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Jaune Arc sat down sullenly on the couch in his big sister's home in Argus, refreshing his scroll once again to see if the signals for his friend's scrolls had lit up yet. But the portraits of Team RWBY, Oscar and Qrow remained infuriatingly darkened. He put the scroll down in frustration and thought back to the train ride that led to this. Aside from the two concerningly incompetent Huntsmen who were apparently assigned to protect the train - not that Jaune could talk, given his previous educational issues - everything was going alright on the ride to Argus, right up until the Grimm attacked. They completely overwhelmed the train's defenses and forced both his team and RWBY to take action, even splitting up to escort the civilians away with the power of his semblance and Ren's.
But Team RWBY's section of the train had been intentionally lost when they disconnected it to save the passengers. And although Jaune knew that Ruby and her team were all strong from personal experience by now...and Ruby had promised to bring all of them back, alive...he still felt worried about the 24 hours (so far) without contact. Call it a foreboding feeling or just intuition, but he knew something was wrong.
"Y'know, taking a break to stop staring at that thing won't kill anybody," Nora said, arriving in the room and seating herself on the couch across from his with Ren by her side. "They are all big girls and we have to trust them to handle themselves. That's what they would want, too!"
"Nora is right, Jaune. I'm sure Ruby and the others wouldn't want you worrying yourself like this," Ren stated calmly, agreeing with Nora's sentiment.
"I know...it's just...I have trouble letting people go, after what happened on...that day," Jaune said, drawing sympathetic looks from Nora and Ren. "And how those soldiers from the Atlas base treated us today also didn't sit with me right. I'd rather just focus on something we can wait for, which is why I'm doing this," Jaune said, updating his scroll again. No change.
Jaune suddenly felt the familiar arms of his big sister drape themselves around his shoulders and neck from the back. She must have snuck in while he wasn't paying attention. "Don't be such a worrywart, little bro. I'm sure your friends will call you when they get to the city. Besides, you're all practically huntsmen in your own right by now. What's the worst that can happen?"
Jaune paused to answer the question but noted his scroll updating itself for a second before he immediately glanced at the screen. Ruby's photo had become lit up, as had the rest of Team RWBY in order. They were finally in range!
Shuffling himself out of Saphron's grip and offering a quick apology, he grabbed the scroll, selected Ruby's number and immediately brought it to his face. The call took only a single ring before connecting.
"Jaune?!" He heard Ruby's voice shout, surprised at his call.
"Ruby?! Oh, thank you! I've been checking my scroll for your signal since we made it to the city! Are you all alright?" He shouted, hoping that they all made it back in one piece.
"We're not alright! W-We need help immediately! I just caught sight of the city walls, how fast can you meet us!?" Ruby shouted, shocking Jaune and filling him with dread. "We got rid of the Grimm attacking the train fine and learned some stuff about the relic that we need to talk about as well...but we also got attacked by a super scary Grimm too! W-Weiss...m-my sister...Blake...even my uncle got affected! They're barely holding on right now!"
"G-Got it! We'll get all over there in a hurry! You guys are coming up to the south gate, right!?" Putting down the scroll for a second after hearing a positive response and muting, Jaune explained the situation quickly to his sister and his team. They all got prepared to leave with Terra staying behind to care for Adrian. Jaune picked the scroll back up again. "We're on our way now!"
Rushing to the gate with his team and sister, Jaune was treated to the sight of Yang's bike Bumblebee being piloted by a nervous looking Oscar and a diminutive old woman with a strange headset sitting behind him, towing some form of farm trailer. As the trailer grew closer, Jaune watched as Ruby leapt out of the back and sped towards him with her semblance, stopping just shy of him and his team.
"Ruby!" He exclaimed, reaching out to hug the girl. But she shied back from his touch, expression distraught over something. Jaune noted that her clothes showed significant tears and signs of potential injury, although it seemed like her aura had already healed her.
"Jaune! Thank the brothers you're here! We need help, badly!" Ruby said, pointing back to the trailer. It was then Jaune saw the heads of his friends peeking above the railings of the trailer, who all looked barely...lucid? Rushing over, he nearly gasped in shock at what he observed. All of the riders - even Qrow, Jaune saw - were sporting injuries and also strange black lines over their bodies.
"Guys...?" Jaune said, drawing only muted groans from the inhabitants of the trailer. His hands glowed for a brief second before he quickly moved to apply his semblance to the group, but a small brown hand found his wrist and held him away.
