Volume 1, Chapter 5: Bad Memories may Forever Fall
Pyrrha Nikos looked out the window of Team JNPR's room in sadness. Lie Ren sat on his bed as he examined StormFlower, making sure his weapon would be ready for tomorrow's events. Nearby, Nora Valkyrie jumped on her bed.
"How come Jaune gets home so late?" she asked.
"He's become rather scarce since he started fraternizing with Cardin," Ren noted.
"That's weird… Doesn't he know we have a field trip tomorrow? We need our rest." As she said this, she twirled in midair and hit the covers with her back.
Pyrrha's sadness switched to anger. "I'm sure our leader knows exactly what he's doing."
Nora and Ren exchanged glances. She'd been like this ever since she came back from dragging Jaune away after Oobleck's class some time ago.
Little did any of them know, the subject of their limited conversation was looking into the room through the cracked door. He hung his head and silently closed the door when he heard Nora say, "Mmmm… I guess so."
His thoughts were interrupted by a voice from his side..."
"Hey Jaune!"
Startled, he turned to see Ruby in her pajamas, giggling at his reaction.
"Long time, no see! Did you lock yourself out again?"
"Oh, uh, nope!" He pulled out his scroll, which also served as the key for JNPR's room door. "Got it."
"So! Where have you been lately?" Ruby asked, changing the subject.
"I, uh…" Jaune tried to come up with something, but he failed. He simply sighed and lowered his head. "I messed up, Ruby. I did something I shouldn't have, and now Cardin has me on a leash, and Pyrrha won't even talk to me, and…" He took a moment to compose himself. "I'm starting to think coming to this school was a bad idea."
He pressed his back against his team's door and slid down to the floor, depressed. "I'm a failure."
"Nope!" Ruby said.
Jaune looked at her in surprise. "'Nope?'"
"Nope! You're a leader now, Jaune. You're not allowed to be a failure."
"But… what if I'm a failure at being a leader?"
Ruby thought for a moment before replying "Nope!" and joining him on the floor.
Jaune laughed. "You know, you're not the easiest person to talk to about this kind of stuff."
"Nope! Jaune, maybe you were a failure when you were a kid…"
Jaune groaned and sunk lower into the ground.
"… and you might've even been a failure the first day we met!"
Jaune groaned again and lowed himself further.
"But you can't be one now. You know why?"
"Uhhh, because…?"
"Because it's not just about you anymore. You've got a team now, Jaune. We both do! And if we fail, then we'll just be bringing them down with us." Ruby got up and placed her hands on her hips. "We have to put our teammates first, and ourselves second. Your team deserves a great leader, Jaune. And I think that can be you."
"She's right, you know."
Ruby and Jaune both turned to see Simon walking towards them in his fatigues and armor, his bullpup rifle slung over his shoulder having just come back from the school's shooting range. He stopped in front of his two friends.
"You may not feel like you have what it takes right now, but you do, Jaune."
"Right…" Jaune replied.
Ruby and Simon looked at Jaune in concern before sharing a glance.
"Well… have a good night, Jaune," Ruby said before opening her door and stepping inside.
"I won't be long. You can leave it closed." Simon said. He waited until RWBYS's door closed and locked before turning back to Jaune in concern.
"Seriously, Jaune. What's wrong?"
"Nothing's wrong…" Jaune answered in irritation.
Simon didn't miss it but remained calm. "Jaune, you've been distant to all of us. Something is wrong, and you're not telling anyone. We want to help you."
Jaune looked down to the floor. "You don't have any idea how it feels…"
Simon had a small look of confusion on his face. "… What's going on—"
Jaune lunged to his feet before thrusting his finger at Simon. "You'll never understand!
"What, Jaune? What don't I understand?!" Simon was starting to get irritated himself.
"Being a failure!"
A pregnant silence followed Jaune's outburst. The two men stared one another down before he continued.
"I mean, how would you understand? You're the 'awesome super-human from another dimension' that most everyone talks about; practically everybody looks up to you; hell, you led the most badass military unit outside of Atlas! You had the best life back home, and you still do!"
Meanwhile, Jaune and Simon's argument had reached through Team RWBYS's door.
Weiss looked up from what she was doing. "What was that?"
Ruby silently looked back to the door leading out into the hall while her sister looked on in confusion.
