Greetings everyone,

Welcome back to the fourteenth chapter of "The Knight The Wizard".

I'll be honest here, this chapter was a bitch and a half to write because I was dealing with some serious writer's block and work-related shit. I'm not even joking right now, I actually thought about quitting my stories because of the level of stress of trying to balance work, a social life, and getting a chapter out every week was causing me. It was why I decided to go with "Release a chapter or more when I can" plan.

As such, this chapter might feel lackluster or rushed but it was best I could do with the little time I had.

Remember that from now on, or until I can get back into the groove of things, chapters will now only be released whenever I find the time to work on them but that does mean that I should be able to release multiple chapters at once when I have some free time.

I'm sorry if this bothers anyone but the stress of trying to make it in a new job and this is just getting to be too much. And believe me when I say that I do enjoy writing these stories for you. But it's just getting more and more stressful as it goes on. It's why I'm changing the story schedule so that I can hopefully preserve that passion for wiritng.

Important Author's Notes at the end of the chapter! Make sure to read it.

Next Scheduled Release Date:

Some time in January...

Make sure to Favorite, Follow, and leave a Review.

I hope you all have a happy New Year!

Till next time!

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Chapter Thirteen

Darkness consumed my vision as I felt myself growing ever weaker with every passing breath. My will to go on was draining more and more with every step the Apathy made towards me. And though the desperate expression on Ruby's face was enough to make me want to try my hardest... I just couldn't... I was tired of everything...

The shambling footsteps of the Apathy echoed in the darkness of my mind as their power over my will to live grew ever more. Were these going to be the monsters we'd end up facing the further we went along with this journey? Were these going to be the so-called "adventures" we'd end up having if we continued going towards Atlas? Maybe it was because of the Apathy or maybe it was because of my slowly dying will to live but it seemed that with every step I took on this journey the further and further away I got from why I decided to become a Huntsman.

Flashes of memories appeared before my vision. Moments in time where I was nothing but a child playing with his older sisters while others were moments of when I had my first kiss... Pyrrha's death... Meeting Ruby... Becoming the leader of a team... Dealing with Nora's antics... Attending my sister's wedding as the flower girl...

Yeah, I was the flower girl. You got a problem with that?

But then the flashes of memories began to change.

Now I was but an elderly man with my back laying against the rough trunk of a tree. Tombstones as far as my weakened eyes could see. So many lives taken... So many families torn apart... All because I failed to stop her... Failed to change her... My mistakes are why so many men, women, and children were now buried six-feet beneath the dirt. But even despite the guilt and remorse that filled my heart as I overlooked the sea of unnamed tombstones I couldn't help but find the sunrise to be the second most beautiful thing I'd ever seen in my life. Maybe that was why I was content to die right then and there? I failed in this life but... Maybe I could fix everything in the next one... Maybe... Just maybe... I could finally see Salem smile again...

However, that smile never came as the memories changed once again. Now I could hardly remember any memory at all. Most, if not all, of them were drowned out long ago by the alcohol. I remember spending nearly all of my time just attempting to drown my sorrows with drinks. Beyond those memories of trying to forget my mistakes I remember the numerous times I tried to take my own life... But each attempt was foiled by my host's soul... Each and every time I'd try to take my life he'd regain control and stop me... And each and every time he did so he'd always tell me the same thing... "If you're going to kill yourself then do it with your own damn hands."

I'm not sure when the memories began to change but change they did as my vision was now being flooded with memories of times spent with my family. Or in this case, I suppose they would be considered to be my host's family. And for the first time in my multiple lives I was partnered with a host that didn't refuse my presence. Instead, he almost seemed to welcome me into his life with open arms and friendly smiles. Together we learned of the powers of his children's silver eyes and being a man that was once known throughout the world as a great hero that fought for justice and honor, I had decided to do everything in my power to help mold them into proud warriors while at the same time attempting to learn everything I could about the world. Heh, I could still remember the days when my host's daughter, who I treated as my own, would attempt to show off her skills as a warrior. And I could still remember always reprimanding her for doing so. But no matter how often she did it, I couldn't help but be proud of my little Grimm Reaper. And for the first time in my multiple lives... I was determined to save them from my mistakes.

