Raven Branwen

"You won't find it. Because Vernal isn't the Spring Maiden. I AM!"

- Raven revealing she is the Spring Maiden "The weak die. The strong live. Those are the rules."

- Raven talking to her brother Qrow.

Raven Branwen is a major antagonist in the American web cartoon series RWBY. She is the mother of Yang Xiao Long, the twin sister of Qrow Branwen, the leader of the Branwen Tribe, and was a member of Team STRQ. She is also the true Spring Maiden.

Taiyang had a very direct approach, and saw traits that her daughter inherited. Taiyang also revealed that Raven had a number of unspecified faults that greatly contributed to the dissolution of Team STRQ.

She is voiced by Anna Hullum.

Past
Raven Branwen and Qrow were raised in a tribe of murderers and thieves. When they were teenagers, they were sent to Beacon Academy in Vale to learn combat and how to kill Huntsmen and Huntresses. The two formed half of Team STRQ, which also comprised of Summer Rose and Taiyang Xiao Long. The team eventually graduated and settled down with Taiyang and Raven marrying and giving birth to their daughter Yang Xiao Long. However, when the time came to return to the tribe, Qrow refused, instead preferring his new life as a Huntsman. Upon learning a terrible truth about Beacon's headmaster Ozpin's past, Raven abandoned her family and returned to the tribe alone. Taiyang was devastated, but ended up marrying Summer and giving birth to a second daughter, Ruby Rose.

Raven returned to the tribe and became their leader, running the tribe and leading them on violent raids and attacks.

Volume 2
In "No Brakes", Raven first appears when Neopolitan is about to execute Yang, teleporting in and silently challenging her, and Neopolitan flees immediately. Raven leaves just as Yang recovers, and Yang gets a brief glimpse of her rescuer before she disappears into a red portal.

Volume 3
In "Destiny", Yang is visited by her uncle, Qrow Branwen. Yang tells Qrow that she saw her mother when Qrow reveals that he asked him to pass on a message to her daughter, Raven saved Yang once, but will not do so a second time. Qrow muses that Raven is dangerous, with a worldview that not many agree with. He then offers some information that might help Yang find her.

Volume 4
In "Family", Qrow stays at an inn in Higanbana. He is served a drink he did not order, which the waitress explains is from a lady upstairs with "red eyes". He goes up the stairs and Raven wants to find out if Salem has Ozpin's relic, but  the tribe of bandits attacked Shion. Raven chastises him for leaving the tribe behind, their "family," a term Qrow objects to her using to describe "killers and thieves." Qrow asks if she can tell him where the Spring Maiden is. Raven refuses to answer and exits through one of her portals, leaving an annoyed Qrow and a startled waitress.

Volume 5
In "Dread in the Air", Raven Branwen and two members of her tribe encounter Weiss Schnee, at the airship crash site and she is knocked unconscious and taken back to her campground to be held for ransom. She is also revealed to have the Spring Maiden, Vernal, among her tribe, having presumably taken the latter in once she ran from her responsibilities as a Maiden.

In "Lighting the Fire", Yang arrives at the Branwen Tribe camp with the defeated bandits and Raven Branwen congratulates her. She offers answers and a special meal, but Yang instead states that she is there to get her mother to use her Semblance to create a portal that will bring her to Qrow Branwen and therefore Ruby. Raven scoffs and attempts to send her away, but Yang is determined enough to fight. Weiss Schnee sees her former teammate when a tent crashes and she gives up trying to escape with subtlety. Weiss makes the Armored Knight break her cage and she joins Yang in the center of the fight. At Raven’s request, Vernal causes lightning to strike in front of the Armored Knight before a fight can really begin. Raven calls a halt, warning everyone they will attract Grimm if they do not stop. She invites the two girls into her tent to learn the truth before they go after Ruby.

In "Known by its Song", Raven begins to tell Yang Xiao Long and Weiss Schnee the "truth". She reveals to them that she and Qrow initially attended Beacon so that they could serve as a counterforce against other Huntsmen that posed a threat to their tribe. However, over time, Ozpin saw great potential Team STRQ, and held them in high regard. He then told the team many secrets about the world of Remnant at large, including the existence of Salem. Raven then shows off to the two of them her ability to shapeshift into a raven, which she heavily implies is an ability Ozpin gave to her and Qrow. Raven then opens up a portal with her Semblance, but not before offering them a choice: to stay and get their questions answered, or to join Ozpin in his war against Salem, which she believes is hopeless. Yang chooses the latter, as all she cares about is making sure her sister is safe. Before Yang and Weiss leave, Raven warns Yang that the next time they meet she may not be so kind, to which Yang responds by saying that she was not kind this time either. After Yang and Weiss leave and the portal closes Raven solemnly remakes that she knows she was not kind to her daughter during their meeting.

