Beta: ShadowMeister234
Jaune's anger had long since faded. Beacon and Vale almost felt like a distant dream even though it only happened a few days ago. The city itself was in a stable, albeit tense, situation. The council was demanding explanations and there was plenty of blame being passed around to anyone and everyone. Every news channel on remnant was covering the events with new casualties and damage reports being released by the hour. One interesting bit of information that had come to light was that during the chaos Roman Torchwick had escaped his confinement only to be eaten alive by a Grimm during his escape attempt. It would have made Jaune smile if he wasn't positive that Roman was alive and well somewhere. He'd stake everything he owned on it.
Still, the chaos of the big city was nothing more than slight rumblings this far out. The peaceful and purposely long walk back to his hometown had done Jaune some good. It almost made him want to turn back and apologize to Emerald, but well what would be the point? Even if he could find her it would be the same conversation. Sure, emotions wouldn't be running so high, but he hadn't changed his mind to return home and he doubted Emerald had changed her opinion either. Maybe sometime in the future, he'd try to reach out, but for now, if she wanted to find him, she knew where he'd be.
Jaune didn't really know what he was going to do when he got home, but he had better figure it out soon since he could see the town walls. The guards at the gate eyed him suspiciously as he approached. "Name and business," one said in a gruff voice that was probably supposed to be threatening.
Jaune rose one eyebrow. "Really? It's Jaune. Jaune Arc. I've not been gone that long." Anvil Creek wasn't so small that everyone knew everyone by name, but news and jokes about the only boy among seven sisters had spread to all corners of the town a long time ago.
The guard leaned in closer like he was examining Jaune's features. "I'll be damned," he laughed. "It really is you. Welcome back, tell your pa I said hi."
"Will do," Jaune mumbled as he passed the now more jubilant guards.
Anvil Creek hadn't changed at all in the months Jaune had been gone. Almost the entire population was out in the streets either shopping or playing around. People were swimming in the waterway that the town was named after, and the smell of flowers and sizzling meat from the open marketplace filled the air.
Jaune forgot how much he missed these smells and sights. Sure, he enjoyed Vale, especially since he got upgraded to Whitley's penthouse, but Vale had just felt tighter and dirtier than what he was used to. Here in the open air, he felt like he was truly home.
He was tempted to re-explore his hometown for a bit, but delaying going back home to see his family wouldn't be good for anyone, him most of all. Luckily, his house was but a short walk away since it was one of the few residential homes close to the walls. One of the perks of having a Huntsmen father was being confident enough to place himself on the frontlines for any Grimm attack. Not that Anvil had ever had any major Grimm attack. Not since Jaune was born at least, but it still made people nervous.
Another benefit of living closer to the wall was that there was more room to build for a cheaper cost. The Arc family house wasn't a mansion by any means, but having eight children kind of necessitated it being bigger than average. It was three stories high, rising above the actual wall that was supposed to protect it, and made mostly out of fine wood. Honestly, it looked like a log cabin straight from the cover of one of Vale's Frontier Living magazines, but to Jaune, it had always just been home.
He knocked on the front door and used his key to get in when no one answered. The house was quiet which was very unusual. His family must have been out at the moment, or at least most of them because Jaune could see light shining through the doorway to his dad's office. The man of the house was in, and Jaune couldn't decide if that was a good thing or not. On one hand, only him being here gave Jaune the chance to talk one-on-one in the way he definitely needed to. On the other, Jaune had been hoping the chaos of his mom and sisters welcoming him back would shield him from the unpleasant talk his dad would certainly give him on running away and stealing Crocea Mors. The thought of avoiding his dad and hiding out to surprise the girls when they came back did come to mind, but he shook it off. That would be cowardly and Jaune desperately didn't want his dad to see him as a coward.
Jaune knocked on the office, and was offered an uninterested, "Come in."
The office was as messy as ever with maps and documents hung on every wall and stacked up on the floor. The desk was in even worse shape with two computer monitors nearly buried under a pile of printouts, a CCT transmitter hanging precariously off one side, and a small holoprojector shoved between. There was barely any room for his dad's single mug of coffee and even now he was scribbling on a notepad in front of him, not even taking the time to look up.
The office had been the one place all the Arc siblings had been barred from entering as children which had led to every single one of them being scolded at least once for doing just that.
Jaune smiled as he reminisced, and that gave him the courage to speak up. "Hi, dad."
The scratching of pen on paper came to an abrupt halt as Bowen Arc gazed upwards seeing not one of his daughters, as he had probably expected, but to see his only son. "You're back," he said with little emotion.
"I am." Jaune shrugged, feeling awkward. Jaune loved his dad, but even at the best of times talking to the man in his office had always just felt uncomfortable no matter what it was about. It was a feeling he knew his sisters shared.
Without another word, his dad rose from the spot he had probably been in all day and approached him. The hug that followed was both shocking and yet perfectly expected as Jaune wrapped his arms around his dad.
"Welcome home."
"It's good to be back." It was a bit strange. Jaune seemed to remember his dad being so much taller than him, but they were basically the same height. Jaune was pretty sure he hadn't grown all that much in his time away. Was his dad slouching?
