Gold

by Imyoshi

In hindsight, this was somehow entirely Ruby and Nora's fault. How was Jaune Arc supposed to know that Crocea Mors was actually an embodiment of some woman's soul from the past? Not to mention her and subtly were miles apart on, even on a good day. He's too young to be married. She didn't quite agree. Ozpin certainly dropped the ball. And everyone else was just lost in the shuffle.

Disclaimer: I own nothing of RWBY.

---

Gold

By: Imyoshi

Another day, another fight in Combat Class, and another losing battle for Jaune Arc.

Dodging to the left, Jaune still felt the stinging strike of Ruby's scythe on his back the moment he flanked. She ran past him, coming to a complete stop at the edge of the arena before doing a quick turnabout to finish Jaune off. Her intended strike was off. Ruby was aiming to cut Jaune across the torso and effectively drain him of Aura, but the dumb-dumb managed to move out of the way at the last minute. Now she has no choice but to prolong his suffering. Poor Jaune, he should've stopped while he was ahead.

Throwing a foot back, Ruby smiled and dashed forward, coming fast like a cookie-loving torpedo. She's spinning in the air, spewing rose petals all over the arena for Professor Goodwitch to yell at her later about. Jaune sighed, holding Crocea Mors close to his body while his shield is raised slightly above his torso. Ruby's simply too fast for him to keep up with. Not to mention that devilish weapon of hers has reach over him. And he's stuck fighting with a sword and shield. Maybe it's time for him to invest in a gun. Definitely couldn't hurt.

Narrowing his eyes, Jaune managed to meet Ruby's collision head on, getting extraordinary lucky enough to connect Crocea Mors with Ruby's scythe at the last possible moment. He's forced to dig his feet into the floor or fall victim to Ruby's high velocity spin. The action isn't fruitless, but does prove to be disheartening as he still finds himself skidding back, towards the out-of-bounds limit, only at a much slower pace. But like all velocity, any imposing force will cause for an immediate loss in momentum, and he's got weight over her tiny frame. And that weapon of hers is only a victim to gravity as well.

Barely holding her back at the edge of ring, Jaune grinned and flicked her away with just enough force to cause her to stumble in midair. The action is limited, that much he knows, so the Arc charged forward and swung Crocea Mors with all his might, intending to deliver a mighty blow to her Aura. Ruby, on the other foot, has better plans and does a quick spin to bring up the blade of her weapon to Jaune's. And this time he has no way in holding back the buildup of speed and weight, falling victim to Ruby's attack as Crocea Mors comes in contact with Ruby's blade.

It flicks him away, throwing him instantly over the out-of-bounds edge, having already been much closer from her last move.

Glynda raised her hand and ended the match. "Winner, Miss Rose!" She glared over to Jaune's prone position, flicking her glasses up with calmness. "Mr. Arc, I recommend you work on your body placement. If you had simply maneuvered to either your right or left when you charged at Miss Rose, you could've avoided falling out of the battling area."

Jaune sat up with a harmless grin. He rubbed his neck and used Crocea Mors to help himself up. "I'll try to keep that in mind."

Nodding in acknowledgement, Glynda turned away to address the rest of the class. "That concludes our final battle of the day. Class is dismissed."

Students begin to file out. Only Team JNPR and Team RWBY remained behind, slightly interested in the outcome of the fight, or more importantly, they're more interested in the leader to leader rivalry. It had started off innocent enough, Jaune had scored higher than Ruby on Dr. Oobleck's history exam and had gloated about it, but now the two dumb leaders are always trying to one-up each other. Suffice to say, the banter between them is something else.

Ruby runs up to Jaune and leans on the tip of her boots, smile borderline Yang level. "Good fight, Jaune! You almost had me back there! Almost!"

Jaune smiled, but it was shallower than a puddle. "Thanks, Ruby. I'll be sure to win next time. It's just so hard to hit such a small target." He patted Ruby before she could protest. "You must not drink enough milk."

Tiny bouts of steam clouds erupted from Ruby's puffed out cheeks, but she exhaled and pushed Jaune back with a confident hand. "And you're too slow. That piece of scrap metal can't possibly beat my precious baby! Right, Crescent Rose?" When Ruby held Crescent Rose for all to see, a large crack suddenly appeared and cracked her scythe's blade until a chunk broke off. It's the same spot where Jaune had crashed Crocea Mors on, and Ruby Rose definitely knows this. "Aw! Look what you did! You chipped Crescent Rose's blade! Darn it! Do you have any idea what a pain it is fixing it?"

Jaune blinked once, tilting his hand to get a better look of his sword—his perfectly designed, chipped free, rust-proof, and older than Ruby Rose sword. The stainless steel not only reflected his confusion, but Ruby's pouting lips as well. Sadly for the five foot two girl, he didn't, did not know the feeling. Jaune doesn't even know if he's ever visited the blacksmith's department since he first entered Beacon. Good, too, since the Arc had less experience with weapons than Ruby with subtly.

Refusing to feel guilty for the little reaper, Jaune trailed his answer, masking it all in the phrase of a question. "Ah? Nope?" And apparently that had been the very wrong thing to say to a weapon's nut. "I mean, Crocea Mors wasn't made like Crescent Rose."

She's instantly poking him in the chest. Each poke is deliberately more powerful than the last. "And what's that supposed to mean?"

Jaune smirked, dodging her last poke before hiding behind Pyrrha—his invincible wall. "It's not my fault your weapon has shoddy craftsmanship—what's that, Pyrrha? We should go back to our room? Sure! Why not? If you would excuse us, we got Team JNPR stuff to do."

Jaune pulled his team away, waving to an angry and stunned Ruby as he made his getaway. To add salt to injury, he did the wave with Crocea Mors, shining off its perfect build and flawless texture. By the time Ruby recovers from preemptive strike, Team JNPR's long gone and her team is staring at her, a mixture of emotion between them. Yang's grinning like a fool. Blake's showing something akin to pity and amusement. And Weiss is smirking.

"I think he won that one, Rubes—!"

"Shut up! This isn't over!"

...

Shutting the door to their room with a satisfied slam, Jaune grinned in victory; no longer tasting the defeat he just got dealt with. His team is right beside him, emotions as colorful as a color wheel. Pyrrha's indifferent to the whole thing, always being chaotically neutral in every little thing. Nora's all for Jaune pushing Ruby's buttons, maybe even a little more than him. And Ren's against it, plain and simple.

Just another glorious day at Beacon Academy!

Jaune jumped on his bed, tossing Crocea Mors onto the base of his bed. He lied down and fought the urge to count dust particles. Nothing good could come from such a thing, a useless habit at its finest and pointless endeavor at its worst. Nonetheless, he's in a good mood. Beating Ruby at her own games does leave a satisfied taste in his mouth.

Turning his head, Jaune grinned. "So... who's up for a board game?"

Ren filtered his thoughts out loud, waving a hand easily in the air. "Did you really have to antagonize her? You know how she gets, especially around weapons."

"Hey!" Jaune yelled, sitting up on his bed with a pointed glare. "She started it! I'm in it to win, Ren. And if you're not with me, then you're against me! Right, Nora!"

Nora quickly slides up to Jaune, throwing her own thumbs up. "Yea! Go Team JNPR! Where's your team spirit, Ren? See, Pyrrha's on board."

Glancing over to the champion, Pyrrha had her hands out with a panicked setting. "I want no part in this." Jaune continued staring at her. "It's just... you know Ruby's going to go overboard now, Jaune. Crocea Mors is just a sword."

