Jaune waited until his team was asleep. It took about an hour, but he finally got to work when he heard the collective snores of Ruby and the rest of team JNRR. He picked up his sword and shield and headed a few metres away from camp, where there was a small open space devoid of any trees. The journey to Mistral was a long one, so he figured he might as well train his basic swordsmanship. He was a complete noob when he first enrolled in Beacon. The more rowdy students, especially Cardin Winchester, picked on him due to his apparent weakness and incompetence in combat. He has come a long way since then, even gaining the respect of his former bullies.

He placed his scroll on the roots of the nearest tree. He browsed his scroll to search for his old training videos back when he was training at Beacon. He finally found the video. It had a thumbnail of his close friend and mentor, Pyrrha Nikos. He stared at the screen for a little bit, reminscing the happy memories he had with her. He finally played the video and prepared his sword and shield.

"Alright Jaune, just like we practiced! Follow these instructions," a familiar, sweet voice called out. His heart softened at the soothing tone of Pyrrha's voice.

"Shields up!"

He held up his shield. He took a mental note of how he held his shield in front of him. She had warned him before about not blocking his line of sight with his shield.

"Grip tight! Don't forget to keep your front foot forward," she continued. He readied his stance, just like how she drilled him many months ago.

"Ready? Go."

He thrust forward his blade with all his might.

"Again."

He raised his sword and slashed diagonally, meticulously following the way she taught him in the past down to the painful details.

"Aaand again!"

He swung his blade again, this time bringing his sword down on whatever phantom he was training against.

"Okaay, assuming you aren't cheating, we can take a break." she said. Jaune was already panting. Most of the journey was walking, and he did not had his weapons before as he sent it to the nearest blacksmith for an upgrade. He already knew what she was going to say next, but this time, he wasn't going to hear it.

He readied his stance again, his body heaving in a slow rhythm. He thrust his sword again, then slashed diagonally, then brought his sword down upon his metaphorical enemy. He repeated the basic combination, each time with more gusto and power than before. He was putting all his emotions into his swing. His guilt for losing Pyrrha manifested as a fierce force, nearly cutting down the nearby tree in half. The drone of his scroll was cancelled out as noise. He only wanted to train and train to avenge the one he cared for so much.

But even then, his emotions could only take him so far. He pushed himself past exhaustion. He miscalculated his footing and accidently threw his sword into a tree. His scroll was just right beneath it. There, he saw Pyrrha's emerald eyes staring back at him. Her lips had curled into a small, soft smile, as if she was there at that moment, watching him train rigourously.

"I'll always be here for you, Jaune." she told him with a reassuring smile on her face. But, he knew that was not true, and Pyrrha probably knew that too. She left him a long time ago, when she attempted to challenge Cinder and failed. Out of rage and denial, he directed his anger into the tree. He punched and kicked while crying his eyes out. He digged out his sword from the bark of the tree with such primal rage, it was as if he was possessed by Grimm. He pounded and pounded on the tree, releasing his pent up anger and frustration until either him or the tree gave way.

He finally collapsed on the floor after bursting through his energy and quite literally working himself to death. After releasing his guilt, his anger, his sadness, he felt nothing anymore. The void that Pyrrha had left in his heart could never be filled. He felt hopeless and demotivated. If his mentor, an ace Huntress, was defeated so easily, what could he even do?

"Jaune, are you okay?" a high-pitched voice called out with a tone carrying feelings of concern and sympathy. It was Ruby. He was too engrossed in his tantrum that he probably woke up even Nora, who could sleep through thunderstorms in the open. Her semblance might have helped her with that.

"I'm... fine..." Jaune tried to mouth out his words in between his panting. His training fatigue had nearly driven him into a coma.

"Jaune, I know you miss her. We all do, she was our teammate and friend as well." Lie Ren attempted to console him.

"Well, we weren't as head over heels for her as you wer-"

Thwack!

"Oww, what was that for?" Nora attempted to comment, but Lie Ren immediately interrupted her remark with a swift neck chop.

"We all have lost someone during the Fall of Beacon, or by the Grimm." Lie Ren continued, seemingly ignoring Nora.

"We'll never be able to bring them back, but the least we could do is avenge them."

Ruby tried to make Jaune feel better, but she wasn't really good at that kind of thing.

"And if we find Cinder again, we'll break her legs!" Nora exclaimed with overflowing enthusiasm. She was still massaging the back of her neck where Lie Ren hit her. The source of her bubbly energy is a mystery to all.

Hearing those words, he could not help but shed a tear as a proud team leader. It was sort of flattering to have friends who cared so much about him. The scars on his heart may never fully heal, but at least he'll be able to recover and fight again. He silently vowed to protect his team and friends at all costs. He had lost a friend already, he could not afford to lose another. At least, Pyrrha left him with some training, allowing him to fight and protect the weak and innocent. He signed up to be a hunter, and he will damn well carry out his duty.

Its what she would have wanted.

I hope it turns out well. I plan to write a scene for Summer Rose next, so stay tuned! Criticism is appreciated, I'm still fairly new to this.