Author's note: For the review from the user: nashwhitewolf for the Prologue chapter:
nashwhitewolf: Is Sunsprite Jaune and Ruby's daughter? But then who is Leon's father?
That's a good question. But that will have to wait until more chapters are written.
I do not own RWBY franschise or its characters.
Sunsprite continues reading the journal for a few minutes while checking the time to be sure she is not late for training with Leon.
Then she heard the door to be opened. Sunsprite gasped in surprise as she didn't expect for her aunt to be home this early. So quickly, she puts the journal back to the floor compartment and seals it back to where it was before.
Ling returned to see her niece back home as well. "Sunny? I didn't know you are back do soon. What's up?"
"Oh, nothing, Aunt Ling. I was just grabbing my sword to head to Mt. Selene to train with Leon." Sunsprite explains. While also her arms are shaking a little. Ling raised her eyebrow suspiciously. But thought nothing as she thought she just startled Sunrprite judging by that reaction.
"Training. On your birthday?" Ling asked.
"Yeah. He also told me about the meteor shower coming up. And it's a better view at Mt. Selene." Sunsprite explains.
Ling then perked a smile. "Oh, okay. I don't see why not. You and Leon come back by 8. There will be a dinner coming up. And I got a secret surprise that will blow your mind." She said with a mischievous smile. Which made Sunsprite smile back to her aunt. Then she takes off to train with Leon. "You're the best, auntie!"
Just as Sunsprite left the house. Ling then opens the compartment that Sunsprite found earlier, unbeknownst to her, her niece found it already. So she opens it and picks up the same journal. She then opens it and sees a picture of her parents, Sunsprite's grandparents.
Ling cannot help but smile at the photo. "I miss you, Mom and Dad." She sighs. "I wish you are both here to meet Sunny." She then closes it and went to the kitchen to prepare for dinner.
Later, Sunsprite and Leon already started their training. They clash their swords and gave each other a glare as they focused on the sparring match. Leon swings his sword across, but Sunsprite flips backwards and clashes back.
Sunsprite twirls forward at Leon, but hr blocks with a shield and also spins to counter attack on her, but she blocks back. She their swords collided into one. Only to push each other away and get into a stance.
"How come you never fight with a shield? It might have its advantages." Leon asked. He then rushed at Sunsprite as she slash downward, and was blocked by Leon's shield.
"Because, it might slow me down! You can imrpove your speed better with a sword!" Then she dodges Leon's blade jabs left and right and then she held her sword sidewsys to block his attack. Making a sound of a clang.
"Even with that...Hiya!" He then knocks Sunsprite away with his shield. Only for her to recover by rolling back. "There are times you need it. Not just to protect yourself. But others too."
"Trying to undermine me?" Sunsprite smirk with a tease. She does a swift kick that her aunt taught her. Causing Leon to fall back on the ground. Then Sunsprite points her sword at him. Leon smiled back in response. "No, it's just a tip. When are you gonna use a shield?" Leon asked.
Sunsprite grabs his hand and helps him get up. "Never. I'm not used to holding it. Last time I used it, it broke in half."
The two take a break after the practice match. They waited for the meteorites to come to make a wish on a shooting star. Even if it's just a myth, that never stop these teenagers from trying.
As they remained patient, Leon cannot help but look at Sunsprite. For some reason, he cannot stop staring at her, even if their main focus was to watch the stars. Her eyes shine like the silver moon, which is somewhat better than to yearn to see the sun.
"Hey, Sunny." Leon started. Sunsprite turned to him, she enjoyed listening to his stories. When they were little, they love to watch the stars, but tonight will be the first time they see the shooting stars. "Yeah?" Asked Sunsprite.
"Do you ever get the feeling that later on, things will change?" Asked Leon. Sunsprite grew curious after hearing this. That's what she was wondering since now she is 17. Wondering what she wants.
"I don't know. Is there something you want to do when you're older?" Asked Sunsprite. As her silver eyes focused on him. Leon's face turned red. He turned away to not embarrass himself. But he continued.
