The Arcs stared at the matriarch of their family with wide eyes, unable to believe what they were seeing.

"What? You two are acting like you've seen a ghost. Well, I am a spirit, so I technically am a-"

"MOM," Argent cried as he jumped onto his mother's back, hugging her while crying happily.

"D'ooh, hey now! Whoa!" Nimueh began to laugh after Jaune happily picked up her bridal style, the beauty still hugging her son as Jaune happily spun them around, the family laughing before Jaune tripped and fell onto his bed, the reunited Arcs laughing at the experience.

"Wow. If this is your reaction to me being gone for a while, maybe I should get stuck into the sword more often." Nimueh looked down when she felt Argent tighten his hug.

"Please don't say that, mom."

"Not even as a joke," Jaune said. "We thought we wouldn't see you again."

Nimueh snickered. "Seriously? Jaune, honey, did you forget that Argent has just as much Aura as you do? He's going to have even more when he goes up. He could have easily awakened me with that insane Aura pool of his."

Jaune then gently held Nimueh's hand, their fingers intertwining. "Still, we missed you."

"Again, it hasn't even been a day..." Nimueh sighed as she rolled to one side, her head resting on Jaune's bicep, hugging Argent close to her before brushing her fingers through Jaune's hair. "Still, a lot happened in that day, didn't it?"

Jaune looked away with a sigh. "Yeah."

Nimueh placed her hand on his cheek, the two looking into the other's eyes. "I suck as a partner."

"Huh?"

"If I was a better one... I wouldn't have let this happen. You wouldn't have had to go through this."

"Nimueh, don't you dare blame yourself. I was the one who messed up. After all, I didn't fuel you with Aura to give you form during the fight, did I?"

"No, you did not," she said as she flicked Jaune's forehead, her favorite way to reprimand him. She then smiled. "Still, I'm glad you're alright."

"I'm glad I'm still technically human." Jaune held up the hand Nimueh was lying near, making it glow with his Semblance. "The fact that I still have my Aura, that I can still use my Semblance, is proof to me that I'm still somewhat human. Not a Grimm like Salem."

"Well, Salem was never technically fully a Grimm. She was a First Wave human. You are a Second Wave human. Who knows what this new body could do for you?"

"A Beowolf bowed to him on the drive over here," Argent pipped up when he got his face out of his mother's breasts.

"Mm, that's too be expected. You are a bit like Salem now."

"A bit?"

"Jaune, you're nowhere NEAR as dark as she was. She spewed negativity, which is why the Grimm so easily and loyally followed her. She had a miserably life that went through hellish torture, thanks in part to my own creators. That darkness is what made her the Queen of the Grimm after her dip in the Pools. You don't have that same darkness. You're still a hero."

Jaune stared into Nimueh's eyes before rolling onto his back to look at the ceiling. "A hero, huh?"

"Yup," Nimueh went as she sat up, Argent sliding off of her before he jumped off the bed and onto his own with a bounce. "Careful, Arie."

"Sorry."

"Anyway, Jaune, you're not a dark souled villain like Salem was. You don't want to start a war or kidnap innocents or wish for death. You just want to preserve and even create a greater peace, right?"

"Well, I am the Vale Knight."

"Exactly," she said as she booped Jaune's nose. "That's what makes you different from her. One of many ways. It's also one of many ways why not all Grimm will react like that Beowolf."

"Huh?"

"As you know, not all Grimm are the same. Some are much more powerful and vicious than others. Sensing the darkness in you now, only the scrubs will be loyal to you, like Beowolves or Boarbatusks. Maybe the Ursa if you're lucky. However, there's good in you. Too much for the big guys like Nevermores or Leviathans to be loyal to you for."

"What, so I have to be a bad guy for the big boys to listen to me," Jaune asked with half-closed eyes.

"Not particularly. All the Grimm have an Alpha that they follow. You beat the Alpha, and the Grimm will see you as the Alpha and follow you as loyally as they did Salem."

"Uh-huh. Why do you know this?"

