It didn't take Ruby long to find Jet. He was where she knew he'd be.

At Sunset Hill. Just past the time of its namesake.

Ruby found him leaning against the single tree, staring at his own hand. A purple glow surrounded his hand, and it flickered as one might expect sunlight to reflect off the surface of the sea. Jet's face, illuminated by the ghostly light of his own hand, looked to be deep in thought, as if considering something deeply. Ruby noted that his wings were out of his clothes, and they were wrapped around his body. Had he just flown here?

"Hi Jet." Ruby greeted nervously as she drew nearer. Jet looked up, but his face didn't lighten at her presence like it had done before. The light around his hand vanished, and he lowered his hand. Something was wrong. Ruby could tell.

She sat opposite him, and looked into his eyes.

What she found were two icy emeralds that were devoid of happiness. It was a painful, barbed look. His mouth didn't twitch upwards in a smile like it normally did when he saw her. It was just like before, when he'd scared her by saying what her mom had said.

"Tell me, Ruby." Jet said, his voice darker than normal, quieter, a brooding tone. "Have you ever inflicted pain on other people to advance your own goals? To hurt someone else purely for your benefit?"

"No." Ruby said, in a calm voice. There was nothing she could remember doing. There were the numerous bad guys and Grimm she'd beaten, but that had been her or them, and nothing else came to mind. "Why did you ask me that?"

"My power comes from the suffering of others." Jet responded, looking away and towards the sunset. "What I did, the move that you saw, is one LIJN knows as Dark Ultimatum. I drain the aura of an ally, fully restore my own, and enable my strongest attacks." He looked down. "The ally has to willingly give their aura for me to suck them dry, like a leech. It makes me sick that this was my main way of gaining strength."

Ruby didn't know what to say. She'd seen Jet do it. Everyone had.

"Izzet's pain should have come from the enemy." Jet continued. "From Coco and Yatsuhashi. Not from her partner, from someone I know she trusts completely with her life. Not from me. But there's nothing I could, or can, do. The strength I needed in that fight could only come from her own. And like the evil bastard that I was, I took it, not feeling a single thing, not even remorse."

This was the first time Ruby had ever seen Jet like this. The self-loathing she was seeing was off the charts. Clearly Jet cared for his team, or he wouldn't be suffering over something like this. But when she'd seen Izzet just before she had sacrificed her aura, she had opened herself to Jet, willing to give her very essence to him.

That spoke far more than words.

It was then that Ruby noticed Jet's aura, purple like the glow from before, was pulsing and flickering, clearly responding to his emotions. She shuffled so that she was next to Jet, and put her arms around him. He felt cold, just like his eyes when she'd looked at him before. While Ruby didn't know what to say about his powers, she knew that his drive to win, and Izzet's, were all that mattered. He looked back up at her.

"I know we kissed before, that time after our match, but I'm afraid, Ruby." Jet said, before Ruby could offer her condolences, his shimmering eyes finally displaying vulnerability, a vulnerability completely at odds with the steely gaze Ruby knew he could give. "Dark Ultimatum isn't the full extent of my power, and I'm scared I might hurt you if I go out of control. I don't want to see you suffer, especially if it's something I've done. The truth is, about our kiss, I was wrapped up in the moment of finally kissing you, so much so that I forgot about my own curse."

"I don't care." Ruby responded, putting her hands on his shoulders. "I'm not afraid of your powers. If you used your powers on me, I wouldn't mind one bit. No, I would be happy to help you and give you strength."

To her surprise, Jet stood up, shrugging her hands off him as he rose, his wings unfolding and displaying their black feathers. Midnight Rose appeared in his hands, seemingly from thin air, and Ruby stood too, yet she didn't draw Crescent Rose, even though every instinct was driving her to pull it out.

"Please, draw your own weapon." Jet said, his eyes almost begging. Ruby hesitantly reached for Crescent Rose, not sure as to what he was planning.

They stood opposite one another, the low moonlight casting a shadow around Jet's face, leaving only his eyes in the light.

