Sorry for posting a day late but next chapter is already written, read the notes at the end if you want know how to access it in advance.
Jaune blinked. Ozpin blinked. Even the damned Cat blinked as all three of them look at each other across Ozpin's office table at the top of Beacon Tower.
One thing Jaune will admit has rusted in the Ever After other than his armor was his social skills. Granted, he was never the best on it even before he stole his family sword and ran away to Beacon but he should have been able to at least start a conversation.
As it is, it had to take Glynda Goodwitch serving them drinks to get him to talk and that's only when she asked him first.
"Coffee or tea?"
The question actually surprises him so much that he flinches causing his armor to clank which then also caused both Ozpin and the Cat to flinch on their own. Before the flinching could even devolve to drawing their weapons and starting round two, Jaune has to use everything he has to stop his body's response of fight now ask questions later and calm down.
"I'm sorry?" He asks confusedly before his mind catches up that he is being offered coffee or tea.
"Would you like some coffee or some tea?" Glynda repeats with furrowed brows.
Coffee or tea. The last time he drank coffee was the day Atlas fell, the day he got fell into the Ever After. The last time he drank tea however was when the Genial Gems handed it to him and it practically killed him and sent him to the Great Tree. While he doubts the coffee or tea Professor Goodwitch is offering him would lead to something similar, Jaune was paralyzed by indecision.
"I-I don't know." Jaune answers to Glynda's growing frown.
"Perhaps a cup of water first for our guest." Ozpin pipes up as Jaune sees him put on a contemplating expression.
"Y-yes, just water for now please." He manages to groan out through his dry mouth.
As much as he'd love to taste normal coffee or tea after a long long time, he was just a bundle of nerves. He can't have that. He would need all faculties on deck and not simping for coffee or tea during this discussion.
Glynda nods in acquiescence at that and serves him a cup of water before moving to stand beside Ozpin's chair. Not to waste any time, Jaune grabs the cup and pulls his helmet off to drink life-giving water for the first since the Paper Pleasers ascended on their own. He does not hear the gasps from two of his own audience.
He only notices something is wrong after drinking the water when he sees Glynda Goodwitch staring at him intently with a red face. His eyes go wide at that. Did he do something wrong? Did he insult his old professor by breaking some social etiquette he has long forgotten and made her angry? He knows he's been isolated for a long time but he'd surely remember how not to be rude right?! Because that's probably the only explanation for his professor to go red in anger.
"I-I'm sorry! Thank you for the water! It was nice!" He says panickedly to smooth over any faux pas he has committed, snapping Glynda Goodwitch out of her stupor.
"I-uhm, thank you." Professor Glynda even more red-faced than before to Jaune's growing horror.
It wasn't until the Cat piped up that he finally realized what was wrong.
"It's your face, you idiot. This is the first time they are seeing your face."
Jaune scowls as he sees the Cat rolls their eyes at him.
"Why? What's wrong with my face?" He glowers at the Cat, refusing to look at Professor Goodwitch in embarrassment.
He doesn't think he could take the humiliation if Professor Goodwitch really thinks there is something wrong with his face.
Ozpin's guffaw breaks the tension just before Jaune's face takes a red color of their own.
"You misunderstand, Ser Knight. My deputy is just flustered to see one of her idols in the flesh." Ozpin snorts amusedly at their conversation to Jaune's disbelief.
"Ozpin!" Glynda yells in mortifaction at Ozpin as her pink cheeks suddenly turn pale.
"Me? An i-idol?!" Jaune blurts out looking back and forth at Glynda and Ozpin.
"Him?! An idol?" The Curious Cat must have had the same idea as him because they just look at them incredulously as well.
"Is it really such a surprise? You are the Rusted Knight after all, aren't you?" Ozpin asks to both Jaune and the Curious Cat with a raised eyebrow while looking at Jaune intensely.
"I-I guess I haven't really thought about it." Jaune answers shakily, still reeling fron the fact that his own Combat Professor is actually his fan.
"Perhaps, but speaking of surprises. Today has certainly been full of them, don't you think so Mr. Arc? May I call you Mr. Arc or do you prefer Ser?"
And just like that the tension changes in the room as Ozpin begins to probe him with his words. Jaune smiles wryly at that, not even one day and Ozpin is already playing his games.
"I-"
"You could call him Jaune." The Curious Cat interrupts as they look at him with a teasing grin.
