Why hello there, and welcome to this new idea I've come up with as a way to clear my stress from my finals.

Stay strong people, we'll all get through this together!

But in the meantime, why not take the time to read through this first chapter of my first story.

Right from the beginning, I'd like to start by saying that this will be a loose adaptation of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess with RWBY characters. I'll try to stay close to the plot of the game.

Special thanks to my friend gamer4 for pestering me enough to convince me to write this. And lastly, The Legend of Zelda is the property of Nintendo while RWBY is the property of Rooster Teeth and Monty Oum (may he RIP).

Now, let us start…

Prologue - As Dusk Sets

It was the beginning of dusk and the only thing on his mind was just how peaceful this place was. The sound of running water falling down cascades helped soothe his worries and stress while reminding him of his younger years when he would play with his friends or train with his mentors. The spring was secluded by a few rocky hills covered in their fair share of foliage, with the only openings being a hidden crawl space and an open part where the wooden gate was left ajar. A gentle breeze would blow throughout the spring, passing through the gate and slightly moving it on its hinges. With the sound of the wind blowing past his ears and lightly ruffling his hair and that of the running water acting as his lullaby he could feel himself nodding off. Maybe he could catch a few minutes of sleep that he -

"You start snoozing on me and I'll throw your ass to the spring."

Or he could just get up and go home so he wouldn't have to deal with the bastard that was his mentor.

"Really Sunshine? One little spar and you're ready to hit the hay?"

"Cut it out Qrow. Yang kept me busy the whole day trying to get those stupid goats back in the barn."

An amused scoff was the only answer Jaune would get for his complaint, so he slowly got up, leaving a handprint behind in the sand. As much as Jaune would've loved to rest at the spring, he knew that Qrow's threats were not to be taken lightly.

He could still remember the incident involving Zwei and the honey.

Just as he was heading back home, Jaune realized he left his training sword by the spot where he was resting, the wooden block laying on the sand with its only companions being the Jaune shaped indentation on the sand and a distracted Qrow watching the water flow.

"Do you ever feel a strange sadness as dusk falls?"

"Huh?" The question was so random that it caught Jaune off guard, whirling around to face the old man.

Whether or not he heard the boy, Qrow continued regardless. "They say it's the only time when our world intersects with theirs. The only time when we can feel the lingering regrets of spirits who have left our world. That's why loneliness always grows in the hour of twilight."

"... Old man, have you been drinking so much that you start talking philosophical? I wonder just what you've been terrorizing the village with."

Qrow's smirk was back on his face as he registered what Jaune said. "Well, this 'old' man is wise enough to know you're growing sloppy and need more training. At your rate, I wouldn't be surprised if your nephew surpassed you."

"As if, you'll most likely be using that sword as a cane by the time Adrian starts training."

"Keep dreaming kid," Qrow replied with a scoff, bending down to pick up his sword from the sand.

After retrieving his sword, Jaune followed Qrow out of the spring and they both made their way back home.

Now, if Patch were to be described by an outsider then a few choice of words would come to mind, ranging from small, unsafe, to even empty. While the village wasn't as big or exciting as the other towns on the other side of Remnant Jaune couldn't help but feel happiness and pride as he thought of only one word, 'Home.' Considering he's lived here ever since he arrived with his sister all those years ago he believed he's entitled to being a little biased.

Patch was formed of a total of four wooden buildings set up as the houses for the village's residents. A lake overlooked the village from the east side with smaller streams running throughout the town to connect to the larger body of water, its overabundance of fish being a good food source. At the edge of the river closest to the entrance was a cottage owned by Qrow and his wife, alongside a smaller building that served as a store run by their daughter. On the other end of the river was a larger house with a great field pumpkins ready to be harvested. If the field wasn't enough to identify the house, then maybe the moving water wheel run by the lake would be enough. Farther down the road and across from the water wheel house was town mayor's house, with a path behind it leading directly to Patch's signature goat barn, run by the mayor's daughter. The last house of the four was the most interesting due to how it wasn't actually a house, but a tree left hollow on the inside and refurbished into an actual home.

"DAAAAAAAAAD!"