"You mustn't, Mister Arc," came the deeper tone of Ozpins's voice through Oscar's mouth, which Jaune still felt disconcerting even now. "You will just infect yourself as well. Leave it for later."
"Infection!? What infection? Is it those black lines?" He replied, taking a look to observe the lines on Weiss who was closest to him. He watched as they seemed to squirm and shift in shape on her body, causing the pit in Jaune's stomach to grow. What could have done this!?
"We were attacked by a species of Elder Grimm known as the Apathy. Before I explain the details, please assist us in getting the others to somewhere safe in the city. Do you know of such a place?" Ozpin asked.
"There's a hospital a few blocks down in the city! Let's go the-" Jaune started, before being cut off by Ozpin.
"A hospital would be counterproductive and may lead to more lives lost. The four in the trailer are quite...infectious, as you may say, and modern medicine would be of no help to them besides maintaining their conditions," Ozpin explained, briefly peering at the four currently in the trailer. "Do you know anywhere else we may go?"
His sister immediately raised her hand. "We can take them back to my place," she volunteered, looking concerned at the state of his friends. "We have plenty of guest rooms and beds in case family ever needs to visit. Is that alright?"
"Excellent, let's move them to your house. Miss Rose, please stay with your family and friends in the trailer. You are the only one who can safely touch them," Ozpin said, moving back up to the motorbike. "Let's make this quick."
After quickly escorting the bike and trailer combo through the streets of Argus with the help of his sister and his team, Ruby had carried the insensate bodies of her team and uncle into beds in separate rooms as specified by his sister and Ozpin, one by one. His sister offered to park the vehicle properly while they moved to the living room to discuss what happened, leaving Terra upstairs in their joint room with little Adrian.
"So what's going on?! What happened?!" Nora immediately questioned to Ruby, Oscar and Maria's tired forms, done with waiting. "We're not allowed to touch them? Is it really that bad?"
"Yes, it is quite bad." Ozpin answered. "On the way here, Team RWBY, Qrow, myself and Miss Maria - who recently joined us following the train crash" Jaune saw Maria wave at them from the side. "- stumbled across a seemingly abandoned farm house, where we found only the former residents deceased for some time, without a cause. We decided to spend the night and head over in the morning to take shelter from the cold."
"But this was a mistake. By the time we awoke, the Elder Grimm we encountered, the Apathy, which had been lurking in the wine cellar of the house all along, had already drained most of our party of our will and infected us with its presence. It was only by the miracle of Miss Maria here teaching Miss Rose to properly use her silver eyes that we all escaped with our lives. At least, for now," Ozpin finished.
"So you did kill the Grimm then? If so, why are only you three moving right now?" Ren asked, a puzzled look on his face. Jaune internally shared the sentiment.
"Unfortunately, in my past experience rarely encountering or hearing reports of this particular type of Grimm, the effects of the Grimm do not cease upon it's passing. The infection each individual experiences following exposure to the Apathy is a separate instance of the Grimm, burrowing it's way into your body. As for why Miss Rose and Miss Maria are alright, I believe their silver eyes confer them significant resistance to the effects of this Grimm. As for myself, I am able to fight off it's effects within Oscar's body," Ozpin answered comprehensively.
"Can't Ruby just use her silver eyes on them as well?" Jaune asked, turning to look at Ruby, who seemed to shrink a bit in response.
"She did try but it didn't do anything noticeable," Maria responded, looking at her as well. "Furthermore, she shared with us some concerns about some partially Grimm individual who she nearly killed by using her eyes on her during a fight, I believe her name was Cinder?" Maria said, Jaune barely suppressing a wince and a flash of anger at the name. "We don't want to risk killing them by accident either."
"So what?! We just let them rest and hope they don't die?!" Nora pressed, looking aggravated at the situation.
"In truth, that is the safest method. I have found in the past that huntsman left treated only by medicine to this infection have about a 50% mortality rate, it depends on the level of infection and the mental fortitude of the huntsman in question," Ozpin explained, drawing glares from Jaune and his team at the idea of leaving half their friends to die. "But I know that would not be an acceptable solution for Oscar or for any of you. Thankfully, there is another way."
"What is it? We'll do anything!" Jaune jumped in, eager to learn about the solution.
