Rigor Mortis - There's a Song in the Air

Jaune Arc stared at his family's home for the last few years. The humble abode was nearly destroyed. A fire had burned a good portion of it to the ground. That stupid table that never stood right was shattered, half broken on the floor as Jaune searched for any remnant of his family.

Mom's jewelry was where it was. Saphron's clothes were turned black. They were so badly burned that they almost fell to ash at just a touch. The chair they had brought from Vale, the same one his father used to sit on with Jaune on his knee, was destroyed, nothing but broken wood and torn cotton and cloth.

He knew it wasn't likely that anyone would be here. Chances were he'd just find their bodies, but there wasn't even that. Maybe they were alive and on their way to New Atlas. Maybe they were dead somewhere else in the city. Maybe he was just desperate.

No, scratch that. He knew he was desperate. What else do you call teaming up with a Grimm?

Jaune walked out of the house to find the Grimm hadn't moved. She was waiting outside his house, patiently.. Part of him was scared she'd be gone when he came back, but here she was.. The Grimm stared at him, and she tilted her head quizzically. She lifted a black, clawed hand at the house and pointed at it.

"Y-yo...yorrss?"

"...? Oh. Mine. Y-yeah. This is… was my house." He nodded his head as the Grimm returned the gesture.

"Ay… sor...ree."

She was sorry. A Grimm was feeling sorry for him. He wasn't sure if he was meant to laugh or be thankful.

"Thanks," Jaune muttered back. "Come on, we better start moving."

She nodded her head, before she held up another small bag of chocolate chip cookies out to him. He raised his brow, staring at her.

"You found more?" she nodded her head quickly, before reaching inside the bag and pulling out a single cookie. She tossed it into her mouth before motioning for him to take one from the bag.

"Um, no. I-I'm good." Ruby nodded her head, before the two started walking towards the town's exit. Neither said anything. Jaune wasn't sure what he could say. They just kept walking, leaving the ruins of his home behind them….

Ruby sniffed the fresh air, almost taken back by the smells she caught in her nostrils. It was… amazing. She couldn't remember the last time she could actually smell something! And the smells of this forest were on a whole other level compared to the ruined village!

She took another deep breath, tail swishing behind her back as she moaned at the tastes she caught. The smell of the trees, of the dirt, the animals that scurried up and down the trees, and…

Ruby sniffed the air again, turning her head towards the scent. What an interesting smell… She took a deep breath, before a voice called out to her.

"H-hey. Could you… back off a bit?"

Ruby opened her eyes, staring down at Jaune. Her snout was just a few inches from his head, and she took one last sniff of his hair before she stepped back. She tried to smile at him, before he took a step back and motioned her to move in front of him.

"Could you…?"

She nodded her head, walking in front of him again as they entered the large forest that surrounded his old home.

Ruby felt mortified. Was she always this awkward? Or was it just another consequence of being turned into a monster? She sighed quietly, shaking her head as the two kept moving. Neither said anything as Jaune walked behind her, his eyes bouncing between the map and her.

They walked for a long, long time, and while Ruby's body was able to walk for what seemed like forever, her mind was getting… well, bored.

She turned her head to Jaune, and she found he looked worse. Bored, tired, hungry, and still mourning the loss of his home… She couldn't believe how much the man had gone through. He was strong. He was kind. He didn't deserve this kind of life.

No one did.

Ruby suddenly stopped and Jaune did the same. He took a hand off his map, reaching down to his sword with one hand. She noticed, of course, and she tried her best not to take it personally. She just lifted up her hand and pointed ahead.

"What? Something ahead of us?" She nodded her head, before she walked forward a few more feet, onto a small hill, and pointed down. Jaune stared at her, hesitant for a moment, before he approached her and followed her gaze.

A small stream was under them, with fish swimming within it.

"Fish?" Ruby patted her stomach, and Jaune raised his brow. "You're hungry? Well, I mean you have been eating nothing but cookies and chocolate chips since we met… I just… I've never really seen a Grimm eat anything before."

Ruby licked her lips at the thought of more cookies. She wasn't sure what it was about them, but they were so good! But that was beside the point. The real point here was giving Jaune something to eat other than just his rations.

"Guess we can get some fish. I'm already starting to get tired of the food we packed." Ruby couldn't blame him. They had no kitchen, no fridge, no oven, nothing really good could be brought with them on this journey.

Time for some real food.

"Now, I think I packed a fishing rod in here… Where-?" Jaune jumped as he heard a splash next to him. He looked at Ruby again, and she pulled her tail out of the water with a fish impaled on the tip of her scythe-like tip. "Or that. That works too."

