Heya!

New chapter! Short intro! Shit gets real! You might hate me in a few minutes!

Beta: Maxaro, my partner in crime.

Enjoy!

"Jaune? Are you up?"

The following morning Pyrrha awoke early to go on a morning jog with Hermes. The weather was warm but not too warm, as the sun still hung heavily in the east, so the redheaded huntress dressed appropriately in a form-fitting sports tank top and running shorts.

This was not odd in its own regard, but the fact that Jaune was not up brewing coffee at this time set off warning bells in Pyrrha's head.

"Hello…? Jaune?" The huntress frowned as she checked the sink for any used coffee mugs to indicate if Jaune had been though the kitchen that morning.

Nothing.

She strode over towards Jaune's end of the house as Hermes followed along, whose slightly lessened enthusiasm mirrored Pyrrha's own grim mood. She found the blonde's door closed and gave a knock.

"Jaune? You in there?"

The redhead waited, but she received no response in return.

"Hey, wake up, you. Don't you have classes this morning?"

Still no response.

Pyrrha glanced down at the husky, who whimpered knowingly in return.

She sighed. "Alright, Jaune. If that's how you want to play it."

The redhead started to walk away from the door, toying with the idea of just going in anyway to check if the blonde was okay.

"I called in sick."

Pyrrha froze at the sound of Jaune's voice.

"Why? What's wrong, Jaune?"

Again, no answer.

She inhaled deeply and made the decision to barge in, swinging the door open.

Jaune lay on his back in bed, sheets and blankets scattered across his form. His eyes were wide open, staring blankly into the white ceiling above. Nothing seemed to be ailing him physically.

Hermes trotted quietly over to the bed, jumping onto the vacant spot next to the blonde and laying his head over Jaune's chest.

"You… you okay, Jaune?" asked Pyrrha, worriedly crossing her arms.

"I'm fine." The blonde's eyes remain distant. "It's just… Pyrrha, I saw their faces again today."

"Oh."

That definitely explained his utter lack of enthusiasm for today.

It had been two years since the incident that had caused Jaune to retire from hunting. Two years later and the weight of all those lives lost did not get much easier to bear. Of course, it didn't cripple him every single day of the week like it used to, which was an improvement, but it didn't hurt any less on the days that it did.

Pyrrha sat down on the bed next to Jaune and the dog. "Do you want to talk about it?"

The blonde sighed. "N-no. I just need some… time." Without looking away from the ceiling, he moved a hand to rub Hermes's head, and the husky whimpered in sympathy. "Don't let me slow you down."

The huntress paused, trying to think of anything to say to comfort her best friend. "Well… I'm going to go running right now, but if you need anything, I'll be home all day, okay?"

"Okay." His voice barely came out as a mumble.

"Great!" Pyrrha patted his leg gently and started to rise from the bed. "Oh, if you decide not to go to the charity thing with Ren and Nora… I think they would understand. Just holler and I'll give them a call."

Jaune managed a slight smile. "Thanks, Pyr."

"No problem! C'mon Hermes, let's go," Pyrrha beckoned.

The husky gave Jaune one last, longing look, before scampering off to jog with the redhead.

When he could no longer hear their footsteps, Jaune sighed and numbly grabbed the bottle of antidepressants that sat on his nightstand.

"Hopefully these pills kick in before that charity thingy later today," he murmured to himself.

"Jaune! Pyrrha! Over here!"

The huntress and the former huntsman entered the gigantic warehouse-looking building. Around two dozen volunteers scrambled around the mammoth building, setting up tables and preparing food. In the very back, the two spotted Nora, waving her hands to grab their attention.

"Just in time you guys!" grinned the exuberant huntress. "The faunus folk should be here in about fifteen or twenty minutes, so help me out with the plates and forks and whatever else!"

"Sure thing!" Jaune smiled and grabbed the boxes of plastic silverware and began stacking them in an orderly fashion.

Pyrrha grabbed her own fair share of plates. "How was the last mission, Nora?"

"Oh, it was kinda boring, actually," pouted the ginger. "Just the same ol' extermination mission. Smashing Grimm to bits is only fun the first ten thousand times."

"Really?" laughed Pyrrha. "I thought that was always 'your thing.'"

Nora shrugged. "Yeah, I guess. I just need some bigger fish to fry now, none of that small Grimm anymore."