Nora slid up to Jaune and grabbed Crocea Mors. She attempted to bend the stainless metal, efforts in vain from the start. "So? Jaune-Jaune's sword is unbreakable! Look! There's not a single scratch anywhere! And it can take a lot of damage! Ruby's flimsy old scythe stands no—oops!"

Snap!

A calm and deafening cloud of silence hung in the air the very moment Nora managed to snap Crocea Mors in two. The hilt and blade were separated between her hands, beginning to crack at the center where she managed to split it. The pancake lover is at a loss for words. And then before Jaune can run and pluck his ancestor's weapon out of her stone-still hands, his shield, lying beside his bed post, suddenly begins to crack and rust away in a similar manner, withering away in a color of supreme gold until nothing remains but a pile of gold dust.

When it's all said and done, Jaune's teammates look away from the dust pile and towards their leader. How and why the shield broke along the sword remained an eternal mystery, but Jaune's next minute reaction far outweighs their curiosity, and their leader doesn't disappoint. Soon he's jumping off his bed and sliding next to the pile of gold dust, clutching the powdered remains of Crocea Mors in a fruitless struggle. The gold ash simply fell between his fingers, spreading out in the air as Jaune painfully tried to grab it all. An action that soon turned from forlorn hope to a pointless struggle, forcing the Arc to accept the reality, after his tenth time of trying to put the gold dust back together into a semi-constructible sword, that Crocea Mors was truly gone.

Hands shaking, Jaune gripped some of the gold dust between his fingers, forming tight fists as he forced his breathing to control itself. It's taking all his power not to scream. "No. This can't be. This was my great-great grandfathers—?"

The gold dust gripped in Jaune's hand abruptly escapes its confinement, centering together in the air in a slow manner and ball-like shape. Team JNPR's too stunned to move, halted by fear and interest. Every particle of gold dust then slowly begins to condense tightly into a perfect sphere, getting smaller and smaller by the second, before erupting in a splash of yellow, except the explosion is limited to an invisible outline that's oddly humanoid in shape. Each spec of gold ash continues to spread until the outline's prominent figure is revealed to be female and quite tall, around six feet six in stature.

Finally, the gold stops moving and connects together, going from dust particles to a solid gold object that doesn't physically make sense since Crocea Mors lacked such a supplement amount of metal and mass to create said figure. Now the object glows with a gold Aura, unlike anything Team JNPR's ever seen, getting more features added to her facial structure by the second. Clothing becomes visible; skin remains a peerless gold, and hair blossoms from her head. Then eyes bluer than the ocean open for the first time, finishing the transformation with a golden flash of light so bright that the four Huntsmen-in-Training must shield their eyes or be blinded by a light the sun can't hope to compare to.

When they recover from golden explosion, Jaune's the first to open his eyes and meet the entity that suddenly appeared in their room. She's still that same six foot six stature from before. Her murky blond hair's long, like really long, braiding all the way to her hips. She's wearing something akin to a toga, playing with the colors of blue and white. It doesn't hide much, barely covering her breasts and lower abdominal with two long stands of white and blue almost touching the floor, while all being held together by a golden badge or pin that's etched with the Arc's family crests. She's wearing armbands, wristbands, ankle bands, and a choker that mimic her hair's color. Both her fingernails and toenails are painted pearly white. And lastly this mysterious woman has a thin belt the same color to keep her outfit together.

Feeling exposed without a weapon, Jaune stepped back, unsure how to act from a woman being born out of gold dust. "W-Who are you?"

The rest of Team JNPR is a little faster to the intake, getting into a defensive stance from the woman's sudden appearance, but she regarded their reactions with high amusement, hiding behind a playful smirk. She looks around the room, ignoring the four teenagers in front of her without worry, finding the small quarters interesting before sitting on Jaune's divan. A quick cross of her legs is in order before she addressed the four.

She held a palm out. "Who am I, you ask? Why, dear Jaune. It is I, Crocea Mors. I thought that to be fairly obvious. You did just see me come to life." She laughed, giggling into a fist. "But for namesake, you can call me Aurelia. It is a pleasure to finally meet you in person."

Pyrrha stepped forward, glaring. "How do you know his name? What are you?"

Aurelia simply sighed, kicking her feet out in a small annoyance. "I hate repeating myself. I was Crocea Mors. I've been watching Jaune ever since he first took me away from the Arc household. I've seen every adventure up front, right down to that last little bout between him and that girl with the red hood, Ruby Rose if I recall. I know you all. I know you Pyrrha Nikos. I know Lie Ren and Nora Valkyrie. And I especially know Jaune Arc."

Pyrrha's still on the offense with all this, but it's Nora whom steps forward with excitement slowly growing in her eyes. "If you're Crocea Mors, then how old are you? Were you always a sword? How did you get stuck being a sword? What it's like being a weapon? Where can I get an outfit like that?"

Aurelia smiled warmly, enjoying the sensation of movement once more. "Oh. I've been around for a long, long time. To be perfectly honest, I've lost count of all the years that have passed. Now, was I always a sword, no, I have no always been one. As you can see, I am human now. I was human before, and I'm human now. Magic turned me into a sword and shield. Being a weapon is boring. Don't try it. And this outfit is the part of the royal garbs."

They heard it all. Jaune's still stuck on the being his family's heirloom. "You were my family's weapon? You've been watching us—watching me all this time?"

She laughed. "I've been watching you Arcs for quite some time, yes. You all remind me of the first Arc, Noah Arc, the majesty's right hand, a great warrior. And you, Jaune Arc, remind me a lot of his royal highness. He was a king, compassionate, and sometimes amusing leader. Of course he didn't have emotion sickness or a fear of heights."

Ren relaxed a little, but his guard remained. "So why'd you suddenly break?"

Standing up, Aurelia found one of Nora's empty grenade canisters and began turning the silver metal into gold rust that spread quickly from where her palm first touched it. "Silly man, everything turns to rust eventually. Nothing in this world lasts forever. Rocks, metals, Dust, and even people all rust and turn to dust eventually. And I will admit I grew bored being a sword. For generations I've watched over the Arcs, but sometimes a girl wants more, and I wanted more, so I decided enough was enough."

Nora's grenade canister finally finished turning into a gold-rusted, sheet of metal. Aurelia then crushed the rusted metal in her hand, quickly turning the piece of scrap into a pile of gold ash. The ashes fell onto the floor, scattering messily between Aurelia's exposed toes. She curled them, getting a feel for the gold dust, feeling hundreds of years younger.

"What did you just do?"

Taking Pyrrha's question to heart, the once sword picked up some of the gold dust and sprinkled it into the air. "My semblance, silly. My power can rust everything anything I touch to a lovely gold dust. This power gave me many names during the Great War. The King's Plague, The Walking Quicksand, but my personal favorite was The Yellow Death. Has such a nice ring to it."

Jaune widened his eyes, remembering hearing something similar to those names in Professor Oobleck's lecture about the Great War. The professor once mentioned that battlefields during the Great War were found to have gold ash littering around the corpses. The reasoning was never discovered, but it was always speculated a person or entity was the cause of such randomness, turning weapons into a golden rust. But after seeing said power firsthand, Jaune's not so sure it was just weapons that fell victim to rust.

Playing to his strengths, Jaune lightly relaxed himself. As much as he wants to be on guard, he can't. Aurelia or Crocea Mors has been protecting Arcs for generations for who knows how long. It would be morally unfair to hate her or judge her. Especially if she fought and killed people in what was known as a war. Times were different then. His grandfather said that, his father said that, and even Professor Oobleck said that. Killing another person was acceptable for protecting their kingdom at the time. Not to mention he now knows why Crocea Mors never rusted away. He's really going to miss that sword.

