I own nothing all characters, ideas, and etc. are credited to their respective owners.

-YARN

P.S. I figured why not, Omakes are fun for everyone, I may include omakes I like into pre-chapter bits as a sort of small treat.

Adamant39 OMAKE INBOUND:

"Jaune? Jaune dear? Where are you going?" Pointedly ignoring his parents, the not-so-five-year-old Arc cursed his tiny legs as he waddled away from his family and the bowling alley and towards the white limousine parked before a packed cinema.

'Go back in time with your one true love' great deal, right?

"Jaune, that's the cinema!"

"I wanna see the premier!" He faked a young voice as he moved towards the limo, guards moving out and clearing a space between it and the cinema.

Apparently, God was an arsehole. And a shipper. And he didn't ship Arkos.

"Jaune, you know we can't afford those seats! And why are you annoying that security guard?"

The burly figure that Jaune tried to squeeze past grabbed him and held him at head height. "Sorry sonny, this is the Schnee family limo, you can't just-"

"HEY SNOW ANGEL!" Jaune yelled at the open door. "I GOT BETTER AT GUITAR LESSONS!"

There was a pause, with his parents staring at his dangling feet, before a tiny figure in white was on the security guard's shoulder and glaring at him. "You. You remember?"

Jaune nodded. Sighing, the five year old weiss schnee tapped the guard's shoulder, prompting him to drop Jaune, before jumping down herself. Jaune's mother (and the rest of the crowd around the cinema) watched in confusion.

"So..." Jaune awkwardly scuffed his feet. "I messed up."

Weiss nodded. "Maybe you should be training instead of practicing guitar?"

"Maybe you should be training instead of going to see the new X-ray and vav adaptation." Jaune countered.

"Maybe. But i can't exactly visit the gym inconspicuously... Would you like to see the premier?"

"Sure, why not."

STORY START

"Jeez Jaune..." Jia grumbled, "Did you have to scream so loudly? I couldn't get anymore restful sleep for the entire night."

The rest of the family mumbled agreement, it wasn't like Jaune to scream and even then he usually slept like a dead man.

"Sorry." Jaune mumbled, swirling his cereal lackadaisically.

The family traded worried looks over their youngest's head. He woke the entire house with a scream so loud that his father didn't even bother trying the knob and kicked the door down, his aura whipping around him like a blazing beacon. He saw Jaune on the floor covering his face as he had apparently dove down to avoid the explosion and was shivering in the corner of the room. Jaune had passed it off as a nightmare, but his mother had only searched his face with a scarily sharp intuition before sighing and deciding she wouldn't push, Jaune looked genuinely exhausted and terrified.

Jaune seemed to break out of his reverie and began to scarf down his breakfast like a starved man before turning towards his father.

"Hey dad?" He asked, focused and sharp.

His father blinked at his son's abnormally serious tone, "Yes?"

"I want to be a hunter. Can you train me?" Jaune decide to get to the point rather than dither, the more time this was all out of the way, the better.

His family looked staggered by his declaration.

Jaune had always been gentle and kind. He never wanted to hurt anything and preferred to play with his friends rather than learn to fight. Granted, Jaune had loved hearing about his heroic ancestors, but neither his mother nor father had ever implied that he should want to be one. It was a painful and dangerous path and to be frank, being a hero never ended well in the Arc family. Every ancestor that tried always died, usually alone and always painfully. His father had retired from active duty when he had started a family, he couldn't bring himself to try to be a hero when he knew that if he died he'd leave his children and wife behind.

"Jaune... I don't think that's a very good... idea." His father said carefully.

Jaune's eyes seemed to be pleading with desperation, "Please dad. I know it's not easy and that I'll have to work really hard, but I really feel like I need to. Can you please consider it at least?"

His father frowned thoughtfully, when he wanted a son, he intended for him to become a hunter and become a great man. But when Jaune was born, he realized he didn't care about that, he wanted his son to be happy and live life to the fullest, doing whatever made him happy. Hunters had difficult lives and that was if they managed to live long enough, which was a miracle in and of itself, all things considered. If his son really wanted to be a huntsman, he didn't want to try to stop him and tell him he wouldn't make it. Jaune had the potential, every Arc did, and there was also the family secret of how they managed to survive...