He snaps towards the Cat but it is too late. Ozpin's eyes flash in inspiration as he tries to connect the dots.
"We have a new student named Jaune Arc." Ozpin points out helpfully and Jaune rolls his eyes exasperatedly.
It's not like he wasn't going to say it. He just wanted to at least be dramatic or mysterious about it for all the times Ozpin had been a pain on their ass.
However, there's nothing to be done about it now. He sighs to himself and turns to an attentive Ozpin and a gawking Glynda.
"Yup, that's me. Jaune Arc, short, sweet, rolls of the tongue. You are probably wondering how I got here." He remarks with a cheeky smile.
Just because he can't be all dramatic or mysterious, doesn't mean he can't enjoy this for what it's worth.
"Wondering is quite the understatement, Mr. Arc." Ozpin replies with a small smile in contrast to Professor Glynda's gawking.
"I-what?! How?!" Professor Glynda stutters to Jaune's amusement.
"Well, what's your favorite fairy tale?" He asks back with a grin.
Professor Glynda gasps but Ozpin only nods as if it was expected. Well, he did ask the same question earlier after beating Ozpin's ass.
"Since you've asked that question, I assume you are already privy to certain information?" Ozpin inquires with a tilt of his head.
"The Maidens? Relics? Salem? I'm sure I know more about them than you would be comfortable with."
Each word coming out of his mouth changing Ozpin's slightly jovial expression into one of seriousness before finally settling at a frown at the end of his words as Glynda looks at the both of them worriedly.
"I'm sure I don't know what you mean." Ozpin replies back in a flat voice as he puts his elbows on the table and his face on top of his hands..
Jaune just looks at Ozpin flatly at that, all trace of joviality between them are now gone. Ozpin is not his enemy, but his tendency to not share information does not help matters. Seeing his guarded expression, Jaune decides to just blow past it.
"Tell me, Ozpin. When were you going to tell the others that Salem is immortal? That you once used the Relic of Knowledge and it told you that you cannot defeat her."
"What?!"
As expected, Glynda Goodwitch reacts in shock as she turns to look at Ozpin for confirmation.
"...How did you know?" Ozpin asks slowly, ignoring Glynda's betrayed look and aging decades older than his current host's age should be.
"You can thank the Relic of Knowledge for that." He replies casually with a shrug.
"Of course. I doubt I would have shared it willingly to you in the future."
"F-future? Ozpin, what are you saying?"
"Isn't it obvious Glynda? Time travel. The Jaune Arc we know just entered Beacon as a student. This Jaune Arc in front of us is no longer the student."
Jaune chuckles to himself at that. Trust Ozpin to deflect the topic to put off telling the truth. Still, it is already out there. He doesn't have to do anything to get Glynda to ask him again eventually, instead he satisfies himself with a wave and a cheeky grin towards her.
"But he's the Rusted Knight!"
"Yes, yes, quite the conundrum isn't it? Care to fill us in, Mr. Arc? It is to my recollection that the Rusted Knight drank the poison in Alyx's stead or is it that not how the story goes?"
"It's...Well, like any of your own fairy tales. There is more to the story than what is told. First, it wasn't Alyx who wrote the story, it was her brother..."
And so Jaune Arc, the Rusted Knight, shares the real story of the girl who fell through the world with her brother to an attentive audience, eventually ending at his arrival at the Paper Pleasers' Village.
"I wasted years in that place, defending something that apparently didn't need any defending...and well, stuff happened and here I am."
"Years...you don't look like you spent years." Professor Glynda remarks breathelessly.
"I'm older than I look. Probably older than you, actually." He replies with a broken smile, he doesn't expect Professor Glynda's response to that however.
"Jaune Arc, did you just call me old?" She quips with a fake gasp and a raised eyebrow.
He stares for a second before the words sink in and for the first time in decades, Jaune Arc laughs. He truly laughs. A breath of disbelief turns into chuckles of mirth which then turns into great bellows of joy.
Tears prick his eyes as he tries his best to gather his composure. He does not notice Glynda Goodwitch smiling fondly at him for a moment and even Ozpin's serious visage cracks a little.
"I-I'm sorry. I haven't laughed like that for a very long time. As for my age, I think I'm about 40 years old." He finally manages to say as he rubs the tears away from his eyes.
"40?! You look like you're in your 20s! How?!"
"You can thank Alyx for that. Lady Blacksmith said that her wish to make things right had the power to fix me."
