Jaune and Ash stood just outside of Beacon's main entrance, illuminated only by a light that was already daring to go out. The sky was still pitch black, near invisible clouds gathered to cover the stars from sight, and seemingly trying to push the sun back to ensure that day would never come. Vale in the distance was still bright, brimming with the nighttime lights. The night breeze was cold and whenever it blew by, the leaves of nearby trees would voice out their discomfort of being forced out from their home. Other than that, there wasn't much else to be heard other than the whistling of the wind when it proved to be stronger than usual; a normal occurrence when all, or in this case most, of Beacon is dead asleep.
Beads of sweat ran down Ash's body while he tried to regain his breath back; the two of them just staring at each other as if curiosities in a museum, with Jaune being the most stunned. Jaune was wearing a pair of black sweat pants, somewhat loosely hanging from his legs and waist. His upper body was covered by a loose yellow shirt almost completely veiled by a black hoodie with a tiny insignia of a rabbit that could appear on children's cereal boxes. Similar to Ash, a pair of black rubber shoes covered his feet. Jaune's hair was slightly swept to the side, covering his left eye a tiny bit, and still slightly damp from the shower he took earlier. His blue eyes were slightly darker than they usually were, and an unusual dejected expression was plastered on his face. However, at the sight of Ash, a look of bewilderment seemed to wash over it all.
"Is something the matter Mister Arc?" Ash asked casually, as if nothing had ever even happened, as if the only strange factor of the meeting was that it was only an hour or so before sunrise. Jaune tried to form words, but his bewilderment got the better of him, only leaving him mumbling a few incoherent mumbles. "Mister Arc, I need you to get a grip. Take a few moments to breathe. I'm well aware I shouldn't be here, but as it turns out, this meeting is most fortuitous."
"Ash? You're back at Beacon," Jaune finally said blatantly after a few minutes of simply wrapping the situation around his head. Ash walked up to the blonde and placed his uncovered hands on Jaune's shoulders, the difference in height immediately becoming obvious. "What are you… Weiss. Team RWBY is going on their mission today, but if it's you then I don't think they'd mind waking up early. Come on."
"Mister Arc," Ash called out, gripping the taller boy's shoulders, keeping him in place and not allowing the blonde to drag him to Team RWBY's dorm room. It only took Jaune a moment to realize that doing such a thing wasn't on the boy's agenda whatsoever. He stopped struggling and Ash loosened his grip. "Thank you. Now, would you happen to know as to where Team LAVA's dorm room is? I need to give Miss Lava back her sword."
"Oh Oum, that's right. Your sister's gonna freak when she finds out you're here," Jaune said excitedly, completely forgetting that no one other than Lava, Weiss, and maybe the faculty, is supposed to know about the fact. Ash's grip loosened to the point that Jaune was able to get out simply just by taking a step back. Jaune turned towards the dorm rooms, ready to run, but stopped when he'd realized what he just said. He turned around towards Ash once more and found him looking back with confusion and slight fear evident on his face. "Ash, we all know. We know that you're a Faunus, that you're a dragon, that Lava is your sister. You don't need to keep hiding yourself from us anymore. You're Ash Valentine, and that's who you'll always be to us."
"I appreciate the kind words Mister Arc," Ash replied, albeit a bit restrained, completely unsure of how he really feels about the revelation. The thought of either Weiss or Lava telling others about his identity was something he'd rather not grace any further, especially when they'd told them in his absence and without his knowing. "I do not plan on staying any longer than I truly have to, therefore all of your acceptance towards my identity isn't something I'd be able to fully come to accept. Perhaps with time, I can."
Without saying another word, the two of them began their small walk towards the dorm rooms. Since no one was supposed to be awake at this time, the halls remained dark as to not disturb its inhabitants. The darkness proved a bit difficult for Jaune to maneuver through and was relegated to using his scroll as a light source while Ash's natural ability as a Faunus granted him full vision even in pitch darkness.
