Warrior of Light
Wow, it's been a while. I'm writing this after having finished the first chapter of this story, and boy, it was a little rough, both for the heavy nature of some of the stuff in here, and the fact that I am rusty beyond all measure. Regardless, the idea for this stemmed from RWBY in general, and the fact that I recently got back into FFXIV, and noticed that Gladiators employ 'sword and board', just like our favorite blond noodle, so I thought, "huh, wonder what that would look like", so decided to give it a try. Please forgive me if the writing seems a little forced, or awkward, like I said, it's been a while, years even, and I'm trying to get back into the swing of things.
Jaune Arc liked to think he was a good person.
Never once had he discriminated against someone, or said something intentionally hurtful. Never had he bullied anyone. His sisters had even said at one point that he was as gentle as a rabbit, and that was even before he got the limited edition Pumpkin Pete's hoodie!
He was a firm believer in that old saying, Treat others as you would like to be treated, which led to his current dilemma.
Ever since he had first heard the stories told by his grandfather, all he had wanted to be was a Huntsman, slaying Grimm and protecting people, to be a Hero (in his mind, that title always seemed capitalized, he had no idea why).
So, when he had turned 10, he had asked his father, a notable huntsman himself, if he would train him. His response had been crushing to the young boy:
"Jaune, I can't train you. As one of the few hunters in the village, I'm needed to help protect against the Grimm. That, and you're needed here, to help your mother take care of your sisters."
The rejection stung, and he had almost wished that it had been an outright rejection, rather than a reasoned one, because then he could be reasonably outraged.
The birth of his last two sisters, the twins Rouge and Bleue, had been extremely taxing on his mother, to the point that she was almost unable to do anything around the house. With his older sisters, Violette and Noire, being on separate continents, and his father having to do his duties in order to pay the bills and put food on the table, it had left him as the third oldest of now seven siblings to take care of the house and his younger sisters.
As others of his age were sleeping comfortably in their beds, he was up and making breakfast for everyone. The night before school, both his lunch and the lunches for his school-age sisters, Violette, Grise, and Blanche (triplets, and hadn't that been an experience for the Arc family), all of whom were in elementary school, were made and ready for the next day. The time after school was spent on schoolwork, chores, and keeping his sisters entertained.
By sheer necessity, he became an accomplished cook, and the constant repair of his family's clothing had made him a tailor almost on the level of a couturier, and the dancing he had picked up to entertain his sisters was extremely good. His mother, on one of the days that her health had permitted her to move around a little more freely, had joking commented that he was "Lord of the Dance".
As a result of all of this though, he had relatively few friends growing up, and his lack of social interaction had led to a general lack of confidence. Many a time, his mother, and sometimes his father, when he was available, had expressed their sorrow that he had to grow up far too soon, but he loved his family, they were more important to him than even his dream of being a huntsman.
Even then, as the years went by, there was always a little voice in the back of his head, reminding him of his goal in life. Late nights were spent in the garden at the back of the house, with a stick for a blade, and a trash can lid for a shield, relying on online tutorial videos to provide his instruction.
Then, as he finally turned 17, his younger sisters had become old enough to take care of themselves, and his mother's health had improved to the point where the family no longer had to rely on him.
The bitter fact about that though was that Jaune, as a result of having to take care of his family, had had no formal instruction, his grades, while passable, were nothing to write home about, and the family had not been financially stable enough to afford to send him to one of the combat prep schools.
So, the sense of despair that had filled him when he had looked at the admission requirements for Beacon Academy, his dream school, had been palpable. He would later blame that despair on the desperation that led to him submitting false transcripts.
And it was those transcripts that had landed him in his current situation. His rooftop confession of his sins to his partner had been overheard by the resident bullies of the Academy, Team CRDL. Their subsequent blackmailing of him had resulted in him having to do their homework, distance himself from his team, and be their proverbial, and sometimes literal, punching bag.
He would have liked to believe in karma, that even though he had lied to get into Beacon, the fact that he had always tried to do good would ensure that good things happened to him, but reality was a stark contrast to that desire.