"Lady Blacksmith?" Glynda asks for clarification with a tilt of her head.
"Ah. The metal lady. She's the Brother's Mother, I think." Jaune answers casually, not noticing how world-breaking that statement was.
"The Mother?" Glynda responded numbly.
Ozpin on the other hand latches onto Jaune's words without hesitation. Whatever cheerfulness in the room from Glynda's joke and Jaune's laugh disappears as Ozpin stares intensely at him.
"They are your Patron then?" The immortal's grave voice echoes as he recognozes the works or meddling of another divine being.
"Patron?" Jaune tilts his head at the unfamiliar word coming from the focused headmaster.
"Your God. The one who calls you her Champion." Ozpin clarifies.
"Ah, yes. She's the one who sent me to the past."
"For what purpose?"
"Apparently, I have to bring balance to Remnant."
"Balance? What do you mean balance?" Ozpin's grave visage breaks at that and turns into confusion.
"From what she told me, Remnant has been out of balance for a long time and she's rather tired of seeing it that way." Jaune answers, thinking back to the deal he made with Lady Blacksmith. He didn't really think too deeply about it back then because he was more focused on the prospect of time travel at the time.
Jaune could see Ozpin nod slowly at that, pensive frown on his face as he takes in the information. Jaune could probably take a guess what thoughts are running through the older man's mind.
From his own experience, Jaune alreadu knows dealing with Gods could get pretty complicated and Ozpin has dealt with the Brother Gods before making him understandably wary. Case in point, Ozpin points to another evidence that the Gods are involved and making things even more complicated
"What about you? Why are you here? What's your part in the wager?" Ozpin asks the Curious Cat.
Jaune startles at that. He didn't really forget that the Curious Cat was here but the amazingness of him being back here still hasn't left him, making him put the Curious Cat at the back of his mind.
"That's right! You've been quiet this whole time. I know you don't know much more than me but you're usually so talkative." Jaune blurts out, staring accusingly at the Cat.
"What? Can't I be quiet? I'm the Curious Cat. I'm just so curious that I want to listen to everything you two are saying." The Cat rolls its eyes at him exasperatedly.
"I assume then that you only know as much as we do regarding the game the Gods are currently playing?" Ozpin pipes up before an argument even starts between the Cat and Jaune.
"You assume correctly. I was only supposed to be a battery for this guy so we could travel to Remnant. I only as much as you do when it comes to the wager." The Cat nods, talking a lot more respectfully to Ozpin than they ever did with Jaune.
Jaune's hand clenches tightly at that before letting it go with a sigh as Ozpin nods to reply.
"I feared as much. But be that as it may, the question remains. What happens now?"
"Well, I don't know about you two but I'm just happy I'm here and I can learn a new things." The Cat gracefully bows out with a smile, sounding a lot more happy and...calm than it has ever been.
Frankly, their satisfied smile is rubbing Jaune the wrong way but he has a bigger concern right now. Mainly, Ozpin's focused eyes aimed at him.
Finally, they come to the meat of the matter. Being stuck in the Ever After, Jaune has had a lot of time to think of what ifs and what could have beens, wishing that he could go back in time to fix things. Yet now that he actually is in the past, he finds that his thoughts cannot decide on one thing.
He wants to save Pyrrha, that much is obvious but that isn't all there is to it. He still wants to kill Cinder, that much is also obvious. But there are alot of factors that he has to think about before he could even make any plans. Then there's Salem to think about. That's another can of worms he'll tackle next time. For now, he'll take it one step at a time.
First of all, he doesn't know where Cinder is right now so looking for her out there is foolish. Better to stay here where he knows she's going. Then there's Lionheart. He could share that he's a traitor but taking him out early might spook Salem and Cinder into aborting their plans and all his foreknowledge would be useless. No, there's only one plan of action he could do if he wants to achieve his goals. Stay and prepare.
Looking Ozpin in the eye, Jaune decides to start preparing. Instead of answering Ozpin's answer directly, he shares information. Safe information.
"Did you know that Tyrian Callows, Arthur Watts, and Hazel Rainheart are Salem's lieutenants?" He opens with that.
He considers their names safe information because even if Ozpin knows them now, those three won't really be in play until well after the Fall of Beacon. There is no risk of Cinder changing her plans with that.
"...No, no I did not. But none of them is the Fall Maiden." Ozpin reacts slowly before pointing out something important.
