III: The Saving

We are at the end of the story, for those that have stuck with us up to this point, thank you so much for staying on the White-Knight train. The response to the story up to this point has left me pretty joyful.

This chapter was a bit harder to write compared to the other two. I needed to write in a satisfying conclusion to the action aspect of the story, with its main villain as well as resolve the emotional issues that our main characters were facing, so I hope I did that well.

The point of the story was to tell a brief story about healing, where we see the characters confront the guilt chimera, which itself is a vessel for them to both confront their own issues, letting them grow closer to each other and culminating in the romance between the two.

Weiss Schnee slept uncomfortably last night. The grassy knoll was the least of her issues, not when one of these issues was that her head had rested on a pillow made from Jaune Arc's left arm. Her consciousness drifted in and out for the night, waking up to stare at the night sky, blinking stars standing guard for them. While all the thoughts she had were of his breathing rhythm.

A tingling sensation remained with her, after that euphoric release, a fleeting comfort remained. The liquid he left inside of her gradually seeped out, the warmth that she felt from release turned colder as she realized that they had not used any contraceptive during their little trollop. The chances of it were unlikely, but...heart kept pounding at the rashness of their actions. In comparison, he slept soundly, his chest moved up and down at a steady pace, and she could hear the rhythm of his heart as he dreamt. All the while, her mind was thinking, clarity flowing into her head via steady sounds. What followed after that clarity was a beratement towards herself.

Why? Why did she just go along with the heat of the moment? It was certainly exciting when they initiated it, but something as carnal as this was meant to be done with lovers…And, they weren't there, certainly not anywhere close to the notion of being in love…It took more than just a night of passion to be there… then...perhaps, they took said path? Grabbing her white sheet covers closer to her chest, the night was brisk and her clothes were the only additional warmth to be had.

Was this what mother went through? Finding a man who looked nice and kind, a nice mansion and good business acumen, then rushing into marriage, three kids until it was too late to pull out? Did she love him? Maybe? In his current state, he was a walking emotional mess that was open to the idea of recovery. At his best, he was a man that stood tall and foolishly with her. She looked at the man sleeping next to her, at present he looked so calm, a wide contrast to the mess that he was earlier. Perhaps it wouldn't be that bad? So, she looked to the seas for an answer, only to find the dark swirling mass beyond to be silent. No, she had to be alone, and not get dragged into these matters as her mother did.

Now she felt alone with only her thoughts, perhaps she had been too hasty, they knew each other well enough to be considered friends, but they had rushed themselves into something they weren't ready for…like fast tides that swept shoals away, moments like this came in quick and the children found themselves lost. Perhaps she had jumped into her newfound freedom too quickly, forgetting her name just for a moment of pleasure. She was a Schnee, Damn it! The name still had to mean something, she couldn't be like him and destroy a few generations of familial obligations with a few punches. She couldn't ever choose him…not when she still had a mother, a sister, a brother…and begrudgingly, also a father left behind.

But…she wanted to be loved too. All her life, she was known as the Ice Queen, not for her love of white fashion, but for her frosted heart. What were they meant to do after they had gone through the most intimate dance that most lovers do? While he slept, her thoughts were occupied with their future…She was no good for him, their backgrounds while similar were still worlds apart. He was Proletariat and she herself Bourgeois, the notion of love beyond class barricades was a sheer act of folly in the real world, only ever done in books and movies. She…couldn't risk it…not when the night still looked so quiet.

It turned into an act of waiting for him to awaken from his blissful slumber, resting her head on his chest as it steadily rose and sunk. After he awoke, she was going to have to move on…tell him how she felt…about them…

Now she felt terrible, it felt like she was the other harlots, taking men to bed for one night and leaving them the next day. But…it had to be done, like all bad decisions it only came with the best intentions. However, a pain in her heart started beating, as if she was feeling judgment emanating from somewhere. The potential for pain that she would inflict on him was great, he had just gone through so much hurt, the grave a few paces away was one of them, not to mention the psychological pain he just went through watching his deceased partner come back to haunt him. Was she that cruel and willing to pour salt on his wounds. No...She had to do it.

