The trip back to the Arc family home had been quiet, plagued by stony silence. Link Jaune could see that his father was angry. He wisely chose to stay silent, and avoid testing his father's patience. And to be fair, he couldn't blame his father. If he had been an ordinary kid, he would have died against that beowolf.
Not to mention the new shape that Crocea Mors had taken. It wasn't only his father's weapon- it was a family heirloom, and it was now modified to the point of no return. Honestly, given the fairy magic involved, Jaune Link wouldn't be surprised if the sword burned or bit or even flew away from Nicholas's hands if he tried using it.
This required something drastic for his ass to remained un-spanked. This required the truth.
"And so the Great Fairy Nayriel informed me that I was the final reincarnation of the Hero of Courage, from an era before the Brother Gods." Jaune finished. And then he realized he hadn't yet explained Crocea Mors, and why the barely-recognizable blade had changed in form and lost all mecha-shift functionality. "Oh yeah, and she bestowed upon me one last blessing, transforming Crocea Mors into the ancient weaponry I once wielded before she faded away forever."
Jaune wasn't sure why they were looking at him so incredulously. Crocea Mors was literally a magical sword now!
"Is this some kind of joke?" Juniper asked, her voice cracking. To Jaune's horror, she began doing something that he had no defense against whatsoever.
She began crying. Jaune immediately panicked.
"No, it's not a joke. I'm serious! It's a magical sword now, look at it!" Jaune said frantically.
"Jaune, just... just go to your room. Now." Nicholas said. Jaune was about to argue for a second, only to see the look on his father's face. Once again deciding that discretion was the better part of valor here, he quickly headed to his room.
Nicholas and Juniper were left alone in the quiet nighttime home, with nothing but what remained of Crocea Mors for company. Jaune's sisters had gone to bed hours ago, having been warned by scroll call that Nicholas would be coming back late.
Nicholas, huntsman of action that he was broke the silence.
"What a load of bullshit." Nicholas said, without any real anger in his voice. Juniper couldn't help herself. She burst out laughing. Nicholas joined her, and the pair laughed and laughed until the reality of the situation set in, and the feeling grew somber once more.
"What do you think happened?" Juniper asked. Nicholas grimaced. He sighed, thinking for a second.
"I don't know." Nicholas said in a low voice, drawing out the words with a sigh. "But we- the militia and I- did see an orb of light floating around, guiding the Grimm." Nicholas said. Juniper shivered. The implications were terrifying. Whoever had lured Jaune away from their village and family had been willing to lead Grimm into the village boundaries. People could have died. The negativity of the attack could have lured in other Grimm as well, and led to a disaster. It could have destroyed the entire village.
"So someone kidnapped Jaune." Juniper said simply, heart pounding at the thought. Jaune hadn't experienced some strange flight of fantasy, or mental illness (and she wasn't sure which would have been worse). Someone had fed into Jaune's strange beliefs, led him into the wild, and... and what? Let him go? Ruined Crocea Mors?
"It has to be some kind of semblance." Nicholas said, mulling over what he knew. "Grimm investigate stuff like strange lights in the woods, but they lose interest if there's no humans nearby. If they didn't, we could bait them out using flares over long distances and blow them up. Maybe it was an illusion-based semblance. It would explain why they had the perfect story for Jaune. Maybe it feeds off the target's thoughts. Grimm might imagine humans running from them. Jaune would see one of his... delusions."
On any other night, Nicholas would have been polite and called it an overactive imagination. But not after what had just happened.
"But what do they want with Jaune? And why would they do... what they did with your sword?" Juniper asked, casting a worried glance toward Crocea Mors. She felt her husband tense beside her, a familiarity borne of years of marriage. Nicholas had wielded Crocea Mors for years. It had been his father's, and while he had despised his parents for years... it had been a reliable companion. One that he had spent time with more than he did with Juniper.
Nicholas stood up and walked over to the scabbard-less blade. He frowned upon picking it up.
