! NOTICE !
As of 8/1/2021, this fic will (ironiclally) be treated as an Archived work because it is now being revised on a different publication. Since I chose not to delete it yet, you can still view it but keep in mind that this version is no longer supported and will be considered outdated and the only edits that will remain are occasional grammatical fixes if I even bother. I only suggest you read this if you prefer long chapters or if you are too impatient for the revised chapters, but that said I recommend you to read the new version instead since it has improved scenes, pacing, and writing, that would be the definite edition of this story.
Summary:
This is the story of Jaune Arc, The Hero of Remnant. An esteemed legend among the people of Remnant whose exploits have been told for years. He's a symbol of hope and justice to the righteous while his name strikes fear into the hearts of evil men. Remnant never deserved a hero so brave, strong and handsome. But unfortunately for him... he didn't ask for any of this.
Salutations everyone and welcome to my first story!
This fic will be a retelling of canon RWBY; like many other fics, it uses the 'strong-Jaune' formula...with the cost of turning his motivations into a 180. What I mean by that is that in contrast to Canon!Jaune who wants to be a hero but lacked the skills to become one, this Jaune, meanwhile, is exceptionally skilled but has no desire to be a hero and prefers to stay out of the dangers that regularly occur in a world of bloody evolution. He'll also have some slight personality changes, his canon demeanor is basically described as 'idealistic yet foolish' while here he is 'cynical and witty', though he will still act like his canon counterpart (keyword: act).
Jaune's character and the writing is inspired by Sandy Mitchell's 'Ciaphas Cain' series of the Warhammer 40,000 Universe and works inspired by it, such as the Mass Effect fanfic 'Accidental Hero of the Galaxy' by Random Equinox, where a self-deprecating, cowardly protagonist in a dangerous universe details his adventures in a series of private memoirs which are being edited by another character (usually a close friend or a significant other) who provides commentary and additional insights, despite the protagonist's efforts, they still end up in danger, forcing them to save the day. This story will follow its format from the sarcastic first-person narrative to the in-universe editorial, along with its footnotes.
Cain!Jaune fics are not new, in fact Coeur Al'Aran's "Beacon Civil War" and Aleandrex' "Arc of The Revolution" were direct and indirect Cain-inspired fics respectively and they're both fantastic; I recommend you go check them out. This fic meanwhile invokes the question of: What if Jaune Cains his way to the events of the show? This premise was actually attempted before in Kartofel von Kouch's "Jaune Arc: Hero of Vytal", albeit it dropped the memoir-like writing in favor of a third-person narrative with shifting perspective. Sadly, the story died before it could conclude the initiation event; it's a shame because the story showed a lot of promise so now I have to try to answer the previous question myself.
Keep in mind that this is my first serious fic, so there might be errors here and there, and this very chapter may be even subject to a rewrite, so feedback is appreciated.
Anyhow, enjoy reading!
EDIT: To celebrate the first anniversary of this fic, I made a Spotify playlist based on the songs Jaune listened to through this story. Feel free to listen to it:
(Replace the commas with dots)
open,spotify,com/playlist/3dV6TxBvxG6SsZ3r97HXVO?si=abkz8i3xROK1LYhvg01pew
Youtube Mirror:
youtube,com / playlist?list=PLx-5liPQvheIpI_fglcpwH-rVE4CkOJVw
Editorial Note:
It's been years since the Fall of Salem, Remnant has met a golden age of peace, with crime rates and Grimm activity at its lowest and civilizations affected recovering, it's almost hard to imagine that the world was once torn apart by rampant war, division, hatred, chaos and extreme violence. And it's all thanks to the brave heroes who risked their lives to save the world they live in. Their stories are still being told to this day and one among these stories, in particular, stand out more than the others.
Commissar Sir Jaune Felix Arc, The Hero of Remnant. The 8th child and only son of Caiaphas and Amberlynn Arc. A once simple boy from a lineage of heroes, who not only was able to live up to his ancestor's legacy but became one of the greatest in history. His exploits are famously detailed in his published memoirs: "The Bane of Chaos: A Tale of A Knight and a Commissar" which was co-written by his eldest sister, Bleu Arc. While I can confirm that the stories about him are indeed true since I was present when it all occurred, they were usually embellished and more often than not presented inaccurately.
Not that they are further from the truth however, he is genuinely one of the most exceptional Huntsmen to date; being able to prevail against the worst of Grimm, bandits, criminals, terrorists, zealots and even unspeakable eldritch beings. Remnant would have suffered a terrible fate without his vital and significant contribution, but unbeknownst to most people, he is also his own worst critic, as he always was. Everyone was able to acknowledge his accomplishments, save for himself, he tends dismiss them as nothing more than a result of luck, coincidence, instinct or an error on the opposition's part and he often emphasizes on his shortcomings to the point of believing himself to be a cowardly, manipulating fraud and an occasional thief who's primarily motivated by self-interest. Admittedly, I once assumed this notion but only because I was admittedly arrogant and prideful at my younger years. Eventually, I mellowed up to him and was even shocked to learn of his insecurities and ulterior motives.
However, it is clear to me that he was simply too humble for his own good. Contrary to his own self-deprecatory beliefs he is the most compassionate and altruistic person I have ever met and I testify this as someone who personally know him longer than anyone save for his own family members. I have witnessed his compulsive apprehensions noticeably fade away overtime as he willingly puts himself before others in life-threatening situations where he could have easily withdrawn from. Thus, putting me in the conclusion that his claims and excuses to downplay or even deny his efforts were nothing more than his lack of self-esteem that he had always been suffering from since his childhood. Therefore, accounts of his heroism remain veracious, and that is to say nothing of the fact that the acknowledgments of his own imperfections have made him one of the most sincere heroes worthy of the title. It is said that courage is not the absence of fear but the triumph over it, and there is no other individual that I know of that is more courageous than Jaune Arc.
Before his recent disappearance, he entrusted me with a series of journals that he has been writing for almost his entire life. Unlike his published memoirs which are mostly written based on the public's perception of him, these are written in a candid manner and present the events as they actually transpired, barring some missing information and his rather sardonic descriptions based on his personal opinions. I've taken the initiative to edit them and create a compilation of these accounts in his honor and for me to reminisce as well as so readers may gain insight on Jaune's peculiar take on heroism. I shall henceforth name it "The Jaune Archive". (Please note that I am aware of the wordplay in the title and I want to clarify that it was completely unintentional on my part, but fitting nonetheless.)
While the contents are detailed enough for itself, keep in mind that these accounts were written in Jaune's own viewpoints. As such, he has a tendency to leave omissions and discrepancies while describing events with his own personal biases, occasionally even outright lying about them. So I highly recommend you to take his own writing with a pinch of salt, especially during his attempts to describe himself. Fortunately, I took the liberty to add annotations and occasional excerpts from various sources to provide clarity, context and better coherence to Jaune's self-centered narrative for the reader's convenience. That aside, I shall allow him to tell his story with his own words.
Before we begin, I would like to give a cautious reminder to the readers; due to the amount of sensitive and confidential information included in this accounts as well as to ensure public stability and Jaune's reputation as an inspiration for Huntsmen, these documents are strictly classified for the time being, with only a select few individuals granted to have the authorization to read. Any violation is punishable by international law.