"As I said, the infection is highly virulent and spreads through contact...more specifically, by contact with your aura. That's why I stopped you at the city gates, Mr. Arc," Ozpin stated evenly as he looked Jaune in the eyes. "But if one were to intentionally make contact with an infected individual and extend their aura to connect to theirs, the dreams incurred will be shared, with the entering huntsman participating in the dreams of the one infected first. This greatly increases the odds of survival, especially if the two individuals in question are close emotionally or share bonds."
"Now, let's decide on how we will split up Qrow and the rest of team RWBY between ourselves," Ozpin said, folding his hands across his lap.
Jaune found himself seated in a chair next to the bed of a sleeping Weiss, who seemed even paler than usual with several thick black lines running ragged across portions of her face and her upper arms. Seeing her like this made his heart sink lower than he thought possible, not just because she was a valued friend now but because he hated the feeling of losing ones he loved.
Jaune recalled how his team, Maria and Oscar had decided to split up the affected individuals just a short time ago. Ruby would help Yang because they were closest as sisters and she was the likeliest to succeed on her own. Oscar chose to help Qrow on his own because apparently Ozpin would be able to appear in the dream world with him, making the process significantly easier for him. Left with Weiss and Blake, Jaune decided it was best to let Nora and Ren stay together for the purpose of mental fortitude. That left him and Maria alone with either Weiss or Blake. But Jaune had noticed that, despite putting on a strong face, the older woman was exhausted and in no shape to assist anyone in this task. After confirming with Ozpin that elderly individuals tended to die faster under the infection, Jaune opted to handle Weiss on his own while Nora and Ren worked on Blake.
Yet, despite reassurances from the rest that they would come assist him once they had succeeded, Jaune wondered if he had made the right choice here. Weiss and his relationship started off rocky, to say the least. Although he comfortably could say they had become friends now, he sullenly wondered how strong the bond he really had with Weiss was. But he wasn't about to let her die, no matter what. She meant a lot to him, whether she felt the same way or not.
Resolving himself, Jaune gently took Weiss's soft and cold hand in his own and slowly extended his aura to make contact with hers, as instructed by Ozpin. Jaune felt a strange sense of vertigo take over his perspective as he watched faint black lines creep up his own hand towards his body. Surrendering to the feeling, Jaune closed his eyes as he slowly drifted off to darkness...
...and jerked awake on the snowy ground, suddenly aware of the cold of the light snow clinging both to him and the ground. The orange of the sky, indicating a time near sunset, made him wonder how he had gotten here and where he was. Standing up and taking a second to inspect his surroundings, he found himself just outside the porch of a large white and brown Mistrali house, in a state of some disrepair with some vegetation growing out the sides of it. Around him were similarly built and abandoned structures, likely for a farm of some sorts. There was a stone well to his left, which Jaune felt almost some pull from...as if something in the darkness wanted him to look down. But he shook his head clear. He needed to focus. He was in the dream and needed to find Weiss and together, they would escape.
Stepping into the house, Jaune found himself in a large foyer, with a stairwell to his left and a grandfather clock on the wall to the right. A set of pictures of a large family adorned the walls next to the clock, which Jaune felt himself dusting off.
"Brunswick Farms, huh?" He muttered to himself. He vaguely recalled that as the location where Ruby had said they fought the Grimm. "Is Weiss's mind still stuck here?" He wondered. Cautiously creeping through the door beneath the stairway, he made his way through a kitchen and some living rooms, only finding abandoned furniture, bookshelves and possessions around. Turning to return to the front of the house, he suddenly heard a distinctively feminine shriek from upstairs, scaring him slightly. "That sounded like Weiss!" He thought.
Rushing up through the foyer and the stairs to the source of the sound, Jaune barged through a door to a modest bedroom. But Weiss was nowhere to be found...and as he inspected the bedroom, he saw a grisly sight. Two corpses laid on the bed, having degraded for a significant amount of time. "Did the Grimm do this too?" He wondered. But like before with the well, Jaune felt a subtle compulsion to check on the bodies and this time, fearing for Weiss, decided to take a look.
Tepidly making his way over to the bed, Jaune looked at the two bodies closer, appearing to be the gaunt corpses of a farmer and his wife, who died in their sleep. Heart beating loudly, Jaune moved to turn the wife over slightly when he felt a hand lash out and grab his own suddenly! Eyes instinctively turning to the former farmer's face, he found himself instead greeted by a hideous skull faced white with glowing red eyes peering out at him in hatred, blood dripping out its every orifice. It suddenly screamed and Jaune felt every bone in his body tingle as he was sent hurtling back through the floor of the room, watching as darkness consumed his vision until he could only see those red eyes filled with hatred still peering at him.
