WEL-COME BACK TO...WEL-COM BACK TO...WEL-COME BACK TO...To Create Ones Path! Yo what up, it's ya boi-*Cough* *Cough* *Cough* ugh, never going to a party like that ever again. I can actually feel the stupidity crawling under my skin. But anyway, I want to say again that you guys are absolutely awesome. You guys are literally the reason I do this stuff in the first place...well, that, and my hyper-active imagination. One more thing, I have another Poll that i set up. It's nothing too special. In fact, it's actually just something that will allow me to see what you guys want. So with that out of the way, LET'S NOT WASTE ANY MORE TIME AND LET'S DO THIS SHEEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIT!
Jaune and Qrow were immediately gunning it towards the front porch. From what little time they spent running, they heard more explosions going off in quick succession. When they arrived outside of the house, they saw that the field was littered with all kinds of Grim; from the average Beowulf, Boarbatusk, and Ersa to the powerful Chimera. And in the distance, they could even see small grouping of Ghouls.
Ghouls are much like your average zombie, but these...are much more vicious. While they have the appearance of a rotting corpse, their strength was quite extraordinary. A single Ghoul could lift an entire house with no problem, and they could (on occasion) even out speed a Bullhead. The only downside to these creatures was that they had almost no armor plating, so a well placed strike would be able to bring one down. They were extremely rare and only sighted on the most dangerous of expeditions to the Grimlands, so to see them here...
"Kid, you stay back, we can handle the rest of 'em!" Qrow ordered as he clashed with an Alpha Beowulf. Jaune was perplexed. Why didn't Qrow want him to fight? He could clear this entire field no problem if he had enough time. He wanted to argue with the man, to tell him that he should fight too, that he would be a great advantage in this battle, but before he could think anymore, Qrow hacked away at another Beowulf before turning to him once again.
"Listen, you hardly have any control over your power, and I don't trust you to be able to keep yourself from blowing one of us away 'on accident' with one of your punches, so do us a favor and stay out of the way. Raven isn't here right now, so we have to work double time if we want to deal with whatever the hell is going on. Now go! Get out of here!" Qrow demanded as he held back a lanky arm of a Wendigo.
Wendigoes are usually found in the forests of Atlas, during one of their frequent snow storms. They were, on average, a towering eight feet tall, with long legs and lanky arms. They looked similar to the Ghouls in a way that their bodies looked rotten and decomposed. Reports have stated that while fighting the Grim, it didn't seem to rely on eyesight, but in a way of heat seeking. Upon capturing one for testing, it was recorded to have no eyes. The reasoning behind this was most likely because during the snowstorms, the snow fall could block any and all visibility. It appeared to have sensors within it's sunken eye sockets and mouth, which easily distinguished a warm body from the freezing snow, giving them a large advantage within their environment. However, the Wendigo has only a fraction of the strength of a Ghoul, and not nearly as swift. Moreover, that didn't mean that they weren't fast on their own. In fact, they could even catch up to a speeding car if they wanted to.
Despite these facts flashing through his mind, Jaune ignored them for the simple fact that he felt hurt. Didn't Qrow trust him? After all those months of training together, joking around and the great times they had shared, he still didn't trust him? He was so struck by the revelation, he didn't even flinch when he found himself plopping down on the front porch, he also didn't notice the apathetic look Qrow gave him before running to catch up with Tai and Summer, who were currently dealing with a grouping of Wreckers.
Wreckers were Grim with large muscular bodies. They were fairly tall, being able to reach over houses within their slouched postures. They usually had their entire body covered in bone plating, and their strength was unrivaled, taking down entire legions of other Grim in their rage. They were also known for their highly aggressive attitude, even more so than the average Deathstalker. They are always found individually, and never in groups. Whenever one would come across another, they would clash to assert dominance. However, it would seem that the four in front of them were setting aside their squabble for another time. The only weakness these Grim have were the fact that they are extremely slow, hardly able to block any incoming attacks. So with a strong enough firearm, or sharp enough blade, a Hunter could slice off the beast's head due to it's exposed neck. That was put into full swing when Qrow promptly separated one from it's body just as it was going to bring it's fist down on Tai. Who scoffed and gave the man a light hearted smile.