The high pitched scream left his ears ringing, and when he finally recovered enough to check his surroundings he found Qrow on the ground with a moving red cloth over him.

"H-hey Ruby." Qrow responded with a voice strained and dry in an attempt to get a word out after their collision. Keeping an arm around her, Qrow used his other hand to lift himself, and by extension Ruby, off the ground.

As if summoned by her daughter's cry, Summer Rose was slamming the door of her home shut and rushing to greet her daughter and husband.

Summer and Ruby Rose Branwen looked so alike that one could mistake them as siblings instead of a mother and daughter. From their facial features, to the red highlights on their black hair, to their silver eyes, to even their fascination over wearing hooded cloaks, Summer's being white while Ruby's is red.

Reaching her husband and daughter, Summer giggled over what she must've known to be Ruby glomping Qrow at high speeds. Seeing them occupied and Jaune alongside them, she turned to address the boy.

"Jaune! There you are. I'm glad to see Qrow didn't overdo it with your training. Despite how I'd win almost all of our spars, I'm glad he's doing a good job with mentoring."

"Excuse you, I'm not the one who resorted to using tricks to win."

"Yet you were still fooled by the same trick more than twice. But that's ok, 'cause I still love you my dumb, strong bird."

"'sigh' Love you too, Shortstack."

At this point, Jaune decided to give them some privacy and turn away, knowing how mushy those two could be. He wasn't the only one with that idea, since Ruby started making gagging sounds and hiding her face behind her hood. In an effort to spare them both from more embarrassment, he brought her closer to the river.

"So, how's it been running the shop now that your mom's… you know…?"

"She's pregnant Jaune, not sick. And it's not too hard to run the shop by myself." Ruby slowly started loosening her posture and slouched down. "It's sooooo boring though! My only company is Zwei, and he always runs off once he realizes I can't play with him. Oscar usually comes over, but even then he only asks me questions about the shop. And worst of all, I can't go train with dad or focus as much on making weapons! Do you have any idea just how many ideas I have in my head that I can't work on because I have to watch over the shop? Why did we even need someone to watch over the shop?! We could just have Zwei stand guard! It wouldn't even matter because everyone knows everyone in this town and we don't get any visitors! What's the point of watching over the store if no one's going to rob it!?" Ruby finished while throwing her hands to the air, blaming whatever god would listen for her lack of free time.

Jaune had slowly started backing away, letting Ruby make her rant and letting her get it out of her system. His nerves flared up, knowing that despite how rare Ruby's temper rising was, it wasn't wise to become a target of said ire. He racked his brain for anything to say to calm her down. "Well, if it makes you feel any better, neither Yang or Pyrrha showed up to train either. They both focused on the goats and Milo."

Jaune knew those were the wrong words to say as soon as he felt a shiver run down his spine while Ruby slowly turned her head at him. With the way her hood still covered part of her face and the fact that she wasn't completely turned in his direction, it looked as if she only had one eye pointed towards him. Yet the glare pointed in his direction was enough to have him step back in fear regret ever opening his mouth. Having been on the receiving end of it multiple times growing up never dulled its effectiveness.

"You mean to tell me… that you had Dad all to yourself… for the whole afternoon…"

If voices were forces of nature, then Ruby's would've been a tornado that had no trouble tearing through anything in its path. Jaune could see all his mistakes and regrets taking form alongside the red devil before him. His instincts kept screaming at him to kneel before her and beg for forgiveness while his mind thought of how many cookies it would take for him to buy her for-

And just like that, it ended as Ruby closed her eyes and sighed. Jaune blinked as the world came back to him. Color assaulted his vision, the greens of the trees and the orange of the sunset filled his sight again. The sound of water running and a loud bark (wild guess on whose) going through his ears and registering in his brain. Once he got himself in check, he realized he was halfway to a kneeling position. He got back up, covering his face so Ruby wouldn't see the blush on his face.

"... Either way, I did manage to squeeze some time to finish that fishing rod you asked me to make you. It should be ready tomorrow once I finish painting it."

" R-right! O-ok then. Thanks for that Rubes."

He was about to turn and head back when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Hey Sunshine, mind if we have a quick word before you go?" Qrow asked with Summer following behind him.