"… Isn't that Jaune? What's he yelling at Simon for?"
It was also heard by Jaune's team, all of whom had turned to face the door as well.
"Jaune?" his partner rhetorically asked.
Both teams got up, gathered around their respective doors, and pressed their ears against the wood, intent on getting an idea on what they were arguing about.
"Jaune, what makes you think I have had the best life? And where's this coming from, anyway?" Simon calmly asked.
Jaune simply chuckled. "You just don't get it! I get to have these," he motioned to his sword and folded shield at his hip, "outdated pieces of shit, and this scrap for armor. With no Semblance at all!"
He jabbed Simon in his armored chest.
"You have all this high-tech armor and weapons and all these other powers! Super strength, super speed, super senses, and all these other things that make you superior to all of us! You had parents that supported your decisions in life and were with you every step of the way!" His frustration vented, Jaune slid back down to his original position on the floor.
Simon stared blankly at Jaune before speaking.
"You're right, Jaune. I do have all these powers and equipment, but do you know what I had to endure in order to get them? I went through hell in the military; something pulled me from all my friends and family, and I don't know how or what did it; I saw shit being done to people that no one should see, let alone be put through; I've seen people die on operating tables when my team and I were doing everything we possibly could to make sure our fellow soldiers pulled through; I've been spit on, cursed at, had things spilled or thrown at me, and I could barely walk 10 feet anywhere without hearing some demeaning comment under someone's breath; I have no idea if I'll ever be able to get back home; I've had to bear the unfortunate news to the family of those who've died serving under my command—because of my own fucking orders in situations I've had no control over! And all of this before my 20th birthday… But yeah, you're right; I don't understand."
With that, Simon slumped to the floor opposite a shocked and dead-silent Jaune. The back of his head hit the wall as he leaned back with his eyes closed and breathed deeply.
"But… above all else, there's one event that still makes me feel like a failure today." He opened his eyes to look at Jaune. "You know what it is?"
Jaune shook his head.
Simon leaned forward and unzipped one of the pockets on his chest. Not breaking eye contact with Jaune, he reached into it and pulled something out and handed it to him. He held it in both hands as he looked it over.
It was a laminated picture of two people. One of them was Simon, who, outside of his clothes, looked just like he did now. He wore a light brown t-shirt, jeans, and a brown belt. His hair was short, and his face clean-shaven. He looked into the camera taking the picture with a smile.
Not a wacky or silly smile that someone like Nora would have. It was the type of genuine smile that came from happiness; the kind that would have everyone who saw it, share it.
The reason for it was the other person.
Pressed up against Simon's chest with his arms wrapped protectively around her stomach, was a young woman.
A beautiful woman who looked to be in her early 20s with long blonde hair that shone in the sunny setting, bright green eyes, and a pearly white smile full of love. She wore a red shirt, black pants, a silver necklace, and had a denim jacket draped over her shoulders.
What surprised Jaune was the ring she wore on her left ring finger, one made of silver with a sapphire set into it.
"Who's—?"
"Flip it over," Simon said, his previous aggression replaced by what sounded like sorrow.
Looking back at the photo, he flipped it over like he was told and was met with a message written in pen on the back protected by the plastic cover:
My sweet Simon, I hope this gets to you before you leave the country. I know we spent the last month together, but I want you to know that I already miss you. To wake up in your arms every morning, you gently holding me until we start the day together.
I can't wait for you to come back home for good at the end of this year.
Stay safe, Honey. I love you.
—Jackie
Jaune felt sick to his stomach. He looked up to Simon.
"Who was 'Jackie', Simon?"
Simon didn't look up at Jaune. "The girl in the photo. Her name was Jacklyn Torrez. She was… She was my fiancée, Jaune."
"You were engaged?!"
"Yes. We were supposed to have our wedding a couple weeks after I was discharged from the Dayguard… but it never came to be."
"Because you got sent here?"
"Because a vampire killed her when we stumbled into an ambush while trying to lead a group of civilians—her included—to safety."
"My gods… I-I'm so sorry…"
"It's fine, Jaune. You didn't know… But her death wasn't the worst part."
"It wasn't?!"
"No, it was what happened afterwards. I just sort of… 'shut down', for lack of a better phrase. I stopped talking to a lot of my friends and unit unless it was necessary; I kept away from her family even though they held nothing against me; I was really depressed after she was gone." Simon straightened himself out a bit before continuing. "A few months later I end up here, alone with nobody else from Earth alive to help shoulder the negativity and bleakness."