"Thanks, but I could have managed. Where's Jaune?!" Tai called out, as he dodged a strike from one of the hulking Grim and knocked it's head back with a right hook of his own. Summer then took advantage of this opening and jumped up to the giant's shoulders. She then stabbed the blade of her Blossom into it's neck and sank it deep into the Grim's torso. With this new leverage, she vaulted herself over the screeching creatures head and used her drop force to tear the weapon out of the Wrecker along with most of it's chest cavity. The Wrecker in a death frenzy, started swinging it's arms wildly. Summer was already out of the way when it was bringing both of it's arms down. Tai stood his ground and caught the Grim's arms before tossing them aside and launching himself towards the staggered berserker. He then pulled back his fist, the Wrecker roaring at him before he forcibly turned it's head backwards, promptly snapping it's neck and silencing it for good. The Grim dropped to the ground with a grand thud. But they weren't done yet. Qrow was able to take down another one with some difficulty, they noticed that there were about two more raging Wreckers that arrived out of nowhere. However, it would seem that whatever was keeping them from fighting each other had stopped working, because they started not only face against each other, but the Grim around them as well. The three took advantage of this and stopped to lay out a game plan, but first...
"Qrow, where's Jaune? I thought you were going to get him out here." Summer asked as she looked around. Qrow flicked his sight to her before looking at the rapidly decreasing number of Grim. He noted that the Chimera were now fighting the Wreckers alongside the other legions of Grim. But what concerned him were the six Ghouls, two Deathstalkers, three Beringals, and a lone Goliath that were standing by, doing nothing. Grim doing nothing was always far more deadly than a Grim doing anything. But he still had to answer his wife. He's made the mistake of ignoring her once, and vowed of never doing that again...
"He would have gotten in the way. Told him to sit this one out. I don't trust that he'll be able to keep himself in check." Qrow answered, seeing that one of the Wreckers were killed by the Chimera, there were almost no smaller Grim and the Chimera was looking fairly better than the remaining Wrecker. Summer furrowed her eyebrows and gave him a side glance. She knew what he meant, and she knew what he probably said. She wouldn't be a very good wife if she didn't know her own husband now would she?
"So you told him what? 'Get out of here, I don't trust that you won't kill us all?' Is that what you're telling me, Qrow?" Summer asked, feeling angry and annoyed. Angry at Qrow for doing such a thing, and annoyed that the Chimera, which was considerably harder to kill than the Wrecker, had won and was currently making its way towards them. Qrow got into a fighting stance and shrugged his shoulders.
"Yeah, that sounds like him. However, while I don't like how he handled it, I'm actually going to have to-egh, agree with Qrow. Blegh, I think I'm gonna vomit." Tai said, adding his two cents. He was obviously joking near the end, but he was serious about agreeing with Qrow. He trusted Jaune yes, but he still knew that Jaune had a ways to go before he would be able to fight with other people without endangering them.
"Meh." Qrow responded, getting an exasperated sigh from Summer. She may love the man, but she'll be damned if she didn't hate his methods sometimes. 'Oh great, the Chimera's coming over, and it looks like it didn't even get a scratch from it's fight with the Wrecker!' Summer thought. Well, at least she'll be able to let out her frustration on the Grim...or she would, if the thing didn't just spontaneously explode!
"What the hell?" Qrow exclaimed, caught off guard by the sudden murder of the Grim. He was about to question who did that, but then he noticed a mop of blonde hair and narrowed his eyes. He thought he had told the kid to get out of here. His strength was too dangerous to be used in a fight with them.
He didn't really trust Jaune much, he only put up the charade of warming up to the kid so that he could possibly exploit his trust, should the need arise. Did that make him a bad person? Maybe, but he had his family to think about here. How would you react if a super-powered child came into your life out of nowhere, with a supposed past that can't be confirmed? Qrow has made too many enemies to ever trust someone again. With his line of work, and the most recent revelation that an organization that has been working behind the scenes, how is he supposed to know this kid wasn't just one of the members of that organization sent to assassinate them because they thought he knew too much? He just couldn't take that chance. He had, not only his sister, Tai and Summer to worry about, he also had a niece and daughter to think about too. There was too much on the line to not take precautions. And with this invasion, he actually thought that Jaune was going to attack them when they were busy fighting the other Grim. But he was caught off guard with this stunt. That could have easily been one of them, so was this a power play on his part? Showing them what he could do to them in the future? Whichever it was, he didn't like it.
"Alright, you got two seconds to explain before I boot you out of-" Qrow tried to say, but was promptly shut up when Jaune sent him a hard glare. The blonde was standing there, covered with the Chimera's black blood that was rapidly evaporating. It felt like the kid let out a wave of oppressing energy that washed over all of- and then the glare was gone, as soon as it arrived. Qrow blinked in surprise, but furrowed his eyes in anger at the assumed threat. Summer, while still aware of the grouping of creatures off in the distance, approached the young man that was now looking at her and Tai. Jaune smiled and went to hug her, Qrow staring angrily at him the entire time. That was another thing that irked him. This punk was getting close to the rest of his family. Dangerously close, especially with his daughter.
