The morning dragged on for Ruby. The sunlight streaming through her classroom windows clinging to her slacks and leather jacket. Her fingers drumming her hardwood desk like hoofbeats on cobblestone. She sighs, because waiting for her students is never enjoyable. She shouldn't be upset yet anyway. It's five till 10:00. Slowly students start trickling in. And to Ruby's joy, everyone was in there seats by the time the bell rung.
"Good morning students! As you all have been anticipating these last few weeks, the Annual Huntsmen Gathering is upon us!" Ruby announces cheerfully.
A few students perk up and small whoops and cheers are heard.
One particular student raises a gittery hand.
Ruby sighs internally.
"Yes Mr. Ren?"
A ginger boy shoots from his chair.
"Proffessor, will we be attending the festival?" Ren nearly shouts.
Much like his mother, that one is.
Ruby chuckles.
"Why of course! Students from any Huntsmen academy are welcome to take place in the festivities. The only thing you will not be allowed into is the Keepers Meeting, and the bar being constructed."
Ruby answered her students questions for another minute or two.
Then she got on with class.
She is a History Professor after all.
Dull red eyes scan over the edges of the now restored Beacon Academy. For the last eight years the school has been running and thriving. And for those years, Qrow has been it's Headmaster. And his most trusted friends, it's faculty. He feels younger than before the war! Even though his hair is straight silver and his chin is bearded with salt and pepper hair. He feels this way for no particular reason. The war has come and gone, and his enemies cast to shadow. He has purpose here. And all of it depends on what the Keepers Meeting will reveal this year.
An increased amount of Huntsmen have been announced KIA this past year. Many seem to think the Grimm are getting smarter. That before they were merely pawns. And that now they think for themselves. Still not very intelligent though. But smarter than before. Maybe a cause for concern on Qrow's end. And then there is the searches. Ruby and Weiss have been adamant that they find him. That he be told what he needs to know. Qrow knows of only one way to get him to show. Invite his son to the meeting. Publically.
Jay jumps as his scroll vibrates in his pocket. He pauses his Spruce Willis movie and retreives the angry device from the confines of his jeans. He slides the green ball to the right and holds the scroll to his ear.
"Grunkle Qrow?" Jay picks up.
"Heya kid. Long time no show. How are things in Menagarie?" Qrow's gravelly voice asks.
"Oh, you know, busy." Jay lies while looking at the t.v playing on silent.
"Well, a Cheiftan in training is just that. Always busy. Anywho, I am calling for more than a check up on my favourite honorary family member."
The phrasing was a set up. Confirmed by the quiet HEY emanating from Jay's surrogate mother.
Jay smiles and laughs.
"Grunkle. Tell mom I am gonna take time next week for a trip up to see you guys. And that I love her."
"No need, you're coming tomorrow."
"Since when?"
"Since I'm officially inviting you to the Keepers Meeting three years early."
Jay's scroll almost kissed the floor.
The rain is lightly sprinkling down.
The sun is out.
And it would be a perfect day.
If not for the blood.
The mud of the roads are maroon now.
The buildings burning and the screaming, all meld together.
Hundreds are getting slaughtered.
Bullheads evacuate with full capacity.
Huntsmen, brave townsmen and women, and Atlas droids all fighting for their lives.
And the lives of everyone around them.
A young Huntsmen team fresh out of Vacuo cries as they watch a group of small nevermore carry off one of their members.
The sight of that young man about to be dropped to his death seemingly stalls the fight.
Then a burst of yellow flower petals zips from the treeline.
A flash of black cloth and dark steel later, the boy is freed.
A sequence of small glyphs appear beneath the young man to slow his fall.
The team take it from there.
Tired and bloodied as they were.
The grimm pour in.
Then the rumble stops them all.
All the Grimm look back to the alpha.
A large Wyvern appears in the sky behind the Grimm horde.
It crashes down onto the bell tower.
The building half crumbles under its weight.
It's screech fills the air.
All the people cover their ears and hunch in pain.
The world has seen Dragon Grimm before. This one is only a third the size of the famous Beacon Wyvern.
But even a smaller one can topple this town like nothing.
It lumbers off the tower and into the square.
Its fire breath incinerating swaths of Grimm and humans alike.
It's tail topples a small grocer.
The final bullhead lands and a crew of Atlas specialists pile out.
They hold off the immediate Grimm so that the retreating hero's don't get cut down on the way to their seats.
The Wyvern sees them heading towards the aircraft.
It screeches once more and it's wings beat to get it off the ground.
The strength of the wind from the movements cause several Grimm to fly back. And one familiar Huntsmen to get flung against the side of a street pole.
Lie Ren looks up to see the bullhead loaded. And beginning to take off.
Nora will kill him when she finds out he died.
He breaths out and grasps his Stormflowers.
He cant ghost due to his aura loss.
He knows this is his last stand.
But he is calm, satisfied even.
His effort and sacrifice has saved ten times what would have been without him and his fellow Huntsmen.
He dodges a claw and a tail.
