Jaune was scared. He knew he shouldn't be. His team was strong, smart, and more than capable. But deep in his chest, a heavy feeling sat, waiting for its time to bloom. Just to be safe, the blond looked back at his team as they all stood on the launch pads.

Nora was swinging her hammer around, as bubbly as ever. She saluted at her leader, her wide grin causing him to at least respond with a false one of his own. The light in her eyes faded just a little and Jaune realized that she was a bit more perceptive than he had thought. Either that or he couldn't fake his happiness as well as he used to with the dead weight in his heart.

Ren was, as usual, checking on Nora, although he never had to intervene. Noticing her minor drop in happiness, he followed her gaze to Jaune. He frowned as he saw right through his leader's flimsy attempt to put on a brave face. As a result, the blond turned quickly to the last remaining member of his squad.

Pyrrha mirrored his own nervousness back at him when he faced her. The green eyes looked into his own blues and shimmered with grim anticipation. "Are you okay, Jaune?" she asked, putting her hand on his shoulder. "You seem… worried."

He responded with a nervous chuckle as he turned his back on his team, looking at the vast forest in front of him. "Just a bit nervous. I mean, what do we do if…"

"We cross that bridge when we get there, Jaune. Just trust us."

The chilling wind blew past the four as Jaune shivered. Only he knew it wasn't the cold.

The news of Blake returning without Yang had spread across the school. With the increased activity from both the White Fang and the Grimm, people feared that she was dead. But Ren had heard Ruby and Weiss talking with Ozpin; Yang was turning into a Grimm. The thought of such a fate horrified Jaune and he worried about what something like that entailed.

But that wasn't the real reason they were on the cliff on this cold morning, watching as some of the misty dew was blown away from their leafy homes. No, it was that Ruby and Weiss had run off to save Yang. Alone. Jaune had been almost angry at the two for making such an insane decision, before he realized he would've made the same rash choice as they did. After all, Yang was Ruby's sister and if there was one thing he understood it was the importance of family.

Now Team JNPR was leaving on the order of Ozpin himself with a single objective: bring back Ruby and Weiss, dead or alive. They were to return back to the academy before nightfall, if they reached Death Chasm, or if they encountered heavy Grimm or White Fang resistance, with or without the bodies. The thought of seeing any of his friends dead only made that feeling of dread grow. And if Ruby and Weiss couldn't survive, what were his chances?

Shaking his head, he made a decision: they would come back with Ruby and Weiss alive. They might be a bit hurt, maybe even with some bad bruises, but they would be alive. They had to be. With that thought in mind, the boy widened his stance and looked through the mist with pure determination.

"Positions!" he yelled, his voice sounding firm and commanding.

Pyrrha was scared. "Positions!" squeaked Jaune, his voice resonating with uncertainty. As much faith as the Amazon had in her leader, she was worried. The Grimm and the White Fang's strength was growing as their strikes against Beacon grew ever bolder. Jaune had improved, there was no questioning that. He had continued to excel at leading his team and had certainly gotten far better at combat. But with Ruby and Weiss missing and Yang turned, she doubted he would be performing at an optimal rate. This thought wasn't helped by the fear and nervousness in his eyes. Nor did the high-pitched command.

But it was far too late to begin questioning the decision now. Ozpin had picked them specifically although Pyrrha greatly disagreed with the decision. Team JNPR was a fearsome team but certainly a more experienced squad or even multiple squads would be a better choice for such a dangerous mission. She recalled hearing rumours that the White Fang would be finally making their move on Beacon soon, which would explain why they were being sent to find the remnants of Team RWBY; finding them was important but not so much so that they'd risk hurting the defensibility of the academy. Pyrrha understood this but still she worried.

As the rest of the team took up their launching positions, they did not have to wait long. They were quickly flung into the air above the lush green forest. At the peak of their height, none of the trees were visible beneath the early morning fog and dew. As it got her hair and face soaking wet, Pyrrha frowned. This was not optimal conditions to be hunting for the missing girls in. Grimm, much like Faunus, had far more developed senses than humans, which would give them the advantage. While the situation was skewed in favour of the soulless monsters they would be fighting, she knew better than to mention this to Jaune. Every moment we spend waiting is one that Ruby and Weiss spend, likely injured, she thought, although another voice in her head whispered the unthinkable.

As the team landed in a practiced cluster, the four looked ahead into the darkness of the forest. The trees blocked out most of the light from the already weakened sun, which Pyrrha mentally cursed. This whole situation seemed to worsen with the second. No sense in waiting around then, she thought as Jaune gave the order to begin moving up. As the wind blew through the silent forest, the Amazon gave an involuntary shiver.