As the rising sun stirred, so did Jaune awakened by the sun's bright glare "Mhmm? What time is it?" His chest moved to an uncomfortable angle, and she moved away from him. Weiss rose up first, her naked figure glistening under the rising sun as she went over to pick up her garments.

She dusted the sand from her underwear and wore the uncomfortable piece of cloth again, the lack of laundry capabilities was annoying and unsanitary, but she couldn't afford to be picky. She pulled up her dress, her posterior covered as was her front. White-ish straps went over her shoulder and, covering her chest, what was once a bed cover, were now her clothes. She was turning into a fallen woman, sleeping with a man for the thrill of it and now tossing them away… with a quick patting of all her lines the few pieces of sand that stuck to her body fell off, as if last night had never happened.

Jaune still looked groggy, but that was to be expected having just spent a night on cloud nine. "Morning" He greeted, with a silly, goofy smile, his default look, aching her guilty heart even more.

The seas were moving again, almost as if they were egging her on to do so, pushing her to tell the truth. She could feel Poseidon's grace around her in his foam, each cycle of new waves swashing seemingly telling her one phrase: 'Say it'. Oh, it would be so cruel to do so…but she had to do so, her heart was fluttering over it, mulling over it, and it pained her heart to do so to mention that they had made a mistake, that the whole thing began with the kindest of intentions, to help him from his mental break, the kindness of it was merely only to help him get well because she valued him as a warrior…nothing more.

"We need to talk" She said with pained seriousness.

For any male, hearing the four words meant that the other shoe was about to drop. It caught him off guard, he was still naked and sitting in a sandy and grassy bed when he found her gaze pointed at him with an apologetic and guilty look. "What's wrong?" He asked unsure of the issue.

"Last night…Was a mistake…We got caught up in the heat of the moment…And I guess we both did things that we didn't really intend to do…" She was going to let him down slowly, that was her original intent, but as the words left her mouth, she felt providence take over. "Jaune, I can't be with you."

There, she said it.

"What…what do you mean?" He asked confused, looking scared at the implications of her words, at the abandonment that was impending.

"Jaune…I like you a lot. You're kind, a bit dumb, but one of the bravest people I can think of." He seemed to smile a little at the compliment, however, she was about to let her gavel drop. "But, think about it…you're an emotional wreck and I'm an heiress with father issues. We got together in the heat of the moment, and…I don't think we've got what it takes to make it long."

She shot him in the heart with the last sentence, taking him down from the heavens, she could see his little cherub wings being clipped off by some malevolent deity, and that deity was her. Her skin was turning red, horns protruding from her forehead, a nice pair of black wings to follow her transformation.

"Yeah…I guess…it was too good to be true…" He muttered wounded, once again.

He seemed to take her words with gentlemanly calm, he was never the one to cause a tantrum after emotional hurt. The bright sunrise now seemed much dimmer, from a pulsating orange glow to a greying sight, if he didn't know better, it felt as if the star was going to fall back into the ocean and sink deep in the cold below. Jaune looked at her with a sad but reluctant look, empathetic to what she had said, it was sound logic and rational. They had gotten together last night out of pure rashness, by all accounts anything that was long-term wouldn't make any sense.

Yes, he had fancied her, he had tried to court her before and failed. This was just part of a long line of rejections that were destined to happen as ordained by some cruel god. His heart ached once again at the rejection, however, no matter how much he wanted to love the girl of his dreams, it meant nothing if she didn't love him. Maybe this was the final nail in the coffin, after all not even such a pristine environment had helped…guess this was his real punishment, not hysterical delusions, or the foreboding guilt, but the certification of heartbreak.

Like she had stated wisely, he wasn't willing to go down fully. But he knew there were better things to do than continue to question her on her life choices, and so he went on sadly with his life, he stood up and collected his clothes from the ground, patting the sand off of his naked back, and began slowly pulling his shirt over his head. He did so without a smile, some part of him thought that after all they had been through that she might have changed her mind about him, see all sides of him, but no girl wanted to be with the man that killed the Winter maiden.

In heartbreak, both parties rarely come out unscathed. In a game of fickle emotions and silly hormones, two broken hearts were guaranteed in this violence. Seeing his awkward demeanor as he attempted to hide what he felt as if he was trying to use what remained of his male ego to hide his hurt was only going to make it more awkward. She wasn't going to stop him on that front, not since she had broken his heart already.

