Aaah. So glad I was able to get this done before I devote myself to more RWBY Watches.

But, more importantly than that, RWBY VOLUME 7!

Oh my dear Oum, these first three episodes. Penny's back and more adorable than ever, Irongoat has a plan of attack that I'm not too sure about, Ruby pulls an Ozpin on Irongoat, and may the Man-Emperor save us all, for we are not prepared for the amount of Qrow-centric fan art that is inbound. A little disappointed that Jaune apparently chose that affront of a hairstyle, but what can you do?

In today's chapter, we see the fallout from Jaune's telling the truth, a quick check-in with the Rout, Cardin makes a plan, and Forever Fall happens.

Wolves of Remnant

Chapter 7

He told them everything.

His fake transcripts and how he got them. His lack of proper training. The fact that the teachers knew. All of it.

He sat before them in a chair he had positioned in front of the door, while his teammates sat on their beds. Except for Nora; she was laying on her stomach, her head resting upon her arms while she kicked her legs in the air. He sat before them in silence, having just finished his tale and awaiting the inevitable blast wave.

'They probably hate me.' He thought. 'They could have been killed during initiation by listening to me.'

"So, you're saying you managed to get into Beacon on illegally obtained and false information, with no training whatsoever, and that the teachers are letting this continue?" Ren said, his arms crossed over his chest.

"Yes, but Oobleck said that as long as my progress continues and my grades are maintained, they won't say or do anything." Jaune tried to assure him.

The three teammates looked at each other, a silent conversation passing between them.

Pyrrha sighed. "Jaune, you realize this is a lot to take in, right?"

"Yeah, I don't blame you if you don't trust me after all that." He hung his head.

Nora frowned and rolled off the bed. She stood and walked over to Jaune. Pyrrha tried to stop her, but Ren held her back, shaking his head. Nora squatted down in front of Jaune and lifted his head up by the chin so that they were eye-to-eye. She stared at him long and hard, like she was searching for something. Jaune was worried until she smiled and stood back up.

"Well, I know that I trust you." She said confidently.

"What?"

"Call me crazy, but when I look at you, I see a guy who has had a dream all his life, and now you have a chance to chase it, no matter how hard it is. That's the kind of guy I can trust."

"If Nora trusts you, so do I." Ren said, rising from his seat.

"Really?" Jaune said.

Ren nodded. "Nora's instincts have served her well over the years, and I trust them. If she sees no lie in you, then neither do I."

"D'awwww, shucks, Renny. You're making me blush!" Nora said, holding her cheeks to hide their reddening.

There was only one person left whose opinion of him he truly cared about. "Pyrrha?" he asked.

She smiled warmly at him. "Jaune, we're partners. As long as that fact remains true, I'll always have your back." Jaune was smiling so much his face was starting to hurt and he felt he was on the verge of tears. "Admittedly, though, it is, again, a lot to take in."

"Agreed." Ren said.

"Ditto." Nora agreed.

"I'm sorry." Jaune said, hanging his head again.

"Well, we can at least do what we can to help you get better." Pyrrha said. Jaune looked up at her. "We're a team Jaune, and teams look out for their own. You're our leader, but you shouldn't have to deal with this alone."

Ren nodded his agreement. "I can help you catch up with the class academically."

"And I can help you get into fighting shape!" Nora said, raising her hand excitedly. "You'll be breaking legs in no time."

"If you'd like, I can train you in swordsmanship." Pyrrha said. "We use similar weapons, so my basic style should translate to you fairly easily."

"You guys." Jaune said, standing up. Now he was crying. "Thank you." He walked over and embraced Pyrrha, soon joined by Nora, who picked them up in a crushing bearhug while Ren simply patted his back.

"As long as we're being open with each other," Jaune was able to grunt out, "There is one other thing I think I should tell you about."

XX

Aboard his flagship, The Pride of Fenris, Logan Grimnar looked out over the modest fleet he had assembled. Four Great Ships, including his, to transport the four Great Companies of Astartes through the stars, three Strike Cruisers, five Hunter-class Destroyer squadrons, six Frigate squadrons of Nova and Gladius-classes and topped off with a single Battle Barge, his own Allfather's Honor. Not an insignificant force.

"My lord." His helmsman said next to him. "The fleet is assembled and preparations for Warp translation are complete. We await your command."

Grimnar nodded his thanks to the mortal and stepped over to a vox caster.

