Hey guys Pegvok here sorry for taking so long to update but I have been sick for a while. Hope you guys can forgive me and hope you enjoy.

Chapter 2: A Beacon of Hope

My time spent away from Beacon has been less than productive. I didn't really do anything besides sleep or eat. If I hadn't gotten that message from Ruby I would probably still be there. Just sitting in my room, waiting for something to kill me too. I shake my head 'No reason to think about that, have to help my friends.' I only really agreed to help when Ruby said that she would go alone if she had too, and I couldn't convince her to not go. I couldn't just let my friend go on a suicide mission alone, especially when it might help avenge Pyrrha. So I got back into the shape I had been in before the fall. My mother called Ren and Nora when she saw that was getting up and doing something. When they got to my house I was immediately hugged by Nora in the only way she knows how, by almost crushing my chest in her bear hug. Ren then asked what I was doing and said nothing, planning on not getting anybody else involved. Ren pulled out his Ren stare for a good five seconds before I cracked. I told them everything so of course they came along. And that's how I got here, standing in front of Ruby's house on Patch, waiting for her to say her goodbyes. I planned to talk to Ruby before we got on the Dust plane and inevitably I would find my way to the nearest trash can. I had talked to Ren before so that he could pull Nora away after we reached Summers grave, giving me so time to talk to her. I even made her a batch of cookies as a way of saying thank you, though with how much Ren, Nora and I have changed I'm not sure if she still likes them.

She walks out of her house and quietly closes the door. "Hey Jaune, Haven is a long way to go."

"I know," I said as I nod my head "I got these for you, as a thank you for helping me." I hold out the cookies.

Her eyes light up and she uses her semblance to quickly grab and devour them. I smile for the first time in months, a weight lifting from my chest for some weird reason.

I start to laugh quietly "at least you haven't changed Ruby." I said after a moment. As i say it my eyes go wide, realizing that's why I felt happy, to see Ruby stay the same adorkably innocent girl that she was on that first day.

She glares at me, but it's hard to take someone seriously with cookie crumbs and a light blush over her face, though the blush was probably from the winter cold. I jerk my head towards the path "Come on, we still have to say goodbye to someone." She nods and starts walking towards her mother's grave.

Ren walks next to me and says in a voice so quiet that if I weren't right next to him I wouldn't have heard "I'm glad to see you laugh Jaune, we have been trying for months and you wouldn't even smile."

I nod before saying "I'm just happy that she stayed mostly the same. I did nothing for months, you talk even less than before and Nora has lost some of her energy. Yang is in her bed still, Blake ran away and Weiss was taken by her father. We all broke in one way or another but she stayed strong, she stayed who she is. So i'm happy for that."

Ren nods and just walks in his usual comfortable silence. We eventually reach her grave in Cliffside Forest. I look and Ren, meeting him in the eyes before both him and Nora walk away. Ruby talks to her mother for a bit, telling her what we planned to do. After she finishes she turns around and she tilts her head to the side when she only sees me. I just hold up a finger and walk to the stone. As I get a good look at it I see the rose symbol, and under it read Summer Rose, Thus Kindly I shatter. I pulled Crocea Mors out of my shield and put the tip on the ground as I knelt, like a man bowing before a king to be knighted. "Thank you Summer," I say to the grave. "Thank you for giving birth to Ruby who has become a great girl and a great huntress. She has helped me more time than I can possibly count and has touched many others as well. As a huntress you know how hard it is to be the person everybody needs to see, that story book character that is always ready to fight to help someone in need. Ruby does that on instinct, and it has stayed with her even when times were troubling. Without her I wouldn't even be here, I would just be in a shallow grave as my family just shakes their heads as they say I told you so." I shake my head to tune out those thoughts. "Thank you."

I get up and turn around to see Ruby with her hood completely covering her head. A blush quickly spreads to my face as I start walking down the path as she follows a pace or two behind. A couple of minutes of awkward silence go by before I speak "I have to say thank you to you as well Ruby, I would still be sitting alone in my room without you." I say without looking back, to embarrassed to look at her face.

"It was nothing, you would have done the same for me if it was reversed." She said.

I spun around quickly and put my hand on my chin "Hmm, nope." I said with a big goofy grin on my face. She glares at me again before I spun on my heels to keep walking. I felt a rush of wind before I feel her hug me from behind.

"Nobody outside my family talks to my mom anymore, and they only do that when i'm around. So thank you."

I turn around and wrap my arms around her and rest my chin on her head. "It's no big deal. That's what friends are for right?"

I see her lips turn upwards into a smile "yeah that's what we are for."

"Not to ruin the moment or anything," I say completely ruining the moment "But if your family is anything like Yang is then I might need to run, lucky that we are going to Haven anyways that way I don't have to smuggle myself to Sun and his team."

She lets go and laughs "Yeah you are right, Dad or Uncle Qrow would kill you. Come on let's catch up to Ren and Nora, race ya!" She then bursts off at her usual super speed, leaving rose petals in her wake. I look up at the sun that's significantly brighter that it was before. I take a deep breath that makes me feel lighter than I have ever felt before. Unknown to me a golden light entered my lungs upon that deep breath and my eyes shown gold for a second before I took off after Ruby.

Thanks for reading and please message me what you think I did well on and what needs some improvement, and again sorry this came out so late.