John Arc inwardly sighed at that dark secret.

Even so, it would be hard to at least enroll him in a school that was close. Dorme was a village in the more rural areas - it was within the limits of Vale and there were hunters constantly patrolling the state walls - so it didn't have a standard academy to go to. He would have to enroll in a academy to be a legitimate student, and those were located only in the more populated urban areas.

His father exhaled, "Okay. Allow me to give this some thought, being a hunter isn't easy, and there aren't any academies that are particularly near. Can I answer you in a week son?"

Jaune sighed, but nodded, "Okay. Promise?"

His father ruffled his hair, "I promise junior."

"Dad!" Jaune whined, "Stopppppp!"

His father laughed and the rest of the table joined as Jaune pouted.

Jaune leaned against a tree in the shadowed areas of the forest around his house as he began shaking and panting. He took deep breaths and tried to calm down or least dull the pain in his chest as he fought for control. It had been hard enough to see his family again, acting like a normal 5 year old after the whole hunter plead had drained him emotionally. He hadn't let himself act like a child since Pyrrha had died in the CCT and that had been years ago. His heart hurt as he thought of Pyrrha, was she really back, was she going through the same things?

Was she thinking of him?

What if he was alone, crippled, with no power?

What if he failed?

"No." He growled to himself.

He drew a fortifying breath, even if she was back, it would be better to act under the assumption that she wasn't. If he doubted himself at all at this point in time, he would have already lost the war before he started.

If he really was alone, he would have to be enough to fight the oncoming storm.

He would save everyone.

He'd make it enough.

"Okay..." He exhaled gustily, "I need to go over what I have."

He tentatively tried to draw out his aura, but nothing responded. Not even a whisper of the ocean of power that had once been his to command. He tried over and over, but it felt as though he was trying to find something in the dark that he couldn't see and was constantly shifting places. He hadn't unlocked his aura and that meant his semblance was shot to hell as well. Jaune sighed, he needed to learn how to regain that, and he was sure his dad - if he chose to train him at all - would be making him do it the hard way. His father wouldn't unlock his aura for him, that'd be to easy.

Another unpleasant thought hit Jaune.

Hell, did he even have the same semblance anymore? He wasn't the same naive idiot who thought he could float through Beacon with no prior training! He hadn't even laid eyes Crocea Mors so he hadn't been able to try to draw out the heavenly elements from within it either! He ran a hand through his hair in frustration, he had nothing! Nothing but a knowledge of the coming storm and a future he had to stop!

How the hell could he do anything like this? He needed something to start with!

Jaune then remembered the one thing he chose to bring with him.

His grimm.

It was the only powerful ability that he hadn't gained naturally and despite the fact it was an embodiment of everything he swore to destroy, he would need every edge he could get.

And sometimes you need to fight fire with fire.

He took a deep breath, anchoring himself firmly to who he was and reached for his darker half.

He forgot something very critical.

He forgot he was 5 years old and his body was a child's weak and fragile body, also forgetting that he was trying this technically for the first time in this life so he had no idea he was inexperienced in drawing his power out.

So things went as well as could be expected.

The dark power responded like a tidal wave or tsunami of power crashing into his mind and sanity. Bone plates erupted from his skin like a raging fire consuming dry shrubbery. Jaune let out a pained roar as he was suddenly covered in his bone armor which shattered and dissipated into wisps of ethereal darkness over and over again. His eyes glowed red and he desperately bit back his screams as his dark power coursed through him like heated lava through his veins and skin. He tried to stop but it was though he destroyed a dam and he was trying to contain ensuing waterfall with a small plastic bucket. He fell to his knees as he burned and writhed against the overwhelming agony of his own power tearing at his body. Bones spikes began to erupt out of the ground at different angles, some stabbing into trees.

After and agonizing eternity it fizzled out and Jaune promptly passed out.

Jaune groaned, feeling like he had been used by Yang as a punching bag.

Several times over.

He pried open his eyes to squint at the sun before deeming 5 or so hours had passed. Since he left for this area immediately after breakfast, which was at 6:30am, it was probably 12:00pm at the latest. He weakly struggled to a sitting position, noting with an inward grimace that his neck had a twinge from collapsing in such an uncomfortable position.