In the heat of battle, Jaune couldn't afford to be scared. As yet another Beowolf charged at Team JNPR, the leader slid into position to block the clawed lunge from striking Ren, currently wrestling with a furious Boarbatusk. Pushing upwards with his shield, the blond ran his attacker through with his blade, kneeing it to make sure it went deep enough to kill. Pulling back, he found himself back to back with his other male teammate, while Pyrrha and Nora fought together.

They had been walking through the forest for about two hours before they began to meet any Grimm and had they met some Grimm. Luckily, the group of Hunters had cut through them like a hot knife through butter but now more and more of them were arriving. Not to mention everyone had their limits, Jaune particularly. But they could keep going, everyone insisted. So Jaune did likewise although he was almost running of fumes at this point. He refused to give up and make this mission a failure because of him.

"You okay?" inquired Ren, feeling the taller teen's back against his. Sweat dripped off him and mixed with the bloody and damp grass, with only a few remnants of the early morning dew still around to water down the blood.

"Y-Yeah…" Jaune replied, his heavy breaths betraying him. Both of the warrior killed their next opponents far more clumsily than they had hours earlier. They proceeded to look over on their partners, who killed the last two Beowolves with minor difficulties.

"We need to turn back," muttered Ren, rubbing his temples in an attempt to help even out the flow of his heavily drained Aura. "If we go any further, we're going to find more Grimm and Jaune can't—"

"I can't what?" snarled the leader at his friend. "I can go on just fine, like the rest of you."

"Jaune—" began Pyrrha, reaching out to her partner. Her chest moved up and down with some stress itself, as the Grimm assaults was draining everyone intensely.

Jaune turned his back on her, facing away from the academy and deeper into the forest. "I don't want help!" Pyrrha remembered this moment far too well and she could see the faint green glow of the titular beacon in the moonlight on the night of his confession. "I don't want to be the damsel in distress; I want to be the hero!" He might've matured since that night but with the risk of one of his greatest friends in danger, his obsession with being a hero had returned.

"If you guys… are feeling too… exhausted… go back…"

Jaune took a deep breath, straightened his back, and began walking. As the other members of the team watched him go, Nora sided up to Ren, uncertainty in her eyes for the first time Pyrrha had ever seen. Ren, in turn, looked at Pyrrha, his own breaths still being drawn labouredly.

"I'm going to convince him to come back; you guys go back to Beacon quickly. Tell Ozpin…" Pyrrha thought of Blake, who had secretly snuck out of the infirmary, presumably to search for Yang, as well as the other two girls. Team RWBY was lost in the forest, likely dying if not already dead and Team JNPR had been entrusted to bring them back. The Amazon clenched her fist and blinked back the tears that were welling up around her saddened emerald eyes. "Tell Ozpin we failed."

It was then that she heard a quiet scream.

The three quickly jumped into action, charging forward toward the sound of clashing metal and agonizing pain. As they broke through into a small clearing next to a cave, they saw Jaune wounded and battling against two Deathstalkers, with the Huntsman in no shape to pose a threat to the enormous Grimm.

As Nora and Pyrrha gasped with apprehension, they distracted the blond who turned to face them, his own eyes wide with panic. "I'll hold them off!" he yelled at them. "Get to saf—"

The sickening sound of metal and flesh being pierced replaced Jaune's voice, as his eyes slowly fell to look at the source. One of the Deathstalkers had run him through with its large golden stinger, now stained red with the teen's blood. His deep blue irises shook as his body still failed to register what he already knew. He mouthed a single word as he stretched out an open hand towards his friends and teammates: "Run."

Ren, seeing Pyrrha shaking where she stood, grabbed her and Nora. "We're going. Now!" Pulling her by the hand, she watched as Jaune's eyes slowly closed. She wanted to scream, to rush in and kill those monsters for ending such a brilliant life so short but it took all of her concentration to keep up with Ren and not tripping over her own suddenly sluggish feet.

"If I can't do this on my own… Then what good am I?"

Jaune was scared. He was dying, he could feel it. The cold biting away at his limbs as the warmth of his blood continued to pool out of his wound. The pain was slowly fading but so was his control over anything. He couldn't open his eyes, much less scream from the agony he was suffering. He didn't even have the strength to cry.

Why am I still alive? he thought, for the solace of his mind was all that he had left. His Aura was in shambles, likely sustaining his consciousness somehow despite not having control over his body. Why is a weakling like me still alive?