Actually, the opposite was true. Jaune was the one standing up straight when he barely did before.
The two males of the Arc house separated, both smiling like idiots. "You look good," his dad complimented as he looked over Jaune's new getup, or at least new to him. Jaune hadn't exactly been one to wear dress shirts and slacks before, but ever since Whitley gave him a wardrobe redesign it had become a habit.
"Thanks, you do too."
Bowen laughed as he returned to his seat. "Don't try to humor me. I know I look like a cave dweller."
Jaune hadn't wanted to bring any attention to it, but there was no better way to put it. His dad looked rough: dark eyes, facial hair that hadn't seen a razor for at least three days, forehead creases, and an odor that wasn't terrible but a bit on the unpleasant side. "You've been busy, haven't you?"
"More than ever. That crisis in Vale has stirred up Grimm everywhere and there aren't enough people to deal with it all. Speaking of Vale, your mother's been worried sick about you ever since the news broke, especially when you didn't call to let us know you were okay."
Jaune cringed under his dad's stare. "I wanted my visit to be a surprise."
"No, a surprise visit is for the holidays. An unannounced visit at this time can only mean one thing." Bowen folded his arms. "You were involved somehow, weren't you?"
Jaune sighed. The pleasantries were over now. The conversation Jaune had been dreading had begun. "Not directly, but I wasn't exactly just a bystander."
"I'm assuming it didn't end very well."
"It did not."
"Would you like to talk about it?"
"Not really." How would he even begin to explain what happened? It would mean telling his dad everything which meant telling him about the unknown world which was completely unacceptable. The last thing he wanted to do was get his family curious about the exact thing he wanted to put behind him.
"I see. I won't press you on it if you really don't want to talk about it, but I do need you to answer a few questions. One, did you kill anyone?"
"No." At least no humans or faunus.
"Two, is there anyone after you that might come looking for you here? That includes the government."
Jaune thought of Emerald. "Nobody dangerous."
His dad drummed his fingers. "Three, and this is the most important, did you get anyone pregnant?"
Jaune's face turned a bright red. "Of course not," he sputtered, "why would you even say that?" What was this? Jaune had been expecting a one-sided chew-out not a soft-spoken interrogation.
His dad just chuckled. "Good, I still would have accepted and protected you even if you were a murderer or made some dangerous enemies, but I would have flayed you alive if you got some girl pregnant and ran away from it."
"I would never!"
"I didn't think so, but the world is full of temptations and you already gave into one when you ran away from home."
Jaune hung his head in shame. "I'm sorry about that, and I'm also sorry for taking this." He held out Crocea Mors, now disconnected from the Apeiron, to return to his dad.
His dad eyed it like it was a foreign object instead of the sword he had wielded for almost his entire life. "Keep it. It's yours now. Don't worry about me. I already got a replacement."
Jaune's mouth widened. "But isn't this an important family heirloom? You should have it back."
"What you're holding is a sword. Nothing more and nothing less. If you don't think you'll need it anymore then hang it up in your room as a decoration or even sell it. I don't care. As I said, it's yours now."
"Aren't you angry that I stole it from you?"
"I actually would have been angrier if you hadn't taken it. You were trying to get into Beacon. If you had tried to do that without even a weapon then your incompetence would have been boarding on suicidal. I probably would have chased after you if you hadn't shown even that little bit of critical thinking."
Jaune lowered the sword back down to his hip. "And why didn't you come after me?" It was something he had wondered about since his first night away from home.
His dad hummed, seeming to debate if he should answer at all. "Because you are definitely my son. Just as stubborn as I was at that age, thinking adventure and danger is the only way to truly live. I tried to raise you to not be like that, but I guess it's just in our blood. When you ran away, I knew there wasn't any point in stopping you. You'd just have to figure out what the world was really like on your own. The same way I did."
At that moment, Jaune heard the front door of the house open to the voices of several girls filling the Arc house with its normal noisy chatter. His dad smiled.
"Looks like the girls are back from their shopping trip. We can talk more later if you want, but for now, you better get out there to suck up to your mother and dote on your sisters. They'll give you hell if you don't."
As if they wouldn't give him hell if he did, but Jaune got the meaning. Any delay to greet his sisters would cost him dearly.
He left his dad's office to see a pack of blonde-haired women in the foyer shuffling with their shoes. The oldest of them heard the office door open and turned to face him. "Oh honey, finally decide to crawl out of ther—Jaune!"
His mom's shout alerted the rest of the pack and soon Jaune was surrounded by his sisters tugging and pulling on him like he was some new toy instead of their brother.
"Holy shit, Jaune! What happened to you? You look handsome now."
"Minty, language!"
"Where have you been?"
"What have you been doing?"
"Did dad yell at you?"
Jaune didn't answer a single thing, but the questions just kept coming as his sisters clamored for his attention. Like always he stood there and bared it until his mom convinced his sisters to give him some space which she really shouldn't have had to do considering how much older some of his sisters were compared to him.
