Disclaimer: RWBY is an animated series created by Rooster Teeth. The cover image for this story is a screenshot from the Volume 8 opening.

The dead werewolf was disintegrating pretty quickly. Even as I was picked up and carried back into the house, my mind felt numb as I replayed what had just happened in my head. How did Jaune's father move that quickly? He jumped out of a second story window and cleared the hundred-foot distance to me in less than two seconds. That's an inhuman level of speed. And why did he use a sword? A gun would be a much more efficient weapon, but I guess Jaune's dad is somehow strong enough to decapitate a werewolf with one swing in addition to having super speed.

I was dimly aware of Jaune's mother crushing me in a hug, but I was more focused on thinking about the apparent existence of the supernatural. Jaune's father reacted incredibly quickly once he first saw the werewolf. Does that mean he has experience dealing with them? Is that what Jaune's sister meant by "fighting monsters"? That implies that the rest of Jaune's family is at least tangentially aware of the existence of werewolves.

Come to think of it, that thing barely looked like a conventional werewolf. Sure, it was a large, humanoid wolf, but it was jet black and covered in bone. Are they even weak to silver like traditional werewolves? Jaune's dad using a sword would make sense if these werewolves are resistant to bullets, but I can't tell if the sword is made of silver or steel.

At this point I realized that Jaune's parents were speaking to each other in hushed tones even as they held on to me like they never wanted to let go. I had missed the first part of their conversation because I was too busy daydreaming about fantasy monsters, but hopefully I would be able to glean some information.

"I'm just glad I hadn't left the house yet. I can barely believe a Grimm actually made it all the way here…" said Jaune's father.

"Why did this even happen? There hasn't been a Grimm attack here in years!" Jaune's mother tearfully asked as she clutched me to her chest.

Jaune's father gave her a worried look. "That's the thing, Junie. There shouldn't be Grimm this close to civilization. It would take an enormous amount of negative emotions to lure one all the way here, and I doubt any of us are the source."

There was a lot to unpack there. First off, the werewolf was apparently a "Grimm," which I'm pretty sure is a type of black dog from various fairy tales. And apparently they're attracted to negativity? How does that even work? What qualifies as a "negative" emotion?

My train of thought crashed to a halt as I faintly remembered all the breakdowns I've had today, including right before the Grimm appeared.

This whole thing might be my fault in the first place.

I was pulled out of my self-recrimination by Jaune's sister Jade approaching her parents and me. She wormed her way into the hug I was already trapped in and clung to me so tightly it almost hurt.

"I thought you were gonna die…" she sobbed.

I guess watching me nearly die was pretty traumatic for her. She was the only one who didn't run inside after all. If it really is my fault that I got attacked in the first place, then it's also my fault that I terrified and traumatized these people. Now I feel like even more of an asshole.

Wait, self-loathing probably counts as a negative emotion. I need to think about something else before I summon another monster.

"What was that thing?" I asked quietly.

Crap, I shouldn't have said that. Jaune might already know, and an actual child should be screaming and crying now, not trying to satisfy their curiosity.

Thankfully, Jaune's dad chose to answer my question instead of getting suspicious. "That was a Beowolf, one of the creatures of Grimm."

I looked up at him. I guess "creatures of Grimm" are a normal thing around here? Jaune's sisters seemed more scared for my safety than shocked about the existence of a monster, so that confirmed my theory that the rest of Jaune's family were aware of these things.

And apparently that thing was called a "Beowolf"? Seriously? I almost broke my cover and cracked a smile at that terrible joke. I guess I was a fan of puns before I became Jaune.

Wait, I can think about puns later. Right now I need to learn about the deadly monsters.

"How did you kill it?" I asked. My voice was shaky for some reason; I'd deal with that later.

He gave me a wry smile. "I'm a Huntsman, remember? It's my job to keep us all safe from monsters like the Grimm."