"No!" He shouted urgently. "I can't get caught up in this! I need to help Weiss!"
Unsheathing Crocea Mors and lashing out with it in the direction of the eyes, Jaune's only reward was another scream, finding himself even more weakened than before.
"I have to do something fast!" He thought. "But what can I do?"
Thinking back to what Ozpin told him, Jaune recalled that the Grimm apparently spread by contact with aura but was also fought off by aura as well. Idea in mind, Jaune immediately amplified his own aura, emitting a bright white light that consumed the darkness and turned the scream from one of hatred to one of pain as the wounded red eyes retreated. Jaune found his world encompassed in even greater white light as he felt something intrinsically familiar to him make contact with his body in that moment.
"Weiss?!" He shouted, as the world was consumed by white.
Jerking himself awake again, Jaune found himself in a darkened open hall, massive windows streaming in bits of moonlight from the outside as he worked to get his bearings. Orienting himself to the front of the hall, Jaune was rewarded with a familiar sight - a black and white snowflake with sharp edges, the emblem of Weiss's family!
"Is this somewhere in her home?" He thought. But as that thought crossed his mind, he watched in shock as Weiss stepped into the light of one of the windows. He saw with some surprise that she was in her favored near all white Beacon dress, although she looked younger than he had ever seen her. Most notably, however...she was missing the scar on her left eye that Jaune had always found complimented her graceful and porcelain beauty.
"Weiss? Is that you!? Are you doing okay?!" Jaune shouted at her, seeing her icy blue eyes flicker over to him for a second before turning to the middle of the room, where...a giant knight was kneeling on the ground, similarly just uncovered by the light of the windows.
"Wait, is that...your Arma Gigas?" Jaune questioned, as the knight slowly rose and faced Weiss. But to his surprise, the knight instead brandished its blade and swung an overhead blow at Weiss, who dodged out of the way with a quick backflip. Jaune could swore he heard music in the background as well, but disregarded the subtle noise.
Charging at the knight before it could strike out at Weiss again, Jaune targeted the right leg with a loud clang as the knight stumbled, taking a head on thrust from Myrtenaster courtesy of Weiss who had launched herself at it. Swinging its sword out again at Weiss as the large blade made contact with the ground, the knight was left without reward as she dodged out of the way once again.
"Hey, look at me instead of her! Jerk!" Jaune shouted, this time aiming for the gap between its armor and rebuffing a heavy blow that came afterward by bracing his shield with his aura. "It still packs a punch!" He thought.
Using her semblance, Weiss danced with great dexterity around the distracted knight, landing countless blow after blow on the body of the knight. Having had enough, the knight refocused its attention on Weiss, lashing out with a blow towards her frame stuck in the air as her eyes widened and she moved to dodge. But Jaune was one step faster and placed himself and his shield between the two, amplifying his aura once again to solidify his defenses.
"You just work on beating it down! Leave the defense to me!" He said, looking back at Weiss who looked at him with wide eyes...but narrowed them and nodded once.
They then engaged in a constant back and forth with the towering knight, Jaune making openings and defending as best he could, with the knight seeming to grow more frustrated and weakened as time passed. Eventually, Jaune signaled to Weiss to land near him and he placed a hand on her back, amplifying her aura as she let out a small gasp.
"If you've got a finishing move, let's use it here," Jaune said, letting the now glowing Weiss go as she sped to the other side of the knight. Jaune once again targeted precisely the open gaps in armor of the knight as it turned to pursue Weiss, having deemed her the higher threat at the moment. The knight stumbled to a knee as Weiss soared into the air and visibly charged her weapon with hard light dust, leaping off a glyph to pierce straight through the mid-center of the knight. Yet as the knight's joints combusted and it howled for the first time...Jaune watched helplessly as an armored hand lashed out at Weiss and slapped her away, having taken her off guard.
"Weiss!" Jaune shouted, sprinting over to her as the knight shattered into dust in the distance. Reaching the girl splayed out on the ground, Jaune saw blood leaking from near her left eye as she winced in pain. Activating his semblance again, Jaune focused it on her eye, wiping away the blood as the healing cleared to reveal a familiar scar. This must be where she got it from, he thought.
Weiss's hand found itself to her face, tracing the path of her new scar. Her face reflected many emotions - sadness, surprise, grief, desperation - as she used a small glyph to create an ice mirror in her hand, raising it to inspect herself. For the first time, she finally spoke up.