Space was a generous term though as his sister still formed a circle around him less than a foot away practically vibrating with anticipation. Seriously, how was Clementine, who had just turned 24, not mortified to be acting just like Mauve, the youngest of them all?
Under normal circumstances, even this corral wouldn't stop them from spitting out questions like they were the very air they needed to breathe, but one look at his mom had convinced all of them that she would be having the first real words, and that was final.
Jaune had felt he had gotten off pretty easy with his dad but he wouldn't get so lucky with his mom. Ranie Arc glared at her son as she tried to find the words that were harsh enough to communicate her immense displeasure, but not so harsh she'd give her daughters reason to gossip. Eventually, she settled with the tried and true, "You have some explaining to do Jaune Miles Arc."
Jaune could have played dumb and asked what she wanted explained, but that would have gotten him killed, so he tried starting with an apology. "I'm sorry."
"A 'sorry' is not going to cut it!" His mom pushed a finger right into his nose. "Do you know how worried I was? Do you know how worried your sisters were?" Behind her back, his four older sisters shook their heads in the negative trying to act like they hadn't cared. "Vale was attacked by Grimm, and you didn't give us a single word. I didn't know if you were dead or hurt. Can you imagine what that feels like?"
"I'm sorry, but I came back as soon as I could. I wasn't trying to leave you in the dark.
"You should have called!" His mom put the back of her hand to her head as if she had just finished running a mile. "You know what, no. I'm done yelling. I'm done trying to pry answers out of you incomprehensible men. I expect a full explanation from you during dinner and I won't accept any excuses. But, for now, I have to actually start making it. Come on, Azura, Lapis, it's your turn to help with the cooking."
"Ugh," the twins groaned. "Why isn't it Jaune?"
"Yeah, he's the one that's been gone."
His mom's eyes narrowed "Because I don't think I can be with your brother much longer without trying to kill him."
Every member of the Arc family took a step back in fear except for Azura and Lapis, who were forced to follow their mother into the kitchen. Their pleading looks might have convinced some that they were heading to their execution.
Jaune wished he could say his room hadn't changed at all. In fact, it had been completely overrun by unfamiliar objects and decorations. Even the color of his bedsheets had been changed to a royal purple. "Where are my comics? Where are my posters? Where are my spare clothes!"
"Relax. Everything was just moved to the attic when Mauve took over." Crystal adjusted her glasses.
"Why didn't anyone stop her?" Jaune complained.
"Why would we? You left without a word of goodbye. As far as we were concerned, your stuff was free for the taking. It didn't take Mauve long at all to claim your room."
Jaune sighed. "She's probably not very happy that I'm back then."
"Actually, I'm probably more frustrated than her. After all, it's my room she'll be moving back into."
He supposed that would be the case. One of the problems with having such a large family was the lack of space even in a larger house. As the only boy, he had been lucky enough to always have his own room, but his sisters had always had to bunk up with each other. With him back, Mauve's only choice was to return to sharing with Crystal since there was no way Clementine or Minty would accept getting a new roommate after they had been gifted their own rooms once Saphron had moved out.
Jaune rubbed his hair. "Sorry about that. Didn't mean for you to lose your personal space."
"You could always run away again. That would fix it."
Jaune brushed some glitter and glue off his desk and set his few belongings on top of it. "Sorry again, but I'm back for the long haul. Also, that was cruel. Did my dear sisters not even care that I was gone?" He looked around his room and at all the things he was going to have to move. "Obviously not if Mauve pounced on my room the moment I was gone."
Crystal squinted behind her glasses and placed both hands on her hips. "Honestly, at first not at all. We thought you'd come crawling back in a few days, but then you didn't. Mom was a wreck until dad convinced her you'd be fine. Said this was just something you had to do." Crystal giggled. "She did not like that reasoning one bit, but by that point, you had started calling and checking in, so we dropped it and everything basically went back to normal, but then the Grimm invaded Vale and the cycle started all over again except worse. The only thing stopping mom from marching off to Vale was dad assuring us that you were okay. Maybe his Huntsmen connections told him. Who knows, but it's thanks to him that mom is only angry with you instead of a complete emotional wreck."
"I'll have to thank him for that. I don't think I would have survived if mom started bawling into my chest about her sweet baby boy." Jaune looked down at his sister in thought. "What about you? Did you cry out for your precious big bro?"
Crystal stepped back aghast. "As if. I didn't even know you were missing until mom told me." Jaune smirked, causing Crystal to blush in embarrassment. "Alright, of course, I was worried. We all were. What did you expect, we're family. Clementine was just as bad as mom. Minty too even if she'll never admit it. They probably still see you as their bumbling baby brother. Not that I can blame them, you weren't exactly equipped to go out on your own."
"Hey! I don't want to hear that from my younger sister."
Crystal rubbed her fingers around the edge of her glasses in the same way she always did when she tried to act superior. "I'll have you know; I've long considered myself more mature than you. Although," she scanned him from top to bottom, "you certainly don't look ill-prepared anymore. Your journey did you some good. Just what did you get up to?"