"Alright. See ya tomorrow Jaune!" Ruby exclaimed while making her way back to her house.

"Alright, did you need something from me Qrow?"

"Yeah. Jaune, I need you to do me a favor."

Hearing this, Summer couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at Qrow's strange request.

"Tai asked me to deliver an iron sword that Ruby crafted to the Royal Family. I'd have to travel all the way to Mantle at Atlas to deliver it, but I want to catch up on Ruby's training. Mind helping me out?"

"Qrow!" Summer exclaimed while glaring at him, "You can't just shove your assignment on him like that! He's not an errand boy that's available whenever you need him! He must've already-"

"I'll do it."

"-had plans for-... What!?" Jaune's agreeing to Qrow's request caused Summer to lift her glare on Qrow, unknowingly causing him to immediately feel relief. "Jaune, you don't have to agree if you don't want to."

"It's ok Summer, I can make the time to travel to Mantle and deliver the sword. I'll make sure to get it there on time and I'm confident I can defend myself against any Grimm or bandits!"

Summer wasn't sure on whether or not she should be concerned over how Jaune managed to say all that in one breath or how he was so excited he could rival Ruby's. Either way, Summer was reassured Jaune didn't feel forced on taking the sword to Atlas.

"Just let me know when you planned on taking it and I'll be ready Qrow."

"Don't get your small clothes in a bunch Sunshine. I was setting out a few days from now, so you still have some time. I'll let you know when you should start."

With that, Qrow lifted his hand up, which Jaune took as a handshake. "Thanks for doing this for me kid, I'll make it up to you once you return."

Jaune smirked "You said it old man, I'll hold you up to that."

"Oh, Jaune! Before I forget…" Summer's words brought his attention back to her, "Saphron was asking for you earlier. You should probably go look for her."

"Alright then. Thank you Summer, see you later Qrow."

"Bye Jaune!"

"Later Sunshine."

A few minutes after accepting Qrow's request and Jaune could barely hold his excitement. He couldn't believe it! This could be his first step in exploring the world. Of course, he's been to other parts of Vale and even to some parts of Mistral, but he's never gone farther than those areas. He wished to visit Death Mountain over at Mistral and meet a Goron, he wished to explore the deserted Vacuo desert and learn about who the Gerudo were, he even wished to travel all over Atlas. From the city of Mantle where the royal family to Lake Vytal and Zora's Domain. He's gone as far as to vigorously study the maps Qrow would bring back whenever he returned from missions outside the village, all for the sake of being prepared for when his opportunity arrived. Of course, he'd be limited to Mantle and the delivery came first, but baby steps are still steps in the right direction. But first, he still had family to visit.

Making his way to the tree turned home, Jaune knocked on the door and wondered about his sister and her family. He was brought back when he heard the door open and was met with dark brown hair and eyes. "Jaune!"

"Hey Tera."

While he wasn't as close to Tera as he was to Saphron, he still loves her and sees her as a sister, which should be obvious since she's his sister in law. After a quick hug and greeting, Tera let Jaune in.

Despite the size of the tree from the outside, the inside of the house looked spacious. A fire place was at the farthest stretch of the bottom room with a pot hung over it, most likely holding today's dinner for the family. Around the fire were cupboards holding any utensils needed for a kitchen. Sitting across from the kitchen was a wooden table with four chairs on each side, the wood itself being both thick and sturdy. The room was also decorated with a few sets of furniture, from shelves full of frame pictures of the family and even Jaune himself, to various other knick knacks that hold sentimental value. On the right side of the room was a staircase that ran along the walls and lead to the second floor. On it were two bedrooms, one for Saphron and Terra and the other for their young son, Adrian. Once upon a time, that room belonged to Jaune. However, once Adrian entered their lives Jaune offered to move to the treehouse near the entrance to the village so that Adrian could live in his. Even so, Jaune would always make it a point to visit Saphron and Terra and hang out with his little nephew.

"JAUNE!" "UNCLE JAUNE!"