In "A Perfect Storm", Raven is shocked upon learning from Vernal that Salem has found them with four of her followers waiting for her: Cinder Fall, Arthur Watts, Mercury Black  and Emerald Sustrai. During their meeting, she keeps a confident persona, orders her tribe to prepare to move, and has Vernal display her mastery over the Maiden powers. But after learning that the Haven Academy Headmaster, Leonardo Lionheart, is working for Salem, Raven loses her cool and states her refusal to get caught in the war between Salem and Ozpin. She is then pressured by Cinder and Watts with the White Fang’s upcoming attack on Haven. Raven seemingly gives in, but asks for the death of her brother as he knows she has the Spring Maiden. After Salem’s followers leave, she has Vernal follow them to learn where they are staying. Raven then reveals her plans to take the Relic of Knowledge for herself to ensure the survival of the Branwen tribe. She then shapeshifts into her bird form and flies to Mistral where Qrow is.

In "True Colors", Raven arrives at Haven Academy and manages to have Leo call Qrow and tell him that he managed to convince Mistrel's council to send in a small recon team to extract the Spring Maden from the Branwen Tribe. After the call, Leo is seen being in the same room with Raven where she admits how she's impressed that Leo is the first one to betray Ozpin and that he shouldn't be ashamed for trying to survive when he explains why he continues to cooperate with Salem.

In "Vault of the Spring Maiden", Raven heads down to the vault with Vernal and Cinder. After dealing with Cinder who is mildly brags that Vernal must feel special, Vernal merely asks how to open the vault. Cinder reveals that the only way to open it is for the Spring Maiden to touch the final door at which point it will only open for her. At that moment Cider quickly uses Ice Dust to freeze Raven, after doing this Cinder tries to use her newly revealed Grimm arm to steal the Spring Maidens power from Vernal. However as Vernal collapses and Cinder is left confused on why she can't sense the Maidens power, Raven shouts that the true Spring Maiden is not Vernal but herself and prepares to attack Cinder.

Quotes
"Yang, we have a lot to talk about."

- Raven, to Yang Xiao Long. "I told you Beacon would fall and it did. I told you Ozpin would fail and he has."

- Raven, to Qrow. "I lead our people now. And as leader I will do everything in my power to ensure our survival."

- Raven, declaring what she cares about most. "I think… we just hit the jackpot."

- Raven capturing Weiss. "You were patient, determined, and strong enough to make your dream a reality. Well done, Yang."

- Raven, proud of Yang finding her "Family. Only coming around when they need something."

- Raven about family. "You know, it takes real strength to march in here and demand such a favor of me. I’ve got to say, I’m impressed."

- Raven on Yang's request of her. "Ozpin is not the man you think he is. And Qrow is a fool for trusting him. I would know, I trusted him once, too."

- Raven warning Yang about "the man behind the curtain". "If you’re really going after your sister, then you need to know the truth."

- Raven's request of Yang as the episode ends. "Not all of them. Some people are just in it for the money and the fame, but there’s even more that are just looking to grow stronger. Your Uncle Qrow and I didn’t attend Beacon to become Huntsmen, we did it to learn how to kill Huntsmen."

- Raven, explaining her and Qrow's reason why they attended Beacon to Weiss and Yang. "I’m giving you a choice. Stay here, with me, and I’ll answer all your questions and more. We can have a fresh start. Or… you can go back to Qrow and join Ozpin’s impossible war against Salem, and meet the same fate as so many others. But can you really go back to trusting someone that’s kept so much from you?"

- Raven, gives Yang a difficult choice to choose from. "I’m not helping Salem, I’m not helping Oz! I don’t want a part in any of this!"

- Raven, to Cinder. "Of course not. They’ll never leave us alone. Once our purpose has come and gone, we’ll be discarded. Salem only uses people until they are no longer useful. If we want to have any chance of defending ourselves against her, then we need this Relic. If Qrow and those brats want to follow Ozpin, then let them. When the chaos reaches its peak, we’ll grab the Relic and make our escape."

- Raven, to Vernal. "Man up! You did what you had to do to survive, there is no shame in that."

- Raven, to Lionheart.

Trivia

 * "Branwen" is Welsh, meaning "blessed white raven/crow", which corresponds to her first name. Raven can refer to a number of bird species in the genus Corvus, or in reference to the color black.
 * As well as the fact that their first names, Raven and Qrow (crow), are both black birds in the genus Corvus. Specifically, ravens are a type of crow.
 * During the scene where Yang talks about her search for Raven and being saved by her uncle Qrow in "Burning the Candle", the text on the chalkboard (enlarged) is an extract from a poem about Huginn and Muninn, two ravens from Norse mythology. The text supposedly reads:
 * Hugin and Munin fly each day over the spacious earth.
 * I fear for Hugin, that he not come back, yet more anxious am I for Munin.
 * In Volume 2's post-credits scene, Yang meets Raven, who removes her mask. Raven then tells Yang that they have a lot to talk about, as the screen cuts to black, ending the Volume. However, after the death of series creator Monty Oum and the departure from the previously planned storyline, this scene was later confirmed to not be canon. In continuity, is presumably now a vision or dream.
 * She wears the same necklace as Neopolitan and Coco Adel.
 * Her mask appears to be a more elaborately-styled version of the Grimm Masks worn by the White Fang.
 * Notably, her mask and feathered hair give her an appearance markedly similar to a Nevermore, likely referencing her name.
 * The red and black portal Raven uses is visually similar to the one created by Cinder's glove in "Beginning of the End". A similar looking portal is seen in both the Volume 1 and Volume 3 Opening animations.
 * In the Japanese dub, she is voiced by Megumi Hayashibara.