Flicking away some of the gold dust coming towards him; Team JNPR's leader asked the question that needed to be said. "So... what is it that you want? You wanted more, right? What is the more?"

Aurelia's grin turned a bit playful. She stepped over to Jaune, plucking a single finger on his chest. "You."

Dropping his guard entirely, Jaune found his lips suddenly dry. "... What?"

Her tone was sweet and sickle like honey dew. "I said you. You see, I had to sacrifice a lot to become your sword. I threw away my life to protect Arcs for generations. I've always been by each Arcs side, doing my best to keep them alive. And you all turned out so well, too. However, I'm tired. Life's taken its toll on this woman. Now she wants more. And you Arcs owe me, so I'm here to collect."

"... What?"

Puffing her cheeks, Aurelia glared sadly. "You Arcs are always having such large families. It really takes a toll on this poor girl. And don't pull I need to be your sword drivel; I know the Great War is over. I was there when the king declared victory." Smiling with a heavy hint of pleasure, Aurelia traced a finger on Jaune's chin. "I've also been around when you male Arcs age up. I must say, I'm very impressed. So impressed, I'm making you my betrothed."

Now that Jaune understood. "What? No! I'm too young to be married!"

Aurelia waved her other free hand in denial. "Nonsense! People your age were getting married around fifteen. You're just a late bloomer. Don't worry; I like that in a man."

Her hand's then grabbed by the invincible Girl. There's a fire in her eyes. "Let. Go. Of. Jaune."

Ignoring the pressure building up on her hand, Aurelia simply sighed. "You snooze, you lose, champion. Don't blame me for your faults. And just look at those hips, terrible for child bearing, unlike Nora and I." Pyrrha's hand began to gain a lovely shade of gold. "Besides, don't you know, you should never lay your hands on a lady, woman or man."

Pyrrha tried to break her hand free, an odd task considering she's the one holding Aurelia by the palm, but her fingers refuse to bend to her will. The gold rust is slowly spreading up her forearm and then shoulders in an alarming rate, and there's nothing she can do. Pyrrha can't even move at this point, legs petrified and body frozen. It feels like her bones are breaking, withering away, and then as the gold rust reaches her cheek, it recedes back to the point of contact, reverting her skin back to its plain texture. And the second the champion feels like come back to her body, she jumps back, back towards the wall.

"You," Ren glared. "You rusted them all away. You killed countless people during the Great War. It was all you."

She touched her lip, thinking honestly about it for the first time. "Hn? I guess that's one way of putting it. But I see it as making them beautiful." Aurelia laughed and hugged her arm around a confused Arc. "I can turn people into gold dust, nothing special. Everything is influential under my power. Weapons, metals, Dust, and even people!" she said in an overly cheery voice. "I am The Yellow Death."

Pyrrha grabbed her wrist, unable to stop the shaking. She screams at her leader, who is still interlocked in her arm. "Jaune, you need to get away from her!"

Strangely, Jaune's living up to that Fearless Leader title. His eyes are slightly wide, but his breathing remains utterly calm. There's no sense of urgency to escape her hold. Pyrrha's starting to worry that Aurelia's doing the same thing with her semblance as she had done to her, but then her leader reacts with a deep breath and simple head turn. He's forced to look slightly up due to her height, but the attention doesn't draw any discomfort.

"So you're the reason my family's survived." Jaune couldn't hold back his small smile. "My dad and grandpa told me stories on how they did the impossible and managed to fight hordes and hordes of Grimm. Other Huntsmen's weapons would've broken and fractured a long time into the fight, but you never rusted or chipped. My grandfather was able to survive because of that and meet my grandma in a village he saved."

"Ah!" Aurelia recounted, remembering that story quite well. "I remember that day well. What a battle! Your grandfather, Noah Arc, was something else! He could best a Huntsmen and any beast with his eyes closed. Your father was no different, and neither was your great-great grandfather. You Arcs are all great warriors. So fierce! So powerful! It's no wonder the king had your ancestor as his right-hand knight."

Jaune smiled with a frown in his eyes. "Yea, well, I guess greatness skipped a generation, huh?"

Jaune ended up with a slap to the back of his head. "Oh stop it! You think you're the first Arc to start off with nothing but the clothes on their back? Your great grandfather was no different. All he had to his name was a dream and a sword, and look how he turned out to be? And he was only a year younger than you when he first started."

The Arc never knew that. "Really? My great-gramps started off when he was only sixteen?"

"Yup! But that's all water under the bride! C'mon, let's leave this confounded school." Aurelia pulled Jaune towards the door. "I know this darling little place in Vale; you're just going to love it. We can start looking for homes there."

Jaune's having trouble fighting back the physical force literally dragging his feet on the carpet. His mind's racing a minute. "Hold on! I haven't agreed to any of this!" She's not listening. Time for a different approach, "Uh, I can't leave yet, because, because Professor Ozpin would just come back to get me. The Headmaster never just lets his students leave. He'll come back for me."

It's a blatant lie, one to build him a shaky foundation of time, but she seems to buy it. Aurelia does let go of his arm, hiding all her emotions behind an angry smile ready to chew his arm off. "Is that so? Well, if you would excuse me, darling. I need to go have a chat with your dear old Headmaster."

Jaune's old sword leaves without uttering another word, destination for Ozpin's office. She doesn't even slam his door, leaving it wide open for Team JNPR to see her stalk off. Now they're forced to deal with the problem of The Yellow Death heading right for their Headmaster.

Figuring he's bought some time to catch his emotions, Jaune cupped his forehead in slight annoyance. "What are we going to do? How did this happen? How did my sword end up coming to life and forcing my hand in marriage? I don't want to get married! I'm too young!"

"Look on the bright side!" Nora chimed, slapping her leader's arm. "I bet she's got more experience in everything than you!"

Ren looked past the initial danger of Jaune's future wedding reception, clearly interested at the bigger picture at large. "She's heading straight for the Headmaster's office, and I'm pretty sure she knows where it is. We should probably try to stop her. Her name is The Yellow Death. Not exactly a person I would want rampaging around Beacon."

Blowing air through his nose, Jaune sighed and began walking towards the clock tower. "Yea, yea, alright let's go. Wait?" Jaune stopped in his walking, taking a brief pause to glare at Pyrrha. "What did she mean you snooze, you lose, Pyrrha?"

Caught-off-guard, Pyrrha blushed and had no way to answer, especially not after Aurelia made that comment about child-bearing hips. Nora had a guilty smile as Pyrrha began to stumble upon her words. They're messy and completely out-of-order, a total one eighty to the champion's usual calm and cool demeanor. Even Ren's enjoying the messy explanation, but he does save her by pointing out the obvious.

"Uh, Jaune, she's only getting closer to Ozpin's tower."

Jaune totally forgot about his previous question, running towards the direction Aurelia went. "Oh! Right! We need to hurry up and stop her! Then we can figure everything out later."

Pyrrha breathed a sigh of relief, feeling her heart thumping powerfully in her chest. She looks to Ren, thankful, but the ninja is already chasing after their panicked induced leader, requiring no thanks. Nora, on the other hand, has yet to remove her not so innocent smile, teasing Pyrrha to no limits without uttering a single syllable. A true technique only Nora Valkyrie has the talent to pull off.

"S-Stop looking at me like that! Nora!"

...