She waved her arms grandly and grinned. "I think when I retire that's what I'll do; I'm gonna hunt the biggest Grimm I can possibly find! Now that's a lifestyle I could get behind. Speaking of retiring…" Nora turned to the blonde. "You holding up alright, Jauney? Pyrrha called and said you were down in the dumps again today."

Jaune offered her a thumbs-up. "I'm better now. Felt like shit earlier this morning though." He grinned. "But enough about me. What exactly are we setting up for? And where's Ren?"

"Right here."

The dark-haired hunter emerged from the cooking area holding a plate of very fresh pancakes.

"Heya, cutie-patooie!" Nora ran over and wrapped Ren in a giant bear hug, much to his alarm.

"NORA! The pancakes!"

"Eheh… sorry," grinned the ginger sheepishly, letting him go.

"Please be more careful," muttered Ren, setting down the steaming-hot plate. "Anyway, to answer Jaune's question, we're going to be serving food to former faunus slaves from the old dust mines. They're still a recovering community, and this particular charity has been absolutely vital to helping these people get better treatment, better homes, better lives… if we can help push that along, than I'm all for it."

Pyrrha smiled at the explanation. "That definitely sounds like a great cause."

"Yup!" Jaune nodded in agreement. "Great idea having us all come out here."

"Well…" Ren gave a sly smile. "It wasn't exactly my idea. Hey, Weiss?"

"Yes?" A fair and elegant white-haired lady ran up to the group. She wore an extraordinarily dirty apron, and her long hair was tied up in a tight bun to prevent any of it from getting in the way, all of which seemed highly uncharacteristic compared to her usual appearance. "Hello, everyone!"

The rest of the gang greeted the heiress, and Jaune gave her an amused grin. "Really, Snow Angel? Doing this charity event was your idea? Not to mention getting your hands dirty with all the cooking?"

"Hey, I cook all the time!" Weiss huffed. "And Jaune, I'm twenty-eight years old, you think you could stop with the nicknames?"

The blonde grinned even wider. "'Fraid not."

"Fine," Weiss grumbled, before returning to a slightly sunnier disposition. "I suppose some things never change. But yes, it was indeed my idea. Being able to push the ban against indentured servitude for the Schnee Dust Company was big step in righting the wrongs that my forefathers have washed their hands in, but the more I can do to help these poor faunus people lives worth living, the better."

"You're doing some very good work, Snow Angel," agreed Jaune. "If she was here, Blake would be proud."

"Thanks, Jaune," beamed Weiss. "It's unfortunate she and Yang couldn't make it tonight. If I didn't know any better, I'd think they were planning a wedding or something…"

Jaune and Pyrrha shared a knowing look.

The redhead cleared her throat. "I'd imagine that being president of the Schnee Dust Company all the way in Atlas wouldn't allow you to be able to do charity work all the way down here in Vale."

"You'd be surprised," said Weiss. "My schedule does leave room for the occasional charity event, and I certainly wouldn't miss one if it meant being able to see my old Beacon friends again!"

"Likewise," agreed Ren.

"Hear, hear!" chirped Nora.

"Thanks, everyone," Weiss smiled graciously. "In fact, I thought this event would be the perfect thing to bring along a certain… someone. I told her that she's been needing to get out a bit more."

"Oh, the irony! Usually it would be the other way around," called out a familiar girlish voice.

"RUBY!"

The gang gathered around the former huntress, who hadn't been seen by any of them (except Weiss) in months. She cheerfully went around and hugged each individual person warmly, and when she reached Jaune, the blond man inhaled sharply.

Ruby still had the same, youthful and friendly face that they had all grown to love, but the years had matured her and sharpened her features. Of course, the most notable difference that caught Jaune's eye was the mechanical steel hand that poked out from under Ruby's right sleeve. Her right cheek and neck had retained a bit of scarring as well, but the redhead's smile shone past her slight disfigurement.

And even with her scarring and injuries, Jaune thought she was as beautiful as she had ever been.

"So… you gonna say hi, or are you just gonna continue to stare at me?"

Jaune blinked at the grinning former huntress. "Sorry, Rubes," he chuckled, and wrapped in a heartfelt embrace. "It's been a while."

Ruby smiled and hugged back. "It has, hasn't it?"

They pulled apart, and Jaune gave her a sheepish smile. "Yeah. How've you been?"