The first volume of this archive will cover Jaune's life in Beacon Academy, as well as the friends and enemies he made along the way.
Weiss Schnee
Chief Executive Officer, Schnee Dust Company™
Chapter 1
Beginning of an Arc
"Blessed art the cowardly, for they know the perils of the world. Whereas the brave would foolishly storm toward it."
-The Book of Light, verse 276
Every time I look back on my childhood, it's almost impossible not to have the urge to strangle my younger self for all the stupid things I did. One particular memory is when I was stargazing with my family and saw a shooting star. They told me that if you make a wish when one passes, it would eventually come true. Being the naïve child I was, I wished to become a hero like my parents. Not an unusual wish, I know, but my family came from a long line of renowned heroes with almost everyone in it having some sort of Huntsman-level skill so it was only natural for me to have that wish.
That was before I grew up, wised up and took back what I wished for. I realized that being a hero wasn't as glamorous as the stories like to paint it as. Instead of going on exciting adventures, becoming rich and famous on the way, they are more likely to end on suicide missions no one else wants to take and end up dying in the worst ways possible, and will be remembered as another shameful causality that everyone is going to eventually forget. If they do survive it usually means they are fit to die in another suicide mission in an never-ending cycle until they stop, realize that it wasn't worth it and retire while they still could, preferably with all their limbs still attached to them.
The efforts of the so-called heroes barely change anything; even if they do, they are eventually undone which would render them pointless in the long term. The only reason why my parents are still alive despite being known heroes is that they were smart enough to choose to live a modest life after getting their titles and only take jobs that don't guarantee their children getting orphaned.
Face it, we're stuck in a never-ending war with Grimm, who already outnumber us ten-to-one, and they still keep growing every second. These are creatures that are attracted to negative energy that people had to sleep with guns under their pillows in case Grimm finds them for simply having nightmares. Even if you do avoid them, you still have to deal with bandits and terrorists, who are arguably worse and are rampant around civilization. It wouldn't be so bad if the kingdoms weren't so above their heads that they're still on each other's throats ever since the Empire fell. The world just wasn't worth saving; at best, we'll only be able to delay the inevitable.
Therefore, I have decided that a hero's life was not for me and chose to stay with my boring yet safe life at home as another lazy teenager. Just fool around, play video games, read comic books, maybe help with the farm whenever I feel like it, and not waste my lifespan by trying to be something I'm not and will never be. Most people didn't even know that Caiaphas Arc had a son anyway and my status of obscurity didn't bother me that much; it kept me away from trouble so there was no real reason for me to complain about it.
That didn't stop Dad from training me and unlocking my aura though, since it was mandatory for Arc family members to be trained and have their aura unlocked, regardless if you're pursuing to become a Huntsman or not. Because Remnant is a dangerous place and mommy and daddy won't always be there for you. That, I can at least understand, it's a pain to look after eight children while living in a countryside that is occasionally riddled with Grimm. And honestly, I had no issue with getting my aura. I'm aware that it's the manifestation of the soul, something which the Grimm are attracted to, and thus making you a magnet to them, but they would still want you dead regardless and if something wants to kill me, then I might as well last longer with this invisible force-field covering my physical body.
As for Dad's training—I've managed to do well enough to survive against Grimm on my own. Perhaps I was too good because training became increasingly challenging with Dad holding back less and less. I managed to beat him several times, enough to make him believe that I was Huntsman material, even though I never believe that I fought like a Huntsman since I mostly just fought like a normal person who only used the more superphysical abilities made possible by aura when they are absolutely necessary, which isn't exactly strange since Dad used to fight like that too. [1] After all, there was no point in showing off when you're barely making a scratch to your opponent. He told me to keep it up and that my childhood wish would indeed come true someday. I assured myself that he was simply making a figure-of-speech and all that wish nonsense with the shooting star was just a silly superstition and I shouldn't worry about it becoming true anytime soon.
And to my horror, it kind of did.
It all started with a day like any other, I was trying to mind my own business when Dad told me to make myself useful and run for some errands at the nearby town of Podunk. Since I had nothing to do because the holonet was down that time due to the CCT being under maintenance and that Rouge hid my comic books again and I couldn't bother to waste time and sweat searching every inch of the house just to find them for the umpteenth time, [2] I accepted the task and headed towards Podunk. I had no reason to worry then. Podunk was a small and boring town with nothing interesting ever happening there. Life there was the same every day. People go to work while others stay at home and children would play on the streets, all that kind of stuff. The Grimm don't even bother attacking the place because of how little negativity its denizens are experiencing, which almost makes the existence of it's wooden walls almost pointless that no one seemed particularly worried when it was struck down by lighting the previous night.
Little did everyone including myself knew that it wouldn't be a typical day for long.
When I went to the bank to withdraw some money, a man in a mariachi outfit and a decorated skull mask with four other masked men came out of the blue and declared a robbery. The local authorities weren't able to do anything because as it turned out, they were held captive in their own office shortly before the heist took place, not that they would be much help even if they weren't though, as they are not prepared to handle a crime like this when they are used to peace that they get paid for literally doing nothing. Since the CCT was inconveniently down, no one was able to call for help.
When they opened the vault, the guy in charge of the hostages got carried away with the money they discovered, I took this opportunity to knock him out and ran to the exit. I managed to escape the down and my pursuers until I ended up running into an Ursa—not just any Ursa, but an Ursa Major, so I turned back and ran to town with the Ursa following me.
I really didn't know what I was thinking at that time, I was too busy panicking to even care that I put the town in even greater danger. Thankfully, most of the locals were hiding indoors when it all happened and those who weren't at least did not get caught into the fight. The rest of the bandits came out of the bank and they all tried to engaged the Ursa. Three out of five bandits were killed, including the leader, who was trying to murder me with his billhook machetes/shotguns, but I was able to fend him off thanks to Dad's intense training. He was then mauled by the Ursa because he was too occupied trying to at least land a hit on me. By a stroke of luck, I somehow managed to decapitate the Ursa and lived to tell the tale. The surviving pair of bandits were routed out and were eventually found and arrested by Pucelle's sheriff department.
Next thing I know, the town regarded me as a hero who simultaneously foiled a bandit and Grimm attack, when all I did was run around defending myself from anything that tried to come near me. The bandits got thwarted mostly because I was stupid enough to lure the Ursa into town instead of running anywhere else. If I had known that they were about to raid Podunk, I would've stayed at home. But I knew that telling them that won't do any good, so I just nervously smiled, waved and went with the flow.
Becoming a hero was just a stupid childhood dream when I wanted to be like my parents and the comic book heroes I used to look up to. One of the reasons I gave up the dream is because I realized that I will never be worthy enough to become one. I never even cared about being selfless and altruistic, it was just the thrill and the adventures that used to get me interested in becoming a hero; saving lives and fighting evil were just excuses to make me feel good about myself while becoming famous and beloved in the process. Now I found myself getting those things and I can't help but feel bad about it.
