A/N: I should be studying for finals right now, but oh well. Here's another chapter! Let me know what you think.

Laws of Attraction

For the rest of the journey north towards the temple ruins, the pair talked of little but Jaune's newly unlocked Aura. As they tromped through the forest, Jaune slipped and fell numerous times due to his clumsiness; but every single time, his Aura would stitch up his small cuts and bruises before they could even fully take form. And, every single time, the pair had to stop as Jaune watched his body glow white slightly, his Aura protecting him.

Although his awe started off as cute, after a while, it began to drain Pyrrha's smile. "Jaune, we do have to keep going," she murmured when he paused for the umpteenth time to watch a scrape on his finger heal. She cast her gaze upwards, squinting as she took in the position of the sun. It had already been a few hours- and although the sky was still fairly clear, there was a roll of cloud coming in from the distance.

They did not have the time to dawdle; not anymore.

Pouting, Jaune hung his head. "I know, I'm sorry," he replied. "It's just so cool!"

"Jaune, where did you go to combat school again?" she asked, concerned. "I just don't really understand how you didn't know what an Aura was. Even civilians are aware of it, even if they lack control of their own powers."

Immediately, the blond shut down, biting his lip and picking up the pace. "Nowhere big, Pyrrha," he responded nervously. "It was just a small place near where I grew up, is all. It makes sense that they never really taught us anything like that…"

It still doesn't make any sense, though, she thought to herself. Before she could press the issue, their trek ended abruptly when they finally broke through the trees, standing before the gaping maw of a rock cave.

Instinctively, Pyrrha lowered her center of gravity, Miló in hand and Akouo facing forward. There was something so sinister about the dark entrance, a faint breeze coming through the opening occasionally, carrying with it the scent of damp, mildew, and something… rotting. She slowly approached it, but something caught her eye, stalling her in her tracks.

There were images painted around the entrance- most of them were faded with time, but a few still remained visible. She put away her weapons as she examined them, and as she took in the strange drawings, unease quickly took over her heart.

Giant beasts, with tails and fangs and spikes so large they could topple buildings with one swipe, faced off against tiny men, each armed with weaponry… each one visibly losing their own fight. She didn't know what the drawings had to do with their location, but she didn't want to know. It's time to leave.

"Think this is it?" Jaune asked innocently, not noticing the faint images upon the rock. "I mean, it sure looks like where you'd find a secret temple ruin."

"They said nothing about 'secret' ruins, Jaune," she murmured, the discomfort in her chest growing steadily. "I don't like the look of this place."

"Oh c'mon, Pyrrha!" he waved off her concern, carefree. "This totally would be where they could hide the entrance to some old temple shrine. Haven't you ever played an RPG before?"

She groaned, not following his logic in the slightest. "No, I don't know what that is- but Jaune, I seriously don't think-"

And Jaune was already at her side, holding a long branch in hand. Wrapped around the end of the branch was a handkerchief, tied tightly into a knot. He smiled wide, looking at her expectantly.

"Jaune… what is that?" she asked, exasperated.

"It's a torch!" he explained enthusiastically. "I figure it'll help!"

"Jaune," she cried, frustrated at his lack of awareness, "do you not see the drawings? We must've taken a wrong turn somewhere-"

But he was already skipping towards the cave, completely unaware of her growing fear. "It'll be fine, it'll be fine," he repeated. He pulled a small lighter out of his pocket, setting the cloth aflame, and then walked straight into the looming darkness.

She buried her face in her hands, the towel-caped figure no longer cute in her mind. She had always been bad at convincing others to listen to her, at commanding people- but to think that even Jaune wouldn't pay her warnings any heed… There was something wrong about this situation, and as naïve as Jaune was, Pyrrha would not tolerate any actions that could completely jeopardize their safety.

Still, the blond's torchlight was slowly fading away as he explored further down the path, so she grit her teeth and ran after him. The worst thing she could do right now was to get separated from him while he was alone in there.

It only took a moment to find him, and the pair began to walk through the narrow tunnel, their footsteps echoing. The torch only served to illuminate the immediate path, the visibility only lasting a few feet before them. And, as they continued down the damp cave, it was clear to the redhead that there truly was no man-made formation in the vicinity. "I'm not sure this is it," Pyrrha insisted uncomfortably, keeping her hand near Miló. "Something's not right."

Jaune sighed, frustrated by her warnings. "Pyrrha, I made the torch. Could you at least humour me for like, five more feet?" Out of nowhere, Jaune's body went down, landing with a heavy bang as he tripped on a jutting ledge. The torch flew out of his hands, and Pyrrha had no time to react, her eyes forced to watch the stick spiral through the air before it landed in a small puddle.

Suddenly, darkness overtook them, the sounds of Jaune's groans and the sizzling of the extinguished flame filling the air. Eyes unused to the darkness, Pyrrha closed her eyes, focusing on her hearing. She could sense Jaune getting up beside her, so she placed a gentle hand on his shoulder- but she could also feel something else.

The air wafting their way, the breeze that had been noticeable even outside of the cave… it ebbed and flowed, like waves in the sea. Even worse, it was moist, heavy, and the further they walked down, the more prominent the rotting stench became, the more the temperature rose.

Either we're near the worst hot spring, or this isn't going to end well. "Jaune, do you… feel that?"

Jaune was paying their surroundings no mind, still focused on his mishap with the torch. He bitterly answered, "Soul-crushing regret?"

"No," she replied, eyes still closed. "It's… warm."