"If you really want to be with me, as we want to be, then you should see what I am truly capable of." Jet said, his eyes now full of steel as they once were. "I will duel with you once again, Ruby, only this time, I shall show you the full extent of my power. Dark Ultimatum has not ended yet."

Ruby crouched, as Jet took a deep breath. He closed his eyes, tilting his head back, as if determined to expand his lungs as much as possible. It occurred to Ruby only now about what he had said.

He'd been holding back? From using his real power? What was it? And what had she gotten herself into?

Then, Jet exhaled, and Ruby saw only a black void where his eyes had been. Even the whites of his eyes had gone dark.

He didn't hesitate. He didn't show any emotion.

Jet flew at her, scythe held aloft.


Ruby was having a nightmare. There was that same gravestone atop the snowy cliff. She ran away from it, the memory of… that night… when she came face to face with the beowolf pack from before. Pulling out Crescent Rose, she began her fight. It always went the same way, every time she killed one, two took its place. Slowly, she was overwhelmed, Crescent Rose pulled away, being pinned to the ground, the glare of their eyes and the white teeth that would soon be biting into flesh…

Ruby awoke with a start. Breathing heavily, and breaking in a cold sweat, she noticed someone standing over her, and immediately lashed out, panicked. Her fist connected with something, and Ruby curled up into a ball, fear still haunting her mind, eyes shut tight. Someone was gathering her up in its arms.

"Shh. Easy now. You're okay." Jet's voice sounded out from behind Ruby. Ruby could feel herself shivering, even as the someone holding her started to radiate warmth. Slowly, she cracked open her eyes.

A crescent moon greeted her gaze with assorted stars. She looked around to find black feathers around her, feathers that were the source of the warmth. Then, she twisted to find Jet behind her, though from here she could only see the left side of his face.

"Did I hit you?" Ruby asked, worriedly.

"You did, and it would have done some damage." Jet responded with a reassuring smile. "But my reaction speed with my aura is known throughout my team."

It was only at that moment, as Jet unfurled his wings, that Ruby realized who's arms she was in. As Jet sat, leaning against the tree, Ruby realized, calming down now, that she and Jet were incredibly close together. Should she kiss him again? Before she could ask, Jet had seemingly read her mind.

His eye was the clue. It gave a passive look, rather than the harder looks. He was wearing a face that plainly said 'it's your choice'. Not judgemental, or prejudiced. And Ruby answered his question.

She leaned forward, closing her eyes, pouting her lips. She felt Jet respond in kind, only tilting his head a little, and their lips met again.

Except this time, Jet was slower, more patient. Gone was the speed that Ruby had found the first time they'd kissed. Now, Jet was gentle, not rushing her like before. His tongue remained in his mouth, instead only focussing on embracing Ruby. He fell backwards, narrowly missing the tree, and Ruby landed on top of him. The kiss didn't break.

The two raven wings protruding from Jet's back wrapped around Ruby as his arms went from being around her cloak to underneath her cloak. They broke apart in order to breathe, Ruby noticing the contact only now. Was Jet going to try and get into her clothes? Once again, Jet seemed to have read her fears like a book.

"Don't worry, I'm not going any further." Jet said, his voice quiet and tender. "And I don't mind you touching me, as long as you don't go any further than me."

Any further than him? Now Ruby was confused. She'd seen Yang with several boys before, and while she had pushed all of them away eventually, they'd always seemed… forceful. Much more forceful than Jet, with no respect of her sister's boundaries. And yet, not only was Jet not going further than she wanted, but he had boundaries of his own?

Maybe not all men were like Yang's flings.

"There you two are!"

A voice brought Jet out of his reverie. He let go of Ruby and sat up, causing her to roll off him. The voice had come from Yang, who was sprinting up the hill. There was a brief moment as she skidded past them, before running back towards them. Her face was red, as if she'd just run a marathon to reach them.

"What's happening?" Jet asked.

"Goodwitch." Yang panted in response. Jet's machine heart skipped a beat as she showed them her scroll. 10:04. Way past the curfew. "Sent me to get you, and that she'd better have a good reason."