His thoughts wandered and returned to his team. A team of strong Hunters. A team of strong Hunters and their weakling fool of a leader. He had risked their lives for the sake of his pride. He had almost gotten them all killed.

However, Jaune heard another voice begin to whisper to him. It's not your fault; it's theirs, it whispered, sweet as syrup and just as cloying. You were doing what was right; you wanted to save your friends. They were scared and hesitant while you… you were brave and righteous.

I was just as scared. I panicked, insisted Jaune, a feeling of foreboding clouding his mind with this mysterious voice. After all, it was true; the leader had been afraid since the launch today. Maybe even when he first heard the news about being the group to find Ruby and Weiss.

Nonsense! You put your life on the line for the sake of others. They should've done the same for you.

No, I couldn't ask them to do that.

You shouldn't have to; it's their fault for holding back.

Holding back? They were as exhausted as I was.

Not then, back when they offered you their 'help'. Pyrrha never broke a sweat during your training. Did you ever wonder why she was holding back?

No…? Yet even as he thought this, the foreboding seemed to come to a peak. The doubt had begun to ensnare him and pierce him and it prepared for the final blow.

Because she doesn't respect you, Jaune. You're an adorable little toy to her. She pities you. And that's what she wants; a worthless, useless damsel to rescue.

Jaune wanted to retch but there was nothing to throw up. His body was almost empty; empty of blood, empty of Aura, and empty of hope. He just hoped death's embrace would be soothing.

Jaune, I can help. You let me in and you will live and protect those who truly care about you. Those who want to see you grow. Those who want to see you succeed. You will never be forced to be pitied. And you will never be scared.

As his soul began to fall apart, the teen did not think. I… I don't want to be scared. I don't… want to be pitied. I don't… I don't… I don't want to be weak… As those thoughts left his mind, a veil of darkness began to enrapture his corpse, still caught on the tail of one of the Deathstalkers. In confusion, it flung Jaune's body off and it landed in front of the two Grimm. Looking at one another, the one that had killed and flung the Hunter approached it tentatively.

As it raised its stinger to strike this bizarre anomaly, a tentacle of shimmering black energy shot out and pierced the skull and body of the monster with ease. It froze for a moment before converting into the same substance and joining the shadow which consumed the corpse.

The other Deathstalker, astonished by what had happened to its partner, backed away from the void before it as it began to take the shape of an altered Jaune. He stood at least a foot taller than before with much of his body covered in the tough white bone exoskeleton of a Deathstalker. The wound where the stinger had pierced him was gone, healed and hidden behind his new armour. At his elbows, long growths of the durable bone formed pincer claws that came to a point just after his hands. His face was mostly concealed beneath the hardened faceplate of the scorpion-like Grimm, complete with almost a dozen eyes and chomping mandibles. His own teeth were visible if one looked at him from a lower angle, now sharpened to a point and in the form of disgusting grin. Finally, along his back, a tail extended upwards, ending in a razor sharp gold stinger.

Flicking the tail back and forth, the transformed Huntsman slowly approached the remaining Deathstalker, a sadistic smirk widening on his face as the Grimm began backing away. With a sudden burst of speed, Jaune was upon it, sinking his clawed arms into its face with enough force to crack it and crush the brain inside it. With only a wisp of blood splashing onto his new body, he moved off and away from the dead Grimm and laughed roughly. The voice's promise had been right; for the first time in days, Jaune wasn't scared.

Pyrrha wasn't sure if she was scared or just lonely. Ever since Ren and Nora had managed to drag her back to Beacon and pass on the story of what happened to Ozpin, he had put her under lock and key. While she had her suspicions, they were confirmed one night when she heard Ozpin talking to Professor Goodwitch outside the room, where they must've thought was out of earshot of the caged Huntress.

"We've lost too many good students," said the headmaster, his voice far more level than the words would imply. "Too many good students… And Jaune."

It had taken almost all of Pyrrha's discipline to not throw herself at the door and scream for Ozpin's blood. Jaune was as good as any other student that attended Beacon; all he needed was time to mature. If only she had trained him better or sooner, then Jaune would still be…

It had been two days since they had gotten back and she just couldn't find the strength to keep going. She had no visitors except a staffer who brought her food a few times a day. She wasn't afraid that her friends had forgotten her; she was worried whether or not any of her friends were still alive. With Team RWBY gone and Jaune dead, there wasn't much remaining for her. She didn't know whether or not Ren and Nora were alive or even at Beacon. And so, Pyrrha lay back down on the hard cold stone floor, ignoring the bed that was provided for her. She had suffered from a nightmare the sleep before and falling off the bed onto the stone floor had hurt more than she cared to admit, eliciting a cry of pain from the once proud Amazon. She'd suffer the discomfort if it meant less true pain.