She flicked Jaune, earning an "ow" from him. "I was created by the God of Darkness, idiot. You know, the Brother who created the Creatures of Grimm to begin with," she said playfully.

"Yeah, that makes sense," Jaune said as he rubbed his forehead. "Still, I'm not exactly trying to become the King of the Grimm here. If anything, I want to find a cure to this."

"Would Jinn know," Argent asked. "She knows everything, right?"

"Yeah, but she can only answer three questions every century. It's only been fifteen since Cinder used the last question to screw us over in Atlas," Jaune groaned.

"That's how you met mom, right?"

"Yup. I at least have one thing to be grateful for from that period-colored bitch," Jaune said as he rolled to the side.

"Well, just fuel Jinn like you do me."

Jaune was quiet for a bit before he looked at Nimueh. "Eh?"

"What? You didn't know? Magic and Aura pretty much turbo charges us. You're basically a living battery to the Relics. With that Semblance of yours, you could have Jinn walk around answering questions as freely as you have me walk around kicking ass and being a mom."

Jaune stared at his "wife" before he began to roll forward and fall onto the ground with a heavy thud that made his wife and son wince. "You gotta be kidding. It's that easy?"

"You've been fueling me, who is literally supposed to kill my user, this entire time, and you only NOW figure that out?" Nimueh sighed. "You can be a real dense idiot at times, babe."

Jaune pulled himself onto his bed. "I get reminded of that too often to care. That's it! Let's get some shut eye," Jaune went as he stretched his arm to switch off the lights.

"Ooh, you're already used to one of your body's new features."

"Don't start, Nimueh. Just get some sleep. We'll leave at first light. Still about an hour or so before we reach Ansel," Jaune said as he got under the covers.

"Oh, we're seeing your parents. I love those two," she said with genuine happiness.

"And boy do they love you. Seriously, it's a miracle I was able to drag you away from them last time. They just needed to spend time with their 'beautiful-as-an-angel daughter-in-law'."

Nimueh giggled as she was about to get into Jaune's bed, only to feel her hand grabbed.

"Mom?" She looked at a blushing, embarrassed Argent. "Could we... share a bed?"

Nimueh smiled at Argent before looking at Jaune.

"I don't mind. Kid just got his mom back." Argent looked happy and snuggled up to his mom when she got into the bed, the family falling asleep.


Ruby was tossing and turning in bed, mumbling. Weiss got up with a groan, a few hairs sticking up and bags under her eyes before looking at her wife. She then nudged her. "Ruby? Ruby, you're mumbling."

"Mm. My mm."

"Ruby?"

"Mine."

"Ruby?"

Ruby then shot up. "HE'S MY SON!"

"WHOA," Weiss went before falling out of the bed.

Ruby was panting, sweating heavily before she rubbed her forehead. "By the gods, that sucked."

"You're telling me."

Ruby looked and stiffened when she saw an annoyed Weiss crawl back onto their bed. "Mind explaining what that was about? It's three in the morning."

Ruby laughed nervously. "Um, I, uh, just had a bad dream."

"About Argent," Weiss asked as she crawled into bed."

"What? No. Why would you think that," Ruby asked nervously.

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe it's because you literally screamed 'he's my son'."

"Urk."

Weiss sighed. "Ruby, do you regret leaving him?"

Ruby looked down, a sad look on her face. "Do you... do you think we would have been good parents to him?"

"Ruby, look how well we raised Silber. She's our pride and joy. She's the top of her class, one of the best swordsmen in New Mantle, has passed every ranked test for the military and is basically a shew in for a leadership position when she graduates into the Academy. Of course, we'd be good-"

"But Argent isn't like Silber. When I see Silber, I see my beautiful wife. The woman I married and am happy to be with."

Weiss then got an understanding look. "And when you see Argent?"