Jaune could only hand Simon back his picture, which he looked at for a brief moment.
"This was the last photo the two of us took together. It's… all I have of her besides her ring and necklace," he said before putting it back into his pocket.
"I'm sorry for your loss, Simon, and for what I said earlier. I have been an asshole lately," Jaune admitted in shame.
"Don't worry about it; you had no idea of my past beyond what would be considered 'general knowledge'. As for being an asshole, you're not wrong. You need to correct your behavior. Like Ruby said before, you have a team to worry about who worries about you just as much. Talk to them, especially Pyrrha. I'm sure she'll let you explain yourself, okay?"
"Okay," Jaune confirmed.
Simon smiled and pulled Jaune into a short bro hug before slinging his gun back over his shoulder and walking to his dorm door. Putting his hand on the knob, he looked over his shoulder at Jaune one more time.
"Also, I'd like it if you kept this discussion between us… between us," he said.
Jaune looked back at him. "Sure thing."
With that, Simon entered his dorm as Jaune went to enter his and face his team. He was stopped, however, when his Scroll beeped. He pulled it off his side and opened it, seeing a message from Cardin.
"Hey! It's your buddy Cardin! I know you're probably busy with that Dust project I gave you, buuuut I'm gonna need you to go out and get me a bag of Rapier Wasps!"
Jaune made a terrified noise when Cardin mentioned what he wanted him to get as the boy in question continued.
"And make sure they've got some really big stingers! It's important, so don't screw this up!"
Jaune's Scroll began to beep again as he closed it. Sighing, he turned and went down the hallway away from his room.
Hopefully he wouldn't get too many stings before could get to the infirmary.
"Yes, students, the forest of Forever Fall is indeed beautiful," Professor Goodwitch said to the three teams behind her. "But we are not here to sight-see. Professor Peach has asked all of you to collect samples from the trees deep inside this forest, and I'm here to make sure none of you die while doing so."
Glynda stopped and turned around. Teams RWBYS, JNPR, and CRDL stopped as well to focus on her. Jaune, who was grunting and trying to carry a large box with six empty jars on it, failed to stop in time and bumped into Cardin. The bully scowled at him as he whistled with his head turned away in an attempt to feign innocence.
Goodwitch held up a jar of the 'sample' she was talking about earlier. "Each of you is to gather one jar's worth of red sap. However, this forest is full of the creatures of Grimm, so be sure to stay by your teammates. We will rendezvous back here at 4 o'clock. Have fun!"
Yang and Ruby shared a brief smile together before looking over at Simon. The single male of their team had been unusually quiet and, despite his helmet covering his face, they could tell he was nervously looking around the forest as if expecting an attack could come any second.
Considering the conversation/argument they'd heard he had with Jaune, they were rightfully worried about their friend.
Nearby, Jaune attempted to sneak away from CRDL to his own team, but the clanking of the jars drew Cardin's attention. He grabbed Jaune by the back of his collar, saying, "Come on, buddy—let's go!"
Jaune miserably looked back at his team. Nora and Ren were already walking into the forest's depths leaving Pyrrha to stare back in sadness. He dropped his gaze and followed CRDL, leaving his disappointed partner to sigh and catch up with her other teammates.
A little while later, Team CRDL made themselves comfy leaning on the ground, rocks, and trees as Jaune stumbled into view. He collapsed face-down as he set down the six jars now full of the red sap. The surrounding team got up.
"Hey, great work, Jauney boy! Now that wasn't too hard, was it?" Cardin mockingly asked.
Jaune remained on the ground, cross-eyed and dizzy. "I think I'm allergic to this stuff…"
"Great, great," Cardin said as he ignored Jaune's statement. "So, Jaune, I bet you're asking yourself, 'Why did my buddy Cardin ask me to collect six jars of tree sap when there's only five of us?'"
Jaune nodded, still tired. "That is one of the many questions I have asked myself today, yes." He sat up.
"Well, come with me, and you'll find out."
Jaune could only moan and gulp in worry as two of Cardin's teammates picked him up and walked him alongside Cardin.