Ruby felt like she was beaming. She hoped this mouth could show just how proud she was of herself. She gave him two thumbs up, and he slowly lifted up his own hand to do the same.

Jaune watched the fire cook the fish Ruby and him had caught… Okay, it was mostly Ruby. Jaune hadn't caught any fish.

He and Ruby sat by the small fire they made, feeling its warmth tickle their bodies as Jaune looked at the Grimm. She turned her head to meet him and she smiled at him.

It wasn't really a smile. Not like how a human smiles, but he was starting to catch the little changes in her face when she tried to smile. It… wasn't awful.

"Thanks for helping me catch the fish." She gave him another thumbs up. He glanced up at the sky, catching that it was sometime in the afternoon. Lunch time. He carefully took one of the fish, which was impaled on a stick, and he blew on it.

After he cooled it down, he took a bite, savoring the taste of something that wasn't just bread or the MREs they had packed. He tore the fish apart, savoring each bite as Ruby watched him. He blinked, before nodding his head and smiling.

"Um, it's good. Thanks."

Ruby smiled again, before she pumped a fist to the air and back down. Was she cheering? Heh.

"You know, seeing a Grimm do the things you do is… kind of funny," he chuckled.

She tilted her head, before she scratched the back of her head and looked away. Did he embarrass her? An embarrassed Grimm. Even that was kind of funny.

"Er, sorry. I meant that in a nice way, I just… I've never seen a Grimm look so friendly. Be so friendly. It's crazy."

Ruby nodded her head, and she picked up a rock. Jaune watched her throw it into the air, before she caught it in his hand. Then up again, before catching it.

Jaune blinked, before he chuckled. "No, I've never seen a Grimm juggle before either." Ruby picked up another rock and threw it into the air, but that proved too much for her because as she caught one, the other bounced off her skull mask.

Jaune chuckled again and Ruby joined him, her tail wagging behind her. "Hey, wanna hear a joke?" Ruby beamed, nodding her head again as Jaune smiled. "What kind of Grimm never asks for seconds?"

Ruby raised her brow and tilted her head as Jaune grinned. "A Nevermore! Get it?" The female Grimm blinked, before snickering, a sound that almost sounded like a hiss as she nodded her head. Jaune was stunned for a moment, before he grinned. "Heh. Thanks. The others never really laughed at that joke."

The Grimm gave him another thumbs up, but that didn't dull the pain Jaune felt as he thought of his team. Ren, Nora, Pyrrha, even Cardin… He hoped they were okay.

Were they already dead? Had he already lost them? He wasn't sure. He didn't want to think about it, honestly, yet he couldn't help himself. All of the terrible things that could have happened to them…

"Muh. Muh. Muh-oar." Jaune looked at Ruby and he realized that her hand was on his shoulder. His eyes met hers as she tried to smile. "Juh. Juh-jou-kuh."

"Sure. Here's one Nora used to say a lot. So, there's this Huntsman with a bad headache…"

Eventually the two were on the move again, but this time Jaune was willing to at least speak to her. It wasn't much. A joke here, a comment there, but it wasn't the same awkward silence their journey had to endure at first.

Ruby couldn't blame Jaune for acting the way he did. She'd react the same if she met a supposedly nice Grimm. Probably. Couldn't know for sure until she found out who she was…

"It's getting dark," Jaune commented, rubbing his arm as Ruby looked up at the dark sky. She nodded her head as Jaune pointed forward. "Maybe we should try and find a place to rest at?"

Ruby seemed to agree with the idea, but she paused as she caught the scent of something. She sniffed the air again, taking in the strange aroma. She poked Jaune's shoulder and he turned to her, raising his brow.

She pointed towards the smell, urging him to go that way with her other hand.

"Huh? What is it?"

"S-Ssuh. SSsuh-mell."

"You smell something?" Jaune raised his brow again, before he nodded his head. "Is it good or… bad?" Ruby shrugged, and the blond sighed. "Okay."

Jaune and Ruby continued to walk through the dark forest. The night sky, filled with stars and the shattered remains of the moon shone above them as they walked. Jaune wished they had more light, but the thought of Grimm seeing it and hunting them down made his stomach twist and his hands shake.

So he kept moving, trying to push through the fog of darkness as Ruby walked beside him. His heart pounded in his chest as he tried not to let his fear consume him. Just keep moving forward. Keep moving.

He glanced at Ruby, finding comfort in her silver eyes. They glowed like little stars in the dark, faint, easy to miss, but they were there. It was the only comfort he really had besides Crocea Mors.

"Suh-mell. F-fuh, ai-er."

"Fire?" Jaune whispered, before he quickly sealed his lips. He sniffed the air, and she was right. He smelled it too, and soon, he saw it. His eyes widened at the light ahead of them. He felt the corners of his lips rise into a smile as he looked at Ruby.

