On the Arc family's backyard, one could hear the sound of metal clanging against each other. Normally, this would raise some concern for the neighboring people, but they knew where the source was coming from. It happened so often, it became normal to them.
To put it simply, it was just Jaune and Dante sparring, with the former wielding Red Queen while the latter wielded Rebellion.
Jaune and Dante exchanged blows, sparks flying around as their swords met again and again, canceling each other's attack. The two then locked swords, staring heatedly at each other. Dante cracked a smirk and pulled back, swinging down Rebellion, pushing back Jaune. He skidded to a stop and put up his guard, blocking Dante's Stinger.
Jaune grunted and back stepped then dashed forward, swinging his blade in an arc motion, performing a Shuffle attack. Dante jumped back to dodge, only to be met with a gloved fist that caught him by surprise. Jaune smirked and delivered a series of strikes and ended it with a descending slash, slamming down his uncle onto the ground. The Son of Vergil disappeared and reappeared back to the ground in a flash of blue. He struck Dante by the side, sending him flying like a golf ball.
Dante composed himself mid-air and pushed himself down. He walked around with a smirk and stabbed his blade into the ground, leaning onto it as he nodded at his nephew in approval.
"Getting better, kid."
"Well, when you have a good teacher, you tend to pick up a few things." he said, a smirk on his face.
Dante merely grunted in response and pulled out Rebellion, hefting it on his shoulders. He allowed a grin to encompass his face as he disappeared in a blur, alarming Jaune. The Son of Sparda reappeared to his side and took him by surprise.
Jaune could do nothing but try his best to block and deflect all of Dante's attacks. The man in red made an upward sweeping motion, forcing Jaune to dodge by flipping back. His eyes widened as Dante followed suit, swinging down Rebellion, forcing him back to the ground and on his knees. The blond teen pushed him off and went to retaliate, only for his sword being flung off his hand, falling against the ground.
The Legendary Devil Hunter smirked and prepared another another Stinger attack, forcing Jaune to raise his arm and block. A small explosion erupted from the reaction, destroying the poor field around them as Jaune's arm changed into the Devil Bringer. Dante looked up and smirked in excitement.
"Things are starting to get crazy."
"Then let's amp things up a bit!" Jaune grabbed Rebellion by the tip and tossed his uncle into the air. He drew out Blue Rose and fired off two shots.
Dante slammed down his blade and deflected the bullets back to sender. Jaune dashed to the side and fired off more at the still airborne devil hunter. He pulled out Ebony and Ivory and shot down the bullets with his own before continuing on to attack his nephew.
Then Jaune did the unthinkable.
"Royal Guard!"
He shifted into a stance and started generating flickers of blue energy, blocking the bullets that came his way. Unfortunately, a few stray ones managed to get through, hitting him on the chest. Jaune clenched his teeth as blood dripped down.
Dante landed down and resumed firing. Jaune recovered and dashed to the sides, switching directions every time his uncle would follow his movement. He dashed back and spun around, drawing out Blue Rose once again. The Son of Vergil smirked and fired off rapid shots, meeting Dante's bullets, canceling each other. Dante smirked and his guns suddenly glowed a vibrant red, making Jaune panic.
He leaped on to a tree, narrowly dodging the charged bullets as it dispersed. He landed on a branch and took aim, only to find his target had disappeared. Jaune jumped down and took the time to reload. He ejected the empty shell and threw out a fresh batch of bullets, swiftly slamming them into the chamber. He grunted in irritation as he was unable to sense his uncle anywhere.
"Giving up so easily?"
Jaune's eyes widened as he rolled to the side, dodging a Helm Breaker courtesy of his uncle. Dante hefted Rebellion on his shoulder, smirking at him. The Arc Scion clicked his tongue in annoyance and aimed Blue Rose, before it was wiped away and replaced with a smirk.
"I guess this doesn't quite cut it." he decided as he holstered away his gun.