He had noticed that Jaune and his daughter were hanging out more and more. He also noticed the same thing was happening between him and Yang. It was a small thing at first, barely noticeable if you didn't pay attention, but now? They spent most of the day hanging out with each other, and getting more touchy feely than he would find comfortable. It wasn't anything sensual, being just hugs and the more platonic shows of affection...but he could see the subtle changes that were happening! Ruby was showing Jaune more trust and content with him than she ever showed anyone. HE WAS NOT COOL WITH THIS AT ALL! The unmistakable symptoms of a "crush" were prevalent in his daughter. This has been going on for a few weeks now. This was concerning on a number of levels. Mostly because on Summer's side of the family, her mother was a dog Faunus. Interesting fact about dog Faunus; When they attach to someone that they like, especially at such an early age, they tend to imprint on that person FOR. LIFE.
What made it worse was the fact that not only did Yang seem to be the same, but apparently, no one else was seeing this! Summer just thought the kids were getting along swell, Tai seemed to just be content that the brat was 'treating them nicely' as he put it, and even his own sister was blind to the blatantly obvious seduction that the little shit was using on his daughter and niece! Needless to say, Qrow was seething. But he held his tongue. He didn't get this far by letting his anger take him over. He took a deep breath to reign in his absolutely boiling wrath.
"Jaune! You're just in time, we got the rest of the Grim under control, but we still got those ones over there to deal with. They've just been standing there the entire time. We think their up to something...but then again, Grim are always up to something now aren't they?" Summer said with a small giggle, returning the hug while minding the weapon in her hand. Jaune gave her a smile before looking back at the awaiting creatures of the night. They were... Just standing there?
He didn't really know much, if any, of the negative emotions that came with being human, but he knew anger. With the small time he's spent here with this family he's come to cherish, he also learned to feel all the things that came with having people who generally cared for you.
Tai was like the father that he always wanted. He would train him, tell him how he could improve, what he was doing right, and he never gave up on him no matter how many times he would fail. Whenever Jaune did fall, Tai would offer his hand to him and pick him up. Don't even get him started on Summer. She was kind, loving, and just made him feel like he could-for once in his entire life-be himself and depend on her, to confide in her when he felt weak. He always felt comfortable around her, never feeling like she would do anything to purposefully hurt him. She was the mother he never had. Raven, for all her reclusive and reluctant attitude toward him, was actually very much like Summer in a way that she would listen to him and give him advice on how to do certain things. Granted, most of those things were about combat and how to take down an enemy more efficiently, but still, she gave off this calm and collected demeanor about her. And while she was similar to Summer in some ways, she was simultaneously different. She was calculated, figuring out what was wrong on her own instead of asking. She once said to him, "As a Huntsman, I have two duties. One is to protect my people, whether their human or Faunus is irrelevant. The second, is fighting off any and all threats that may come my way. As a mother, I have two other duties: to take care of my daughter, and to look after my family." When he asked her which one he was a part of, she simply gave him a warm smile and patted his head before walking away. He viewed her as an aunt, or second mother if you would. He was happy that the three adults treated him so nicely. And then there were Ruby and Yang to consider. He's gotten along with them so well that he felt like they would be together forever...but that in no way was meant to signify his feelings for them. Nope. Not in the slightest...anyway, moving on to the one person that made him angry in the first place: Qrow.
That man, Jaune didn't hate him. He couldn't. He knew that there would be a possibility of Qrow suspecting him of having an ulterior motive, But that didn't mean he wasn't pissed. He could have just said, "I don't trust you" and he would have been okay with that. Yet there he was, silently seething in the corner and sending him the most heated death glare he'd ever seen. The man was...well, he was as skilled as he was stubborn...and snarky...and gruff...and just generally himself. Jaune just shook his head to focus on the task at hand.
"Hmm. That...seems to be a sort of...squad I want to say?" Jaune said, looking through a vast array of information to see if there were any other cases like this one. He did find one result, but it was fairly vague. It only described an event in time where a hoard of assorted Grim layed waste upon a settlement that was rumoured to have a large population of warriors with...silver eyes. How curious. "The only thing that could relate to this was when a pack of uh...what was it? They were...ah, Mannequins! That was it! God they were creepy." Jaune said.