"I won but...I also failed. I ruined myself. I couldn't be like Winter. Now I'm scarred forever...an eternal mark of my shame," she said depressingly, as Jaune moved to place a hand on her back.
"Weiss...you didn't fail at all. If you beat this thing by yourself all those years back, you're even more amazing than I thought," he said, consoling her as she looked up at him with pain in her eyes.
"But Winter is not scarred. Winter is perfect...how can I...," she started before Jaune stopped her by interrupting.
"Weiss...you're beautiful. Your scar is beautiful. It's a symbol of all your hard work and effort. You are beautiful. Don't ever doubt that," Jaune said, smiling down at her. Her face lit up red as she took his words in and she tried to hide her face between her hands but failed as Jaune saw her peeking between the fingers.
"T-Thank you." She said, as Jaune saw the ground shatter like a mirror as he was once again encompassed by a bright white light.
Growing accustomed to the constant changes in scenery now, Jaune found himself waking up in grass again, this time without the snow. Standing up and stretching, he was greeted to the sight of what appeared to be a giant bandit camp, somewhere in Sanus or Anima judging by the forest nearby. Large red and black clothed tents were scattered around the outskirts of the area, separated by boxes or empty cages, with other small areas between. A number of bandits milled around the camp but strangely they passed by Jaune with notice, focused on their own tasks.
"When was Weiss at a bandit camp?" He wondered, taking a look around the area for a white haired girl but finding none in sight. Vaguely, he recalled the story she told them briefly in the Mistral house of the time when she and Yang had confronted Yang's mother prior to arriving. Apparently, she had been kidnapped by bandits then? If so, then that meant this was the Branwen camp and she was trapped somewhere nearby.
Walking around the camp, Jaune heard a couple of voices laughing from behind a set of tents, near the edge of the camp.
"What's so funny!?" A familiar voice said, causing Jaune to turn his attention to that direction. Hurrying over, he stopped at the sight of Weiss standing in the middle of a cage, as the bandit who had fought her at Haven slowly approached her with Myrtenaster in hand and two men watched from the sidelines.
"Oh, I don't know if it's more funny or sad...but you're clearly out of the loop. Your sister isn't in Mistral anymore. No Atlas personnel are in Mistral anymore. General Ironwood closed the borders and recalled all of his little troops and tin cans. No one is coming to rescue you." The bandit woman said, taunting Weiss with her own weapon.
Hearing enough, Jaune charged at the bandit woman and smashed her in the back of the head with his shield, sending her flying into a crate, unconscious. The two men looked shocked before Jaune approached them as well, slamming the hilt of Crocea Mors down on the head of the first as the second struggled to unsheathe his sword. Taking the opportunity where he saw it, Jaune capitalized on the last bandit's mistake and slashed at his hand which had just drawn his blade, sending it spinning out of his grasp, with the bandit shortly joining it on the floor, unconscious from a severe beating with his shield and sword.
"Jaune?!" Weiss questioned, holding onto the cage's bars with surprise in her eyes. "What are you doing here?!"
"Don't worry about it Weiss! Here!" He said, picking Myrtenaster up and tossing it to her. She caught it with a deft hand as Jaune slashed as the chains of the cage, opening up enough of a gap for Weiss to step out.
"A little help?" Weiss stated exasperatedly, holding out her roped hands to Jaune. Oops! Wondering how she even managed to catch her weapon like that, Jaune carefully cut apart the ropes, finally fully freeing Weiss from her bonds.
Hearing some of the bandits coming over to investigate, Jaune motioned Weiss to the entrance he had seen earlier. "Let's go!" He said quietly, as Weiss nodded and followed him out the camp.
Over the course of the next half hour, Jaune and Weiss ran deeper into the forest, away from the camp as they heard shouting in the distance, likely the bandits realizing what had happened. Finally taking a chance to stop once the voices had disappeared, Jaune and Weiss took some deep breaths together in an open clearing they had found.
"Let's...not...do that again," Jaune said, winded from sudden run. Weiss nodded in exchange, her own body built for more quick, precise movements than long distance runs.
"Well, we need to find-OOOOF!" Jaune exclaimed, as Weiss ran over to him and jumped into his arms, hanging off of his tall frame while hugging him at the same time. "I missed you guys so so much!" She said, crying into his embrace. Jaune's eyes widened but he tightened his hold in response, blushing a little at the intimate contact with the girl he once crushed on.