I didn't remember that he was a "Huntsman" for fairly obvious reasons, but I still had more questions. "How did you move that fast? You moved nearly two-hundred feet in less than-" I cut myself off. The real Jaune wouldn't be interested in granular details like that, and I can't break character. And hopefully these people don't use the Metric system. They sound American, but I don't want to make a glaring mistake like that.

Thankfully Jaune's father just smiled and said "That was my Semblance. I'll tell you all about it later. For now, I'm going to go make sure we're all safe and sound. Listen to your mother, alright?" He pat my head before walking out the door with his hand on the hilt of his sword, presumably to kill any more monsters that show up.

Still clutching me to her chest, Jaune's mother said "Girls, why don't you come hug your brother."

And with that, Jaune's sisters began smothering me in affection.

I don't know how long I stayed in that room, surrounded by a family in the body of their brother and son.

At some point, Amber the baby started crying. Jaune's mother cleared her throat. "Girls, I know you're worried about your brother, but he needs some rest now." She lifted me up again to carry me to Jaune's room. After tucking me in and placing a kiss on my forehead, she hurried off to tend to her baby.

I have no clue what time it is, but I'm exhausted. Waking up before dawn and spending all day full of adrenaline apparently takes a lot out of you. Sleep took me the moment my eyes fell shut.

When I woke up again, Jaune's father was sitting in a chair beside my bed. I guess he delayed going on his monster-killing trip?

Either way, he somehow noticed that I was finally awake. "How are you holding up, son?"

"Good," I yawned. "What time is it?"

He chuckled. "It's a little after midnight, now. You slept for quite a while. I have to leave on a mission in a few hours, but I wanted to see you before I left."

This might be my last chance to get some of my questions answered, so I decided to ask them now. "Tell me how you killed the Beowolf."

He gave me a faint smile. "I used my Semblance. It lets me charge forward very quickly. Then all I had to do was protect you."

"What's a Semblance?"

He gave me an inquisitive look. "What's with all the questions?"

Shit. I needed an excuse for my questions. Before I could stop myself, I blurted "I don't want to be scared again." I surprised myself a little when I realized I was telling the truth when I said that. I already said it, though, so I'd better keep talking. "I want to be able to do what you can."

"You know you're a little young to be dreaming about being a hero, right?" he chuckled. "A Semblance is a personal power you get from your Aura."

At my questioning look, he continued. "Your Aura is the manifestation of your soul. Everyone has it, even animals. It makes Huntsmen like your dear old dad stronger and faster so we can protect everyone from the Grimm."

"What are Grimm?"

Maybe he heard the urgency in my tone, because he answered immediately. "The Grimm are beings of darkness; they hate all life and are drawn to negative emotions life fear and anger. Beowolves are just one type of Grimm."

"And Huntsmen are the ones who kill the Grimm?"

Seeing his nod, I asked my next question. "How did you become a Huntsman?"

He paused to think for a moment. "Tell you what, Jaune. Once you're older, we can talk about it then. For now, though, you're too young to be making such a big commitment. Aura is a big responsibility."

Jaune's father stood up and glanced at his watch. He leaned in to kiss my forehead before ruffling my hair for some reason.

"I'll see you later, son. Behave, okay?" After waiting for my nod, he walked out of Jaune's room.

Once I had the room to myself, I looked out the window dramatically and started (over)thinking again.

Getting Aura sounds incredibly important. Jaune's dad won't always be around to protect me. If the Grimm are common around here (wherever here is), then being able to defend myself from them would be a very good idea. On a darker note, if anyone finds out I'm not actually Jaune, then I might need to be able to defend myself from other humans.

And honestly, why wouldn't I want to superpowers? Aura sounds amaz—wait a minute. I'm not actually Jaune. I'm just possessing his body. Am I just a soul? Is Jaune's soul still here? Would I have weird Aura or even any aura at all? Could I get outed as a body snatcher by my Aura (or lack thereof)?

My fantasizing about superpowers was interrupted when the clouds in the night sky passed to reveal the moon.