One second after hearing the second highest pitched scream of the day Jaune knew what Qrow felt. Sometimes Jaune wondered if Saphron really was older than him, since there were times in which she'd act somewhat childish. While the clingy bear hug wouldn't reach the top ten, it would reach high on the list of childish moments she's had. Adrian could be excused due to him being younger, but he's starting to question on whether it's just a phase or if his mother is rubbing off on him.

Jaune attempted to hug both his sister and his nephew while twisting himself to get more comfortable from the sudden bear hug attack. All the while, Terra watched with amusement as her wife and son were one step away from suffocating him.

Traitor…

"So Saph, Summer said you were looking for me. What's up?"

"Do I really need an excuse to spend time with my baby brother? I'm certain you haven't eaten anything yet, so why don't you stay for dinner?" Saphron leaned in close to Jaune's ear and in the most sing song voice she could make muttered "We even made pumpkin soup…"

Trying to bribe me food sis? You'd be naive to think I'll fall for tha-

GRUMBLE

Why do you hate me gods? What did I ever do to deserve this?

At the sound of his stomach rumbling, Saphron's face got the widest smile Jaune's ever seen on her. "So it's decided!" she exclaimed while dragging Jaune to a chair. Despite everything, Jaune couldn't help but smile and wait eagerly for his bowl of soup.

Ah, that was the best soup I've had in a while. Maybe I should try to convince Tera if she can let me have one of her pumpkins, or maybe with Dr. Polendina. He does appreciate all the help he can get when it comes to his personal patch of them.

Jaune's thoughts kept drifting from ways to recreate Saphron's famous pumpkin to the dinner he shared with her, Tera, and little Adrian. As far as dinner conversations went Adrian kept it lively with his barrage of questions towards Jaune in regards to weapons training, riding on Milo, or anything else regarding Jaune's daily schedule. The boy was barely at his six years of age yet had been determined to learn how to wield a sword ever since he saw his Uncle Jaune take on a beowolf that snuck into Patch. While Tera was hesitant in letting Adrian learn to fight, Saphron convinced her that he would be safe and would thrive under her brother's tutelage, and Jaune already agreed to train Adrian when he came of age. Whether or not Adrian decided to pursue a career as a knight in the service of the Royal Family of Atlas or become a mercenary huntsman and join one of the four main guilds of Remnant would be his decision once he grew of age. Jaune also disclosed to the other three at the table that he would be making a delivery to Mantle, which let loose a variety of responses. Tera offered well wishes as well as telling him about about a few hotspots in Mantle from her time living there before meeting them. Adrian grew ecstatic and begged Jaune to let him go too. Saphron's response was also excitement, though not as vivid as her son's. She knew how much Jaune yearned to see the rest of Remnant.

As he was walking back home, he felt a hand take hold of his shoulder with a strong and firm grip. Turning around, he was met by lilac eyes and a mane of hair as golden as the rising sun.

"Hey Jauney, would you mind helping me ou-"

"No."

Yang Xiao Long let her jaw drop with all the grace of an Ursa, "Oh come on Vomit Boy, you didn't even let me finish."

"I already know it has something to do with the goats Yang."

"How are you so sure about that?"

Jaune's deadpanned look was her only response.

"... Alright, I get your point." Yang said while rubbing the back of her head in embarrassment.

"Alright then. Now that that's settled I'll be on my way back."

As Jaune turned around Yang grew a mischievous smirk as an idea formed in her head, one that would convince Jaune to help her with goats. If she lost anymore then her dad would take the lien from her savings to pay for those that went missing. Lost goats meant lost lien, and lost lien meant no Bumblebee, and she would be damned if she didn't get that gold coated mustang.

"Y'know Jaune, I just remembered a story about a kid who always loved playing hero. He'd always wear his superhero suit, a blue onesie and a bunny hood, and run over to the pumpkin patch all while shouting," At this point Yang's voice grew louder, "'Fear not, villagers of Patch, your pumpkins shall be safe for I am Pumpkin Pe-MMGGHFM?!'"

She couldn't even finish her story telling due to the hand covering her mouth which belonged to the mortified looking blond. His eyes showing a combination of anger, fear, and humiliation as he looked around to see who was around. Luckily for him, the only ones outside that could've heard Yang's Totally False Tales were Dr. Polendina and his daughter, Penny, and they were busy tending to his garden. Feeling a little relief wash over him Jaune turned back to Yang and whispered in her ear, "Fine, I'll help you again if you forget about that story and keep it to yourself."