Jaune wanted to question Ash about the past week. Where has he been? What has he been doing? What really happened the night he left? How did he feel about it? He had a myriad of questions for the dragon, but none of them managed to be formed into vocal words. Even if he did somehow manage to say them out loud, there wasn't any guarantee that Ash would be willing to answer them. And even if he did answer them, there was no guarantee that his answers wouldn't be lies. He wanted to trust Ash, but with the amount of times he'd seen him lie, it's almost guaranteed that he'd lie about something like the past week.
However, just like Jaune couldn't necessarily trust Ash, at that moment it was the same the other way around. While Ash was distracted with keeping as quiet as possible, looking around to see if anyone was around so that he could avoid them, Jaune discreetly sent a message, telling her exactly where to go due to a sudden emergency. After he completed his task, Jaune looked to Ash who remained completely oblivious to what the blonde just did. Regret began to build up in Jaune minutes later when Ash decided to speak.
"Mister Arc, is there something on your mind?" Ash asked as quietly as he could, though his voice still echoed throughout the dark, quiet halls. The question slightly stunned the leader. After minutes of pure silence, he found it strange to have a conversation suddenly, especially with someone who wasn't supposed to be there. "You're not the type of person to wake up so early in the day for something as trivial as a nightmare. If you would like, we can take some time to see if I can help. It's the least I could do to repay you for your help."
"I've been training with Pyrrha for a long time now, but it doesn't matter how hard I try, I'm not making progress at all," Jaune confided in him, letting his thoughts and frustration become words. His open hands very quickly turned into tight fists and his teeth began to grind against each other, at the confession. He thought back to the training sessions with Pyrrha and whenever he thought he'd finally gotten close, she very quickly proved him wrong. "I know that she's a champion and all, but
I thought that at the very least I could do something, and maybe even stand a chance. It's not just Pyrrha either it's everyone. Even Cardin, I thought that maybe I'd stand a chance against him, but he always wipes the floor with me."
"Forgive my assumption, but you seem to equate real life to a video game," Ash accused, earning him the leader's attention and curiosity. Ash let out a sigh, when he remembered a time when he thought the exact same thing. He stopped walking and leaned back against a nearby wall, forcing Jaune to do the same and take a position next to him. "There's no such thing as a progress bar that needs to filled up. There's no such thing as leveling up. Whereas in a game, the hero always seems to be getting stronger at every waking moment, if we were to translate the equivalence in progress in real life, it could take months of constant training. As you started late, you're simply playing catch up to the rest."
"So, you're saying that I'll always be behind everyone?" Jaune asked, slowly being drowned in his own self-pity. He slid down the wall, till he was sat down. He'd always thought the same but never wanted to admit it, that's why it was a shock to him to hear from someone else. "You know, I always thought that I was weaker than the rest, I mean, I did sneak my way into Beacon. Guess it wasn't just me who noticed huh?"
Almost immediately, Ash was in front of him, raised his right knee and forced his head up by hitting Jaune's chin with it. When his head was up, Ash grabbed him by the neck and forced him to stand up and seemingly further against the wall. Needless to say, Jaune was stunned by the dragon's actions – that and the knee to the chin definitely made his brain shake in his skull. The look Ash was giving him was one that confused the blonde. It was as if Ash was glaring at him with spite, but at the same time that spite wasn't there – like it never even existed. That glare dared him to say anything back, but just like much of Team RWBY's glares, it silenced him.
"If you dare say something of the sort again, then I shall hit you once more," Ash threatened, his glare telling Jaune all he needed to know that he wasn't joking around. He nodded furiously, agreeing with anything just to get out of the situation. Ash retracted his hand from the blonde's neck and took a single step back. "You may be unable to defeat someone like Mister Winchester, but that is just for this current moment in time. You are still capable of growing stronger, maybe even far more than anyone in Beacon. Also, if you say that you are 'weaker than the rest' then what does that make me? Someone who nearly lost his life against Grimm on several accounts."
"There's a difference between us Ash," Jaune argued, very quickly earning him another strange glare from Ash. He swallowed dryly before he spoke again, hoping that he won't say anything to trigger the dragon to attack him again. "You're already trained, you already know what you're doing, and you just need to—"
"The difference between us is numerous," the dragon interrupted, raising his voice over the blonde's, seemingly no longer caring about the fact that they need to be quiet. "You are human, while I am a Faunus. You have blue eyes, while mine are black. You are you, and I am me. I can continue this list for as long as it takes Mister Arc. But in terms of combat potential, you, I, Miss Nikos, Miss Schnee, Miss Goodwitch, everyone, we are all the same. We are all still improving, will continue to do so till the day we die."