Mannequins were Grim that somehow found a way to look even more terrifying with it's statuesque posture. What made them especially dangerous-and scary-was that it only moved when you looked away. Scientists couldn't figure out why they did this, if only to instill fear among anyone who faced them. Now this wouldn't be a problem if they didn't like to come in groups of ten or twenty at a time and surround it's chosen target. This Grim in particular was one of the major reasons that lone Huntsmen and Huntressess became K.I.A.
"More like a ragtag team of deadbeats." Tai said, getting into a fighting stance. However, after a few moments, he froze. He then turned to Jaune and had a dead serious look adorning his face. "Did you say...Mannequins?" Tai asked, his face twisting into a mix of horror and sadness. Jaune looked to him after stretching, curious about why the man took such a turn from what he usually acted like.
"Umm, yeah, I have. Why?" Jaune asked, keeping an eye on the Grim in the distance. They were starting to stir now. They weren't coming over to them, but they were doing something. Tai walked up to the young man and placed his gauntlet clad hands on his shoulders. His face never changing.
"You're telling me. That you, by yourself, faced a pack of Mannequins...and lived?" Tai asked, tightening his grip on Jaune's shoulders. Jaune was starting to worry now. Why was Tai acting like this? He turned to Summer, who was looking at them with a look of guilt. He looked back to Tai who was still looking at him with expecting eyes. Jaune cleared his throat before carefully choosing his words.
"And...if i did?" Jaune asked, and not a second later did Tai embrace him in a tight hug. Jaune was caught off guard, this was already something that he didn't expect. What the hell was happening!? One minute, he was standing off against the forced of Grim, the next he's-he's crying? What the fu-
"Thank god. You don't know how much that means to me." Tai cried out. Jaune was still in the dark here. What the hell did he do? Was it good? Bad? There were so many questions and no answers! He didn't really know what to do here. So he just returned the hug, however reluctant he was. He may not know why this was happening, but he figured that Tai would tell him soon enough. And he would have, if not for Jaune's instincts screaming at him to move. So he tightened his grip on Tai and quickly leaped to the side. Not a moment later, something slammed into the space that they used to occupy. Jaune was immediately moving, releasing a surprised Tai and raised his arms to block a strike from the giant figure. A decent sized crater was created below their feet, and Jaune was able to get a good look at the figure. He was towering, even larger than a Wrecker. His build seemed to rival them as well. The man was a giant, his tan skin, deep brown hair...and that beard! that beard was magnificent! Not long after their clash did the man jump back, dodging a strike from Summer. Jaune was able to get a good look at what the giant was wearing.
The man adorned a sleeveless tail coat that covered his upper torso and a bit of his legs. with it opened however, he could see a black V-neck undershirt. He could also see that he was wearing a pair of very dark brown cargo pants. His feet were covered by two steel-tipped combat boots. He didn't seem to have any weapons on him, so Jaune guessed that he was a fist-fighter. Jaune smirked.
That could work.
"Who the hell are you!?" Qrow asked, standing next to his wife. He was already over his anger, if only for now. He had no idea who this guy was, but he dreaded the idea that they may be from that organization he was talking about earlier. If that was true, then...
He saw Jaune with his fists up and smirking.
That smirk could mean anything. It could be his confidence that he could beat this guy-which, in all honesty, he probably could-, it could be excitement that he could fight someone different than normal, or it could be that he knew the man and that they were working together to make sure that this assassination attempt went by smoothly...he knew that logically, it was mos likely the first two, but a large part of him still wanted to believe that Jaune was still a spy sent to kill them. He would have kept on with his rant, but it would seem the new comer had something to say.
"My name is Hazel Reinhart. You are Qrow Branwen, a Huntsman of nearly 8 years experience, brother-in-law to Taiyang Xiao-Long, younger sibling to Raven Branwen, husband to Summer Rose and father to Ruby Rose." The Man said, causing Qrow to tighten the grip on his weapon further. When he was going to further push his questioning however, Hazel continued with his list. And it terrified Qrow to the bone.
"Both belong to the Silver Eyed Warriors." Hazel finished, making Qrow and Tai widen their eyes. No one was supposed to know about that! Tai was gritting his teeth. This...was bad. If this guy knew about that, then what else did he know? There were a lot of questions and no answers. Too many variables to make a move. They would have to wait and see what they were going to do before making any-
"YOU STAY AWAY FROM MY FAMILY!" Qrow exclaimed, rushing towards the man. Hazel didn't move in the slightest, he didn't even flinch. Qrow was about to chop his head off when something caught his attention. It was small, almost faint. But it caused him to freeze up, an inch away from decapitating Hazel.
