Disclaimer: I do not own anything in the following writing except the characters and events I create.

Author's Note: Just a short little oneshot based off a conversation about a wild theory on the RWBY subreddit. Special thanks to /u/ASouthernRussian for suggesting I write this out. Quick thing before I let you get to the story: First person is the present, third person is the past. Keep that in mind when it is switching perspectives. I'll let you guys get to it, enjoy! -Fox

Uncle Qrow - Oneshot

"Uncle Qrow!"

I freeze at the sound of the all too familiar voice, in mid step through the middle of Beacon's courtyard. I turn on the heel of my planted foot, feeling the warmth of a light breeze cause my cloak to whip about in the sudden motion, held to some sort of order by the weapon across my back.

I spot her instantly, her and her sister. They tend to stand out in a crowd, even a crowd full of students attending and fighting in the Vytal Tournament. The taller of the two stands proud, arms folded and a wide smile on her face. All who knew Yang could see that she was the spitting image of her father, long blonde hair and vibrant lilac colored eyes that always flashed with a competitive edge.

Beside her was the smaller, but certainly not quieter Ruby. Not many people would guess that the two were sisters, with Ruby's black hair and striking silver eyes. She carries the look of her mother, so much so that I am instantly reminded of Summer. And then it hits me, that this is where I met her, all those years ago.

I remember it perfectly. A memory so used to being recalled that it comes with little effort.

"Qrow Branwen, you get back here this instant!"

With his wild black hair swept back by the wind, Qrow using the edge of a column to swing around and gain a short burst of speed that increased the distance between him and his pursuer. It was the first day at Beacon, and while most of the new students were staring up at the massive school in wonder, he was doing what he did best: Driving his sister crazy.

But his reckless speed and direction came with certain hazards, as he rounded the statue that stood tall in the center of the courtyard, and came to sudden stop as he slammed into another student. Falling forward, he caught himself before he fell onto the smaller form beneath him, an apology already fumbling through his lips.

Those words were caught in his throat when he looked down, seeing for the first time the girl he had collided with. The hood of a white cloak was slowly slipping away to reveal a pretty face framed by black and red bangs, while wide silver eyes rapidly blinked up at him. For a long moment, Qrow was frozen staring into the bright and reflective pools, finding that they complimented the girl's features perfectly.

Eventually, the fact that he was straddling a stranger registered, and he nearly leapt off of the frightened girl. "Sorry!" Scrambling up to his feet, he reached down to pull her up along with him, steadying her and working to brush off slender shoulders hidden beneath that white cloak. "Uh, sorry, I was-"

The girl was smiling at his bumbling, a dazzling grin that quieted him once again for a few seconds. Reaching a hand up to scratch at the back of his head, he extended the other in an awkward greeting. "Hi, I'm Qrow. Branwen. Qrow Branwen."

The girl gave a bright giggle at his awkward antics, taking his hand and shaking it slowly, as he sheepishly returned her grin with his own smile. "Hi. I'm Summer. Summer Rose."

I pause while walking over to the two girls, staring at the spot where I tripped over Summer all those years ago. I can feel the beginnings of a smile forming at the corners of my lips as I remember her grin, a smile that truly lived up to her name.

Summer was warm, vibrant, and kind. Despite a shy nature and timid exterior, she was the very best of friends to have. But for me, it has always extended far past friends. I have always thought of her as more.

Qrow dipped low to peek beneath the hood of the girl that was walking toward him in the street. It was raining in Vale, but he wore no covering, far too used to standing in the elements after the last few years of running missions as a full fledged Hunter. He had received the call to meet here, just outside the grounds of Beacon.

Catching the approaching woman off guard, he pressed his lips to her's in a gentle kiss, giddy with the excitement that had been nearly constant since he had gone home with her last night. Initial surprise was expected, but there was something that set him back on edge.

A hesitation, a subtle refusal that lingered on his lips as he leaned away from Summer, seeing immediately the pain in her eyes. Then she uttered the last words he wanted to hear in that moment. "About last night.."

He stayed quiet, despite the dozens of questions that raced through his mind in that moment, afraid that to speak would shatter the remnants of this conversation. Summer held no such reservations, not meeting his gaze as she continued to speak. "I.. I shouldn't have let it happen, it was a mistake."

"I think it's better if we just remain friends." It was a dull knife that sawed through his chest, twisting and tearing at his heart as he found himself glad of the rain as it masked his tears. He wanted to tell her she was wrong, that she was being cruel. But no words came as those brilliant silver eyes found his, tears welling up in them as well, and he understood how hard this was on her as well. "I don't.. One drunken night can't destroy that, can it?"

It felt surreal to Qrow as he reached forward and pulled the woman into a gentle embrace, whispering 'no' as softly as he could manage while still speaking over the growing storm. For years he had hoped that they would proceed past simple friendship, if only he had known that to do so would immediately cast them back into it.