"This is the Pride of Fenris to all ships." He said, addressing the fleet. "The time is nigh, brothers. This very well may be the last Great Hunt in the history of our chapter. Many have there been, but never has one had such a trail to follow. It will take us approximately two weeks of Warp travel to reach the far edge of Segmentum Pacificus. From there, only the Allfather knows what lays in store for us." He took a calming breath. "All ships, commence Warp translation. Begin the 31st Great Hunt!"

XX

"So, yeah, that's a thing." Jaune said as he finished telling his team about what he called the beast within.

"Can't say I've heard of anything like that." Pyrrha admitted.

"At least outside of fairy tales." Jaune added. "Look, I know it sounds crazy, but it's true. He's always there, but he only becomes a problem when I fight."

"Then you just need to learn how to control him." Ren said. "You said that he only comes out during a fight, right? Well, I think Pyrrha would be perfect to help with that."

"I'd be glad to." Pyrrha said eagerly.

"Well, I guess that leaves only one question." Jaune said, "Do we tell Team RWBY? They are our friends, after all. Or at least, Ruby is mine."

"I agree that they are our friends," Ren said, "But that doesn't mean we have to tell them everything."

"I agree." Nora nodded. "This is Team JNPR business as much as it is yours. It should stay between us."

"And if I decide to tell them at some point?" Jaune asked.

"Then we will be there to back you up." Pyrrha said resolutely.

"Thanks guys." He smiled. "Well, we had better get to dinner before all the food is gone."

"Wait, isn't tonight pizza night?" Ren said.

The four members of Team JNPR stared at each other, their mouths watering and stomachs beginning to rumble.

"Triple time it!" Jaune yelled, nearly tearing the door out of the frame in his haste.

XX

Cardin watched from the library as Team JNPR blazed past in front of him as he neared the exit. His eyes followed them as they rounded a corner into the cafeteria, but his focus was on the two in front. Arc and Nikos.

One embarrasses him in front of class and the other embarrasses him in front of the entire cafeteria. It didn't matter which was worse, both of them had made a fool of him. And nobody makes a fool out of Cardin fucking Winchester.

His eyes fell on a student who was doing some kind of biology research on insects. He considered harassing the nerd until the page he was reading caught his eye.

"Hey, nerd." He said, walking up to the boy. "What is that?"

"W- what?" The boy stammered.

"That, Poindexter." Cardin pointed at the insect on the page. "What is that thing?"

"I-it's a rapier wasp!" the boy was terrified now.

"They dangerous?"

"Not on their own. B-but they live in hives, so there's never just one."

"Interesting…" Cardin said, a plan coming to mind. "What's your name, kid?"

"Kerry. Kerry Luna." He said, slowly calming down.

"Alright, Luna, here's the deal." Cardin said as he took a seat next to the boy. "I'm assuming you're still a virgin?"

"U-um!" was all he could stutter out before he looked down, face red with embarrassment and shame.

"That's a yes. Listen here; I know a lady out in the city who has a thing for guys like you. And I'm not bullshitting you here. This chick is an easy ten on the hotness scale and she ain't cheap. But I know for a fact that she'll make an exception for you. I'll give you her number, and all you gotta tell her is that Cardin Winchester sent you. In return, you tell me everything you know about these little guys," he tapped the book, "Including where I can get my hands on some. Deal?" he held out his hand to the boy. The young Huntsman-in-training didn't even hesitate and Cardin listened to him intently with a vicious smile on his face.

XX

A week later, the first-year teams were walking through Forever Fall forest on a field trip. Professor Goodwitch led the way, reminding the students of the dangers of the forest as they walked.

"Yes, students, the forest of Forever Fall is indeed beautiful. But we are not here to sight-see. Professor Peach asked all of you to collect samples from the trees deep inside this forest. And I am here to make sure none of you die while doing so."

Jaune and Pyrrha shared a glance at that, but Jaune simply shrugged. They would be fine.

"Each of you is to gather one jar's worth of red sap." She instructed them. "However, this forest is filled with creatures of Grimm, so be sure to stay by your teammates. We will rendezvous back here at four o'clock. Have fun!"

With that, the teams spilt up, with RWBY and JNPR moving in one direction, while CRDL went the opposite. As they left, Jaune noticed that Cardin was carrying an extra box. He thought he saw it move, but wrote it off as extra jars from the tinkling he heard coming from the young man. They were probably doing extra work to make up for their generally poor performance in Professor Peach's class.

