-Raven Pov-

I sat under a tree, and then read from a book on leadership, which had been written by a previous leader of the tribe, and had been passed down through the generations, and had eventually ended up with the current leader, who was my father. In time, he would pass the book to me and my twin brother, and the two us would then go on to hand it down to whoever happened to be the next leader of the tribe. For now though, I was simply borrowing it and reading it to have something to do. As I read, a small smile played on the corner of my lips when I thought about the day when I would be the one who lead the bandit tribe to victory.

Ever since I was a child, I had wanted to become the next leader of the tribe. I had heard stories from my father and mother about the glorious battles the tribe had fought it, and often I would sneak out to listen to the war stories older members of the tribe had to tell about battles, and the adventures they had been on. One of my favorite things to do had become to watch when the members of the tribe would come back after a battle, and watch the things they had brought back to us, and listen to their enthusiastic stories and cheers for the successful day.

Outsiders and captured huntsman often criticized the tribe, and called it a collection of the worst criminals and murderers in the world, and saying it was simply brutes and thugs seeking strength in numbers. But, I knew from the stories my father had told me how much more than that the tribe was. People weren't here out of necessity all the time, there was loyalty here, and there were families, and generations. This was as much a kingdom as any of the other four in Vale were, with deep roots, origins and traditions. The tribe wasn't without the in-fighting and criminals it was accused of, but that was to be expected in any place where people came to gather.

As I read to myself happily, my tail swung back and forth happily. My mother had been a wolf faunas, and my father was a human. When they had given birth to me and my twin brother, the two of us had received the hair and eyes of our father, and the faunas features of our mother. I had gotten a wolf tail, and my brother Qrow had gotten two wolf ears on his head. We weren't the only faunas in the tribe, but we were some of the only ones who didn't try to hide our heritage as one.

Looking up, I saw my brother come back from the town with some of his friends, a flask in his hand, and a smile on his face, which made me roll my eyes. He had been drinking more and more recently, despite everything we had been told about staying away from anything that might reduce our edge in combat. Being strong was one of the virtues of the tribe, and something our parents had attempted to beat into us from a young age, and we had both seen enough examples to prove the importance of strength before.

Rolling my eyes again, I stood up and then decided to go down to the field to train. There was going to be a raid coming up for the tribe soon, and I wanted to be strong enough to participate in it. Even if my brother and I were considered prodigies, we hadn't been aloud to take place in raids before, since if anything happened to the two of us, then the tribe would be left without some to inherit it when the time came for leadership to be given to us. Even if I understood the logic, going on one of those raids was always something I wanted to do ever since I was a kid, and I trained every day in the hopes of going on with the rest of the tribe when the time came.

When I made my way down to the training grounds, someone was already there, and I let a small smile appear on my face when I saw it was one of my oldest friends in the tribe, (y/n) (l/n). He had been left to the tribe by one of the former members who had been arrested, and had since then become one of the most powerful members of the new generation, easily able to keep up with both myself and Qrow in combat. On top of that, his family used to be leaders in the tribe as well, and had been respected enough that even after they had left the tribe, orders had been given to raise him among the tribe, and to respect the wishes of his parents.

I saw him training hard, and then I made way over to him, and then he turned and saw me, and gave a small smile. I returned it with a wave, and then I took out my sword and offered to spar with him, which he happily accepted. The two of us went to opposite ends of the field, and then entered our combat stances, and then began to fight with each other. As we did, I noted he had improved even more since the last time we fought, and even seemed to have the advantage this time, although I manage to hold my own.

After the two of us finish the fight, we decide to call it a tie, and then the two of us walk to get water to drink, and then we sit down together under a tree, and then I read from my book that's been passed down through the tribe, and he reads from a book his mother had left to him before the authorities had captured her. Eventually, the sun starts to set, and then he stands up and offers me his hand, which I take with a small blush, and the two of us walk back to the tribe.

