Forever Fall PT2

The dirt stings as it flies into Jaune's eyes, the brown specs also catching in his normally bright blonde hair, some even compacting under his nails as he tries to push himself up. He groans a second later when the weight is taken off his arms, a large hand hauling him back up. He tries to wriggle free, but the grip is firm. A fist slams into his gut, knocking the wind out of him as his feet leave the ground. Jaune pries at his assailant's wrist but his attempt is so feeble he gets knocked back into the dirt.

"Not your smartest choice Jaune." Cardin sneers, cracking his knuckles menacingly. His team quickly surround Jaune. They laugh and jeer slightly as Cardin steps astride Jaune's smaller figure, roughly grabbing him by the bottom of his hood and easily lifting him to eye level. "I'm gonna make sure they send you home in teeny tiny pieces, Momma's boy." He snarls, his darkened eyes drilling into Jaunes slightly dazed ones.

"I don't care what you do to me…" Jaune coughs, his bruises making him wince as he does so. "But you are not messing with my friends." He scowls, his ocean blue eyes full of defiance. His jaw aches from just those few words and he pushes his tongue around to check he still has all his teeth.

"Ha, do you think talk like that makes you tough? That you're all big and strong now?" Cardin scoffs, lifting Jaune even higher, glaring more menacingly at him. Jaune's head lolls, rolling down before righting itself; He stares past Cardin, and smiles. Cardin growls and drives his fist at Jaune's face, only to reel back immediately, crying out in pain and clutching his hand.

Jaune blinks and gasps with contentment as every ounce of pain in his body vanishes. He looks down at his hands, seeing them glow brightly with aura, the light ebbing as he reaches up to touch his black eye, feeling only smooth skin when he does. A boot to the back abruptly halts his moment of wonder. He turns back to look at Cardin, teeth bared, fists balled as the bully steps closer.

"Let's see just how tough you really are." Cardin grins, drawing back his foot to kick Jaune. He stops at a sharp whistling sound, flicking his eyes from side to side as he tries to pinpoint where it's coming from. "Gah, what the fu-" He exclaims as Surtur shoots into his face, scratching, biting, and breathing out miniature flames. Cardin's team scramble at the wyvern's sudden appearance.

Jaune just smiles.

CRDL try to swat Surtur away but he crawls around Cardin's head, biting at their hands and shooting small jets of fire to ward them off. He snaps down on the bully's earlobe, gaining a satisfying cry of pain. But Cardin's cry is overshadowed by a sudden and monstrous roar. They all freeze; Surtur with his jaws still clamped around Cardin's ear, as a humongous Ursa tears out of the trees, the ground shaking as it stomps to a stop in front of them. It growls deeply, rearing up on its hind legs and sniffing the air, its glowing red eyes coming to focus on Cardin, and the sap that still coats his chest.

It is the largest Ursa they've ever seen. Standing easily over twelve feet tall, its maw filled with long jagged teeth, its hulking body protected by knobbly white bone plates that create a primitive armour, with tall spikes jut from its shoulder blades, forming a deadly maze down to the small of its back. Its huge paws pound the ground as it returns to all fours and lets loose another ear-splitting roar.

Russel, Dove and Sky all bolt, shouting and screaming as they thunder past Jaune and back towards the field trip. Cardin stands terrified, literally shaking in his boots as the Grimm bears down on him. Surtur releases his ear and flaps up just before the monster bats Cardin aside, the Wyvern soaring over to hover next to Jaune. The huge black beast studies them both for a second, but ultimately huffs and turns back to his prey, Cardin.

"Stay back!" Cardin shouts, brandishing his mace.

The Ursa only growls and knocks the mace from Cardin's hands, sending it tumbling into the dirt at Jaune's feet. Jaune looks down at the mace, then back at Cardin, he flicks his eyes from Cardin to the direction his team fled, debating what to do. Surtur squawks at him, flapping up and hovering beside his head, impatient for his decision, ready to flee or fight.

Eliza is happily chatting to Pyrrha, the two girls having already discussed a wide range of topics, from politics to combat to fashion. There isn't much else to do as they wait for the final jars to fill. Pyrrha is in the middle of telling Eliza how much she envies her year in the field. Asking about getting to travel around the kingdoms and how she wishes more than anything to do the same, when Eliza quickly stands up, suddenly alert and peering through the dense trees around them. She cocks her head and looks to the ridge, where Jaune and CRDL had been earlier.

