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The sun was setting low on that cold winter evening.
As Nora and all her friends walked, there was a solemn silence in the air. Normally, the group would be laughing and chatting with one another, but not today. Not on February 1st.
They arrived at their destination and opened the gate. As they walked amongst the tombstones, it was like they were slowly dying themselves. There was no fear of getting lost; they’d been here too often for that.
After a few minutes, they stopped in front of a tombstone. After a minute of awkward silence, Jaune said, “Shall we get started?”
“Yeah, I suppose,” Ruby replied with a sigh.
Yang stepped forward and laid a rose at the foot of the grave. One by one, they all laid their roses on the ground and stepped back until only Nora was left. She had tears in her eyes, but slowly she walked forward and laid her rose down.
She turned around and asked in a slightly squeakier voice than normal, “Is it alright if I have a few moments alone?”
They all nodded their heads and walked away faster than Ruby using her semblance.
She turned back to the tombstone. “Hey Ren,” she said.
“So it’s been a great couple days. We just graduated from Beacon. There was a ceremony and all the important people came. Even Weiss’ father showed up, but he looked like he hated being there. Ah, so satisfying. There was even a pancake breakfast, but they were nowhere near as good as yours. But the syrup was good. Don’t worry, I didn’t eat it all. Well, I may have taken one or two containers more than I should, but no one said anything, so it was okay, right?
We’re all going to be hunters and huntresses now. Ruby and Yang both got put on assignment as understudies to their uncle. He’s so cool, you’d like him. Weiss is going to be an Atlas specialist just like her sister. Blake is going to become the new leader of the White Fang now that they’ve stopped, you know, attacking people. And Pyrrha, Jaune, and I are all going to be put on special assignments for Ozpin. And it’s gonna be amazing… but it’s not going to be with you.”
Nora dropped to her knees and began sobbing. “Ever since that day in Kuroyuri, I had always thought that we were going to be together forever. And I failed you. We were supposed to keep each other safe, and I couldn’t do it. And now, I don’t know if I can do this without you. I know you told me to keep moving forward, but I don’t know if I’m strong enough.”
Suddenly, she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around and saw Ruby staring down, tears in her eyes as well.
“How long have you been listening?” Nora asked.
“Since the beginning. You know he didn’t blame you for what happened to him, right?”
“That doesn’t change the fact that I was supposed to protect him. I let him down and he’s gone and…”
“None of that matters,” Ruby interjected. “What matters is you keep his legacy alive and pursue your dreams. Don’t make his sacrifice be for nothing.”
Ruby walked off and gave Nora some space again. She turned around and faced the tombstone once more.
“Ren, I never got the chance to tell you this, but I… I… well, I loved you and I never got the chance to tell you. You were the light of my life and now I can’t see with you gone. But that doesn’t mean I’m not going to try. It was really good to talk.”
Then, Nora turned around and walked off. As she did, a flock of birds rose up and flew into the beautiful evening sun.