So, after a crapload of excuses and two craploads of procrastination with a dash of writer's block, I finally did it. Finally getting my shit together in small increments. Starting with another chapter of this. I hope you all enjoy. Shout outs to Jauneforever and noble4259 for helping me out with this. I don't own RWBY or Overwatch. They belong to their respective owners. ENJOY
Chapter Two: Assessing the Wounds
The brisk cold clashed horribly with the bright and sunny scenery of the Emerald Forest as Jaune and Brigitte made their way back to Beacon with a pinch of difficulty. Jaune wasn't in the best condition for a battle despite his aura, so Brigitte took point while he trailed behind her. The blonde knight knew it wasn't ideal nor did he find any satisfaction with the fact that his impromptu training session was cut way too short for his liking, but he wouldn't lie and say he didn't appreciate the help this stranger was giving him.
Jaune continued to internally grovel about until Brigitte held up her hand for him to stop. He complied without complaint, but couldn't help but admire the caution written all over her. He couldn't see where she was looking, but her low posture, along with her loose shoulders and tight grip on her weapon made her look as if she was a professional huntress.
Jaune quickly brought himself back to his senses as his acquaintance gestured for him to move up to her position. With a quick breath, he brandished Crocea Mors much to his right arms displeasure, yet kept shield collapsed as he approached Brigitte. Jaune quickly saw the reason for her caution as the two gazed upon an enormous plain of grass without any trees to speak of for a good couple kilometers.
"You see anything?" Jaune whispered.
"Nothing so far," Brigitte said with the same volume. "The sky's clear too, but we should keep our guard up. There won't be a lot of cover for us when we're out there."
"Right," Jaune said with a nod before he looked at Brigitte. He shrunk a bit at her confused gaze. "Is something wrong?"
"You're not going to use your shield?"
"Oh!" Jaune said before he reached for his shield. He couldn't help but wince at the aching he felt along his right arm and chest.
"Are you going to be alright?" Brigitte asked with a concern Jaune heard too many times before.
"Yeah," Jaune said as he grasped his collapsed shield. "My left arm wasn't the one that was hurt, so I'll be fine." the blonde knight activated his shield, only for nothing to happen.
"What?" Jaune asked before he looked down with a bit of disbelief. He pressed the switch that expanded his shield once more, only to be greeted with an empty clicking sound. "Oh, for the love of…Crap!" Jaune exclaimed as he holstered the busted shield.
"Let me see," Brigitte requested with her dirty hand extended toward him. "Please?" Jaune looked at her and couldn't help but sigh at the patient smile she had given him.
"Okay," Jaune said as he handed her his sheath. She graciously accepted the challenge as she let out a small laugh before giving his shield a look.
"I can't seem to thank you enough." Jaune said as he turned his back to the mechanic. He put his free hand on his hip and looked at the dirt beneath him with embarrassment.
"Please," Brigitte started. "Think nothing of it." her words were short and sharp as noises Jaune could only describe as metal being pulled and broken off rang through the air. Creaking soon followed as a few grunts reverberated from Brigitte before she let out a breath and activated his shield.
"Wait," Jaune asked with a bit of disbelief. "You fixed it?" he turned around and faced Brigitte who had a puzzled look on her face.
"For the moment," Brigitte said as she handed Jaune's shield back to him. "I would recommend keeping it expanded until we make it back to the kingdom."
"What was wrong with it?" Jaune genuinely asked before he gazed at his family symbol with a bit of distain.
"A lot." Brigitte said with an amused huff. "But only if you try to shift it back into its sheath. It will hold as a shield."
"Great." Jaune grumbled as he fastened his shield with his left hand while he kept a loose grip on his sword with his right.
"We should get moving," Brigitte said as she rubbed the back of her head in order to avoid the awkwardness that their conversation led them too. "Should be a few more hours until we make it back to the cliff side of Beacon."
"Sounds good." Jaune said as he tried to reel back his negativity. Brigitte was going out of her way to help him, the last thing he wanted to do was be ungrateful. His mind raced back to the night before which was absent of any unwanted nightmares or altered memories from a few weeks prior, which was a positive, but didn't serve a purpose at the moment. He looked up from his feet as the two began to walk across the field and at Brigitte's back.