The pain in her heart was only growing, as she watched him walk away from her, his back slumped down in a sloth-like manner. He mumbled something about looking for more food and walked away just like that…perhaps some distance between the two of them would be good.

She had drained not just his vitality but now the life from his soul as well. Congratulations Miss Schnee, you managed to help him out of the mental delusions that plagued his mind, you helped provide food and warmth, you were the angel in the house for him, but then you had to break his heart again because you got cold feet about falling in love.

"Arrrgh…" She gave out an audible yell of frustration. Where had the woman who had discovered her freedom yesterday gone? Where had the Weiss Schnee, who had kicked sand high up into the air like a truant child gone? She had found liberation here, on this faraway land where nothing and no one from the past held any sway over their current course, but over one single night, the teachings instilled into her had brought her back into the light. But who could blame her, the freedom that she had found now scared her, was she really willing to play a game of 'will they, won't they' and forget her civilized self?

On his warm chest, she felt fearful of the future as she looked towards the oceans before her looked turbulent, each time bringing something new, whilst taking only taking away the present, seashells that were once there now taken away by the inevitable march of progress and smoke. The only consistency was the man she slept atop of, but after what she had just done, even that had left.

Was she destined to be alone? She had always thought that men would only ever want two things with her: money and her name. It had been the same with her mother, after all, that was the burden with a name like hers'. As if the lord had decided to punish them for their selfish monetary practices, he had cursed them so that they would never find love, it was the same for her mother and now it was going to be the same for her too.

Such was the price of greed for the Schnees, they would be blessed with good fortune, but befall into heartbreak…She needed a walk to clear her head, maybe something in the jungle could give her better clarity, rather than wallow in the present or look into the deep blue beyond, perhaps there was something she had missed that would grant her clarity through the mist.

The dark green mystery held something familiar within it as if she could faintly hear a voice that felt warm…A voice that she had abandoned once but needed again to comfort her through these times. The past always holds something familiar, to which we fall back in times of need, the sweet taste of nostalgia, and the chance to return to familiarity. It was the taste of comfort, like a warm bowl of Onion soup after trudging through the cold chop of Winter, or the memory of a first love that we fall back to after heartbreak, it seemed that there was a kind god out there, who wanted to provide her with these comforts. So, within this garden, would she perhaps find salvation or forbidden fruit?

So, she took another step into the black and green, each step adding more pain to her heart. It felt as if she had done this so many times before, any time there was the possibility of emotions on the line, she shrunk away like a snake before the cross. It had been the same with her father, when he clutched onto her, she went to Beacon rather than live in pain. When home had gotten too vile, she ran away rather than live in pitiful plenty. Now, rather than watch Jaune wallow in pain, she was choosing to walk away once again. Not one shred of emotion was allowed after all. Like the frigid north, where nothing blossomed, she too must guard her gates lest flowers bloom.

The jungle seemed so inviting as if the green swaying leaves were angel wings fluttering under the morning monsoons. The warm and moist climate seemed to lessen their impact the deeper she walked into the forest, it felt cooler and cooler, much more tolerable than being out on the beach as it felt like room temperature, almost as if she was back home in her luxurious mansion, strolling down the lengthy hallways lit by little blue lamps.

Slowly, the deeper she went solid glass walls seemed to form from the gaps between the trees, letting in an eerily familiar blue light back into her life. Fractured pieces of bark turned into broken chandeliers from a non-existent childhood, and the grass beneath her feet turned into platinum marble as if she were alone in her mansion again. The place felt warm and cold, just like her home. A wave of calm swept towards her, as she towards it calmly, a charming voice calling to her...it sounded motherly.

It felt as if she was heading for another scolding with her father, perhaps another bad grade, or maybe she was reliving the day when she embarrassed him at a song performance when she had sung off-key, not once but twice. He never cared unless it impacted the family name. Her fight or flight senses tensed up...to be back home like this sent a small chill down her spine as if danger was close and present, but...that had always been how she felt back at home.