Eventually, the sister teams found a large clearing divided by a hill and decided to set up shop. The trees were tough, but with a little clever thinking on Jaune's part, they managed tap enough trees that the students could start harvesting the sap. Team RWBY had no troubles collecting their share of sap, but JNPR had two problems; one named Nora, the other named Jaune.

Nora was simply being greedy and devoured the sap every time Ren handed her a full jar. Jaune on the other hand, was more complicated. Apparently, he was allergic to the stuff. Nearly the moment he came into contact with the sap, he started to swell up, parts of his body went numb; it was bad. However, Jaune was stubborn and he pushed through, despite the protests of his teammates and friends.

He managed to finish quickly and immediately fell against a tree near Pyrrha.

"Pyr?" he said.

"Yes, Jaune?" she said with amusement as she continued to collect sap from her tree.

"If we ever have to do this again, just have Nora knock me out and tie me to a tree. Probably best to just pre-empt my dumbass decisions before they have the chance to take root."

Pyrrha giggled at him. "Will do."

"Cool. I'm just gonna pass out for a while." He sighed as he drifted off.

He slept soundly for about half-an-hour before he heard voices. However, they weren't the voices of his friends; they were male, and deep, and familiar. He tried to figure it out when his instincts forced him awake, but not soon enough to stop the jar of red sap hitting him in the chest, splashing it all over his armor.

"Fucking hell!" he shouted, looking down at his armor. He looked back up to see who did it, but instead, time slowed as he saw another jar making a beeline at Pyrrha. Instinct took over and he leapt up to take the hit on his back as though it were a bullet. He felt the glass jar smash on his armor, coating it in yet more sap and none of it getting on Pyrrha.

"What's going on?" Ruby shouted as she ran over, but Jaune had tuned her out. His sense of smell kicked in and while the sap obviously smelled of such, there was some more too it; the scent of body odor and deodorant. He lifted his head and smelled the same off in the distance. He decided to let his senses free and heard laughter in the distance. Familiar laughter.

Jaune face turned into a snarl. "Pardon me for a moment, ladies." He growled before walking off angrily toward the hill, his jar of sap in hand. He crested it and saw Team CRDL laughing on the ground near the tree line. He should have known. "Think that shit was funny, Cardin?"

"What are you going on about, Arc?" Cardin said, the only one who wasn't laughing.

"You know damn well, ass clown!" Jaune said, throwing his jar at Cardin's chest, ruining Cardin's armor as his had been.

"Well, now, that wasn't very smart." Cardin said, as he began laying into Jaune. The larger boy picked Jaune up by his chest plate and punched him back into the ground. "You just don't learn, do you Jauney-boy?" he kicked Jaune in the stomach. "And now, I'mma send your ass back to mommy in tiny, little pieces."

Jaune hauled himself to his knees and spat out some bloody spit. "I don't give two shits what you do to me. But you are not messing with my team."

"What? You think talk like that makes you tough? That you're a big, strong man now?" Cardin said, picking him up again.

"You said it, not me." Jaune replied defiantly.

That pushed Cardin over the edge and he slammed his fist into Jaune's face.

"Ah!" he yelled as a bright light erupted at the point of impact, and Cardin dropped Jaune to cradle the hand that had punched him. Jaune looked down at himself, a white light shimmering over his body briefly and his injuries disappeared thanks to his Aura. That was, until Sky kicked him back into the dirt.

"Now, let's see how much of a man you really are." Cardin said.

A low, loud growl drifted through the clearing. A pack of Beowolves emerged from the forest, led by the most massive Beowolf any of them had seen, standing at least six feet tall at the shoulders and with large, bony spikes covering it's back. It sniffed the air and focused on Cardin, specifically on the sap covering his chest, while the younger ones moved towards Jaune.

"Cheese it!" Russel yelled, as he and his two teammates ran from the pack of Grimm, while Cardin and Jaune drew their weapons.

XX

The howling of the pack echoed throughout the forest.

Ruby perked up. "You guys heard that, right?"

Before anybody could answer, _RDL came running over the hill. "Beowolves, run!" they yelled.

Yang stopped one of them, holding him by the front of his shirt. "What?"

"Beowolves! Back there, a whole pack of them!" Russel yelled hysterically.

Pyrrha's jar hit the ground. "Jaune!"