"You said you were from Mantle?" Jaune asked in a polite manner.
"Hm?" Brigitte asked. "Sorry, got a little too focused on our surroundings."
"Sorry," Jaune said as he kept his grip on his shield tightened. "It can wait."
"No!" Brigitte said with a flustered strain in her voice. Jaune was taken a bit aback with the sudden response but soon calmed down. "I mean…" she trailed off before her shoulders slumped. "I'm sorry."
"Is everything okay?" Jaune asked as he was concerned for his new friend.
"I'm really sorry." Brigitte started as she hoisted her pack to make sure it was secure. "It's just been a while since I've talked to… well anyone who wasn't a customer, or my family."
"Oh," Jaune said while he blinked with realization that his skepticism wasn't one sided. "Well, that's another one." Jaune said with a short chuckle.
"Another what?" Brigitte asked as she looked back at him with a raised eyebrow.
"Another socially awkward engineer I know." Jaune said. "Or would it be weapon specialist?" he rubbed his chin as he pondered to the rhythm of his footsteps that squished beneath the soft soil. "Weapon maintenance? You know what? Weapon nut. That's what we're going with. She's a weapon nut."
Brigitte laughed at Jaune's remark as he declared his friend's title with such resolve. "A little enthusiasm towards a passion doesn't hurt. I'm sure you two didn't have awkward lulls in your conversations."
"Have you ever had someone pull out a giant scythe out of nowhere just to keep the conversation going?" Jaune asked with a deadpan stare as he remembered his first interaction with Ruby. "Oh, and we can't forget the sniper rifle that it turns into."
Brigitte turned towards him with surprise written all over her face. "It's also a gun?!"
"It's also a gun." Jaune said with a blank stare, to which Brigitte let out a hearty laugh.
"That must have been a first impression." she said as she tried to stifle her laughter.
"Oh, it was." Jaune replied as they continued along the empty plain.
"I will say that your friend and I differ a bit." Brigitte said with a quick glance back at Jaune.
"How so?"
"I'm not fond of weapons," Brigitte said as she focused her gaze forward. "I understand their necessity, but I would rather design and create armor or shields. I prefer to focus more on the defensive aspects of combat."
"Huh," Jaune said as he looked upward in order to reflect on his past interactions with Ruby. "Now that you mention it, she has only focused on weapons. How about that." Jaune surmised with a nod. Maybe once things get better, he could ask Ruby what she thought on defense centric weapons.
"But back to your question before we got sidetracked." Brigitte said with a smile.
Jaune chuckled in response before he waved his hand. "I was just recalling what you said last night. You're from Mantle?"
"Yup," Brigitte said. "Well, not entirely true. There's a small town along the coast. That's where I grew up. Papa did business with Mantle and some side projects for Atlas."
"What brings you all the way to Vale then?" Jaune asked with genuine curiosity. "Unless that's too personal."
"Not at all." Brigitte said while she waved back at him. "Business was slow due to Atlas always trying to innovate and update their equipment, so he and my mother decided it would be best to move to a place where people would appreciate his talents."
"Vale isn't militarized like Atlas, which means more Huntsmen and Huntresses as customers." Jaune said mostly to himself before he looked up to his guide. "I think that was a pretty smart move on his part."
"Indeed," Brigitte said. "How about you? You said you were born and raised here?"
"Yeah," Jaune said as he lifted his shield arm and scratched the back of his head. "I grew up just outside the kingdom. Not too eventful. I wanted to be a huntsman growing up and the rest is history."
"That's amazing." Brigitte commented with a smile. "Beacon must be exciting."
"Yeah." Jaune said with fake enthusiasm before he nodded. "It really is. Heads up though," Jaune commented while the two made their way across the field and found themselves at the tree line. "There could be Grimm waiting."
"You got a point." Brigitte said as she readied her weapon as well as her device that was fastened to her opposite forearm.
"What's that?" Jaune asked as they made their way through the tree line and found themselves once more in the dense forest.