"Let's go give your sister back her sword," Jaune smiled, albeit a bit sorrowful. Without waiting for an answer from the dragon, Jaune began to walk towards the Team LAVA dorm room once more. Ash followed him almost mindlessly, making sure to keep a note at the back of his mind, to continue the conversation with the blonde at a later time.
With Ash behind him, Jaune smiled victoriously, both happy that he was able to get Ash's opinion on his predicament, as well as succeeding in buying some time for the recipient of the message he sent earlier to get to their destination before them. He knew that he would more than likely become the object of Ash's hatred and enmity once he sees her waiting for him in Team LAVA's dorm room, but there's no way he could resist the temptation of helping people make up, especially if both were his friends. His only hope is that sometime down the road, Ash would be able to find it in himself to forgive him for his small treachery at the time.
In mere minutes of utter silence between the two, they found themselves in front of Team LAVA temporary dorm room. Jaune stepped to the side allowing Ash to be the one to knock on the door himself, considering he was the one who had business with the team. He knocked three times and waited in anticipation for the door to open, and much to Ash's surprise, it wasn't any of the members of Team LAVA that opened the door, but Glynda Goodwitch.
Glynda was dressed the way she usually was, a long sleeved pleated top with gauntlet cuffs and a keyhole neckline that looked menacing with her arms crossed in front of her chest. The black pencil skirt she had donned was nearly invisible in the dark lighting, with only the bronze buttons on it ensuring that she was more than just a floating upper body. Her light blonde hair was shining in the tiny bit of moonlight that flooded the room. Her green eyes were glaring at the Ash with her glasses somehow giving her a much more threatening look than her usual strict stoic teacher act.
Behind her was the entirety of Team LAVA, awake and slightly displeasured with the fact that they were woken up early, but the feeling was immediately replaced with shock at the sight of the male Valentine at the door. Lava almost immediately got up from her bed, wide eyed. She would've run to her brother, but the professor currently blocking her from him, had basically called first dibs. Aaron was half analyzing and half glaring at Ash, trying to figure out with a drowsy mind why Ash was there when he was supposed to be back at Atlas with Winter. Aiden was the second to the most awake – with Lava being the first – simply happy to see the pure elation on his leader though was confused to the actual reason why. Valora, the poor girl, was the least awake. She was rocking back and forth on her bed as if she was drunk with an eye mask, completely unaware of what's happening
"Glynda, what are you doing here?" Ash asked in complete disbelief, unable to determine whether it was fear or joy that was overwhelming his body. A part of him wanted to see Glynda, to apologize for what happened, but the fear of her reprehension fought that joy back.
"Jaune told me to come here," she answered, nodding towards the blonde behind Ash. The dragon turned and looked back at Jaune with an expression of betrayal, but the leader held his composure, convinced that what he did was right. He thought about contacting Weiss as well, but he wasn't so sure if Ash would ever forgive him if both Glynda and Weiss showed up unexpectedly. "He was rather vague about the reason why I needed to come here, but now I see what he meant by 'a sudden emergency.'"
"I'm only here to give back this sword, I'll be sure to leave immediately," Ash argued, only to receive stinging slap on the cheek from the professor. Ash and the five students were shocked at the action, and when Ash managed to recover enough for him to look back at the professor, she looked more than ready to deliver another one. "I'm sorry for leaving the way I did, for not giving anyone much of a choice, but please understand that my decision to leave was my own volition. It was my decision as an adult to leave."
"You are only seventeen years old!" Glynda countered, raising her voice in frustration, momentarily not caring that she may have woken up some of her students in other rooms. She pulled the dragon inside and motioned for Jaune to join them, having him close the door, before she continued. "Professor Ozpin once told me to allow you all to enjoy your youth, but here you are telling me that you don't need such a thing."