She hadn't remembered falling asleep but she certainly remembered waking up a rather explosive noise as the door swung open. Carrying her hammer slung across her back, Nora ran into the room and picked up Pyrrha in a tight embrace. Her lack of talking greatly worried the green-eyed Huntress, almost to the extent of her breaking down her door.

"What are you doing here, Nora?"

The hammer user pushed out of the hug and offered a weak smile, one that looked deeply depressing to Pyrrha, who always saw her with large genuine grins. "We're going to go get Jaune," she stated, matter-of-factly.

"But Jaune is dead…" muttered the Amazon, downcast as she recalled the panicked and dying face of her partner for the umpteenth time. "What would be the point?"

"I don't think he is," stated Ren, as he calmly entered the room, dusting off his sleeves. "I've been researching the human-to-Grimm transformation process and it seems that those with an unlocked Aura are not only more likely to turn prior to death but have a slight chance of being brought back through Aura contact with someone who they shared Aura with." He paused as he saw the spark of hope ignite in Pyrrha's eyes. "Even more so if that person unlocked the Aura in the first place."

"But what about Ozpin?" Pyrrha couldn't accept the hope that easily to be cut deep again. "There's no way he'll let us go."

Nora grinned, this time mischievously and genuine, hefting her enormous weapon. "I don't think he'll try to stop us too much. Do you, Ren?"

"Not if we leave now, under the cover of the night," Ren stated, extending a hand to get Pyrrha off the ground proper. "But it needs to be done quickly and effectively."

Pyrrha nodded in agreement but paused to look her two teammates in the eyes. "You know, if we do this, there's a very high chance we could all get expelled…"

"And we wouldn't get expelled for breaking you out already?" Nora scoffed, as she hugged Pyrrha again. The Amazon understood the signal even if the bubbly girl didn't; she was frightened too and needed someone to hold her.

As they let go of each other, Pyrrha turned to Ren. "And you?"

Ren stared at her for a moment and she could see the doubt that dimmed his eyes ever so slightly. Ren hadn't been like the rest of the team in arriving at Beacon; his family was gone now and he wouldn't be able to look after himself and Nora if they were expelled. While his childhood friend saw the world so simply, he knew better and it made him hesitate.

A moment seemed to last an eternity before Ren calmly nodded. "If we have a shot at saving Jaune, we should take it; he would do the same for us."

As the three snuck out of Beacon, Pyrrha held her head high. She had her friends and hope. They could save Jaune and with the three of them more determined to succeed at this goal than anything before, they had no choice in the matter. They would return with a living Jaune and do whatever they can to protect the rest of Beacon, including Team RWBY.

They would return to Beacon victorious and above their fears. As long as they had each other, there would be nothing to be scared of.

Pyrrha was scared and alone. When she, Ren, and Nora got deeper into the forest, they had gotten separated when a Nevermore had managed to carry her away from her teammates. She had escaped its talons and managed to land relatively safely, but she was still separated from her team in a forest full of bloodthirsty Grimm.

She took a deep breath to calm her nerves and took a quick observation of her location. The clearing she was in was calm and no glowing red eyes were watching her. However, she realized that she recognized the location when a chilling wind blew in from the nearby cave. That the wind would come from the cave was disturbing enough but the site was where she had last seen Jaune. With that stinger tail straight through his chest…

Changing Miló into sword form and putting on Akoúo, the red-haired Huntress slowly began making her way into the frigid cavern. It astonished her how strong the wind was and how absolutely bitterly cold it was. She had to close her eyes to stop the air from getting inside them and freezing them. Or, at the very least, stop that feeling for she had far worse ones that she had to deal with.

As she pressed on to epicenter of the cave's storm, she felt a presence laying not too far ahead. Doing her best to silence her chattering teeth, she moved around one last corner and opened her eyes. While the being that stood in front of her was larger and twisted, she knew who it was without having to ask. But Pyrrha couldn't stop herself.

"Jaune…?"

As he turned around to face his former partner, Jaune felt but one emotion and it wasn't one of being scared. She carried her weaponry with her but she did not move to set-up a fighting stance. The half-Grimm hybrid continued to exam his comrade from his time as a human at Beacon. Partner, friend, teammate… Knight in shining armour.