"Daddy?"
Qrow's head swirled so fast that Jaune thought that he might snap his own neck. But disregarding that, he also turned his head, seeing Ruby and Yang being held with a sword at their necks. Raven was on the ground with multiple cuts and bruises covering her face and body. Her cloths were tattered, and her armor broken. The man that was holding the two girls was none other than Tyrian. A mechanical tail moving about behind him and a twitching robotic arm holding a small cube looking object. He had a smug look on his face. Tai's eyes widened and he started hyperventilating. Jaune on the other hand, starting to feel a certain rage start to build up inside him. The thought of someone trying to hurt the ones that have cared for him, the ones that have treated him with nothing but care. And the thought of someone hurting two of the most important people in his life...he wanted to let loose. To forget holding back and just tear into the bastards, but he couldn't. If he tried anything, Tyrian would no doubt...he wouldn't hesitate. Summer was looking frantic, her eyes dashing between her daughter, her niece, her husband, and Raven. This situation looked bleak. From the fact that Raven was apparently beaten by Tyrian, to how their children were currently being held hostage by a maniac.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you. Take one more step and your precious little daughter is going to take a little trip to grandma's." Tyrian warned, pointing to them with his new tail. It was made to be lethal. From the appendage, that had many different segments, each one of them being as sharp as a blade, the stinger being more sleek than the original, a glowing green line running down the middle. His arm wasn't anything too significant, but it had the same green lines as the tail going up the length of it. The man was significantly more serious from the last time Jaune saw him. He was keeping the two girls close to him, blade pushed up to their necks. Yang looked angry, trying to make the man lower his arm with no success. Summer, coming out of her small panic attack, looked angry as all hell.
"Leave them out of this! They're just children! What do you people want from us anyway!? Are you really willing to threaten the lives of innocent children!?" Summer yelled, looking between Hazel and Tyrian. She had to be careful on how she approached the situation. One wrong move and that bastard would...
"As much as I hate using this sort of tactic, I was informed of a certain individual that should not be taken lightly." Hazel spoke up, looking towards Jaune. He looked up and down the smaller figure, He was only wearing a pair of light blue pajama bottoms, allowing Hazel to see that the small boy had muscles that he really shouldn't have. "And I believe this boy is much more than meets the eye." Hazel continued, looking back to Qrow he stared at him for a few seconds before suddenly delivering a lightning fast chop to his neck. Qrow's eyes widened and he was forced to the ground, his entire body going numb. Jaune's anger was starting to boil now. Qrow might have been an ass half of the time, but Jaune still cared for the man. Besides, Qrow was warming up to him whether he knew it or not. It was subtle. Extremely so actually. But Jaune could see it. At first, the man would hardly talk to him, even when Jaune would try to strike a conversation he would walk away, or just ignore him outright. But now? He would actually start a conversation himself, if only rarely. Jaune was struggling to keep himself from rushing at the giant. He wanted to get him. He wanted to make sure he never hurt another person ever again, but he knew that if he did anything, the girls would both be slaughtered.
"No..." Jaune said, the thought of the two girls going away and never coming back was a thought that almost completely killed his anger and replaced it with an extreme case of loathing. He couldn't explain it, but he literally couldn't see a life without them being there. It might have been because they were such good friends. It might be because he felt such a strong connection to the two. But deep down, he knew the truth. He had done some research on his own, trying to figure out why he was feeling the way he was, and what it was in the first place. The first thing he came to find was called a 'crush': An attraction to someone. Apparently it fades over time, but Jaune felt something more for them. It was strong. He had lost quite a bit of sleep over the subject. Three days and nights he had tried to wrap his head around it, and he had come to one conclusion. When he realized it, he found it made the most sense. How strong of a connection it felt, how he would want to spend as much of his free time as possible with them, and why he would get this fuzzy feeling inside when they smile or laugh.
He was in love with them.
