Ephemeral Dream

Summary: Jaune Arc isn't strong, smart, or skilled. Even so, he dreams of a future in which he is a Huntsman. He dreams of friendship, combat, and love. But every dreamer must wake. "Not yet…" He whispered, tears of blood streaking down his cheeks. "I can't let this dream end… Until I've turned it to reality." Gamer Jaune!

Warnings: Crossovers, strong and smart Jaune, later quite OP. Possible Harem.

VIII: Freedom

It was the second time in such a short period that I found myself feeling a bit groggy as I woke up. I sat up slowly, rubbing my eyes and surveying my surroundings.

I was in my room. Exactly as I'd left it before I'd gone out for my day with Ruby, though that hadn't been too long ago so it wasn't too much of a surprise.

What caught me off guard was the woman sitting beside by bed, one leg crossed over the other. She had dark skin, smooth and beautiful, with silver eyes staring straight at me. She quirked an eye as she observed me, an amused smile on her face.

"Are you finally awake now, Master?" She asked me, sending a small shudder down my spine.

"… Lancer…?" I asked a bit wearily, able to recall the ending of my fight against my mother when I summoned her.

"Indeed," she nodded. "I am Lancer."

It was a bit hard to believe. When I'd summoned her, she'd had this… Presence to her. As if Death itself was coiling around her, ready to strike at anyone. I didn't feel that now. Instead, she just felt like any other person, continuing to smirk at me.

"Take a picture," she told me. "It will last longer."

I blushed warmly, turning my gaze away from her, before my eyes focused on the screens in front of me.

[You have defeated Aurelia Arc in a Covenant Duel.]
+10,000 EXP
+1 Perk Points
+10 Luck

[You have levelled up by five.]
+3,000HP
+3,650MP
+36 Stat Points

My eyes widened as I stared at the screens in front of me. The five levels were a shock in and of itself from the EXP, but why the hell did I just get a perk point!?

[When the player faces an enemy of a higher level than themselves, if the enemy is at least twenty levels higher than them, they will receive 1 Perk Point for defeating them.]

Okay… So, my mother was at least Level 30 possibly higher, so I got a Perk Point for winning. That was… Actually, very useful to know. It meant that I now had access to another perk should I need it. Though I planned to keep this perk point safe unless I absolutely, truly had no choice but to use it.

Why did I win though? Didn't Lancer interfere…?

Wait… Was it because I'd summoned her? Did the duel count her as part of me, or an extension of my power and therefore skirt around the rules of the duel?

God, I was lucky… My mind was so filled with desperation at that point, that I hadn't even considered the fact that the Covenant could have taken that as interference and had me lose.

"Master, why are you staring into space?" Lancer's voice shook me out of my stupor. "Is something the matter?"

"Ah… No, Lancer," I told her. "Just… I wasn't expecting to summon so pretty…" Why did I say that!?

A light red hue dusted Lancer's cheeks. "Oh… That's sweet of you, Master. Don't think that flirting with me will get me to do anything you want though."

"I… Didn't think it would…" I looked at her, a bit confused, before shaking my head. "So… Lancer? That's not your real name, right? Mind explaining that to me?"

The red hue left her face as she raised an eye at me, before shrugging. "Servant, or Heroic Spirits, are summoned- usually- into one of seven main classes; Saber, Archer, Lancer, Assassin, Rider, Caster, Berserker. Almost always, a Heroic Spirit will be summoned under one of those."

"How is an Assassin a hero?" I asked her, tilting my head in confusion. "And a Berserker?"

"Assassins who became famous because of their assassinations," she responded. "Berserkers are heroes that fell to madness, usually through betrayal or treasons done against them. There are some Berserkers that are people who are simply crazy in some form or another, but most Berserkers usually qualify for other classes, with those 'other classes' being the hero they were before the madness."

I nodded slowly, following her words. "So, your class is Lancer?"

"Correct," she nodded. "More specifically, I'm a rare servant; A Dual Class. I possess the characteristics and trains of both Lancer and Assassins, due to embellished tales of my legend. Though I've been primarily summoned as a Lancer, with Assassin as the secondary."

"How does making your story fanciful change things?"

"Human imagination is a powerful thing," she said patiently. "You ever hear stories about the old days? How heroes had swords that were said to shoot beams of light and destroy all in their path? Well, most of the time the swords couldn't actually do that. But human imagination is able to influence legends, and turn the swords into weapons capable of unleashing such power. We call such things Noble Phantasms, the objects or concept that make the Hero who they are. Such as Argent Arc's Crocea Mors, as an example."