Ruby looked at Weiss before looking down. "I see... Jaune. Argent's got my eyes, and Yang is right about him looking like a little me if you actually look, but other than that... he's an Arc. Not a Rose. Not a Schnee. He's an Arc... that I created." Ruby put her hand on her stomach. "I was the one who made him. He grew inside of ME. I felt him kick around me. I could feel him growing bigger and bigger. And all that time, all I could think is... I hope he gets here before you do."

Weiss just listened to Ruby.

Ruby then began to cry. "I'm the worst. I'm a terrible wife and an even worse mother. I'm not a super mom like my mom. I'm like Raven. I ran away because I was scared. I was afraid that you would kick me out. That I would lose my life with you if I brought Argent. I wasn't thinking about him at all. I wasn't thinking about my own son. But he was. Jaune took care of me. Made sure no one knew I was with him as Argent grew inside me. Made sure I was eating healthy for the baby. Made sure I was comfortable. He did everything for the two of us. It was like... like..."

"Like having a husband?"

Ruby looked at Weiss. "Weiss, be honest... did I do even a FRACTION of what Jaune did for me for you?"

Weiss looked into Ruby's eyes sadly. "Ruby... we relied on Klein throughout the entire pregnancy."

That made Ruby cry even more, the woman bawling up. "I... didn't deserve Argent. I don't think I even deserved Jaune at that time. I don't deserve you."

Weiss then hugged Ruby. "That's not for you to decide. You deserve me as much as I deserve you. I love you, Ruby. That's why I married you."

Ruby hugged Weiss back. "I'm... not his mother. I just gave birth to him. I need to realize that."

"But he still loves you."

"As his aunt. He loves me as his aunt. . . And I should be grateful for at least that. I messed up the chance to be his mother, but I swear I won't mess up the chance to be his aunt."

The two parted from their hug, Weiss smiling proudly. "That's my rose." The two then looked lovingly into the other's eyes... and kissed.

'Mm? Wait... why isn't... why isn't it as sweet as it usually is? Why doesn't it feel as good as before? It's still good... but feels incomplete,' Ruby thought as she still lovingly kissed Weiss.

The two then parted, staring into the other's eyes happily. "Now, let's get some actual sleep, alright?"

Ruby giggled. "Alright." The two then got back under their sheets and tried to get some sleep. Weiss was able to fall asleep almost immediately.

Ruby, however, while on her pillow, was lost in thought. She then reached for her lips. 'It wasn't as good. Why? What was different?' A memory then flashed in her mind for a split second. It was quick, but still, she saw... 'Jaune?'


Meanwhile, back in the town the Arcs were in, a group dressed in black, hiding in the shadows, appeared.

'Is he truly here,' one asked telepathically.

'The beetle says so. It reacts to her power,' another answered telepathically.

'Why is it that HE has the power of our goddess?! Why did the waters choose HIM,' an angry one yelled telepathically.

'The heretics worship him as a hero. The blasphemer who slew our goddess. How ironic that their savior would become the heir of the one who slew,' an elegantly female voice went.

'He... is... not... worthy,' a raspy one went.

'But... he could be useful,' the one at the front went. 'Through him... our goddess could return.' A bright smile appeared in the hood of the leader. 'I always knew...' a purple eye then glowed within the hood. 'He was interesting.'

Meanwhile in the pitch-black room, nothing could be seen. Nothing could be heard. There was no light to see so much as a body's outline.

Then, orbs appeared simultaneously.

First was an orb of light blue. Below the blue orb, an orb of silver appeared.

And far from the first two orbs... was an orb of blood red.

One of the hooded figures was walking to the Arc's room. Though, despite walking at normal speeds in an old inn, they weren't making a sound. The creaky floors weren't even making a tiny squeak. There wasn't even any sound when the cultist opened the door. The cultist drew their sword, but there was no sound there either. No click when they pushed the button on their sword, no sound of oozing purple liquid flowing out of the blade, or the sound of the liquid dripping onto the floor. There wasn't even a hissing sound when the wood was melting away from the poison.

This was thanks to the assassin's Semblance: Silence.