"Does 'I was having a relaxing time with my girlfriend and missed the time' work?" Jet asked, causing Ruby to both snort at the straightforwardness of Jet's response, and blush as she registered that, while she had had reservations of what she called Jet, he clearly had no such reservations. Judging by the mirrored snort from Yang, she was similarly amused.

"Not really." Yang replied, as Jet stood and outstretched a hand to Ruby, who took it with her own, soft hand, and he hoisted her to her feet. He turned back towards Yang. "She said it would be detention if you two didn't have a good reason."

"Which is?" A second voice, this one above Jet, asked. Jet jumped, not expecting it, and immediately switched to combat mode as his companions jumped in fright too. Midnight Rose appeared in his hand, the scythe glowing malevolently as he leaped into the air, flipping himself upside down and slashing at the upper branches of the tree.

He hit steel.

Jet re-oriented himself and landed in the tree, before swinging the scythe backwards. It connected with something, a resounding clang echoing all around them, and Midnight Rose stopped moving as an opposing strength pushed against it. Jet turned his head, still fighting to push his weapon.

Professor Ozpin was crouched there, his cane having intercepted his laser-scythe. Looking at the blade, had it continued its course upwards in parallel to his back, it would have halved the old professor. Jet immediately made his weapon disappear and turned around. In response, Ozpin lowered his cane and took a sip from the mug in his other hand.

"Very impressive, Jet." Ozpin commented, leaping down from the tree with Jet. While he was pleased with the compliment, he hadn't expected his HEADMASTER to have been the one he nearly halved, let alone the fact that it had been him that had hidden in the tree.

"Ignoring the fact that I nearly struck you, what are you doing here, sir?" Jet asked as the silence from the two sisters stretched onwards. It seemed that unlike him, who had reacted with an attack, they had been stunned, but then had watched Jet immediately attack.

"Consider it an intervention of sorts." Ozpin responded. "And in part satisfying my curiosity. Professor Goodwitch will not be the one you will be speaking to with regards to your breach of curfew. It will be me. As I hear from the grapevine, I am a little less… intimidating."

Jet could practically feel how carefully he'd chosen that word, and the meaning behind his considerations. He'd let it go for now.

'Sir, with all respect, you need not concern yourself with intimidation. Glynda Goodwitch is a lovely lady.' Jet sent to Ozpin, using his copy of Izzet's telepathy, before he switched to regular speech. "Did you hear my explanation for our lateness to Yang?" Jet asked him. Ozpin paused, potentially a little surprised by the duel communication.

"I did, and as Miss Long said to you, it wouldn't do. Normally, I would be forced to discipline the pair of you." Ozpin responded. Then, Jet heard him think back. 'I am glad you think so, though I must ask how you are on first name terms with Glynda.'

"But you won't?" Ruby asked, hopefully as she clung onto Jet's arm. He extended a wing and wrapped it around her back, curling the other one behind him. Both Yang and Ozpin's eyes were drawn to them, Yang folding her arms and staring at them, whereas Ozpin merely looked with bright interest.

'Long story.' Jet responded to Ozpin's telepathic question. 'And this place isn't the place to be discussing it.'

'Quite right.' Ozpin sent, before using his physical tongue. "No, Ruby, I will not, provided I gain an insight into Jet's wings. You see, while his wings are common knowledge to you, Ruby, hardly anyone else knows about them. The rumours outside his team have been quite widespread. A winged boy wielding a flaming staff, perched perfectly upon one of the tallest antenna in Vale, one who wears all black clothing, and who has similar facial features to you, Jet. Then, I check the logs and you do indeed have the same wings, but have never brought them out within Beacon, instead keeping them concealed."

"So in return for letting them off the hook, you want to know about them?" Yang asked. Jet narrowed his eyes in response, maybe he'd be willing to divulge on his wings, but not their origin. Nor was he going to give hints on his other abilities, those he had before he had come to Beacon, including Dark Ultimatum.