I nodded along slowly… I didn't really understand it, but I would just take her word for it.

"With those answered, I have a question for you, master," she looked at me.

"Huh?" I frowned. "What is it?"

"What is your goal?"

"My goal?"

"Yes," she nodded firmly. "Most Heroic Spirits have a wish to achieve; a goal we want to accomplish. If the master's goals do not line up with the Servant's, often we will kill that master. So, I ask you bluntly, what is your goal?"

I froze up as she said she would kill me, body tensed and ready for another fight despite the fact I'd lose.

"Calm down," she told me. "I have no intention of killing you. I wouldn't have saved you if I did… So, I'll ask again… What is your goal?"

I looked at her a bit wearily… Before I answered, "I'm going to save the world."

She blinked in surprise and stared at me. "… Save the world?"

"Yes," I nodded. "I… The current state of the world may seem peaceful, but it's more like a cold war. People are just waiting for the war to kick off again… I want to make sure that never happens. I will do what has never been done; I will unite the Kingdoms and lead humanity into a new age, a new era. I will save the world."

She continued to stare at me… Before she smiled. "Well then, I'm quite fortunate your wish coincides with my own."

"What?"

"In life," she said. "I felt like I didn't do enough. Though people call me a legend, a hero, I consider myself a disgrace. I did not do enough in my life, did not do what should have been my part in saving the planet. When I was summoned by you, my wish was already fulfilled: a second chance to do what I didn't do back then."

"Oh… Um… You're welcome?" I was a bit confused, but I'd take her word for it.

She only smirked. "So… What do you plan to do now, master?" She tilted her head. "I don't really understand what your family was trying to tell me, but I understand you and your mother had a fight and you summoned me and I won it for you. So, what do you plan to do now?"

I paused as I considered that…

The Covenant was sealed, I'd seen as such when Lancer had knocked out my mother. Never again would she be able to interfere with my dream of being a huntsman; never again would she be able to try and stop me from doing as I liked…

But she would try to find a loophole. I knew she would. As long as I stayed in this house, I would never be free.

I got up and walked over to my closet. I opened it up and, under Lancer's curious gaze, I began to put everything I owned into my inventory.

"Is that your semblance or something?" Lancer asked me.

"Or something," I responded.

"Well…" She chuckled. "I suppose a man who wants to change the world wouldn't be normal, would he? You are a practitioner of magic, then?"

"Not magic," I told her. "Magecraft."

"What's the difference?"

"Magecraft can only do what humans are already able to do. I could make a fireball with a spell, but I could also do that with burn dust. I could make a weapon, but I could do that with enough metal, a suitable forge, and time. Magecraft only speeds up the natural process."

She just nodded, getting the simple explanation. "If you aren't a magic practitioner, how did you summon me?"

I paused and looked back at her. "… Magic is real?"

"Eh, not that important," she shrugged. "The chances of you running into one is incredibly low. I'll give you a crash course in case you run into one later."

"… Alright," I said, not really pleased by that… But I wasn't going to try and push the person that could probably snap my neck with her bare hands.

"So, what's the plan, Master?" She asked, steering the conversation back on track.

"I'm doing what I said I would do before you were summoned and I got in that fight," he told her. "I'm moving out."

"Do you have a home set up?"

"I'll stay with a family friend, and I'll ask their dad to buy a house under his name since I'm a kid and can't buy one. I'll pay him back."

"How much money do you have?"

"Twenty million lien, though I'll only use Ten Million."

"What-!" I heard the chair fall down as she stood up, looking back to see her staring at me in shock. "How do you have that much money?"

"I can't tell you."

Her eyes narrowed. "Can't, or won't?"

"Won't," I told her. "The fewer people know about it, the better. Let's just say… The best way to describe my semblance is one that lets me do things that nobody else can and leave it at that."

I focused on storing my things in my inventory, mentally bringing up the stats page and allocating my thirty-six points.

[Status]

Name: Jaune Arc
Level: 15
Race: Human
Job: None
Main Title: None
Sub Title: None
HP: 6,490
MP: 7,710
Strength: 30 + 30% = 39
Vitality: 45 + 30% = 60
Dexterity: 30 + 30% = 39
Intelligence: 55
Luck: 25
Sense: 30

Eleven points in sense, five in strength and dexterity, ten in vitality, and five in intelligence. Altogether, that was thirty-six points spent. Vitality was now by highest stat thanks to my aura, but intelligence was still my most valuable stat.