"Is this why you followed me back to my room? Just so you could interrogate me." Crystal had always been a curious one. While the rest of his sisters only wanted to know because they believed it was their right to pry into every part of his life. Crystal was genuinely curious about his time away. Made only more apparent when he refused to answer and she responded by throwing her arms down, pouting, and dropping the posh know-it-all tone she was so fond of using
"Come on! We share everything with each other."
Jaune hummed, drawing it out, to the absolute fury of his sister. Teasing like this was pretty normal between the two of them. Probably since they were only a year apart from each other, but even if Jaune felt that out of all his sisters he had the closest relationship with Crystal, it didn't mean he was just going to give in and tell her his secrets. Especially with the kind of secrets he was keeping.
"Maybe later." He brushed off. "Your big bro has had a long journey and he's tired."
"Liar!" Crystal stomped her foot causing her blue dress to flutter up her leg. "You just don't want to tell me, but you can't hide anything from me. I'll get you to spill everything." Having laid down her challenge, Crystal stormed out of his room likely off to enlist the help of some of his other sisters.
That was a future Jaune problem, for now, he was hot and sweaty from his walk back to Anvil Creek, so he wanted to take a shower. His room didn't have an attached bathroom so he stepped out into the hall and entered the closest one. Peeling off his shirt, pants and underwear felt like freedom and he took a second to admire himself in the mirror.
He hadn't noticed until now, but his dad and sisters were right. He looked good. Not that he thought he had ever looked bad, but even he could tell that he had lost a lot of the boyish features he had before leaving home. His eyes and face were sharper, his posture was straighter, and his muscles were fuller. Turned out that nonstop action against supernatural creatures was quite the workout. He'd have to make sure he kept in shape while he was back home.
That was enough admiring himself though. He had to get this shower done quickly. It was honestly a miracle it hadn't already been occupied.
Unfortunately, as if the universe decided to play a joke on him, the bathroom door slammed open. "Jaune! What are you doing in here?" Despite her having been the one to walk in on him, Minty looked horrified to see him and used her arms to cover her breasts and crotch even though she was fully dressed in her signature green clothes.
Jaune only had his hands to cover up his shame as he stood completely naked in front of his older sister. "Me! What about you? Haven't you heard of knocking?"
Minty crossed her arms, signaling that her coverup hadn't been serious from the start. "Um, haven't you heard of locking?"
"I can't." Jaune hissed. "The lock is still broken from the last time you broke through thinking the door was stuck, you meathead!"
"Hey, that wasn't my fault. I really had to pee then."
"Would you just get the hell out of here already!"
"Don't yell at me. I can still bend you over my knee and give you a spanking if I have to. Just like when we were kids."
"Ha, if I wasn't naked right now, I'd take you down and give you the same treatment."
Minty smirked and her eyes glowed with a competitive spirit. "Then go ahead and try it. Don't worry about Jaune junior, it isn't anything I haven't seen before." Minty took a fighting stance but quickly lost focus as she noticed some other features of Jaune's body.
It was also at that moment that Jaune realized that he had been so concerned with covering his privates that he neglected to cover the other incriminating parts. He just prayed that Minty would keep it quiet.
"Holy shit! Is that a tattoo and a scar!" She screamed loud enough for the whole house to hear.
That was how Jaune ended up standing in the kitchen, in only his boxers, swarmed by his sisters yet again. Even his dad had left his office to examine him. The man only looked a bit surprised and even slightly amused. His mom, on the other hand, was between the two extremes of fainting from shock and blowing her top off in anger.
His sisters displayed far broader ranges of emotion. Crystal paled and looked a bit sick as she gazed at the scar the binder compass had given him in Cryphilictal. She was probably reconsidering how much she actually wanted to know about his time away. The twins were the complete opposite poking his scar and asking him if it hurt. Then poking it harder when he told them it didn't.
This stand-off probably could have lasted for eternity if Clementine, his oldest sister beside Saphron, didn't step in to take over for mom. "So Jaune," she began softly and slowly like he might get scared and run away if she was too direct, "care to explain how you got those."
Jaune shrugged. "I thought I had till dinner to explain. Plus, I would still really like to take my shower." He shot a glare towards Minty who didn't seem to care in the least.
"True, but I think we would all appreciate an explanation for this new discovery. Just to put our minds at ease."
"Tell us! Tell us!" The twins chanted
Jaune wished he had the time to think up a better justification, something he had been planning to do in the shower, but it wasn't looking like he would be able to escape without giving his sisters what they wanted. "I got the tattoo because I thought it would be cool."
His mom clenched her teeth together. "How are a couple of lines running down your arm supposed to be cool?"
"I think it looks—" Azura started before her twin elbowed her in the side to get her to stop.
His mom looked ready to strangle him, but a hand on her shoulder from his dad did wonders to calm her down. "Just relax dear, I know this week has been stressful, but Jaune getting a tattoo isn't the end of the world. Nor is it the first time one of our children has inked their skin without our knowledge." He shot a knowing glance to Clementine who quickly looked away, mortified. The calm and reasonable sister now, but apparently, she had been quite the rebel when she was a teenager. To this day, Jaune had never seen the alleged tattoo nor knew what or where it was. "Besides, I'm much more worried about that scar. You don't get something like that from a slight mishap."