I'm just glad the whole thing is over and that I'm still in one piece. Unfortunately, word about my 'heroics' went viral and almost immediately after the CCT went back up, someone posted a video on the holonet of me fending off the bandit leader and killing the Ursa Major. Even worse when I realized the bandit I just defeated was one of Vacou's most wanted by the name of 'El Segador', so not only I managed to save Podunk by beheading an Alpha-Class Grimm—but I also got an infamous bandit lord killed without knowing who he was. Why he was in the northern part of Eastern Sanus, raiding small villages with no significant value was beyond me. [3]
It didn't take long for the Headmaster of Beacon Academy: Ozpin, to take notice of my recent exploit, he was impressed enough to recommend me to his school which my father horrifyingly concurred. I've been trying to avoid combat schools for all my life since I wasn't interested in sharing classes and compete with bloodthirsty nutjobs, fight the worst monstrosities in Remnant while everyone casually watchesand ndure hours of boring lessons before giving you piles of tedious homework. For the past few years, I've successfully convinced my parents that they were not worth my time and that I was better off being home-schooled and have them personally train me instead. Besides, half of my sisters, Viola, Verte, Blanche, and Noire didn't have to go despite being skilled enough with their auras unlocked.
Sadly, I won't get the same results in this one because Beacon was not like other schools, it was one of a kind—the most prestigious combat academy on Sanus, only the best of the best have the privilege to study there, which is why I don't believe that belong to that place. But Dad decided that I wasn't going to have my 'talents' wasted on me sitting around the house for my whole life and took the opportunity to accept the offer, effectively making one of my worst nightmares come true.
I discovered that Ozpin had been interested in me even before the Podunk event. Dad used to be one of his pupils and kept in touch with him. They talked about me and my sisters so he must have told him how I was able beat him in enough mock-battles to be qualified for Beacon. So even if I didn't go to Podunk and cross paths with an angry mariachi musician and have an Ursa tear him apart then slay said Ursa, he would have still dragged my ass into Beacon. The recent incident was just the last nail in the coffin.
It didn't help that everyone in my family pressured me to go. Dad was noticeably worried at first but he saw a lot of potential in me as a Huntsman and he doesn't want to see them get wasted on nothing. He begged me not to have his only son let him down. Dad was a good man, he was always there when I needed him and this was the only way I could repay him after everything he's done for me. I would have hated to see him upset. So in order for me to cope with my fate, I'll just have to treat it like a normal school—just with blood-sports and dangerous field trips, it can't be that bad.
Right?
In all honesty, I didn't actually mind attending the stupid academy itself that much. I can take hours of boring lessons just fine, it helped that they are said to be more bearable than normal classes and that even includes combat training. I have at least picked up a few experiences to catch up with those subjects. So the only thing I had to worry about were the dangerous missions that contain live Grimm and other hostile wildlife that becomes more dangerous as the years go on, especially with the name I've unintentionally made for myself since they would believe that I was capable on fighting those things. So I could only hope that I have competent teammates that would do all the heavy lifting that I don't want to do without having to expose myself as a wimp who never actively fought Grimm outside of a few unfortunate events.
My dad bestowed upon me the Arc family sword—the Crocea Mors. A sword once held by my great-great-grandfather, Harry "The Flash" Arc, who fought during the Great War [4]. Passed down from generation to generation, it was a symbol of Arc Family honor. It witnessed many conflicts and slew countless amounts of men and beasts alike, yet it still looked like it was fresh from the forge. Mom also handed me her old, yet fully functional and effective shield—The Désir Ardent, it was once a simple steel heater shield with the crest of the Valleé family, now it's painted to have the Arc family crest and was modified to be transformable to a scabbard for the Crocea Mors.
I felt ashamed of carrying the weight of these valuable relics, I've never truly done anything that made me worthy of their possession. Was it because I was the only Arc child who bothered using a sword and shield and that my parents decided to give them to me so they wouldn't have to stay in one place and collect dust any longer? Whatever the reason was and regardless if I deserved them or not, they're mine now.
Before taking the airship to Vale, I gave my parents a hug and waved my sisters goodbye. After almost all my life, I was finally leaving my comfort zone. I am going to miss our time as a family together whether it's Dad's training, Mom's comfort, Bleu's lessons, Viola dressing me up, farming with Vert, shooting with Rose, helping Blanche and Noire with their music; heck, even suffering from Rouge's antics. While we would still keep touch via video message, it just won't be the same.
As the airship lifted off. I gave one last wave to my family through the window as I watched one last Pucelle's landscape while I still could. This was a place I've called home for my whole life and I prayed to whatever gods that this won't be the last time I see it.
This was not the day I waited for.
=o=
1. Caiaphas Arc was known to be one of the most skilled living swordsmen on Sanus. The fact that Jaune managed to defeat him a few times in duel was impressive enough on its own, something which he rarely acknowledges likely because it contradicts his own belief that his fighting ability was only average at best.
2. The Arc family manor is rather huge, having two floors with 20 rooms. It's understandable why Jaune chose not to spend any effort to search for his comic books.
3. According to police reports, El Segador was supposed to meet for a face-to-face trade with members of the infamous Mistrali Yakuza, The Twin-Dragons Syndicate. He arrived far ahead of time, so he went on a crime spree, taking advantage of the state of the CCT. After his death and the apprehension of his surviving accomplices, the Yakuza ship he was supposed to visit was raided by the authorities and seized all of the assets inside it.
4. The Crocea Mors was originally the personal weapon of King Phadrig the VII prior upon recompensing it to Harry Arc after the war and becoming an Arc family heirloom.
The trip to Beacon was not a comfortable one.
It wasn't because I was anxious that I was going to a school where teachers would try turning you into a killing machine through rigorous training and boring lectures, but it's because of an old enemy of mine—motion sickness. The first few hours weren't so bad. Dizziness aside, I thought that I would be able to get used to it, then I got a grim reminder that air travel doesn't get along with my weak stomach. I've been struggling to hold my vomit for hours and the lack of restrooms aren't helping. Apparently, some moron on the airship manufacturing company thought it would be a hilarious idea not to add any lavatories despite long travel times and instead spend the rest of the budget on holo-screens. They didn't even bother to add any waste containers either nor a single open window where I could just release it there and let an unlucky schmuck get hit by an aerial assault. Thanks a lot, bastards; good luck getting eventually sued over this.
"Hello and welcome to Beacon!" A female voice greeted via hologram. It was a sign that I was close to finishing that nightmare of a flight, which was a relief. I paid attention to the message, hoping that focusing on something else would slow down my nausea. "My name is Glynda Goodwitch. You are among a privileged few who have received the honor of being selected to attend this prestigious academy!"
Which I never wanted in the first place. I felt bad for all the idealistic idiots who dreamed to get in here only for them to pick me instead. They would have made better Huntsmen than I would, even if they would last for only less than five seconds on the field. If I didn't care about trying to preserve my family's honor, I would have gladly traded this position with one of them and let the responsibilities of glorified pest control be their problem while I enjoy whatever boring empty lives they have.
The message continued. "Our world is experiencing an incredible time of peace, and as future Huntsmen and Huntresses, it is your duty to uphold it. You have demonstrated the courage needed for such a task, and now it is our turn to provide you with the knowledge and the training to protect our world."
If your definition of courage means running around and getting a crime lord killed only because you forgot that you brought a Grimm into town, then I fit just right in.