People. Jaune couldn't believe it. It was a campfire! He stepped forward, but Ruby's hand caught his shoulder. He stopped and he turned to look at her.

"It's okay. I'll be right back. Just stay here." He pulled away from her and he ran through the bushes and past the trees.

Just to see another living soul. That was all he could ask for as he ran to the light. He ran as quickly as he could, calling out to those around the dancing flames.

"Hey! I-I'm friendly. I'm a Huntsman, I-"

He came to a stop. There was a fire. It was warm. It was still bright. It shined a light on him and the three bodies around it.

Three corpses.

Their eyes wide, faces frozen in horror as Jaune felt his hopes die in an instant.

"No…" He walked over to one of the bodies. Dried blood on their chin. Their clothes stained a dark shade of red. They had been stabbed. Twice, by the looks of it.

The man stared up at the night sky, their mouth hanging open as Jaune stared at him. Then he turned his eyes to the others. An older woman, who had been stabbed right through the heart, and a son, who looked…

He was around Jaune's age.

They were dead.

And Jaune was alone again.

Jaune held his head, digging his fingers into his head. He failed them.

A huntsman was supposed to protect people, but he failed. People kept dying and Jaune was alone again.

"Damn it… Damn it!" he screamed, slamming his fist into the ground. He couldn't save them. He couldn't save anyone. Why was he so weak?! Why couldn't he be better?! What was wrong with him!?

Pyrrha could have saved these people. He knew he could. Ren could have saved them. Nora. Even Cardin.

Why couldn't he?

Were they survivors of his town? Or just people trying to survive in the wild? It didn't matter. They were gone.

Jaune felt tears pooling in the corners of his eyes. They began to trickle down his face, falling to the ground as he struggled to breathe. He choked on his sobs, shaking as his arms hung limply at his sides.

Then he felt arms wrap around him and he surrendered to them.

Ruby was happy for Jaune. She saw the smile on his face when he saw the fire. She watched him run to it. She wished she could have.

She wondered what would have happened if she was still human…? She and Jaune would run forward, towards the light, and they'd find a haven. People. Good people who would welcome them.

They'd be able to laugh again. To be happy, to feel safe.

She glanced at the black hands of a Grimm. Her own hands. She remembered when those hands were made of human flesh. The soft hands of a girl who loved her life. Who was surrounded by the feeling.

She remembered that. She remembered being loved once, but that was all. Who had loved her was beyond her, and she was left with nothing but the ache of a broken heart…

And Jaune… Jaune ran to the people just beyond the bushes. Would they welcome him? She hoped so. Would they fear her? Jaune could try and defend her, but… but if it came down to it, she'd rather Jaune was safe.

Even if it meant she was-

Ruby's eyes widened. She felt it like a tidal wave. Pain. Agony. Hurt. The dark emotions that called to Grimm like her. She felt it in the air, pulling on her. Like a heavy wind, it drew her closer. She was overwhelmed by the sensation for a moment, feeling her feet inching forward, but a moment of clarity was all she needed.

Jaune!

It was his pain. She tasted it on her tongue. She ran forward, no longer caring about staying hidden. She had to make sure he was okay.

She came to him, and she saw it. The dead bodies.

Ruby's silver eyes traveled from one to another, her heart sinking with each moment, but it was Jaune that hurt the most. He was sobbing, kneeling on the ground as tears fell down his face. He gasped for air as the tears continued to fall and… Ruby couldn't stop herself.

She knelt down and hugged him.

She squeezed his body against hers, careful not to hurt him, but just… What else could she do? She could barely speak. She wished she could have told him it was going to be okay. That this wasn't his fault, but her mouth wouldn't let her.

So she held him. She hoped that was enough as she carefully nuzzled her masked face against his.

He continued to cry, and all she could do was give him a shoulder to cry on. Time passed by them as the fire continued to dance before them…

Ruby didn't care how long it took. She wouldn't abandon him.

Jaune felt… ashamed of himself. He was weak. What right did he have to cry? He was still alive. He… he had to pull himself together.

For a moment, he didn't even realize it was Ruby that was holding him. He felt her arms on his body, he felt her embrace, but he hadn't realized that it was a Grimm holding him. He lifted up a hand, placing it on her hand, feeling the fur on her dark skin. He opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out.

He just took a deep breath as the tears finally stopped and he felt… empty. He breathed slowly, trying to calm his racing heart as Ruby's voice brushed against his ear.

"S-sah… ree. Sah-ree. Sah-ree…" It sounded like she was straining herself just to say those words. She held him tighter, almost squeezing him as her quiet voice struggled to reach him. Soh sah-ree."