KUPO -
His first sense when he woke was a dull ache in his torso. Internally, he groaned, so as to not wake his team. Wincing, he rolled out of bed, eyeing the still-dark sky outside. Waking early had become a habit, to the point where his body had become so conditioned that it no longer required an external alarm.
He shuffled his way to the bathroom, toiletries and uniform in hand. As he disrobed to hop into the shower, he couldn't help but glance at his reflection, the yellow and purple mottling alongside his torso a stark reminder of who held power over his stay here.
CRDL was very careful to not leave any marks anywhere that wasn't covered by uniform or combat attire, but the areas that were had been fair game. For someone who had very little control of his newly- awakened aura, they might as well have been punching a normal human. Thankfully, they had enough control not to outright break anything.
By the time he had finished his ablutions, the sky outside had brightened to a light purple, with hints of orange peeping over the heads of the trees in the far off forest. The reason he was up at such an unreasonable hour for a teenager was two-fold: one, it was before Cardin and the rest of his ilk were up, so it was a brief period of peace before he would have to deal with them, and two, it meant he was able to avoid the questions raised by his team, and especially his partner.
That wasn't to say that he disregarded Ren and Nora, but the two of them had the easy going countenance of friends who had been together (not together-together!) and so it sometimes felt as if he was the third wheel when it came to anything to do with them. As for Pyrrha…
Jaune was a healthy young man, and his partner was admittedly quite beautiful, both inside and out. He had first seen her as a sidenote, next to the almost ethereal beauty of Weiss, but as he spent more and more time with her, it became more obvious.
What stood out most to him, aside from her height – she was almost as tall as he was! – was her hair, and her eyes. Unlike most redheads he knew or had seen, her hair was a deep crimson, a natural crimson at that, and for some reason it captivated him. It also made her bright emerald eyes pop, almost seeming to glow at times.
Her figure had been honed by years of fighting in the arena, and he had no qualms about admitting his attraction to the fit female form. Her arms were toned, leading up to strong shoulders, and on the few occasions where she would remove her blazer, he could see the faint hints of abdominal muscles. Yes, Pyrrha Nikos was a beautiful woman.
But what made it painful to deal with her was how she interacted with people. She was always helpful, explaining things in a way he could understand. And he would have a near heart attack when she would sit next to him, sitting so close he could smell her apple shampoo and her shoulder rubbed up against his as she pointed at something in the textbook.
For someone who had been hiding his ugly secret of how he had gotten into Beacon, her genuinely forthright and understanding nature had felt like a blow to him. Here he was, a fake, a fraud, and she hadn't yelled at him, or called him a liar. Instead, she had offered to help him train, to help him improve himself.
And he had denied her. Not out of machismo, but rather the feeling that he didn't deserve her time. She was a four-time champion, with loads of accolades, and sponsors, and.. and… cereal boxes! She had better things to do with her time than waste it on a loser who had to lie to get into school!
The hurt in her eyes when he had denied her was like someone had stabbed Crocea Mors into his heart, but his head was telling him this was for her own good, she didn't need him holding her back.
So he had distanced himself from his team. His problems were his, he didn't want them to end up getting involved, they didn't deserve it.
As he left the room, closing the door quietly as he made his way to breakfast, he failed to note a pair of emerald eyes open, bright and clear, with a hint of sadness in them.
KUPO
"So, he's left early again?"
With the ever-calm way in which he spoke, it was difficult to determine when Ren's emotions were in flux, but the concern in his voice in that question was quite obvious.
Pyrrha sighed as she nodded, finishing putting her hair into its customary ponytail.
Nora growled in frustration from her position atop her bed, laying sideways so her head was off the edge.
"What is up with him?! He's our fearless leader, but if he doesn't shape up, I might have to break his legs!"
Pyrrha doubted how serious the ginger was, but then noticed her eyeing the giant hammer that was resting against the wall, and quickly decided it would be wise to attempt to stave off the possible breakage of their team leader's limbs.
"I'm sure he just has a lot on his mind right now. Give it some time, and he will realize he doesn't have to deal with whatever it is alone."
She immediately regretted her comment as Nora's eyes narrowed conspiratorially.
"Ho-ho, well, we all know at least one person who would love to be there for him."