"Something's wrong…" She mutters, halting Pyrrha's questions instantly. Less than a second later there's a distant roar, everyone looking up from what they are doing at the sound. Eliza flicks her eyes to Theodore; He has a hand to his crinkled forehead, looking like he's shaking off a daze.

"You all heard that too, right?" Ruby asks, looking around at her friends. She almost drops the jar she's holding when Russel shoots out of the trees and right past her, Dove and Sky sprinting close behind, all panting like dogs as they run.

"Ursa! Ursa!" Russel yells, looking back over his shoulder as he runs through the group, slamming to a stop when he hits Yang.

"Where?" Yang demands, lifting the skinny boy off the ground as he struggles to catch his breath.

"Back there," he stammers, "it's got Cardin." His feet flail as he wriggles in Yang's grip.

"What about-" Theodore begins.

"Jaune!" Pyrrha gasps, realising the situation and immediately drawing her xiphos sword and shield. She looks back at the forest as Ruby orders Blake and Yang to get Miss Goodwitch. "You two go with them, there could be more Grimm nearby." Pyrrha orders Ren and Nora as she runs off towards the roars and distant screaming with Ruby, Weiss, Eliza, and Theodore in tow.

'He just can't seem to stay out of trouble… him or Cardin.' Theodore thinks as he darts through the undergrowth, scanning for Surtur or any sign of other Grimm.

A cold tension fills them as the group sprints through the forest, the roars now accompanied by a distant voice. They get to the edge of a large clearing, quickly spotting Cardin and a humongous Ursa, just in time to see the giant Grimm bring its claws down on Cardin. They fear it's too late, but Jaune swiftly appears between them, stopping the Ursa's mighty swing with his shield.

He struggles against the power of the Ursa's arm, his boots digging into the dirt as it bears down harder on him. He slowly sinks, knees bending as he strains to keep the shield up. The others move to step in but Pyrrha holds up her hand. Theodore pauses, umbrella already aimed at the Ursa, cocking an eyebrow at her.

"Wait." She orders them.

"For what, him to get-"

Eliza is cut off as Jaune rallies, swiping the monster's paw away and slashing up its chest. It staggers back in surprise, retaliating with a wide swipe; The Grimm aims to crush Jaune, but he rolls to the side. The Ursa swipes lower, forcing Jaune to jump over its paw. Again it is quick to swipe with its other paw and would have knocked him out of the air if Surtur hadn't shot a fireball into its eye. Roaring in pain, the monster brings a paw to its singed face, swatting wildly at Surtur with the other. Surtur loops around its thick arm and swiftly zips through the spines on its back, releasing jets of flame as he does so.

This distraction gives Jaune time to steady himself and plunge his sword into the Ursa's side. But its body is too thick for the sword to do any real damage. He wrenches the blade free and raises his arm for another attack but gets swatted back like Cardin was. Theodore looks at Pyrrha, wondering what she's up to as Jaune goes sprawling across the ground. Pyrrha's expression remains one of quiet confidence, so he turns back to the fight, keeping his umbrella prepared just in case.

Jaune quickly gets back on his feet. He releases a yell and flies at the Ursa, aiming for its throat, but it rears up and slams into him with one of its giant paws. Surtur tries to distract it again but is almost caught in its sharp teeth when it quickly snaps at him. Jaune regains his bearings, shaking off the pain he looks at the Ursa, ready to leap back in. But his scroll beeps behind his shield and he sees his aura is in the red, causing him to pause, but only for a second.

Surtur appears next to him as he takes a deep breath and plants his feet, steadfast as the Ursa growls at him. Time slows for a second, both man and monster eyeing each other as they snarl. Jaune twirls his sword, letting out a mighty war cry before he charges at the Grimm; it does the same, claws bared and a mighty roar in its throat as they thunder toward each other.

Theodore analyses the scene, watching the Ursa rear above Jaune, claws poised to end him. As the two come within striking distance, he and the others all see that Jaune's flank is exposed and Surtur won't get a fireball off in time to deter the Ursa's strike. Theodore, Eliza, Ruby and Weiss all raise their weapons in panic… or they try to as a shifting black field suddenly surrounds their weapons, preventing their intervention.