All eyes were on Jaune, and his scar was a lot harder to explain away. "I was caught up in a dust explosion," he tried.
There were several gasps quickly followed by many overlapping questions. "How? Where? When?"
"It was at the Vale docks." Jaune came up with answers as he went. "I took a job there when I got rejected from Beacon. About a month ago I was moving a heavy pallet and accidentally knocked over a barrel of dust causing it to explode."
"Why didn't you call and tell?" His mom demanded.
"I didn't want to worry you."
"Who paid for your hospital stay?" Clementine asked.
"The company did."
"And what company is that? We should sue them," Lapis suggested.
"Don't worry about it. They took good care of me."
From the looks he was getting, Jaune calculated that Mauve was the only one that had any belief in his story, but even that was dwindling as she took cues from her older sisters. It was a losing battle, but it was too late to back down. He kept digging himself deeper into a more and more ridiculous story as the questions kept coming. He was even caught in a couple of contradictions, but no matter how clear it became he was lying, he pressed forward until his family finally got the message that he wasn't going to give in.
There was more than a bit of grumbling from his sisters. He didn't think he had ever stood up to all of them at once like this before and it was clear that some, mainly Azura and Lapis, were upset that their brother wasn't going to be pushed around so easily anymore.
"If that's over with. I'm going to take a shower. Hopefully without any interruptions this time." He waited to see if anyone would challenge him. His mom really looked like she wanted to, but under dad's gaze, she didn't try.
Jaune smiled and left with a satisfied nod.
As the days turned into weeks Jaune fell into a familiar routine. His sisters, mostly Crystal, still probed for information occasionally, but for the most part, it was like he had never left. Well, not exactly. Before, he had mostly lazed around all day, and anytime someone asked something of him it was met with groans and protests. He couldn't imagine going back to that kind of attitude now. He went to the gym with Minty. He watched movies with Azura and Lapis. He helped Mauve with homework, and he cooked with his mom. It was the perfect way to forget about being a caretaker and the unknown world, but also just felt good to help out and be with his family.
At the moment, he was out with the twins. Apparently, a new shipment of products had arrived at their favorite clothing store. Jaune wasn't sure why it mattered since the two of them had worn the same matching style pretty much since they were born. Jaune had heard that most twins try to differentiate themselves from each other, but that wasn't the case for Azura and Lapis. They seemed determined to make sure as many people as possible mixed them up. They did everything together on top of having the same clothes, same hair, and same personality. If Jaune was tired enough even he would screw up who was who.
"Are we there yet," the youngest member of their family said as she skipped ahead. Mauve wasn't all that interested in new clothes, but she had wanted to get out of the house. It was pretty much for that reason that Jaune had come along as well. His dad had told him to look after her since obviously the twins couldn't be trusted to do it.
"He has that look again," Azura said from his left.
"He's thinking bad about us again," Lapis said from his right.
"Leave my private thoughts out of this," Jaune muttered.
They turned the street corner and the storefront came into view along with the small crowd in front. "Ugh, there's a line. You've got to be kidding me," Lapis groaned.
She shouldn't have been surprised. A new shipment of pretty much anything was an event in a small town like Anvil Creek, and since the stores around her weren't that big to begin with, they usually had to limit how many people could enter at once. Jaune remembered doing the same thing when new video games were brought in from Vale.
Despite Lapis' grumbling, the four of them got in line and waited for it to move. Though after 20 minutes of waiting, Jaune had to admit it was slow going. With games, you went in, found what you wanted, and left, so the lines moved quickly. He supposed with clothes people had to take the time to match outfits and change into them to see if they fit. It caused the line to move agonizingly slow which would have been fine for him and the twins, even if they were yelling at each other about how they should have left earlier, but Mauve was going to be an issue. She had left the house because she wanted to have fun outside, and waiting in line was not her idea of that. With all the fidgeting she was doing, Jaune knew she wouldn't last much longer before becoming a flight risk.
There wasn't anything nearby to entertain her, so even leaving Lapis and Azura behind to go somewhere else with Mauve wouldn't help him. He had to get creative. "Mauve, want to see a magic trick?" The jittering stopped as her eyes focused on him. He bent down to his knee and held out his arm. "Watch carefully now."
Jaune pushed aura to his arm and it started to glow a soft gold. Mauve looked at it for maybe a second before rolling her eyes and puffing her cheeks. "That's just your aura. Dad can do it too."
Jaune chuckled awkwardly realizing he hadn't been the first Arc to think that aura would be a simple way to entertain a child. Even using his semblance to make his arm glow brighter didn't interest her. Fine, she wanted magic. He'd show her magic.
"Alright, you've already seen that trick, but I can guarantee dad can't do this." Mauve was barely paying attention, too busy plotting her escape route, but that all changed when Jaune opened his hand and a book, specifically his journal, appeared in his grasp. Mauve went wide-eyed and quickly reached to touch it only for Jaune to close the book causing it to vanish. Now he really had her attention.