"I missed you as well, Weiss..." He said, although he was certain he was thinking of a different circumstance than she was. Calming down, Weiss let herself drop from his embrace before straightening her skirt and blushing a bit, looking away from him. "L-Let's just keep going, OK?" He questioned, getting a nod from Weiss in confirmation.
After a few minutes, Jaune and Weiss encountered a road, which he stepped onto as if by instinct. The light of an approaching vehicle steadily grew larger and larger as Jaune noticed exactly what was coming. "Is that...Bumblebee and Yang?" He thought to himself, as the light from Bumblebee's headlights suddenly magnified and he found himself encompassed once more.
Coming to lucidity once more, Jaune found himself in a bright white hall, perhaps similar to the one he fought the knight in, except it was clearly daytime. Pristine decorations and rugs lined the paths between innumerous sets of doors and large well polished windows, peering out into a vibrant garden.
"Now THIS is definitely Weiss's house," Jaune thought, beginning to walk around the area. As he progressed, he noticed a few details that stuck out about the current state of the manor. In a few corridors, streamers lined the walls and balloons were scattered about, as well as some signs of confetti lingering. Following the path of these details, Jaune was rewarded with the sight of a large ballroom, clearly decorated to celebrate someone's birthday.
"Happy Birthday Weiss!" Jaune read off one of the streamers around the room. He wondered which birthday it was exactly but found himself answered by the sight of a line of desserts on a table, a multitude decorated with the number "10."
"Her 10th birthday!? That's a while back! What happened here?" Jaune thought, searching the room for any signs of Weiss. After a minute of searching, in an area closest to a door leading to a room nearby, Jaune heard the sound of sniffling and suppressed cries. He felt his big brother instincts kick in as he quickly pinpointed the location to a set of curtains, with a familiar white dress - much smaller in size, though - peeking out from between them.
It was then Jaune heard the suppressed voices coming from the door nearby as well.
"How could you do this on your own daughter's birthday!? Doesn't she matter to you at all, Jacques? We raised her with love!" Shouted a mature feminine voice.
"How could I do this on her birthday? With ease, Willow. The fate of the company matters more to our family than a single birthday. I will make it up to her in time," a cold masculine voice answered. Jaune felt himself simmer a bit at the details of the response, as this clearly concerned Weiss.
"You can't replace her birthday, Jacques. Don't you care about her? Don't you care about us? Please just stop...," begged the feminine voice, before Jaune heard a slap echo through the door.
"As a matter of fact...No, I don't care. I didn't marry you for love, Willow. I married you because it was the next step up in my career. That daughter of mine is important but only as a potential heir of this company, now that Winter has started to stray due to that damn Ironwood. And don't you forget that!" The masculine voice shouted. Jaune noticed as the shaking on the legs of the figure hidden by the curtains increased dramatically with every word and the figure began to sob.
Opening up the curtains, Jaune was rewarded with the cute but heartbreaking sight of a miniature Weiss Schnee, crying while still gripping onto the curtains as best as she could. Squatting down to her level, Jaune waved at her with a smile on his face, trying to distract her from what was happening. She reacted with a surprised expression, although the crying continued.
"W-Who are you, Mister?" The adorable little Weiss said, clutching the curtain closer.
"I'm...I'm a knight who has come to save you! Don't you see my sword and shield and armor here?" Jaune said, making up what sounded best to his eyes. The tiny Weiss's eyes opened wide before she reached out her arms towards him. Jaune obliged by picking her up in a princess carry, causing her to giggle in her arms.
"And where may I take milady today, on her special day of all days?" Jaune said, drawing from his own experiences with little sisters. Weiss pointed outside the windows of the hall towards the garden and Jaune obliged, running towards the nearest balcony of the hall and jumping from the 2nd floor to the floor of the garden, making Weiss gasp in surprise but smile after they landed safely.
"You really are a knight! What kind of knight are you? A knight that fights dragons? A knight that serves kings? Tell me, tell me!" She said, as he let her down to enjoy some of the flowers.
"Well I'm...I'm a rusted knight! Don't you see the bronze on my armor? It's from rust!" Jaune said, motioning to his bronzed gear. He was suddenly very thankful for the upgrades Ruby had pushed him to get in Mistral!
"What does a rusted knight do?!" Weiss asked with a curious expression on her face.
"Well, they do a lot of things. There's a whole story about that, after all. Do you want me to tell you?" Said Jaune, recalling the story of the girl who fell through the world.