As long as you were in the foot wide vicinity of the user, you would be totally soundless. Not much room, but that was all the room an assassin needed. Said assassin raised their sword, ready to plunge it into Jaune's bed.

However, a pair of red eyes appeared behind the assassin. "I wasn't aware that Wilhelm's inn provided room service," Jaune said, surprising the assassin.

Moments later, the assassin was sent crashing out of the window, leaving behind a gaping hole with Jaune standing in front of it, the moon illuminating just his lower half.

Behind Jaune came another cultist, smashing through the wall to attack him. The cultist didn't see Argent standing between his and his father's bed, swinging Crocea Mors down, aiming for the charger's legs. With just a small percentage of his Semblance, Argent tripped the large charger, making them trip and roll past Jaune.

As powerful as Argent's Aura Enhancement was, it wasn't a limitless power. The more he uses it, the more it drains his Aura. He can channel how much of his own Aura he wishes to use. The more Aura he uses, the more powerful he is. His Aura already rivals that of his father at such a young age, and yet he hasn't even reached his prime yet, meaning the boy can grow up to be the strongest man Remnant will ever know.

Already, he is theorized to be strong enough to split a mountain in half with just his pinky should he use all of his Aura at once, or so Nimueh herself thinks. She and Jaune can only imagine how powerful their son will be once he is fully matured, his Aura at his body's maximum. He could very well be unbeatable when he reaches his full potential.

Yet, even without his Semblance, his father trained him to be quite powerful, despite his slender frame. When his father told him the story of how he held back a Nuckelavee at age eighteen, Argent asked his father to do strength training with him, which Jaune gladly agreed to. In fact, one of their favorite past times is lifting either a fallen tree or large boulder.

Argent still pouts at the fact that he can't beat his father at strength feats without using his Semblance. Whenever Argent is holding up a large boulder with both hands, he pouts when he sees his father lift an even larger one with just one hand.

As Jaune smiled proudly at his son, a whip flew towards his head. It was caught, but not by Jaune.

Nimueh walked out into the open, a less than amused look on her face. She then yanked the whip, the owner flying towards her, only being stopped when Nimueh punched their face. The whip user groaned in pain as they fell to one knee, looking up to see Nimueh looking down at them with a raised eyebrow.

She then proceeded to punch the cultist in the face, her speed increasing gradually until her fist and the victim's head was just a blur.

She stopped right before their Aura faded away and finished the fool off with an uppercut, their Aura shattering as they fell towards the forest.

The Arc family then stepped out. Jaune was wearing nothing but pants, his hair loosely flowing in the wind since he never ties it when he sleeps. Nimueh walked out in her Spirit Garb, which looked like an elegant, white gown. She wears it as pajamas whenever she sleeps. Argent walked out with Crocea Mors in its greatsword mode. He was wearing pajama pants with the Arc symbol on his left thigh and a pajama shirt with an image of Crocea Mors sown down the middle; one of his favorite gifts from his grandmother.

Before the family was the charger, the assassin, and three other cloaked figures standing before their comrades.

"A child," the charger yelled angrily as they stood up. They then threw off their hood, revealing a muscular woman with half a shaved head and a scar above their left eyebrow. "A mere child tripped me?! Is this supposed to be a joke?!"

"Nope. No joke. I really did trip you. How does it feel to fall because of a ten-year-old," Argent asked playfully as he tapped Crocea Mors onto his shoulder.

"Why you little-" the woman began.

"Calm down, Raudan," the assassin said as they stood up. They then took off their hood to reveal a woman with her eyes covered by her hair. "That child is the son of the Vale Knight, meaning he is of HER blood. You should feel honored that it took a descendant of our goddess to fell you."

"Heh. You're right. Seems you always know what to say to make one feel better, Al-nur."

Jaune glared at the group. "What do you mean by goddess? Who are you? What do you want from us?"

The figure in the middle giggled madly. "Oh, the little one would have value if he were... awakened. However, the father is more of interest to us than the son at this time."