Team RWBY strolled to their room, returning from their trip to the Blacksmith department with each respective member—minus Ruby—each holding a different set of emotions aimed for their cookie-loving leader's childish tantrum. It's more of a calm before the storm type of peacefulness, fake and aching to burst at the slightest moment of action. Each one of Ruby's teammates walk beside her, emotions skewed in the kindest possible way. Blake's trailing behind Ruby, busy reading the latest novel of the Ninjas of Love series, and answering in one to two-worded answers whenever asked. Yang occupies her sister's left, grinning without shame. She's this close to pinching Ruby's cheeks. And Weiss takes the right, pretending that the edge of her mouth isn't drawn up towards a satisfied smirk. Funny enough, Ruby doesn't seem to notice their teasing emotions. She's too busy crushing up a towel she used to wipe the streaks of ash off her nose and cheeks, mumbling out loud her problems for all of Beacon to hear.

"Oh! I can't wait to see dumb Jaune's face again! When I get my hands on him! I'll! I'll!" Ruby glowered, just coming back from the blacksmith department with a newly sharpened Crescent Rose. Her hands hurt from pressing the blade so tight.

"What?" Yang teased, bumping her sister on the shoulder. "Gonna grab it and then smash it against your lips? Pretty bold, sis, I didn't know you had it in you."

Ruby's instantly on the defensive, holding her hands close to her chest in a mock defense. Her face is rapidly turning a strawberry red. "What? You don't know what you're talking about! You're crazy! Ha-ha!" Yang simply smirked and reached into her back pocket to pull out a piece of paper with Jaune's name covered in little hearts and cookies. Again, Ruby's instantly on the defensive. "That's not mine!"

Blake grabs and turns the paper out of Yang's hand, for them to see Ruby's name scribbled on the back. She has it circled with a heart around Jaune's name. "You probably shouldn't hide stuff like this under your pillow."

Ruby's desperate now. She's pointing at her partner. "It's Weiss's!"

"No it's not. It was found under your pillow."

Well, that plan backfired terribly, now Ruby's still dealing with the luring, teasing faces of her three teammates. She begins to slide away, shrinking away into a little ball of plush and adorableness, but Yang pulls her back in and hugs her powerfully, awing at her little sister's embarrassment.

"Aw!" Yang cooed affectionately. "My baby sis's first crush! He's not my first choice in a man, but you're both so awkward that it's perfect! I can't wait to tell dad!"

Ruby broke away from Yang's crushing hug, blush bright. "No! Don't tell dad! He's going to want pictures! You know how he gets!" Yang's already taking a picture of Ruby's flustered face with her scroll! "Yang!"

Yang's bashful teasing is broken when she spots a tall, blond woman walking stride towards them. Her eyes are burning with a hidden fire behind that modest smile of hers. She walks around barefoot and in more revealing clothing that anything Yang can ever hope to or build up the courage to pull off. And the strangest part of all, when she sees them, her eyes flash in recognition, like she purposely knows Team RWBY.

"Who's that?"

The rest of Team RWBY heed Yang's question, turning to meet the supposed query to Yang's curiosity. She walks with dignity, fast and quick, like a knife to the back. Before anyone could possibly find an answer to her question, the new arrival is standing right in front of them, towering over them with the height worthy of a professor. She's even taller than Professor Goodwitch.

She held her hand out, which only Ruby bothered to shake. "Hello, Ruby, Yang, Blake, and Weiss, it's so good to meet your acquaintance."

Weiss took a small step back. "I'm sorry, do we know you?"

Aurelia released Ruby's hand, hiding a giggle behind her palm. "Excuse me, where are my manners, my name is Aurelia. You don't know me, but you know of my past form. I believe Crocea Mors shall ring a bell?" Pure looks of confusion occupy Team RWBY. "Let me explain. I'm Jaune Arc's sword. I've been with all you since the very first day he attended this glorified school."

To answer their growing strings of question, said owner of the sword came running in, followed by his team. Jaune immediately set his eyes on this Aurelia person and picked up the pace, moving in a speed that almost rival Professor Oobleck's. When he stopped, some dust passed by him, but he ignores that, just like he ignores Team RWBY and grabs Aurelia by the wrist.

"There you are!" Jaune grinned, smile a little too forced. "I forgot to tell you, you can't just barge into Ozpin's office without making a meeting first." He continued to lie, binding time. "So how about we schedule a meeting time and head back to the room?"

Aurelia's indifferent to her future husband's advice, but times have most definitely changed since the last she's been walking on two legs. Technology has only gotten more advanced, structures more complex, and customs more diverse. Remnant's changed over the years. Life isn't as simple as it once was. Sadly, Aurelia belongs to a world that no longer existed, even if she's witnessed it changed first hand, she's got no experience interacting in such a world, outside of being a tool for destruction and protection.

Relaxing in Jaune's hold, just like she always did when he held her as Crocea Mors, Aurelia sighed and dropped any pretense of anger. "Very well, let's head back to your room. We can talk to that unreasonable man another time."

Jaune relaxed, as did the rest of his team, unable to stop the tired smile developing between his eyes. He rubs his palm across his forehead, glad he managed to stop whatever crisis from happening. There are far too many variables to worry about, but for now he's content. Just taking everything one step at a time is good enough for this Arc.

"Is that your mom, Jaune?" Ruby asked tactless.

Before Team JNPR could recover from the question, Aurelia's laughing and pulling Jaune under her arm once more. "Oh heavens no, I'm his betrothal!"

Only Blake and Weiss seemed to know what that word meant, outside of Jaune, and the feline Faunus shut her book in complete interest, peaked as a kitten with a square box. Weiss allowed emotions to capture her face, eyes widening in pure disbelief. And the heiress can't even settle to vastly compensate over the statement, getting distracted by the tugging of her sleeve but a curious, cookie-loving leader.

Ruby slides up to her, whispering as loud as a fired firearm. "Hey Weiss, what's a betrothal?"

Aurelia answered for her, leaning down with Jaune still stuck in her headlock. "It means he shall be my future husband, little girl. I have just claimed him. He's mine. So back off. And there shall be no problems to come."

Something stirred in the little reaper, something primal, something angry, just something. It stirred in her. It stirred when she heard this woman claim her mark on a goofball she had only just accepted to have feelings for. And not only that, but Aurelia must've noticed the pain and unbridled anger building within Ruby's eyes because she's patting Ruby on the head with affection—affection and pity.

"Hey!"

"I remember when I was a young thing." Aurelia grinned, pretending Ruby yelled nothing. "And I see the lust in your eyes, young one, but I recommend you deviate. The Arc is mine. There is nothing you can do, so do not even try. We can still be friends if you keep your hands off of him."

Yang defended Ruby. She defended a girl who did not want any attention on her. "And if she doesn't?" Ruby's whipping her head towards Yang, panic building by the second. "What then?"

Aurelia ignored Yang. She had a pleasant smile on her face as she gently touched the blade of Ruby's weapon, hanging from her back. Her hand lingered as it trailed down the edge, slow and memorizing, like a golden sunset against the rising moon. "Such a beautiful weapon. Such craftsmanship. Such wasted potential. In a time of peace, what's the point of fighting?" Gold rust began spreading across the metal with Aurelia's perfect smile still ever so present. But she removed her hand before the process can finish. "But I digress. You never know when war shall come, best be prepared. Death can happen at the most random of times. You should always be prepared. C'mon darling, let's go schedule that meeting."

Pulling Jaune towards Ozpin's office, Pyrrha stays behind to apologize profoundly to Ruby, which entitles a unique reaction from the leader. She wants to ask why she's doing such a thing, but then the golden part of Crescent Rose's blade breaks and turns to gold dust right before she can ask. The rust spreads across the floor, littering everything in a shiny dust that's filled with backstory of Death and destruction, and Ruby can't even ask how this happen since the rest of Team JNPR are chasing after Aurelia, leaving her to deal with the golden mess.