The hologram faded and everyone went to the windows to check the view, meanwhile, I was back with my losing battle against motion sickness. I tried to restrain my vomit for a few more minutes before I could arrive at Beacon. But alas, I came to the point where I couldn't hold it any longer. So I gave up and let some of it out before stopping. I swallowed it back and panted for air before holding it out again. I saw that my pool of bile ended up hitting the shoe of an above-average looking blonde girl, who was being accompanied by a short girl with a red and black dress that looked popular for teenagers in a goth phase. Both of the girls were shrieking out of disgust and are withdrawing from the puke. Knowing that they can kick my ass at a minute's notice and not because I think girls take their shoes seriously, I slinked towards the corner of the ship, not caring about the disgusted remarks being made by other attendees.
I'm going to file a complaint to the airship manufacturers after this.
After a few minutes which felt like an eternity. The airship finally stopped and opened its doors, the first thing I did after exiting the ship was quickly unload the rest of my vomit in the nearest garbage bin before getting up and panting for fresh air. I'm a son of a well-respected Huntsman who is also a former military commander, and I have said to be the one who saved a humble town from a ruthless bandit lord and an overgrown Ursa that even fully-trained Huntsmen struggle to defeat... and the first five seconds in Beacon has me throwing up in a trash bin. Not exactly the best way to start your school year as the Savior of Podunk or whatever they call me. After finally departing from a lengthy battle with nausea, I took a moment to relax and headed to the courtyard to give my first impressions of the academy.
I stopped in the middle of the tracks to appreciate the academy's structure. I heard people say about how beautiful Beacon is and I've seen pictures of the academy itself but I was not prepared to be astounded by its beauty in the flesh. It truly did earn the moniker, 'The Shining Beacon' as it almost looks out of place of being located next to city of Vale, the world's capital for bad teeth and manic sports fans.
Now I'm no expert when it comes to architecture but Beacon looked more like a palace than a school. If it didn't call itself an academy, you could easily trick someone into believing that royalty or an evil wizard or dragon lives there. Then again being one of the most prestigious academies in the world gives you the privileges of rubbing your glamour on the other schools' faces, or it's just another example of Vale clinging on to their romanticized past of chivalric knights, castles, princesses and such. Now with that being said, the architecture is quite remarkable, it almost makes me forget that this place would probably be the death of me.
My gaze was rudely interrupted when I heard what sounds to be an explosion. I was only here for barely a couple of minutes and we're already having them. I turned around and saw the short goth-looking girl from earlier being yelled at by a regal-looking girl clad in white. The only thing I heard when the first girl called the other a princess or something before another girl entered the scene. This one had long black hair and wore the most oversized bow I've ever seen on the top of her head. Gods, and I thought those only existed in silly cartoons. The girl in white angrily took something from her before leaving. [1]
"I promise I'll make it up to you!" the gothic girl in red cried out to her, who was probably pretending to not have heard her. She sighed and turned to the other girl, only to see her walking away as well. All alone, she sat down and fell to the ground.
I got to admit, that girl in black had a pretty nice hind. I found myself mesmerized by it while she was leaving before I snapped out of it and realize that the girl in red an black was still miserably lying on the campus floor. I felt somewhat sorry for her, I know what it feels like to be left out. Besides, if I were to survive four years here, I needed someone to watch my rear. So I assumed 'nice guy' persona that I have been practicing for a while now as I walked over to her and helped her out.
"Hey," I called out, she opened her eyes, revealing her silver irises, something which I never seen before. "You okay?" I asked, offering my hand.
She smiled and took my hand and rose. "I'm fine. Just having a rough start."
"Happens to the best of us." I said with a friendly smile to gain her trust.
She paused for a moment before recognizing who I was. "Wait, aren't you the guy that threw up on the ship?"
Well, that could have been worse.
=o=
1. It was just one of the dust vials that dropped after Ruby fell on my luggage. I had my servants take care of the rest.
We headed inside the academy's walls together. As we were walking, I tried to convince her how serious motion-sickness is, how it's a more common problem than people think and why it's not my fault that air travel makes me nauseous.
"Look, I'm sorry. Vomit Boy was the first thing that came to mind. I didn't quite get your name," she excused.
Oh right, I thought. We haven't properly introduced ourselves to each other. With that out of the way, I gave out the cheesiest introduction I could think of: "Well, the name's Jaune Arc. Short, sweet, rolls off the tongue, ladies love it!" Okay, that was a little too cheesy than what I was aiming for but seeing her unconvinced face, it worked.
"Do they?"
They don't.
Instead of answering, I gave out a shrug. It's not like that I'm going to convince her that ladies always fall for guys because of their cheesy pick-up lines or because they act suave like some Atlesian super-spy. Mom said that women don't work that way.
"Names Ruby, Ruby Rose," she perkily introduced herself.
"That's a pretty name," I replied brightly. "I have a sister named Rose, you kind of remind me of her sometimes." Come to think of it, it's funny to see that having generations of parents name their kids after colors, which caused some kids to have the same name. I know at least four people named 'Amber, 'even my mom's name is a derivative of it. [1]
Ruby smiled for a second but I noticed it turn upside-down. "Look, Jaune... I'm sorry for calling you 'Vomit Boy'. I guess I was coping with the fact that my sister ditched me and that other girl yelled at me because I caused that explosion... might as well call me 'Crater Face', huh?"
I'm still confused on why she would call herself 'Crater Face' though, because last time I checked—there weren't any craters I saw after the explosion. Now that I think of it, either my eyesight was failing me or the gods were lazy today.
Because of the awkward atmosphere, she decided to change the subject. "So… I got this thing." She pulled out her weapon, opening it out into a sniper rifle with a short scope. "This is my rifle. There are many like it but this one's mine," she presented proudly, cocking the charging handle before further expanding her weapon as it unfolds the curved blade beneath its barrel and then abruptly stabbed the ground, making me flinch slightly as I try not to think that she picked a farming tool that was meant to harvest crops of all the weapons to choose from. [2] "And it's also a scythe."
Of course, nowadays all the cool kids have a weapon which can turn into a gun, which ranges from plausible and practical (for example, Bleu's halberd rifle and admittedly El Segador's shotgun machetes.) to stupid and downright ridiculous that it begs you to ask what were they thinking when they were designing them and what gave them the idea that it would even work in cobat. There was this one guy who had a laser yo-yo as a weapon, while his weapon doesn't transform, it begs to ask what was he thinking when he designed that crap. Let's just say he became too crippled to become a huntsman. This is why I was never a big fan of these types of weapons, they'll only cause more problems than it would solve, and the more complex they are, the more painful they are to maintain which is why I prefer simple and conventional weaponry that even a child could use.
I'm not sure what to think of a large mechanical scythe that could transform to a long-ranged weapon though, but considering she managed to get into Beacon, she probably made it work. Well, at least that's what I think, I really hope that silly thing doesn't end up becoming a liability.
I tried to sound as enthusiastic as I can. "Oh, that's cool!"
"So what do you got?"
I gulped for a moment since my weapons are pretty boring compared to others, then again I wasn't planning to impress anyone. "Well, I got this sword," I unsheathe the Crocea Mors and gave it a twirl. An elegant weapon for a more civilized age, as some may call it, but that's about it.
"Ooooohh!" She seemed impressed for whatever reason despite my weapon being arguably the dullest armament in an academy full of crazy hardware that I might as well brought a rusted shovel as my weapon.
"And I got this shield" I took out the Désir Ardent and raised it to its shield form. Basically the closest thing I got to a transformable thingamajig.
"So, what do they do?"