"Yes, yes! Tell me, tell me!" The little Weiss said with sparkles in her eyes. Jaune led them over to a bench nearby, where she could sit down next to him while he told the story. Recalling the details from memory, Jaune led little Weiss through the story of Alyx who fell to a new world, explored fantastical creatures, was guided by the Rusted Knight and ultimately found her way back home. By the end of it, the little Weiss was already looking a bit tired out, likely exhausted from the emotional swing she had experienced earlier. Her tiny form leaned into his as he gently cradled her like the princess she was.
"Thank...you...Mr...Rusted...Knight," she said, eyes closing slowly and gently. "You're...the...best."
And patterns held once again, for as her eyes finally snapped shut, Jaune felt himself engrossed in light again, to be brought to whatever his next destination was.
Unlike previously, this time, Jaune found himself awoken by a hauntingly beautiful voice, as a faint piano played in the background.
"Mirror...Tell me something...Tell me who's the loneliest of all..."
Recognizing the song, Jaune inspected his surroundings, noticing himself seated at the front of an audience and he was dressed in...his formal suit from the Beacon dance? And on the stage was Weiss Schnee in her favored Beacon outfit, singing her heart out.
Unbidden, an unfamiliar memory flashed across his brain. He saw a younger Weiss at another of her father's balls, when a blonde boy came up to her, a boy she found handsome and charming for the first time. Exchanging words with him and walking around by his side while peering into his bright blue eyes, she found herself smiling at the exchanges, enjoying herself. When the time quickly came for the party to finish, she discovered herself missing a ball for the first time, wanting to see the boy more.
"Mirror...tell me something...Tell me, who's the loneliest of all?"
"Fear of what's inside of me...Tell me...Can a heart be turned to stone?"
Another memory. Her father had leapt at the chance to finally pair Weiss with an influential family. She was reticent from being forced into anything but admitted that she would like to enjoy some more time with that charming boy. It was a first for her, after all, and she would grab at any chance to escape the blinding loneliness that occupied her life ever since her family become something less than family.
"Mirror, mirror...what's behind you...Save me from the things I see!"
"I can keep it from the world...Why won't you let me hide from me?"
A final memory. She was outside of the room she had just met the boy she treasured in again, having come back for her scroll which she had accidentally left inside. They had several meetings since the first and her father had informed her that talks were underway for an expected engagement...and yet...
"The Schnee? Yeah, I have her eating out of my palms so far. It's no big deal, babe. She doesn't know about us. By the time the marriage is official, it'll be too late to break it off. And then we can live like we always dreamed of. I already know her father doesn't care much about her, too, so don't worry about a divorce. He would NEVER let that happen to hurt his family's image, after all," spat out a masculine voice clearly on a scroll call, one that she knew very well, at least she thought she did...
As Weiss felt her heart break into many pieces and the tears begin to drip down her eyes, she swore she would never be like this again...
"I'm the loneliest of all..."
As the performance ended, Jaune snapped back to reality in his seat, having been staring directly up at the eyes of Weiss who was on-stage. Weiss who was staring directly into his eyes as well. Jaune suddenly noted the lack of an audience anymore and the reduced distance between his seat and her place on stage as she spoke out to Jaune directly for the first time.
"I originally thought you were like that too. Just someone pretending to care. I couldn't be anymore wrong if I tried...you showed that to me at the dance...when you stuck with Ruby even when I was gone...and when you saved me during that harrowing fight," Weiss said, grasping an area near her stomach, the place where that woman had driven clean through with her spear. "I'm sorry, Jaune...I really am..."
Jaune felt his own heart almost shatter at the pure misery in her voice before he leapt out of his seat and charged at her, making her eyes widen with shock. Before she could react, he encircled his arms around her and hugged her as gently as he could.
"Weiss...you don't need to apologize...that bad first impression was also my fault at the time. I had no idea you felt this way and that someone had almost taken advantage of you like that," Jaune said, peering down into her beautiful icy blue eyes, brimming with tears as his were. "You don't have to be lonely anymore. You have Ruby now, you have Blake now, you have Yang now...you even have me. We'll never let you be lonely again."
Weiss sobbed into his shoulder, holding onto him for dear life as he cradled the broken girl in his arms, feeling for her with all his might. But the next words she said finally gave him pause.
"B-But...wh-what...what if...Ruby and the rest don't want to be with me anymore? W-What if they turn on me, like that boy did?" Weiss asked, a hurt expression splayed all over her beautiful face.