A little later the team of bullies and Jaune—squeezed between Russel Thrush and Cardin himself—were perched on a hilltop. The vantage point allowed them to overlook the other students gathering their sap below them.
Jaune turned to his left. "Cardin, wh-what's going on?"
"Payback," Cardin sharply answered, not taking his eyes off the unsuspecting group.
Ren kneeled as he collected a jar of the red sap before passing it to Nora, who traded it for the empty jar in her hands with an "Mmmm!" Ren brought the jar to the tree and began filling it up. Several licking sounds later, he looked back to his partner, who held a now-empty jar and had an embarrassed smile covered in leftover sap. Nora could only nervously chuckle under Ren's gaze.
Nearby, Simon had removed his helmet some time ago, and he was currently watching Nora and Ren as they gathered (and in Nora's case, ate) their sap. He looked down at his own half-full jar in his hands before taking one of his fingers and dipping the tip into the sticky red sap and tasting it, smacking his lips. He let out a "Hmm" sound for a moment before his face adopted a look of disgust and he stuck his tongue out with an "Ugh!" before going back and gathering more sap.
Jaune's understanding was visualized by his widening eyes. "Simon…? Wh-what are you—?"
Jaune was interrupted by Cardin pounding his fist onto the ground in frustration. "That's the guy. Half-human jockey freak of nature who thinks he's so tough. Alright boys…" He pulled out a cardboard box with a large "W" on its sides with loud buzzing coming from inside. "Last night, old Jaune here managed to round up an entire box of Rapier Wasps, and now, we're gonna put him to work."
Jaune could only barely laugh in nervousness when Russel grabbed him by the shoulder.
"Now, according to one of the essays you wrote for me last week," Cardin continued, "these nasty things looove sweets." Cardin paused, and he and the others watched as Simon finished collecting his sap. "I'm thinking it's time we teach him a thing or two."
Team CRDL got up with Cardin painfully yanking Jaune to his feet and shoving the extra jar into his grasp.
"And you're gonna do it," Cardin ordered.
"Do what?" Jaune asked in fear.
"Hit him with the sap!" Cardin then leaned in close to Jaune's face and warned, "Either that, or I'll have a chat with Goodwitch, and you'll be on the first airship out of Beacon."
Jaune looked between the jar in his hands and the four grinning teammates waiting to see what he'd do. He turned towards the group below and aimed the jar to be thrown at Simon, who was now leaning against a tree and waiting, watching the others finish collecting their sap. Jaune began to steel his nerves and steady his shaking hand to send the object to its target, but he swore that Simon turned his head slightly and looked at him for a second before returning his gaze elsewhere.
With that, he steeled himself for what he was about to do.
"No," Jaune said.
"What did you say?" Cardin asked.
Jaune's grip on the jar tightened. "I said… No!"
H turned and threw the container of sap at Cardin where it shattered. He instantly recoiled his hands to himself as he looked at Cardin's breastplate covered in the sap and bits of glass.
Cardin, however, just looked at his dirtied armor and laughed darkly.
"Oh, you've done it now…"
Jaune laughed to himself with his hands raised in a measly attempt to defend himself. Dove Bronzewing and Sky Lark grabbed a shoulder each and pulled him to keep him still as Cardin approached, cracking his knuckles.
Pyrrha's attention was pulled to the hill behind her by a group of birds loudly flying from the trees.
"Pyrrha?" Ruby asked, approaching her. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah," Pyrrha answered.
The two stood in silence for a moment before—
SLUUUURP!
—she looked down to the jar she'd been holding to see the sap missing.
"… Nora!" she yelled, startling Ruby, and turning to her teammate in question.
Unseen by the others, Simon, who was staring off into the distance, snapped his head to the hill. Following his gut instinct, he started to reach for his rifle, leaning against the same tree he was, next to him.
Something very, very big was coming.
Jaune was pushed to the ground, groaning as he looked up to see a sap-covered Cardin towering over him. The bigger warrior picked him up by his armored front and grinned before punching him back to the ground.
"You know that wasn't very smart, Jauney boy," Cardin said as he picked up a bruised Jaune with -RDL watching. "I'm gonna make sure they send you back to mommy in teeny tiny pieces."
"I don't care what you do to me…" Jaune said with his head hanging back before looking at Cardin in fury, "… but you are not messing with my friends."