Quickly, he back flipped to where Red Queen was. He kicked it up into the air and grabbed it, revving it up to show his excitement. Dante looked at his sword for a split second then copied his nephew's actions, eliciting a chuckle. The two of them charged and exchanged fast strikes at each other. It ended up in a stalemate and their last strike sent them sliding both back.
However, Jaune managed to use this to his advantage. With a roar, he summoned out his spectral arm and grabbed Dante. He struck his uncle thrice, then sent a vicious uppercut to his jaw, launching him into the air. He grabbed him once again with his arm and slammed him down harshly onto the ground, making him bounce. Jaune cocked back his arm and punched his uncle straight in the gut, sending him towards a tree.
And as the coup de grace, he threw Rebellion at his uncle, impaling him in the chest and pinning him to the tree.
Jaune clapped off the dust on his hands and smiled in triumph, until it was wiped off from his face when his uncle disappeared in a wisp of red smoke. He cried out in pain as the blade of Alastor pierced his chest and sent out currents of lightning frequently shocking him. Behind him, Dante held the Devil Arm, a scolding look on his face.
"Something to keep in mind when you're fighting someone, kid - Premature celebration can get you killed."
Dante pulled out his sword and roared and started performing his revised Dance Macabre. He smirked, seamlessly doing it. And for the finale, he struck him with three hard slashes and ended it with a home run swing as his blade glowed a bright red.
Jaune cried out in pain as he crashed into the tree, full of wounds and bruises. He tried to push himself up but Dante stomped down his foot on his chest and aimed Ivory at his head. The blond groaned out loud and surrendered.
"Alright. You win."
Dante smirked and placed away Ivory back on his holster. He got off his nephew and helped him stand up, dusting his clothes. "You were close, Jaune. Close, but no cigar. Got a bit way over your head, just like every time."
The Son of Vergil kept silent as he cracked his neck, a bit sore about his growing loss record to his uncle, nonetheless, he smirked and took it in good nature. "Well, I can't exactly improve if you keep holding back on me. I'll take a loss if it means I can get stronger."
"That's the spirit." said Dante. "Your Royal Guard needs a bit more training on the timing. That's why some of my bullets managed to break through. Overall, your combat ability is far greater than when we started four years ago."
"Four years ago… That would mean that it's been five years since I've met my uncle. Man, has it really been that long?" Jaune thought to himself.
Indeed, five years had passed since Dante first agreed to train Jaune. A lot of things had changed in that span of time. Jaune had grown from being scrawny to being a tall and fit fourteen-year old boy, practically like a statue chiseled out of marble. Well, as best as a fourteen-year old could be. His hair grew longer, now reaching up to cover his ears and combed nicely.
He wore a dark blue coat with a red zip-up hoody underneath, that had a black shirt beneath too. And on his right hand, he wore a blue and red glove, strapped in place by a brown belt. He had a pair of blue pants on, held up by a belt with a buckle in the shape of two overlapping crescents. Over them, he wore brown thigh straps with small belts. And boots that went halfway up his shins.
Dante too, decided to have a wardrobe change. He kept the red pants, but wore black, leather motorcycle chaps and a cowboy boot-design around the ankles, with black, loafer-looking boots, and a black belt with a silver emblem of a skull. His coat looked more stylish and detailed, colored an almost crimson red. Beneath it was a black, zipped up undershirt. His hair was much more shorter, and kept, his eyes no longer hidden.
Jaune was snapped out his musing as Dante's Scroll started ringing. The half-devil was quick to fish it out and accepted the call. "What's up? Alright. I see. Yeah sure, let's talk about it in the office. I'll bring pizza too. Right. Later." And then he hung up.
"Got a mission, Uncle D?"
"Maybe. We'll see." Dante replied rather cryptically. He started walking away, giving his nephew a salute goodbye. "I'll see you later, kid."
Jaune nodded, and waved goodbye to his uncle. He walked up to the shade of the tree and sat under it, enjoying the cool breeze that brushed against his face. The hybrid smiled as he made himself comfortable. A barking sound attracted his attention as something scampered towards him. Jaune laughed out loud as it jumped into his chest, nuzzling him. It was a little wolf. About the size of a young Atlesian husky. His fur was a charcoal black and his eyes colored icy blue.