He carefully cracked his neck before shook his head, "My body can barely handle any of that power at this age... I need to be careful or I might strain my body too far."

His older body was much stronger and well-suited to handle that dark energy and even when he started out with actually trying to use it, he collapsed every single time he was done. At this age his body had no way to handle all of his grimm's power at the moment. After healing his body with aura and his semblance, he had been able to make a decent amount of progress with his grimm. Unfortunately with no aura, he had no way to fix himself if he overdid it other than resting.

"Baby steps." He mumbled sarcastically, "Fantastic. I always have to do things the hard way."

He took a deep breath and went into a cross-legged seated position that Ren had once suggested to him a lifetime ago, and began to meditate. Pyrrha had instructed him when he was looking for his semblance that he needed to concentrate on him. One needed to unlock his/her aura - usually through meditation and exploration of the self- and after that was done, concentrate on who he was now. After that his semblance would appear in due time and he would be able to actually work with it.

But right now he needed to focus on the present, he would worry about what his semblance now was later.

Jaune began to discard the senses around him, beginning with sight by closing his eyes. The birds chirping, the leaves rustling and the quiet buzz of the forest faded away from his perceptions. The aching pain of his body was harder to ignore but he shoved it down and breathed in to center himself. The sweet aftertaste of his breakfast that lingered evaporated and the smell of the forest air swirled into the beat of his heart.

Jaune sat like that for a while, mediating and only focusing on the breath he drew and the beat of his heart.

Nothing else mattered, nothing else EXISTED for him as he simply looked within.

By the time Jaune staggered back to his house, he was bone tired. It was 4:00pm and he needed to rest. He felt... something while mediating, a sort of pull at his consciousness. As though something was instinctively trying to make him look just a bit deeper, focus with a bit more clarity. He was confident that he could discover his aura relatively quickly, but he would try to be careful. After mediating and deeming that enough, he practiced with his grimm.

He wasn't stupid enough to try taking it all at once again, and he tentatively reached for that wellspring of darkness within him. It was severely depleted and his grimm was hardly more than a weak whisper from before, but it responded. He drew the tiniest fraction he could from the grimm and gently focused it on his hand. Bone plate armor slid slowly out from his wrist and knuckles, spreading out to cover his hand. He pulled the power away and pushed it back out, focusing on different areas. It wasn't anywhere near as developed as before, but he had much more time to perfect it, so he didn't worry. He made his way inside and despite his stomach rumbling like a snarling beowolf, he made it to the sofa and collapsed into it.

He was out before his head came to rest on the pillow.

Jaune awoke to the sound of a snapping camera. He blinked uncertainly at the back of a scroll before realizing it was his mother.

"Mom?" He mumbled, not quite aware yet.

"You look so cute!" She almost squealed.

Jaune groaned and buried his face into the armrest, face burning. His mother had a habit of taking photos of the family in what she deemed as adorable positions. Each of his sisters had their embarrassing shots taken and while multiple times there had been hunts to find and destroy the photos, their mother cheerfully informed them that if they even deleted one, they ALL would sleep outside for a month. That however wasn't enough to quell the unamused shouting/yelling/growling/temper-tantrumming of whoever's photo had been recently snapped.

Jaune's stomach decided at that moment to make itself heard.

Rather loudly.

And painfully.

Jaune's hand went to his stomach and he smiled sheepishly, "Um... Could I get some food? Please?"

After scarfing down a big (for his size) meal, Jaune sighed contentedly, "I always forget how awesome your food is!"

Jaune had been living more and more on lukewarm rations as they had closed in on Cinder and Salem. At the time Jaune craved Beacon's meals, they had at least been half-decent, but eating his mother's cooking was always comparable to ambrosia from the gods. He learned all his cooking from her and he had always gotten glowing performance reviews from his friends (with that one time Ruby and Yang clung to him begging him to be their personal chef). However, eating it also hurt. He hadn't been able to save his family before Salem and Cinder had killed them. He had very nearly gone crazy when he saw his demolished house and the corpses of his family. Each bite brought with it the feeling of failing to be with his family when they needed him most.