Huh. I don't remember the moon being in fucking pieces the last time I saw it.

Maybe I'm in shock at this point, because I don't feel another breakdown coming on. At this point, I'm numb to everything being thrown at me.

What the hell hit the moon hard enough to shatter it? Why is it so close? And why are the pieces staying in place like that? Why haven't they crashed down to Earth yet? Do the tides still work?

Actually, hold on. Where and when am I? I'm either on another planet, in the future, on in another universe entirely. I'm leaning towards option three right now; Jaune's family is way too similar to normal American humans, and I doubt monsters and superpowers would be a thing in the future of the Earth I (sort of) remember. For now, I'll assume that I'm in some weird fantasy universe.

I still need to gather more information before I commit to any course of action. need to get my hands on some books so see if I can learn more about Huntsmen, Aura, Grimm, and whatever world I'm in. Hopefully this house has some useful books in it.

But for now, I need more sleep. Four-year-old bodies apparently don't have much endurance.

It was now morning and I was eating the same disgusting cereal again. Jaune's mother was acting like a textbook helicopter parent, but I couldn't be angry at her for it. After what I inadvertently put this family through, I'll put up with a lot to make amends.

As long as those amends don't include telling them that I possessed their child.

Jaune's parents had declared that no one would be playing outside for the foreseeable future (for fairly obvious reasons), so all of the children dispersed to different parts of the house. I watched my first target, Marine, walk towards her room. She mentioned books yesterday; if I can get my hands on those, I'll hopefully be able to learn common knowledge that Jaune should already know.

With that in mind, I walked to her room and knocked on the closed door.

"Come in!" she called.

When I entered the room, the first thing I noticed was the stacks of books. Most seemed typical for a six-year-old, but a few looked more advanced. Marine herself was lying on her bed with her nose in a book. Her glasses were currently off; I filed her probable nearsightedness away as information I might need later.

She looked up at me and raised an eyebrow questioningly. "What is it, Jaune?" she asked.

"Can I see some of your books?" I replied.

She gave me a weird look. "Since when can you read?"

Well, crap. Jaune is supposed to be illiterate. That's a big problem.

Thinking quickly, I made up a plausible answer. "I want to read books like you do." Hopefully she'd buy it.

She frowned. "The last time I gave you one of my books, you drew in it with crayons. You can play pretend with your own books. I'm not making the same mistake twice."

Damn it, Jaune.

After failing to acquire books, I left Marine's room and was immediately ambushed by Mocha and Tawny, Jaune's twin sisters. They each grabbed one of my arms and started dragging me off.

"Jaune, let's play!" they chorused.

As I resigned myself to my fate, I couldn't help but wonder if they practiced speaking simultaneously like that. Although, given the existence of superpowers, maybe they had actual telepathy.

I was pulled into what appeared to be a large playroom. With eight kids, Jaune's parents presumably needed a containment zone for them. Saphron, Jaune's oldest sibling, was playing with at a dollhouse with Lavender, the only girl present that seemed younger than Jaune. Jade was watching them with a bored expression on her face, but she perked up as soon as she saw me.

"Hey, Jaune!" she chirped as she waved at me energetically.

I waved back at her with the part of my arm that wasn't trapped. The twins finally released me and turned to grin at me in perfect sync.

"Let's play 'Save the Princess,' Jaune!" said the one on the left.

"We'll be the monsters, and Jade will be the hero!"

I gave them a questioning look. "What about me?"

Jade giggled. "You'll be the princess, duh!"

As she ran over with a tiara in her hand and a massive grin on her face, I sighed. The things I do to not blow my cover.

After my tenure as a damsel in distress ended, I was dragged into dance lessons with Lavender under Saphron's "expert" coaching. Was playing like this normal for children? I didn't exactly have any frame of reference on how children acted. I'll just go along with what they want for now; the real Jaune would probably agree to their shenanigans, so I will too.