Yang response was a rapid nod. She moved his hand from her mouth and took it in a handshake, "Pleasure doing business with you, Pumpkin Pete." She muttered that last part with the most shit-eating grin she could muster.

Jaune sighed. "Sometimes I really hate you Goldilocks."

"Love you too, Vomit Boy. I'll see you at the ranch!"

As Yang left, Jaune couldn't help but to formulate plans on how to get revenge on a certain sister of his, but alas, he had more work to do before he could go to sleep. In an effort to speed things up in his new task, Jaune decided to do the only smart thing he could think of at the moment.

"Hi Dr. Polendina, Hi Penny."

If one were to look at both Pietro and Penny Polendina, then they wouldn't believe they were father and daughter. With Pietro's white graying hair, brown eyes, and dark skin compared to Penny's orange hair, green eyes, and pale white skin, they'd be right to believe they aren't biologically related. The truth is that Penny was once an orphan who only managed to survive thanks to the older girl that would always be her sister that looked after her. Pietro happened to meet them when the older girl tried to steal a bit of lien from them. After learning of their situation Pietro decided to adopt them and raise them as his own, and they've been his daughters ever since.

"Well hello there Jaune." "Friend Jaune!"

Penny got up and rushed over to Jaune, tackling him in a hug. If Ruby could knock the wind out of him with her running tackle hugs, then Penny could definitely crack his ribs and spine with hers. Jaune sometimes wondered how such a tiny girl could hold such strength.

"Careful darling, you don't want to injure your friend again, do you?"

Hearing her father's words Penny released her hold on Jaune while sporting a blush that could rival her hair. "Oh, I'm so sorry Friend Jaune. I can never remember my own strength, but I just love to hug my friends so much and I always get so lost in my thoughts when I'm hugging them because I'm just so happy to see-"

Penny stopped rambling when she felt a hand on her head, "Don't worry Penny, I don't mind if you hug me. Just remember to check if your friends are still breathing once you're hugging them." Jaune said with amusement. He could never stay mad at Penny since she was always so honest and innocent.

At his response, Penny gave him her trademark grin with closed eyes, a face that could make even the toughest and manliest of Gorons coo in delight over how cute she was.

"It's always a pleasure to have you here Jaune. Now, to what do we owe the pleasure of your visit?" Pietro chuckled.

Once he processed Pietro's question Jaune remembered his reason for coming here, "I was actually looking for Pyrrha. Is she here?"

A knowing look passed through Pietro's face, and judging by his silence it was one that Jaune was too oblivious to notice. "You missed her a few minutes ago. She came back from her ride with Milo for a brush. She said she was going to the spring outside the village so she could wash and groom him."

Ah, that's perfect! She's close by so it won't take me too long to get there. Now I just need to think on how to convince her.

"That's great. Thank you Dr. Polendina, and bye Penny. See you later."

"Friend Jaune…"

Jaune turned to Penny upon her calling him. Noticing how she kept staring at the floor while holding her hands together, Jaune gave a nod and grunt of approval, letting her know that he was listening.

"Would it be okay if I accompanied you to see my older sister? I mean, it's ok if you say no and I'll understand but I haven't seen her all day and I was getting worried for her and I just wanted to reassure myself that she's ok and-"

"It's ok Penny, I don't mind."

Once upon a time he might have felt pressured to agree with her for the sake of not hurting her feelings, but after having known for years and growing to love her eccentricities, Jaune could say with certainty that he would always enjoy and treasure any time he made her smile.

"Oh thank you! Thank you! Thank you Friend Jaune!"

"Be sure to bring your sister back before it gets too dark Penny."

"Don't worry father, we'll be back soon!"

With that the two of them headed towards the spring in search of the other redhead.