As we walk, I try to stifle a cry of pain when someone steps on my tail. I turn back to see one of the thugs of the tribe, sneering at me, as he begins to grind his foot on my tail. I try to free it, but moving it hurts, and I feel tears of pain well in my eyes, not because I want to cry but because of how the body reacts to things such as this. " Get off my tail," I threaten, but this only makes him laugh more, and he lifts his foot to step down on my tail again.

Before he can, (y/n) is on him, a ball of fury and anger. The thug falls to the ground, and then I see (y/n) effortless begin to fight with the other members of the racist group, coming out on top either by using tricks like aiming for the eyes, or just by being stronger than them. When he finishes the fight, he comes over to me, limping a little bit, and then I sit him down and help him stitch a cut forming over his eyes. " Thank you," I tell him, with a voice only slightly higher than a whisper, not trusting my voice to not give out on me.

" It was nothing," he says, meaning it. I allow him to wrap his arms around me in a hug, and then he begins to clean the dirt from my tail, and gently massage it so the pain stops, and then I thank him again, and then he offers me a genuine smile. " It was nothing," he says again. " I'm always going to be here to protect you Raven."

A blush forms on my face with his words, and then I don't say anything to avoid losing the calm and collected demeanor I do my best to maintain. He and I sit in silence for the rest of the night, but it isn't awkward at all. The two of us both know each other so well that this silence feels comfortable, and we're both content to be silent around the other, and collect our thoughts as we read peacefully. Every so often, I looked up to steal glances at (y/n), and then each time I looked away before he could see me.

Romance had always been something I considered to be a weakness, something that got in the way of doing what needed to be done. I had seen and heard stories about what had happened to bandits who let their emotions get in the way of doing what had to be done, hesitating to make the kill of laying down their life in vain to protect their loved ones. However, I couldn't help but fall for him a little bit more when I saw him with a small smile on his face. As we read, I kept replaying his words, " I'm always going to be here to protect you Raven," in my mind.

-Timeskip Your Pov-

After that night with Raven, you had been sent to Beacon with her and Qrow, with the intention of increasing all three of your powers to help make you the best possible leaders you could be for the tribe. Raven or Qrow was to receive leadership of the tribe, and then you had been sent to become strong enough to become the personal bodyguard and advisor to the future leader, both as a favor to your late parents, and to you for the remarkable growth you had shown in your time with the tribe.

You had ended up on a different team than they had, the second strongest team behind theirs, Team STRQ. You had become good friends with all the members of that team, having known Qrow and Raven for most of your life, and the kind and easy-going Summer could make friends with pretty much everyone. Her cheerfulness was infectious. The only one of them you hadn't become super close to was Tai, as you couldn't be around his bragging and flirtatious self for long, but even then you knew how to politely interact with them.

Right now, you were sitting in a dorm alone with Qrow and Raven, and the two of them talked about what to do when it came to the tribe, and the time you were all expected to return with them. Right now, Qrow was talking about how he didn't want to go back, saying there was nothing there for them, and pointing out that the three of you had all made great bonds and friends in the time here, and to your surprise, it looked liked Raven was agreeing with him, or at the very least she seemed conflicted about what to do.

The two of them both agreed to table the discussion for another night, and then Qrow offered for all of you to back to the the dorm where STRQ was, and then figure out plans for the party after the school prom. You nodded, and then went down there with them, and then watched as Qrow and Summer talked happily with each other, and then tried to ignore the surge of jealousy you felt when you saw Tai keep trying to hit on Raven, even as she said no to him. Eventually, you had enough of it, and then you told him to stop, and when he didn't, you grabbed his arm. He spun angrily to try and throw you off, and then you had beaten him into the ground before he knew it, and then Raven thanked you for it, and then you pulled her into a hug.

She wrapped her arms around you, and then you on impulse kissed her forehead. The two of you blushed, and then you pulled her close to you in the hug, doing the best you could to ignore Summer and Qrow making kissing noises in the background. " I'm always going to protect you," you reminded Raven, and she nodded.