"To be honest. I am not sure other than to see what outside the island was like. We have been friends for 14 years. The more I hear stories from my dad. The more I just..."
"Wanted out to see the world." The two friends said in unison. Then they looked at each other and the awkwarness caused them to blink. But then they laughed. "I cannot believe we both said that!" Sunsprite laughed.
"I know, right." Leon chuckled for their awkwardness. "So then, what do you want to do with your life when you decide to leave the island?" He asked. Sunsprite was a little loss for her words, but never thought about it other than to travel the world.
"Well, I don't know. But I wanna see the world, too. My aunt told me fairy tales about warriors. She told me that behind those tales lies a secret. A past that reveals a mind-blowing fact." Sunsprite adds.
"I never tell you this before. But I have these weird dreams." Sunsprite admits. Having the same dreams from when she was 6, she thought it was just nightmares at first. And her aunt would calm her by reading fairy tales to her when she cannot sleep.
"Dreams do have a strange way of foreseeing. At least, that's what I thought reading books." Leon said. Concerned for his friend. He decided to ask. "So what kind of dreams you're having?"
"I think it was raining that night. There was a woman. I cannot see her face clearly. She called me Sunny, like how you and my aunt would. Then comes another voice. I know it was my aunt talking to someone else. Telling her to get me away from somewhere. I think I was a baby at the time, crying for the person to not leave me."
Leon wasn't sure what to think. But the way she speaks about the dream. He figured the dream can mean something. Perhaps a memory that Sunsprite keeps seeing.
Sunsprite sighs, thinking he did not believe her. "I know, it's hard to believe..." But Leon held his hands up in defense. "No, no, no. I believe you. I think it's a memory you're seeing."
Sunsprite looked at him in surprise. "A memory?" Leon nodded, he knew she never knew about her parents given that her aunt was her only relative present in her life. Ling never said anything about Sunsprite's parents. But something must've happened to them.
"You sure?" Asked Sunsprite. Though uncertained. Leon has a theory that leads to possibilities. From their younger days, he ponders about what happened to Sunsprite's parents. When he asked his father about it, he never said a word other than that they have to go somewhere far away.
"I mean, think about it. Why do you think those dreams keep repeating after all those years?" The words hit Sunsprite, like a jolt of lightning that came to mind. The way the woman from her dream talked to her. Could it be her mother? The silence filled the void.
But then it was cut short when the shooting stars finally arrived. Sunsprite gasped in excitement. "Yes! Finally, I get to make a wish on the star! Quick, make a wish!"
Leon went along with it. Even if some wishes never came true, he never said a word to not make Sunsprite feel bad. The two start making wished underneath the rain of shooting stars.
The night became brighter with these meteorites. Sunsprite can only wish for one. And one only.
I wish I can find out more for who I am.
"Sunny." Leon began as he took a deep breath. The gazing moonilight gives them a calm feeling as it shines amongst the stars.
"Yeah?"
"Can I ask you for one thing?"
"Be yourself. Whatever you want to do, I'll be with you all the way. Having you as my best friend is the best thing that has happened in years."
Those words Leon spoke of gave Sunsprite a glimmer of hope. "To be honest. Even if I want to know who my parents are. I don't want to lose everything we know either. But sometimes I asked myself: Do I even want to find out? What if it's something I don't want to know?"
"To be honest. I can't answer that. But I think it should be up to you. If it's too hard to think about. Just take a moment to feel the wind until you don't feel any worrying." Leon advised her. "Has your aunt told you anything?" He asked. Sunsprite shook her head.
Sunsprite sighed as she looked up to the sky. All along, she wasn't sure what she wanted in the future. But when she was little, her aunt asked Leon's father to train her swordsmanship to learn to protect herself.
But whenever Leon's father looked at her, it was because she has some familiar faces. Like he had seen her before when she was a lot younger. "Leon, why did your dad trained me for sword fighting?" She asked.
"I don't know. But according to Dad. He promised an old friend to train you."