She felt so small, not in terms of stature, but also in terms of position. Had she always been playing pretend? A little woman trying to hold barriers against untold scores of threats, both inside and out? Maybe...she ought to turn back now.

'Weiss…dear…where are you?' Asked a warm voice she had not heard in many moons. The familiar voice of her mother that she had not heard in so long…the words came to her clear and concise, not a hint of vodka within them. Oh, this was a dream…now she was sure of it, the heat had made her swoon into a stroke and she had fallen deeper into dreamland.

But she did not stop, her mother was looking for her somewhere within the sacred walls of her family home, and not the fermented-potato mess that she had known in the last 10 years. It was the sweet comfort of a clear-headed mother, who had still loved her, amidst her jungled emotions and guilt-stricken heart she felt as if there was something warm and kind luring her in closer and closer.

Just a few paces ahead, was the familiar sight of her family's crest plastered on two oak doors. She had brushed past those octuple spikes many times before in resignation at her fate, in suppressed anger, and rarely in joyous anticipation of what the other side would bring. Pushing the sacred barriers aside, she found heaven before her.

Her mother's warm face smiling, the scent of alcohol flushed away from her youthful visage. Here was her mother, Willow, and she was still blessed with a clear head, love in her heart, and passion in her soul. She looked so…alive, like a fireplace that had been lit for a family of five cold souls all huddling it to remain alive. Standing in the middle of the main entrance, flanked by two titanium statues, the familiar face of her mother. She had almost forgotten, that this what she had looked like, ten years had flown by, and the smile of a mother was apparently so easy to lose. Her mother's eyes were so alien to her…as if she had never seen them before.

"Mother…" This was truly her mother, not the walking Apathy that she would later become.

"Oh Weiss, come here." She spoke softly, welcoming her to come closer.

Weiss moved in cautiously, but it just felt so warm…so right, she deserved this, after all, this had been robbed from her for so many winters. It felt as if some god had decided to deliver her a reward for good karma saved over her deeds and growth.

Looking closer at her mother's face, she felt memories returning and leaving her, all the good ones and all the bad ones coming and going out of her head, all these memories…sounded like an angelic choir, she could hear her mother singing 'Happy Birthday' through the years, memories that had sunk into her subconscious now floated above. She wanted to wipe the emerging tears from her face, she never cried unless happy.

A cold hand touched her face, stroking her tenderly as if she was a piece of meat. Oh, dear mother, the north had not been kind to you, your hand frozen cold, almost air-like.

"Happy birthday, sweetie."

Weiss stifled a small sniffle, she had longed to hear those words for so long, now she had found this long-lost treasure. On this stage-like platform, this dance played out like a fantasy.

"Thank you, mother…"

"Something on your mind?" She asked concerningly, a sight that she had also forgotten, she had almost never seen her mother concerned for her wellbeing since her infancy.

"It's nothing…" She lied, not wanting to ruin the moment with thoughts of romantic heartbreak.

"Sweetie…give up…It's our curse…" She said in a strained but hushed tone…Then a sense of foreboding crept into Weiss….it was about to happen again…she knew where she was that day…when she overheard her parents, it was all the confirmation that she needed, to reassure her that her current course was the right one. "You know…what's about to happen…and remember…we never stood a chance."

The pain in her heart grew bigger and bigger, the joy in her eyes turned into sorrow. What were once tears of joy were now tears of tremendous pain, as she wiped the tears away it only further accelerated her breathing like a runaway train. The past only stayed within the jungle, it was the only place where man ever hid away the unseeables, the embarrassing memories of father's gone away, or days left alone in the rain. It was all the reminder that she needed to justify her sense of guilt after breaking his heart.

She could now see her father…ten years earlier when he still had some spots of black hair in his wretched demonic face. Her mother beginning to ask her why he wasn't at her birthday, followed by cold indifference on his part…Weiss wanted to yell…to scream at the memory being played and for it to stop…but something was stopping her…a voice within her own heart wanting this memory to 'continue'. This voice telling her that this was just. That she needed this memory to play out, or else she would lose the justification for her guilt. Or else, what held her down in the present would just fly, and she would truly lose what made her who she was.

So, she watched again, as her father and mother yelled at each other, words she had already heard and forgotten coming back to her again.

You bastard.