After witnessing that tall chick turn stainless steel into literal dust, with her bare hands no less, Yang slapped poor Ruby on the back. She knows a futile battle when she sees on. There's more fish in the sea, anyways. "Whelp! You win some, and you lose some, Rubes! Better luck next time!"

"Eh?!"

Blake stared off into space. "What did she mean that she used to be Crocea Mors?"

"I can't believe that dolt is betrothed." Weiss huffed, clicking her shoes onto the floor. "And he had the nerve to hit on me. What kind of man does that?"

Yang elbowed the fuming Ice Queen, unabashed with her teasing. "Aw! I think Weiss-cream is a little jealous. You had your chance."

Hmph, "Don't be ridiculous, I'm just confused is all. I mean, who would want to get married to Jaune?"

Yang laughed, pointing towards the direction their troublesome question went. "Apparently her, and I think Jaune lucked out. She's prettier than you! And don't forget taller."

"Shut up!"

Ruby's still shell-shocked. Her first crush, crushed. Her just sharpened metal, left to be tarnished and rusted. "What just happened?"

...

Reaching the tower with practical ease and not slowed down at all by her future husband's protest, Aurelia found the device called an elevator, having seen one operated number of times while stuck being Crocea Mors. She walks in after seeing no reception desk for a consultation, and honestly, her impatience is getting the better of her. She's waited hundreds of years, she won't wait another minute. And before the rest of Jaune's team can reach the machine, she's already pressing the highest number, mentally figuring the Headmaster would reside in the tallest structure and room.

Click!

The catchy elevator music does nothing to soothe the mood, well, Jaune's mood at the very least. Aurelia has already released him and is humming along to the tasty tune, missing beats like he does with marks on Professor Port's exams, but the enthusiasm is definitely there, like on Professor Port's exams. They're an odd couple by normal standards.

Throwing a cautionary glance, Jaune couldn't help but ask. "So? How'd turned you into a sword, anyways? You did say something about magic, but I'm still stuck in the dark here."

Aurelia blinked, losing her smile momentarily. It's back in an instant. "The king had a scepter full of magic. He asked me to take the position of Crocea Mors, to defend the Arc lineage, and I accepted. Next thing I know—poof—I'm a living sword. A one-of-a-kind experience to say the very least, and an odd one at that."

Magic? Jaune's not too crazy about the idea of magic floating around, especially if it can turn people into swords. He didn't even think that magic existed, and now he knows it can turn people into weapons, what a scary thought. He's not sleeping too well tonight.

Watching the numbers to Ozpin office get closer, Jaune paused, remembering how truly old Aurelia was. "Vale used to have a king?"

Aurelia slapped him on the back of his head without remorse, lips pouted. "Don't you pay attention in history class? If there's anything you Arcs all have in common, it's your short attention spans and spur of the moment ideas. It's a miracle your family's made it this far without shooting themselves in the foot." Jaune rubbed his head, glaring for the first at her. It's cute. "Very well, Vale did have a king before. He was powerful and undefeated. He single-handedly turned the Great War around and ended all the fighting with his impossible fighting prowess. It was a sight to behold on the allied side, not so much the enemy."

A part of Jaune wished he could've met this powerful ruler, another more sane part thanked Monty no one as strong that existed today. If there's one thing he did pay attention to in history class, it was power scared people and Faunus alike. And having someone how could decimate an entire army on their own would surely raise the hairs on the militaries of Kingdoms that had no such warrior. Peace would probably be maintained, but under a false sense of security, or worse, a war would break out at the slightest hint of aggression. Countless lives would probably be lost. Pointless conflict would ensue. And Death would be intimate.

Not a future the Arc hoped to live in.

However, one thing didn't sit right with him. "If he was a king, what happened to him? Where's the royal family? He won didn't he—Vale won? Shouldn't there be a king controlling all the kingdoms?"

Aurelia smiled, playing to the beat of the music. "He was also a fair and just king—a kind king. He didn't take any of the land when the war ended. He gave it all back in order to maintain peace between the people. Faunus and Humans lived together in harmony. It was a different time when that all happened, a better time."

"A kind king?" Jaune mumbled beneath his breath. Now Jaune knows he would've loved to meet such a guy. He grinned against his better emotions. "What a guy."

Ping!

Time to face the music.

When Headmaster Ozpin looked up from his files to answer telltale pinging noise of his elevator, he expected to see Glynda Goodwitch or any of the other professors if anything to walk through those steel doors, not Mr. Arc and a woman with an interesting taste in fashion. Compared to the late teenager, she stood taller than him. She also possessed an easy air of confidence that forced everything's attention to be centered onto her.

Putting down his files, Ozpin laced his fingers together, already fully invested with the appearance of the two blonds. Formalities aside, an unexpected interruption from his work means one of two things. Mr. Arc here is both directing this woman to his office for some important matter and she couldn't be bothered to make a meeting or wait in the lobby, or it's the other way around and this woman is pulling the strings behind the entire charade, which could only mean he's got a family problem on his hands.

Playing the safe route, he chose the latter. "Is this your mother, Mr. Arc?" Jaune raised a single brow, déjà vu much.

Jaune laughed awkwardly, rubbing his neck. "Ah ha-ha, no. I'm sorry to intrude unexpectedly, Professor Ozpin, but it's kind of an important matter." Shuffling his hands about, Jaune presented them to his guest. "I would like you to meet Crocea Mors."

Aurelia moved forward and offered her hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Ozpin. Excuse Jaune here, Crocea Mors was my sword name, my actual name is Aurelia."

Blinking once, Ozpin looked over to Jaune for an answer. He got none. So Ozpin coughed into his fist and reached out with his other hand to shake Mr. Arc's supposed sword. "A pleasure to make your acquaintance and—I'm sorry. Did you say you were previously Mr. Arc's sword?"

"I did."

Unlacing his hands, once again the Headmaster peered over to Jaune for some input. He gets something this time. "Long story short, Crocea Mors broke and this happened. And now she needs your permission to take me out of school so we can get married. It's weird, I know."

Ozpin's at a loss for words. For one he has many questions to ask. How this woman came to be is just one of them. However, he did hear what Jaune Arc said. This woman here wanted to take him out of school to marry him. Not that Ozpin's trying to dip his hand into personal affairs, but school affairs are something else entirely. The only person who could pull Jaune out of school is his parents, the boy himself, or him. There is no other way to leave Beacon Academy.

Getting up from his chair, Ozpin straighten his tie, feeling the signs of a headache coming. As unusual moments go, this one takes the cake. "Well, Aurelia, I cannot simply allow you to take Mr. Arc out of school. You do not have the authority to do so, even if you are to wed him in the near future." Ozpin had to do a double take, making sure what he said sounded completely normal. "Now, onto another matter, you claimed that you were once his sword? I must ask you to tell me more."

Aurelia narrowed her eyes, but played along. "What's there to tell? I was Crocea Mors. I decided enough was enough and broke. And here I stand. Now I have chosen Jaune to be my future husband and father to my children. I know he'll be a great father. It's the very least the Arcs can do after keeping Death at bay all these years. And I do love his laugh and smile."

Ozpin frowned a bit. A delicate situation was bounding tighter and tighter by the minute. He wanted to help his student, he really did, but at the same time, passing up such an opportunity went against his cautious nature. He wanted to ask how the woman before him became a sword. He wanted to know if she knew anything about the past. These were just a few of the questions he had in mind, but she's glaring at with a suppressed smile, apparently reading him like one of those books Miss Belladonna reads in public.