"Leave the Fall Maiden to me." He replies resolutely, meeting Ozpin's gaze with his own.
"Mr. Arc, it is imperative that you share every information to me so we may disrupt Salem's plans."
He raises an eyebrow at that.
"Like you share everything to your cohorts?" Jaune responds flatly, causing Glynda to startle after remembering Ozpin's secrets.
"You must understand, telling everyone Salem could not be beaten will demoralize any who would seek to make the kingdoms safe. It would doom us all. The best we could do is do our best to hamper Salem's plans. To do that, you must not hide any relevant information from me." Ozpin continues without a pause, willing the younger man to see his point of view.
"But that isn't winning, Ozpin. At best it's a stalemate but it only takes one major mistake for Salem to win and everything to be lost. Why do you think I wanted to time travel in the first place?"
To Jaune, it looked like Ozpin took his words gravely more than he intended. The man's shoulder slumps and he breathes heavily as if aging decades in a span of a single moment.
"We lost then. How? When?" Ozpin sighs sadly.
Jaune furrows his eyebrows at that. He could answer but that would circle back to him having to share Cinder's plans and Lionheart's treachery. No, he can't do that. If he wants to catch them unaware and have a chance to stop everything, he needs Ozpin not to make any drastic moves from before.
Still, he could give him something just to make the other man take this more seriously.
"Jaune Arc falls to the Ever After at the age of 20. That should tell you enough."
Glynda gasps in the background and Ozpin's eyes light up as he struggles to comprehend Jaune's words.
"That's 3 years from now considering your younger self is currently 17. Then it is even more imperative that you tell me every information you have."
If he wanted Ozpin to back off then he made a mistake. Jaune just made him more desperate.
Jaune's hands clench and his jaws tense as he looks at Ozpin gravely.
"It's not that simple, Ozpin. Anything I tell you would make you act. It would make you move boldly and cause Salem's plans to change. This is my chance to stop them, Ozpin. I cannot afford to lose this chance."
"Then tell me, let us help you set a trap." Ozpin pleads, choosing another angle of attack to get the information.
"I cannot tell you."
It's a good idea, but Jaune can't completely trust the man won't do something drastic.
A staredown ensues as the two men lock eyes with each other. No words were said but a whole conversation comes and goes as they measure each other's will.
In another life, in another time, Jaune would have looked away. But this is neither another life nor another time.
This time, in this life, Jaune Arc has endured much. He lost, he suffered, he failed, but even through decades of isolation, Jaune Arc endured.
More than that, he just kicked Ozpin and the Cat's asses at the same time. It would take more than just a staredown to get him to relent.
Ozpin must have realized the same thing because he backs down first with a sigh.
"You really won't tell us everything?"
"Yes."
"Th-"
"Listen, Ozpin. It's not that I don't want to stop Salem because I do, I really do! But I will not tell you anything regarding the Fall Maiden and the surrounding circumstances. Anything else can be shared."
"Then...I suppose I have to satisfy myself with that. I leave the matter of the Fall Maiden to you." Ozpin replies slowly, finally getting a compromise with Jaune.
Jaune nods in agreement, happy
"Considering you will not share with us information regarding the Fall Maiden, what do you plan to do now?" Glynda pipes up
Jaune doesn't even need a moment to answer.
"Stay in Beacon or perhaps Vale."
He needed to be here to catch Cinder when she arrives. He doesn't notice Ozpin perk up at his reply. Try as he might to limit the information, Ozpin has caught on that whatever he plans for the Fall Maiden, it will involve Beacon or at the very least Vale. It also helps that this opens up an opportunity for the man.
"Then why don't you stay here and teach?"
The words shocks everyone else into confusion. The first to react was Glyna Goodwitch who already has a bit of experience adapting to Ozpin's antics.
"Ozpin?! What will he even teach?!"
"Combat, of course. You saw as everyone did how he beat us." Ozpin answers smoothly, not showing any outward reaction to his loss.
The next to snap out of it was the Curious Cat who laughs out mockingly.
"HAHAHA, him?! A teacher?!"
Jaune doesn't even argue because he was thinking the same thing.
"Me? A teacher?" Wherein the Cat was mocking, he was just mainly in shock and incredulous at the offer.
"Yes, I don't see why not. Not only are you strong, you also have the experience. You know what is coming. I can think of no one better to prepare the next generation."
Jaune's wide eyes narrow at that. He hopes none of the tragedies happens again but in case shit hits the fan...