Plain and simple. It wasn't the platonic type either. Not the kind he's come to feel for Summer, Tai, or even Raven. It was starting to bloom for Qrow, but it wasn't quite there yet. What he had for the two was a romantic love. One shared between...couples. He figured that with the fact that he was technically older than them...by like...eons. He would be labeled as something called a 'Predator', or 'Pedophile'. He's seen what those people have done, and what's happened to those people in prison. In short, he didn't like that idea...at all. But, there was also the technicality that he was around eight-ish. It was a complicated matter. There's also the fact that as a divine entity he was technically exempt from the flow of time and therefore ageless. There were a lot of technicalities in there. So he decided that he wouldn't really do anything about it until he was 'older'. That aside, he had more important things to worry about than girl troubles...actually, thinking about it again, he realized that the girls were in trouble. That reignited the anger in him tenfold. These damn mother flubbers were holding Ruby and Yang hostage!
Hazel was looking down at the collapsed form of Qrow when he felt an oppressing aura coming from the small child. Summer and Tai felt it too and were struggling to stand. Qrow was now starting to have trouble breathing when he saw that Jaune's Aura was flaring. It was a pure white, not a hint of another color. And it was huge, like, as large as a skyscraper. It left them in awe.
"Damn." Hazel cursed. He wasn't expecting this. He was strong, no doubt about it, but in the face of that...it was concerning to say the least. He was starting to doubt if he could actually fight this boy. He was also starting to question if the boy was even human. He looked to Tyrian, only to find him in a nervous sweat. That caught him off guard. Tyrian never looked nervous. What the hell did this kid do to him? A few months ago, when his master sent Tyrian to kill the silver eyed warrior, he had come back with a bloody stump and without his tail. It took Watts hours to get him under long enough to sever the loose strands of muscle and sear the wounds. Tyrian wouldn't shut up about how the 'freak' would pay for what he did to him. It wasn't long until he started to demand for a new arm and tail. Watts complied with a little convincing. The next few months were spent vigorously training. His obsession was quite concerning. He kept spouting how the little tyke was fast enough to easily dodge every swing Tyrian thew at him, and strong enough to devastate each of his appendages with a punch each. His master seemed intrigued in the boy. She ordered Tyrian and himself to invade the home he resided in and use any tactic to make him kneel to them. Instead of telling them to have him join them, she told them to kill him. The strange thing though, is that his master didn't seem to be entirely there, like someone else was inhabiting her body. They seemed to have a sort of divine air around them. A day later, she was back to normal. He shook his head, dismissing his previous thoughts to focus on the task at hand. The situation seemed to be getting tense. His leverage right now were the hostages that Tyrian had. He stared at Jaune, trying not to give away anything as Jaune was glaring back at him, trying to intimidate the man.
"Are you going to fight me? That would not be a wise choice. If you make one move against either of us, we will not hesitate to kill them." Hazel threatened, gesturing Tyrian to show them they mean business. Tyrian looked between him and Jaune before regaining the devilish smirk he was known for.
"That's right, you do anything and these little girls will be one head short." Tyrian said, bringing his blades tip to Ruby's cheek and carving a line along the right side of her face. Ruby cried out in pain, letting out small whimpers not unlike a kicked puppy. a Yang stopped struggling and stared on in horror. She was terrified. Her mother was on the floor, unconscious, her cousin and herself were being held hostage by a madman, and now he was threatening to kill them.
"Mommy! Help me!" Ruby cried, tears starting to roll down her cheeks, she winced when her tears were getting into the cut. Summer was a wreck now. Her daughter was crying for her, but she couldn't do anything unless she wanted to lose a daughter and her niece. She just held her hand out to her with her own tears rolling down her face.
"Don't worry baby! Everything's going to be alright! You just have to be strong for Mommy, okay!?" Summer cried. She felt so helpless. She couldn't do anything. These people had the fate of her daughter and her niece in the palm of their hands. She was struggling to keep herself together. She had to stay strong for Ruby. She had to show her daughter that her mother could save her. To show her that she was the hero that she already though she was.
"Yang! Don't worry sweetheart! Daddies going to make everything better! You just have to be patient!" Tai called. He was frustrated, angry, and scared at the same time. He was frustrated that he couldn't do anything. He was angry that the fuckers were holding his daughter hostage and for beating his wife. He was also scared at the prospect of losing both of them. He would have yelled at Hazel if the oppressing Aura didn't increase drastically, forcing both him and Summer to their knees. He looked over to Jaune and saw him more angry than he had ever seen anyone.
"You hurt her." Jaune said in barely restrained anger. He was livid-no, he was beyond livid. They dared to even think about harming one of the people he loves. They had the gall, the audacity to put a hand on them. He would not stand for this! He took a step toward Tyrian, who was now pointing his sword at the boy.