I only married you for the name!

Take…it back…

This time, instead of having her eyes closed, she kept her eyes open while the scene played out, as an extra to the scene, while still standing on the stage. Her tears forming clear crystals in her eyes, blocking her vision to her peripheries. She watched her mother start to cry, but like her, she too held back her tears in the face of this tragedy being played re-enacted.

The actors, she knew intimately. The setting, her own home. The plot, re-hashed but still leaving scars within her. Weiss Schnee was now a 10-year old girl again, watching her parents argue before her, watching her father tell her mother that she had never loved her. What did it mean for her? That love was truly a dead concept for her…

She was right to push him away…After all, seeing her parents perform their part in life again, only told her one thing…that she was right. Sitting down on the grassy floor, she felt the life drain from her, the guilt from hurting his feelings, due to her own fear of past traumas.

There was one tiny detail that she was wrong about, of course, she hadn't noticed it of course. The eyes of her parents were emeralds, almost reptilian-like; nor did she notice the calm golden eyes staring at her, in her sorrow she had failed to notice a black shimmer in the windows. Nor did she notice when her parents yelled their expletives at each other, the forked-shaped nature of their tongues, although it could be argued that her father's tongue had always been forked. Nor did she notice the danger that she was in, as the façade around her crumbled into nothingness.

She opened her eyes, gone were her father and mother. Only the guilt Chimera remained. Weiss froze, how could she have been so foolish? Why did she decide to walk into the puma's den, believing that it to be just?

It looked hungry, ravenous, and perhaps vengeful too. Within its eyes, were an orphan made from war, parents long gone, but it still lived on knowing how to feast on the meat and blood of those that fell to it's mental illusions. He had her dead to right's, it's black fur moving in a dangerous tango, it's jaws opening to reveal sharpened teeth like jagged rocks protruding from it's hidden cove.

It leaped for her neck, and she closed her eyes awaiting in frozen anticipation.

A loud 'thud' instead followed; the blow intended for her neck had instead been intercepted. Opening her eyes, Weiss looked up to find the blonde-haired and black-shirted guardian before her. His white shield-like feathered wings standing before her, a paladin, no, an angel sent from above just for her. His stance was the only wall between her and the sharpened claws of the beast striking away at this new obstacle.

Just like that time in Mistral, when she was speared by Cinder, he had arrived in the nick of time to save her…He had placed his hands on her wound and nursed her back to health. This time he was quicker, he managed to arrive before the strike hit her.

With an energized blow, he pushed the clawing black mess back, as if he were a riot officer before an angry crowd. On his hips was her rapier, dangling before her, an old lifeline swaying steadily.

"Weiss, snap out of this." He yelled, seemingly breaking the spell she was placed in, she stood up and grasped her weapon back.

This damn monster had entered her mind and shown her the most intimately tragic unseeables. That was unacceptable, Grimm or not, she was going to make this thing bleed if it was the last thing she was going to do today. Wiping away what little tears she had shed, no illusion was ever going to make her cry or break her for that matter.

Jaune intercepted the Puma once again mid-swipe, smashing into it's carnivorous teeth with such ferocity that led him wide open to a follow-up attack from the pair of twin snakes. What was once her mother and father, were now a pair of venomous, slithering reptiles floating above the ground attached via the length of the Puma's tail. Their tongues rattling meant to demoralize them, their jaws opening, and rushed in to claw at the opening that he had made for himself and went straight for this exposed chest.

Weiss could catch glimpses of their pink-colored mouths, but hints of their white fangs didn't escape her eyes, the deadliness of these things was not to be underestimated. She swiped her revolver up and aimed at the two, firing blasts of energy at them in quick succession, discouraging their attack.

In spite of her counterattack, the Puma looked up and flashed her a hateful look. A ravenous look that telegraphed it's desires, it wanted her to be vulnerable and weak, it wanted to devour her mind first, drawing her in with the allure of deliverance. Then, pulling them in close enough for them to smell their heated breath, their necks would bleed red as it chomped down away at them. It was almost too cruel, it lived here by drawing it's victims in with the past, both good and bad to help them soothe their pain by intoxicating them with a false truth, chomping away when the time was right. Such was the nature of the past.