"That may be..." Ozpin countered. "But I still cannot allow you remove Mr. Arc from our curriculum. He's a student here and under my protection and guidance. Weapon or not, I must ask you—?"

Aurelia laughed without guilt, pointing directly at Ozpin's critical stare. "You remind me of the late king. That geezer just loved to hear himself talk." She grinned in victory, moving to stand in front of aged man. "Bets aside, if you do not allow me to take the man, I will reveal the secrets to what is hidden beneath the Huntsmen academies."

"... I do not know what you mean." Ozpin played out, narrowing his eyes slightly. Everything was quickly spiraling out of control.

She scoffed with a harmless smile. "Do not take me for a fool, the late king ordered the construction of these school to hide the relics. I know all about them and the Maidens as well. He wanted peace, not possible war ranging out in the horizon, tis why he hid them in the first place. But it seems his dreams are nothing but a fortnight, so there's no reason to keep such a secret so exclusive. I've seen the decimation of his goals time and time again on the battlefield. Humanity's learned nothing."

"How do you know so much?"

She shrugged, poking Jaune on the chest with warmth. "I'm Crocea Mors and Aurelia. I've been around longer than any human should. The legends of the relics and Maidens were no fairytale when I was around." Gold rust began spreading across where Aurelia stood. Ozpin didn't know what to say. Aurelia did. "I am the King's Plague, The Yellow Death."

Ozpin found he's lost control over the entire situation. He's left with little options. Unlike Mr. Arc, he did pay attention and know his history. The Yellow Death is a named filled with awe and fear. "No one would believe you. You are just one person."

Aurelia pulled Jaune closer. "Perhaps, but man's a greedy animal. Can you afford to play that gamble? Just imagine, hordes of power hunger individuals trying to sneak into the school and steal these relics? If you're willingly to wager, I'm willingly to stake. Or you could simply release my husband of his bonds and we'll be on our way."

The tension could be cut with a butter knife. Ozpin did not expect this sudden meeting to go like this. What had started off as an interesting development had quickly turned into a haunting nightmare and this woman with the warm smile and blessed with battles all her life knows that. She's holding a Royal Flush while he's stuck with a pair.

Taking the briefest of moments to share a defeated look with the Arc, Ozpin suddenly coughed into his fist, acting very unlike a prestigious Headmaster. He quickly backtracked and rummaged through his academic records and pulled out Jaune's file, unceremoniously pouring some of his hot coffee over the records before the visiting party could so much as get a single word in. Then he drops the paper into his nearby trashcan, lighting the garbage on fire with a random Fire Dust shard, before snuffing it out just as fast.

Pretending the fire didn't exist, Ozpin adopted a stony expression as he addressed Jaune. "It seems we have misplaced your file, Mr. Arc. As of right now, you are no longer affiliated with Beacon Academy. I must tell you to leave the premise immediately. Nothing personal, only people affiliated with our school are allowed to attend these grounds, I hope you understand. And congratulations on your marriage."

Aurelia grinned and grabbed Jaune by the forearm, dragging the kicking and screaming Arc back to the elevator. He's lost all hope in Ozpin. "Don't I get a say in this—wait?! There's actually something hidden beneath the academy? What's she talking about? What's she talking about! What's a Maiden?"

Ozpin waved with a force biting him in his soul. "Goodbye, Mr. Arc. It was a pleasure having you attend Beacon Academy. Sad we must part ways, but Destiny's a strange thing. I'll be sure to send you a gift for your upcoming marriage."

Click!

...

Hugging her future husband in a tight embrace, Jaune stopped the flailing of his arms, surprisingly used to Aurelia dragging him around like this. He's confused. He's peeved. And he's a little hungry. The elevator ride down is terribly slow, and he's still trying to figure out what's happened to his life in the past hour. Not to mention he's even more confused coming down than going up to Ozpin's office. He's got defining questions to ask.

Questions such as, "What's a relic or Maiden?" grabs him.

Aurelia snorted. "Some old mystical, magical powers that humanity's seem to have forgotten exist. I'll tell you more about it some other time, but know this; they must remain a secret to the public. They're too powerful to fall into the wrong person's hands." She snuggled closer to Jaune. "Now I need to show you that lovely spot in Vale that's going to be our new home."

Forgetting about the new business, Jaune focused on the old business. Matters such as getting forced into a marriage weigh heavily in his mind. He could worry about his future enrollment to Beacon later, if that was a possibility anymore.

"Uh—?"

"You know..." Aurelia said in a low tone, contrasting greatly to the overall motherly and gentle one she's had the minute she appeared. Her hug increased in pressure and she rested her head on his shoulder. "This is nice. I thought all good men died in the war, but I'm glad to have found one. Being a weapon was a hard experience. I saw a lot of monsters slain, but I also saw a lot of good men get killed. Not to say you Arcs aren't good men, but you were all always taken. It's nice to finally have one. I've made enough sad memories; I want to make some happy ones instead. I just hope that's not too much to ask for."

Great! Damn it! Of all the things she could've—damn it!

Jaune had to fight the urge to sigh. How was he supposed to even get angry with a backstory or wish liked that? Anything less would make him the bad guy here. Jaune Arc didn't want to be the bad guy. Arcs were the heroes of the story and his was no less different, maybe less action based, but no different. And she was pretty—beautiful even. Not to mention deadly and reliable. Aurelia did protect his family for generations, throwing away her chance for a family of her own. Heck, all her friends and family are all dead, yet she's holding her head up high. Jaune wouldn't know if he could pull off the same air of confidence.

Playing the hand Lady Luck dealt him with, Jaune rubbed his neck in a zero casualty defeat. Turning his back on Aurelia is like throwing away the sword that kept his family breathing all these years. He's still not a hundred percent on board with the whole thing, and if he's being honest with himself, it's not like women are fighting over him. He would think he would've noticed such a thing happening. No one's that dense.

At least now he didn't have to worry about finding a beautiful and powerful woman to marry. Check one of his lists of things to accomplish in his crazy life. Next up is becoming a powerful warrior and perfect future father like his old man. A problem he's going to have to solve a different way. Not like he can just waltz back into Beacon for that one.

Counting his options all on one hand, Jaune threw his head back against Aurelia's shoulder. He can't say that he loves her, that's for damn sure, but he can't say he's not the least bit interested. That would be a big lie. Choices are dwindling, but so are his dreams. The Arc doesn't want to throw them away. He's come too far to simply forget about them, but he's not going to let a debt go unpaid, even if was from a woman who could probably destroy his team with both her arms tied behind her back. The Arc word and way wouldn't allow it. It would be the biggest blow to his pride to do such a thing.

Might as well make the best out of the situation and see where it goes from there. Couldn't hurt.

"I guess it won't be so bad to get married, but I want to get to know you first." She suddenly hugged him from behind, hanging off his neck with her feet thrown up. Jaune smiled into the back hug, unable to stop the warm feeling traveling up his chest. His soul felt perfect, more alive than it ever did at home. However, he's still giving up his dream. "And I still want to be a Huntsman. I just don't know how I'm going to train."

Aurelia laughed and gave him a quick kiss to the cheek. "Oh, don't fool yourself, I can teach you all you need about combat! I was one of the King of Vale's personal bodyguards. There's no better teacher than The Yellow Death." She rested her cheek against his, feeling very vulnerable for the first time since she came to be. "I can promise to slow it down, but can you promise me that you'll stay?"

She's laying it in on thick, subtly beaten to Death within an inch of its life, but Jaune's always been a forward guy. Who wants a girl that beats around the bush? He can't be called a guy who beats around the bush. "I promise on my word. It's an Arc promise."