Jaune stilled, turning slightly under her hand. "Warm? That means…"

Pyrrha straightened her shoulders, raising her chin, expression neutral. She opened her eyes, feeling her pupils dilating as they adjusted to the new lack of light, and in a moment she was able to make out a few shapes in the shadows. "We have two choices," she explained sternly. "Turn back, or keep going."

"Either way, we're in the dark, huh?" Jaune groaned. "And I dropped my lighter. Dang it."

"Do you always have a lighter on you?" she asked, curious. "I hope you don't smoke."

"No," the blond replied, and she could feel him shaking his head. "I like candles, okay? Let it go."

She snorted, but her expression stayed neutral. In the darkness, there was no safety. But once Jaune got an idea in his mind, it was clear that she would not be able to convince him to change his path- the only choice she had was to go along with whatever he decided, to make sure he didn't die. Slipping into her battle mode, she stated, "Make up your mind, Jaune. Leave, or keep going?"

"Let's just… keep going. We might as well," he said simply.

She nodded, pushing him forward lightly. "Then let's go. It's not good to just stand here. We don't have time."

And so, the two began to walk forwards once more, albeit far more careful now that they could no longer see their path. Every step was smaller, more hesitant, as they tested their weight before moving, hands running along the walls to guide them. Her senses were on high alert, ready to take down whatever entered their path. Even Jaune seemed more focused, slipping and falling much less than previously.

Occasionally, she would reach a hand up to try and touch the ceiling, but she never came into contact with anything. This worried her- the ceiling had always been just out of reach when they had entered the cave. How large could this cavern be? What could it be hiding?

Suddenly, a small glow entered their field of vision up ahead. Jaune jumped, excitement making his voice tremble as he called, "Did we do it?"

Before Pyrrha could stop him, he ran forward until the glow turned into a large shining object before his very eyes. "That's the relic!"

Something's not right with all of this, Pyrrha insisted internally, but she simply lowered her stance and readied herself to fight.

With careful hands, Jaune reached out to grab the glowing point, but out of nowhere, the object moved away from him, just out of reach.

What?

Still focused upon the glow, Jaune muttered, "Hey! Bad… relic!" He stepped forward, grabbing at it once more but he missed again. Annoyed, he jumped, wrapping his arms around the object. "Gotcha!" he cried triumphantly.

"Jaune…?" Pyrrha worriedly called. And, true enough, all her worries were validated as Jaune's entire body was lifted into the air, far above the cave floor. The cavern was clearly far more massive than they had thought, as he soared far above her, unable to control his path as he clutched the 'relic' for dear life. His body was slowly lowered a few metres away from Pyrrha, until he was dangling at two metres above the ground.

And then, glowing red eyes confirmed all of Pyrrha's foreboding, as a Death Stalker opened its eyes.

"Hold on!" Pyrrha instructed, immediately turning tail. Jaune let out a piercing scream, his voice reverberating through the entire cavern, filling it with echoes- but just as quickly as his voice grew, the feral cry of the scorpion-like Grimm sent the blood rushing to Pyrrha's head.

Hold on, Jaune, she thought, breaking out into a sprint. There was no more time for caution- with the light of the Death Stalker's tail, she could make out the various rock formations blocking her path far enough ahead so she could avoid them. Deftly dodging each barrier, she let her Semblance shine, pulling her weapons into her hands, ready for the ensuing fight. I've got to get to open ground. Repeating that one thought over and over in her mind, she eventually made it out of the cave and into the daylight once more.

An explosive bang filled the clearing, chunks of rock flying around her at breakneck speeds as the Death Stalker burst through the entrance of the cave, demolishing the existing arch. It snapped its claws after Pyrrha, roaring menacingly. Jaune still hung desperately from the tip of its stinger, screaming in pure fear.

"Help! Whoa-ah-ah-ah-ah! Why?! Pyrrha! He-e-e-elp!" he sobbed, gripping onto the stinger as the monster flailed to and fro, trying to get the boy off its tail.

She skidded to a stop at the edge of the treeline, spinning to face the giant creature watching her with its glowing eyes. In the sunlight, the true might of the beast was clear for her to see. Runes and patterns marked the white exoskeleton of scorpion, grass dotting the pale bone. It had clearly been living in that cave for years, judging by the moss clinging to its deadly claws- but as her old professors always used to say, an old Grimm is a smart Grimm. And a smart Grimm could be death.

As it roared, the scent of rotting flesh filled her nose, turning her stomach, but she swallowed her dry mouth and held her ground, drawing Miló into her hand in its sword form.

"Pyrrha, this is not the relic! It's not!" As he continued to cry and squeal from the monster's movements, Jaune called, "Do something!"

Her eyes darted around the beast, quickly coming up with a plan. If she used its claws as a springboard, she'd be able to jump up and snatch Jaune off the monster's tail. As long as he manages to hang on, at least, she thought worriedly, watching her partner scream in terror. "Jaune! Whatever you do, don't let-"

But before she could finish her sentence, the creature wound up its tail and catapulted Jaune across the forest to the east. His screams echoed as he soared through the air, until he was too far away to hear.

"-go," she finished, her mask breaking. At least Jaune should be safe now, she thought, turning back to the Death Stalker. As if patiently waiting to have her attention back, the monster just sat there, hissing and snapping its claws in anticipation. It was just them now.

With an awkward smile, she scratched the back of her head in embarrassment, waved to the creature, and bolted off eastwards into the trees. Jaune had been flung in that direction- the distant gunfire had been in that direction. For sure, she'd find another new recruit somewhere along the way.

I've never faced a Death Stalker alone before, she commented internally, and I'm not planning on doing so today. Even she had her limits.