I let out a sigh as I finished storing my things in my inventory. Looking at the time, I saw it was ten in the morning. "… Come on, Lancer," I sighed, "Time to face the music."

"Should I be ready for a fight?"

"… Probably best to be just in case…"

She nodded, her mask appearing on her face as her eyes let off a light glow. "Ready."

I gave a nod, casting one final glance around the room… Before I walked out, heading downstairs.

The house was dead silent as Lancer and I made our way down the stairs. As if prepared, everyone was already waiting in the dining room around the table. No doubt they'd all taken a day off of work in order to be here.

"Jaune," my father said. "We have some questions we'd like you to-."

"No."

He blinked in surprise. "… Pardon?"

"No," I repeated. "You don't get to ask me any questions. Not after what you pulled two years ago. Having an intervention and telling me to give up on my dream was one thing. But you pushed too far. You got my friends involved; you destroyed my friendship for two years. Hell, my friendship with Hikage still isn't repaired because you and mother convinced her that I would die if I became a Huntsman. You used the loss of her adoptive mother to put the fear in her regarding me.

"So, no. You don't get to ask me any questions."

"Jaune," Saphron said softly. "We just want to know how you did all those things. That's not just one semblance you showed off."

I let out a sigh. "All you need to know are two things. One, I'm able to use a variety of abilities thanks to my semblance. And two: I'm moving out."

"No!" My mother screamed. "I won't allow-!"

"My moving out is related to me being a huntsman," I said without a care.

Instantly, my mother seemed to get choked up, unable to say anything further on the matter.

"Jaune…" My father gave me a mourning look. "Is there really a need for this?"

"Yes," I frowned. "Mum won't give up with just this, she'll look for a loophole. You won't support my dream… I love all of you…" I threw my mother a scornful look. "Even you. But I'm done. I'm leaving, and I have no plans on coming back. I'm going to go stay with the Xiao Long family."

"Jaune…" Jasmine, my younger sister, looked at me with tear filled eyes. "Are you going to be gone forever?"

"Of course not, Jaz," I said softly, rubbing her head. "I'll still be in town, and you can come visit whenever you want… But I can't live here anymore… I'm sorry."

She only stared at me before she nodded, and then ran up to her room while sobbing.

I turned to look at the rest of my sisters, who only had guilty looks on their faces.

"… Goodbye," I walked towards the door with Lancer at my back…

And stepped outside.

~~Ephemeral Dream~~

The walk towards the Xiao Long's family house was liberating, in a way. With every step I took, I almost felt like the links of invisible chains were rising off of me one by one. A weight lifted from my shoulders; it took me a moment to realise just what this feeling was.

Freedom.

This was what freedom was. The freedom to be who I wanted, to go where I pleased… A freedom available to me now that I'd left my home.

"So… Lancer…"

"Yes?"

"You called yourself a Heroic Spirit. That means that you don't need sleep, right?"

"Nope."

"… Are you able to hide yourself somehow?"

"Yes," she nodded, and I felt myself slump with relief. "With a few exceptions, Servants are able to 'astralise' themselves. Doing so lessens the mana burden on the master, and allows us to always be present by the master without anyone being the wiser."

"Mana burden?"

"Servant's require a constant upkeep of Mana from the master," she told me. "… Don't you feel it?"

I cast a glance towards my H.U.D and looked at my MP… Nope, it was still full.

"Not really," I told her.

"Hm…" She rubbed her chin. "That must mean you have a truly incredible amount of mana, to not be able to even feel the burden of sustaining a Servant… Impressive."

I didn't respond to that, instead I let her make assumptions about the amount of power at my disposal. She may be my 'Servant,' but it didn't mean I trusted her despite what she told me her dream was. I was going to be very cautious.

"Could I ask you to astralise?"

She offered a shrug, glancing around. There were a few people walking around town, so we cut through a back alley and she astralised before we'd left. I went in one side with her, I came out the other side seemingly without her.

'We also share a mental link,' I heard her voice in my mind, causing me to jump lightly. 'Don't worry, it's not like I can see your thoughts. I can't see what you don't show me, and vice versa.'

'Well… That's useful…' I told her.

'Way to state the obvious, Master.'

'What is your true name anyway?'