Jaune's eyes widened. 'That voice. It couldn't be,' he thought. Jaune then glared at the one in the middle. "Nimueh, I'm going to need you."

"So, they're enough of a threat for you to need to go all out," she asked.

"Yeah. We need to take care of these guys before- AAAH!"

"JAUNE?!"

"DAD?!"

"What the-" Jaune looked down to see what looked like webs made of Aura sticking to him.

"Caught you," a female voice went in the distance behind the group.

"Aw, crap." Jaune was then swung around. He was about to be slammed into something, but he stopped the momentum of the swing when he stretched his arm and stuck his claws into the ground.

When he did that, the cultists were staring at him in awe.

"Undeniable proof," Al-nur went.

"So... that's what it looks like," Raudan said. "Magnificent."

The one up front took a few steps forward, reaching out for Jaune. "In the light of the moon, I can see him so clearly. He looks just like her. His eyes. His flesh. His body. His very power." If they could see within the hood, they'd see the leader cry. "It's true. Her second coming is upon us. Her legacy lives. You can return to us... my goddess."

Jaune looked at his stretched arm before looking at the Aura Web. He followed it to see someone on a roof. He then spun around, wrapping himself with the web, gradually going faster until he looked like a tornado. The user of the web was then yanked towards the tornado. When they were close enough, Jaune heel dropped the user, slamming them into the ground. The sight of an Aura breaking was seen.

Jaune was now completely wrapped in Aura Web, but that didn't matter to him. Instead, he began to struggle, the web being pushed away from him. Then, with a mighty roar, the webs snapped off of him, two black Nevermore wings extending from his back. He was right in front of the moon when he did this, floating before the shattered light, looking like a dark angel.

The remaining cult members were awestruck.

"The Heir of the Goddess. Incredible," Raudan said.

"And you wanted me to assassinate that," Al-nur asked.

"No. I wanted you to test him," the leader said. "And he passed my wildest expectations! But... he's not complete. Not even close."

"What are you talking about," the hood on the left asked the leader.

"He doesn't have the goddess's rage. Her hatred. Her desire for destruction. He's not her yet. Not even close."

Jaune then raised his hand, claws forming. "Nor will I ever be!" He swiped, sending four large blades of wind racing towards the group.

The hood in the right stepped forward, clapped their hands together, and extended their arms. Doing this seemed to have made the clap louder, what looked like a barrier appearing before the group. That barrier negated the wind blades completely, but it still blew off the user's hood.

She was a blonde, pale, battle-tested woman. Still feminine, especially compared to Raudan, but had the face of one who lusted for war.

"He shattered my Sound Shield. He is powerful." She smirked. "A true challenge indeed."

"Careful, Lurid," the leader said. "He is the Heir of the Goddess. Even before, he was powerful." The leader snickered. "Though, even then, he was incomplete. An interesting man, but always never fully reaching his potential."

"For you to call someone interesting is high praise," the last hood said before walking forward. He then took out an ax, the weapon beginning to freeze. "Let's see how interesting he really is." The hood then threw the axe at Jaune.

Jaune easily caught it with one hand. "What was that supposed to accom-" Jaune was then completely frozen, from the hand holding the axe all the way to the tip of his wings. Jaune then began to fall.

The hooded man chuckled. "So, he can't handle the harsh cold of Solitas, eh?" His smirk was gone when the ice began to crack.

The ice then shattered when Jaune broke out with a roar and performed a superhero landing. He then looked up, his eyes glowing red, bits of ice stuck to the tip of his hair... as well as vicious ice claws now on his hands. Jaune then stood, showing that there was some ice on certain parts of his body, looking like armor.

"He's like a Solitas Beowolf," Lurid said in awe.

Jaune looked at the axe before glancing back at its owner. "You can have this back. Axes aren't my thing." Jane then threw the axe.

The hooded figure caught the axe, but the sheer force of the throw nearly made the man's arm slam into his head, which would have had the axe smash into his skull. His hood falling off, it was revealed to be a battle scarred, bald, bearded man, who looked no older than Jaune himself.