Having closed the distance without appearing hostile, his entire body language dropped its pretense as he swung a heavy claw at Pyrrha. With all the practiced skill he had known of her, she blocked the blow but the force knocked her back. In a flash, he was upon her for a second strike, this one hitting her in the stomach before launching her out of the cave. As she flew back, she collided with a thick tree trunk and dropped to the ground like a sack of potatoes.

But such a blow would not take Pyrrha out of a fight, Jaune knew as he exited the cave to find her standing on her own two legs, determination flaring in those green eyes of hers. Oh, how he had learned to hate those eyes over the last two days. He hated her eyes, her lips, her hair, her arms… But he had not forgotten what he once felt towards her. Kinship and maybe… something more. But that was the past.

"Jaune!" Pyrrha cried, dropping low into her combat stance. "I can help you! I can save you!"

That was the last straw. "Save me?!" Jaune snarled, his voice barely recognizable as it had grown deeper and harsher since his transformation. "That's still all you see me as isn't it? Your little princess that you get to save? You aren't better than me anymore, Pyrrha!" He charged at the Huntress, swinging his claw outward, to catch her shield while he lifted her up by the throat.

Pyrrha swung Miló repeatedly at the offending claw arm while she also tried to push her Aura onto her former team leader. Neither seemed to have an effect, to her growing horror. The inhuman hand tightened around her throat as she let out a screech of pain, which amused the monster before her.

"Even now, you act high and mighty, looking down on me. This is your fault, Pyrrha!" The multitude of blinking red eyes each shone with an intensive hatred. "You never respected me as an equal nor did you ever intend to. You just wanted me around to feel better about yourself, you weak, spineless girl!"

The Amazon capitalized on his speech of blame to use her Semblance to swing her shield with enough force to cause what was once Jaune to drop her. In this moment, she was fighting for her survival so instinct took over. Grabbing Miló and Akoúo off the ground and back into a fighting stance, she glared at her attacker.

"You're wrong! All I wanted was to help! To see you grow!"

"So you pitied me?" the half-Grimm roared back, mandibles on the end of the facemask shivering in anticipation. "How dare you pity me! I'll make you suffer!" As he struck yet again with his clawed arm, Pyrrha had noticed the pattern in his attacks and ducked the blow, causing the claw to embed itself on the tree she had just been pinned to.

"You made me suffer enough, Jaune. I was worried… Everyone was worried… So now you're coming home, whether you like it or not."

"This is my home!" he howled, pulling his weaponized arm free of the trunk. Turning to face his opponent, his barely visible teeth were gnashing in a furious frown. "The Grimm around here fear me… Respect me! I'm not a walking punchline here! This is a true home."

Pyrrha realized there was no getting through to him with words as the transformation must've driven him mad. The thought of the pain that could have triggered such a radical relapse in behaviour and turning him into such a feral beast… It was unthinkable. But she couldn't get hung up on that now; she had to beat some sense into this psycho.

The red-haired Huntress threw Akoúo as she rolled away from her foe as Miló expanded into its rifle form. As Jaune went to swat the shield out of the air, Pyrrha unloaded three quick shots, which careened harmlessly off of the half-Grimm's thick and durable armour. Charging claw first, he swung low as she turned her weapon back into a spear which blasted her up above the soulless creature she was fighting. Switching it back to rifle mode once again, Pyrrha used her advantageous positioning to fire off more shots at her monstrous enemy. These rounds found better traction, driving the beast to its knees and eliciting a howl of anger and anguish. She flinched at the sound, not sure whether or not she wanted Jaune to somehow still be in there and suffering. Rolling into the landing, she pulled Akoúo back to her free hand, tripping the half-Grimm in the process.

As it roared and got back to its feet, Pyrrha made her last attempt. Charging the white boned monster, she spun Miló back into its sword form and used both it and her shield to block the twin claw strikes that enclosed on her from either side. Before it could express surprise, the Auraless creature had both of Pyrrha's palms thrust up against its chin, shimmering with the Amazon's Aura.

While every time the half-Deathstalker had spoken previously was with a guttural and primal voice, the shriek now filling the cloudy evening was barely registered within the human range. It took every ounce of Pyrrha's exhaustive willpower to keeping her Aura-radiating hands on Jaune's chin and not cover up her ears. But as she continued to pump her Aura onto the creature, the screams lessened and quieted. After what had felt like hours but was a mere minute or two, the cries stopped and the Huntress slowly removed her hands from the now dead-eyed and motionless half-Grimm.