When Jaune's mother ended my suffering by calling us to lunch, I let out a sigh of relief. Children were exhausting to deal with, but weirdly enough I didn't hate playing with them as much as I thought I would.

When Jaune's family had assembled in the kitchen, we dug in to lunch. A PB&J, apple slices, and a glass of milk made up a decent lunch, but honestly I'd be happy with anything right now. All that physical activity really works up an appetite.

Jade sat right beside me at the table. She had practically glued herself to my side today. I didn't know if she and Jaune were just close to one another or if she was still traumatized from watching the Beowolf almost eat me.

After we were done, Lavender toddled after her mother almost immediately. She seems a bit like a mama's girl, honestly. That aside, I need to tackle something important before the twins kidnap me again. I hustled over to Jaune's mother where she was scrubbing the dishes alongside Saphron and cleared my throat to get their attention.

"Mom, could you teach me how to read?" I asked. I needed to convince Jaune's family of my literacy as soon as possible. Pretending to be illiterate would be a huge ordeal. I need information to maintain my cover, and reading would help keep boredom at bay.

"Oh?" she questioned. "And here I thought you hated our reading lessons. What made you change your mind?"

Damn it, Jaune. Again.

"I want to be smart like Marine," I responded somewhat truthfully. I actually did want to give the impression that I'm intelligent. Being thought of as a child prodigy would be a good cover for why I'm so much more advanced mentally than my peers.

Jaune's mother hummed thoughtfully for a moment while looking at me. Right as I started to get nervous, she smiled.

"Okay, honey. I'll come to your room after I put Amber in her crib. Wait for me there, alright?"

I nodded and thanked her before walking back to Jaune's room. As I looked around at the mess on the floor, I decided to tidy the place up. If I'm going to be living here, I can at least keep the place neat. I made up the bed, put the toys and clean clothes away, and dumped the dirty clothes in a laundry hamper.

When Jaune's mother walked in, she did a double-take when she saw the much cleaner room. "Who are you and what have you done with Jaune?" she chuckled.

I nearly had a heart attack before I realized she was joking. Thankfully, she didn't press the issue and sat down on my bed beside me while opening the book she was holding.

"Alright, let's pick up where we left off last time. Repeat after me: 'the boy pets the dog…'"

As the lesson continued, I tried to keep up the façade that I couldn't read yet, but I had no frame of reference for how long it takes to learn how to read. Even though I pretended to have trouble learning, I think I shocked her a little with how quickly I was "learning."

After a few hours, she finally shut the book she was currently guiding me through. "Well done, Jaune!" she said. "You've made a lot of progress today! It's time for me to cook dinner, so let's stop for now. Be sure to practice with your picture books, okay? I'll be quizzing you on them later!"

I gave her my most-convincing smile and said "Okay!"

She kissed the top of my head and left the room. I let my overly-cheerful smile drop once she left the room. Being forced to actually read preschool-level books was beyond boring. Nevertheless, I cracked one open to speed through it. If she did actually quiz me on any of these, I wanted to prove that I had understood them.

Dinner today was chicken noodle soup. Jaune's mother was thankfully a good cook, though I noticed Mocha and Tawny avoiding eating their carrots before a pointed look from their mother made them eat their vegetables.

Jaune's family (whatever they were called) was just as lively as usual. All of his siblings were chat-

Wait. I don't know what Jaune's last name is. That's a problem.

Not knowing my own last name could out me as an imposter. With that in mind, I decided to learn it now.

"How do you spell our last name?" I asked.

Marine adjusted her glasses before replying. "A-R-C," she said.

I absentmindedly thanked her while I mulled over that latest piece of information. So my new name is… Jaune Arc?

Wait, what?

Today was a mixed-bag on the information-gathering front. I learned nothing about the world I was in, but I picked up a lot about Jaune's family. I had a much better grasp on what Jaune's sisters were like, so dealing with them would be easier. It was nighttime again, and the sight of the shattered moon outside my window reminded me that I still had no idea where or when I was.