"How did you do that!" Mauve's considerable volume attracted the attention of some of the other people in line, but they quickly went back to business when they saw it was just a kid.
"I already told you. It's magic." Perhaps this wasn't the best reason to use his magic, but these were trying times.
"Do it again," Mauve demanded.
Jaune obliged and summoned his journal probably a dozen more times while Mauve tried desperately to figure out the trick that wasn't there. Her frustration grew with every failed deduction, but Mauve was as stubborn as they came. She wouldn't give up easily.
The line continued to move at a snail's pace forcing Jaune to summon it over and over again until he eventually attracted the attention of the twins.
"How are you doing that?"
"Yeah, what the hell."
They said from over his shoulders.
Jaune unsummoned his journal for the last time. "Wouldn't you like to know?" he teased. Doing magic in front of a twelve-year-old was one thing, but Azura and Lapis would realize that his magic trick was beyond reason.
"Again," Mauve demanded regardless.
Jaune rubbed Mauve's hair which she immediately backed away from. "Sorry, but I'm beat. Doing that takes a lot out of me. How about I let you sit on my shoulders instead."
Mauve pouted, definitely wanting him to summon his journal perhaps a few thousand more times, but she accepted his offer and climbed onto his shoulders. Mauve was short even for a girl her age, so she always enjoyed the rare chance of being able to see over everyone else's heads. It wouldn't distract her for long, but they were almost to the front of the line.
"You spoil her too much."
"I don't want to hear it. I did this for the both of you too, even though you're older." That shut the twins up and it looked like they might have a nice peaceful rest of their wait.
Sadly, this world was not made to cut Jaune Arc a break.
"Hey Lapis, how's it going?" A male voice spoke from way too close. The twins didn't groan, but their disgusted looks said enough about what they thought about the new company.
"I'm Azura," Azura said to the guy wearing ripped jeans and a black tank top.
Kelvin, for Jaune remembered his school bully very well, didn't seem to care that he mixed up the twins. He didn't even change course and talk to Lapis. He just kept going with Azura.
"You shopping for clothes? How about I join you, baby. I can help you pick out some outfits and tell you how good you look." He tried to put his arm around Azura's shoulders, but she quickly sidestepped it.
"Sorry, but I don't need your opinion on what I look good in. I already know."
Kelvin scoffed and turned his attention to Lapis. "What about you? Want to leave your crabby sister behind and hang out with me?"
Lapis stuck out her tongue. Like a child. Seriously, she didn't have to sink to his level.
Having been rejected for the second time, Kelvin's eyes focused on the last Arc member standing in front of him. "Well, whatcha know. Look who's back." He acted as if he had just noticed Jaune which would have been impossible as he was: one, standing between the twins; two, taller than anyone else there, and three, carrying a blonde girl on his shoulders. Overall, he'd say he was very noticeable. Did Kelvin do it just to get under his skin? That felt like the case, and it wouldn't be out of character for him.
"How's the real bitch of the Arc family doing?"
Mauve gasped and the twins hissed, but Jaune barely reacted. As a child, and even more recently, Jaune had been intimidated by Kelvin and always dreaded having to interact with him, but now this schoolyard bullying just felt strange. It made him wonder why he had been so affected by it before.
The twins must have taken his silence as a plea for help and stepped between him and Kelvin trying to protect him as they had done so many times before in this exact situation. They always did step up when it counted.
Kelvin took it in strides. "Ah, so you were just nervous to approach me. Well, don't worry. I can be gentle and there's enough of me to go around. How about we ditch the real bitch and head back to my place. Just the three of us."
Lapis responded with a very audible gagging noise. "Not even in your deepest fantasies."
"Exactly, just piss off already."
"Come on. Don't be like that. We used to have so much fun together." Kelvin reached out toward Azura possibly to try and cop a feel before Azura slapped his hand away. That said, it was Azura who came away from the exchange rubbing her wrist in discomfort. Kelvin had used his aura to defend.
Jaune could feel Mauve's shaking nerves through his shoulders. Things had gotten a lot more serious now that Kelvin was throwing his weight around. In the past, this would have been enough for the twins to send him scurrying home while they dealt with Kelvin's unreasonable demands, but things had changed. Now it was his turn to protect them
He walked forward so it was him between Kelvin and the twins. Mauve pulled on his hair and struggled on top of his shoulder to try and get him to turn back, but he continued with a firm grasp on her legs to keep her from falling off.
Kelvin scoffed. "You serious? Are you the nanny now? How about you run along and leave your sisters with a man who can actually take care of them. In all the right ways."
Jaune didn't think Kelvin was really interested in his he just wanted them for the bragging rights of having gotten together with twins, or maybe he was just that immature. As far back as Jaune could remember, Kelvin had always had it out for the Arc family, and as bad as Jaune had it, the twins were the ones that had to share a grade with him. He asked Saphron about it once and she said he was just jealous of them since his dad was also a Huntsmen but was forced into early retirement because of an injury.
Whatever Kelvin's problem was, Jaune was done letting him harass Azura and Lapis. "Take a hint. They're not interested."