'That is something I'm keeping to myself,' she told me. 'No offence, Master, but a Servant's True Name can tell you everything about them. More importantly, it exposes their weaknesses. If I tell you my true name, you might slip up and use it around others. So, I'm going to have to opt out on telling you.'

'For now?'

'For now,' she agreed. 'Can't keep it from you forever, after all. I just want to observe how the world has changed since my time before I give you leave to use my name around others.'

'Well… That's your right, I won't stop you.'

I continued to my walk towards the Xiao Long house, knowing it wasn't too far now. I brought up the store, converting a million gold into ten million Lien. And, while I did that, I began to plan.

I was going to need to limit my interactions with Ruby and Yang. I didn't want to put them into a Guardian Bond, which also meant I'd need to limit the usage of Sky Flames around them. I would train them in my own time, but I would make sure I didn't use them around Ruby and Yang unless I absolutely had to.

Lancer was going to be a lost cause as far as that went. I didn't know if I could form a Guardian Bond with her, but she was something I wouldn't be able to not use the flames around, even when training. Which meant she was going to become a guardian, whether I liked it or not.

Speaking of Guardian bonds…

I reached into my pocket, pulling out my scroll… I had quite a few missed messages and, upon opening the first, I found out that they were almost all from Blake. She must have been really worried when I didn't respond yesterday… I didn't know if that was the Guardian Bond, or something else, but I couldn't just leave her hanging like that.

I typed in her number, saving it, before I called her.

Burr… Burr… Burr- Click!

"Jaune?"

"Hey, Blake," I responded and I heard her sigh with relief on the other end.

"Thank god, you didn't respond all day yesterday. I got worried something happened."

"Sorry…" I sighed. "Family drama, it was so stressful I ended up passing out in my bed just after I got home, and I didn't wake up again until this morning. Enough of that though, how are you doing?"

"I'm doing okay," she responded. "My parents are pretty relieved that I've agreed to go back home but…" She sighed. "They're signing me up for counselling sessions to help deal with my 'Stockholm Syndrome.'"

"They're just concerned about you Blake," I told her. "They don't want to leave any stone unturned when it comes to making sure you are safe and healthy: both mentally and physically."

"I know… It's just about the only reason I haven't snapped at them, because that's not fair to them…" She muttered, before she changed the topic, "You're out of the hospital now, right? Do you want to hang out before I have to leave?"

I paused… What else could I do but agree?

"Sure," I told her. "When do you leave?"

"In about a week," she told me.

I quickly did some math. My day with Ruby was on Saturday. I woke up Sunday morning and helped them escape, then was out three days. Then I stayed in the hospital another day, and fought with my mum which meant today was… Friday. Which meant I'd have to pick up Neo in two to three days…

"Does tomorrow work?" I asked her. I'd need to check in at the Hospital on Sunday at least, so I couldn't do that. And I had school Monday to Friday, which left that out. So, Saturday was the only free day I had.

"Tomorrow is just fine," she responded. "… I just want to clarify; this is not a date."

"I didn't say it was," I told her.

"Just making sure we're on the same page here."

"It's not like anybody is gonna believe me if I told them 'I went on a date with what basically amounts to the Princess of all Faunus-kind.'"

"… Well, it just sounds silly if you phrase it like that."

"Just saying it how it is," I told her. "… Which reminds me, actually, how was the news about what happened?"

"My dad managed to contain it," she told him. "I'd been missing for a couple of weeks, but they were keeps it hush so as to not alert the masses and were doing everything they could to look for me. I know the world is accepting of faunus, but there are still a lot of racists out there, especially in high up places. If they found out I went missing…"

"They'd use the distraction and weakness to attack, I understand," I told her. "What about Social Media side?"

"Only a couple pictures," she responded. "It was dark out, so they didn't really get a good look at us. If memory serves, I think your family gave the excuse of you having come down with a severe flu to explain your week-long absence, so it shouldn't be linked back to you."

I hid a small sigh of relief at that. I didn't need to be looked at with Pity… More importantly, I didn't want to see Hikage and for her to look at me with a mourning look as if to say 'His parents were right after all.'

"So, tomorrow?" I steered the conversation back on track. "Meet up at the town centre by the fountain at Twelve?"

"Sounds good to me," she responded. "See you then?"

"See you then," I responded, before I pulled the scroll from my ear and hung up the call.

Good timing too, as the Xiao Long household was coming into view.