"I've been alright," shrugged the redhead. "I mean, considering…"

A commotion suddenly broke out near the front of the building, and the volunteers began rushing towards their stations.

"Oh, that's our cue!" exclaimed Weiss. "Let's go, people!"

Ruby nodded, and glanced at Jaune. "Let's do the soup station together so we can catch up, too!"

Jaune nodded. "Sure thing!"

"Uh…" Pyrrha coughed nervously. "Should I come with you two?"

Weiss pulled her arm. "Sorry, Pyrrha, I'm going to need your help with drinks."

The huntress watched as Jaune and Ruby walked over to their stations with concern etched on her face before following Weiss to the drinks.

And as both parties departed, Ren and Nora shared a knowing glance.

"You think…?" Nora whispered.

Ren nodded. "Yeah."

Ruby cheerily handed the warm bowl of soup to the elderly stag faunus who hobbled before her. "Here you go, sir!"

The old man smiled. "Bless your heart, young'un!"

Jaune smiled fondly at the interaction as he scooped another bowl of soup. "You seem as eager as you've ever been."

"Well, I guess Weiss was right. It kinda helps getting out and about sometimes," admitted Ruby. "I'm still not used to… not going on missions anymore."

"Tell me about it," murmured Jaune, handing her the next bowl.

Ruby chuckled. "That's right, you're a professor now. I suddenly have the urge fall asleep when you talk now."

"Very funny."

"But seriously," Ruby grinned. "How is it?"

Jaune raised an eyebrow. "How's what?"

"Y'know," Ruby shrugged. "Teaching."

The blonde sighed. "It's hard work. I mean, it's bad enough to be doing the same lectures and grading the same papers with a bunch of kids who half of them don't even take my class seriously… yet they're supposed to be the future of hunters. They don't know how hellish that life is, and I'm worried that they won't know until it's too late."

Ruby smiled. "So they were kind of like us when we were kids at Beacon."

"Yeah, that's what worries me," murmured Jaune. "Life definitely did not throw the two of us a bone. I don't want them to see what I had to see. I don't want these kids to end up like… well, us. No offense."

"None taken," Ruby laughed. "We did get the shorter end of the stick." Her tone grew more serious. "But these kids know what they signed up for, and while they're still kids, they deserve to live their childhoods. Who are we to take that away from them and feed them the nightmares of the world? That stuff came to us when we were ready, and it'll be the same for them. Those whose hearts are truly in it will take on the challenge, and those who aren't will end up in other places. You just have to be patient, Jaune, and don't give these kids too much to deal with at once. You'll be fine, I promise!"

Jaune hummed at her wisdom. For such a happy, childishly enthusiastic person, the former huntress's wisdom took him by surprise every now and again.

"You really think so?" Jaune wondered aloud.

"Well, yeah, I do," smirked Ruby. "But you should too. You're a born leader. You'll figure it out."

"Right…" Jaune nodded, eyes growing distant. "What about you? You've been okay since the… the accident?"

"Well…" Ruby's smile faltered ever so slightly. "I've been doing what I can. Exercising, catching up on the news, looking for jobs that I most likely will not get fired from…"

They shared a laugh as Jaune handed her another soup bowl. "Sounds like losing an arm and a lung didn't slow you down at all."

"I do my best," grinned Ruby. "It's still kind of a surreal thing to wake up to every morning. I keep forgetting where the hell my right arm went. I mean, don't get me wrong, having a mechanical arm is really cool, and I find all new things my arm can do every day, but the arm doesn't feel, and I get phantom pains every once in a while. I also can't do as much physical work as I used to since I've only got one lung now."

She turned to the blonde, smiling sadly. "The weirdest thing is realizing that I'm not able to go on missions anymore. Being a hunter was… something I saw myself doing for the rest of my life, and now that I can't do it anymore… it's been really hard figuring out what the hell I'm supposed to do."

Jaune looked at his friend. Even in adulthood, she was a very carefree individual, and seeing her unsure of herself for once pulled at his heartstrings.

"I'm sorry, Rubes-"

Ruby shook her head vigorously. "Nope!"

The blonde blinked. "What do you mean, 'nope?'"

"Nope!" The mirth returned in Ruby's smile. "The thing I want the least is for people to feel sorry for me. I had enough of that within the first month of losing an arm, and I certainly don't need that from you now. And hey, nobody died, right?"

Nobody died, right?