"I-I know." His hand squeezed hers. "You don't need to apologize. You didn't do this." He pulled away from her and she didn't fight him. She stared at him, rubbing the back of her head. "Um… Thanks, I guess," he muttered, avoiding her silver eyes.

She nodded her head. There really wasn't much else they could do. Jaune glanced at the bodies, moving closer to them to close their eyes. "They were killed. Probably from a Grimm. I… The bodies don't look old and the fire's still going, so it had to be recent."

Ruby nodded her head as Jaune looked at her. "We should be careful moving forward… or we should stay in one place?" Jaune sighed, shaking his head. "I-I don't know." He felt her pat his back, and he gave her a weak smile. "Thanks…" He glanced at the bodies one last time, before he walked over to the fire.

He kicked dirt onto it and separated the wood with his sword, killing the fire in a few moments. "Let's… keep going."

The two marched onward, though by now they could both feel the weight of danger resting on their shoulders. Jaune remembered the training Pyrrha gave him. The Grimm were attracted to negative emotion, so that meant a good Huntsman had to be in control of their own feelings.

So he did his best to do just that, but how was he supposed to just… ignore that dead family? He swallowed spit down his throat, trying to ignore the writhing in the pit of his stomach.

Don't be scared. Don't be angry. Don't be… emotional? Damn it, Pyrrha always made this look so easy!

"Jah-n." He turned his head towards Ruby. Her silver eyes glowed subtly in the dark as she placed a hand on his shoulder and squeezed it. "Tuh-geh-thur."

"...You can feel it, can't you? How scared I am…?" She nodded her head. "Sorry. Just… those people were killed recently. I-if we had left sooner, maybe I could have-"

"Cah-ahnut. Nuh… nuh…" Ruby closed her eyes and Jaune could feel her own frustration. She knew the words, but her mouth just wouldn't say them properly. She sighed as Jaune placed his hand on hers.

"It's okay. You're right, I can't know that. I just…" Jaune squeezed his lips together into a thin frown. What was he doing? Baring his soul to a Grimm? No, she wasn't a Grimm, but… but it wasn't right to just talk to her like they were friends.

Right?

He honestly didn't know. He had no idea of what to do or say as he sighed, shaking his head. "I'm sorry."

"Tuh-geh-thur."

"Right. We're together. We'll be okay." He hoped that's what she meant, at least. He motioned for them to keep moving and she nodded her head, following behind him as they continued to trek through the forest.

The forest surrounded them on all sides now, and the branches stretched out above them, keeping them both in the dark. Thankfully Jaune was able to move through the dark relatively well, using what little moonlight they had to keep going forward. From what he could tell, Ruby's eyes were as good as a Faunus' at night. She seemed perfectly fine walking behind him, even as he tripped and stumbled on the occasional root.

"Hey," Jaune whispered. "Can you climb up a tree? See if you can see the end of this forest or something?" Ruby nodded her head, though she did place a hand on his shoulder and pointed down. "I won't move."

She nodded her head again, before she leapt up and vanished into the trees. Jaune watched her go… and he looked around the dark forest, sighing quietly as he held Crocea Mors' handle tightly in his hand.

The forest was quiet. Even the wind didn't dare to move.

Ruby stood on a long, sturdy branch as she stared out into the horizon. She saw more of the forest, but from where she stood she could also see the end. Mountains in the distance, clear to her silver eyes, but there was something else.

Something she wasn't quite sure of.

It looked like a tree, but it was bigger than the other trees. Almost like it was a building. It reached high into the sky, with what seemed like dozens of long, crooked branches reaching out across the forest for… for what might have been miles.

The more Ruby stared at it, the more imposing it seemed. There was something wrong with that tree. She felt her tail slowly slither through the air as she stared at it. The branches slowly twitched in the wind as Ruby watched it.

She didn't move. She just stared at it as she felt that familiar pull again.

Agony. Hatred. Sadness.

It hurt. There was so much pain.

If she listened closely, she could hear the screams. Why were there screams? Why did her blood run cold the longer she stared at that tree?

So much pain. So much fear. Ruby felt her body moving forward, drawn to it, drinking it in as she drowned in the agony of so many. Her mouth dripped with drool as euphoria flooded her mind. The addiction of suffering. The taste of painful existence… So many horrible emotions.

Ruby stopped. She tore at her body, pulling herself free as she clenched her jaw and growled out at the night air. There was no wind.

Yet the branches continued to sway.

"Help!" The voice cut through the air like a knife as Ruby's eyes widened.

"Ruby!" Jaune called out to her, but she could already hear it. He ran forward, feet crushing twigs and kicking up dirt as Ruby leapt down to the ground. She ran after him, the image of that tree seared into her mind.