"Aunt Ling?" Sunrprite implied. But Leon shook her head. "No, someone he knows after the 2nd Great War began."
Sunsprite theorized that this "old friend" of Saber Rain (Leon's father) might know her parents. "That was it. He never told me anything else other than that promise."
"He has to know who my parents were." Sunsprite concluded. It gave her some determination to find out more of the past.
Then Leon takes out his watch and saw that it's almost 8. "It's almost 8, we should head back to your house." Leon said as he got up and Sunsprite did the same. "Race ya!" Sunsprite sprints down the mountain as Leon was taken aback. "Hey, wait up!"
Leon follows after running towards the trail that leads down the mountain. As they kept running, Sunsprite gasped to see something caught her attention. "What is it?" Leon stopped to ask.
Sunsprite narrowed her eyes to see something flying in the sky. A creature with red eyes and wings. It's almost like a giant raven. Then a thought clicked her head, having read a book of Grimm Biology. "A Nevermore?"
Leon also narrowed his eyes and saw it. "Hey, I think it is." No one has seen a Grimm in a long time since taking refuge on the island. Then they saw that the Nevermore is heading towards them.
"And...It's heading towards us! Take cover!" Sunsprite tackled Leon and the two fell off the cliff. But thankfully there is a lake nearby and the two landed there. "Man, that was close!" They swam back to shore. Only for the Nevermore to land near them and screech.
"Why is it following us?!" Leon shouted as he rolled away from its wings ready to slash. "Careful, it also shoots feathers like arrows! We need to take it down before it heads for the village!"
Sunsprite takes out her sword, and Leon does the same as the two get into a battle stance to take out the Nevermore.
She takes a deep breath, and shouted to diatract the Nevermore. "Hey! Hey! Over here!" She shouted. As the Nevermore turned its attention away from Leon, it screeches at the sight of Sunsprite as her silver eyes give the creature an eerie.
As Sunsprite bravely takes a stance, but also gulped seeing the size of the Nevermore. But didn't panicked as she was about to see what it does for movements to memorize and then use it against the Grimm.
But as the Nevermore charged at the blonde sword trainee, it was shot on the side neck by three arrows. Then it was blown by explosion of fire-dust arrows. Sunsprite shook her head and then sees around the corner to see an unidentified young man her age with raven hair and cyan eyes that matched a streak on his front hair bangs.
He also wears a green tang suit and white pants and ankle boots. Neither Sunsprite, nor Leon had ever seen him before in their lives. But they knew the boy isn't one of the residents of Rantan Village.
The Nevermore swung its wing again, but onyl for the boy to summersault in the air and shoot two fire-dust arrows. Once they were shot on it's back, the arrows exploded and the Nevermore stumbled.
Sunsprite and Leon ran into action and one by one, they quickly slash their swords onto the wings. But the Nevermore wasn't giving up yet as it flapped its wings and flew up. Attempting to get away, but not before setting eyes on Leon, and fire its bladed feathers once again.
"Look out!" Yelled the mysterious boy. The feathers were just a trick for the Nevermore to snatch Sunsprite and fly away with her. "Sunny!" Leon shouted seeing this. But the mysterious boy uses a blade-chain to throw around the Nevermore's legs and pulled himself with it to not let the creature get away.
The boy was about to help the young swordsgirl, only for her to held her palm in refusal. "Don't worry! I got this!" She then boldly uses her sword to pierce it through the Nevermore's leg and causing it to screech and let go of Sunsprite, and the boy followed.
Noticing that she didn't have anything to slow her fall, her eyes blinked in relization. "Okay, maybe I should've thought this through!" As she kept falling, she closed her eyes trying to come up with a landing strategy, but instead as she almost hit the ground, her body manifested into yellow rose pedals.
Sunsprite then returns to her normal form as she reappears safely on the ground. Sunsprite reopens her eyes, and found herself alive and well. "Huh?" She then sees her hands, and they were glowing yellow. "What the heck?" She blinked.