Brigitte looked up with a happy glint in her eye as she was about to show Jaune her contraption, only for a screech to pierce the air and cause the two to cup their ears.
"AGH!" Jaune yelped as he clutched his injured arm. He took a few breaths as he looked up to see a giant Nevermore swoop down toward their position. It matched the one team RWBY fought during their initiation as its wings flapped viciously while blinking in and out of the tree line.
"We must have been close to its nest." Jaune said as the two of them hurried further into the forest in order to gain more cover. "We need to get a better vantage poi-!"
"LOOK OUT!" Brigitte shouted.
Jaune turned towards his new acquaintance to question her interruption, only for a flurry of razor-sharp feathers to disrupt his train of thought. The blonde knight tried to raise his shield in time, but the sudden impact shook his body more than he expected which caused him to drop his shield. Panic spiked within Jaune as the flurry of feathers began to graze his damaged armor. The pressure on his armor and aura grew to it's breaking point as he collapsed to the ground and curled up to protect himself. With ragged breathing, he covered his face in a fruitless attempt to protect himself.
"HA!" Brigitte's voice pierced through the chaos and quelled the cacophony of feathers, much to Jaune's confusion.
The blonde knight uncovered his face and looked up to see Brigitte standing over him with her left arm guarding her body. The device he saw earlier had expanded into a substantially large barrier made of nothing but energy. Its blue hue tinted the foliage above them; giving the forest a turquoise filter. Feathers bounced off the barrier with little resistance for a few moments before the onslaught ceased.
Jaune could see that Brigitte wasted no time during the break they had as she scrambled for Jaune's shield. Once she got a hold of it and brushed a bit of moist dirt off the surface, she turned back to the blonde knight.
"We need to move!" Brigitte shouted as she tossed the shield back to its owner and began to sprint in their intended direction.
Jaune didn't have the time, nor the privilege to object at her order as another screech from the Nevermore pierced his ears. Before he knew it, he was running right at her side. Panicked breathing as well as rapid footprints plagued the serenity of the Emerald forest as they ran for what Jaune felt were hours. The screeches from the Nevermore faded from his hearing after a short time and it was then when Jaune decided to slow down.
"I think we're in the clear." Jaune said as he and Brigitte took heavy breaths. Jaune winced at the sharp pressure around his chest with each exhale, but remained calm as hyperventilating would only worsen his condition.
"Are you okay?" Brigitte said between breaths before she approached Jaune with a concerned glance.
"I'll be fi-AGH!." Jaune cried out while he tried to wave Brigitte off. He mentally kicked himself for waving with his injured arm. "Damn."
"You should get that looked at when you get back to Beacon." Brigitte said.
Jaune looked away at the mention of medical attention. "I don't do well in hospitals."
"That's no excuse, Jaune." Brigitte said with a furrowed brow and folded arms. "Do I need to escort you to the infirmary when we get there?"
"No." Jaune said as he pulled himself together. "I'll go. I promise." Brigitte's suspicious glare didn't help his situation as he nervously gulped. "I swear."
A few seconds passed as Brigitte's frown dissipated into a tired smile. "Then come on." she gestured towards their makeshift path. "Beacon shouldn't be too far now. Will you be okay?"
"Yeah," Jaune said as he matched Brigitte's tired smile and began to walk with her. "Thanks to that." he pointed to Brigitte's left arm. "I haven't seen a shield like that before."
That exuberant glint returned within Brigitte's eyes as she lifted her shield up and activated it once more. "Yup! Made it myself." Jaune could see the pride radiate from her filthy figure as she held it up for him to see. "It was hard balancing the durability with the weight, and its far from completion, but it gets the job done."
"So I've seen," Jaune said with a laugh. "How did you make it?"
Confusion surfaced within Jaune as Brigitte perked up at his question. She stared at him with wide eyes and a small smile threatened to spread across her face.
"You want to know?" Brigitte asked.
"Sure." Jaune said with a nervous chuckle. "I mean you saved my life twice now by using it, so why not?"
Brigitte's smile spread from ear to ear and with a deep breath, she lifted her device and showed it to Jaune. The blonde knight would soon regret his request as he was bombarded with technological jargon that put Ruby to absolute shame.