Pyrrha's confident smirk falters, her eyes narrowing as she raises her hand, the same strange black field appearing around it. Theodore and the others watch in amazement as Jaune's shield is surrounded by the same field; it raises his shield just in time to deflect the Ursa's attack, seemingly of its own volition. The Ursa's deadly claws graze harmlessly off it and Jaune plants his feet, crying out as he strikes upward with his sword. A few seconds of silence go by before a thump echoes in the clearing, the Grimm's head falling to the earth, its glowing eyes fading to empty black sockets; Another louder crash heralds the collapse of its huge body, joining its head in the dirt.

"Uhh, what just happened?" Ruby asks, looking from Jaune to Pyrrha.

Pyrrha lowers her hand with a relieved smile, the black field around it disappearing. She stares at Jaune as he stands in tired bewilderment at his victory. She lets out a slow breath as Surtur flaps down and perches on the edge of Jaune's shield, stretching out his neck as Jaune mumbles a thank you.

"How did you…?" Weiss looks at Pyrrha, her eyes wide in amazement.

"Well, Ruby has her speed, you have your glyphs… my semblance is polarity." Pyrrha explains, looking between the two girls. She then looks back at Theodore and Eliza, hoping they'll reveal their semblances as well, instead they both shift uncomfortably, causing her to frown in disappointment.

"Sooo, you control poles. Woah." Ruby mumbles, not quite understanding but still in awe of what Pyrrha did. She hears Theodore chuckle quietly behind her and immediately wracks her brain for a new answer, her silver eyes frantically looking to the sky in hopes of finding one before...

"No, you dunce, it means she can control anything magnetic." Weiss corrects her with an exasperated scoff of superiority, sheathing her rapier.

"Magnets are cool too…" Ruby mumbles.

"I believe the scientific term is Magnetokinesis, the control of magnetic fields. Fascinating… and yes Ruby, very cool." Theodore tells them, looking between Weiss and Ruby. His lips twitch into a smile when he looks briefly at Cardin, who is still speechless as he watches the Ursa slowly evaporate.

"Nerd." Eliza throws at him, giving a self-satisfied smirk when his brows furrow.

Theodore holds the mock frown for a moment before shifting his attention to Pyrrha. "Although it would have been nice to know you had a plan." He says, cocking an eyebrow at her as she awkwardly rubs the back of her neck with a slightly sheepish grin.

Pyrrha turns to look at Jaune one last time. "I had faith." She replies before turning to head back the way they came.

"Wait, where are you going? We need to tell them what happened." Weiss says, gesturing to Jaune and Cardin.

"We could… or perhaps we could just make it our little secret." Pyrrha suggests, nodding toward Jaune proudly holding his head up as he sheathes his sword. The others look from Pyrrha to Jaune, sharing a smile at the change in his posture, now much more confident than that of the struggling swordsman mope he'd been in.

"Keep what our little secret?" Eliza asks raising a conspiratorial eyebrow at Pyrrha. She shoulders her bow as Pyrrha sighs happily at the silent consent of the others. Eliza heads off with the others in tow, noticing after a few paces that Theodore isn't following, she turns back to see he is still watching Jaune.

Theodore is invisible to Jaune as he walks over to Cardin, stopping right in front of the bully, ignoring the small cuts and bruises once again plastered over his face. The two stare at each other for a long second. Cardin's look as he lifts his head is unsure, not a look Jaune has seen on him before. Finally, Jaune stretches out his hand.

Cardin's face floods with relief and he takes Jaune's hand, pulling himself to his feet. "Holy shit, Jaune." He breathes, looking back at the dead Ursa with an almost giddy smile. It disappears when the pressure on his hand increases and he whirls back around to see Jaune's dark scowl.

"Don't mess with my team, or my friends, ever again." Jaune orders, looking Cardin straight in the eye. Surtur hops up to his shoulder, adding his own snarl and seeping black smoke from beneath his pointy teeth. "Got it?" Jaune adds, holding his glare. Cardin stands in subdued silence for a second before nodding with a modicum of respect.

'Not bad Jaune, not bad at all…' Theodore muses proudly, a contented smirk on his face. His eye moves to follow Surtur as he soars over the trees, turning back to walk towards the field trip when he loses sight of him. A gentle weight lands on his shoulder, followed a few seconds later by a shuffling of wings. He scratches Surtur's neck and takes one last look back at Jaune, who is now marching away from Cardin, leaving the bully alone in the clearing.