"Help! Help!" Jaune felt his heart pounding. He screamed back to the voice.

"I'm coming! Where are you?!" He looked around the dark forest, trying to find the source of the voice.

"It has my son!"

Jaune could see a child being torn apart by the Grimm. It took him a moment to realize it was just his mind playing tricks on him. But a child was in danger. He had to hurry. Couldn't let the Grimm have him.

Like they had his sisters.

No.

Don't think like that.

Find them.

"I'm over here!"

Jaune turned his head to the voice, and he ran after it, only to feel something grab his arm. Ruby was holding him back. He pulled his arm out of her grasp, only for her to grab his arm again.

"Ruby, let go! He needs help!"

"Nuh! Nuh!"

"Ruby, stop!" Was this it? Was the Grimm showing her true colors? He trusted her, but the first chance he had to actually save someone, she stopped him? He pulled his hand away again and pulled out his sword, aiming it at her. "Stay back!"

Ruby stepped back and… and he could see something in her eyes. She held up her hands and shook her head quickly. She placed her hands together and motioned to the ground.

"Stay here?! Are you insane?! That man needs help!"

"Help!"

"Nuh! Nuh!"

Jaune's hand tightened around his sword as he screamed at the Grimm. "I won't just leave him to die!"

"Help!"

Ruby grabbed Crocea Mors in her hand. She held Jaune's sword by the blade as her other hand grabbed his shoulder.

"Oh-lee yew!"

"What?!" He tried to pull away, but she held him firmly.

"Oh-lee yew! Oh-lee yew!"

"Only me? What the hell does that mean?!"

"Nuh sah-ness. Nuh anng-er." She shook her head, before poking him in the chestplate. "Oh-lee yew."

"It has my son!"

It took Jaune a few seconds to comprehend her words. No sadness. No anger. Just… his.

"I'm over here! Help!" It kept repeating those same words over and over again. The same way… over and over again.

When people repeat themselves, they couldn't help but sound different each time. The same words, but different inflections, different pitch… How could anyone say the same words the exact same way over and over again?

"Help!" Jaune's eyes widened.

The voice was coming closer.

Ruby released him and she looked around, tail hovering behind her as the voice called out again. It was so close, yet it seemed to come from everywhere.

"Help!"

"I'm over here!"

"It has my son!"

"Help!"

"It has my son!"

"I'm over here!"

"W-what…?" Jaune stopped. Something was staring at them from the shadows. Someone.

A figure covered in a dark cloak stared at Jaune. The large robes covered their entire body as they watched him from behind a tree, before they stepped to the side and vanished behind it. Jaune blinked, before another figure appeared, rising up from behind some bushes.

It stared at Jaune as the moon's light fell on it, only for it to vanish once more, running behind a tree.

Jaune felt his back bump into Ruby, her long tail slithering over his head as the voices continued.

"Help!"

"I'm over here!"

"Help!"

"It has my son!"

"Help!"

"I'm over here!"

So many different voices. All overlapping on one another. So many figures, all looking exactly the same. People in large cloaks that only left the very top of their heads exposed, but when he looked at them… He couldn't pick out any details. They were all bald, all with skin as black as Ruby's...

Then Jaune saw one of the figures step out from a bush, and the robe was pulled apart. It opened up and flapped behind the figure, turning into a pair of wings as Jaune's eyes widened.

A Grimm. The head of a bird with a long beak, but the way it bent its head forward… It mimicked a human skull. Even the top part of its head had indents in it to better match a human skull. It had two long legs that ended in sharp, needle-like tips and the arms ended in small, bony scythes as its black wings twitched.

"Help!" it shouted. "I'm over here!"

It shot forward, scythes raised as Jaune held up his shield and blocked the attack.

More leapt out of the shadows, attacking Ruby as she roared at them. Her tail impaled one as the other slashed at her with their bladed arms. The one she impaled stared at her with a single eye.

"It has my son!" it shouted out. The voice was so… human. Jaune could imagine almost any face to it. He wanted to ignore it, but they just kept talking.

"Help!"

"Over here!"

Jaune drove his sword into another Grimm's chest, impaling it on his sword as it cried out for a son it didn't have. Their voices plagued his mind as he tried to ignore them, kicking and punching and slashing, fighting with everything he had, but there were so many Grimm.

"Jah!" Jaune turned to Ruby, and his eyes widened as he saw one Grimm flying through the air, lunging at him. It slammed into him, knocking itself onto the ground, but throwing Jaune off his feet and to the hard floor.