Jaune flinched visibly, as the screams filled his head again.

Ruby's eyes widened in realization at his reaction. "No… I'm… I'm sorry Jaune, I didn't mean to say that. That was really insensitive of me, Jaune… I..."

"It's okay, Rubes," Jaune tried to smile back. "You meant well. Don't worry about it." He steeled himself against the flashbacks. "But, I am glad that you've been doing alright."

Ruby smiled again, visibly relieved. "It's a struggle sometimes. But we keep moving forward. We always do."

Jaune raised an eyebrow doubtfully. "You think?"

"I know." The redhead gave him a playful nudge. "Now c'mon, we've got some mouths to feed, so cheer up, okay?"

Her gusto was infectious, and Jaune couldn't help but feel the corners of his mouth turn upwards.

"Okay."

Pyrrha watched the two friends laughing happily and felt a pang in her gut.

She felt a nudge in her side. "Hey."

Turning, she found the heiress looking up at her in concern. "You okay? You look like someone stole Hermy or something to that effect."

Pyrrha raised an eyebrow. "'Hermy?'"

"Your dog?" Weiss sighed dreamily. "You know, that cute little ball of fur with that wovable, wovable face –"

"He's not a pup anymore, Weiss."

"Oh really? How big is he now?"

"Probably as big as you are tall."

Weiss's eyes grew as big as saucers. "Oh my. Has it really been that long since I've seen you guys?"

"Don't fret, you've been reasonably busy," Pyrrha assured with a smile.

"That I have," groaned the heiress. "I am very happy to see all of you again. Especially Ruby. It's good to see her out and about again."

"I suppose so…" Pyrrha trailed off as she turned back to Jaune and Ruby, who looked like the closest of friends again, even after so long.

Weiss observed her carefully. "You sure you don't want to talk about anything?"

"I'm sure," the redhead answered, managing a smile.

"Fine," murmured the heiress, returned to tend the drinks. "If you say so."

The following afternoon, Jaune's Tuesday class closed slightly later than issue, with the last few stranglers desperately trying to bullshit their way through their exams. He shook his head disdainfully as the last kid lazily dropped his exam on the pile that sat by Jaune's feet, propped upon his desk.

"You gotta do better than that if you wanna pass this class, much less become a hunter, Brann," sighed the professor, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"I'll do better," mumbled Brann, as he strolled out the door.

"You might wanna lay off the weed while you're at it," Jaune called after him. "I can smell it from a mile away."

Brann's face turned pale, and he bolted.

Jaune rolled his eyes and started packing up the exams before his scroll rang.

He pulled it out and recognized Pyrrha's number before answering. "Hey Pyr."

"Hey Jaune! Where are you?"

"I'm about to wrap up things here at the school. What do you need?" Jaune closed his shoulder bag and slung it over his shoulder.

"Yeah! I finally opened up that bookshelf we bought a week ago. Problem is… I can't put it together for the life of me."

"Alrighty. Hang tight, I'll be home in a bit."

"Thanks Jaune. See you in a few!"

"Bye."

"So why did you decide to do this now?" Jaune stared at the pile of wood pieces that lay before him. "Aren't you leaving tomorrow morning?"

"Yeah," murmured Pyrrha as she sat comfortably on the living room couch, swirling a glass of red wine in her right hand. "I had a whim."

Jaune raised an eyebrow at the glass of wine. "Really."

"Yup."

The blonde glanced cautiously around the house. "Hermes isn't gonna trample this thing or me while I'm working on it?"

"He's asleep in my room," smirked Pyrrha. "You'll be fine."

Jaune sighed and cracked his knuckles. "Alright. How hard can this be?"

"FUCK THIS BOOKSHELF!" Jaune kicked the remains of the shelf in a fit of rage as it collapsed once more before him.

"Tell me about it," giggled Pyrrha.

Jaune plopped down on the section of couch next to her. "I mean, usually I'd understand if you couldn't put something like this together, but this piece of shit is actually impossible to build."

"Thus, my plight every time I try putting together one of these things," noted Pyrrha, sipping from her glass. "Also the reason I keep you around."

"Well, glad I could help," muttered Jaune sarcastically.

They stared at the pile of wood for a moment.

"I have an idea," murmured Jaune. "Pour me a glass of wine, will you?"

Where a pile of wood once lay now stood a grotesque and very rudimentary-looking wood stick figure. Screws stuck out from every orifice, and the wood man looked like it would fall over at any second.