Cardin looked momentarily shocked at what Jaune said. "What? You think talk like that makes you tough? You think you're a big, strong man now?"
Jaune simply smiled.
This little act of defiance was enough for Cardin to resume his beating. He roared, raised his fist, and sent it towards Jaune's face. Just as the hit connected, however, the team was blinded by a bright light that shone from Jaune.
Cardin cried out in pain as he held his hand which seemed to be slightly swollen. When the light faded, Jaune was back on the ground but was now fully healed with no bruises or marks on his face. He looked down in confusion at his hands which were covered in a faint white glow.
His confused thoughts were interrupted by Sky kicking him in the back, sending him to the ground on his stomach. He looked up and glared at Cardin approaching him.
"Let's see how much of a man you really are…" he said menacingly.
Before they could get started, a growl was heard behind them. Surprised, Team CRDL turned around to see a large paw crash onto the ground of the clearing. The rest of the creature followed, revealing it to be a huge Ursa Major, an older and more dangerous Ursa with dozens of jagged spikes sticking out from its back. It leaped further into the clearing closer to the five students and stood on its hind legs to sniff the air. Catching a whiff of the sweetness on Cardin's breastplate, it landed back on all fours and roared at its chosen target.
"That's a big Ursa!" Russel shouted.
Cardin looked around to see all three of his teammates heroically running… their asses in the opposite direction.
He himself was rooted to the spot until the Ursa Major swung its massive claws and knocked him sideways, revealing a cowering Jaune behind him. The Grimm bear continued to sniff the air, and it decided that Jaune's fear wasn't as interesting as the sap. It followed its nose back to Cardin, who got his wits and pulled out his mace, The Executioner, to defend himself. Jaune watched as the bear towered over the grounded bully and simply swiped his mace out of his hand. The weapon rolled to Jaune's feet, and he looked conflicted.
Does he defend the guy who bullied him, blackmailed him, and tried to make him attack his partner?
Or does he run like the others and leave Cardin to his fate?
The other students in the forest still collecting sap heard the Ursa's roar.
"Did you guys hear that?" Ruby asked in concern as she stood up.
Suddenly, -RDL burst through the trees and ran through the group.
"Ursa! Ursa!" Russel shouted as he looked back the way he and the others ran from. Unfortunately, he wasn't watching where he was going and collided with Yang.
"What?!" Unfazed, she picked him up by his shirt and demanded, "Where?"
Russel struggled and kept running in the air, but nevertheless pointed back where he and his two teammates ran from and said, "Back there! It's got Cardin!"
Simon grabbed his rifle and ran to where Russel pointed.
"Jaune!" Pyrrha said in concern as she dropped her jar of sap.
At that, Ruby wen into leader mode. "Yang! You and Blake, go get Professor Goodwitch!
Yang dropped Russel, who continued running when he touched the ground, and she and her partner both nodded before following their leader's orders.
"You two," Pyrrha said to Ren and Nora as she and Ruby activated their weapons, "go with them! There could be more!"
They nodded before running to catch up.
"Simon! You—Simon?" Ruby ordered as she turned to where Simon stood, but she stopped when she noticed that he was missing.
Cardin managed to get back on his feet and attempted to run away from the Ursa Major, but it simply leaped over him and clawed him away and back onto the ground.
"Crap! Crap, crap!" he shouted as he tried to get up and crawl away.
Pyrrha, Ruby, and Weiss ran into the clearing to see Jaune, the Ursa, and Cardin. They also saw Simon in front of them standing near the bushes in the clearing, his rifle in hand. They attempted to run past him and help but were stopped—literally in Ruby's case indicted by her "Ooof!" sound— by Simon's outstretched arm.
"No! Let's see how Jaune works," he said as he turned his face to see them.
"But—" Ruby began.
"If it becomes too much for Jaune to handle, we'll go in. Otherwise, let's let him have his moment to be the savior." He cut her off before lowering his arm to hold the front of his gun.
They watched as the Ursa leaned over Cardin and raised its paw and swiped down in a killing blow…
A blow blocked by Jaune's shield part of Crocea Mors. He struggled as he defended a stunned Cardin from the Ursa that was now attempting to lean on him using its massive weight.
Weiss raised Myrtenaster in preparation to go help the blond, but Simon gently pushed her blade down and said, "No, not yet."