Despite her best efforts, she could feel her face erupt into a massive blush. Her crush for the boy was the worst kept secret in the entire school, as it seemed it was only Jaune himself that seemed completely unaware of it.
"Nora…"
Ren's warning tone caused the girl to pout, but she desisted, allowing Pyrrha to regain control of her complexion.
As they finished getting ready, Pyrrha silently resolved to herself that she would somehow corner her partner, and figure out what was causing him to act like he was.
KUPO -
The first class of the day was Grimm studies with Professor Port, the end result of which was half the class was either asleep or goofing off as he regaled them with another of his 'heroic tales'.
Pyrrha took the opportunity to observe her partner, while keeping half a mind to the professor.
Normally his drooping eyes would be simply a sign of the boring manner in which they were learning, but below them were unhealthy-looking dark circles. And she couldn't put her finger on it, but something about the way her partner sat at his seat seemed…off, almost unnatural.
The gong of the bell that signaled the end of class pulled her from her observations, and, as the rest of the students filed out of the classroom, she dawdled, providing an excuse to stay behind and speak with Jaune.
He was packing up his textbook as she approached, his movements speaking with the lethargic effort of those who are lacking sleep.
"Jaune?"
He seemed to jump at her voice, as if he hadn't expected her to be there. He looked up at her, and the way his eyes dulled as a fake smile fit his face worried her.
"Hey, what's up Pyrrha?"
She tried to think of a way to broach the subject gently.
"Well, Ren, Nora and myself couldn't help but notice that you've been a little…distant lately."
She saw a flash of something in his eyes, but then they reverted back to that dull blue.
"Oh, sorry, I've just been putting in some extra time studying and whatnot, you know…seeing as I need it."
He let off a nervous chuckle, and was apparently flustered as he turned, inadvertently knocking his bag to the floor.
Cursing softly, he instinctively bent to grab it, but the sudden pain in his midriff instead caused him to wheeze out and clutch at his ribs. Dammit, they were probably bruised.
"Jaune!"
His partner's voice was alarmed. as she closed the distance to him, grabbing hold of his shoulders as she searched him over frantically.
He allowed himself a brief indulgence of being at the attentions of her, before mentally shaking himself.
"I'm fine," even he could tell that it was a pathetic attempt to reassure, "just a little sore from combat class yesterday."
Pyrrha frowned, combat class hadn't been that intensive, and the way in which he tried to write off whatever was hurting him concerned her.
"Jaune… you know if you ever need help, you can just ask."
It was similar in manner to the way in which she had offered to train with him.
Jaune stiffened perceptibly, before quickly grabbing his bag and making his way to the door.
"Everything's fine, like I said! We should hurry, or we'll be late to class!"
As he left the classroom, Pyrrha felt her heart constrict, and tried to will away the tears of frustration that gathered in the corners of her eyes.
KUPO
For the rest of their classes, Jaune avoided everyone like the plague, until it came time for the last class of the day, combat class.
Normally, this would be a miserable experience for him, but today had the potential for being better. Rather than the one on one matches that would typically be part of the class, their instructor, a severe-looking blonde huntress named Glynda Goodwitch, informed them that they would be learning about the special rocket lockers the school utilized.
As a result, he had ended up being slightly earlier than he had anticipated, and as a result was standing alone outside the doorway that led to the locker room.
Or, at least he thought he was alone, until a heavy hand slapped itself on his shoulder, squeezing painfully, as a familiar and hated voice filled his ear.
"Well, if it isn't our best bud, Jauney-boy?"
The grip on his shoulder tightened so much he would've sworn his bones were rubbing against each other.
The owner of it stepped into view, a one Cardin Winchester. The man's otherwise handsome face was marred with an ugly sneer as he continued to speak.
"So, I saw you talking to Nikos earlier today. You didn't bring up anything…unnecessary, did you? I mean, we're best pals, right? We gotta look out for each other."
The other three members of CRDL spread out into a half moon, trapping Jaune between them and the stone wall.
"I mean, for example, if she learned something unnecessary, why, someone could think that she would need to know to be quiet."
Cardin's face leaned in, and despite his pearly white teeth, the teenager's breath reeked.