Meanwhile, bothe Jaune and Pyrrha sat side by side upon the couch, proudly observing their piece of "modern art."

"Perfect?" smirked Jaune, glass of wine in hand.

"Perfect," replied Pyrrha, who leaned against his shoulder.

They clinked their glasses in triumph.

"You think anyone ever finished building this thing the way it was supposed to be built?" murmured Jaune.

"There has to have been someone who managed it," responded Pyrrha, nuzzling deeper on his chest. "Someone with skill beyond either yours or mine."

"Those skill levels are at opposite ends of the spectrum, y'know," chuckled the blonde.

Pyrrah elbowed him. "Hush, you. Give yourself a little credit. You made… whatever that is over there."

"True," laughed Jaune, sipping from the wine. "It's kinda cute, actually."

"Yeah." Pyrrha laughed in return, turning to gaze at the blonde, with his brilliant blue eyes, the shock of blonde hair, and his warm, genuine smile…

"You know, you're pretty cute, too," murmured Pyrrha as she leaned in and kissed Jaune upon the lips.

She felt his hesitation for a brief moment before he fully reciprocated the kiss passionately.

They continued to press themselves against each other in growing desire, and Pyrrha began to push the blonde upon the couch, setting her and Jaune's empty glasses on the floor beside them.

She felt their clothes leave their bodies. She felt herself pressing against him as he pressed back. Their passion blossomed further and Pyrrha's skin tingled with contact.

It was pure pleasure. It was pure bliss. It was…

"It was a mistake."

Jaune frowned. "A… mistake?"

The morning sun shined upon them through the windows. Hermes awoke very early to find the two asleep upon the living room couch, embracing, and happily licked them awake.

Of course, the poor husky never expected that the two would wake up bickering.

"Yes, Jaune. It was a mistake," Pyrrha replied somberly.

Jaune withdrew himself from the redheaded huntress, and she shivered as his warmth left her body.

"You mean to tell me you called me home to help you build a bookshelf, fail miserably, and proceed to have sex with me just to call it a mistake?"

"Jaune, please," Pyrrha pleaded. "I wasn't thinking clearly. Honey, we're getting divorced. We… we shouldn't be… we shouldn't be…"

"No, that's all I need to hear," Jaune spoke shortly, rising from the couch to put his clothes back on.

"Jaune…"

"You obviously weren't thinking clearly. Maybe if you did, you could've called the guy from the local home improvement center to build it for you. Who knows, maybe you could fuck him too…"

"Jaune!" Pyrrha yelled in horror. "That's not… why would you…"

"I don't know, why would you?" Without turning to look at her, Jaune walked briskly towards the front door.

"No, Jaune, don't leave…"

The door swung open and slammed shut in response.

Hermes jumped at the door slamming. He looked worriedly over at Pyrrha and trotted over to lay his head in her lap, whimpering uncertainly.

Pyrrha sighed dishearteningly and stroked the husky's head. "It'll be alright, Hermes. Jaune's not one to hold grudges. He'll come back, and we'll work it all out then."

I hope.

Jaune knocked on the door.

Two minutes passed without a response.

Jaune sighed. Maybe it was just too early in the morning for this.

He knocked again.

After a moment, Jaune sighed and almost walked away before he heard the door creak open.

He turned back around.

Silver eyes stared back at him, with the sleep barely shaken off them. "Jaune…? What are you doing here?"

Jaune felt his shoulders slump. "Hey, Rubes. I… I'm having a… situation back home… and I kinda need a place to crash. I really don't want to bother you or anything… but I was wondering if maybe you'd be okay with me staying with you for a while?"

Ruby rubbed her eyes with her human hand, concern written on her face. "You and Pyrrha have a falling out?"

The blonde seemed to shrink upon himself. "Yeah… you could say that."

The former huntress offered him a reassuring smile. "Well, come on in, then. Want any coffee? I was about to make some anyway."

"Sure." Jaune trudged in heavily. "Coffee sounds nice."

So... that was rough.

Here we have it - the point where everything begins to change, as well as the biggest dent in Jaune and Pyrrha's relationship thus far. It hurts, but it must be written. We all deserve our closure, after all.

Reviews are welcome, as always, especially with this chapter. I wanna know if I hurt you enough.

Until next time... if I don't get killed by the Arkos shippers.