"Hey, Fenrir. You had a good nap?" he asked.
The wolf pup licked his face as confirmation. He got off his owner's chest and rolled around the ground, amusing Jaune. Fenrir then stopped, lying on his back and presented his stomach. The young teen hummed, knowing what his pet wanted and rubbed his tummy. Fenris barked out in joy as he enjoyed his master actions.
Jaune smiled, as his mind drifted back to the day he first met Fenris.
Around two years ago
Jaune smiled as he headed back home, waving goodbye to Pyrrha. He ran through the streets until, on a whim, decided to make a detour through the woods. There wasn't any Grimm nor was there any demons, so it was perfectly safe for a kid like him to go through.
He spent the next twenty minutes running, enjoying the sounds of nature. Soon enough, in the distance, he could see the road that led to his house. Jaune smiled and pushed further, until a loud whine attracted his attention. He skid to a stop and turned to the bushes.
"H-Hello?" he called out uncertainly.
The whining grew louder, and this time, Jaune could hear the pain in it. He pushed apart the bushes and saw a wolf pup lying on the ground, bleeding. Near by, there was a cage, dented and broken. The first thing that flared inside of the blond was to help out the poor wolf.
He took off his hoody and carefully wrapped it around the injured pup. Once secured, he made a beeline towards his house. He barged into the living room, calling out to his older sister.
"Noir! You in here?" When he received no response, he called out to the others. "Mom! Luna? Saph? Sol? Anyone home?"
Nothing. No response, meaning he was all alone. Jaune shook his head and ran up to his room. He gently placed down his rolled up top onto his bed and unfurled it to release the little pup. After making sure it was still breathing, he rushed towards two destinations - the bathroom and Noir's room.
From the bathroom, he retrieved a clean rag, a small water basin and some soap. He went back to his room and placed them there before heading to his sister's room. Jaune looked around, trying to find a medical kit. She was a soldier, so, she should have one. Finally, he spotted a box with a red plus right underneath his sister's bed.
As he retrieved it, Jaune loudly wondered to himself. "Why would she hide the medical kit under her bed?" He carefully opened it up and was greeted with something that was definitely not medical supplies.
"Nope! Nope! Nope! Nope!" he repeatedly shouted as he slammed back the cover and pushed it back under the bed, completely traumatized at what see. "I didn't see anything. I didn't see ANYTHING!"
He was swift to tune out the memory and focused on the matter at hand. Luckily, he had managed to find the actual medical supplies a minute later. Jaune rushed back to his room and went to work. First, he gently pressed on the pup's wounds, making blood drip out until it no longer did. Next, he cleaned up the wounds with the rag after soaking it, making sure to be gentle. After that, he opened up the med kit and grabbed the disinfectant spray.
"I'm sorry about this, but it will hurt a bit."
Once he started spraying, the wolf pup whined and growled in pain, but didn't thrash around, luckily. And finally, he wrapped gauze bandages around the wounds after applying some cream over it. Jaune took a few steps back to look at his work. Admittedly, his work was sloppy at best but that was all he could do by himself. The pup gently craned its head and let out a little bark to tell the blond he was fine.
Jaune smiled at this and sat down beside it. He hovered his hand over to pet the wolf, but hesitated, not sure if it would like being pet. The pup saw this and gave the boy's palm a lick. The blond smiled and gently petted the wolf. "So, do you want to stay here for a moment until you get healed up?"
The wolf seemed to think about it for a moment and nodded, doing its best impression of a smile, which somehow involved with its tongue hanging out. Jaune laughed and just rubbed the pup's head.
And despite having been healed, Fenrir decided to stay with the Arc family as their pet. Jaune was ecstatic, and the others received him warmly, acting like what a normal pet dog would.
He had also reported to the authorities about the possibility of an illegal hunter roaming in Mistral, remembering the cage that contained Fenrir. Unfortunately, nothing came up in investigations and it was closed.