"Jaune, keep the Puma busy, I'll deal with the snakes." She said, before darting forward with lightning-fast speed, so quick that the snake that had once been her father was cut clean off, leaving only a fountain of black blood spewing out of it's head flailing wildly in the air.

What was once her mother then came after her, she had to time her blow wisely, one false move and her loving mother would have sunk her teeth into her again. As the mouth of the serpent opened up, Weiss felt only sorrow in her heart, this snake had managed to let her relieve one brief moment of clarity, after all, a chance to see her mother before alcohol madness had ridden her catatonic. But even dreams could not last forever, not when it's actors wanted to drag her down…Her steel skewered into the mouth of the serpent directly. The tip piercing into the mouth, with the tips of the fangs narrowly avoiding her hardened hands.

The puma let out an ear-piercing roar at the blow done to it's lower half, it's tail wagging in the air ferociously attempting to lash out at it's prey. For once, they were fighting an enemy that knew and felt pain in the fullest, a yawn, a cry of frustration at it's prey's cunning and lethality.

Both had an idea on how to handle the killing blow on their predator, beat it until it died, as brutal and as violent the better. Pure, unadulterated rage was going to be their solution to handle this monster, or else they would be trapped in an endless loop of repentant thoughts. She gave a nod towards Jaune, and he understood the silent message, they were going to rush it on three.

One

Two

Three…

He had charged in at two, running straight forward and bashing the snout directly, it whimpered hurt, then came another bash and another. Each bash angrier than the blow that came before. With the anger of a tidal wave, Jaune unleashed his shield's flat surface against the animal with pained memories. Damn this thing for making him remember. Damn this thing for making him more miserable than need be. Damn the past.

Weiss saw his anger and saw it good. A part of her wanted to join in with his display of violence, she hated the vile thing for making her relive one of the worst days of her miserable life. But then there was cruelty, and they were not dispensers of such things.

It seemed to sense the end was imminent for it, and so it pounced forward, it's black fur dashed through the air like an invisible blur. It was going to kill them both or die trying, swiping for the male, Jaune realized that he was out of position and jumped backward, allowing for Weiss to dash in for one final blow.

A loud crunch followed, and Weiss opened her eyes. This time, her weapon had pierced directly into it's bulged head, cracking beyond the cranium, emerald eyes looked her dead on. It looked in pain, completely defaced by the thrashing that it had received earlier, but the jewels still alive…Weiss felt a wave of empathy towards the thing, perhaps they had been too harsh towards it? She felt its hunger, perhaps her own since she hadn't eaten anything that morning, now she felt the same as that thing. A monster that relied on sadness and self-loathing to continue on some form of half-life, it lured them in for it had sensed them as if they were on the same emotional wavelength. Just so that the past could consume them.

"Weiss…Are you alright?"

Jaune's words snapped her out of her thoughts. "I'm alright…thanks for the save" She pulled her weapon out of the chimera, and it slumped over dead. Her weapon covered in it's black blood, no one truly could wipe away the black ink. It was a clean kill on her part, and she whimpered a sigh of relief.

"How did…you know I was in trouble?" She asked.

He looked a bit embarrassed, then again, anyone would be after being rejected and then immediately talking as if nothing was wrong. "I…uh…walked away for a bit, but when I turned my head back, you were gone…and I got worried."

"You came looking for me?"

"Well…I was only gone for a few paces, and I figured that there were only two directions you could've walked in, and you weren't in the ocean…so…I guessed you walked into the jungle, and that only meant one thing…" He then gestured to the corpse, which laid mere inches away from them, rotting away unlike their past.

"I…Thank you…" He had saved her again, and she did the only thing she knew, her head buried into his chest again. There was a part of her that felt vulnerable, so all she could do was find the nearest lighthouse.

"Weiss…Why did you come here?" He questioned.

She let a small sigh, honesty was the best policy, even if it meant that she had to pour out her complicated thoughts in a jumbled mess. "I felt guilty…"

This only further added to his confusion "About what?"

"About…me. About us. About so much…Jaune…I like you as a friend and as a…man. What I said back there…I meant some of it, I wouldn't mind being with you…you really are brave and when you're at your best…you really inspire us." She said, her eyes full with admiration, he would've beamed with joy at the compliment, but his hands were busy patting her head in soft motions.