The man looked at his axe before looking back at Jaune. "Years. Years upon years of searching for a worthy foe. A true enemy that might make my frozen blood boil... AND I FIND IT IN THE SECOND COMING! GLORIOUS," he roared as he swung his axe, the entire weapon surrounded with ice, larger, longer reach, and obviously much more deadly.

As the man stomped forward, the hooded leader held out his arm, stopping him. "Now, now, Isaz."

"DON'T YOU DARE STOP ME! I HAVE BEEN FIGHTING GRIMM AND HUNTSMEN FOR YEARS, WINNING EACH AND EVERY BATTLE, ONLY GAINING PATHETIC SCARS THAT WERE NO WHERE CLOSE TO FATAL! NOT EVEN LURID OR RAUDAN GAVE ME THE EXCITMENT OF NEAR DEATH! BUT HIM?! THE NEXT GOD OF THE GRIMM?! HE CAN GIVE ME THAT EXCITEMENT! I KNOW IT!"

The leader chuckled. "If you want excitement, then..." the leader took a large step forward, confusing Isaz. "You might want to look to your right."

"Eh?" When he looked, time slowed down for him as he saw the fist of an angry looking Nimueh about to slam into his fast.

Nimueh's fist then clashed with the iron, spiked gloves of Raudan, their clash, pushing Isaz away as it caused a shock wave and a quake.

As Raudan tried to push Nimueh back, she didn't notice Argent jump over his mother, landing an Enhanced kick to Raudan's square jaw, making her skid back before grabbing her mouth, muffling her groan of pain as she buckled over before looking up at Argent with enraged eyes, the boy taking his stance with Crocea Mors.

"I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU, BOY! I WILL TEAR YOU LIMB FROM LIMB, DESCENDANT OF THE GODDESS OF NOT!"

"Don't you fucking DARE threaten my son," Nimueh yelled as she pointed her hand at the large woman, preparing to blast her.

Nimueh then glared in a direction and raised her hand to block Isaz's downward slash. "So, you are the boy's mother, meaning you are the wife of the Heir. You must be quite powerful," he said with an excited smirk.

Nimueh glared at him. "You have no IDEA how powerful I am." She then held out her free hand to block Al-nur's slash aimed at her thigh. The assassin was shocked, not only that Nimueh knew she was there, but that her poison was having no effect. It should have been able to bypass even Aura. "None of you do. But you will LEARN," she roared, blasting the two away.

Nimueh watched as they both stood, looking down at her hand. It was beginning to flicker. 'Damn. I should have had Jaune recharge me. I can't end this as quickly as I would like. Oh, whatever,' she thought as she cracked her knuckles. 'Just means I get to make these idiots suffer.'

The leader and Lurid stared at Jaune, none making a move.

"WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?!"

The two looked to see some local Huntsmen running to the scene.

"Hm, they're later than I expected. Lurid?"

"Of course." She then took out a device and pushed the button. A dark substance erupted in certain points, surrounding the ground in a black wall.

"What the hell," Jaune went. He then touched the wall. "Grimm Essence?"

"Magnificent, isn't it?" Jaune glared at the leader. "The goddess would have been proud, don't you think? Can you ask her for me? Can you hear her voice, my liege?"

Jaune glared at the hooded man. "I'm not your liege."

Jaune then basically warped in front of the man, arm outstretched to slash him. When he swung his arm, it collided with something. That something wasn't Lurid's Sound Shield.

Instead... it was a metallic scorpion tail.

The leader snickered evilly. "Surprise."

Jaune looked shocked before he glared at the leader. "You."

A/N: I'm just answering a question. If Jaune knew why Adam attacked him, he be sympathetic and ask Adam for help. However, Adam would refuse. He is now a broken man who lost everything, except for maybe one thing. Maybe you'll find out what that is, one day. Just know that Adam will more than likely never fight for anyone else's cause ever again. He just wants to be left alone in peace. In short, he's a hermit.