A ringing sound snapped Jaune out of his reminiscence. He took out his Scroll and there on the screen was a picture of him and Pyrrha during his birthday. The two of them were wearing party hats, their faces covered in cake. He chuckled at the memory and answered the call.
"Hey, Pyr."
"Hey yourself. Think we can hangout today? There's something I've been wanting to tell you."
"Sure." shrugged Jaune. "Don't really got anything to do today. It would be great to see you again."
"Perfect. So, the usual spot then?"
"Yup. Say, you mind if I bring along Fenrir?"
"Of course not! I wouldn't mind seeing the cute, wittle puppy again."
Jaune chuckled and bid farewell to his friend, hanging up on her. He put away his Scroll and patted on the wolf's head. "Wake up, boy. We're gonna go to the park and meet up with Pyrrha."
Fenris perked up at the name of his owner's friend. He liked Pyrrha. She smelled nice and treated his owner nicely too. That, and she gave great treats too. The two of them went into the house. Jaune grabbed the collar off of the rack and secured it around Fenris's neck. With that out of the way, the two of them headed out for the park.
Pyrrha stared at the people that walked by her as she quietly sat at the bench, waiting for her best friend. The young redhead, like Jaune, had grown, with clear signs that she's going through puberty. She grew taller, her hair was longer, she's lost some of her child fat yet gained some around her limbs, and more importantly, she was starting to become more feminine in terms of her body shape, along with her… noticeable growing curves.
Pyrrha looked down on her Scroll to check the time, when a shadow loomed over her.
"Hey, did I keep you waiting?"
The young girl looked up and saw Jaune standing over her with a smile. She returned it and shook her head. "No, I haven't been waiting long."
The blond looked relieved and took a seat besides her. Fenrir scampered up to occupy the space between them and barked at Pyrrha in greeting. She redirected her smile at the young wolf and greeted him, making sure to scratch behind his ears. They then sat in silence, apart from the occasional noise from Fenrir. Jaune decided to finally break the awkward quietness blanketed around them.
"So, what's the matter? From over the phone, it seemed like you have a life-long secret you wanted to tell me."
"No. Nothing like that. The only thing I wanted to say was that…I'm gonna enroll into Sanctum Academy."
Jaune smiled, clearly happy for her, but was also a bit confused. "That's great but, why the need to tell me this personally? You could have just told me over the Scroll."
Pyrrha looked at her friend, doubt clouding her. "It's just that…am I enrolling for the right reasons? The reason I want to get into Sanctum and become a Huntress is because I want to become stronger. Those years ago, at the fair, I felt completely useless. I couldn't do anything against those monsters."
"And neither could I." shot back Jaune. "Pyrrha, we were just kids back then. There was no way we could have fought back against them."
"But you did." quietly said Pyrrha. "You managed to beat some of them, while I was just in the sidelines. I realized then, that I needed to get stronger. Because, what can I do if it happens again? What if you're not there to save me, like last time? And besides, I need to think about my mom too. My dad can't always be there to protect her. That's why I… I need to become stronger, not just to protect myself and my family but to protect you too!"
Jaune said nothing as he looked at his friend. He placed his hand, his demonic hand, over hers and squeezed it. "Pyr, there's nothing with getting stronger. I know, I felt the same back then, I just got lucky I inherited my father's bloodline. It's not the right reason, nor is it the wrong. Some would say it's greedy, but what would they know? They never encountered what we did. It's okay to enroll for those reasons, but down the line, you and I both know that the power we'll get, we'll use to make sure that something like that never happens again. And not just us, we got Uncle Dante, my mom and my sisters to help us out. Just go with what your heart tells you, and know that I'll support you all the way."
Pyrrha smiled, and couldn't help but tear up at her friends words. Fenrir took notice of this and tried to comfort his owner's friend by gently licking at her face. She wiped away her tears and patted Fenrir on the head.
"Thank you, Jaune. And thank you too, Fenrir."
The blond smiled back and wrapped the redhead in a hug, in which she tightly reciprocated. "Hey, what are friends for?"
The two of them stayed like that for what seemed to be eternity, but in actuality, it was just a few seconds, until they broke off. As Jaune was about to suggest something, a voice cheerfully called out to them.