"It's something I've been doing ever since I was young, so yes, I don't need such a thing," Ash argued back, growing a little frustration himself. Glynda raised her hand again to strike him again, but put it down slowly almost immediately afterwards. "You're free to do so. I give you permission. If anything, you deserve it."
Before anyone could say anything back to him, Lava strode over to the two of them and struck her brother on the cheek with an open palm. Once more Ash's face was forced to the side while everyone else, especially Glynda, was stunned. Ash looked back to his sister, equally stunned, only to receive another slap on the other cheek. Ash recovered faster this time, turning to his sister once more, ready to dodge if she decides to strike him again. Fortunately, she was through hitting him and was satisfied with just glaring at him.
"If she deserves it, then I do too right?" Lava dared her brother to deny her the claim, but got nothing but silence from him. She was angry. Not only did she not get a notice, unlike Glynda who was there when he disappeared, but he also just threatened to just leave again right after. "The first one was for making me worry for over a decade. The second one is for leaving me again without at the very least saying goodbye to me."
"Wait what are you—" Aaron tried to intervene, but there was no way Lava would allow him to interfere between her and her brother.
"Yes, Aaron. He's a dragon like me. He's my brother. He had his wings cut a long time ago. Ash Valentine is actually Vargas Valentine. Are you happy now?" Lava very nearly screamed the revelation accompanying it with a glare at the wolf, successfully and efficiently silencing her partner. She couldn't care less about her reasons on hiding the fact from her teammates anymore. She turned back to Ash, keeping her. "And Vargas, now that I have you back, you think I'm just gonna let you go? Just let you give me my sword back and watch you walk away without even bothering to turn back? I have half a mind telling me to put you in a collar and leash, and leave you tied up to my bed."
"Livia, I'm not giving you a choice in the matter," Ash threatened, glaring back at his sister. He'd imagined his second reunion with her, but not an argument was something he had never even considered. She had the right to be angry, but he had an equal right to choose for himself. "I'm not giving anyone a choice in the matter. Think of me as simply a messenger in the situation. After my business is done here, then I will leave again."
"What about Weiss?" Lava asked, looking him over for any reaction, ready to hit him again if she finds a reaction that she found to be opposite of what he says. He already looked exhausted so she doubted he'd be able to leave immediately, but she wouldn't put it past him to try nevertheless. "Are you just gonna leave without even seeing her? Without even checking up on her to see if she's all right?"
"That is exactly what I plan to do," Ash admitted rather bitterly, fighting his desire to do just as his sister said. Lava noticed the slight hesitation and raised her hand once more and brought it across Ash's cheek. Ash resisted the force, and when her hand left his cheek, he very nearly attacked her back. "Livia! Would you stop hitting me?! Miss Schnee is more than capable of taking care of herself. I don't need to check on her to figure out something that I already know."
"She's been helplessly watching you die in her dreams for the past week!" Lava screamed without a doubt waking people in the next rooms, as well as fully rousing Valora as she ripped her eye mask off, staring wide eyed at the spectacle before her. When Ash wasn't saying anything, Lava's frustration reached its peak. "Why aren't you saying anything now, huh? Tell me, what do you know? What do you think she's capable of? She's slowly breaking down and you think you know everything about her? If you're really gonna leave, then do it after you go see her."
"She's asked me to never appear before her again!" Ash argued back, fully knowing that the argument presented was weak. He knew that she was successfully pushing him into a corner that he cannot escape from, and that she had her team, Glynda, and Jaune to help. Lava glared at him as if expecting something else. Trapped in a room filled with people who're against him, there wasn't much else he could do. "What would you have me do? Disobey her? Tell her that I will look away when she's in trouble and live on for myself? Knock on their door with a full course breakfast and beg them for their forgiveness?"
"YES!" Glynda yelled at the top of her lungs, done with keeping her frustration in check. If there were any students left that were still asleep, or those who tried to go back to it, none were left after Glynda's exclamation. "She only said those things because your damned desire ends in your death. What if she wants to have you there in the future?"
