Jaune was starting to regret his cheating into Beacon. Only slightly…. And only because he was about to plummet to his death. The Headmaster really should have warned them about those launch pads! What even is a landing strategy? Well, it doesn't really matter he supposed, he was about to die anyway. His family line of brave warriors would end with him, before it even began.
Jaune felt a strange fabric wrap against his foot as he was suddenly pulled into the canopy.
Jaune closed his eyes as he approached the tree line. This was it. This is how he died. Instead of a painful death he was expecting, Jaune was yanked to the side, his momentum suddenly redirected into the depths of the forest. He now hung upside down by one foot with his leg and arms splayed out. Jaune peeked open his right eye and was met with a pair of gold orbs attached to a girl dressed in black. "Well hey there!" Jaune started confidently "Names Jaune Arc, Short, Sweet, rolls-" Before he could finish he hit the ground. "All right I deserved that one." he resigned.
The girl gave a heavy sigh as Jaune got on his feet "My name is Blake. Blake Belladonna" she stated. Jaune looked into her eyes, he had a pretty good feeling about this.
To say Blake was disappointed by her partner would be an understatement. The silence of the forest was interrupted by Jaune's bumbling through the lush green brush and tangled roots. Blake hadn't intended to save Jaune. She had heard his high pitched screams across the forest but she had no intention of saving him. The voice in the back of her head nagged at her, however, "Wouldn't Adam let him fall?". Blake wanted to keep her past behind her, but Blake couldn't become the monster Adam was. And Jaune wasn't that bad she supposed. At least when he wasn't tripping over himself.
Blake heard Jaune shriek as his face planted into the ground. Her partner groaned as he rose back to his feet. Just because Blake was kind to him, didn't mean she was pleased with his naivety and lack of coordination. Blake sighed "Is this going to be a common theme?" Jaune chuckled awkwardly, scratching the back of his neck at the same time. A drop of blood dripped out of a cut on his forehead, and Jaune gasped as he poked at it.
"Oh, man! I should've brought band-aids!" Blake had to double-take at that statement, which possibly could have been the dumbest thing she had ever heard.
"Why don't you use your Aura?" Blake questioned.
"What language is that?" Blake couldn't believe what she was hearing.
"You don't have an Aura?" How did he make it into the school without an Aura?
"No, can I buy one of those?" Jaune looked perplexed.
"Aura is a manifestation of our soul, It heals our wounds and protects us from harm." Blake said hoping to jog his memory. Jaune gave a sheepish shrug. No huntsmen or warrior could fight without an aura. It was incredibly suspicious that Jaune lacked one. Blake couldn't let him die that much she knew, but the Faunus wasn't fond of the other option. "I'll… unlock your Aura."
Unlocking another's Aura was an intimate affair. Adam had unlocked hers, but he was different then. Blake closed the distance between herself and Jaune. "Close your eyes, slow your breathing, and relax. And don't make this weird." Blake placed her hand on Jaune chest piece over his heart, and her other on the side of his head. Jaune recoiled at the contact, but took Blake's advice and slowed his breathing.
Blake repeated the words Adam had said to her so many years ago, and as she did she could feel Jaune's emotions. "For it is in passing that we achieve immortality." Fear, doubt, and anxiety. "Through this, we become a paragon of virtue and glory to rise above all." All emotions Adam had, but under the surface, there was more. "Infinite in distance and unbound by death, I release your soul, and by my shoulder, protect thee." Blake felt kindness, courage, and a deep caring that Adam never possessed. The girl fell to her knee, the process was draining, both physically and emotionally.
"Blake! Are you okay!?" Jaune was absorbed in a white glow as his hand reached towards her. Blake had trusted Adam and he hurt her, but Jaune was different. Blake reached out to Jaune as he hoisted her up with surprising strength.
"I'm fine, Jaune." Blake said, and for once she was fine. Just maybe her partner wasn't that bad after all.
AN: This is my first attempt at something more than a spur of the moment one shot. I've had this story in the back of my head for 3 years now, and this is the fifth iteration of it. Comments and criticism are appreciated!