"Well—the sword… kills things." I know it's blatant it really was the only answer I could think of. "And the shield gets smaller when I'm not using it," I said while demonstrating it and putting it back on my belt. "And before you ask, yes it still weighs the same." I have pretty much gotten accustomed to its weight since I used to carry shields that were just as heavy.
While it's nothing much to be proud of, I was happy with my choice of weapons. The simplicity of the sword makes it very useful, effective and easy to maintain. They're also still pretty common even if only a few people use them today, so if you lose your sword, you can easily just replace it with another one. As for the shield, it plays a crucial part in defense, and as for someone who values his life, the shield is my most trusted friend on the field of battle.
"Well, I'm kind of a dork when it comes to weapons," she giggled. "I guess I did go a little overboard when designing it."
"That's nice. I never crafted my own weapon." I didn't have much of a reason to. I haven't attended any combat schools which would have required me to craft one. Besides, why bother making your own weapon, when there are several well-made weapons for you to use?
"Oh? So where'd you get it?"
"It's a hand-me-down. My great-great-grandfather used it to fight during the war."
"Sound more like a family heirloom to me!" she chuckled. "Well, I like it! Not many people have an appreciation for the classics these days."
"Yeah... the classics," I muttered, putting my sword back to my sheathe.
"So why'd you help me out back there? In the courtyard?" she asked as we continued to walk.
I thought for a reason before coming up with one. "Eh, why not? My mom always says, 'Strangers are just friends you haven't met yet.'" I lied. Mom actually told me to never trust strangers, especially the suspicious-looking ones.
"Hmm..." Ruby hummed. "Hey, where are we going?"
I didn't realize we were wandering around blindly until she brought that up. "Oh, I don't know. I was following you."
They didn't exactly give me a map or anything, they just told me to get to the auditorium once I arrived. We found ourselves lost inside. There wasn't a directory or some recognizable landmark we could as a reference.
I looked around for a clue and in a distance, I saw a tall, athletic, redheaded beauty who caught my attention. I squinted my eyes and leaned my head closer to take a good look at her. She looked kind of familiar, have I seen her before? I couldn't tell. She was curiously looking around before walking away.
"Uhh, Jaune?" Ruby waved her hand in front of my face. "Are you okay?"
I snapped out of my daze. "Let's follow her," I pointed towards the tall redhead. "I think she'll take us to the auditorium."
We began to trail her. We were able to be discreet that she didn't realize she was being followed by two lost weirdos. She led us to a large building before being pulled over by a group of people who seemed to recognize her. She continued to enter the building while being followed by the said group.
"Well, this must be it." I declared. We went inside the hall and saw an entire audience of soon-to-be Grimm fodder, waiting for the ceremony to begin. Just by looking at everyone, I realized that I looked somewhat out of place. Everyone looked like they're dressed to kill (or simply impress since a few of them looked like anime rejects), meanwhile my "Huntsman outfit" simply consisted of my everyday outdoor attire with some armor on. I could only hope that this didn't make me look like an easy target.
"Ruby! Over here!" called out the blonde from earlier whose shoes I vomited on. Her appearance was distinct enough that she stuck out like a sore thumb among a crowd that might as well be a bunch of faceless silhouettes. "I saved you a spot!"
"Oh, hey I gotta go. I'll see you after the ceremony!" Ruby then left for her blonde friend.
Sweet girl, her optimism pretty much brightened my day. It's a shame that she's throwing her whole life for a dangerous profession that increases your chance of death, in a world that already wants to kill you. I hope things go well for her, and I mean it, really.
I looked around the auditorium and spotted the redheaded girl. I walked towards her side, pardoning myself from the people standing in the way until I got next to her.
"Umm... hi." I approached shyly.
"Hello," she graciously greeted me back.
The ambience around us suddenly felt awkward, the only thing I could do was continue the small talk in order to keep my first impression of her from becoming worse. "Nervous?"
"I guess you can say that."
"So, mind if I ask for your name?" I saw her emerald eyes widened when I asked her that. Was there something I missed?
"Pyrrha Nikos." she noticed me fret and assured me. "It's fine. There's no harm in asking."
"Uhh... okay... thanks. Ja-Jaune Arc. Pleasure to meet you, Pyrrha." I offered my hand.
"Likewise." she accepted the gesture and smiled.
"Look, sorry if I bothered you. It's just... you looked familiar, and I just wanted to get that out of my system."
"Don't worry about it. In fact, it feels nice for someone not to recognize me for a change," she said, suggesting that she is rather popular, which explains why she was swarmed before entering this place. I'm kind of glad that the same thing didn't happen to me, given what I have been recently famous for.
I checked to see how Ruby was doing and saw her being scolded by that girl in white again, it was clear that she ended up making an animosity with someone. What's her problem anyway?
"…Like tall, blond, and scraggly over there." I heard her say to Ruby, apparently pointing her thumb back to my direction. I wasn't quite sure if she was talking about me, I mean I wasn't the only tall blond in the crowd. But I figured that any questions would have to wait because our opening ceremony was about to begin.
Enter The Great & Powerful Ozpin[3] – the man responsible for trapping me here. Turns out, my little joke about an evil wizard living in Beacon wasn't far-fetched. Beside him was the woman from the hologram in the airship–Glynda Goodwitch, if I'm not mistaken. Not exactly bad-looking for a teacher but she's a little too old for my tastes and I prefer women that don't have any wrinkles in their faces.
He approached the microphone and spoke. "Ahem" Everyone in the room turned to him. "I shall keep this brief. You have traveled here today in search of knowledge, to hone your craft and acquire new skills, and when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people."
Heh, you wish.
His speech then became a little more blunt, much to our surprise. "But I look amongst you, and all I see is wasted energy, in need of purpose, direction..." he gave a subtle glare at me as if that remark was directed towards myself. Considering that Dad told me almost the same thing, that's probably the case. Nobody was able to notice this because they were too busy murmuring on what the hell he's talking about.
He looked back at the crowd and continued. "You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far." The way he was speaking, it felt like a lecture for me disguised as an opening ceremony for the school, and I'm not sure if I should feel offended or not.
"It is up to you to take the first step."
He turned back and left as Miss Goodwitch stepped up. "You will gather in the ballroom tonight. Tomorrow, your initiation begins. Be ready. You're dismissed," she announced before leaving as well.
Normally, I would still think of something witty, but I just stood there, trying to comprehend if Ozpin just called me out in front of the entire school.
I was able to stop spacing out before Pyrrha was able to see me in my bewildered state. "That was... strange." she was visibly just as perplexed as everyone else.
"You tell me," I replied, hiding the frightened tone in my voice.
I remembered wanting to ask what was with Ruby and that other girl. "I got to go, it was nice knowing you, Pyrrha."
I walked straight towards her position, interjecting between their conversation. "Hey Ruby, is there something wrong?" I turned my head to the girl in white to finally get a good look at her, I once again found myself in a gaze. She was actually quite beautiful than I expected. Her silver hair was nicely complemented with a side ponytail that's pinned with something that resembles a tiara. She had light blue eyes with a scar on the left that made her no less graceful. Her body was a little petite, right down to having a modest chest, but I can't help but think that it adds to her angelic appearance. Maybe she really is an angel. I never believed in love at first sight, dismissing them as ludicrous nonsense popularized by mediocre romance novels... until now.