"She's a gorgeous girl, who knows what kind of maniac would find her on her daily runs, just waiting to catch her?"
Ice filled Jaune at what Cardin was implying, before a fiery rage he had never known before filled him.
"If you even touch her…ack!"
Cardin's hand impacted painfully at the base of his throat, right at the collar bone, slamming Jaune into the wall.
"You'll do what, exactly? You forget, one little word from me, and you are gone from here. The only reason I haven't is because you are useful as a gofer. To do my homework, and provide me amusement. If I want that stuck-up bitch, then there is nothing you can do that will stop me. Not if you want to stay here."
With one last shove against the wall that sent waves of agony through his bruised ribs, Cardin walked into the classroom, just as the other students began to show up.
KUPO
He managed to recover physically, before anyone could see him, but his mind was in turmoil. The very thought of Cardin following through on what he had threatened…
Logically, he knew Pyrrha could wipe the floor with all of CRDL in a fair fight, but there was no telling what they would do to even it out.
He knew what he needed to do.
His dream had always been to be a huntsman, to be a hero.
But if following that dream meant that his partner, or anyone else, was injured, or worse, as had been implied? He would gladly give that up.
With that thought in mind, and his soul weighing heavily, he turned to Ms. Goodwitch, resolving that, after the lesson, he would request to speak with the headmaster.
KUPO
"Hey Pyrrha, is everything okay with Jaune?" Ruby's young voice drew Pyrrha's attention away from Goodwitch's lecture, and she turned to look at the younger teen.
Inside, a part of her squealed at the pure adorableness of Team RWBY's leader.
Being 15, Ruby was at least 2 years younger than anybody else at Beacon, and had yet to hit her growth spurt. Her diminutive body, combined with her innocent nature and wide, innocent eyes, could easily fell all but the most truly evil beings.
Her hair was cut short, reaching just below her jawline, where the black began shift to red. Her top consisted of a black, long-sleeved shirt, with a lightly armored corset protecting her stomach, and a combat skirt, over which hung a medium-sized leather belt stocked with rounds for her beloved Crescent Rose.
Pyrrha saw the concern in Ruby's eyes, and she sighed.
"He says he is, but there's obviously something going on. I tried asking him about it, but he just blew it off."
Ruby frowned, and Pyrrha immediately felt the need to hit Jaune for being the reason something so cute had to be upset.
"At least the dolt has left me alone, so I for one, am grateful to whatever it is."
Stepping up next to Ruby was her partner, Weiss, and a deep, secluded part of Pyrrha that she would never admit to bristled slightly at the entrance of the object of her crush's affections.
She was woman enough to admit that yes, objectively speaking, Weiss was quite attractive, with an almost fairy-like countenance to her, punctuated by the elegance and refinement of someone who was used to dealing with the high upper class. The faint scar over her left eye, rather than detract from her beauty, only seemed to enhance it.
But what drew Pyrrha's ire, aside from the fact that Jaune had a crush on her, was that Weiss's attitude left a great deal to be desired. Unfortunately, she had inherited the stereotypical snobbish attitude that came with those of the upper class and rich, and treated not only Jaune with contempt, something which was already damning enough in her eyes, but also the rest of her teammates.
It was obvious from the start that she had wanted the position of Team Leader of RWBY, and was doing everything short of being straight-up insubordinate as a result.
"Wow, Ice-queen, way to be a witch."
Speaking of teammates, behind Weiss followed the other half of RWBY. Yang, Ruby's sister, and the one who had spoke, was the one that stood out the most, for her boisterous nature as much as the fact that she was unabashedly one of the most beautiful and developed girls in their year.
Shorter than Pyrrha by almost half a foot, the brawler's physique was slightly bulkier than her own, the muscles in her arms and shoulder more pronounced, evidence of her preferred fighting style. She was also less reserved when it came to her combat outfit.
While all students during normal class wore the standard uniform, their combat outfits were allowed to be personalized, in order to better fit their personalities and fighting styles. Yang's consisted of a yellow crop top, over which was a tight-fitting brown jacket that was zipped up to just underneath her prodigious bust, as if to draw attention to it.