#
"And after testing the weight distribution as well as the energy output countless times," Brigitte said with unwavering enthusiasm. "I was finally able to keep the shield energy consistent as well as take heavy impacts without breaking the shield." Brigitte tilted her head to the side before she frowned a bit. "I still feel a lot of the impact when I block a strike, but I'll be working on that soon." She looked to Jaune with excitement written all over her face. "So, what do you think?"
Jaune appeared calm on the outside as the two grew closer to Beacon Academy, but little did Brigitte know that his brain was fried. Completely fried. More fried than any time he had been in class. Port, Oobleck, Goodwitch, and Ozpin combined had nothing on Brigitte. He was pretty sure he had just tried to process an entire advanced engineering class within a few hours. Needless to say, he was mentally spent.
"That was interesting." Jaune said as he looked down at Brigitte's shield. "And everything you said must be true considering we saw it in action against the Nevermore."
"I was surprised it held its integrity. Nevermore feathers are known notoriously for being extremely sharp."
"I'm just thankful it did." Jaune laughed nervously. Brigitte joined in moments later. Once the laughter died down, the two couldn't help but smile at one another. There was no specific reason for doing so, nor was there a specific reason for them not to smile. They just appreciated the company along with the silence.
The silence slowly evaporated as soft voices began to fill the air. Jaune and Brigitte perked up at the rising commotion, only to realize that they had made it to the Beacon Cliffs and could hear the bustling of voices within the academy.
"Huh." Jaune said as he stopped for a few moments. "How about that."
"C'mon." Brigitte said. "We're not far now."
The two made their way up the cliffs with relative ease and ended up right where Jaune launched himself the day before. The blonde knight looked on at the spot with a bit of distain before he and Brigitte passed it at a brisk pace. That distain continued to grow as they circled around the side of the school which in turn, began to bring unwanted memories to Jaune.
He shook off the mental pain a few seconds later and looked to Brigitte, only to notice that she was staring at the massive establishment with nothing but awe. Jaune could have been making the most ridiculous face or the most insulting gesture with his hands, and she wouldn't have noticed him in the slightest.
"It never gets old." Jaune said with a fake smile.
"Huh?" Brigitte asked as she whipped her head around to face Jaune.
"The view," Jaune said. "It never gets old." he regretted his white lie for only a second as unadulterated happiness practically radiated off of her figure. Jaune smiled genuinely at the sight before him, but blinked shortly after as he realized that they had made their way around the school and found themselves within the front courtyard. "Need me to show you where the docks are?" he asked.
"Oh!" Brigitte said. Jaune could tell that she had realized where they were as well. "I would like that." her smile was once again contagious as the two began to walk towards the docks. The short scrapes against the stone ground took some getting used to for both of them as they had been traveling in the soil and mud all day, but after the initial shock passed, Jaune and Brigitte relished in the new noises of civilization.
"So, here we are." Jaune said as they saw a Bullhead flying toward them. They still had a few minutes to talk, but it Jaune would've been lying if he said he wanted to talk for a little while longer. His shoulders relaxed as he let out a relieved sigh. "I can't thank you enough, Brigitte. Honestly."
"It was no trouble." Brigitte said as she waved off Jaune's gratitude with a hint of bashfulness.
"I beg to differ," Jaune said. "You helped me so much last night and today. If there's anything I can do to help you, please tell me how I can return the favor." his words were genuine and his tone was insistent.
Brigitte's eyes widened a bit at how serious Jaune had gotten so quickly. She remained silent for a few moments and put her thumb on her chin in order to think of anything.
"Besides going to the infirmary and getting those injuries looked at," Brigitte said with a stern tone. She then rose an eyebrow as her gaze shifted downward to Jaune's weapons. "I wouldn't mind taking a look at the shield." Brigitte looked up to see that Jaune had hesitated at her request with wide eyes. Her breath hitched as she realized what those words meant. "To fix!" she clarified with her arms out in a disengaging matter.
"Huh?" Jaune uttered out as the initial fear washed over him.