I could feel my nerves starting to affect me as I walked along the footpath to the door, stopping in front of it and staring for a moment…

… Why was my hand trembling?

… Why were my legs trembling?

Was I… Afraid?

My left hand grabbed my right, trying to stop the trembling…

I already knew why… I didn't know why I was asking stupid questions…

I was afraid of rejection.

To be turned away… And betrayed again.

'Are you going to be a coward, Master?' Lancer asked me, almost as if she was reading my mind. 'Or are you going to man up, and knock?'

… I clapped my hands against my cheeks, the sting snapping me out of it.

I didn't have time to deal in what ifs and possibilities. I had to deal with the here, and now.

I lifted my hand, and gave three sharp knocks.

There was silence…

And then the door opened, revealing a relieved Summer standing there.

"Jaune-!"

"Summer," I cut her off, looking into her eyes. "… C- Can I stay here?"

She stared down at me in surprise, with an equally surprised Raven over her shoulder staring at me.

They looked at each other… And nodded.

"Of course, you can," Summer smiled at me, gently taking my hand and pulling me inside.

Home.

~~Ephemeral Dream~~

I explained the situation to Summer and Raven.

They both looked shocked, appalled, disgusted and, above all else, angry.

"How dare she," Raven muttered. "Sealing someone's aura is something only done to criminals… To try and do it to a fifteen-year-old out of some form of misplaced hatred…? How long as she been hiding that side of her?"

"We should report her to the police," Summer said adamantly.

"No," I said quickly, making both look at me in disbelief. "Please, I don't want this spreading around. I appreciate you not asking how my aura is fine, that's an uncomfortable topic, but I don't want you to report her. For one, my aura only shows signs of it. There's no definitive proof that it was her, and it would raise a lot of uncomfortable questions like why my aura is fine, can other criminals do the same… Worst case scenario is Atlas gets involved and try to haul me off like some sort of lab experiment."

Raven let out a sigh at that. "… Sadly, Summer, Jaune is right about that. As much as I'd love to have Aurelia locked up for this, it would raise too many questions that we don't have answers to. And the less said about Atlas, the better."

Summer let out a noise of displeasure, but didn't say anything further on the matter. "Well, I suppose…" She turned her gaze to me. "Well, you're free to stay as long as you like, Jaune."

"I… Can't," I sighed, making both look concerned. "I mean, I'm going to stay here, yes, but it can't be for… Too long. I… Need a favour?"

"And that is?" Raven asked, leaning forwards.

"I… Kind of need to buy a house."

"… I'll bite, why?"

I grimaced. "Right, I need you to understand something and to just… Not get too close, okay?"

They raised an eye, before nodding.

I lifted my hand… Before my sky flames burst to life in my hands.

They both jumped. "… How did you do that?" Raven demanded. "You're controlling one of nature's wrath without dust… How is that possible?"

"It's not quite nature's wrath," I responded. "These are called Dying Will Flames. By using your resolution, something you'd follow even to death, and turning it into flames you can create them. These are called Sky Flames; they possess a factor of 'Harmony.' But there's… A problem."

"What?" Summer asked, moving closer to the flames.

I quickly dispelled them. No way I was gonna accidentally Guardian Bond the two of them. "Sky Flames are special; in that it lets me form something of a bond between someone else and I when they're exposed to the flames for a prolonged period, or a huge amount in one sharp burst. A mutual desire forms to be near the other, to help make them happy, aid them when they're suffering, get revenge on those who hurt them… The problem is, I can't help but feel such a bond is forced."

Both looked a bit worried, and swallowed. "I'm not sure why this is relevant yet," Raven said.

"Well…" I hesitated. "When I was escaping, I awoke my flames for the first time, in a huge amount. Such a huge burst caused two bonds to form to me. The first was Blake Belladonna… And the other was girl with multi-coloured hair called Neo."

"… Blake Belladonna…" Raven repeated. "As in… The Princess of Faunus, Blake Belladonna?"

"… The very same, yes."

Raven groaned and covered her face.

"Blake isn't a problem," I said quickly. "I managed to convince her to go back to her parents, and said she was free to visit whenever. The problem is Neo. She's an orphan, she doesn't have anywhere to stay. And she wants to stay with me, and I'm not really in a position to say no to her, you know? Unlike Blake, she doesn't have any family waiting for her. And I don't want to impose on you that much… So, I was hoping I could buy a house and have it under one of your names, or Tai's, while Neo and I lived there?"