"H-hey! I told you, take another step and i'll kill 'em!" Tyrian threatened with a shaky voice. He was terrified of him. The phantom pains he had were still there. The 'monster' in front of him was responsible for taking his precious tail from him. The 'monster' was what haunted his dreams at night. He was always trying to better himself so that he could one day kill the 'monster' and end his fear. But this...this was not what he wanted. He was not ready to take on that thing. Jaune took another step, this time cracking the ground beneath him. Tyrian took a step back and put the blade to Yang's throat. He looked even more terrified now.
"I mean it! Stay away!" Tyrian yelled, starting to walk backwards. Hazel was seeing that the situation was falling apart, so he slowly reached for a black marble that he had in a pouch in his pocket. Tyrian was walking backwards when Jaune took another step and a crack formed, reaching towards a scared Tyrian. It went under his foot and opened up, causing him to stumble and accidentally let go of the girls. Realizing that they had a chance to get away, Ruby and Yang tried ran towards their parents. Tyrian saw this and tried to stab one of them with his tail, but Jaune appeared right in front of him and caught the appendage by the stinger.
"You're a dead man." Jaune said in a calm rage. Tyrian tried to pull his tail away. He tried to get away from the monster in front of him. But He had the stinger in a death grip. Jaune then tugged on the tail, bringing Tyrian towards him. He caught the scorpion Faunus by the throat and stared into his soul.
"Give me one good reason i shouldn't crush your windpipe." Jaune said, slightly tightening his grip on the man's throat. "Just. One." Jaune continued, seeing the terrified Faunus try to pry his hand from his neck. His tail was flinging wildly behind him, slamming into the ground multiple times. He struggled to breath, but he noticed that the boy was too focused on him to notice Hazel sneaking up on him. He looked back to Jaune and manged to choke out an answer.
"You could have stopped this from happening." Tyrian strained out, slightly confusing Jaune, but his instincts them forced him to let go of the tailed Faunus and duck. He felt the air right above his head distort and saw that Hazels fist had tried to rip his head off his shoulders. Jaune then went for a low sweep and followed it up with a heavy Roundhouse kick that sent the large man flying. When he looked back to Tyrian, he noticed that he was gone. He searched the surrounding area and saw that the man was rushing towards Yang, extending his tail to try and impale her. He also noticed the cube he was holding earlier was flying toward Ruby. What emerged from the cube was a small, insect like Grim. He disregarded this information for both of the threats were barely an inch from reaching their destinations. He didn't have time to think. Not even to try and focus on not hurting anyone anymore. All he knew was that he had to save the two girls that he loves, and that Tyrian was going to die by his hands.
His father gave him the power to manipulate time? he's going to put it to use. He fluctuated his power and saw the world around him crawl to a complete stop. He didn't even notice this as he rushed towards the two threats suspended in air. However, he noticed that after only a second instant of stopped time, the world slowly started to come back to life. The tail was growing ever closer to killing Yang, and the parasite slowly made it's way to Ruby. He rushed even faster, pumping his aura into his legs. When the stinger was centimeters away from Yang's heart, he grabbed it, and ripped it in half, successfully saving Yang. The sharp blades along the length of it didn't even leave a single scratch on him. An instant later, he caught the ink colored parasite, noticing that it was trying to burrow into his skin with little results. He looked back to Tyrian, realizing what he tried to do to his-their Ruby. In his blind rage, he took the stinger by the hand and shoved it into Tyrian's gut and forced the parasite down his throat and just as quickly pulled his hand out. After this, time started flowing normally. Yang and Ruby looked back to see the man with wide eyes and his jaw hanging loosely, a gurgling sound being heard from him. They quickly shook their heads and continued running to their awaiting parents. What they didn't see was the fist currently lodged in the assassins stomach, and the Parasite already burrowed itself into his body, going to work on not only stealing his power from him, but simultaneously killing him. Despite this, Tyrian slowly tuned his head to Jaune and was met with that same death glare.
"I'll see you in hell." Jaune whispered. He then crushed the stinger, releasing the acidic venom within it, quickly pulled his fist back and threw him into the distance. He let out a huff and looked to Hazel who was now within the treeline staring at him in anger and fear. They kept their gazes for a few moments before Hazel dropped the marble and disappeared into the wind. Jaune stayed there for a few more seconds, making sure that there weren't anymore threats in the area. He was just about done with the scan before turning around. He saw that Raven was back up and coddling a crying Yang with Tai holding them both in his arms. Qrow and Summer were also caring for Ruby and applied their Aura to heal the cut she received. Summer was whispering sweet nothings to the young girl, trying to comfort her. Raven was telling Yang how proud she was of her for trying so hard and trying to be strong for her niece. They were all relieved to be together again. They were all happy.