"Are you seriously trying to threaten me? That's hilarious. Do you think that you're a big shot now just because you spent some time in the city? I went to Signal, you know."
"But I heard you didn't make it very far. Were you too afraid of going against people who can fight back?"
Kelvin's breath hitched and his eyes narrowed dangerously. "Go to hell!" His balled-up fist was launched.
Jaune was shocked.
Not because he hadn't been prepared for it. He realized what was happening the moment Kelvin adjusted his stance. The problem was the attack itself.
It. Was. So. Slow.
Jaune honestly thought he would have enough time to lower Mauve from his shoulders before Kelvin's punch reached him. It was hardly necessary though. Jaune brought his own arm up and went for a counterpunch. He didn't feel any faster than usual, in fact, having to adjust for Mauve weighing him down made him a bit slower. Still, Jaune's punch may as well have been traveling at the speed of sound compared to Kelvin.
Jaune struck him right in the face and the horrific sound of his nose crunching under the impact accompanied Kelvin as he fell on his ass. For a moment Kelvin just sat there, stunned. Then the pain caught up to him and he howled like a banshee as he held his bleeding and almost certainly broken nose. He hadn't used aura to defend it either not having the time or control to bring it to his face.
People were starting to stare as Kelvin made quite the scene. He may have been yelling profanity or threats but it was hard to tell underneath the broken sobs, but one didn't need to understand the words to know they were filled with hate and all directed at Jaune.
Lapis tugged on his sleeve. "We should go."
Jaune let Lapis drag him away. While Jaune had only acted in self-defense, it would be rather difficult to explain that to the growing crowd especially with the outcome so vastly in his favor.
"Sorry for ruining your shopping trip."
Azura slapped his back. "Don't be. Seeing Kelvin knocked flat was better than any clothes we could have gotten. When did you get so strong?"
Strong? Jaune didn't think he was all that strong, especially without his magic. Yang and Emerald were leagues ahead of him, and every time he had to fight a creature of the unknown world, it felt like he only survived by the skin of his teeth. He hadn't even meant to hurt Kelvin as bad as he did. Maybe that's where he had gone wrong. He was comparing himself to Huntresses and literal monsters. The wall had always been so high that he didn't realize how many rungs he had climbed.
Dear Brothers, had he been as slow as Kelvin when Emerald had trained him? How did she ever put up with it?
That evening at dinner, Mauve regurgitated the epic battle between Jaune and Kelvin in all its glorious detail, not picking up that telling their family that Jaune casually broke the nose of another town resident wasn't exactly presenting him in a good light. Luckily, no one said too much about it. He was sure that all his sisters were secretly pleased with the event, but didn't dare say so in front of mom. Mauve had no such control, chatting the whole night about how cool and heroic he was. Something she had never done before.
But, Jaune was sure that it was Mauve's praise that led directly to the events that following morning. It started when his dad shook him awake before the sun had even risen. "Grab your sword. We're going out for a bit."
So, with sword in hand, Jaune found himself trekking to the nearby woodlands while the grass was still wet with dew. "What are we doing out here?" He already knew the answer, but he asked his dad anyway.
Bowen Arc's voice was rough and serious. "The Grimm have become agitated. Could be anything. Maybe someone in town got their heart broken, or one too many people stubbed their toe. Regardless, we're going to thin them out."
Not so long ago Jaune would have been thrilled for his dad to take him on a hunt, but now it felt like a slap in the face. "Okay, but why am I here? I'm not a Huntsmen."
"Maybe not, but we both know that you didn't get that scar from a dock accident, and you didn't luck into sending Light's boy to the hospital. You have combat experience, and a fair bit of it I reckon."
"Even if you're right. That doesn't mean I know how to fight Grimm."
"I may be mistaken, but if I am and you don't think you can handle this then feel free to head back home. I won't think any less of you."
Jaune didn't head back, of course, just as his dad knew he wouldn't, and when the first Grimm appeared, an Ursa Major of all things, his dad didn't even try to look concerned for his son. He didn't try to help either as Jaune ducked under one arm, thrust his sword into the creature's chest, avoided another claw, then sliced open the neck.
"Impressive," his dad whistled.
They continued their hunt in silence, sharing the work this time until the sun was high in the sky. Grimm went down with practiced efficiency, and all the while his dad treated him like he was a proper Huntsmen. No comment on his fighting style. No suggestion or advice. It was like they were partners.
Jaune couldn't take it anymore. He came to an abrupt halt. "Why are you doing this?" he growled.
His dad rose an eyebrow. "It's to protect the town."
"Not that!" Jaune couldn't remember the last time he yelled at his dad. "Why did you bring me with you? All those times I asked you for training you told me no. When I said I wanted to be a Huntsmen you told me I wasn't ready or I had decided too late. So why now are you acting like it's a given that I can do this? Yes, things happened while I was away, but I didn't grow so strong that you couldn't have trained me to this level. Did you just not have faith in me? Did you just not care?" Jaune didn't want to admit it but he was sure he was crying. "You were never going to teach me how to be a Huntsmen no matter how much I begged, were you?"