He groaned in pain, only to quickly roll out of the way as one of the Grimm nearly stabbed him in the chest with its sharp, needle-like foot. He reached for a weapon, picking up his shield and swinging it. There was a loud crack as his shield shattered the Grimm's leg bones. It fell to the ground, turning into a black smoke, but victory was short lived.

Jaune watched as a hooked limb grabbed onto the shield and yanked it out of his hands. His eyes widened, before he stared into the beaked mouth of the Grimm. He watched the beak open, but not in two different directions like a normal bird.

It split into four different directions, splitting apart in ways he had never seen a beak move before, and he saw into the beast's mouth. He saw almost human-like teeth, mashing and gnawing at the empty air as he spat out a familiar voice back at him.

"I'm over here!" It clawed at Jaune with his arms, and he held up his arms, trying to block the attacks. His Aura suffered several hits, before the creature wrapped its claws around him, trapping his body against it.

"Ah! Hey! Let me go!" He kicked and struggled against the creature as it closed its beak and rested it on his shoulder. Its wings flapped, picking them off the ground as his eyes widened. "No, no, no! Ruby! Help!"

The red-haired Grimm turned her head, watching as he was picked up by one of the attacking birds. She quickly shot forward, stabbing through a Grimm with her tail, only to be held back by others of the race.

She growled, cutting through several of them, but for each one she killed, another took its place. She watched Jaune being picked up, carried into the air as her eyes widened.

"Jah!"

Jaune watched as Ruby tore the creatures apart. It was a slaughter, but it was one that took precious time. Too much time. Jaune struggled, fighting against the Grimm's hold, but it had him trapped.

It carried him higher into the air, away from his only ally and his family's weapons… He squeezed his eyes shut, knowing he had failed yet again.

Ruby had nearly killed every last one of the Grimm that attacked her and Jaune, but the survivors turned their heads as they heard the same call. Ruby snarled, ready to pounce and finish exterminating them, but she could hear it too if she listened closely…

A call.

Something called out to them, screaming with the agonizing cries of so many people… So much pain and sadness and hate… The Grimm jumped into the air, flying away from Ruby as she stared up at the sky, watching them go…

Jaune.

The Grimm quickly picked up Jaune's weapons, holstering the sword and giving chase after the Grimm. She ran as quickly as she could, smelling her friend's scent in the air as she ran faster and faster.

They had him. How could she fail him like this? He was relying on her and she failed him. She should have protected him. Should have kept him safe.

She ran faster, still feeling that call. It beckoned her closer… no, not her.

Grimm.

She came to a sudden stop, peeking her head out as she looked to the sky. More of those bird-like Grimm were flying over her head. Then she looked past the trees, staring out at a familiar sight.

The massive tree. The one that almost resembled a…. a building. The Grimm were amassing around it. The birds landed on its large branches, and then she saw them. Bodies. So many bodies.

How many people did this thing kill…?

Her blood ran cold as her fingers squeezed tightly around Jaune's weapon. She had to save Jaune. She couldn't let the Grimm have him. She couldn't let them kill him.

Jaune could barely see past the Grimm. It pressed his face against it, almost blinding him as his legs kicked and thrashed. It wasn't enough to free himself, and with every passing second dread began to drown out his hopes.

Was he going to die? Dropped to the ground thousands of feet in the air? Would Ruby find a red smear on the ground that used to be him…? Or maybe he was going to bed fed to another, bigger Grimm? Maybe torn apart by a pack of baby Grimm chicks?

Jaune's mind could see so many terrible fates before him. His stomach twisted and writhed as he kept trying to escape, but it wasn't enough. He wasn't enough.

The smell hit him first. His eyes widened as a foul stench stung at his nose, and he gagged as it only grew worse. His nose burned from the smell, and he coughed, gasping for air as he was reminded of the Crocotta's breath.

He felt the wind blow against him and the Grimm as it began to descend, practically throwing him onto the ground. He hit the dirt hard, groaning in pain, before he coughed, gasping for fresh air. It wasn't as toxic as the Crocotta's breath, at least, but…

When he looked up, he almost wished he was staring at a Crocotta again.

Instead he saw bodies. What must have been dozens of them, hanging from the branches of a massive, black tree. The limbs stretched out over Jaune's head like crooked, broken arms, splitting off into more limbs as the bodies swayed under them.

So many bodies. Some withered and gaunt, others freshly picked. Jaune saw Atlas soldiers, civilians, and maybe even a few Huntsman hanging from the massive tree's many limbs. Except it wasn't nooses wrapped around their neck.

They weren't made of rope, but… they looked like wood. Like the very branches themselves wrapped around these people, holding them by their necks, arms, legs, or coiled all around their chests.

There was no doubt this thing was a Grimm, but he had never seen anything like it before...