Ping!

When the elevator doors open, the remainder of Team JNPR prepares for the unexpected, and even then they're thrown completely off guard when the elevator doors open up, revealing Aurelia kissing a surprised Arc with all her might. Her feet are off the ground, hanging on Jaune's entire body for support. Then the kiss ended as fast it came, leaving a stunned Jaune to gasp while Aurelia got off Jaune and exited the elevator with a happy-go-lucky grin. Jaune's on the same boat, but his grin is more stupefied and lost.

Following her out the elevator, Jaune barely made it out of the elevator before Pyrrha's grabbing him by the forearm. "Jaune? W-What? What happened back there?" He said nothing. "Jaune? Answer me!"

Blinking once, Jaune focused his vision on his ex-partner. "Oh, uh, long story short, I'm no longer enrolled in Beacon. Crazy, I know. You'll have to ask Ozpin about the leadership problem. That's a you problem now. See ya guys later."

He makes a move to follow Aurelia, but Pyrrha doesn't relinquish her hold. Her emotions are impossible to miss. She's hurt. "What? That's it? That's how this is going to end?" She gets no response. Pyrrha tries a different tactic. "You can't really be thinking going with her?"

This time Jaune shrugged. "What can I say; she's been protecting my family for longer than I've been alive. There's a good chance I wouldn't even be here if she hadn't watched over my old man's back for all those years. I don't want to hurt her feelings." He broke her hold; sadden for their limited time together. "And besides, I'm not your leader anymore. I'm not even a student anymore. Ozpin told me to leave."

"Why?" Ren asked.

Jaune heeded Aurelia's warning. He even recounted Ozpin's deal to keep her mouth shut. "Can't tell you, just know it's big. Just know I don't go to school here anymore."

"And what about your feelings?" Pyrrha dared to ask.

The smile of his reveals all the answers. "An Arc doesn't go back on their word. Besides," Jaune grinned, full of growing compassion. "She's kind of growing on me. I like a girl who knows what she wants and goes for it without tripping on her own two legs. I would hate one that beat around the bush for no ends at a time." Sighing to himself, Jaune looked to his team with sadness. "Take care, guys. I'll stay in touch."

And he walked off, leaving behind a team without their Fearless Leader. Ren's completely indifferent to the mood falling on them. Nora at least tries to shake to Pyrrha out of her funk with a distasteful joke. It's honest better than nothing at this point.

"I know I've said this once, but I got to say it again, Pyrrha. Practice what you preach."

...

Aurelia dragged Jaune out of Beacon. She dragged him out Vale and into the wilderness. The once Fearless Leader of Team JNPR had trouble a few times keeping up with her, replying to messages his worried friends were sending him. Not to mention he's calling his family, but it had gone to straight to voicemail, so he had been forced to try again a different time. And he's finally allowed to catch his breath when they reached a secluded cabin that's seen better days. Seriously, it looked like Father Time took Cardin's mace and went to town on it. But it didn't look like anyone had been there just as long.

It really was secluded.

"What is this place?"

Aurelia walked right in, uncaring for the trail of dust coming out. "Before I became your family's sword, this was my home." Jaune walked in to find an assortment of metals and hidden treasures inside. "Everything still seems to be here. Now we just need to fix the old place up!"

Blinking, Jaune hummed. "That reminds me, what are we going to do for lien? Neither of us have a job. And it's not like we can sell any of this stuff. All the metals are rusted away."

True to his word, the inside is filled to the brim with weapons, armors, and sheets of metals that have all fallen to rust. There's hardly any furniture inside and no lighting to see, although, Aurelia appeared completely undeterred by the problem at hand. She simply moved in the darkness, not even using the entering sunlight to maneuver her way around. A quick rummage through some rusted sheets of metals, plus some good old elbow grease, and she's later pulling out a chest that's bulky in size.

Moving over to Jaune, she dropped it onto the ground and kicked it open. Inside were emeralds, sapphire, gold, diamonds, pretty much all forms of jewelry, uncut and huge. And not only that, she left that chest behind to go grab three more before sitting on the last one with a greedy smile.

"Like I mentioned, I was part of the Royal Guards. The king was a generous person. He paid very, very well." Aurelia stood up and poked him on the chest. "And this way, we can focus more on your training... and various other things."

"But I don't have a sword or shield anymore." Jaune finished lamely, shutting the chest with a slow speed.

Jaune did not miss the wink or soft giggle. She left him with a swing of her hips to go inspect the rest of the cabin. Before Jaune could ask what she's doing, Aurelia's grabbing a sheet of metal and erasing the evidence of rust without so much as a word. Soon she's holding a stainless steel sheet of metal, as new as the day it was made.

He's at a loss for words. "You're so cute. Did you forget already, I created Crocea Mors; I can create another weapon, except this time I won't be stuck in it. Hand me a sheet of metal, any metal. Actually," she thought, noticing the falling sunset. "Can you go get us some firewood? We're going to need it soon. I hate working in the dark." She picked up a rusted ax and absorbed all the rust. "Here, this should do finely."

He held the rust-free ax in awe. Testing it with a practice swing, Jaune almost lost his balance, but steady himself at the last second. Grinning like a fool, he walked out the door. "I'll be back in a few minutes."

"Hurry back." Aurelia called out; content her life was going perfectly. A shadow soon encompassed the door, hiding the figure standing on the other side with the light working against her. "Jaune? Did you forget something?"

A ball of fire reveals the person at the end of the door, showing a female at the other end. She walks in with grace and danger, being more monster than the beasts that lurk outside. Her glass heels click with a purpose, and soon she's standing in the middle of cabin, revealing a daring smile for Aurelia to notice as the fire continued to burn in the center of her palm. The red dress she wears flows in all the right places, hugs every curve, and illuminated all her best features. And those eyes burned with the intensity of a thousand suns.

Aurelia puts the metal down and crossed her arms, curious to the stranger's presence. She's in a good mood; she'll give her the benefit of the doubt. "And you are?"

"Cinder, but you don't need to worry about that." She had a devilish smirk. "Now, you will tell me everything you know about the relics and Maidens and your little boy toy back there will be fine. I'll make sure my subordinates do not harm him. And then we'll be out of your hair."

Aurelia laughed. "What? Do you have that place bugged or something?" She referred to Beacon with a wave of her hand.

Cinder's smirk remained. "That is not your concern. Now talk."

...

Jaune Arc returns a minute later with two guest, one named Mercury, and the other named Emerald. All three of them are holding firewood, courtesy of Mercury kicking the tree down and Emerald cutting it up into little pieces. It really saved Jaune a lot of time in the end. And they appeared more than happy to help. A little strange to him, but he's not going to shun them away.

Inviting them in, Jaune dropped the firewood as soon as he walked in. "Hey, Aurelia. We have some guests. They saw us walking here and wanted to see if we were alright, since you know, we're outside the kingdom's outer wall. Wasn't that nice of them?" Jaune scratched his head, swearing he heard someone else's voice earlier. "Hey? Was someone else here?"

Aurelia popped out of a pile of metal, grinning like Nora. She steps out with a red dressed stuck squarely between her fingers and a pair of glass heals in the other. "Oh? Someone did come by, but they already left. She was nice. She even gave me this beautiful dress and pair of glass slippers. I was just looking for a place to put them."

Jaune ran up to expect the newest additions. "Whoa! They're yours?"

"They are now. Why? Do you like it?" Aurelia held it up for the two guests viewing pleasure, not so much Jaune's, but his reaction counted too. "I'll put it on later, but it'll be a tight fit. And it's not my size. I'll have to sew to make it larger, but I do like it."