"I wouldn't mind fixing your weapons." Brigitte said with a more assertive voice. "Before you object, I will let you know that this is fair payment. I could always use the experience." Brigitte held out two fingers. "I also believe school is on break at the moment, so your weapons aren't immediately needed," she rose another finger. "And you shouldn't be training just yet, not with those injuries."
"I don't know." Jaune said as he scratched the back of his head with unease.
Brigitte tilted her head to the side and smiled a bit. "It will only take a few days," she said. "That will be more than enough time to get you healed. Especially with your aura." Brigitte offered her hand out while her gentle smile remained consistent.
Jaune was hesitant, but there was something trusting about her. He felt it during their trek throughout the entire forest and he still felt it. She felt warm. There was a warmth to her that made her trusting at an almost suspicious level. The blonde knight looked down at his damaged weapons and knew then and there what he needed to do.
"You've saved my life twice, so I think you taking care of my weapons for a few days wouldn't hurt." Jaune said and the excitement he saw not too long ago came back with a vengeance.
"Awesome!" Brigitte cheered as she jumped with triumph. "You won't regret this! I promise!"
"Here's my scroll number." Jaune said as he pulled out his scroll, "Send me a message when you're finished. I'll be here in the meantime."
"Excellent!" Brigitte said as she registered his name into her scroll. "Well my ride's here. I'll be seeing you, Jaune."
"You too, Brigitte." Jaune said.
The blonde waved her goodbye once she boarded and without a moment to lose, he turned on his heal and headed straight for the academy. He promised her he would get his injuries examined, but that promise had to wait just a bit. With each step he felt the familiar dread sink deeper into his gut. It felt greasy and disgusting, but it was something that needed to be done.
Jaune pressed on as he made his way to Beacon's infirmary without any confrontation. There was the occasional glare or whisper, but he couldn't help but be thankful at the lack of familiar faces as he entered the sterile atmosphere of the medical wing.
"Hi." Jaune said to the receptionist. He internally winced at the sigh she gave him before she turned towards him.
"He hasn't woken up, ki-!" The receptionist's eyes widened at the sight of him and Jaune couldn't help but squirm under her assessing gaze. "What happened to you?"
"Training accident." Jaune said quickly. "I'll get it looked at in a moment." Jaune ignored the crotchety receptionist's objections as he pressed on and felt the feeling in his gut worsen. The sickening sensation reached its crescendo when Jaune found himself in front of the room that contained the source of his shame.
"It's okay." Jaune said with a breath before he opened the door. "It's okay." he repeated as it took every bit of his willpower to look on at the sight before him.
Numerous IVs surrounded the hospital bed as the constant beating of the heart monitor grated against Jaune's ears. There was no scent that invaded Jaune's nose, but the sight of the patient became permanently branded within his memory.
Countless casts and bandages engulfed his frail frame to near completion, only his raven hair with a magenta streak along the side of his head could define who he was. Jaune looked on to the source of his shame and shuddered a bit.
"Hey, Ren." He whispered.
There was no response.
#
"I'm back!" Brigitte exclaimed with an excited smile as the familiar wave of heat hit her bluntly and without remorse. As per usual when entering her father's workshop.
"Brigitte!" a gruff voice echoed around the shop. The mechanic in question aimed her gaze downward to see her father approach, clad in heat protection and a welding mask. The mask did nothing to hide his glorious blonde beard though.
"Hello, Papa," Brigitte retained her enthusiasm as she bent down and gave her father, Torbjörn Lindholm a tight embrace. "How have you been?"
Busy as ever," Torbjörn said before he flipped his welding mas up with his crimson prosthetic claw of an arm. "Remind me to buy your mother something nice at the end of the month for deciding to have the shop in Vale.'
"I'll be sure to do that," Brigitte said with a chuckle. "Things haven't been too hectic, have they?"
"Oh, not at all." Torbjörn replied as he let go of his daughter. "I was able to manage. Ingrid was able to manage the book keeping while Reinhardt kept me company."
"Reinhardt's in town?!" Brigitte exclaimed as she put her materials as well as her new project on the her work table.
"Yep. He's out on an errand at the moment. Though I suppose he needs maintenance on his armor." Torbjörn said before he gave his daughter a knowing smile.