"Hey, you guys!"
Jaune and Pyrrha looked to the right and saw a certain orange-haired girl in pink run at them as she waved, being followed closely by a male teen in green. These were Eleanor "Nora" Valkyrie and Ren Redgrave, formerly known as Lie Ren, the two children that Dante and Jaune had discovered.
It took quite a while for them to recover, and it took even longer for them to open up due to the years of abuse they suffered at the hands of the scientists.
Eleanor "Nora" Valkyrie was nothing like the girl she was years ago. Back then, she was reclusive and shy. However, thanks to the efforts of Dante's doctor friend and Trish, she came out of her shell and became the bubbly, happy-go-lucky girl she is today. Trish had then made the decision to adopt her, being the one to rename her new daughter. And as a bonus, she had already unlocked her Semblance, which worked in-tandem with Trish's abilities.
Ren was a bit harder to get through with. He was far more mistrustful of the adults and didn't let any of them in, until Dante had managed to do so by having a heart-to-heart with him, talking about each other's pasts. This had managed to convinced Ren and became what he was now, a usually mellow guy. Dante, despite all his flaws, was quite good with children, and so decided to take in Ren as his son. With Ren, he saw this as a new beginning. He discarded his old name of Lie, and took up Ren as his first name, if only to remind him of his old family. And so, Ren Redgrave was born.
The two stood up from their seats and went to meet up with them. "Hey. Funny meeting you guys here." said Jaune. "So, were you two out for a stroll or did Uncle D send you off to an errand?"
"A bit of both." responded Ren. "It looked like Dad, Aunt Lady and Miss Trish were going to discuss something important, so we decided to make ourselves scarce and head for the local pizzeria. You guys wanna come with?"
Pyrrha and Jaune agreed wholeheartedly. The blond picked up his pet wolf and scratched his ears. "What about you, boy? Do you wanna come with?"
Fenrir merely responded by happily licking his face, making him and the others laugh. Nora grinned and dramatically pointed at the direction of where the pizzeria was. "Tally ho! Before the pancake pizzas run out!"
The orange-haired girl dashed off, leaving the four of them in the dust. They all shook their heads in amusement before running to catch up with Nora.
A Few Hours Later
Jaune sighed happily as he pushed open the door. He really enjoyed hanging out with his three friends. It was great to have people your age that he could have fun with and understand easily. Sure, it was just them, but it didn't bother him. To him, they were enough because they judged him for him. They were true. And that's the only thing that mattered to him.
He pulled off Fenrir's leash and collar, and rubbed him affectionately, urging him to go and play out. The wolf pup barked at him and ran off. Jaune smiled and was about to go to his room, until he heard his mother shouting.
"Absolutely not!"
The teen blinked, caught off-guard by his mother's tone. Apart from being on camera for her sh, he's never really heard her be angry. She was always mellow, nice and polite, so why would she be mad? Jaune did his absolute best to remain quiet as he sneaked to the kitchen. He hid behind the wall and peaked into the room to see that Jeanne was talking to Dante. He pushed down his surprise and listened in on their conversation.
Dante sighed and looked at his sister in-law. "Jeanne…" he started. "Please understand. Jaune needs to come with me on this mission. Trust me, he's gonna be fine. Besides, Trish and Lady are gonna be coming with us."
"Then why do you need to drag my son along with? The three of you are enough to do whatever this mission entails. He may be his own person, but I am still his mother. And it's our duty to protect our children and make sure they're safe. I know first-hand of the dangers of that island, because I used to live there. So give me one good reason why I should let Jaune join you?"
The Son of Sparda uncrossed his arms and didn't even hesitate on his answer. "Because we found it, Jeanne. We found his birthright. A memento from father to son. For all intents and purposes, Vergil's legacy."
Jeanne's eyes softened, knowing what exactly Dante was talking about. Vergil would talk about it frequently with fondness. How it had always helped him in his time of need, and how it used to be his partner. "You're talking about the Yamato?"