-Timeskip Raven Pov-

In time, (y/n) and I had graduated from Beacon, and went on to get married, and the two of us lived together in a small house. We had decided as a trio not to go back to the bandit tribe, with (y/n) once again promising to protect me if the tribe had decided they were going to bring me back by force. I smiled at the thought of it, how he had always protected me, from people he hated the faunas, to the Grimm of the world, and now even from the tribe.

The two of us had given birth to a beautiful daughter named Yang, who had my hair texture and color, as well as my wolf tail, and she had the same eyes as (y/n). I was happy with them, and this was everything I wanted out of life. Except, the only problem was that the tribe wanted me back. They had sent a messenger to tell me everything about some new threat named Salem, and had told me that I needed to become the Spring Maiden to have any chance to defend the tribe against the evil.

Once they had explained to me everything Salem was capable of, I knew I had to go and become the Spring Maiden. It was the only way I was going to be able to protect Yang and (y/n) from her evil. And so, I made up my mind to leave in the middle of the night. However, as I was almost out the door, tears in my eyes, I felt a presence, and then turned to see (y/n), standing in the stairwell with his arms crossed. " Thought you could leave without saying goodbye," he said, and then I felt the tears that had threatened to spill pouring out of me when I hear his voice and realize what I'm leaving behind.

I tearfully explain everything to him, and then he pulls me into a hug, and I break down at the idea of leaving him and our daughter behind. " You don't have to go alone," he says. " In fact, you won't be going alone. I made a promise when I married you that said I would protect you always, and be there for you when you needed me the most, and you need me right now. If this Salem is as dangerous as you say, then I want to be there with you. You're going to need me."

" What about Yang," I ask, when I finally manage to stop crying at the feeling of him being there to make sure I don't have to do things alone, and then he takes a long pause to think about this. Yang is one of the main reasons I was so conflicted about this, and why I wanted to go by myself so she would at least grow up with a loving father.

" She can come with us," he says eventually. " I mean, the tribe has always been a place for people with nowhere else to go. There are families and generations there. You and I grew up there, and we turned out okay. And even if there is a problem, I'm not leaving my daughter behind." I nodded at his words, and then went upstairs to see Yang had tears in her eyes. I pick her up, and then he hugs my face, and I almost break down realizing what I had almost given up.

I eventually manage a smile when Yang holds onto my finger, and then I slash open a portal to the tribe, and I step through holding my daughter with one hand, and using my other to hold onto (y/n). The portal closes behind us, and the three of us are given a room to stay in, and then I lay down on the bed, setting Yang in the middle of me and (y/n), her tail happily swaying side by side.

A few tears escape from me at the thought of how I could have given this all up forever, and she reaches out to brush them away, along with help from (y/n). " I love you so much," I tell the both of them.

" I love you too," says (y/n), and he leans in to kiss me, which I happily allow him too, and then the two of us look down at Yang lovingly.

" Love mama too," says Yang, and then (y/n) and I look at each other to confirm she did indeed speak for the first time, and the two of us hug her close to ourselves, each crying tears of joy, and holding onto each other happily. I see (y/n) start to fall asleep, and then I hug him, thanking him for saving me from a lifetime of missing out on this.

-Epilogue Raven Pov-

I sit on the couch, and watch as (y/n) and Yang have a sparring match outside. She grew up into a beautiful young woman, and one of the strongest fighters I ever knew, and is next in line for the leadership of the tribe. With her held and (y/n)'s, I found and became the Spring Maiden, and all of us working together had been able to defeat Salem, and with the relic from the vault, had been able to defend our bandit tribe from any and all threats that ever came to it.

My tail sways happily as I see Yang actually beating (y/n) in a sparring match, and then helping him to his feet. The two of them come inside, and then (y/n) jokes about needing a nap. I take him into the room we have, and then begin to cuddle with him, using my tail to pull him closer to me. " I love you Raven," he says, and then he falls asleep right away.

" I love you too," I tell him, and I watch him sleep, happy to finally have the power to protect him.

( let me know what you thought)