He smothered a scowl at his nose-dive into a depressing pit of memories.

A hand patted his head, "Jaune, are you alright? You seem... different today."

Jaune squashed the panic welling up in his chest, of course he couldn't totally fool his mom, yet there was the fact that he was in his formative years.

"I guess..." He said, gently rubbing the area where Salem had impaled him, "I guess I just want to be a hero and heroes have to get strong, right? So I need to be smart and strong as soon as I can!"

His mother gave him a complicated look, but sighed, "Well all heroes need to listen to their parents too. I want you to come to me if you ever need help Jaune, you're my son, and I love you. I will always be there for you."

Jaune smiled, "I know."

Thank Monty for Summer vacation, it gave him at least a month or two before attending school and having to go through that hell all over again. He shuddered at the thought of young screaming and ridiculous children.

He hoped he could bring himself up to par with his old self after about a month of Pyrrha's training.

Jaune hadn't been idle over his dad's week of deliberation. He would go to the clearing, train his grimm, meditate on his aura, train his grimm again, stumble back to his house for a bite to eat and sleep, and do it all over again.

His grimm had been a bit difficult to work with but he now had a firm knowledge that he was in charge, he wouldn't let his darker emotions control him. Sure, he'd feel them; sure, he'd use his grimm when he needed to, but he would never let the grimm take charge. He was the master and it was simply a part of the greater whole.

But aura?

He wanted to tear his hair out.

The only thing that was pissing him off was his aura - his grimm wasn't nearly as problematic, and it was the antithesis of control and his soul - simply refused to be found and he need it as soon as possible! It was quite possibly the only thing he needed right now! He flexed his bone covered hand and grumbled at nothing in general.

"If only I could get my dad to unlock my aura..." Jaune growled.

To be honest if baffled him just how difficult it was for him to grasp that power he had was. He almost had it and just before he could reach it, it would vanish like mist under the sun. He was patient, but he NEEDED to unlock his aura for his dad to train him seriously. Desperate, he had asked his dad what the glowy thing was from the time his father burst into his room. His dad explained the basics of what it was, but his dad had been vague (on purpose) in regards to Jaune unlocking it. If he didn't have his aura at least unlocked, his dad would run him into the ground day after day trying to draw it out by force.

Jaune really didn't want that to happen.

Another hour of fruitlessly meditating and his frustration spiked, "GODDAMMIT!"

He punched the ground and bones automatically slid out of his hand as his grimm tried to prevent his body from harm. They shattered under the third blow against the unforgiving ground, and he curled up on the ground, screaming anger into his arm so it didn't sound like he was being murdered.

After he let it all out he rolled onto his back and stared at light glimmering through gaps in the foliage, "Why is this so hard?"

"Maybe because you're not supposed to find it like everyone else." A voice said.

He rolled over into a crouch and got ready to run, he had no delusions as to how any fight would go at this age.

It was his mother.

Oh Monty in heaven what if she saw his Grimm? He prayed she didn't see anything beyond his aura mediation as he took on an embarrassed expression.

His mother gave him an unimpressed look, "Jaune, you cannot honestly believe that I wouldn't have noticed you going out and staying out for almost all day, did you?"

Jaune flushed - to be honest - he had, "Well... maybe?"

She rolled her eyes and walked over to him, "Having trouble with your aura?"

Jaune racked his brain for something to respond that wouldn't give away how much he knew, "That what dad's glowy thing was? He called it aura!"

His mother laughed, "Yes, darling."

"Oh!" He smashed his fist into his palm, "Well yeah! I saw dad do it and asked him how to do it! He said I'd figure it out, so I tried thinking really hard!"

She cupped his cheek, "Don't worry Jaune, it's a problem all the Arcs have. You're father had so much trouble with his aura you wouldn't believe it. An Arc can't unlock their aura by conventional means, they either must be in trouble or have someone unlock it for them. He figured that out after an unsavory run in with a Ursa."

Jaune blinked at her, "What's an Ursa? ...Actually, I don't care, how do I unlock the aura thing?"

She sighed at his lack of caring what an Ursa was but smiled nonetheless, "You politely ask your mother to do it for you."

Jaune grinned.