"The balance is ruined. The grip feels bad too. It looks like Crocea Mors, but it doesn't feel like it." Nicholas picked up the shield next, looking it over. While the sword vaguely resembled Crocea Mors, the shield bore no resemblance whatsoever. Not to mention it bore no mechashift functionality. In sum, the sword and shield resembled something pre-Great War, as absurd as it was to say. Even civilians in Vale were allowed to buy weapons better than this.
Nicholas put it down with a sigh. The sword had lasted a century of use, and his entire career as a huntsman. It hurt to see the blade ruined.
"I'll have to go to Vale to buy a new weapon." Nicholas said. Despite the somber reminder, Juniper couldn't help but tease him gently.
"I always said that all the cool huntsman had the newest mechashift weapons. What kind of sword doesn't turn into a gun?" Juniper asked.
"Heh. They're compensating." Nicholas said, grinning. He wandered back over to his wife, joining her at their couch.
"I don't know what they wanted with Jaune, but I'll put out a bulletin in the huntsmen channels. See if there's any similar missing children cases in the region. Might as well do that while I'm in the city. Maybe I can get a warrant to look into illusion-type semblances in Vale."
"Ok. I'll be watching him with the rest of the kids. Just in case he runs off again. Or someone tries to take him." Juniper said firmly.
"Good idea... You know, whoever kidnapped Jaune might have let him go by accident. Every semblance has a limit. Maybe Jaune wore theirs out. I don't think there's anyone with as active an imagination as Jaune." Nicholas said. This time, there were no chuckles at the light joke.
"We'll have to have a family meeting about this tomorrow. We need to tell the girls about what happened to Jaune. Maybe not Amber, but the others are old enough. Lavender should definitely know better, at least."
Their conversation continued intermittently through the evening, as the two readied themselves for bed. It was a relief for Juniper when she could lay down against her husband's chest, feeling the warmth and hardiness of his body. Yet even in her tired state, she couldn't stop thinking. Perhaps it was the stress of the day. Or perhaps it was over what didn't match up.
Jaune's story was insane. It was unbelievable. Someone had been planning something nefarious with her son. Maybe they had fled as Nicholas had neared.
But what about Crocea Mors? And what about all the strange things he...
Juniper's sleep was uneasy that night.
Jaune had slept like a log following his return home. The morning after was another story. It was an awkward breakfast, with his sister's stares following him as he ate. No one said anything, and Jaune had a feeling he knew why when he was sent up to his bedroom following breakfast.
His parents didn't believe what he had told them. And now they were going to talk about it without him.
It was disappointing, but maybe it was too much for them to believe, especially in this kind of era. For a world using magical dust inhabited by man-eating monsters woven of darkness, the inhabitants in Remnant were surprisingly skeptical at the idea of magic. Or, at least in Jaune's somewhat miffed opinion, magic that didn't come from semblance, soul, and rocky powder.
On the other hand... it wasn't like his family needed to believe him. After all, he finally had an explanation for who he was. And he had already learned everything he would ever learn from Nayriel.
Nayriel...
Jaune would never forget her kindness.
Everyone in the immediate family was here in the Arc home living room. Everyone, but Jaune and Amber.
"Two days ago, Jaune was kidnapped." Juniper began without preamble.
The reactions were as expected. Gasps, worried faces, and in Lavender's case, the beginning of trembling on her face, soon to be tears. Juniper soldiered on, despite wanting to comfort each and every one of them.
"I know this is hard, and scary to hear. It scares me too. But we have a plan. Me and your father are going to make some things clear. For your sakes, and for Jaune's." Juniper went on.
And now Jaune Link had been allowed a full day to process Nayriel's kindness. To process everything she said. And to begin processing the many memories he had, and wonder at how many more he would remember going forward.
And most importantly of all, to wonder at what he would do in this life. In his last life. It was a big question. Although, Link wryly thought to himself, a question that most people wouldn't think to qualify with "last".