His dad looked to the sky and exhaled like a man who had just finished off a cigarette. "Do you know what the worst day of my life was?"
"The day you and mom found out you were having twins as your fourth and fifth child."
Bowen chuckled. "No, it was the day I found out that I could save many more people sitting at a desk looking over maps, monitoring Grimm activity, checking weather patterns, and relaying messages, than I ever could being out in the field slaying Grimm. I'm little more than a middle manager, yet nearly every Huntsmen and Huntress on this side of the continent relies on my information.
"I didn't train you not because I didn't believe in you, but because I thought you'd take to it too well. That you'd be addicted to the thrill and go out to be the hero; never stopping to consider your own safety. It's what I used to do and what your grandfather did before getting himself killed. I was desperate to stop you and your sisters from ending up as another tragic tale in the Arc family history book, but the day you ran away I knew I failed just as I knew I couldn't stop you. It broke my heart."
His dad sighed. He sounded exhausted. "I don't know exactly what happened to you that made you come back home, but hearing the news from Vale, I can make a pretty good guess. I just want you to know that no matter what I'm proud of you. Even if you think you completely failed, you came back with the most precious gift of all: your life, and you also recognized that this world isn't like a fairy tale. Believing in yourself and trying your hardest isn't going to bring a happy end. The truth is that it's much better to take things nice and slow."
Jaune didn't know what to say. He had always figured his dad had a reason for never wanting to train him, and it was basically the reason Jaune had always suspected but hearing his dad admit to it felt different. He wanted to be angry for never getting this explanation before. He wanted to be happy that his dad did believe in him. He wanted to be sad that he went against his dad's wishes. He wanted to be glad that things hadn't ended for the worst.
In the end, he settled for a pat on the shoulder. A sign of understanding. "Don't worry dad. I'm done. I'll take things slow."
His dad returned the shoulder pat. "I'm glad. You've grown up to be a fine young man."
A single drop of rain fell between them. They looked up at the dark clouds that had appeared overhead.
"That's strange. There definitely wasn't supposed to be any rain today. Let's head back home. I need to check if my forecast is off or maybe I just missed something."
By the time they got back, it was pouring. The rain clouds had moved in swiftly covering the sun and sky. Jaune was huddled on the couch, wrapped in a blanket, looking out the window as the downpour smacked against the glass.
Jaune couldn't stop staring at it. It was just a rainstorm like any other. Sure, it had appeared suddenly and against predictions, but weather was just weird sometimes. Still, Jaune couldn't shake the feeling that this was wrong. Unnatural even. It made the hair on his legs stand up on ends.
He was just being paranoid. Seeing the unknown world where it wasn't. Doing magic for Mauve and the talk with his dad had gotten him all riled up. Put him back in the caretaker mindset. He needed to relax and take in the rain for what it was.
Just rain and nothing else.
The doorbell rang.
One of his sisters answered it.
"Jaune! Someone is here to see you."
Jaune's heart leaped to his throat. It couldn't be Emerald. Could it?
It was not.
Jaune had never seen this person before.
"Good day, Mister Arc," the man greeted.
He carried an umbrella.
He had been prepared for the rain.
"Allow me to introduce myself. I am Arthur Watts. Queen Salem's personal caretaker."
Excerpt from the book
Good versus evil. Light verse dark. It's a tale as old as time. Of course, a lot of that is a matter of perspective.
Ozma and Salem have been continuing their lover's spat for just as long. Their fits of passion have made their way into many of our fairy tales devoid of their nuances and all those sacrificed on the altar of their pride.
But what use are those fairy tales in our modern days? Why keep it a secret? Why not make it history? For Ozma the answer is clear. He wishes to avoid panic. Fear that the populous sick of the way the world is will join her cause in mass, or maybe that they'll just crunch the numbers and realize that Salem's victory is the far more likely outcome. After all, she is immortal in body and mind. If she just keeps throwing herself into the slaughter; eventually, she'd come out on top.
So why doesn't she? Why does she choose to keep herself hidden as well? It's actually the same reason as her ex-husband. She fears a panic. That should her existence become known the populace will unite and fight against her.
So here the rest of us sit. Reading fairy tales while two elders stand around in fear, doing nothing but longing for the good ole days.
An: Since I know people will request it, here are the ages of the Arc sisters along with their positions in the Arc family photo we saw at Saphron's house in the show.
Saphron: age 26, wearing the red shirt behind the couch. (I know there's some disagreement if she's that sister or the one in the orange shirt hanging upside down, but I went with this choice. It doesn't really affect anything.)
Clementine: age 24, orange shirt hanging upside down.
Minty: age 20, green shirt and vest on right side of the couch.
Azura and Lapis: twins age 19, Azura is far left while Lapis is the one behind the couch but honestly they are interchangeable.
Jaune: age 17
Crystal: age 16, blue dress and glasses in front of the couch.
Mauve: age 12, purple dress sitting on top of the couch
I also struggled to think up names for Jaune's parents. In the end, I went for Ranie for his mom and Bowen for his dad. They don't fit the color naming rule at all, but their names do combine to make a rainbow (almost).
Very clever, I know. I'll take my award now.