Jaune saw firsthand as one of the long, slender arms of the tree began to twist and bend. It groaned with every twitch, before the branch stretched down to Jaune. A black tendril began to wriggle out from one side of the branch, growing like a bulbous head of the ebony arm. It was much thinner than the other arm, a perfect fit for him as it reached down towards Jaune.

The young man screamed. He couldn't stop himself as he realized what it was trying to do. He felt the avian Grimm pin him down, holding him as he watched the arms inched ever closer, slithering through the air like a pair of snakes.

"No! Let me go! Help!" The smaller of the two tendrils brushed against his hair. It stroked his golden locks as it slid down, slowly wrapping around his neck. "Someone help! Please!"

He felt the branch coil around his neck, tightening around it. He gasped for air until a blade cut through the branch and Jaune could breathe once more.

"Jaune!"

Pyrrha stood over him, her spear in hand. Jaune's eyes widened, before he felt the Grimm on top of him knocked off with one swing of Nora's hammer. The orange-haired Huntress grinned, winking at Jaune as he listened to a symphony of bullets.

Ren ran up to the group, firing away at the Grimm as Cardin followed behind him, swinging his mace into any survivors.

"I've got you," Pyrrha whispered. She grabbed his hand, pulling him onto his feet as the rest of Team ACRNN stood by his side.

"Y-you're alive." He wrapped his arms around her, squeezing her against him as tears pooled in the corners of his eyes. He couldn't believe it. How-? He took a deep breath of her crimson locks. Just like he remembered.

She felt so soft. So warm. He had to fight against his tears as Cardin shouted out at the two.

"Hey! You two wanna have your moment later?! When we're not being attacked?!" Cardin growled.

"Aww, let them have it. What's a tree going to do? Drop apples on us?" Nora asked, before the group watched more wooden tendrils stretched out to grab them. "Oh. That's way worse."

"Nora, Combustion Dust!"

"Aye, aye, captain!" Nora converted her hammer into its grenade launcher form and she loaded it with several red explosives in one quick move. She then took aim, a grin on her face as Pyrrha pulled away from Jaune. "Fire in the hole!"

She fired several grenades and Jaune watched as they exploded against the Grimm's black bark, tearing entire holes in it as they began to flee. The hot air blew past them as they ran, Nora firing one final shot before she chased after the others.

"Woohoo! Did you see that?! That was awesome! And my fire line? Total action movie stuff!" Nora beamed, giving her teammates a thumbs up as they kept running.

They ran and ran until they were sure there were no more Grimm around them and the massive tree was reduced to a pillar of smoke behind them.

It was only then that Jaune could ask his friends the first of many questions.

"Pyrrha, I… Guys, I thought you were dead! Where have you been?! H-how did you know I was here? What was that thing?!"

"Some thank you. What, Pyrrha gets hugs but not us?" Nora pouted, and Jaune laughed as he hung his head low.

He threw his arms around Nora, hugging her tightly, only to groan as she hugged him even tighter, lifting him off of the floor.

"Ack! Nora! C-crushing!"

"We feared the worst, Jaune," Pyrrha confessed. "We thought we had lost you. After we escaped from RA-27, we regrouped with Atlas military. They sent us back here to take down that massive Grimm."

"It's good to see you again, Jaune," Ren smiled, embracing his friend as soon as Nora dropped him.

"Yeah, knew you'd need us to save your dumb ass, Jauney-boy," Cardin chuckled. Despite his smug tone, he held up his fist and bumped it against Jaune's hand once Ren released him. "Can't believe you lived this long without us."

"I…" Jaune combed a hand through his hair as he chuckled. "I can't believe you guys are okay. I thought… I thought I lost you," he admitted.

"We're here, Jaune," Pyrrha smiled. She placed a hand on his shoulder, squeezing it. "It's going to be okay."

Jaune returned the smile, wiping tears from his eyes as Cardin laughed. "Aww, Jauney-boy's crying. Someone get the baby a tissue."

"Quit being an ass, Cardin. Jaune's in touch with his sensitive side, that's all," Nora grinned, elbowing the bulky man.

Jaune chuckled with his team, their voices freeing him of the anxiety and terror that had made him its home these last few days. Then he heard a rustling sound from the forest nearby, and his eyes widened.

Team ACRNN turned to the forest, weapons at the ready as Jaune saw a pair of silver eyes staring back at him. Relief washed over him as he beamed, holding his hand out to his friends.

"Hey, hold on! Ruby, is that you!?"

"Ruby?"

The bushes rustled, before a familiar friend stepped out of the forest. Cardin lifted up his mace again, but Jaune stepped forward, holding his hands up.