Jaune took his shield out from under the Ursa's paw and slashed at its stomach, making it lash out and attempt to crush him. He rolled out of the way and jumped over its follow-up swipe at his legs, but he wasn't prepared for it to launch another claw at him midair. He landed roughly far away yet was immediately back on his feet and passed Cardin in another charge. He tried for a leaping attack but was knocked behind the Grimm when it swung at him.
He looked at his Scroll mounted on his side of his shield and grew angry when he saw that his Aura level is in the red. Fueled by adrenalin and his own anger, he charged at the Ursa, who roared and charged at him itself.
Time seemed to slow as the two fighters were about to clash. Pyrrha noticed that Jaune held his shield too low and left an opening for the Ursa's approaching paw. Her hand glowed with dark red energy as she held it out to Jaune, more specifically his shield. The metal defense tool raised itself up just in time to block the Grimm's claw.
Taking advantage of the surprise defensive move, Jaune leaned on the ground, pushed his shield back up, and swung his sword right through the Ursa's neck, decapitating it. The creature's head fell to the ground as its body slammed into it.
"Uhhh… What?" Ruby asked in confusion as Pyrrha's hand stopped glowing and she smiled.
Weiss was equally amazed. "How did you…?"
"Well," Pyrrha spoke, "Ruby has her speed, you have your glyphs. My Semblance is polarity."
"Whoa, you can control poles…"
"Magnetic poles, but yes," Simon corrected.
"Magnets are cool, too…" Ruby whispered, still impressed.
Weiss noticed Pyrrha start to leave. "Wait, where are you going?"
"Yeah! We gotta tell them what happened!" Ruby said.
"We could… Or perhaps we could keep it our little secret?" Pyrrha said before she continued walking away. Weiss and Ruby smile to each other in mutual understanding before turning to see Simon watching Jaune.
JNPR's bruised leader sheathed his sword before going over to Cardin, who was still laying on the ground and covered in sap. He looked up to Jaune as his savior offered him a hand. Smiling, he took it and was pulled to his feet.
"Holy crap, Jaune!" Cardin said.
"Don't ever mess with my friends—team or not—ever again," Jaune threatened as he stared Cardin dead in the eye. "Got it?"
Cardin looked intimidated, possibly even a little apologetic. He weakly nodded, and Jaune turned and started walking away.
Simon had reluctantly joined Weiss and Ruby as they walked back to wait for the others to return. Ruby noticed that Simon kept looking back over his shoulder. She was about to ask him what was wrong before he stopped walking, his face glued to something behind him.
He quickly looked to Ruby and said, "Something's following us. I can feel it."
"You can 'feel' it?" Weiss asked in disbelief, though she still pulled out her rapier.
"Special dhampir sense that I'll explain later. Right now, we need to—"
Simon was cut off by something launching Cardin and Jaune over the tree line and making them hit the ground in front of them. Pyrrha cried out her leader's name as she ran towards him, his Aura visually shattering from the crash.
All of them looked back to see what catapulted the two boys, and it wasn't good.
Staring back at them was four glowing red eyes mounted on the snout of a head connected to a large, black body covered in quills of various shades of red, white, black, and yellow. Behind it was a long tail that ended in a flare of thin flesh and more quills, armed and ready to be launched at prey. Its head, neck, snout, and most of its tail was covered in the white, boney armor found on all other Grimm.
The students and the young Razorback Grimm locked eyes for a moment before it roared at them, revealing a long jaw of long, sharp fangs.
The Huntsmen-in-training took its battle cry as their que to start fighting as they all got to work buying Goodwitch and the others time to get back, and for Pyrrha to get Jaune and Cardin away from the fight:
Simon shouldered Jackie and began firing in bursts to nail any possible weak spots.
Ruby slammed the blade of Crescent Rose into the dirt and began firing high-powered rounds at the Grimm.
Weiss summoned a small group of small glyphs behind her before using them to launch blue projectiles at the creature.
They didn't get to do much before the Razorback roared again and charged, rolling into a ball and extending its quills to form a ball of sharp pins heading straight towards them.
Weiss and Ruby jumped to the side and avoided getting punctured, and Simon jumped over it, shooting it while in the air in an attempt to hit some flesh not protected by its quills. It was stopped and uncurled itself when it collided with a thick gathering of trees strong enough to withstand the collision. The Razorback turned itself around and raised its tail, tip pointed towards the ones attacking it, and switched to a ranged attack.