The wind gently rumples Jaune's hair as he stands on the dorm roof, looking out across the campus to Ozpin's tower once more. Though tonight his mood is lighter, his gaze much more focused as he takes a deep breath of the clean night air, contentedly watching the clouds rolling across the sky and the stars twinkling behind the distant tower. He shuts his eyes for a moment and absorbs the moment.

"No Cardin tonight?" Pyrrha asks, stepping up beside him. "I thought you two were best buds." She says sardonically, fixing her eyes on the horizon.

Jaune opens his eyes, he wants to explain but is awkward around Pyrrha. He turns to face her and relaxes immediately when he sees the softness and concern in her bright green eyes.

"I… I'm sorry Pyrrha." He tells her. "You tried to help me, and I pushed you away because I thought… I had this stupid macho stuff in my head and-"

"Jaune, it's ok." Her words instantly putting him at ease. They pause for a moment and look into each other's eyes, gentle smiles on their faces. "Your team really misses their leader you know? You should come down." She turns and walks back towards the roof door. "Ren made pancakes." She sings over her shoulder with a happy smile.

"Wait!" Jaune rushes after her, stretching a hand out when she stops and looks back at him. "I know that I don't deserve it after what happened but… Would you still be willing to help me? to train me?" His face contorts with worry when Pyrrha turns back to the door; little does he know she's smirking.

Pyrrha puts on a confident, no nonsense mask and struts back to Jaune, enjoying the surprise and happy realisation in his eyes. Once she's within arm's length, she gives him a hard shove, pushing him onto his backside.

"Hey!" He exclaims, looking up at her happy smirk with confusion.

"Your stance is all wrong," she tells him, "you need to have a wider stance and be lower to the ground." She offers him a hand, which he gladly takes. "Care to try that again?" Pyrrha asks Jaune after a few seconds.

And so, for the next hour she trains Jaune, going over the basics and correcting his mistakes. Most of them are small, but experience has taught Pyrrha not to tolerate them, which she makes sure to impart to Jaune, or tries to at least.

Jaune rubs his arm as they head back to the dorm, already knowing he'll feel the results of this first training session in the morning. He'd landed on it awkwardly during the session, having been taken off his feet again more than once, either by his own fault or by Pyrrha herself. He knew he had a long way to go, but then again he thinks everyone would feel that way if they were trained by Pyrrha, even if they weren't starting from scratch like him.

"So, how'd I do?" He finally asks.

"It was a good start, but don't go thinking you're a master combatant just yet." Pyrrha responds, smiling happily at her leader. He chuckles, causing her giggle, thinking about how much she'd missed his smile. They hear chatting as they come to their dorm door, light and flickering shadows shining from under the crack. She gestures for him to go first.

"Ladies first." Jaune responds. Pyrrha rolls her eyes and heads inside, being greeted by Nora immediately.

"Hey, Pyrrha!" She says, already in her nightshirt and shorts as she swings her feet over the side of her bed. Her eyes sparkle when Jaune walks in. "Jaune! You're back, looks like you won't miss the pancakes this time!" She beams happily, rushing over to give him a quick, bone-crushing, hug before promptly going to watch Ren at their hob, another batch of pancakes already on for her. This hob being just a pair of heat pads set up on one of the dressers.

"Hello Jaune, good to have you back." Ren tells him, a small smile on his face as he looks up. He blows a strand of hair out of his face as Jaune nods, making his way over to the beds, but stopping as Ren speaks again. "Oh, and there's something for you on your desk." He says, turning back to check on the pancakes.

Jaune cocks an eyebrow, intrigued, as he knows Cardin isn't going to send him any more of his work. He walks over and sees a stack of books, each with at least twelve bookmarks sticking out of it. More curious is the note that rests atop them. He picks it up and flicks it open, a small smile of surprise coming to his face as he reads it.

Do five pages a day and you can have your current essay on Professor Oobleck's desk by next Tuesday. I've taken the liberty of acquiring the necessary books from the library and bookmarking the relevant information, the rest is up to you. Try not to fall behind again.

-Theodore

Jaune chuckles to himself, he goes to bed feeling much more confident about his place at Beacon, knowing his friends are there to help him every step of the way.

Hello! Here is the second part of the Forever Falls two-parter! I would have uploaded it sooner, seeing as it is a two-parter, but I got swamped in work and had to delay it a little. Sorry.

Anyway, as always thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed this chapter and continue to enjoy the story going forward. Any and all comments, reviews, and criticism is greatly appreciated and encouraged.

Have a good day and Happy Holidays!