Residuum
Blood 1.1
iii
"Alright kid, show me what you got," Qrow said, holding his stick expertly. Jaune had at first been worried to duel his older companion as his own weapon was sharpened but Qrow had assured him he'd be okay. Well, Qrow had insulted him and said he didn't stand a chance, but it got the blond to duel him either way.
Jaune held his stick in front of him as the two watched each other sharply, Qrow with a cocky smirk on his face. Jaune was the first to move, jumping back sharply as Qrow had expected, disappearing behind a tree. Qrow still knew where he was but soon enough the blond was completely hidden to the point even Qrow couldn't accurately track him, though he knew the blond was nearby.
A few days had passed since Qrow met Jaune and though he had not expected it, the Huntsman had actually learned a lot from watching the blond. The teen obviously was not the greatest fighter he had seen, an amateur in swordplay with his stick-sword but the kid knew how to move in the jungle, maybe even better than Qrow himself. He was swift, silent, and savage, probably through his years of trial and error of living alone in the forests of the Wilds. Qrow was faster for sure, and the kid probably wouldn't hold a candle in speed to most Huntsman that would have the use of weapons, aura, and semblances to speed themselves up.
Qrow heard the barest of noises from behind him, pivoting on his foot as he dodged Jaune's lunge, bringing his stick down on the kid's shoulder, causing the blond to roll away before he was hit. Mid-roll, Jaune got his foot steady and lunged right back at Qrow, making the man grin at his gall.
Qrow dodged again, this time kicking out low making sure to hit the kid but Jaune reacted appropriately, blocking the kick with his hand and leaping over it, slashing at Qrow as he tried to get behind him. Qrow parried the blow, this time pressing his advantage and hitting the blond on his side with decent force on his sword, enough to hurt but not enough to cripple.
Jaune took the blow with grace, grabbing onto Qrow's weapon and planting a foot onto the ground. He pulled hard, putting his body into it to pull Qrow along with his weapon, hoping to catch him unawares. Qrow effortlessly caught Jaune's retaliatory slash, but instead of holding the stick pushed back, causing the blond to finally lose his balance and his weapon. Jaune fell to the floor but immediately rolled away again, not letting Qrow push the advantage much to the man's amusement. He flipped back up, now completely unarmed against his opponent.
Qrow gave him a shit-eating grin, knowing he won again.
"That's eight to zero," Qrow told him, making the blond glower at him.
The blond was a damn ninja. He could vanish and sometimes even Qrow had trouble keeping track of him. The kid may not be the fastest but he moved right, conserving as much energy as he could with every movement he made. He also attacked ferociously, with little telegraphing in his moves. Qrow had to wonder who would win if he set up a fight between Jaune and Yang. Yang was definitely better, heck even little Ruby was better, but Jaune was unusual and unorthodox and if he could surprise even Qrow, then he definitely had a chance against a Huntress-in-training.
As Jaune had shown him a few tricks, unintentionally or not, Qrow tried teaching the blond in return. The right way to hold a sword, some basic strikes and parrying. Jaune hadn't taken to it, he hadn't asked Qrow to teach him more than the first time they practiced together but the Huntsman felt it had more than to do with a lack of interest than to do with ineptitude.
"You know, if you were willing to learn to use a sword you would have a better time," Qrow said, but Jaune just shook his head, refusing yet again. Qrow didn't push the issue, not just yet.
"Well, that was good exercise, but how about we get dinner started?" Qrow asked, "The fish all skinned, right?"
Jaune just rolled his eyes as they walked over to where Qrow had set up camp. It was about half-an-hour later that darkness really fell and they began cooking their dinner.
Qrow rubbed his hands over the fire, watching the fish cook as Jaune stretched out on his makeshift bed, yawning as he stared into the night sky. His Beowolf had faded a few hours before, indicating to Qrow that whatever it really was that the blond was doing did kill the Grimm after taking control of them. The Ursa was still around, sleeping silently near the fire.
"So I got a question for you," Qrow said to the blond, causing the blond to look at him. Qrow hesitated for a moment, knowing this would be a sensitive issue but he had done his best to build a camaraderie with the boy to avoid any serious backlash.
"You mentioned you were here for almost eight years," Qrow stated.
"Ninety moons," Jaune supplied.
"A shit-load of moons," Qrow said, "But what about before that? You're what, fifteen? Sixteen?"
Jaune fell silent as he tried to remember.
"I… I don't really remember too much," he said, not looking at Qrow, "There were two people. I think their hair was like mine, yellow. They took me somewhere, I remember being scared but they were… they were teasing me?" Jaune spoke in a hollow voice, "And we were attacked… I remember red eyes, I was- I was screaming, I was so afraid. They were screaming too. Jaune, Jaune."
Qrow remained silent, a steady look on his face as he considered this. That had to be his family. His parents… no, his siblings if they were teasing him.