Grabbing the dress, Jaune allowed his eyes to roam over the fine craftsmanship, such a thoughtful and kind gift. His eyes then trailed up the collar and towards the latest feature inside the cabin. "I wonder how I didn't notice that burn mark there before. It's so big. Was that always there?"

His future wife smirked at Emerald and Mercury. "It must be recent. A fire must've happened, but luckily someone must've burned it out." Aurelia walked over to the paling girl and pushed the glass heels into her scared hands. "Here, would you like these? They don't fit on my feet and there's no amount of sewing that can fix that."

"Aw," Jaune pouted. "And those shoes were so nice, too."

Mercury's shaking, paralyzed by fear, but Aurelia fixed him a soft smile that didn't quite reach up to her eyes. "It's alright; I prefer to walk around on my bare feet. Oh, and guess what? I found the perfect metal to make your new sword. It's a little hot, but it's the perfect gold ash. And trust me, I can use it to make a sword like none ever before." She booped Emerald on the nose, "Would you two like to stay and watch? Sword craftsmanship is a delicate process. I'm sure you two can learn a thing or two by observing."

Aurelia moved to a nearby table holding a pile of gold dust that's fresh and still warm. She grabbed a chunk and allowed it to fall between her fingers, laughing quietly to the point only Emerald and Mercury knew she was doing it, being on the opposite end of her offer, while Jaune's busy sorting all the firewood to pay them any mind whatsoever. The final nail in the coffin is when she blew the gold ash towards the petrified duo, smirking when the two suddenly began walking backwards towards the exit.

"You know, we would..." Mercury started lamely, almost dry heaving. "B-But we... we..."

"We left out oven running!" Emerald finished. She bumped Mercury out, laughing nervously like it was all just some big joke. "And we don't want our house to burn down, so later!"

Slam!

Jaune smiled, done with arranging the firewood. "They'd seemed nice."

"Quite..." Aurelia picked up more of the gold ash, playing with it in a victorious manner. She beckoned for Jaune. "Come over here, I want to show you how I created Crocea Mors."

Jaune ran over and Aurelia smiled from his sudden eagerness, once an Arc, always an Arc. She quickly dug her hand deep into the golden pile and slowly began lifting it out, concentrating on her semblance to form and turn the golden dust into one huge piece of metal. As her hand lifted, so did the sword, and pile shrunk in size, condensing around the weapon as the pommel, grip, hilt, cross guard, hilt, and then blade formed from the particles of gold rust condensing together. The blade's symmetric and sharp. When it's all said and done, Aurelia's holding up a golden sword in all its glory.

She did an experimental swing, liking the weight distribution. "We'll have to paint the hilt a different color, the gold clashes too much for my liking, but this shall be fine. I think I'll dub this sword as Chrysáor? What do you think?"

Jaune held the sword up and swung it with a priceless smile. It just didn't feel complete without a guard. "I think it still needs a shield."

Aurelia hid a laugh and headed for the door. "Hn? Let me see if I can find any more precious minerals lying around. These metals inside aren't worthy of being crafted by The Yellow Death."

Jaune hid a smile. He's still getting used to this all. It's going to take time—a lot of time—but he's willingly to give this the old Arc tried. Not to say it's all that bad. Aurelia's nice, she's as sweet as candy and sometimes as powerful as jawbreakers. Even if her customs are outdated, they're cute in their own special way. And he has a feeling his mother and father would approve of her without a second thought. His seven sisters might be a different story, but that's a bridge he'll cross when the moment presents itself. First he needs to cross the one he's currently balancing over—the bridge of a tangled relationship.

Laughing to himself, Jaune's really going to give this insane relationship a try. Who knows where they'll be at in a year? Thinking powerfully about that, he watched Aurelia leave the cabin in search for new metals to make a shield.

Emerald and Mercury never did make it back to the kingdom that following sunset.

...

A year passes by in no time.

Jaune's old team has come for a visit after he gave them his home address. A new leader has not been chosen yet, neither has a fourth member been added, but Pyrrha has currently stepped forward to make the claim. They're just happy to meet after a year of only scroll messaging.

Nora hugged Jaune on his side the moment he opened the door to his refurbished home. "Jaune-Jaune, we haven't seen you in a whole year! Did you miss us? I know Ren missed you! And so did Pyrrha and me! But it was mostly Ren! Something to do with no more guys around, I don't know, he's silly like that! Have you been on any adventures since then! Huh! Huh!"

Jaune welcomed them in, still locked in Nora's hold. He motioned them to sit at the table, where's there's food—pancakes for Nora—and refreshments waiting for them. Nora immediately detangled herself from Jaune and attacked the pancakes, pulling Ren along for the ride. Their old, Fearless Leader sat down across from them, laughing silently to from memories of similar antics Nora had done at Beacon when he had still attended that school.

He answered her questions one at a time, just like the good old days. "Of course I missed you guys. And yes, I've been on a few adventures since I left." Jaune left the table to come back a minute later with a scepter in his hand. "Aurelia and I went to go claim this scepter from some abandon, hidden castle. Turns out it's magical. Watch as I turn that pancake into a waffle." He did just that. "Cool, huh! Magic, it's real! Who would've thought?"

Nora plucked the scepter out of his hand, amazed by the weapon. She aimed it at her stack of pancakes and made them bigger with magic! Jaune didn't bother trying to relive her of the weapon, having missed her antics that much. Besides, that's what Ren is for.

Wail!

Flicking his eyes towards the bedroom, Aurelia steps out with two bundles wrapped in a golden sheet of cloth. They're crying, grabbing the attention of his old team, whom he had yet to inform about the newest addition to the Arc family.

"They're awake..." Aurelia cooed, handing Jaune the two little bundles. She looked to see Pyrrha Nikos with a pained smile, but a smile nonetheless. She hopes this will be a lesson for her. Life should be treated like a battle—quick and without mercy. There's no time to be dancing around subjects and hoping for the best. "Here, I think they want you."

Grabbing his children, Jaune carried them with pride over his team. As he moved, his eyes flicked over to his golden sword and shield combo, lying on the adjacent wall. They're an oddity to him. No matter the temperature, the sword was always warm to the touch, burning sometimes whenever he swung it. The shield, on the other hand, was a different story. The Grimm he did fight for practice always seemed to get confused whenever he shined the metal in their faces, be it if it was sunny or dark out, like they're trapped in an illusion of some sorts. He doesn't know, he hasn't figured out why it happens, just one of those things that just happen.

But he does know he's gotten closer to Aurelia. A year alone will do that to a person. There were hardships, but all relationships had that. It's the end goal that makes them all well worth it.

Dropping the subject with ease, Jaune holds the twin girls up in a proud fashion for his old team to see. "Their names are Alivia and Alba."

Nora cooed at the little devils, acting very unlike herself as she had stars in her eyes. She dropped the scepter to run over to the little ones, letting Ren take care of the magical item. The Lie did have a small smile as he watched Nora interact with the twins, but he's slightly more interested at the magical item clutched between his fingers. And he's not the only one, Pyrrha's staring at the object with acute curiosity. And their old leader doesn't miss this, zeroing in on the scepter belonging to the late king of Vale.

"You want to know how I got that?" Jaune inquired, handing one the tots to Nora. He grinned like a fool, reminiscing the past year. "It's a crazy story!"

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Author Notes: A story for my good friend Exvnir, concept pictures at his Deviant-art. Guy really knows how to wear someone down.

Story Concept: Exvnir

Writer: Imyoshi