Night was coming close and Jaune found himself at the spring for a second time that day. Well, he didn't have a reason to complain about returning there. Qrow may have believed it had something to do with the dusk and the feeling of sadness, but Jaune liked to believe that lingering spirits would find themselves in a place like this spring once they departed this world. He could already imagine it. An open field surrounded by small rivers and streams. At his feet he would feel the cool water that covered the ground for miles around his location. Waterfalls and cliffs would decorate the landscape at a distance, the sound of running water traveling through the air accompanied by the soft singing of angels.

"Oh, she must be singing to Milo."

Wait, Penny could hear the singing too?

Getting his bearings back in check he realized that, yes, he could hear the singing and it wasn't a product of his imagination. Following it to its source Jaune and Penny found themselves back at the spring with two new occupants. A stallion with a bronze colored coat so shiny it could pass off as gold and a girl with eyes as green as emeralds and hair as scarlet as blood.

Pyrrha Polendina closed her eyes while singing a three note lullaby to her horse. Their ride through the Valentian Forest was interrupted by a pack of creeps popping out of the ground. While Pyrrha did short work of them with her bow and arrows the creeps did enough of a job in spooking Milo. The horse was so frazzled that Pyrrha was forced to end their gallop and head back. She managed to keep Milo calm by singing her special song that she made for him, 'Milo's Song' (Shut up Yang! It worked at the time. Make fun of MY song when you make your own!). Once they made it back to Patch Pyrrha got her brush from home and took Milo back to the spring for washing and grooming.

"Sister!"

The unexpected greeting startled Pyrrha and she ceased her singing. Milo was also startled, but Pyrrha's quick thinking had her soothing Milo by speaking softly to him. Once he was calm she turned to hug and greet her little sis and her companion.

"Hey Penny, Jaune hasn't been mean to you has he? It'd be bad for him if he made you cry again."

"It was an accident Pyrrha, and it's been years!" Despite knowing she wasn't mad at him, Jaune couldn't help but shiver at her smile being a little too innocent.

"Jaune, are you going to just stand there or are you going to properly greet me?"

Deciding that, no, she wasn't mad at him, Jaune went forward and hugged Pyrrha, with Penny effectively squished in between them, but she didn't care because she was with two of her favorite people in the world so it's ok.

"So, what can I help you with Jaune?"

"Do I really need a reason to visit you?"

"You don't, but it would be easier for a friendly visit to be made during the day. You could have just waited until tomorrow morning to come visit me, so instead you need something from me." Pyrrha finished her statement with a smirk on her face, clearly knowing she was right.

Damn, she has me there. With a sheepish look, he faced her and asked, "Was I too easy to read?"

"No, it's just that I've known you since we were kids."

Jaune knew that she was right and that there wasn't anything else he could do to gain the upper hand, but no one could fault him for not being a quitter.

"Aren't you sure that I'm just here to see my most favorite person in all of Remnant?" He tried his best to imitate Ruby's wide eyed stare. If it helped Ruby with Qrow, then maybe it could help him with Pyrrha.

Other than a small blush from her cheeks Pyrrha didn't seem to be affected. Either she was immune or Jaune was really bad at it, especially with the way Pyrrha was looking at him with narrowed eyes and a frown on her face.

Oh no, she's mad!

"Jaune…"

"I-I… well, you see I… I was wondering if I could - it's ok if you don't agree or if he doesn't want t-"

"Jaune, just say it."

Seeing Pyrrha's annoyed frown disappear and be replaced by a kind smile let Jaune know that she couldn't be angry at him for long.

"I wanted to ask if I could borrow Milo for a few minutes. Yang asked me for help in herding the goats back and I agreed to it."

"But didn't Yang already ask for your help this morning?" Penny asked in confusion.

"She's right Jaune, aren't you already exhausted from today?"

"That's why I'm asking to borrow Milo. It's easier than to just rely on Zwei and ourselves to get the goats back."

Not to mention how convincing Yang is.

"All right then Jaune. Just be sure to hitch him outside my house once you're both done."

"Thanks Pyrrha! I'll be sure to make it up to you."

While bringing up a hand as an attempt to both think of an offer for Jaune and hide the growing blush on her face from Jaune's praise, Pyrrha responded, "... Maybe we could have a spar tomorrow."

"Ok then, I'll ask Yang if she'll want to join us tomorrow too."