He seemed shocked to hear her be so open, so vulnerable, and placed his hands on her shoulder, holding her gently with his warm arms. "Then…why did you say?"

"That I can't be with you? Or the part where last night was a mistake?" She asked, receiving a small nod from him in confirmation. Rubbing her head, in pain, groaning at her choice of words earlier, she had gotten herself in this hole and it was up to her to dig herself out of it. "I said that…because I was scared…scared to do this song and dance. Jaune, did you know who I saw just now?"

"Who?" He asked.

A small tear slipped away from her. "That thing…made me see the day, where my father told my mother he only married her for the money and the family name. Jaune…It's no secret that I come from a broken family, the only warmth I ever got was from a loyal butler and a distant sister…I don't know if I have it in me to love another….especially not someone as kind as you."

Stroking his face lovingly, she continued on with a fading pain in her heart, the story nearing completion. "When I told you those things, back on the beach…I felt guilty…as if I had merely slept with you on accident under the heat of the moment…But it wasn't an accident…we both went ahead and did it….I just don't know what I want…" There she had gone ahead and said it…That there were things she didn't know…She started to chuckle…It was that easy apparently…all she had to do was air her heart out.

Then came his response, and it was as heartfelt as hers'. "Weiss…I...For a while there…I thought that…maybe you never liked me at all, and that what we had last night was an accident…but now that I see…you're scared. You felt guilty about hurting me…and so you got dragged in here…I'm sorry…for making this so…complicated."

In truth, no apology was needed for either of them. He made her worry, and she made him worried about her. He would save her, and she would save him; perhaps it was destiny for them to be there. Under the spotlight, both could now see each other for who they were. Both were each other's angels, but the demon's within them were going to drag them down.

At that point, she pulled herself away from him and began heading out of the jungle and back towards the beach. They had to get out of this stage, the performance was long over, and now it was time to head back to the present and focus on living. Even without predators, staying too long in the jungle would consume oneself. But with both their shameful pasts now shown to each other, thoughts on how to proceed were the only thing on their minds as they considered the ocean. Vast and blue possibilities now lit by the sun, built a rising optimism within them.

It was only until the sun began setting when they resumed their conversation. "Jaune…The problem is…we're both tied down by the past…we feel guilty for the things that have impacted us. For you…it's Pyrrha, Penny…Me…I'm tied down by my fear of…love."

"So…what are you suggesting?" He asked, looking at her with a longing gaze.

"We work on these things…together…" She answered unsurely. It was an awfully big risk she was suggesting. Two likely outcomes were that the jungle would drag them down into the dark once more, or that they would sail on out of this mess that they had found themselves in.

"These things…they never go away." He said, looking at her passionately, but burdened with invisible weights.

"I know…But if it's the two of us…maybe we could help each other carry the load." It was one last gamble for the two of them, but things looked bright, if for only a fleeting moment.

"Is that right?" Jaune asked rhetorically, their eyes meeting as the sun went over the horizon. It too preparing to rest.

She held his hand and rested her head on his tired shoulders. She kissed him on his right cheek and dozed off, the light was fading, and they only had each other for warmth.

They were guilty messes. One guilty of murder, and the other of heartbreak. But despite their flaws, they would raise each other up, he would be her shield, and when he was tired, she would be his nurse.

After that, they slept soundly. It wasn't a happily ever after, they still had a long road to travel, down the present, into the bright blue future that awaited. Not daring to look into the jungle.

And with that, this concludes our three-chapter story. A story that was short and sweet, adventure and romance included, which in some ways is similar to a typical island action-adventure movie.

To those of you that have stuck with me over these three weeks, thank you so very much for coming on each week to read my work, you guys are awesome. If it's not too much trouble, leave a review if you thought there were areas for improvement, it's one of the first serious long fics that I've written in a while and it would be greatly appreciated.

Would I consider continuing to write this?

I have thought of continuing to write this. But sorry, no. I wanted this to be a self-contained story of two teens helping each other and confronting their guilt, while their love blossomed, any more and it would kind of defeat the intentions that I started off with.

Thanks for reading!