The first summoning was a rite of passage for many hunters. It was a determinant in who their partner was for the rest of their career and onward. Hunters worked in teams, but an individual with their own summon was also a team within the team.

For many it was mighty beasts. They would charge into battle, tearing foes apart with their claws or mandibles. For some others it was an incarnation of the gods of mythos - never in their human form and certainly not in their full power, but maybe in a shape that they had taken in a fable or legend. And for a few others, a more human-like summon heeded the call. It was not unusual.

But a summon was almost always some form of expression of who the hunter was. And over time, many hunters would acquire more summons, either from fallen foes or allies, or from other Grimm that they had bested. But it was the first summon that was the most impacting. It was a bond that, for many, became unbreakable.

But for Schnees, it was different. There were three rules when it came to summons. Do not use summons for menial tasks. Do not summon them meaninglessly. These both denigrate and anger them, making them more difficult to control.

And finally, if the summon was remotely human, do not fall in love with them. This empowers them. And a summoner was always to be in control of the summon. Schnees were above summons. Summons were to serve them.

So when Winter Schnee, with her sword as her focus, stood at the far end of the Summoning Hall within the Schnee Estate, it was with trepidation that she began to focus. Not only was this her rite of passage, but the weight of the household was upon her. She was the best they had seen in ages. She excelled in combat. Aura and Dust manipulation was like breathing.

But that did nothing to lighten the load that her father had put upon her. She was excelling, he reasoned, and should be able to handle more and more difficult tasks. By the time she was fifteen she was already a fully fledged huntress.

The only thing lacking was her summon, which would come when she was seventeen and a half. All Schnees had it at that age. But try as she might, whenever she stepped into the Summoning Hall, there was no pull. There was no 'special feeling', telling her that her summon was ready for her.

Perhaps it was because on the day before she was to have her summoning rite, her mother had passed away in an accident. It was all that was in her mind that day, and yet her father pushed her to continue. There was no magic, no will to make the call.

Her father said nothing, but she knew that he was disappointed. For one who was unfamiliar to shame, it was a black stain upon her otherwise spotless character. Her father hated it. She hated it. She was so perfect, and something that was second-nature to the common hunter refused to come to her daughter. All hunters had a summon - they were drawn to their aura.

In an effort to try and hasten the waiting, she asked the other Schnees, and even other hunters in the area. What did the call feel like? Did she need to do something? What was their secret?

Their reply was the same. One simply knew when it was time, and one simply knew what needed to be done.

And Winter knew that after seven and a half more years, when she was twenty-five, she finally felt the call. She felt like she would burst. Elation. Fear. All of it brimmed and she knew she had to have her rite.

Her father hastily called together the elder Schnees and put aside the business of the Schnee Dust Corporation. It could wait.

And now, with all of the family sitting across from her, even her younger sister and brother, their eyes upon her watching and waiting, Winter, focused on the tip of her saber and drowned everything else.

It was just her and the blade, and she closed her eyes. She let herself enter a meditation, breathing deep, shoulders and chest rising and falling rhythmically. She tried to shut out all other noises.

But all she could see was the image of her mother, who died the day before her rite. She wondered what her summon would have been like then. Would it be a looming giant? A cyclops? An armored knight?

Winter did not expect to reminisce of times past and felt herself grimace. If her mother hadn't died, she wouldn't have had to live through the shame. She would have been able to hold her head up high as a true huntress, not just one that only handled menial missions because she had no summon.

She wanted to blame her mother. But she knew that wasn't right. Her mother was one of the guiding lights in her life. But without her there was despair for so long. And even then, it was an accident.

An accident that no one person or being truly had control over. Not one except-

Whoosh

There was a collective murmur across the stands. Strands of light began to gather at the center of the summoning hall, where her glyph had begun to form. More and more pooled and soon a sphere of blinding light was born. There was a flash, and suddenly all the light disappeared.

At the center of it was a simple black crow.

The first thought in her mind was shock. The second was that this whole event was better off never happening. Seventeen and a half years of expectations, then seven and a half more in vain hope. Time better spent elsewhere, more productively. She could have learned how to better manage the company, like how her father originally wanted her to until she showed so much potential that even he couldn't ignore it.

So much potential that he now saw as squandered. "The rite must continue," her father spoke. She could hear his voice shake just a bit with rage. How could she have failed him? She was to be the most talented Schnee in two generations. Winter's lip trembled.

His voice was cold. "Ask for its name."

She took a breath, blinked. Blinked again. Her lips went stiff and finally she calmed herself and spoke. "What is your name?"

The lone crow twitched his head towards her, turning its gaze a little sideways before glancing away again.

"Answer me," she spoke more firmly this time. She needed to be strong. Summons were below her, below the Schnees. Summons served the needs of a hunter or huntress. But its response surprised her and made her question how much of that mantra was true.

"You already know, Winter." The bird finally spoke. Her heart leaped in her chest, and she could see the other Schnees in the seats of the Summoning Hall shift uncomfortably.

"Y-You know my name," she stuttered.

Its voice was tired but amused and clearly human. A male human. "I know everyone's name. I am with everyone at every time and at every place, past, present, and future."

It flapped its wings a little, and continued. "I was with your mother when she passed away seven years, five months, and twenty two days ago. I was with the old man when his youngest grandchild died from a fever in his hands in the Black Plague Epidemic. And I will be with you when you breath your last."

"Do you know who I am now?"

She could see it clearly now. Both of his forms were visible - his bird shape and his more ethereal human body. A blood red cape hung from his shoulders, draped across gray clothes that seemed almost formal, just almost. He held a menacing scythe, sharp and with a wide, long curve. Yet it was the matching red eyes that she was focusing on, that drew her in. And it was from there that she knew its name.

Her throat was dry. But when she spoke, it was with conviction, and she knew that this, in spite of all her disbelief, it was her partner. Even in just the minute the two of them shared, Winter felt a connection deeper than she had felt with others.

"Death."

It's name echoed across the hall, and all fell silent.

With her utterance, the bird and man nodded at her. Its true form, the one only she could see, disappeared into the other's shadow. With no more words, the crow spread its wings and flew towards her.

Two became one.

A/N: Hello, and welcome to my AU! This actually started as an idea on tumblr, where you can find me as drunkdragondoes (PS: if you wanna spoil yourself, search it under the tag "summoner au"). I finally decided to port it over to this side of the web.

I'll be frank in that I don't know how often I'll be able to update it. In fact I don't think I even have an ending. This is a bit more focused around world-building and characterization, probably, and I expect chapters to be more on the shorter side. And while Winter will have her dedicated series of sorts to follow (I hesitate to say story because, again, no planned ending), I plan to also have another fic where it's just a collection for the other characters as well.

What's more important, however, is that this a dumping grounds of sorts. Some of the elements you'll eventually see are going to go into an original work I'm beginning to frame and write - specifically the concept of characters having a summon. So I'm really looking forward to that.

Currently this is unbetad! The first few pieces I have were just done as-is with not-so-much extreme editing. I don't know if I'll be having it beta'd in the future, but things can change. I won't say I'm putting in less effort here than in my main stories, but it's also not my main priority.

Still, for what is here and what will be, I hope you enjoy it!