answered, as she looked outside to see that it had stopped raining. "Speaking of, you should probably head back to Beacon - I imagine they are worried about you right now."

Damien looked at the time on his scroll and gasped. "Oh crap, you're right!" He turned to head out, but faced Hau once more. "Thank you for lending an ear, Hau. And thank you for your insight."

"Of course, Damien." Hau nodded, as the boy took his leave. However, Damien stopped, when an image popped into his head; about Hau looking very familiar to a certain woman in the past. But he decided to not dwell on it for the time being, before he raced back to the academy.

"We'll cross paths again soon enough, and when we do..." Hau lifted her mask, revealing herself as the same woman who chatted to Hanzo several weeks back. "...I'll tell you the whole story. But until then, keep getting stronger, my son. Never give in to despair..."

As night fell onto Beacon Academy, Damien walked on the campus grounds, and noticed Neos, Gwen, and Ryu waiting for him. Damien noticed Neos calmly marching towards him, as the spiky-haired teen glared, before he pulled him into a tight hug. Ryu and Gwen walked over and embraced Damien too. Damien was at a loss for words, but he smiled, as he tearfully hugged back. "Thank you, my friends..."

All right-y then, I hope you liked it. I know it was shorter than the rest of the chapters before this one, but I will promise you that this won't be the only chapter that focuses on Damien's backstory. Also, I know that I've got off-script from the show's story, but next chapter will follow the actual show timeline. Okay, bye.