A bite and a failed bear hug.
Then he is hit by something.
Something big.
He realizes that it was the Wyvern's wing/arm. After he became familiar with a new living room.
The Wyvern stopped it's pursuit of the bullhead, in favour of killing one powerful Huntsmen.
It stalks to his building.
Ren tries and fails to get up.
This is it.
Then there is a bloodcurdling screech and animalistic roars.
Ren looks up to see the Dragon lurching backwards with one winged arm clapping at its right eye.
The beasts thrashing scares off the Grimm horde towards the long gone bullheads.
Ren spots the item gouged into the Wyvern's eye.
A sword.
With a familiar gold crossguard, beneath that a blue hilt.
The beast stops flailing when the initial shock of losing half it's sight subsides.
It gently reaches up and removes the weapon.
It gets about halfway to fixing its injury when another trail of yellow petals zips into his building.
Then it solidifies into something Ren hasnt seen in four years.
Jaune Arc.
The man before him is a far cry from what he was before.
Sporting a black cotton trench coat, and black jeans.
His white dress shirt is dirty and ripped.
Jaune's hair ia stained black and red.
He lurches forward.
"Lets go, you can't miss your anniversary."
Jaune's gasping voice calls out.
Ren is hefted to his feet by his fearless leader. And walked/carried to the square.
Where the Wyvern has removed Crocea Mors from its eye.
It's remaining eye fixes on them.
The first swipe is aimed at them.
Jaune throws Ren aside and jumps.
The wing slams into Jaune midway through his ascent.
It sends him hurdling towards the half-destroyed tower.
He smashes through the wall around one third of the way up.
Ren limps over to the nearest cover.
He peeks up, ready to expend his last rounds at the beast.
Then Jaune comes bursting from the tower.
This time his hair and shoulders are wreathed in flame. His eyes a blazing red.
Mid way through his fall he expands his shield and holds it with both hands above his head.
The Wyvern turns to catch the strike to the top of it's head.
The ring of reinforced alloy metal against the thick scales echoes across the square.
The strike rolls the dragon.
It slides onto its feet again. But it is disoriented from the strike.
Jaune picks up his blade and sets into a defensive stance.
Then he shoots forward.
He slides under the tail whip aimed at his chest. Before slicing in an upwards arc.
This effectively severs most of the tail.
Then stiffening his legs, he launches to his feet. He plunges his blade into the back of the dragon's hind leg.
This drops the monster on it's side.
Jaune leaps off the wing and comes down on the beast's neck.
Jaune is flung upwards.
The Wyvern opens his maw and lets Jaune fall into its jaws.
When the jaws snap down they catch nothing.
For just before it bit down, Jaune dissipated.
The real Jaune landed to the side of the beast. Not on it's neck.
He took advantage of it's new blind spot.
The Dragon let's it's head down right onto Crocea Mors.
The screech is silenced.
Then the beast dissipates slowly in a cloud of black mist.
Jaune sheaths his weapon and walks over to Ren.
"I told you so Jaune." Ren whispers.
"Told me what Ren?" Jaune says hefting his old teamate onto his feet.
"You are an idiot to think you were the weakest of us."
Jaune wipes the smile from his face.
Then he shoves a metallic object into Ren's hand.
Jaune then turns and walks ten feet away.
He turns back.
"I wasn't strong when it mattered most, twice. See you in two days, Keepers Meeting."
"You haven't been to one since you left Jaune. What's changed?"
"Qrow is dragging Jay into this." Jaune gestures to the devastation. To the bodies."I have to be there, to tell him the truth."
Then in a flash of yellow flower petals, Jaune disappears again.
Ren sighs and looks down at his hand. The bullhead Beacon he dropped when the horde showed up. Jaune had been there the whole time. Waiting for them to need his help. A watcher in the shadows.
Ren presses the button and waits for his ride.
Nora is going to love seeing Jaune again.
Then a thought pops in his head.
Oh no... Ruby.
First off, this story is NOT COMPLETE!MY DEVICE WONT SET IT TO ONGOING!
Alrighty guys, I had a dream a few nights ago. About Jaune losing Blake after they settled and had a baby. Then Jaune sends that kid to Menagarie so that Blake's parents can finish raising him.while Jaune hunts the remaining members of Salems old army. And the white Fang who had a hand in Blake's death. Then after a long time he returns to Vale to rest. Because in eight years he only succeeded in killing Emerald Sustrai. Over his resting period in Vale( about a year ), Ruby lets him room in her apartment in Beacon.One year together ends with a night together. One where love and commitments are made.Then a call came.Tyrion Callows was spotted in Mistral.Jaune left. And hasnt been seen in four years.Ruby meanwhile ends up preggers.And has a toddler of three waiting at home everyday for Ruby to come home from teaching.Everyone the cast knows is in on finding Jaune.So we see here, Qrow finally forces it. By messing with Jaune's only remaining bit of Blake.This is the premise of this Story.A journey about Ruby, Jaune, and Jay.and little Rain.Leave some comments, suggestions are always welcome.