"It was Grimm, had to be. We tried running, they were trying to get to us. I got caught," Jaune said, shaking slightly, "It hurt, one of them bit me."
"But it didn't eat you," Qrow interjected, realizing what had happened, "It drew your blood and you turned it. But you were scared, so it took you away from the place that scared you."
Jaune nodded.
"I wasn't sure what happened for years. The other two… I think they were girls, I saw them run away and leave me behind, screaming my name, screaming 'mom', 'dad'. I remember my head hitting something and I woke up to some big dumb wolf licking my face," Jaune said, smiling sadly, "Stupid thing protected me but it didn't survive much longer."
"And you were on your own since then," Qrow said, looking back to the fish, "Those girls, probably your sisters I'd guess."
"Yeah, maybe," Jaune said, obviously having considered it before.
"They abandoned you," Qrow mentioned, completely calm, "You got caught and they ran away. You got left behind."
Jaune grunted.
"Do you blame them?"
Jaune didn't reply immediately, looking into the small campfire they had going and listening to the crackling wood. The Ursa snorted in it's sleep nearby, but they both ignored it.
"I did," Jaune said finally, "For a long time I did. Now however, how do I put it? Well, I was a kid too and the Grimm…"
"The Grimm do that to people," Qrow said, closing his eyes, "Even grown men and women, they forget any decency to protect themselves. 'My life's worth more than some kid, let's toss her at them as bait'. I've seen the worst of people. But your sisters, they were just kids."
"Yeah."
The two fell silent, remembering some of the worst times of their lives. Qrow grabbed a stick, holding it out to Jaune.
"Here," he said, "Get your grub on."
"Thanks," Jaune said appreciatively, sitting up and nibbling on the fish. Qrow grabbed his own stick, enjoying what he could out here in the wilderness. He really wouldn't mind real food, maybe a good restaurant. Or a bar.
"Come with me," Qrow said, looking at Jaune again.
"Huh?" Jaune replied eloquently, mouth stuffed. Qrow took a deep breath, hoping he could explain this well. He did have a decent handle on the blond.
"Come with me," Qrow repeated, "I can't guarantee anything, but you probably have at least two sisters, not to mention a mom and a dad. I know someone, one of the wisest men I've ever met in my life. If there's anyone that can help you, it's him."
Jaune swallowed, searching Qrow's face for any sort of deceit, but Qrow was completely serious. More so than getting this kid to Ozpin because of his abilities, no kid deserved being on their own like he was. The blond had spent probably half his life alone in the Wilds. No, not alone. Living with Grimm, the complete antithesis of the light. Qrow wouldn't wish that on anyone.
"Like I said, I can't guarantee it but I know you don't want to be alone any more. You want your family back," Qrow said, "The man I'm talking about, Ozpin, he has a school."
"A school?" Jaune asked disbelievingly. Qrow rolled his eyes.
"Not a regular school you schmuck, a Huntsman school," Qrow explained, "Beacon, one of the best schools in the world. I went there myself. You'll learn to be a Huntsman like I am."
"And I'll find my family there?" Jaune asked quietly.
"I don't know," Qrow answered honestly, "But I do know Ozpin, and I trust him. I don't know if he'll do it for free, but he's the headmaster of a school that trains the defenders of this world, and I've seen how you fight, how you move. You'll school most of those wannabes there and if you do get accepted into his school, then I know I can convince Ozpin to help you."
"Jaune. If there's anyone that can find your family, it's Ozpin," Qrow said, and Jaune could hear the certainty in his voice.
"What if I don't get accepted?" Jaune asked, and Qrow knew he was seriously considering the idea.
"You will," Qrow said firmly, "Initiation is in around three months, maybe slightly more. We'll take the scenic route to Vale so I can train you. You don't know it but I'm one of the best Huntsmen in the world. Three months with me and you'll be able to pass initiation at least. You'll be a bit behind, most of those kids have been training for a decade, but you got what it takes."
"Even if you don't get accepted," Qrow finished, "What's here for you?"
Jaune look at Qrow silently for a moment, his mind working furiously. His tongue dashed out, licking his lips nervously. Qrow smiled, knowing he was convinced.
"Alright," said Jaune, "I'll come with you, but only on one condition."
"What's that?"
Jaune pointed at him; no, slightly behind him.
"I get your cape."
Qrow just snorted, shaking his head wryly.
"You and your obsession with red."
Notes: For some reason, the previous update didn't reflect in the master list of the RWBY section. Even now as I'm writing this, the story only shows the date of publish yet no date for how recently it was updated. Hopefully it was just a rare glitch, otherwise the popularity of this listing is pretty much shot if updates aren't pushing it to the front page under the RWBY section.
Either way, thanks for reading and drop a review! Next update is scheduled for March 8th EST.
knuckz