"Actually, I was wondering if we could spar alone…" Pyrrha kept shifting from holding her hands together in front of her to letting them hang from her sides, all while not being able to look at him eye to eye. "You know, just the two of us."

Jaune wasn't the brightest torch of the bunch and he would willingly admit it, yet he was also quite perceptive from time to time. Despite how much Qrow would make quips on how Jaune was falling behind in training the one thing he always praised Jaune for was his mind. Qrow always told him to appreciate and use his brain, since it was his greatest strength, and while it did help him with fighting tactics and thinking outside the box, it also helped him on picking up certain visual cues. Jaune had known Pyrrha ever since they were kids, so he knew from her actions that she was feeling nervous, most likely from his response.

"That's fine by me Pyr. I have a day off tomorrow, so we can spar together after you're done with your morning patrol. Sounds good?" He made sure to finish his offer with a smile in her direction, hoping it would be enough to ease her nerves.

Judging by the small, yet vibrant smile on her face and the way she met his eyes Jaune knew he said the right thing.

"That would be grand."

"That's great. Then I guess I'll be seeing you tomorrow." Picking up the saddle and reigns from the sand, Jaune proceeded to attach them to Milo for the second time that day. Despite the horse's annoyed snorts and head shakes, he showed no major resistance and Jaune had no trouble in saddling him. Once he was done, Jaune proceeded in guiding Milo on to the ranch, only to be met by resistance from the stallion.

"Come on Milo, the sooner we get this done the sooner you can sleep."

Both Penny and Pyrrha kept giggling at Jaune's struggling to move a stubborn Milo, amusement building over what was most likely the reason why. While Pyrrha did her best to restrain and cover her giggles from being heard, Penny had resorted to small chortles. Not too loud, but still loud enough to be heard.

Whether or not he heard them Jaune didn't retort, as he was still struggling in getting Milo to move. Jaune continued to pull on the reigns in frustration. "Stupid horse, you've known since forever."

Milo's response was to stop resisting, causing Jaune to fall back due to the excess force. An annoyed Jaune lifted himself off the ground and dusted himself free, completely unharmed.

Until he finally realized the amusement rolling off the two redheads in waves. Penny was hunched over and holding her stomach, her chuckles having resorted to continuous laughter. Pyrrha tried to be more subtle by holding her hand over her mouth, yet both her body shaking from laughter and tears building in her eyes betrayed her amusement to Jaune.

Pyrrha composed herself finally taking pity on him, "You know he'll only listen to you once you sing his favorite song."

"Do I really have to? He's known for as long as he's known you."

"He'll only be more stubborn with you if you don't sing it."

Jaune sighed. "Fine…"

Wetting his lips and forming an 'o' with his mouth, Jaune whistled 'Milo's Song.'

… Or at least he would've if he could whistle properly.

Jaune always prided himself for being a quick learner. When he first started his sword training it him a day to understand the basics of holding and wielding a blade and three weeks to learn how to swing one. Three months later and he decided to add a shield to his fighting style, and not long after he learned to adapt with it. His first day herding goats alongside Yang it didn't take him long to understand how they moved, so he was able to get them where he wanted pretty quickly. When Pyrrha first taught him how to ride Milo he understood in theory how to guide Milo. By the end of the week he could ride Milo all around the Vale Forest without much trouble. Yet despite how quick of a learner he was, the one thing he never managed to get right was whistling. He could whistle if he tried hard enough, but eighty percent of the times he tried he only ended up blowing cool air through his mouth. After four unsuccessful attempts and a pair of wheezing redheads, a red faced Jaune managed to whistle the three notes that composed Milo's song.

Once he heard that the stallion lightly head butted Jaune in an affectionate manner, effectively dispelling his embarrassment from earlier. There was just something about everyone in the village that never left him mad at them for long.

Mounting Milo, Jaune turned him towards the gate. Before he left, he turned his head towards the stallion's owner.

"Thanks Pyr, I'll be sure to bring him back to his post unsaddled and hitched as soon as I can."

And that's the end of the prologue. Thanks to everyone who took the time to read this.

Feel free to leave any questions, comments, or constructive criticism. I'll appreciate anything I get as long as it helps me learn to write better.