"And you think I don't want the same?" Ash argued back with restrained hostility, daring anyone to go against him. He knew that all that he'd said and done before, including outright saying it, all pointed to the assumption that all he wanted was to die protecting her, but he never knew that no one, not even him, ever guessed the assumption that he wanted to stay with her as well. "You think that I want to leave her side even for a moment. You think that I want her to suffer the same FUCKING FEELING that I felt when I lost my mother?! Even though I want to go to her, I can't do anything! If I stay by her now, I'll just end hurting her again and again and again!"
No one said anything, slightly overwhelmed at Ash's anger and frustration that slowly broke down his usual formal speech. Unconsciously, Ash began to emit a large amount of red smoke from his body. He felt threatened by the people around him, as if they were plotting to hold him down like some rabid animal and put him down for good, but his semblance would ensure him that he'd go down fighting. Aaron, Valora, and Aiden, if they weren't fully awake before, they were surely awake now, ready to fight to the best of their ability against someone who, with his semblance pouring out of his body, is far stronger than their leader and can only get stronger the more they push him to sacrifice more. Luckily, the situation defused to a more manageable one.
"You know what? Forget it. I'm done here," Ash's semblance deactivated as he removed Lava's sword from his back and just tossed it to the side, listening to it clatter on the ground. He turned around and found Jaune between him and the door. Telling Glynda that he was back at Beacon when he wanted to avoid the situation, definitely listed Jaune on Ash's temporary group of enemies, along with the others in the room with them. "Mister Arc, get the hell out of my way or I'll use you to break that damned door down. I have a good enough reason to do that now."
The blonde leader stepped to the side and allowed Ash through the door, slamming it close on the way out, leaving the six people to think about the enemy they'd made that moment. Jaune swallowed dryly at the memory of Ash glaring at him before he left. His glare was filled with disappointment and anger, something that he expected to see when he chose to tell Glynda, but expected or not, it was unsettling, like he truly was in danger. It was a glare that he wouldn't ever forget: the glare of a trapped animal. He looked over to Glynda and Lava, both too stunned or confused to speak, even the rest of Team LAVA looked like they were filled with questions, but out of respect for their leader, didn't let those questions surface as words. He brought his scroll out of his pocket and stared at the screen where an equally confused Ruby Rose was currently displayed.
He'd called her earlier, before the argument even started, and asked her to be silent immediately after she appeared on the screen. At first, she was angry and annoyed at her friend, being forced to leave her bed and dorm room to outside in the halls to complain about being woken up so early in the morning, but immediately understood the situation when she heard Ash's voice. She wanted to wake Weiss up, but a simple headshake 'no' was enough to convince her. There was still no telling what might happen if the two met again, even through a scroll.
"Ruby, I know you guys are going to Mountain Glenn this afternoon, but we have to find Ash," Jaune implored the young girl, receiving an agreeing nod from her. He looked over to Glynda and Team LAVA and found them all wearing an expression of slight unease, and with Glynda and Lava both sharing the same look of guilt. "Ruby and I are gonna look for him. Maybe we can calm him down and reason with him… That is if he hasn't left already. I doubt we'll be able to do a lot, but at least we can try."
"I'll go tell Professor Ozpin that he's here, or he was here," Glynda said with a sigh, dreading the fact that she'd have to wake her fellow professor just in case Ash decided to stay long enough for him to reach a conclusion of what to do. She looked at Lava and found her guilt clearly plastered on her face. She placed a hand on her shoulder to comfort her. "He won't fault us for stating our opinions. It's just built up frustration. Give him some time, he is still just a teenager."
They turned to the sound of the dorm room door, shutting close and found Jaune already gone in search of Ash. Glynda left soon after, her guilt and sorrow of the situation evidently in view of anyone who even sees her in their peripheral. Lava picked up the sword that her brother delivered and went back to her bed with her team just watching her. She pulled the sword from the scabbard and examined the repairs. It looked to be brand new. The blade that was once in two didn't even have a scar of where it once broke and was shining like it had just been recently polished. If she were told that it was just a replacement and he had gotten it by delivery from Mistral, then she more than likely would've believed it.
She looked outside and the sun was still nowhere in sight. She placed the sword back into its scabbard and lied back down on her bed with her weapon. With her wings in the way, she wasn't able to lie down on her back and was relegated to lying down on her side. She hugged her weapon as if it was a teddy bear or another person, her chest feeling tighter as she found the scabbard still warm from her brother's back. It was with that warmth that she soon fell fast asleep.