Jaune sighed and looked at his bloodied fist. It would seem that some of that venom got caught on his hand. He shook it and noticed that it burned through the dirt, hissing and giving off steam as it melted whatever it touched. The stuff was potent apparently. He looked to the sky and closed his eyes. He thought about all the good times he's had with this family. The friendship he's made with Ruby and Yang. He's felt things he's never thought he'd ever need. They helped with so many things. From how to act, how to eat, how to talk to people, how to fight, and how to treat others.
'But...' Jaune thought, looking back to the still recovering family. 'I'm the reason this happened in the first place.' Jaune continued. He thought back to how Hazel gestured to him when he told them why he and Tyrian were there to begin with. They would have to move away to make sure that they aren't taken off guard again. They'd have to leave the place they called home for so long. All because of him. 'I suppose it would be best if I were to leave as well. I'm too much of a danger to their health to stay with them.' Jaune thought. A wave of sadness washed over him as he thought about leaving them. He knew that leaving was the right decision, but that didn't make it any less painful. He thought of Ruby and Yang. It pained him to leave them. Tears rolled down his dirtied face. He reached into his pockets and pulled out a piece of paper with his clean hand, unfolding it and looking at the note that he had written beforehand. He was planning for this day before. He realized that he was slowing down on progress, and figured that if he wanted to improve further, he'd have to go out into the world and learn with experience. However, he only planed to do that in a few months, maybe a year from now. But with the way things happened tonight...he'd have to speed up his plans. He looked from the letter to the family and scrunched up his face in sadness.
"I suppose i'll see you all later then." Jaune whispered to himself as he folded the letter back up and started walking away. The last thing he did was look towards the grouping of Grim that were now stirring and decided to really figure out was his powers were now and raised two walls of dirt on either side of them before crushing them and dragging their bodies into the ground. He then started to walk away, feeling as though he had done enough for now. When he figured that he was far enough away, he released the letter and guided it with the wind to land in front of Summer. She saw it and picked it up. Reading it, she gasped and looked around to look for Jaune.
But he was already long gone.
"Jaune? Jaune!? Jaune!?" Summer called out. The rest of the family were perplexed as to why she was calling to him until they noticed a piece of paper that Summer left on the ground. Raven picked it up and proceeded to read it.
Dear Summer,
If you are reading this, then that means that I have left. I've realized that I have hit a wall in my training and cannot continue the way we have been going. I want you to know that I can't progress unless i get some in-field experience. You have all been such good hosts for me, and I have come to find myself seeing you, Tai, Raven, and even Qrow as my family. I never really had one to begin with, but i'm glad that I've had one now. This was an experience that I never wish to forget. But i figured that I should stop pestering you all and wasting your time. Thank you Tai, Qrow, Raven. For training me and helping me. Thank you Summer for saving me from that dreaded place that i used to call home. As for Ruby and Yang, I want them to know that i'll see you all in a while. I don't know when or even if i ever come back, but i want to tell them that they are quite possibly the best friends I've ever had. But I suppose that they were the only friends I've ever had. But the point is, I am eternally grateful to you all. I hope that we may cross paths again in the future.
Yours truly,
Jaune Noir
Raven sighed in slight sadness and looked to her husband who closed his eyes in acceptance. When she looked to Qrow, she saw that he had regret written on his face. She was going to put a hand on his shoulder when he suddenly got up and joined Summer in her search for Jaune. Ruby and Yang were looking around to see if they could find Jaune too, and Raven got up to look over the two, leaving the note to her husband. Tai looked over the letter again and shook his head before looking to the broken moon.
"I guess this is goodbye for now, Jaune." Tai said to himself as He looked to the rest of his family looking for the boy. He had no idea where Jaune would go, but he felt like he was cheated out of a goodbye. Even though he never said anything about, he had come to view Jaune as something that he never knew he wanted until recently.
A son.
/
Well. That was eventful now wasn't it? Lots of stuff happened in this chapter. And so ends the admittedly short Family Arc. Now, next month, i'll start the Traveler Arc. What that entails, you'll have to find out yourself. Now, I also want to point out that this was my largest chapter yet. I don't know if the following chapters will be as large as this one, but I will certainly try. One last thing, i will try and post the next chapter of A Warriors Road within the next week, so you should expect that. Now, with all my heart and soul, this is Konshiro Crobrasha saying thank you. Toodles~!