But soon those memories of spending time with my family changed once again. Now, I was but a man belonging to one of the most esteemed families in all of Atlas history. I also remember my host being one of the most insufferable men I'd ever have the displeasure of meeting. From his arrogance over what he considered to be "undesirables" to his atrocious treatment of the Faunus. Every moment spent with him was another moment I wanted to blow his gods damned brains out. And though I hated myself for what I'd been forced to do. I had no choice but to forcefully take control of his body. I needed to change the world but I'd never be able to do so if he was in control. I remember the moments after I'd forcefully taken possession of my host's body as if they'd just happen moments prior. I did everything with the new financial power in my hand to help the Faunus. I personally funded peace rallies and Faunus orphanages and eventually I funded the building process of the Kingdom of Menagerie. But even then I spent most of my time in search of the Relics, learning their powers, and how to use them properly. I needed to keep them out of Salem's hands... Because I knew that she were to have them she'd do the one thing I always feared...

But like many lives before they never made it long as the memories changed once more. Now, I was but a student at one of the many academies I helped create. The times I'd spent trying to prevent my teammates from killing one another perhaps caused me to start drinking coffee. One could hardly ever sleep with the sheer destruction they'd leave in their wake. Not to mention the moments spent trying to prevent my team from starting a fight with another team. A team of individuals that reminded me of so many allies I'd had in the past. From an arrogant dusty crow to a quiet tempered raven to pun-making brawling dragon to a sweet and innocent silver rose. The times I spent with them reminded me of why I chose to continue fighting. But it wasn't until I was much older that I began to realize my mistakes were slowly coming back... My inability to make a move... My inability to prevent the destruction of my school... The pain and torment I felt when I was forced to witness my own kingdom become ruins... The guilt and remorse I felt when I was killed by Cinder Fall...

I remember it all... All the pain... All the misery... Every mistake Ozpin had ever made in the multiple lives He'd lived... Every part of me wanted nothing more than to give up and allow myself to be devoured by the Apathy.

But then through the darkness of my subconscious I heard a sweet and innocent voice call out to me followed by a brief flash of silvery-white light that seemed to forcefully pull me towards it. And as the blinding silvery light grew brighter and brighter my vision was bombarded with brief flashes of a smiling silver eyed girl. I witnessed flashes of memories from our times spent watching the X-Ray Vav cartoon series to the times where we'd do nothing but talk. I couldn't stop myself from loving this girl even if I wanted to. She was everything I wanted to be. Determined. Brave. Caring. Generous.

And as I opened my eyes, the sun's soft glow welcoming me to the waking world, that very same girl's face reappeared over my head as tears seemed to stream down her reddened cheeks and plummet onto my forehead. Slowly, I reached out with my right hand to caress her cheek, shocking her and causing me to smile.

"So, did you beat the bad guys, Crater Face?" I asked with a tired but genuine smile as she grasped my hand with her own, the smile on her face as tears continued to flow from her closed eyes.

"Yeah... I did... Vomit Boy..." she said between some choked up sobs.

"Heh, I knew you could." I said as she opened her eyes, revealing to me those beautiful pools of silver. It was in that moment that I realized a simple truth. This life I'd chosen was always going to filled with danger. And there was no telling exactly how long I'd last as a Huntsman. Maybe this wasn't the right moment. Maybe there never is a "right" moment. But all be damned if I was going to let this moment pass me by. I already missed one chance to tell someone I loved them. I wasn't about to miss this one. "I love you, Ruby." I said, stunning her as her eyes widened at my words before they closed as she wrapped her arms around my neck.

"I-I love you too, Jaune." she said through more choked up sobs and whimpers.

I swear I could literally FEEL the knowing smirks Maria and Qrow were giving me as they watched us. Though I was glad that they opted to stay silent and just allow us to enjoy this brief moment of peace. After all, this may be the last time we'd ever get such a moment.

And just like every OTHER moment of peace, it also didn't last long as the ringing chime from my scroll brought a loud annoyance to my ears. But when I reached down into my pocket for it, my eyes widened at the sight of Nora's smiling face on the caller's ID directly above the name she forcibly chose for herself "Nora, Queen of the Castle". Immediately, I pushed myself off of Ruby's lap, only feeling slightly disappointed that I couldn't lay there just a little bit longer, and quickly answered the call.

"Nora? Is that really you?" I asked before quickly realizing how stupid of question it was.

"Jaune! REN! IT'S JAUNE! HE'S NOT DEAD! I REPEAT HE'S NOT DEAD!" shouted Nora, her voice becoming static as she shouted at Ren while I, myself, could only sigh and facepalm myself at her words.

Before long, Ren took the scroll from Nora's hand, his face appearing in the camera of Nora's scroll with a smile. "Jaune, it's good to see you alive and well."

"Eh, I wouldn't say we're doing well but we are alive so that's gotta count for something, right?" I asked, chuckling as now I couldn't wait to tell them what they missed out on.