The mysterious boy uses his landing strategy by swinging on the tree banches and using his chain-blade to land on his feet. He then sees Sunsprite. "How did you do that?" He asked.
"Did what?" She asked back. Wondering how she landed on the ground without any injuries.
"You didn't know, did you?" The boy sighed. Leon emerged from the bushes and panted, trying to catch up to the two. "Sunny! You okay?" He asked.
"Um...yeah. Something weird is going on." Sunsprite replied. Still pondering about how she landed, unscathed.
The Nevermore pounded to where the three teens wers standing and they dodged the creature as the ground shakes. Once they made balance again, the mysterious boy shot fire-dust arrows to detonate on it's wings to keep it from escaping.
Sunsprite and Leon set sights on the Grimm again as it tried to fly again, but Leon and Sunsprite took on the wings, but they were still atrached. The bird creature was still focused on Sunsprite, which confused her for why it was targeting her. Usually the Grimm would attack many since they have no souls.
"The Nevermore is too strong to take on! We need to weaken it for the more it attacks!" Said the mysterious boy.
"Okay, I got it! I'll lure it away! Keep firing!" Sunsprite commands it as she sprints away. And it was just as she figured out that the Nevermore was after her. The creature saw this and flies after Sunsprite.
"Sunsprite! Where are you going?!" Leon called. Once her eyes met with the mysterious boy as she ran passed him, he stared at her eyes as if he found a reason the Nevermore was here to begin with.
"Come on, we gotta go after them!" The mysterious boy said as he and Leon followed.
Sunsprite leads the Nevermore to the top of Mt. Selene to keep it away from the townsfolk. The Nevermore throws more feathers at her, but Sunsprite dodges by rolling and shifting left and right.
Once they reached the midway of the mountain, The Nevermore attempts to grab the young swordsgirl, but she ducked before it does so.
But the Nevermore dives down again, and this time, Sunsprite turned into rose pedals again and quickly landed on the top of Mt. Selene. Sunsprite was bewildered once again. "What? Again?"
She didn't have time to ask herself those questions as she saw the Nevermore landing to where she has landed and Sunsprite swings her sword at the beast's talons.
The bird creature was about to smash Sunsprite with its beak, only for Sunsprite to telepory herself out of the way by turning into rose pedals again. And shifted far from the front. She then realizes that she can use that power to defeat the creature before her. "Alright, maybe this will make good practice."
She spins her sword again and gets into a battle stance. And swiftly dodged the dive attack from the Nevermore and turns into rose pedals again, and reappeared from midair behind the Nevermore and spins to slash the creature on the back.
Leon and the mysterious boy caught up to her once again. The mysterious boy shot his arrows again, but this time with ice dust arrows to freeze it's wings to keep the Nevermore from flying off again.
This gives Leon and advantage to cut one of its wings with his blade, causing the wing to fall off and shatter as it hits the floor. But the creature wasn't done yet. Then with its remaining wing, the Nevermore flaps it at Leon and blows him off the mountain. "Whoa!" He shouted as he fell. But Sunsprite jumped after him and uses her newfound power to transport herself and Leon back to the top.
Leon was beyond astonished to see the power Sunsprite possessed now. Part of him was amazed, but still trying to process. "How did you do that?!"
"I got the hang of it just now!" The mysterious boy makes a distraction to get the creature to focus on him.
"Quick, use my shield!" Leon suggested as Sunsprite leaps and lands on his shield to boost her in midair. Then Sunsprite uses the opportunity to spin from the air and swipes her sword many times.
"Your turn!" Sunsprite told Leon as he runs around the Nevermore and grabbed onto its wing and swung upwards. And then pierce it. Doubling the stab on the wing by lunging his shield on the hilt of the sword. "Hyah!" Causing the wing to fall off and dissolve into dusts.
Leon backflips out of the way and lands back to his comrades. But to their shock, the Nevermore is regenerating its wings. The three warriors-to-be were beyond shock to see this.