Dante nodded. "Yeah. When me and Lady were first scoping out the island, I felt its presence calling out to me. At first, I didn't notice it, because the pulse was weak, but Rebellion managed to pick it up and tell me."
Said sword spoke up. "I have no doubts. It was, indeed, my older sister. Her separation from her master has rendered her weak. She's in desperate need of someone that can help her. There's no doubt that Jaune is that someone."
The Arc matriarch didn't respond and instead sat down, looking contemplatively. The half-devil then proceeded.
"Look, I know that you worry about the kid, but sooner or later, he's gonna have to leave the nest. But that doesn't mean he can't come back. He's of Sparda, so trust me on this. He'll be completely fine. I need to know how far he's come. And if things get rough, I'll pull him out."
The nephilim sighed deeply, yet a smile encompassed her face. "You Sparda men really are hard-headed and stubborn. I guess it's a family trait. Alright, I'll let him come with. But please, look after him."
"You have my word."
It was at this moment that Jaune decided to walk in, acting like he didn't hear anything from them. "Hey, mom. I'm back." He looked at his uncle then feigned surprise. "Uncle Dante? What are you doing here? Do you need me for something?"
"As a matter of fact, I do." He took a sip from the teacup in front of him before standing up. "You up for a little camping trip, kid?"
Jaune quirked an eyebrow as he sat down next to his mom. "Well, that depends, where are we camping?"
"Well you tell me - Have you ever heard of Fortuna?"
The Next Day - Bullhead Air Docks
"Got everything you need?" asked Dante
Jaune simply nodded as he secured his bag and slung it over his shoulder. It was early in the morning. He and Dante were about to head off to Fortuna via Bullhead. Jeanne was seeing them off, with Ren and Nora by her side
The blonde nephilim hugged her son and planted a kiss goodbye on his forehead. "Stay safe, okay? Be sure to follow what your uncle tells you. And most importantly, have fun."
Jaune smiled and hugged back. "Don't worry, mom. I'll be careful."
While mother and son chatted, Dante turned to Ren and placed a hand over his shoulders. "I'm sorry to leave all of a sudden. We'll probably be gone for a few months. I'd take you with us, but-"
Ren smiled in assurance. "It's fine, father. You know how I feel about fighting, and Nora does love to go overboard."
The Arc Scion faced his adopted cousin and stretched out his fist. He smiled and bumped it with his own
"And don't worry, Jaune I'll be sure to take care of Fenrir while you're away."
"You better!"
Having said their goodbyes, uncle and nephew prepared to leave, until-
"Jaune! "
The blond turned his head and saw Pyrrha standing there, looking sad with her hands behind her back. She took a few steps forward until she was face-to-face with her first friend.
"You could've told me you were going away. I thought there'd be no secrets between us?"
Jaune flinched and looked apologetic. "Sorry, Pyr. I didn't get the time to tell you last night, I had to pack up. Me and Uncle Dante are going on a little trip. We'll be gone for a few months, I'm afraid."
"I see..." sadly replied the redhead. She showed off what she was hiding and gave it to Jaune. It was a small box wrapped with a red ribbon. "Here. It's a little gift that I bought for you. I guess it can be something to remember me by."
Jaune accepted the gift and looked touch. He put in his bag and enveloped the redhead in a tight hug. "Thanks. I'll be sure to bring you back a souvenir when we get home."
Pyrrha smiled, wanting to enjoy the moment forever. Unfortunately, it didn't. Trish had to break it as she popped out of the Bullhead they were gonna board.
"Hey, come on and pick up the pace! We're burning daylight!"
The two were miffed and broke away from the embrace. Jaune closed his eyes and sighed. He took a few steps back and smiled sadly at his first friend, bidding her goodbye.
"See you later, Pyr."
He and Dante entered the aircraft, waving goodbye to their friends and family as Bullhead closed off its hatch. Jeanne, Ren, Nora and Pyrrha all waved back as it ascended into the air and took off, bidding them good luck on their journey.
If you got any questions, feel free to leave them in the reviews and I'll try my best to answer them.
Thanks for reading.