"That it does. I'm just relieved to see you're all alright. Nora and I have been checking our scrolls for your signal since we made it to Argus." said Ren, smiling when Ruby decided to speak up, placing herself directly next to me so that she could appear in the scroll's camera.

"The city? Wait a second... Jaune, can I borrow your scroll?" she asked before I handed the device to her. Upon which she then maneuvered the device towards a nearby road that led towards a hill with very little snow. Without another word, Ruby turned to Yang, nodding her head ever so slightly as Yang then turned the motorbike around and drove directly towards the hill.

And as we road up the hill at breakneck speeds, the sun's glorious rays basking the horizon in a heavenly afterglow, I felt a soft grasp on my hand. Turning my head, I saw the smiling face of Ruby looking at the magnificent walled city of Argus like it was a fairy tale kingdom. I was definitely sure that in that moment everyone had the exact same expression of joy and relief. I say that it was about damn time we caught a break for once. So, fuck it. Let's just enjoy the sun's rays and the calm drive towards the walled city of Argus.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we have arrived in Argus." proclaimed Yang with a smile as she then proceeded to drive us towards the city's entrance.

Along the way towards the walled city, Ruby and the others regaled me with the tale of how Ruby was able to defeat the Apathy with the powers of her silver eyes. Turns out that Ruby is part of a long line of ancient warriors, all of whom had silver eyes, that could completely vanquish any Grimm in their sight. I was also told of how Maria was once a silver eyed warrior herself before tragically losing them to an assassin named Tock. I was especially surprised to hear that she was once a proud and legendary hero known throughout Remnant as the Grimm Reaper. That alone caused me to become even more surprised than ever before. My eyes widened at the name as a brief flash of memories appeared before my eyes. In the flash was a dark skinned girl with silver eyes smiling up at me as I looked down at her. It was in the moment that I realized why I was so comfortable with Maria despite barely knowing her. Why I was often proud of her for standing up to Yang's attitude and why I often felt like she needed to be protected.

Maria Calavera was the daughter of one Ozpin's previous hosts.

That meant Maria was MY daughter, at least in spirit.

Man, talk about diverging from the plot, huh?

Upon our arrival, we were met with armed guards who all checked our identifications before allowing us to park Yang's motorbike and the trailer in a nearby garage. I stood there, basking in the warmth that was swelling in my chest as I watched the pedestrians of Argus go about their business. The smile on my face must've been louder than I thought because the next thing I knew was Ruby standing next to me, holding my hand. The two of us couldn't stop the blushes that made our cheeks redder than apples at the sound of Maria snickering and Qrow's very loud and obnoxious all knowing smirk.

"It's about damn time, Spellsword." said Qrow, taking another swig from his silver flask.

"You're telling me, I thought I'd be long dead before you finally decided to admit it." Maria readily agreed, causing my blush to become deeper as I remembered that her mother was also a silver eyed warrior.

But then, suddenly I felt a heavy force clash against my chest before I then found myself lying on my back with a very familiar bubbly ginger-haired girl in pink hugging me tighter than a vice. Smiling, I rubbed the girl's head, affectionately as she looked up at me with a smile just as another familiar raven-haired boy walked up to us before kneeling down to our level and proceeded to wrap his arms around the two of us.

"We're so glad you're okay." said Nora, smiling as she held me tighter than before as if she thought that she let go I'd float up into the sky like a balloon.

"Hey, I promised that I'd come back, didn't I?" I asked with a chuckle as I heard a soft laugh from Nora's mouth.

"Yeah, you did." she said before reluctantly released her hold on my body and allowing the three of us to rise to our feet.

Ren and I both looked towards one another as we both reached out to meet the other's hand before pulling each other into a one armed hug.

"It's good to see you again, Jaune." said Ren.

"Same to you, Ren." I responded before feeling a tap on my left shoulder, causing me to turn and see Nora pointing her thumb in Maria's direction.

"So, who's the old lady?" she asked, causing me to chuckle at the sight of Maria's sour expression at the words "old lady".

Later on, we were all able to board a trolley that traveled further into the city of Argus. Each of us watched the scenery of Mistral-themed housing mixed with Atlas technology. It was amazing what humanity could do if it settled it's differences aside and worked together. And I had to say that it was welcomed change from the harsh winter wilderness.

"It's a lot bigger than I thought it'd be." said Yang, who was leaning against the trolley's wall.

"It's actually one of the largest non-capital cities in all of Remnant." answered Ren, causing Ruby, who was sitting next to me, to gasp at his words.