"Weiss...even if nobody else stays with you, then I promise, I will. To the very end. And you know very well that I keep my promises, don't you?" He said, smiling down at her as his tears finally dried up.
But he was unprepared as she pulled him down with her hands on the back of his neck to her level, locking lips with him desperately. Jaune was startled for a moment but began to reciprocate after, deepening the kiss as he gripped the graceful and gorgeous girl in his arms even more deeply. He felt Weiss moan into his mouth as they struggled to unleash all of the unsaid feelings and thoughts between each other in this unspoken action. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity but what was more than likely just a few moments, they separated hotly.
Weiss immediately pushed a finger into his chest, blushing incredibly brightly up but staring defiantly up at him still. "You can't take that one back, you know?" She said as the light begin to increase around them once again, although Jaune felt a bit of finality to it this time.
"You better be prepared," Jaune heard and then he knew nothing.
Finally waking up from his Grimm induced rest, Jaune found his body inexplicably sore in all of the strangest places. He reasoned this was likely a remnant of the Grimm's corrupting influence (and the uncomfortable chair he just took a sizeable nap in). However, he noted with some happiness, there were no more veins present on his arms, although he would check his full body later, just to be safe.
Peering down at Weiss, Jaune noticed no black veins either as he traced her form from her dainty hand still...gripped to his tightly...to her slender arm, to her porcelain face, unmarred by Grimm influence but set with a strange expression as she looked into his eyes.
"Weiss?" He called out, wondering what was going on, when he felt himself being physically pulled her way, her arms latching onto him and dragging under the blanket with her!?
"WEISS!?" He shouted this time. She continued to cling to him however, pouting up at him, and answered after a second's pause.
"What's wrong with cuddling with my boyfriend after a bad day?" She said, looking directly into his eyes with the defiant look still set in her face, daring him to say something to the contrary. What!?
Hearing the door open up, Weiss squeaked for a moment before pulling the blanket to their chests instead of over their heads, making them visible to the newly entered group.
"Woah!?" Jaune heard Yang shout behind him. "I wasn't expecting that but damn!"
"Looks like you two had a nice good talk! I'm so proud!" Jaune heard his sister say, groaning internally as he realized he would have to deal with her teasing for an...eternity after this. Fuck.
Finally, Weiss chimed in. "Do you mind? I'm cuddling with my new boyfriend after a traumatic experience. Can we have some time?" She said imperiously, Jaune wondering how she kept a straight expression on her face. She couldn't suppress her massive blush though.
Jaune heard a chorus of oohs and ahhs from all his friends in the background. He saw Weiss suddenly levy a nasty glare at someone behind him, as he listened to the sounds of his friends shuffling out of the room.
"I don't get paid enough for this shit," Jaune heard Qrow say, hearing him (unevenly) walking his way out the door, likely having gotten a little buzzed even after being cured by Oscar.
"You don't get paid at all, Qrow," said the voice of Ozpin.
"Exactly! And I'm a petty little crow so you better think about that soon, Oz!" Qrow replied smarmily, having finally exited the room.
As the last sounds of feet shuffled past the door and he heard the door close, Jaune saw Weiss finally turn her attention back to him. At some point, she had grabbed one of the pillows and was using it to cover her blushing face, Jaune seeing only her beautiful eyes and hair directly.
"There's no issue with that," Jaune thought. "I could get lost in those glacial blue beautiful eyes for all my days."
Jaune noticed as Weiss's eyes suddenly widened.
"I said that out loud, didn't I?" He remarked, watching Weiss bury her entire face in the pillow this time before nodding with it.
After a second, he heard a muffled question come from the pillow. "Run that by me again, Weiss?" Jaune said, not sure what she asked.
Finally moving the pillow away from her face, Weiss asked him the question. "Did you really mean what you said?" She asked, peering into his eyes with a serious expression on her face.
"I always mean what I say to you, Weiss. You're beautiful. I'll never let you be lonely again." Jaune watched her erupt into the brightest blush of all this time, steam practically erupting from her face as she stared at him in a daze.
Slowly peeling away the pillow from her grasp and pinning her down as she gasped, Jaune added one more thing in. "I swear it." Then he kissed her like silly.
There would be a lot of time they would need to explain this to their friends once they got up, but for now, Jaune comforted himself with the girl in his grasp. And he was sure she comforted herself with him as well. It was all they needed in this nightmare of a world.