The three students managed to get behind some form of cover as the Grimm launched several quills from its tail. These ones were smaller than the ones sticking out of its back but were just as deadly.
Ruby and Simon had crouched behind a boulder to wait for the Grimm to stop so they could shoot back.
Simon turned to Ruby. "What kind of Grimm is this one?!" he shouted, trying to be heard over the sounds of the creature's quills snapping against the rock.
"A Razorback! Its quills serve as both weapons and armor!" she answered.
Weiss spoke up from the nearby tree she was behind, using it in conjunction with a shield glyph to protect herself. "We're not going to be able to hit it's skin from this side! We need to get behind it where the quills fan out and leave it vulnerable!"
Looking at his equipment belt, Simon grabbed one of his grenades and quickly formed an idea.
"Alright, I think I have an idea! You two, do what you can to distract it! I'm gonna move around these rocks and the trees until I get behind it! When I do, I'll see if I can cripple or even kill it with this!" He motioned to the grenade he held in his hand.
The two agreed, and Simon quickly crouch-walked his way around the rocks he and Ruby were behind. He waited and darted from tree to tree before he finally was behind it. He pulled the grenade's pin and held the safety lever until he could get closer and waited for Ruby and Weiss.
Fortunately, it wasn't long until the Grimm paused and was met with a storm of projectiles. Setting down his gun, Simon ran out from behind the tree and towards the Razorback's backside to place the explosive. He was really close to the creature when it suddenly turned around to face the enemy attempting a sneak attack, and he barely stopped in time to avoid getting bit in half by the Razorback's snapping mouth.
It was momentarily stunned when its unarmored mouth was hit by a bullet from Blake's Gambol Shroud, who'd returned with Goodwitch and the others in tow. She and Ren began to fire their weapons at the Razorback which made it roar. They stopped when they realized Simon had latched onto the Grimm's mouth and was gripping as hard as he could to maintain his hold on its mouth without breaking it loose with his super strength.
The Razorback swung its head as hard as it could to try and get the being off its face, but only succeeded in making itself dizzy. It crashed to the forest floor after what felt like forever.
Knowing it was now or never, Simon grabbed the bottom of the creature's upper jaw with his right hand, planted a foot on its bottom jaw, and forced its mouth open. Holding it open with little effort despite the creature's colossal jaw power trying to force its mouth closed, he took the grenade in his left hand and released the safety lever before jamming the timed explosive down the Razorback's throat.
Jumping out of its way, Simon ran around the side of the Grimm as its mouth snapped shut and it started flailing around. He was running towards the trees he hid behind before when he noticed something.
Yang, who had just arrived, was out in the open and right in the path of the quilled back that was about to go flying.
Changing his course, he shouted for Yang to look out before tackling her to the ground just as the grenade went off, sending pieces of the Razorback around the area.
Including its quills.
A minute later…
Everyone got up from where they were when the sound of spikes hitting everything around them stopped.
Blake laid behind the fallen remains of a tree.
Nora and Ren were behind a shield Ms. Goodwitch had created when she saw Simon jam his grenade into the Grimm's mouth and start running.
Weiss and Ruby were ducked behind their original spots.
Pyrrha, Jaune, and Cardin were behind some trees, but they had been outside the explosive and shrapnel radius.
The only one who wasn't behind anything solid was Yang, who was behind some bushes. Checking herself out, however, revealed that she was unhurt by the Razorback's venomous, Aura-puncturing quills.
Looking to her side, she discovered why.
Simon had tackled her to the ground just as the shrapnel went everywhere and had shielded her with his own body. He had rolled off her and was busy getting the few quills that had managed to punch through some of the lesser-protected areas of his armor. Judging by the small, bloody stack, only about five hit him in his side, left leg and thigh.
Currently, he was grasping the fifth and final quill sticking out of his leg and attempting to pull it out. His face was pale, and eyes closed with his face scrunched up in minor pain.
With a final "Shit!" he managed to yank it out and set it aside with the others. His eyes opened as he panted in relief before looking over to the blonde he'd protected.
Yang saw that they were red orange instead of their usual amber.
"When I said, 'Stick with me,' I was addressing you four and JNPR. The Grimm were not included," he joked.