"Hey, I thought it wasn't supposed to regenerate!" Sunsprite shouted. Turning to the mysterious boy. "They don't. Something is wrong."
No matter how many times they sliced the limbs of the Nevermore, it kept regenerating one after the other. The mysterious boy then takes put his katana as one of the feathers was shot. But he cut one of them in half.
"Whoa." Sunsprite and Leon were amazed at the boy's skill. Then the creature glowed purple.
The Nevermore was growing crystals on its back, and grew horns as the creature went from black to purple. And the feathers on the wings became bigger than before. The Nevermore sets it sights on Sunsprite again. And roared much louder than before.
The creature flapped its wings upwards and once it was high enough, the Nevermore shot crystalized feathers at the group. After hitting the floor, the crystal feathers exploded.
"Okay...That's a new feature." Leon gulped.
"We were this close! And they just upgraded?!" Sunsprite shouted.
"We just need to find a weakness, and use it to defeat this monster." The mysterious boy said as he launched more fire dust arrows at the incoming crystals that the Nevermore had shot. The boy then turned to the duo. "My name is Li Ren if that's what you're wonder." The mysterious boy now introduced himself as Li Ren.
The duo nods and focused back to the Nevermore. "Leon, let's try to slice its wings off. See if we can find anything!"
"Right!" Leon nodded to Sunsprite.
"You two are sure about this?" Li asked. Pondering on whether or not they are willing to fight a creature like the newly-upgraded Nevermore. And knows the risk of them getting injured or killed. And his first thought was to distract them to let the two get away.
"No way are we gonna let that Nevermore hurt the people in our village!" Leon adds.
"The least we can do is to make a dent on it and see what we can find!" Sunsprite agrees. Li closed his eyes and they were glowing green as he was trying to search for the Nevermore's weakness.
As he sees through a vision of grey, he sees something underneath the creature's chest. Then he points out. "Over there! Underneath its shield!"
"The shield?" Sunsprite eyes on the bird-like creature. And sees a slight spot on the chest part of the shield. "Oh. I got it." Then she turned to Li. "Keep firing for more. We need something loud."
Li nodded and aims his arrows, not at the creature, but in the air. This time by combining dust arrows of fire and lightning. "Fire." He said to himself as he shot them upward, and the arrows detonated and exploded into a firework. Creating a lod booming sound. The creature ducked its head in disturbance.
"Leon!" Sunsprite called him. Leon nodded as if he knew the signal. Sunsprite uses her newfound semblance to keep the Nevermore distracted and swipes her sword at the crystalized wings.
On cue, Leon runs around the creature, and turns his sword into a spiked-ball fail, and throws it around the ankle of the Nevermore and swings it around its giant body. Pinning it down to the ground. Keeping it from escaping.
But it was too strong that the Nevermore was intending to pull away and fly up again, this time with Leon still pulling the flail. But Sunsprite and Li also grabbed onto the chain to help Leon pull it down. "Don't let go! We can't let it escape!"
Then a bang was heard. And the three teens turned to see Ling using her gauntlets combined with her one robotic arm to shatter the shield. Since it was weakened a little by the trio's efforts.
The three were amazed to see Ling in action to use her weaponry and combat. Ling plants sticky bombs on the Nevermore's wings and flips back before they exploded.
The creature was emgulfed in the explosion that the shield shattered even more. Her blonde hair flaring up like the sun as her eye turned golden. Then Ling makes a finishing blow throught it's beak that the Nevermore's head also blown up. The rest of its body turned to ash as Ling stood silent.
"I never seen your aunt fight like this. Have you?" Leon asked, amazed and shocked to see how powerful Ling's strength is. Sunsprite blinked. She was aware her aunt is a huntress, but never sae her fought before and it was the first time seeing it. The glowing hair effect died down, reverting back to normal. And her eye turned back to lilac.
"You kids okay?" Ling asked. Calm while also concerned for the teens. "It's been a while since I have seen a Grimm. But I never saw a Nevermore that powerful." Ling said.
To be continued...