...Then I took it all back after she opened her mouth.
"Yes, there is something wrong!" she answered before Ruby could say anything. "Your idiot of a girlfriend almost got us killed!"
I slightly flinched. There goes my plan to ask out this pretty if irritable white-haired chick. She may look like an angel but from what I've seen so far, she acts far from it. "Whoa, okay first off, I am not her boyfriend and second... who are you?"
In contrast to Pyrrha, she did not take kindly to that question. "Have you been living under a rock?!" She yelled before toning her voice down to a proud manner. "I am Weiss Schnee, heiress of the Schnee Dust Company."
Cool, and I'm the vice-mayor of Who-gives-a-crapVille. I'm familiar with the Schnee Dust Company, or the SDC, for short. It's that Atlesian company that has their name everywhere from tall, glamorous buildings to cheap, disposable plastic bags you see littered on the streets. I just couldn't bother to know what's beyond their company name and products. I rarely use dust myself in a practical sense.
"The name's Arc, Jaune Arc. Pleasure to meet you." Well, it was a pleasure for maybe like three seconds.
"Now with that out of the way, would you kindly tell your friend to be more careful around dust?! I don't need her causing more property damage." [4]
"I'm sure already she apologized and promised not to repeat it again." I said, hoping there weren't any hard feelings despite her repulsive attitude, especially for someone with a pretty face as that. "And if that's wasn't enough then I would also like to apologize on her behalf."
She groaned and decided to change the subject. "I noticed that you've made your acquaintance with Pyrrha Nikos..." she folded her arms. "Do you have no idea who she is as well?"
Oh no, I could see where this was going, I thought. "Well... she looked kind of familiar. No, I can't say I heard of her though."
Her eyes widened in a mixture of disbelief and befuddlement as if I said something that is absurd. "Excuse me? You really don't know who she is?!"
I simply shook my head. In my defense, just because someone was famous it doesn't mean I should make a big deal about it.
"She graduated top of her class at Sanctum!"
"Never heard of it," There are a lot of academies with their own pretentious-sounding names that I couldn't bother to keep track of them all even if I were familiar with them.
"She's won the Mistral Region Tournaments four years in a row, a new record!"
"The what?" I know what Region Tournaments are, of course. They were just something I couldn't care less about.
"She's on the front of every Pumpkin Pete's Marshmallow Flakes box!" [5]
"Wait, that was her?!" That one, however got my utmost attention. I couldn't give a frack about who she is and what school she goes to, but her being The current mascot of the latest edition of Pumpkin Pete's Marshmallow Flakes makes me feel like I found the meaning of life. It's no wonder why she looked familiar. Ever since her face was slapped on every Marshmallow Flakes box, I've been trying to ask: 'Who is this chick and what is she doing on my cereal box?' before immediately moving on and just ate its contents. It didn't bug me again until now.
"So, after hearing all of this, do you really think she deserves your time?"
I was already aware that I was out of her league the moment I saw her fans surround her. I didn't plan to go on the trouble of arguing with some short-tempered pseudo-princess any further, so I just told her what she wanted to hear. "I guess not."
"Good. Speaking of which, why am I wasting my time with you imbeciles? Now if you'll excuse me, I shall make my leave." she said before walking away.
Sigh, it's one of those girls. I decided to annoy her one more time before she was able to make her exit. "Oh, and just for the record, I'm a natural blond."
"Whatever."
Well, aren't you a ray of sunshine, I chuckled to myself.
"You alright, Ruby?" I turned my head to her.
"I'm okay. We just set off on the wrong foot, I'm sure she'll be nicer soon! After all, strangers are just friends you haven't met yet!"
Oh Brothers, I was worried she'd take that advice to heart.
"Hey," Ruby's blonde companion called. "Thanks for sticking for my sister there—wait a minute, are you Vomit Boy?!"
I was too occupied with why she just called Ruby her sister to be disturbed by that nickname. I can tell that she is definitely not living that one down.
"The one and only." I jested. "It's Jaune Arc, by the way. Sorry for throwing up on your shoes, motion-sickness and all." I did my best to maintain eye-contact and not have my sights fall toward her 'distracting assets' that she shamelessly left open for everyone to see. Thankfully, living with seven sisters helped me prepare for this type of situation. She kind of looks like Rose, sans the twin ponytails and the country-girl accent, instead she had hair that looks like it was never cut once in her life. [6] Despite that, it didn't make her any-less attractive. One upside I could mention was that this academy has a knack of attracting rather fine young women.
"Hey, don't sweat it, it's water under the bridge. Besides, any friend of my sister is a friend of mine. Yang Xiao Long, nice to meet you."
"Good to know, you said you two are sisters?" I curiously asked, she barely had any physical resemblance to Ruby and they don't even use the same surname for whatever reason.
"Well, half-sisters. We have the same dad but we were born from different mothers." Yang looked down as they both frowned. It didn't take a genius to know that there was something that happened that they would rather not talk about. With that, I could only give them my sympathies.
"I see. Sorry for asking, I get a little curious sometimes." I apologized.
"It's okay, I didn't want to leave you hanging." She reassured, cheering up as if we forgot what our previous conversation was all about.
"Hey, Jaune." Ruby called. "Thanks again for standing up to me there."
"Just helping out a friend,"
"Man—can you believe that Weiss girl? She's such a bi-...very irritating person." Yang hissed, apparently refraining from calling her with something more vulgar.
"She's rather cold, don't you think?" I chimed in with a grin, partly joking about how she was noticeably from Atlas with the way she's dressed and speaks and how the temperature seem to drop at her presence. It could be because of my Atlesian blood from my father's side but I know a person from Atlas when I see one.
She laughed. "That's my line, Vomit Boy. Anyhow, it was really nice to meet you. We'll catch you later, right now we wanna tour the rest of Beacon."
"Be seeing you, Jaune!" Ruby said.
"You too, Ruby."
After I parted ways with the sisters, I went to the ballroom where I would apparently be staying in until tomorrow. As I entered, I saw some students unpacking and unfolding their sleeping bags while others were just sitting down and chatting.
So far, no one has recognized me as the Podunk guy yet, despite it being all over the news the other day. I did get a few glances, but they don't appear to be intrigued by my everyman appearance. Maybe they do recognize me, but they didn't see what I did as much of a feat—being capable of slaughtering Grimm is a minimum requirement here after all, so it's probably overshadowed by all the much more impressive stunts actual Huntsmen and Huntresses pull. Not that I'm complaining, I'd rather be known as 'Vomit Boy' than have someone remind me of my embarrassing fraud of a reputation.
"Ren, look! It's Jaune Arc, the Defender of Podunk himself!"
Oh, for crying out loud.
Before I knew it, an orange-haired girl dashed towards me and repeatedly shook my hand with her tight grip. "Hi, my name is Nora. I'm a huge fan of your work. You were awesome! How often do you see someone defeat an Ursa Major and a bandit lord at the same time? Oh, you got to tell me your secrets." she babbled, still shaking my hand. I was trying to process what she all just said.
"Calm down, Nora, I think he's a little tired from his trip." A raven haired boy with a single pink stripe said as he catches up with his friend.