Her toned and flat stomach was bare, while a pair of black hotpants, combined with a utility belt and what looked like half a sarong, covered the rest of her modesty.
Next to Yang was her partner, Blake.
As tall as she was, with the ribbon that she wore in her long black hair, she was actually slightly taller. Blake was lithe and slim, and moved so silently that Yang had often joked about her being a ninja. Her preferred weapon, Gambol shroud, a Variant Ballistic Chain Scythe, only leant credence to Xiao-long's joking remarks.
Compared to Yang, Blake held more of a reserved beauty, with bangs framing an oval face that was set with incredibly unique amber eyes. Her top consisted of a white crop-top, covered by a black corset-like garment that left her stomach bare as well. White shorts, with legs that were covered by black stockings, and black heeled booties finished off the ensemble.
Weiss' face darkened, and she stomped her foot. "I told you to stop calling me that!"
The heiress' temper tantrum didn't seem to phase Yang, who merely looked back with an unimpressed gaze.
"Maybe if you stopped acting like one, then I would."
Let it be said, for all of Yang's fun-loving and boisterous ways, she was deadly serious when it came to protecting her younger sister. And so, having Weiss constantly question and belittle Ruby rankled her greatly.
The two girls continued to bicker, while Blake separated herself from them, having no desire to be part of the argument, while Ruby's face became downcast. It seemed Team RWBY was having problems of their own.
Trying to give Ruby a reassuring smile, that even she knew her whole heart wasn't into, she turned back to Ms. Goodwitch's lecture.
"This is the Rocket locker. As opposed to your normal locker, this locker is specifically for the storage of your combat gear. During your time here, you may be called to participate in either missions or act as a quick reaction force for emergencies, and it is not feasible to have you wear your gear at all times."
The woman gestured to the keypad that was on the front of the locker.
"Right now these lockers are unkeyed, but in a moment, we will link them to your scrolls, and they will become your for the duration of your stay at Beacon. Feel free to open them up and look inside."
As a number of the students proceeded to do so, she continued with her lecture.
"As well as keeping your gear secured, another reason for linking it to your scroll is so that the locker, when summoned, can home in on your position out in the wilds. However, its range is limited to the grounds of Beacon and the city of Vale."
"It can also be programmed to be sent to an individual manually."
The huntress walked up to a locker that was next to her and quickly typed something into the keypad. There a confirming chirp, before the locker gave a violent shudder, and a roar filled the air as a panel in the ceiling opened and the rocket locker launched.
Everyone was so engrossed in the spectacle that no one noticed the excited looks on the faces of Team CRDL.
Quickly, Cardin grabbed Jaune's shoulder, and shoved him into an open locker, before slamming the door shut.
Jaune's surprised yelp caught Pyrrha's attention, but before she was able to react, Cardin had already punched a random number into the keypad on the locker.
Hearing another locker take off without her permission, Glynda's gaze locked onto Team CRDL who were standing next to an empty space in the wall of lockers.
"Mr. Winchester, I did not give you permission to set off a locker, they have not been keyed yet and so…"
She was interrupted by Pyrrha's distressed cry.
"Ms. Goodwitch, that locker has Jaune in it!"
A chill ran through Glynda as she quickly took stock of the students in front of her. Indeed, Mr. Arc was not present, and it was difficult not to notice the looks of glee on the faces of Team CRDL.
"…Team CRDL, what have you done?"
Her frosty tone was confusing at first, and the smiles on CRDL's faces began to slip.
Those smiles completely disappeared as not long after she had spoken, the very locker they had put Arc in exploded, filling the sky with a giant fireball.
So, yeah, the chapter turned out a little darker than I really wanted, but having to build the back story, and then for what happens, and where I want the story to go, it had to be relatively early, and at a point that has significant character development for our boy. The Jaundice arc (hehehe) ended up being the point I needed. I also had to fiddle with the timeline a little, but nothing too bad. Don't worry, Jaune isn't dead, wouldn't really be a crossover if he was, now would it?
Anyways, please tell me what you think, I love good reviews, and appreciate constructive criticism. Flames annoy the hell out of me, because telling someone they suck, or that their story is trash, does nothing to aid the author's growth as a writer.