"I'm on it!" Brigitte's excitement was not to be contained in those moments of benevolent surprise. "Where has he been?" she asked as she wiped the sweat from her forehead.
"Anima." Torbjörn said. "He caught wind that bandits were making a name for themselves out in the villages that weren't under Mistral's protection. Got into a bit of a scrap with one of their leaders and needs his armor repaired."
"How long is he staying for?" Brigitte asked before she pulled out some old blueprints of Reinhardt's armor.
"About a month. Maybe more." Torbjörn said with a laugh. "He decided he needed a bit of a break and Help out around Vale in the process."
"Do you think he'll-!"
"You'll have to ask him." Torbjörn said abruptly.
"AMAZING!" Brigitte cheered and held her hands up in triumph. "This day can't get any better!"
"Oh?" Torbjörn asked while he leaned against one of the numerous table legs. "How so?"
"Got a client today. He's a student a Beacon and needed help with his shield. Payments good too." She laughed at the last part of her sentence.
"Terrific, Brigitte," Torbjörn said before it was followed with a deep chuckle. "Absolutely terrific."
"I'm going to clean up a bit before I start." Brigitte said as she stood up from her seat and Jaune's weapon to the side. "I don't need smoke, soot, and soil covering me from head to toe. Mom would kill me."
"That she would." Torbjörn said as he waved her off. "I'll hold down the fort here. No one's going to touch your work."
"Thanks, Papa." Brigitte said with a smile before she left the forge with a giddy laugh.
"She's growing up fast." Torbjörn said with a bit of pride in his voice. He shook his head along with a short chuckle. "But it wouldn't hurt to see what she was working on." he moved one of the stepladders he had all over his shop close to Brigitte's desk and made his way up to see what his daughter was working on.
"What the?" Torbjörn gasped as his heart nearly went still. His gaze remained fixated on the sword and shield before him. It had been ages since he had seen it, but he could never forget the amount of work he had done on it. Nor could he forget the true owner.
Torbjörn hopped off the stepladder and quickly made his way over to his scroll before quickly making his way out of his shop. The engineer shuffled through his contacts with baited breath and felt a lighting bolt of relief when he found the number he was looking for. Without hesitation, he pressed the call button and waited impatiently outside his shop for the call to pick up.
"Hello?" Torbejörn's short legs nearly buckled at the amount of nostalgia that came with the voice from the other end of the line.
"Jack!" Torbejörn shouted. "Jack, is that you?"
"Torbejörn?" Jack asked with surprise apparent in his voice. "Is that you? It's been way too long!"
"I agree, old timer." Torbejörn said as he looked up and relished at the countless memories. "It's been way too long." the engineer's gaze hardened shortly after though as he turned back to the entrance of his shop. "I'm sorry for cutting directly to the chase, but I got to ask something."
"Well, retirement isn't keeping me busy, shoot." Jack said with a casual attitude.
"Have you been on any missions of any caliber as of late?" Torbejörn asked as his deep voice mixed well with his serious attitude. "Anything Oz wanted you on?" There was a long pause on the other end. "Jack?"
"Nothing worth mentioning. Surveillance, security, and basic search and destroy missions in Vaccuo. What's going on."
"Do you still use your sword?" Torbejörn asked as his mind raced a mile a minute.
"I haven't touched it let alone seen it since…" the silence came back with an unrelenting vengeance as Torbejörn let out a sigh. "Torbejörn," Jack said with a more serious tone. "What's this about?"
"Apparently," Torbejörn said as he leaned back to stretch a bit. "My daughter took up her first job today."
"I don't see why you-!"
"Fixing your sword and shield." Torbejörn said. "A kite shield with a white base with two golden arcs. Sword fits at the top and the shield can collapse into a scabbard. It's on her workbench as we speak."
A sigh broke through on the other end of the call. "Give me four days. I'm on my way."
So yeah. This is still a thing. I hope you all enjoy and I aim to get another chapter out soon. In the meantime, drop a comment, review, or if you have a question, sent me a PM. Like always, BE COMPASSIONATE AND BE FIERCE!
SPARKYDAPPERDAB19 SIGNING OFF!