Ruby deployed her scythe. "Yang, Blake, you two go find Goodwitch."

"You two go with them." Pyrrha said to Ren and Nora. "There could be more of them."

Pyrrha, Ruby and Weiss ran in the direction CRDL had come from to find Cardin on the ground at the mercy of the Alpha Beowolf, while Jaune finished up with the last of the lesser Grimm. His shield was discarded in favor of a two-handed grip on his sword, which slashed down and through the skull of a lesser Beowolf.

Jaune turned as saw Cardin bring his mace up to defend himself, only for the Alpha to bat it away, coming to a stop at Jaune's feet. He quickly picked it up and ran at the beast. His face was feral, the beast within fully in control. Inadvertently, he pressed a button on the handle of the that caused the flanges on the mace to compact into a single thick blade, essentially turning the weapon into an axe.

Jaune roared as he approached the Alpha and jammed his sword into it's flank. The Alpha roared in pain, swiping back at Jaune in retaliation, only for Jaune to jump back.

'Aggro pulled.' He thought to himself, 'Now kill!'

He brought his sword down in an overhead slash at the Beowolf's arm. The Alpha easily deflected it with the bony protrusions on its arm, but it roared in more pain as Jaune brought the mace-axe down on it, the heavy blade busting though the bone spikes and plates, and cleaving through the appendage.

Running on pure adrenaline and instinct, he thrust his sword into the underside of the other arm, twisted it around and pinned it to the ground. The Alpha tried to snap at him, but he punched it in the face and then kicked it's knees out from under it.

Jaune stood over it triumphantly, axe in hand. "You are no wolf." He growled at it before bringing the axe down on it's head, killing the Grimm.

He panted as he rose once more. He could hear his friends whispering to each other a ways off, but only one voice caught his attention.

"Jaune?" he heard Cardin say. He turned to the bigger boy, still sitting on the ground. A wicked thought came to mind. This was his chance to get rid of a massive problem once and for all. All his bullying, all his racism, it could end right now, by his hands, with the prick's own weapon. Such sweet irony. He walked towards the coward, weapon in hand. Cardin begged him not to, to get away from him. He promised to leave him alone, him and his friends. But the beast drove him on. He felt a small pain in his mouth, but ignored it. It was nothing.

He cornered Cardin against a tree. Let it be done. He hefted the axe over his head and brought it down, but as he did, he felt it shift, felt it slide a bit closer to him in his hands. Instead of making contact with Cardin's crotch, as he intended, the blade impacted the ground just below his crotch.

Confused, he looked at Cardin, but the boy was almost unconscious. He looked to the side and saw Weiss, Ruby, and Pyrrha, the latter of whom had her arm outstretched toward him. He felt the beast growl as it surrendered control to him. He looked back to Cardin and pulled him up by his breast plate. He saw the terror in the bully's eyes.

"Never mess with my team or my friends again." He said, "Otherwise, there may not be someone to save you next time. Got it?" Cardin nodded his head rapidly and Jaune dropped him. As he walked away, the exhaustion set in and he began to fall. Ruby ran in and caught him, looping his arm over her shoulders.

"You okay?" she asked as Pyrrha joined her on the other side.

"Yeah, just never fought that hard for that long before." He said.

"Well, while you lack any sense of finesse, you were doubtless effective." Weiss said as she walked up to him.

"You guys saw that, huh?"

"Yeah we did!" Ruby exclaimed. "You were awesome!"

"Thanks." He grinned weakly. He saw the look of shock and worry on Weiss' face. "Weiss? Something wrong?"

"You're a faunus?" she asked hesitantly.

"What? No. Didn't Yang and Blake tell you?"

"No!"

"Well, I'm not!"

"Then explain those!" she pointed at his face.

"The hell are you talking about?" he asked. Weiss immediately pulled out her scroll, turned on the camera and showed him the screen. He looked at it and saw himself. He looked normal, a little cut up and bruised, but nothing out of the ordinary.

"Look at your teeth!" the heiress nearly shouted. Jaune rolled his eyes and opened his mouth. His teeth looked fine; white and shiny, nothing out of place, nothing broken. Then he noticed that all of his canines had grown exponentially.

His eyes widened. "Well, that's new."

It may have taken a while, but I like how this turned out. It doesn't play out exactly like canon, but this whole story is pretty AU, so...

Be sure to Follow, Favorite and leave a Review, and I will catch you all later.