Yang immediately lunged to him and began checking him and his wounds.
"Oh my gods, are you okay?! We need to get you to the infirmary!" she spoke quickly as she moved his bloody suit around to get a better look at the damage.
"There's no need for that, Yang," he said in a calm voice to reassure her.
Yang quickly looked up at him in with confusion before moving aside the armor where a quill had hit his side. She saw a small hole still bleeding for a second. It quickly healed, pulling the blood trail up and back inside before the skin re-fused without leaving a scar.
She looked back up at him in surprise. This wasn't the type of healing done by Aura.
"See? No need," he said again.
The two of them looked around at the sound of footsteps and saw that Goodwitch and the others, sans Pyrrha, Jaune, and Cardin, had arrived. They all started asking questions left and right until they were stopped by Goodwitch, who asked if they were alright. Yang and Simon both confirmed that they were uninjured, but Simon said that it would be hard for him to walk back to the academy because the Razorback's venom was beginning to numb his side and leg.
Goodwitch told Yang to assist Simon back to the academy grounds and to take him to the infirmary when they got back. She nodded, and he leaned on her shoulder with his arm around her. Everyone packed up their weapons and sap, and they began the long trek back to the school. Before they left, Simon had Ruby grab Jackie from where he left it, and she carried it for him.
Yang and Simon were at the back of the group, though they weren't too far away in case of another attack. They were nearing Beacon when Simon felt eyes on him from close by. He looked to the side to see Yang staring at him. Before he could ask her what was wrong, however, she pressed her lips against his cheek in a small kiss. Yang held it for a moment before she pulled back with a smile.
"That's for saving me, Soldier Boy," she said.
"Sure, no problem, Yang," Simon replied with a smile of his own as he tried to fight the blush creeping up on his face.
That night, Jaune stood on the roof of the dorm building in his uniform as he looked at the green Beacon lights in the distance.
"No Cardin tonight?" Pyrrha asked as she walked up to his side. "I thought you two were best buds?"
Jaune turned to face her. "Pyrrha… I'm sorry. I was a jerk! You were only trying to be nice, and… I had all this stupid macho stuff in my head—"
"Jaune! It's okay!" She cut him off. She shared a smile with him before adding, "Your team really misses their leader, you know." She turned and began walking back to the door leading to the rooftop they were on. "You should come down! Ren made pancakes! No syrup, though—you can thank Nora for that!"
Jaune smiled at Pyrrha's words before he remembered their previous discussion and held out his hand. "Wait!" He looked sheepish as Pyrrha turned around. "I know I don't deserve it after all that happened, but… would you still be willing to help me… to help me become a better fighter?"
Pyrrha turned around so that Jaune, now worried she wouldn't help him, couldn't see her satisfied smile. She walked up to him and, without warning, shoved him to the ground.
"Hey!" Jaune whined.
"Your stance is all wrong. You need to be wider and lower to the ground," she said in an evaluating tone of voice with hands on her hips. She then offered him a hand back up which Jaune took. They grinned at each other as she said, "Let's try that again."
I hope you enjoyed this chapter. It took me so long due to some personal things in live, and the fact that I wanted to get started on Remnant Decepticons. I'm also looking to help another author with a story of his on and AO3, so I've been busy with that and my new job. Sorry about the poor fight scene in the Forest as well, but I might redo it when I have more time down the road. See you all later!
P.S. Here's a little note on the Razorback they fought.
Razorback:
A very rare porcupine-like Creature of Grimm, the Razorback is a very deadly adversary as adults, though young ones are still difficult to fight and aren't recommended to be faced without backup. Their main form of attack is curling into a ball and rolling straight for prey much like a Boarbatusk but are much deadlier due the quills covering their body. These quills, which may or may not be venomous, serve as both the creature's weapon and armor. Despite their resistance to being damaged by conventional means, these quills are extremely prone to shattering against most solid materials.
The Razorback's tail also serves as a weapon, being able to fire smaller quills at distant targets. This attack is painful to the Grimm itself, however, and isn't used as much as its melee attacks.
Older Razorbacks can also, in emergencies, suck in air and "blow" their quills out of their bodies and into their surroundings. Although damaging and very lethal, this attack leaves the creature vulnerable to attacks from enemies who've managed to avoid getting punctured. The quills will regrow, but it's unknown how long this process takes.