Ruby got dressed out of her rose themed sleepwear and into a pair of black sweats and a plan white sweatshirt, hoping that it would be enough to ward off the cold as she and Jaune looked for Ash within Beacon grounds. Before she left the room, she turned to the sound she'd gotten used to in the past week. Her partner squirmed slightly in her bed as she was assaulted by another nightmare. She was slightly sweating and moaning something incoherently, as if whatever it was could snap her out of that dream and back into reality. Her blanket was completely off of her, laying in a crumpled lump on the floor like so many other mornings before. She wished she knew a way to help her friend, but gave up when she couldn't even wake her when it all began. She left the room as quietly as she could, headed to the front of the school to meet with Jaune.
Out of worry for her friend, Ruby had been keeping an eye on her even during classes, when she'd usually either sleep or read another volume of X-ray and Vav comic along with Jaune. While Weiss, who was usually studious and even tries her best to stay awake during one of Professor Port's stories, was now more drowsy or asleep in the classes. Her head would continuously drop down only to rise back up immediately, before repeating the process again and again. On times she would completely fall asleep, she'd be inaudibly murmuring something, and when she'd wake up, she'd have the reddest eyes, as if she hadn't slept in weeks.
Ruby was no stranger to nightmares, but she'd never had reoccurring nightmares every time she fell asleep for a week. The idea reminded her of Ash's meditation. In both cases, the individual was difficult to wake up, and depending on what they were seeing, albeit a dream or a memory, they'd be saying something. Unfortunately, in both cases, once the individual had finally awoken, they could be in worse shape that when they were last awake. And in both cases one of them could be seeing the other in the dream, memory, or nightmare.
She heard it a couple nights before. A juice drinking competition with both Jaune and Nora turned out to be the worst idea as she had woken up in the dead of night to use the bathroom with an upset bladder. When she came back out, she could hear her partner having yet another nightmare. She'd been mumbling incoherently except for one time that night: Ash, don't die on me.
When she managed to gather the courage to ask what her dreams were about much later on, she was only met with the vague answer: It was just a nightmare. Of course, she didn't believe it, both parties knew that, but nevertheless it was quickly dismissed for the moment. Ruby would ask two more times afterwards, and on the latest time, she actually told her more than just 'It's nothing.' After successfully waking her up in the middle of one nightmare, one morning, she responded with: I saw someone important to me die. She never mentioned who the person was, hoping that she would be able to leave Ruby guessing that the person was Winter, but Ruby knew better. Ruby didn't ask who the person was, much to Weiss' relief, only hoping that Weiss' reoccurring nightmares would stop when they eventually find Ash, but that would be after their mission to Mountain Glenn. She could only hope that Weiss would be all right for it.
She reached the entrance and found Jaune standing there with an unopened water bottle in hand, but what she found strange wasn't the tiny logo of a rabbit on Jaune's hoodie, but the fact that Ash was right there with him. He was sitting on the ground propped against a wall with his legs stretched out in front of him, looking rather uncomfortably, seemingly asleep with his head down. Sweat was evident on his forehead, neck, and arms despite the cold air that surrounded Beacon, as if he had just ran for miles on end.
Jaune took notice of her and turned to her with a restrained smile before directing his gaze back at the dragon on the ground. She soon stood beside her fellow leader, staring at Ash as well.
"So you told her too," Ash said with his gaze remaining directed at the ground below him, his voice was rather strained from the position; it sounded angry, and most evident of all, completely tired. Jaune nodded once even though he knew that Ash couldn't see him. "Who else have you told? Who else is looking for me?"
"Miss Goodwitch is on her way to tell Professor Ozpin," Jaune explained, feeling sorry for the dragon. He couldn't think of much else to make the day worse for his runaway friend, other than having Weiss with them at that moment, that being the main reason why he didn't want Ruby to wake her partner up. "Other than that, there's no one else. We could've told Weiss too, but we wanted to know what you think first."