"Oh, I'm sorry." Nora apologized, letting my hand go as she stepped back. "It's just a huge honor to finally meet you. This is Ren, well, Lie Ren, but everyone calls him Ren. Nobody calls him Lie, it sounds too much like 'Lie' as in 'lying'." [7] She giggled before slowing and toning her voice down as she turned her face to Ren. "No offense."
"None taken," he said without ever changing his tone and expression.
She turned back to me and began to babble loudly once again. "We've been together for soooo long, well not 'together-together', not saying he's handsome; he IS handsome, but that'd be just weird, right?"
"Umm... right." It was the only thing I could say at the moment, not really knowing what to expect anymore.
"Well, enough about us! Tell us about you! How did you save an entire town from an Ursa Major and that big meanie, El Segador?!" she asked with an eager grin.
I was worried I have to answer questions from my apparent fans as if being interviewed by journalists and the Great & Powerful Ozpin weren't trouble enough. So I just went with the half-truth. Something which I could rely on when all else fail. "I don't know how I did it honestly, I just... did it."
She doesn't seem to be disappointed at that answer at all. "Wooooow! So you're telling me that you are so amazing, you just simply defeated them like it was nothing? Awesome! Even Ren and I have a little trouble beating a few bandits and a single large Grimm, you on the other hand, just put them in their place like it's nobody's business! You are more hardcore than I thought."
That's obviously not what I meant, but with someone like this, what else could you do? "It's nothing, really, I was very lucky it went that way," I responded. Remember that Señor Skeletor would have killed me if it weren't for the Ursa I accidentally lured into town, otherwise, I would not be making this encounter, let alone write this very line at all.
Ren finally spoke again after letting Nora do most of the talking. "Still, you have to admit, it was impressive. The authorities have been after El Segador for years; not only you stopped a robbery, but you succeeded in where everyone failed. His clan wasn't the same since his demise."
"Yeah, it kinda does," I replied. I really need to get out of this, I thought. It felt uneasy when discussing that fiasco. "Listen I got to go, thanks for the support."
"Anytime!" Nora said.
Well, that was bizarre. Now I have an adoring fan on the same campus, honestly, I don't know how to feel about that. I do feel ashamed because she is praising me for something I only did because I didn't know any better, but at the same time, she seemed so happy that I didn't want to disappoint her. This was only a couple of my fans that it's almost hard to imagine what the others would be like.
I chose not to think about it. I've met enough people with varying quirks and personalities who I will apparently be stuck with for the next four years that I needed a break.
=o=
1. An unfortunate side effect of the colorful naming convention that remains a problem to this day, while common names were a thing before the Rainbow Revolution, the first batch were mostly named after basic colors, which provided almost no variety and causing bureaucratic problems and confusions around the world where it would be eventually dubbed as the 'Rainbow Crisis'. Ever since then names referring to colors have become more diverse but even then, some of them are still overused, especially with less creative parents.
2. Ignoring the fact that scythes have been proven to be effective melee weapons, and the existence of war scythes, which while different from regular scythes, still prove that they can be used as weapons.
3. Jaune had nicknames for everyone he holds distaste with, though he was careful enough to keep them privately. One exception would be me, but it was because everyone called me nicknames at that time, which I admittedly deserved.
4. Friendly reminder that The Schnee Dust Company™ is still not responsible for any injuries or damages sustained while operating a Schnee Dust Company™ product.
5. Amusingly, Pyrrha actually disliked the cereal despite saying that she enjoyed posing for the box.
6. A correct assumption. Yang takes her hair very seriously. In fact, she unlocked her semblance at her first attempted haircut. Needless to say, Taiyang Xiao Long had to pay for the damages.
7. Many people assume that Lie Ren's naming order is 'surname first, given name second' due to him hailing from Anima, where some parts follow that naming order. It's soon confirmed that this is not the case for him and that he is often addressed through last-name basis, intentionally or not. Not that he minds at all.
If there's anything more embarrassing than my undeserved reputation, it's my choice for apparel for the night—A light blue adult-sized onesies, accompanied with bunny slippers of the same color. Anyone starting in elementary school would deem wearing these discomfiting which I barely felt until now because I never thought of wearing these outside the house.
In my defense, I have four legitimately good reasons for wearing this ignominious excuse of a nightwear: One, its fabric is too comfortable not to wear. Two, my other options are so much worse, that I left them at home. Three, people thinking its childish and being repulsed by it is not my problem at all. Four, I can wear whatever I want and no one is telling me otherwise. Harsh language isn't going to change that considering I've experienced worse things that I still wonder how I even got this far in my life.
I know I could have just slept with jeans or with boxers on at least but wearing jeans in bed is rather uncomfortable and there's no way I'm showing my heart-patterned boxers in public, if I am to make a fool out of myself anyway, I might as well get comfortable.
What I should be worried about instead of whatever stupid thing I wear, was the initiation. There was no doubt that I have to impress The Great & Powerful Ozpin by going through trials that he himself has set up. So I sat in the corner of the locker room and waited for it to be cleared of any potential eavesdroppers before calling the most intelligent trustworthy person I know who has previously attended Beacon. If there was time I could use advice from my older sisters then it was certainly now.
Bleu appeared on my scroll's screen, wearing her dark blue nightgown. I haven't seen her much in person since she was too busy teaching at a Huntsman academy on Mantle which was enough to show that she's tougher than she looks when you remember that place is filled with everything wrong with urban cities that I couldn't imagine that it used to be a kingdom before the war ended. And she was greeting me with a bright smile no less. "Hello, Jaune! How's Beacon treating you?"
"Not as bad as I fear it to be, sis. I even made a few friends, it's tomorrow's initiation is what I'm worried about."
She seemed to be more focused on a familiar sight. "Are you seriously wearing those in public?"
"Do you want me to show them my other 'pajamas', if you call them that?" I snidely replied. With little I had to say, she already knew what I was talking about.
She audibly sighed. "Fair point, but you really need to buy some new pajamas. Viola was starting to wish she didn't design them like that. Seriously, you don't have a reason to be lazy this time."
Well, I planned to. I always had the feeling that Viola only made these so that everyone at the house could stop cringing every time they look at me at night and made them cozy enough to keep me from wearing my old PJs, knowing that I wouldn't care what I look like so as I at least relatively bearable to look at. I admit it's partly my fault by not telling Viola to make me a less embarrassing sleepwear, then again I got too comfortable with the onesies that I forgot to ask. "Don't worry, I'll work it out. Anyway, can you give me some details about the initiation tomorrow?"
She raised her brow. "You want me to spoil the initiation for you? Doesn't that ruin the excitement?"
I scoffed that remark. "The only thing that would be exciting about it is when it ends."
"And why would I do that?" She chuckled. "Even if do I tell you, The Great & Powerful Ozpin might have made changes to the initiation after these years." She had a point, I must admit. Since she was in her early thirties, it has been a decade since she studied here.
"I'd say it would still be worth it, every little bit might help even if it's outdated. You wouldn't want your only brother to die a shameful death on the initiation, would you?" I told her. I was able to bully her into doing what I want several times before and I'll do it again, and I wasn't going anywhere until I get it, and she wasn't very good at resisting it.
She rolled her eyes. "Jaune, you're not getting killed—I've seen what you can do, you'll be fine."
"I almost died to an Ursa and a group of bandits!"
"...And you didn't." she retorted. "Seriously, do you think that father trained you all for nothing?!"