"No way!" she comically exclaimed, bringing her hands to her cheeks before she slowly began to realize something. "But wait, wouldn't it be harder to settle something this big away from the main kingdom?"

"Originally it was, until Mantle arrived. Early settlement attempts by the kingdom of Mistral were fraught with failures. But the colonists who came from Mantle were able to help them brave the cold climate and return goods that Solitas couldn't provide." Ren answered before looking out into the scenery of moving buildings and passing civilians. "The two nations worked together to create a hybrid city. While it falls under Mistral domain, Atlas keeps a military presence here to help keep the people safe and keep trade between the two nations steady."

"Well, until recently..." said Nora, causing us all to look at her in confusion and slight worry when suddenly the trolley stopped at the top of the road.

After disembarking the trolley, the others decided to discuss the next part of the plan to go to Atlas while Ruby, Nora, Ren, and I continued talking. "So, where have you guys been staying?" I asked then before noticing the brief but not well hidden snicker from Nora, causing me to raise an eyebrow at her before my attention was pulled away by Ren clearing his throat.

"Well, originally we were planning to stay in an inn but as luck would have it we were able to meet a very kind individual that after hearing of our plight allowed us entrance into her home. But, it wasn't until we arrived that we were able to quickly notice that she had a connection to one of the people in our group." explained Ren.

"Really? Who is it?" I asked before feeling a sudden drop in pressure at the sound of high-pitched joyous voice.

"There you are!" exclaimed a woman's voice. One that I was more than familiar with from all of those torturous days as the only boy surrounded by seven older sisters.

As the trolley pulled away, revealing a familiar blonde woman on the other side of the road, I felt all manner of panic well up inside of my chest. Her eyes widened at the sheer sight of me as she brought her hand to her open mouth. I couldn't blame her for what she must've been feeling in that moment. I mean I never even bothered to call her and tell her I was okay after the fall of Beacon. As far as she knew I was most likely in a hospital or, even more likely, dead underneath piles of rubble. And then to hear from two complete strangers that her own little brother was alive and more importantly was traveling to Atlas through the untamed wilderness of Mistral must've done wonders to her psyche. I knew better than most that she would always try to hide her stress behind a mask of smiles. It was the same way I tired to hide my stress and anxiety.

It made sense when one thought about it. After all, this was my older sister I was talking about.

"J-Jaune? Is it really you?" she asked, as some lone drops of tears streamed down her face as she slowly made her way towards me, bring a hand to meet my cheek as I smiled at her.

"Hey, Saph." I said with a weak smile. "Heh, long time no see, huh?"

Suddenly, she wrapped her arms around my neck, forcibly pulling me into a tight and affectionate embrace. To which I responded by wrapping my wraps around her with a smile.

So, let's recap, shall we?

Just yesterday morning, we learned about the Relic of Knowledge and what it could do. Then the train we were riding on was ambushed by the Grimm all because of said Relic before it crashed and left us stranded in the middle of nowhere with an elderly woman. Then we learned the secrets Ozpin was hiding from us. And even after finding shelter from the snowstorm we were once again caught off guard by a fearsome Grimm none of us were prepared to face. Then I was bombarded with memories of Ozpin's past lives. And after ALL OF THAT I admitted that I was in love with Ruby Rose. And all of this happened in the span of a day and a half.

I knew for a fact that Saphron was going to grill me over this one.

I just hope she doesn't pull out those embarrassing pictures of me as a kid.

"So, you got any embarrassing pictures of Vomit Boy as a kid?" asked Yang with an evil smirk. An expression Saphron was all the more ready for as she returned Yang's evil smirk with one of her own.

"Let's go inside and I'll show you EVERYTHING." said Saphron as she led the others into her home, leaving me to stand alone on the sidewalk.

Goddamn it, Yang...

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Alright, I want to address the elephant in the room and explain exactly why I made Maria the daughter of one of Ozpin's previous hosts.

When I first saw that one of Ozpin's hosts had a family with two silver eyed kids I couldn't help but think of the possibilities. And then when it was revealed that Maria was also a silver eyed warrior my imagination went wild!

This had so much potential for story development!

One, it would give both Ruby and Oscar some much needed character development.

Two, we'd be able to see how Maria would deal with the knowledge that someone close to her was in actuality a completely different person who treated her like a daughter.

And three, it would finally give Oscar some he could talk to. He'd be able to see exactly why Ozpin is paired with similar thinking individuals.

Those are the reasons I decided to make Jaune the spiritual father figure of Maria Calavera.

Props out to "Ouroborosdragon" for picking up on this headcanon.

Also, calling right here. Maria Calavera is definitely based Santa Maria.

Till next time!