"Haven't I already told you?" Ash countered, his voice grew more angry than tired for that moment, but reverted back to a more tired state, with the anger seemingly dissipated into thin air. In the end, he would give up and explain for Ruby's sake. "I want to stay with her, if that wasn't obvious enough to begin with. No one really, ever, wants to die. But in the end, if only one of us must die, then I will do my damned best to ensure that is her who lives. Other than that, I want to see the future with her, even if it's only as a servant."
"What do you mean by that?" Ruby asked, though she already knew what the answer was. She remembered to the first night after they all first met Ash, Weiss' most recent birthday. She had thought that she'd only dreamt it, but now she knew different.
"You're no longer a child, Miss Rose," Ash said, nearly laughing, though admittedly bitter and regretful. He finally raised his head and looked at her. His gaze was dark. His sclera was red and his black irises and pupils seemed more prominent as it prodded her silver eyes to reach her soul, as if seeking a challenge. "I'm sure you both already know. I'm sure that everyone already knows. I adore her so much more than I ever should. I AM IN LOVE WITH WEISS SCHNEE!"
The proclamation echoed throughout the early morning sky, as if an alarm for the dawn, the sun peeked out from the horizon, gracing the continent of Vale with the first few moments of the twilight. There wasn't much either leader could say at that moment. They both were able to guess as much before, but it was only at that time when the fact became something that was surreal, and both had to wonder how the heiress would react if she'd heard it.
"Are the two of you happy now?" he asked spitefully with teeth, fangs and all, bared at the two in front of him. Once more, Jaune saw him as a trapped animal, only much more vicious than before, as if he would tear out their throats if they pushed him any further than they already have, if it was even possible at all. "After all this time, you've finally heard the truth. Now the two of you can be rest assured that all I've done for her branches from that fact! Oh joy to the damned world!"
Ash breathed in deep, trying regain any breath he lost from the unneeded explanation. He pushed himself up from the ground and began his long walk back to the village with the Sterling's, only to be blocked by Ruby, who activated her semblance to get in front of him. She was glaring at him as best she could, but her innocence worked against her; at best, her glare could unnerve a puppy for a few moments before it began to lick her hand.
"Then before you go, at least see Weiss one time, please," she pleaded, her glare very quickly turning into a soft stare, begging for her request to be fulfilled. When Ash made no notion of accepting and only tried to push past her, she got in his way again with her arms stretched out to her sides, as if it would help guard his way. "She keeps having nightmares, about you. I don't know what she's seeing exactly, but she's just watching you die. She hasn't been herself lately because of it."
"And what do you want me to do about it?" Ash asked, already in the process of taking of his shirt to show the two that Weiss' dreams and real life aren't that much different at all. Ruby was rather uncomfortable about seeing someone who isn't family with their top off, but in this case, she couldn't look away. Pale lines littered Ash body. Even with the small undershirt he wore to hide his wings, anyone could easily tell that the number of fresh scars are in copious amounts. "Wouldn't you know it, I very nearly lost my life the day after I left Beacon. Six Beowolves and two Ursai, I only managed to kill one Beowolf and put up a failure of a fight for a minute before they managed to do this to me. I'm only alive now because of a few people managed to save me, and even then, even after they had managed to close my wounds, I was still at Death's door."
"But it doesn't change the fact that you're alive now," Jaune countered as Ash put the white shirt back on. Usually, Jaune wouldn't even try to argue with Ash due to the difference in ability to lie, but he was more confident, especially when Ash seemed to be breaking down, overwhelmed by exhaustion and frustration. "She can barely stay awake in classes anymore because she can't get a lot of sleep, and later today they're all going to Mountain Glenn, what do you think could happen if she can't stay awake there?"
Ash let out a sigh before walking up to the blonde. He shot him a glare for a moment before he snatched the water bottle from his hand and entering Beacon once more. Ruby flashed a thankful smile at Jaune before the two of them followed their friend. In the few minutes that it took them to get to the dorms, Ash had already finished the bottled water, now looking for a bin to dispose of it. He passed by the Team RWBY dorm room, causing a bit of confusion in Ruby and Jaune. As quietly as he could, he broke the tumbler and entered the room that was once his.