"How are you going to pay for a house?" Summer asked.

"… I have a lot of money," I told her. "More than enough to buy a house, and do more with it than I really know what."

"How much?"

"Ten Million Lien."

"WHAT!?" They both exclaimed, standing up in shock, and I blushed in embarrassment.

"How do you have Ten Million Lien?" Raven asked in disbelief.

"I… Can't tell you," I sighed. "I didn't get it through doing anything illegal though, I can promise you that much. And I didn't take it from the family or anything, it's all legit."

They looked between one another, seeming to have a mental conversation, before Summer sighed and relented, and Raven turned to me.

"A few conditions," she said. "First, you're to come over for Dinner every two or three days."

I nodded. That was fine by me.

"Second, Summer and I get spare keys so we can drop in and make sure you two aren't doing things you shouldn't be doing, and are taking care of yourselves properly."

I blushed a little at the implications, but gave a nod. I didn't have a problem with that either.

"Third, you'll have a cooking match against Summer every Friday night."

I saw a glint in Summer's eyes that made me nervous… But gave a nod. "Can I get tonight off?"

"Sure," she nodded. "And Fourth, you let us buy a house that's nearby ours to make it easier to visit."

"I don't have a problem with that," I told her. "Those are all pretty reasonable… But I actually have some requests to go with that."

"Oh?" Raven raised an eye at me.

"I'd like you to teach Neo," I told her. "To catch her up to where she needs to be, and to teach her how to fight so she can defend herself since I've got no doubt that she'll want to attend Beacon with me."

Raven rubbed her chin, thinking about it. "Summer can teach her book stuff; I'll teach her how to fight. But I won't go easy on her."

"I wouldn't ask you to," I said firmly.

She nodded. "The house next door is on sale for about eight-hundred-thousand Lien, fully furbished. Will that do?"

I nodded. "Can you get me a briefcase to put all the money into?"

Summer hurried upstairs, coming down with a suitcase.

… Sure, that worked too.

I pulled out eight-hundred-thousand Lien and dumped it into the suitcase… Huh, the System had put it all in a nice, organised pile like you'd see in movies. Neat.

Raven zipped the suitcase closed after double-checking the money. "I'll go make a call," she said. "Make yourself at home, you know where the guest room is."

"Thank you…"

"Don't thank us," Summer smiled. "You're practically family to us already, Jaune, so you don't need to thank us for helping you. That's what family does."

I gave a small smile at that. "… Thank you," I repeated again, softer this time, before I headed upstairs to the guest room.

'That went well,' Lancer told me.

'Yep… Thanks for the metaphorical push.'

'No problem… Say, can anyone unlock those Dying Will Flames?'

'I mean, Neo could do it pretty easily… Why, hoping to do it yourself?'

'Who knows?'

I couldn't help but roll my eyes as I made it to the guest room, closing the door behind me and sitting on the bed. I wanted a nap, that was pretty emotionally stressful for me… But first, I began to project various weapons again to raise the level of Projection.

'You can make weapons out of thin air?'

'Yes, but they're not great right now,' I responded. 'I can only make weapons that I've analysed before, and they aren't great since my analysis spell isn't perfected yet. Once it is, I think I'll be able to make even better ones, near perfect.'

'Hm… Well, you do that,' she told me. 'I'm going to go explore Vale while astralised. Never came here in my original lifetime, and I want to see how technology advanced.'

'Have fun,' I responded, getting an affirmative from her back before she left.

I managed to pick up another ten levels on Projection, putting it to Level 77. I had eight days left to get it to one-hundred… But with the amount of mana I had, I had a feeling it wasn't going to take that long, so long as there weren't more interruptions.

With my tracing done, I stripped to my underwear, took out my pyjamas from my inventory and put them on, before slipping into bed and fading into the realm of dreams.

Suddenly, I was outside a jail cell. It had all the basic things expected of a cell: a bed, a sink, a toilet… But, more importantly than that, it had a resident.

She had long, white hair reaching down to her waist, a scar running over her left eye, and what looked like a stitch on her right cheek. She was a pretty figure, but something about her screamed at me about how dangerous she was…

Suddenly, her green eyes snapped to me… And she gave a loving, if not crazed smile.

"Big brother…" She said happily. "Don't worry… I'll see you soon…"

I was gone, now in a forest somewhere. A girl was sitting on a stump of a tree, dressed in a red and black frilled dress, her black hair in twin tails with a big crimson net bow to hold them in place, and a red and black collar around her neck.