Not wasting another second, she wrapped her fingers around insectoid faceplate and pulled with all the strength her now calloused hands could muster. To her surprise, it came off with ease. Tossing it to the side, she focused her attention on Jaune's face, which was slowly fluttering back to life. His eyes were once again the deep blue shade that she had gotten lost in, once or twice. His teeth no longer resembled that of a shark or some other bloodthirsty predator. In both the eyes and his smile, Pyrrha saw her partner return.

"I'm sorry, Pyrrha," he muttered, his voice raspy and weak. While his eyes and smile sparkled, there was more than a little guilt within them.

The Amazon simply placed a finger on his lips and smiled. "It's okay, Jaune; we can say our sorries when we get back to Beacon and get you healed up properly." As she moved to stand up, she felt her arm be grabbed. It was in that moment that she knew something was wrong. His eyes were growing darker by the second and his smile shrunk little by little.

Jaune was scared, but not of death. Well, rather, not of his own death. The venom from the wound that should've killed him was coursing through his blood once again, with his Aura in tatters and unable to quell it. Deathstalker venom could be contained by Aura but once it had spread, there was no recorded survivors. He could feel his very blood burn from mixing with the toxic substance. As painful as it was, it would get worse and, to his own loathing, he would scream when the real suffering came. And when he did, the Grimm would come. Pyrrha had used up a dangerous amount of her own Aura to save him but he was already dead.

"You need to go, Pyrrha," he spoke, his voice barely above a whisper, as he desperately attempted to hide the pain. But she was his partner and she could always see through his mistruths. "I've got Deathstalker venom in my veins; I can't go with you."

Pyrrha just pulled him to his feet, as the agony tripled from such a simple action. "I'm bringing you back whether you want to come or not. They haven't treated someone who had both venom and had turned, especially not like how you did. Just… Just trust me, okay?" Jaune had never seen her cry before and that pain was the one that concerned him more for now.

"I'll only weigh you down," he said, shaking his head softly and wincing as the pain spiked again. It wouldn't be long until the next stage. Certainly not long enough for the two to escape the forest in their condition. "If I stay behind, you can get back to Beacon. Maybe even find Ren and Nora along the way."

"I can protect you! We just need—"

"Stop…" moaned Jaune, looking hurt emotionally as well as physically. "This isn't like you, Pyrrha. You know there's no way we're both getting out of here. It's better this way."

"But Jau—"

"Hey Pyrrha," the blond smiled softly, as Pyrrha found herself mentally cursing him. "I get to be a hero and a damsel. Fitting, huh?" He tried to laugh but fell into a painful coughing fit, as he spit out blood that was blacker than the encroaching shadows.

"I hate you, Jaune Arc," said the Amazon as finally left him to his fate.

"I love you too, Pyrrha Nikos."

Pyrrha wasn't scared. She had seen one of the bravest people she had ever met be broken but she remained standing. Sitting alone in the Team JNPR room, the teen lay on her bed. Ren and Nora had met near the outskirts of the forest, hurt but nothing too bad. Now the two had gone off to train with some of the other students while the Mistral Regional champion insisted she need some rest.

She wasn't scared, as she tossed and turned, awake and uncomfortable in her own bed. Beacon was in full lockdown mode and none of Team RWBY had returned. Pyrrha could only assume the worst had happened as the academy trained day and night, doing drills in case of a serious Grimm or White Fang assault. In the meantime, she had no partner to team up with and after having Jaune as a mobile shield for so long, her skills had rusted a little.

She wasn't scared, as she stood up and walked in to the bathroom. Splashing some water on her face, she looked back at her own reaction. It was solemn and sad. But it wasn't scared. She gave a weak smile which made her think of her dead partner.

Jaune had been better than her at one thing; even if she could see through them, he was better at telling lies.

A/N: Sorry if this a little on the weak side; I'm still new at this whole angst thing. Also, I take more than a few liberties with how things work in this AU, namely Jaune being able to talk in his half-Grimm form. Shout-outs to the entire RWBY Twitter RP group, with special mentions to Angie (weissrabbit on Tumblr), Ash (technoskittles on Tumblr & here), and Hana (hanasaku-shijin on Tumblr & momoxtoshiro here) for coming up with the Grimmdark AU and putting up some insanely good drawings and fics. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go sit down with a nice cup of hot chocolate, a bowl of ice cream, and some sappy RomComs so I can stop thinking about dreary and depressing stuff.