I hope that Ruby and Yang don't notice that my smile is gone. That they can't guess the dark places my mind is taking me. I told Summer it was okay, that I understood why we couldn't be together. But it wasn't okay. It was never okay to me. When every moment with her was pain after that, I would regret those words, that it was okay.

It has never been okay. I remember that moment in that street clearly, because it was only a few weeks later that Raven was gone.

"Why would she leave? Where would she go? I mean.."

Qrow's words trailed off as he turned around and caught sight of his two friends embracing in a show of support. It had only been a few weeks since Summer and he had decided to remain simply friends, and to see such a warmth between the two left a pang of jealousy on the raw fragments of his feelings concerning the cloaked Huntress.

After a long moment of silence hung awkwardly around him, there came a cry from another room, the shrill scream of an awakened child. Taiyang was the first to move, untangling himself from Summer and heading toward the hallway that would lead to his daughter's room, but a hand stopped him.

Qrow watched as Summer moved past the upset man and down the hallway, stepping into the room that held the crying girl. Even as they both watched the open door the youngest Xiao Long was quieted in a matter of seconds. Taiyang breathed a long sigh of relief at the resolution of one problem before lilac eyes turned back to him, a small, grateful smile on his friend's lips.

He could do no more than offer a brief instant of agreement at how impressive Summer was with a child, trying hard not to swallow down the pain of watching just how well she fit in this family.

In the months following my sister's disappearance, Summer grew much closer to the Xiao Longs as time went on, spending nearly every day together. I think it started as being there for little Yang, as a sort of surrogate mother. But I wasn't blind, I knew that it became equal parts him and his daughter, even after Ruby was born.

Those years were the hardest. Missing her and hating him. I blamed him for what happened between Summer and I for years, but even that had to pass. I can't remember the last thing I said to her, the last time I saw her. But I remember the first time I saw Tai after she was gone.

It was awkward, the embrace that Qrow had initiated. In truth, he didn't know what else to do. They stood in the same room in Taiyang's house the last time he had come here, the day Raven went missing. Then he hadn't known what his sister was doing, while this was something he couldn't hope to deal with even in the best of times.

It seemed the right move, to hug his friend, if only because the other man returned it. They hadn't really talked in years, just a call now and then that was kept on light topics. Until the call he had gotten yesterday, asking him to return for a funeral.

Pulling away and untangling himself from the other man, Qrow rubbed at the bridge of his nose with two fingers as he moved away, the burning sensation that would precede tears alerting him to what was coming. In an effort to avoid further awkwardness, he tried to keep the conversation going. "Yang and Ruby, are they still at school?"

For a long minute, there came no answer, the silence damning enough that he turned to face his friend with a questioning look. "Tai? Are they-"

"I know." Those simple words nearly froze Qrow's heartbeat, as it stuttered in fear of what the blond man could mean. "She told me, when she first started to show that she was pregnant. I know Ruby isn't my daughter. She looks so much like Summer that no one would question it, but I know the looks she didn't get from her mother, she did not get from me."

Taiyang had fixed him with a hard look, something akin to a glare but lacking any true anger behind it. His friend was signaling that if Qrow wanted to take Ruby, it would be a fight. "Tai.." His mind scrambled for a perfect answer in a situation that had none, eventually arriving at one he believed would be best. "Ruby just lost her mother. Yang just lost her second. To split them up now.."

"Then you agree?" It seemed that Taiyang had thought of the solution before him, and from the way that the blond man now relaxed told him that it was a huge load off his friend's mind. "Can you live with that, that she can never know?"

Qrow hesitated a moment before giving a nod, followed immediately by a shrug. "Does it matter if I can or not? It isn't about us anymore. We have to make sure they get through this, as sisters, with as little confusion as possible."

The tiny spark of a smile found its way to his friend's face, a rare thing in times like these, but he understood the reason for its existence. It had been years since they had spoke as friends, largely due to his own ire towards what Taiyang and Summer had together. For the first time in a long while, it felt like they were truly friends again, fighting on the same side against a daunting enemy.

But that smile faded quickly, because this enemy was not as simple as the Grimm, or the various criminals that had tried their luck on on their watch. This was an enduring, lasting foe. One that Qrow was unsure they could ever truly defeat.

I think of her sometimes, dream of what might have been. But I see her often these days. In the eyes of our daughter and that same timid cheerfulness that Ruby exudes.

"Uncle Qrow!"

I smile, because I am so happy to see them, my daughter and my niece. But it hurts when I hear that, each time the same cut that seems so unexpected even though it has happened so often. Like a drop of cold water on my heart. I tell myself that it is for the best.

I lie, because I feel that void. That emptiness where she used to be. And I know Ruby feels it too. I know she visits the gravestone, I know she speaks to Summer, even if there is no body buried on that cliff. And I know Summer is listening, wherever she is now, because she was always the kind of person that would listen. No matter how mundane the problem, no matter what was going on in her own life.

But I lie, because I hope it is for the best. I hope that my daughter finds the happiness that once touched my life, the very same that I feel in those seconds I see Ruby's eyes light up at seeing me, before she utters that word..

'Uncle'.