That widened my eyes a bit. It was then clear that self-deprecation won't get me anywhere other than further arguing, so I had to give her another reason before I had to deal with another pooh-pooh talk about my exaggerated accomplishments. "I just wanted to be prepared this time. All I just need is a little heads-up, that's all."
She sighed again. "Knowing you, even if I refused, you would still stubbornly hold out for me, would you?" She looked like she gave up in trying to make me think otherwise, which was good news for me. "Fine, at the very least, you'll learn something from this."
It appears that I finally got to her again. Some things just never change; being an annoying little sibling has it's own perks. She took a deep breath before explaining. "The initiation will take place at the Emerald Forest. You will be launched into the air and you will have to land with your own landing strategy. You still have one right?"
I remember during Dad's training, I would sometimes be thrown off a cliff without a parachute just so I could work on my landing strategy. If it wasn't for my huge aura reserves I would have died or at least be very severely injured on my first few attempts. [1] This was one of the things I was rightfully worried about and I wanted to be prepared as much as possible this time. "Just like we practiced at home." I nodded.
That caught her smile. "Good. Now about the Grimm, you have not much to worry about. Usually, the forest is just full of Beowolves, some Ursa and if you're very unlucky, a King Taijitu. It's nothing you can't handle. Besides, like I taught you back at home, King Taijitus aren't that bad if you aim for their heads." [2]
I gulped at the latter. Even if they are not as tough as they appear to be, their appearance alone was enough to give me a series of nightmares. I already hate snakes like most people with a functioning brain do, and them being two-headed giant snakes makes them even more terrifying. it didn't help that Rouge kept trying to scare me with them every time we visit the bayous. Now I was regretting on not bringing a ranged weapon so I didn't have to deal with them up close. "I hope you're right about this."
"Oh Jaune, as bitter as ever... You're not being rude to your new friends are you?"
"Of course not. I am a lot of things, Bleu, but being a straight-up jerk isn't one of them." Well, I at least tried not to be one.
"Good, because you'll be paired with the first person you make eye contact with, they'll be your partner for the next four years; if you want to get through Beacon, you will need to trust one another." [3]
I thought of Ruby and Pyrrha for a second. So far those two are the most ideal candidates for being my companion during our first exercise that probably wouldn't have a shortage of uncertainties. "Anything else?" I asked.
"Your objective is to retrieve a relic, your team will be formed depending on the relic you took." She took a deep breath. "I've said enough. Take it with a grain of salt though, it's been a while and some these might now apply anymore. Most importantly, keep this between us, okay?"
"Don't worry. I will. Thanks a lot, Bleu."
"You're most welcome—and Jaune, please don't push yourself too hard," she said before ending the call. I got to give it to Bleu, she had yet to let me down, even if I did doze off at some of her lessons. She's always known to be the reliable one, practically carrying us Arc children. I wouldn't know what to do without her.
I exited the locker room and made my way to my futon. I reminded myself of my questionable apparel, while I still do find these embarrassing, it actually didn't bother me that much. I don't care how people see me so long as they don't intend to give me any serious harm. I would gladly exhibit my childish apparel for kicks. However, most students were fast asleep, and those that weren't were too preoccupied. The only person who witnessed my crime of fashion was Yang, who was gazing at some shirtless boys, I spoiled her eye-candy by walking through her line of sight. Her smile quickly turned into a cringe as I grinned at my own mischief. Sadly, that was the only reaction I got when I reached my futon. The boys she was staring at didn't seem to mind at all for some reason, maybe they were crazy enough to think that was normal, I don't know.
Still, it was worth it. I needed a little fun. It was one way to cope with being in a school to become a killing machine in a world that hates your guts. The people I met here are surprisingly friendly and decent, aside from a certain snotty corporate brat. Not to mention, the girls were beautiful too, I wouldn't mind spending four years with them. But I shouldn't be too attached to these people, in case something goes terribly wrong, and this being a school for Huntsmen and Huntresses and all. We'll be going through hazardous terrors to see if we're good enough and the initiation tomorrow will only be the beginning.
Perhaps I'm thinking this a little too much, they did manage to get themselves into this prestigious academy, after all, it's myself that troubles me—I'm nothing like them, I'm only here because of sheer chance and stupidity. I'm worried that I'm going to slow them down because of my cowardice and unwillingness to become a Huntsman like them. The fact that I was trying to make them believe that I was some lovable idiot to get them to be protective of me didn't help.
Why not get expelled? I didn't want to be here after all. Yeah well, the problem is, Dad would not only be disappointed in me, but it would also leave my family name an ugly reputation. Staying out of the radar was the only thing and we all know how that turned out. Rouge, for all her flaws, at least managed to graduate to Beacon, even if she did eventually lose her Huntress license, she wasn't pursuing to be a Huntress anyway since she only attended to stay out of trouble for a little while. Although even if she's not the worst person I've met, I'm not going to stoop lower than her and dishonor my family, so I'm going to have to get through Beacon while making sure my hide is safe and avoid being too impressive that teachers get the wrong idea and send me into dangerous missions because of it,, then I can go home and go back to my peaceful, boring life. It's the least I could do, I'm not going to let Dad down after everything he's done for me.
I sighed and took a deep breath. Only time will tell how well my life in Beacon goes, I'm still barely twenty-four hours here and I needed to get some sleep.
I took one last look at the shattered moon before falling into slumber...
...
...
...
Before it was interrupted by loud sounds of female squabbling.
"What in the world is going on over here?!" I heard a certain Ice-Queen yell. "Don't you realize some of us are trying to sleep?"
"Oh, not you again!" she then exclaimed in unison with Yang, without any regard for everyone trying to sleep in the room despite the former's scolding.
I groaned. It's going to be a long year, I thought.
=o=
1. The Arcs are well-known for their large aura reserves, making them very durable fighters.
2. King Taijitus are infamous for their huge and menacing appearance, however, their fragile heads made them less threatening to any experienced Huntsmen. This is due to being one of the few Grimm specimens not to bear a mask on its face.
3. Contrary to popular belief, partnerships are considered null after the initiation and students are often encouraged to treat all of their teammates equally. This has not stopped many students, and even some staff members from various academies, from believing that partnerships during initiation still have some relevance during the duration of their school year(s), with some minor academies even implementing it as part of their official system.
Well, there you have it! The second chapter should be out shortly, it's at least 90% by the time this chapter is published.
Jaune's father obviously is based on the titular protagonist this fic is inspired from as if his name didn't give that away, while his mother is a combination of Joan of Arc and Amberley Vail (where Jaune's blond hair and blue eyes inherited from.) (EDIT: I renamed Joan to Amberlynn, since she was becoming too much of an Amberley, that I decided to name her after her. That and I wanted to deviate from stories where Jaune has a relative named Joan.)
And yes, El Segador is based off Overwatch's Reaper in his Mariachi skin. And no, some of Jaune's sisters, namely Vert, Blanche, and Noire aren't intentional references to Hyperdimension Neptunia, I have yet to play those games myself.
Whether you enjoyed the fic or didn't, please don't forget to leave any feedback.
EDIT 12/9/2018
(SPOILERS FOR V6 CH7)
No, I am not renaming Bleu (or any of Jaune's sisters) to Saffron/Saphron, whatever her name is spelt. This story is already AU before the first episode even started, which means you can stop searching for retcons now.