"Precisely." Ozpin replied, still keeping his eyes on Jet's. He felt a tug on the arm Ruby was currently holding, and looked at her. Her eyes said it all for him. She really didn't want a detention or punishment, and while he had been considering taking the hit and withholding the information, his wall broke upon seeing his girlfriend's reaction. That would have been selfish. Jet let out a sigh.

"Cheer up." Jet said to her, and her expression lit up. "I'll spill them. Besides, you must have been curious as well, both of you." He raised his voice at the last part, and turned his head to Yang, who nodded, her expression neutral. Finally, he turned back to Ozpin.

"Excellent. All I require is for you to fly above us." Ozpin replied. "I will escort these fine ladies back to their dormitories, and you will provide us with cover in case any Grimm happen to be nearby."

"As you wish." Jet responded.


Ruby watched as Jet walked about five paces away, before fully unfurling his wings. Their span was impressive, almost two and a half times the length of his arms. His eyes glimmered an eerie purple glow as he crouched before breaking into a sprint.

He shot past them, before his wings caught and he soared upwards, barely illuminated as he flew for a good hundred metres before banking around and flying over them. He stopped in front of the moon, righting himself and keeping himself aloft with regular, powerful wingbeats.

"Extraordinary." she heard Ozpin comment as he beckoned her and Yang to follow him. She trailed in his footprints, nearly matching him step for step until Yang lightly tapped her on the shoulder to get her attention.

"So what happened?" Yang asked as they passed by several more trees on the way. "You had us worried back there. What were you two talking about?"

"About his move back then in the two-on-two we watched." Ruby replied, her voice losing some of her normally upbeat tone. Yang noticed as well, for her voice dropped too.

"How did he do it?" Yang asked.

"We didn't talk about how he did it." Ruby replied, her voice speeding up. "I don't know. Something about him just sounds different to me. He didn't smile like he always does, and he asked me if I'd hurt anyone to get stronger." Yang waved her hand in the universal 'Slow down'. "Sorry. I said that I hadn't and then he said that his partner's pain had to come from his enemy, not him. Anyway, I said to him that I didn't care and then he challenged me to a fight where he'd show his true power."

"Woah woah, hold on." Yang said, her concern clearly growing as Jet passed by overhead. "You fought him? What happened?"

"I-" Ruby stopped. What HAD happened? She racked her brain, but nothing came to light. She couldn't remember anything, just that she'd seen Jet lunge, then she'd had a… nightmare? Had she fallen asleep? Why? How? Why?

"Ruby?" Yang asked, now looking downright worried.

"I don't remember." Ruby said. "All I know is he jumped at me with his Crescent Rose, then the next thing I remember is a nightmare. I wake up and Jet's standing above me. I punched him… by accident!" she squeaked as Yang raised an eyebrow.

"Is that why he has a black eye?" Yang asked.

Ruby froze. In place.

No.

She couldn't have.

"I saw it as he was about to fly." Yang continued. "And I've given many black eyes before now to know a punch when I see one." Ruby's mind was going into overdrive. Why had he just said that it hadn't been so bad?!

"I didn't mean it!" Ruby speed-spoke. "I was scared from the nightmare and he was right above me and I just lashed out and oh my gosh I'm sorry!" Anything else she was about to say was cut short by Yang wheeling around and putting both her hands on her shoulders.

"Firstly, calm down." Yang said, patting Ruby on the head, a gesture Ruby normally hated, but she didn't complain here. "Secondly, it was just an accident, okay? If it bothered Jet too much, don't you think he would have said it to you?" She let go and gave Ruby a reassuring smile.

"What's the holdup?" Jet shouted from above as he circled above them. Now that Ruby could see the right side of his face, by Beacon's light, she saw the black welt around Jet's right eye, which was visible despite the purple glow coming from his eyes. Ruby's hands went to her mouth.

So it was true. She had punched him.

Feeling sick at herself, Ruby barely registered Yang taking her by the hand and leading her back to Beacon. Inside her guilt-stricken mind, she could only hear one thing.

What had she done?