"Whoa, hold on! Guys, you're never going to believe this, but this is Ruby! She's my… my friend." He knew this moment would come sooner or later, but he still wished he had prepared for it. There was no easy way to say it, but… here he was.

"I'm sorry, did Jaune just say that Grimm was his friend?" Cardin asked, glancing at the others.

"Maybe he hit his head?" Nora suggested.

"She saved me," Jaune declared. "She can even talk!" He turned his head towards Ruby, who waved her hand at the others.

"H-heh… loh."

Jaune watched as the others' shocked expressions. He smiled, glad to know he wasn't just crazy as Ruby stepped closer. "She's friendly," Jaune explained. "She's on our side. Trust me."

Pyrrha glanced at the others, before turning her eyes towards Jaune. She holstered her weapons and stepped forward to meet Ruby in the middle, by the blond Huntsman. She looked over the Grimm, watching her tail sway behind her. She then glanced at Ruby's hand, where Jaune's sword laid.

"You… saved Jaune?" Pyrrha asked, and Ruby nodded her head. "And you can talk?" Another nod. Pyrrha opened her mouth, only for words to fail her as she glanced at Jaune. He smiled back at her, scratching the back of his head.

"Yeah, it's kind of a long stor-"

Pyrrha wasn't watching Ruby. Jaune wasn't watching her. Nora, Ren, and Cardin were, but they were too far to do anything.

By the time Ruby attacked, there was nothing anyone could do.

The Grimm pulled Jaune's sword out and impaled it through Pyrrha, stabbing her through the stomach. The Huntress' eyes widened, a silent gasp spilled through her lips as she lost balance. She fell to the ground, and by the time she hit the dirt Ruby leapt forward.

"Pyrrha!" Nora screamed, roaring like a beast as she pulled her hammer back, only for Ruby's tail to cut through the metal staff. Her weapon was cut in half and Ruby's hand wrapped around Nora's throat.

Jaune heard the snap. Nora's life ended in an instant as Cardin and Ren mourned the loss of their comrades with murderous, blind rage. Meanwhile Jaune stood like a statue. He didn't say anything. He just stared at Pyrrha's body, watching as she choked on her own blood and stared at him with dull, green eyes.

His family's weapon was stained red with her blood as Jaune looked up. Ren was screaming. Ruby had caught his hands and she squeezed them, crushing his weapons and fingers in one quick move before her tail stabbed Ren's back.

Cardin lifted the Executioner up, but he was dead with just a single stroke of Ruby's tail. His body fell to the floor as Jaune's fingers finally tightened into fists and he looked at the Grimm. Her fingers and tail were red with blood as she walked towards him, her silver eyes turning a deep, dark, and bloody shade of red.

"W-why…?"

His only answer was a laugh. Like the Crocotta she saved him from, she laughed at him. Her hands wrapped around his throat as tears fell down his face. She began to squeeze down on his throat, slowly crushing it as he gasped for air. His hands grabbed at hers, trying in vain to pull them off as choked gasps spilled past his lips.

And all he could hear was Ruby's laughter as the world began to turn black.

Jaune Arc's body hung from the black tree. One of so many, feeding the dark machine as it sang out to Grimm for miles away. It sang a song of agony and suffering for them, guiding them with its depraved symphony.

Tendrils wrapped around Jaune's neck and arms, holding him high in the air from one of its many branches. His eyes were almost white, the color faded as his body hung there…

His body didn't move, but his eyes slowly slid from one side to the other. The nightmare reset and it played through his mind once more as the black tree fed on his agony.

END

Well, that was dark. Really curious about what level of violence I can get away with for this story. I mean, PG-13 can get away with some pretty brutal deaths...

I feel pretty good about both types of Grimm introduced in this chapter. The Mockingbirds (thank you Lone Knight for the name), and the Hangman's Tree are both my own original Grimm. The former being hunters that use voice mimicry to lure humans closer while the Hangman's Tree is meant to be a sort of intelligent Grimm.

They're able to lead other, weaker Grimm around. I don't think they're intelligent themselves, but they pick up orders and pass the orders down to smaller, weaker Grimm.

Also, the idea of a tree with bodies hanging from it is terrifying, right?

One quick note: I do imagine Ruby's ability to talk to slowly improve with every chapter. Just so you all know.

Finally, I have one more chapter planned before this story changes its update schedule. I took October off from my work to focus on this, but October's almost over and I need to get back to work writing smut and whatnot. I still plan on continuing this story, just understand that you'll be getting slower updates. Probably once a month? I'm really sorry, but that's just how things have to be right now.

I hope you enjoyed the story, I hope you all take care of yourselves, stay safe, and remember, you are loved. See ya!