He would definitely spend time with his family in this life. And while most people might joke or bemoan living among such a large family, Link considered himself lucky. He loved his family. Even the most unbearable among them (Coral) was only kind of rough to get along with. And even Coral had her good moments.
But that was only what he would be doing for fun. He needed to figure out what he would do for a living. In other lives, he had always put his duty before himself. He had always chosen his love for others, and desire to help others over his own personal safety and happiness. In a way it had been an obligation, even if he had always been free to turn away.
Surely he had time to figure that out, right? Surely he could take the time to decide what he wanted to do with his life?
"Your father is going to the city next week. He needs a new weapon, and he needs to report this to the authorities. We're going to have some members of the militia watching after the house while he's gone." Juniper stated.
"But what if whoever kidnapped Jaune comes back while you're gone? Will the militia be able to stop them?" Saphron asked worriedly, looking toward Nicholas. He was standing in the corner of the living room, face stuck in a perpetual grimace at the situation.
"Just because they're not aura-activated doesn't mean they're not strong. Plus, we'll be having all of you keep watch." Nicholas said. "Keep an eye on Jaune, and make sure he doesn't run off. If you see any weird balls of light, anyone strange near the home, or anything weird at all, call for help right away. Even if it turns out to be nothing."
Nicholas looked each and every one of his daughters in the eyes as he gave these orders, focusing lastly on Lavender. She nodded frantically. Satisfied that they were taking his words seriously, he continued.
"We're not sure why they tried to kidnap Jaune, but it was probably a crime of opportunity. Jaune was an easy mark by accident, and he managed to find his way back. That doesn't scream competence on their part. Just don't leave him alone for now, and don't go off by yourselves either."
He could take any number of menial jobs. He had worked a lot of them in his previous lives. In Link's opinion, no work was beneath him as long as it kept him housed and fed.
He could become a farmer. He had loved farming before, at least from what he could remember from another life in another village named Ordon.
Or maybe a rancher. Link loved raising horses, and much to his delight they were even a popular form of transportation out in the Remnant frontier. Machinery hadn't replaced everything.
Or maybe a sailor. He had been a sailor in so many previous lives, and oh, were sailors in demand in Remnant. With how dangerous the oceans were, and the need to transport product that didn't consume dust the way bullheads did, sailors earned a premium for their work. It would even be perfect for visiting his family- simply take sailing jobs until they bring him back around to this part of Vale, visit with his parents and whatever siblings were still at home, and then go off again on another brilliant adventure on the high seas.
Link Jaune could live a peaceful life. Maybe he'd even find someone to share it with, as he had in other lives. He could have children, children he wasn't afraid of leaving behind. He could become one of the many people in Remnant who didn't go on adventures. He would stay close to home. Probably after doing an apprenticeship so that he could take good care of his family- he could never see himself going to university, but an apprenticeship could lead to something good, something that would help others, and let him raise a family.
And then he would be leaving people to die.
His heart seized at the thought. Then he immediately chastised himself. Jaune Link knew that people died every day in Remnant. Humanity had been fighting Grimm for all of recorded history. Were it not for humanity being able to kill them, they might have been considered just another natural disaster, another way that humanity was humbled by the greater forces of the world.
Yet his mind was stuck on the thought. Stuck on the idea of fighting the Grimm. Stuck on the idea that he couldn't leave others to take up that burden where he could.
Was there something wrong with him? He had always had his done his duty before, and after centuries of fighting he had one last chance to truly live. This was his last chance to die in bed, warm and surrounded by loved ones. His heart could almost swell in joy at the the thought, but...
Jaune couldn't leave it. He had all the time in the world to think on this. But he... Jaune/Link wouldn't feel right if he left it now. He had never liked leaving something like this in his brain for later. He wanted to understand himself. And so he thought on it. Thought on why his heart, his soul was so against the idea of settling down.
Leaving others to die.
He felt like he was floating a little, dazed, dizzy in his bed. Idly, JauneLink wondered if this was what a panic attack felt like. His limbs trembled, he wasn't quite sure what he was feeling but it was not happiness. He squeezed his hands experimentally to... see if he could still control them? They felt clammy and cold, and he couldn't force himself to close them all the way.
