Author's note: It's been several hours since I read the announcement that Monty Oum has died. For some odd reason, I'm not sad, nor happy. To be honest, I've been numbing myself for so long, I think I've forgotten how to feel feels, and I think I'm fine with that. The only thing that I'm truly sad about is that I've lost one of the people that I, like many others, draw inspiration from. Hopefully RWBY will continue with the same, if not better, story quality. Sorry that it's been a while since I've updated anything, but it's hard to draw inspiration from anything, being that it's off season and that a large portion of my motivation seems to have been chipped away in lieu of Monty's death. I promise that I'll have a new chapter up later this week along with a couple oneshots for valentines day.
Edit: Here's an uber short chapter for you guys. I had the idea of having Monty Oum appear in this story ever since I wrote chapter 7 or 8, but since he passsed, I thought I'd write it sooner as sort of a tribute. It's short because I've lost my last shred of motivation to write and I'm running on nothing now. I'll still keep my promise of Valentines day oneshots and the new chapter of this story. For looking up to someone who's constantly working on something, I feel really shitty for being such a lazy ass and losing motivation so quickly.
Jaune sat at a table in front of the café, head in his hands with a plethora of thoughts running through his mind. Looking up to take a sip of his coffee, he noticed a man sitting in front of him and working on a laptop. The man had a rather strange appearance; mysterious and oddly more fashionable than Neptune.
"How's it going, Jaune?" the man said as he looked up from the laptop screen.
"Uh, do I know you?" Jaune hesitantly asked. He was very cautious because he hadn't heard a sound when the man approached and sat down, a feat that Ruby couldn't accomplish even with her speed.
"I'm sorry, where are my manners. The name's Monty," the man introduced himself as he extended his hand.
"Hi Monty," Jaune shook his hand, "uh, how do you know me?"
"That's not important right now," Monty waved off the question, "what is important is why you're sitting around doing nothing productive."
"There's just a lot on my mind, right now," Jaune felt the sudden urge to pour out his thoughts.
"Would you mind being a little more specific, Jaune?" Monty prodded.
"To start, my team and I got pulled into an investigation with the White Fang. We were the ones who held back hordes of grimm when the street exploded. I woke up in a hospital two weeks later, attacked one of my closest friends to get her to kill me," Jaune shamefully admitted.
"Wow, sounds like you've been through some pretty rough times," Monty commented.
"It gets worse. That same girl, along with two others, one is my best friend and the other is a girl I've had a crush on; they confess to me on the same day," Jaune explained.
"How'd that turn out?" Monty asked.
"Well, I'm not sure if I made the right choice," Jaune avoided answering.
"Just spit it out," Monty demanded.
"I ended up rejecting my best friend and my teammate and I started going out with the girl I've had a crush on," Jaune answered.
"Well, I don't see how this is a bad thing," Monty said. "You get your dream girl and friendships can always be repaired."
"It doesn't end there," Jaune continued. "A few weeks later, I'm given a recon mission. Before I left, my teammate poured out her heart and basically told me she hated me."
"Oh? Then what happened?" Monty closed the laptop and listened more intently on Jaune's story.
"On my mission, I meet an unexpected ally. He told me that something big is happening and there's a small chance of stopping it," Jaune said, "Shortly after, I lose all contact with Vale. For two months I was stuck in the wilderness, trying to find a way to get back."
"So how'd you do it?" Monty asked.
"I finally found an Atlesian outpost and they dropped me off just outside the outskirts of Vale," Jaune answered, "And when I got back, I found that my girlfriend had moved on to someone new. I end up kissing my best friend on New Year's Eve, she hasn't spoken to me since and here I am, sulking in front of a coffee shop."
"I'm confused, what are you so depressed about, the thing you found on your mission or your love life problems?" Monty insensitively asked.
"Both," Jaune moaned in response.
"I see," Monty paused, carefully choosing his words before he spoke. "So what are you going to do now?"
"I don't know," Jaune sighed before taking a sip of his coffee, "we don't have any leads on what the White Fang is planning and I'm just trying not to think of my girl problems. Right now, I don't think there's anything I can do."
"Here's some advice, Jaune," Monty answered, "I believe that the human spirit is indomitable, Faunus or Human they're both the same to me. If you endeavor to achieve, it will happen, given enough resolve."
Jaune pondered on what the man had said before taking another sip.
"I know things will get better, you just need to keep moving forward," Jaune heard him say as he looked down at the cup. Looking back up, Monty was gone and nowhere in sight. The knight finished his coffee as he pondered on the advice given to him.