It didn't seem like any of Jaune's family members noticed anything off about me. Hopefully they attribute any mistakes I make to lingering trauma from the Beowolf attack instead of coming to the (correct) conclusion that I'm an imposter.

I also learned that my new identity is "Jaune Arc," which is extremely weird. Did Jaune's parents seriously name him after a famous historical figure? A female historical figure?

And hold on, what does that mean for my current theory on where and when I am? Unless my name is a massive coincidence, Joan of Arc existed her too. Am I on Earth but in the future? That doesn't explain why the moon is both closer to the planet than I remember and somehow staying in place despite being in pieces.

There's also the fact that the Grimm from yesterday was called a "Beowolf." I was distracted by the pun, but in hindsight it's weird that it was named after Beowulf. I apparently knew a lot about mythology before I turned into a child, because I know that "Beowulf" literally means "bee wolf," an Old-English term for bear. Beowolves being named that regardless implies that the name is either a deliberate pun or a massive coincidence.

I had more questions than answers right now, and I didn't manage to find any helpful books or see anything resembling a computer.

However, I did see Jaune's mother talking on what I assume is a phone throughout the day. It's actually a weird hard-light tablet thing? Maybe I could try just asking her if I can look at it tomorrow. The nerd in me wants to play with it and figure out how it works, but I have more important things to focus on.

I can deal with all of that in the morning. Jaune's body is definitely not suited to staying up late, and I had a big day.

It's now Day Three of sugary garbage for breakfast. Would it be out of character if I asked for fruit or something? This stuff can't be healthy for children.

After breakfast ended, I walked over to Jaune's mother to enact my cunning strategy.

"Mommy, can I play with your thingy?" I asked while pointing at her hologram thing. This probably wouldn't work, but-

"My scroll?" she responded with a smile. "Sure thing, honey. Let me start that game you like."

Holy crap that actually worked.

She fiddled with the newly named device before handing it to me. Evidently, Jaune had done this before. The game he liked was about matching cakes together, apparently. I guess I can't blame a child for having bad taste in games. Anyway, I scurried off with the scroll in hand to the living room couch.

It took an embarrassing amount of time to figure out how to operate the scroll, but I eventually managed to pull up a web browser. It was time to research.

After an hour of research, my head was swirling with information. I was on a futuristic planet named Remnant. Everything here ran on magic crystals called Dust. There was a race of animal-people called the Faunus. Huntsmen went to special schools to harness their superpowers. I was in a small town called Domremy (a name that sounded familiar for some reason) near the city of Vale. Beowulf and Joan of Arc didn't exist here, which made the name similarities an astronomical coincidence.

And the world was on the brink of an apocalypse.

The world was in constant danger. The severity of the situation wasn't spelled out anywhere (likely to prevent panic), but I could read between the lines and see how dire things really were. Every kingdom was only a single disaster away from becoming another Mountain Glen, a failed colonization attempt by Vale that ended when the city was overrun by Grimm.

An idea began coalescing in my mind as several realizations came together. Remnant desperately needs more Huntsmen. I need to make amends somehow for taking Jaune away from his family. And I never want to be as helpless as I was against the Beowolf again.

There was a way to accomplish all three of those goals.

I was going to become a Huntsman.

Author's Note: This chapter was far more steam-of-consciousness that I planned. Let me know if that's a good thing or a bad thing.

Also, keeping track of tons of names is incredibly confusing, so I'm posting Jaune's whole family (and their current ages) right here. Characters whose names are derived from Coeur Al'Aran's stories are marked with an asterisk.

Nicholas Arc*: 35 years old

Juniper White*: 33 years old

Saphron Arc: 10 years old

Jade Arc*: 8 years old

Mocha Arc: 7 years old

Tawny Arc: 7 years old

Marine Arc: 6 years old

Jaune Arc: 4 years old

Lavender Arc*: 3 years old

Amber Arc*: 0 years old

(First published on May 15, 2021)