The room hasn't changed much ever since he left; actually it hasn't changed at all. The windows and curtains were still closed; he figured his clothes were still in the closet and drawers; even the hoodie he left on the bed was still there, gathering dust.
He seemingly ignored everything else and headed to one of the drawers, pulling out a notebook that remained mostly blank in his time at Beacon. He found a pen and went to the study desk, sitting down on it to begin writing. He stopped writing for a second, feeling two sets of breathing on his shoulders, he cleared his throat once and the two pulled back from their position and allowed their friend to write in peace. Five minutes later, he stood up once more and searched the drawers, pulling out his usual pair of gloves. He went back to the desk once more and folded the piece of paper into a paper airplane. He stood up with the paper plane and paired gloves in hand and headed out the door along with the two leaders.
They made their way to the Team RWBY dorm room, and Ruby allowed Ash in. The dragon went up to the heiress, who was still squirming in her sleep, suffering through nightmares, which she can't control. He kneeled down in front of her, brushed his hand against her left cheek, slightly sticky with sweat, and let out a dreary sigh.
"Miss Schnee," Ash called out in a whisper as he tried to wake her up with light shakes on her shoulder. She didn't wake up, but let out a moan and shook his hand off. At first, he assumed that she was better now, but her brows crunched together and sweat still beading down her cheeks said otherwise. "Don't make me do something I might regret. Just wake up already."
"I tried waking her up before, but she wouldn't," Ruby told him simply watching him try his best to relieve the heiress from her nightmares. Ash hummed in thought, taking in the new piece of information into account. "It's kinda like you when you were meditating."
"Damn you, Schnee, tempting me this far," Ash muttered out loud before leaning down to embrace the girl as best he could, getting in close to her left ear as his position would allow him. There, he whispered in her ear, so that only she would be able to hear him, even though she was in deep slumber, "It's all right, Weiss. Don't be afraid. Come find me after you return. I'll prove to you that you will never have to worry about me. I'll defeat any Grimm set before me. And I'll show you what you truly mean to me. Please, don't keep me waiting."
He pulled back and found the white haired girl, no longer squirming, no longer worried, no longer afraid. He smiled and took her hands in his; carefully placing them in the black gloves he used to wear. Once done, he took the paper airplane and placed it in front of her, by her pillow, so that when she finally wakes, it'd be the first thing she sees. He stood up and turned to the two leaders, having successfully fulfilled the request presented to him. They smiled at him, silently thanking him for doing what he did. The three of them quietly snuck out of the room and closed the door shut, to ensure that the rest of Team RWBY wouldn't accidently wake up should they hear them.
"Thanks Ash," Ruby was first to speak, only receiving a nod from Ash in return. The dragon's scowl from Beacon's entrance returned, seemingly displeased that he was forced to disobey the heiress' final words to him so early. "We'll let Weiss sleep in. Oum knows she deserves the good sleep."
"I didn't do it for free Miss Rose," he replied, directing his attention back to the blonde. The actions left the leaders confused, and unnerved Jaune. They all knew about Ash's ability to make deals with shady people like Junior, that's why when he expected some sort of payment it would be something none of them could refuse. "Mister Arc, when will your team be deployed for your mission?"
"In a couple days, why?" Jaune answered, more confused to what the dragon had planned.
"Well isn't that a pleasant thing to hear," Ash said mischievously. A small and victorious grin along with an unnerving glare formed on his face making it seem like a hero turned villain in some fantasy. Jaune took a step back, barely able to guess what Ash wanted. "As payment, for today and for tomorrow, or rather, until you and your team have been deployed to your mission, I will be your training partner instead of Miss Nikos. Of course, you'd have to be the one to tell her."
"Wait, what? What's that going to—" Jaune tried to argue, but was quickly interrupted by the dragon.
"Weren't you the one that said you hardly feel like you've been improving?" Ash asked for obvious clarification. Jaune nodded slowly, now finding the cornered animal, cornering him instead. "That may be because you've gotten used to Miss Nikos' fighting capability. It'll do you good to go up against someone else with a different fighting style. And you'd best prepare yourself Mister Arc, since this will be training for me as well, I might not hold back."