Her left eye was covered by one of her bangs, preventing me from seeing it at the moment, but her right eye was blood red… An eerily familiar shade of red…

A soft chuckle emanated from her, unveiling a sweet voice as she twirled her Flintlock pistol in one hand, a musket resting on the ground nearby. "I think it's about time I started to pay a visit to my dear family…" Her head tilted, and the bang covering her eye moved…

To reveal a golden eye, looking like an inorganic clock face.

"It's time I met the rest of the Branwen Family," she licked along her flintlock pistol slowly. "I wonder if Aunt Raven will accept or reject me? Ah! I can't wait to find out!"

She threw her head back, laughing twistedly.

And then I was in a dark palace, a throne room. It was lined with torches, very old style with no signs of electricity present… It was dusty and almost in ruins, as if it hadn't been cared for in thousands upon thousands of years…

I heard the clinking and clanking of armour, turning my head to face the corner of the room as a figure stepped out of the shadows…

Armour of blood red, eyes of crimson, it walked to the steps in front of the throne…

And stared at me.

"The game…" A voice I couldn't identify whispered to me. "Has only just begun, Jaune Arc."

I woke up suddenly. No panic, no fear, just… Awake. I sat up, holding my head.

I was sure I'd had a dream… But, for the life of me, I couldn't remember what it was. Yet I felt like it was important, very important.

"Jaune!" Summer's voice came from behind my door with a knock. "Dinner is almost ready!"

"Ah, right! Just let me change!" I told her, getting up and doing just that…

With that distraction, the dream lay in the back of my mind, forgotten…

But not gone.

Publish Date: 28th September 2020

Word Count: 5,841

So this chapter was actually going to come out right before I went to bed, but then had that issue where you couldn't do anything except read and search for fanfics and stuff for a few hours, so this is coming out as soon as I've woken up.

For those wondering why his family didn't try harder to stop him, or why Summer and Raven didn't ask too many questions, I have only one thing to say.

Charisma. It's more broken than you'd think.

Anyway, I hope people enjoyed this chapter, especially the little bit I introduced at the end as part of Jaune's dream. For those curious, that was the System Hinting at what was to come. While Jaune doesn't remember the dream at the moment, he does subconsciously know now that danger lies ahead. For those who guess just who the girls I hinted at in Jaune's dream are you get... Uh, one clap. But no more.

As for Maria's personality, I hope people are okay with how I'm having her act. With this being her second chance at life, I'm having her be more carefree and more teasing than she was in her original life. Because this time, she's following Jaune whom she believes will be able to lead her on the path to making sure she doesn't disgrace herself by not doing more to help this time.

For those wondering, this is not the last time we'll see his family, mostly because Jaune is still in okay terms with his sisters. They were with the intervention, yes, but they were unaware of the lengths his mother and father had gone to, and were unaware of the actions they'd taken regarding his friends to convince them to join in.

Zathol: If she'd crippled Jaune she would feel bad, but she would justify it in a very Dumbledore bashing manner in that she'd go 'It was for the greater good,' not realising she was going to bring about her own demise once Neo and Blake found out. Since they are Mist and Cloud Guardians, they're much more possessive than others. They would have destroyed his mother for what she'd done, and then taken him away to be safe.

Argus456: Jaune isn't going to be explaining anything to them. His father, in his eyes, had no right to demand or ask him questions after what he'd done to try and stop his dream and he wasn't going to answer his sister's questions right in front of his father and mother. He justified his multiple abilities as being part of his semblance, without giving more than that away, and then left to get out of that house.

thebesthorsemanwar: I actually want to address what people have been saying that 'even alive, you can be summoned as a Heroic Spirit,' so thank you for bringing that up. That... Is not entirely true. Using Shirou isn't a good example of that. Archer is Shirou from a parallel future, an alternate world, and we know he died and went on to become a Counter Guardian in that world. Therefore, Archer wasn't alive when he was summoned. He might, biologically, be Shirou but their personalities are too different for them to be called the same person. So using Archer as an example really isn't great, he's basically a loophole in the rule that Heroic Spirits have to be dead.

Technically Artoria is alive as a heroic spirit, but she also made a contract with the world which lets her skirt around the rules as well. There are a few exceptions to the whole 'you must be dead to be a heroic spirit,' but they're usually explained in believable manner.

Anyway, that's all from me guys. This is Ezras Hargrave, signing off!