Breath in. Breathe out. He gradually brought his emotions under control again.
LinkJaune didn't get what was happening. He valued calm, he had always valued hard work and peace, and he loved his family. Settling down peacefully should be the perfect life for him.
He loved his sisters. He enjoyed taking care of them. He liked being spoiled by Saphron and his parents. He felt a sense of pride in his body when his father complimented him for doing the household chores without being asked.
He loved the people in Ordon. From the old village woman that always yelled at children but slipped him candy, to the village drunkard that everyone pitied, but who always sobered up enough to patch up the rooftops. He loved this village, and loved how it could come together when times were rough.
He loved this land, and its people. Even if it wasn't his original land. And in some sense, Link could recognize that these were the same feelings he had held so, so, so long ago. In a memory that few other lives had been able to grasp from, but from which he was able to remember now. It was a memory from his first life. The moment he had chosen.
He had been imprisoned for years, bound by a corrupt lord within the land of Hylia. Everyone had stood behind his imprisonment. Yet, those same people had come to him when the Demon King's plot was revealed. The demon that would eventually become Ganondorf in subsequent lives.
His fellow Hylians had bowed before him as if they were given a great honor, rather than presenting themselves before the hero they had castigated and hurt. He had been abandoned, tortured, and left within that cell for years. And they had acted as if they were presenting him with some reward, rather than begging him to take up the blade once more and defend the land.
Link had been given a choice. He could have refused them in that cell, or even ran off into the wilderness once he was free. He could have abandoned the Land of Hylia, and its people forever. The "Legend" would have never began.
But he hadn't. And he could remember why.
Jaune and Link were one in the same. He loved life. He wanted to protect and safeguard it. He wanted to see the land he had tended to grow, and its people swell. Even when he had been treated cruelly, had every reason to abandon it, he would not abandon his love for it. It was a feeling like a mother watching their baby grow fat off their breast, even as their child began teething.
He was lightheaded at the metaphor, laughing slightly at the image. He was no longer tensing up in his bed. He felt freer than he had ever felt before. He was happy again. He knew that Nayriel was right.
He, Jaune. He, Link. He wouldn't die in his bed. He would spend his last life fighting, and he would be happy doing so. He would become a huntsman, and defend humanity from the Grimm, until the very end.
The discussion had been a hard one, but necessary. The girls had taken the news about as well as they could have, and they now knew enough to keep themselves safe. There was just one more thing to do before Nicholas and Juniper picked Amber up from the babysitter.
Talk about this with Jaune.
They needed to clearly explain to Jaune what had happened, as hard as it would be. She had volunteered to handle it, allowing Nicholas to debrief the militia on the situation, and pick Amber up from the babysitter.
Juniper knocked on his bedroom door. No response. She knocked again, and yet again had no response. Nerves suddenly crept up on her, as she opened the door with a panic.
Jaune was sleeping in his bed. He wasn't kidnapped again. He was just in bed, sleeping, with a smile on his face. He looked small bundled beneath the sheets. He looked every bit the happy ten-year old that he was. Juniper moved to wake him, only to stop at the last moment. Her hand hovered uncertainly over him. She wasn't looking forward to having this conversation again, and he could probably use the rest. She kissed him on the forehead, smiling as Jaune smiled in his sleep.
Juniper crept out of his bedroom, and gently closed the door behind her.
She could ground him forever when he woke up.
AN:
I swear that someday we'll get some good ole RWBY ultra-violence.
Link's origin story in this chapter is actually based off of the manga published within Hyrule Historia, a book printed during the release of Skyward Sword. It established an origin for the Legend of Zelda series, or as much an origin as you can have for such a loose setting. You can even see some of the manga's worldbuilding in the Hyrule you explore in Breath of the Wild. Cannot recommend the manga enough if you want to understand modern-day Zelda lore.