As a faculty mwmber of Beacon, he really would be best positioned to train and protect them. Pyrrha, Nora, Ren, Ruby, Weiss, Blake, Yang, and many many others.
He could only have one answer.
"I accept."
And that is how after spending the night in his very own civilized room for the first time in a long time, the Rusted Knight walks into a classroom to teach.
Glynda Goodwitch was in awe.
She knew Jaune Arc entered Beacon with fake transcripts. If it was up to her, the boy never would have even been able to attend Initiation. Even if he passed, he was liable to get himself and his team killed.
Seeing the Rusted Knight move however is making her change that previous evaluation.
"Move! Avoid every hit you can! Block only when you can no longer avoid it!" The Rusted Knight shouts as he smacks his current opponent with his sword still in its sheathe.
"I'm trying!" Russel Thrush cries out as he fails to avoid the Rusted Knight's strike and receives a follow up kick to the gut that knocks him out of the arena.
"Raaaghhhhh!"
A strike from behind is avoided with agile footsteps and the attacker is promptly tripped with a kick to the feet.
"Cardin, it's not a sneak attack if you shout! Measure your strikes. Don't use your all for every attack lest you tire yourself early."
Cardin Winchester's only reply to that is to nod and breathe heavily as he stays on the ground. He is now out of the fight.
It is common to test students by partners in order to test how well they work together. It is less common however to test the whole team by yourself.
Bang! Bang!
Two shots are blocked by the sheathed sword and Dove Bronzewing quails as he attracts the Rusted Knight's attention. Any other person would have rushed the shooter to stop him from taking any more shots. Not Jaune. Not the Rusted Knight. He walks slowly.
"You should have done that in tandem with your teammates' attacks. You could have distracted me while Mr. Winchester attacked me from behind."
"S-stay back!" Sky Lark shouts, moving in front of his remaining teammate as he shakily brandishes his polearm against the Rusted Knight.
"Protecting your teammate. An admirable effort but be more decisive next time and take the initiative." The Rusted Knight replies as he grabs the polearm, pulls, and knocks out poor Sky Lark with a clothesline.
"I-I surrender!" Mr. Bronzewing exclaims as he drops his weapon and raises his hands up after seeing his partner be brutally knocked out.
"Cute. But a huntsman should not be intimidated. Pick your weapon up. There will be no quitting in my class."
"I-I don't want to get hurt, Sir!"
"Trust me, Mr. Bronzewing. You'd feel less pain if you pick your weapon up than not all."
Glynda winces at that. The students wince at that. Poor Mr. Bronzewing stood no chance as he was knocked around the arena.
As the Senior Combat Instructor, Glynda had the final say in how the classes should go. She had the bright idea however to let Mr. Arc lead the first class of the semester just to see how he works. Even if he did make mistakes, Glynda was confident enough that she could correct them while it was still early in the semester.
She didn't expect that he would take it with enthusiasm. In fact, one could say he had too much enthusiasm as he beat Team CRDL black and blue across the arena before completely destroying their spirits by detailing everything they did wrong. Though,
The next words out of his mouth snaps her out of her thoughts.
"Next! Team RWBY."
She watches curiously as a young Jaune Arc wishes the team goodluck while they come down to the arena.
It was a humiliation.
They at least managed to land some hits unlike Team CRDL but it was still very much a one-sided affair when the Rusted Knight decided to use his sword and shield.
There was nothing else it could be. No, perhaps it wasn't meant as such but it certainly felt like it for one Weiss Schnee.
She could do nothing but burn in shame as she stands together with her team while the Rusted Knight deconstructed everything they did wrong.
"Ruby. You are the leader. Lead. Don't let your team hinder each other." He says as her partner shrinks herself down with a blush.
Weiss chafes at that but before she could say anything, the Rusted Knight turns to look at her.
"Weiss, you are in a team. Be more considerate and try not to attack your teammates."
Weiss blushes just like her leader as she remembers unintentionally freezing Ruby with ice dust instead of the Rusted Knight, allowing him to land a blow that took the young girl out of the fight.
"Yeah, try not to attack your teammates, Ice Queen." Yang Xiao Long pipes up, rapidly attracting the Rusted Knight's attention before she could even reply.
"Yang, you are too impulsive and predictable. You charged ahead recklessly and forced your team into action without a plan."
"Guh! You're just too cruel teach. You're breaking my heart." Yang puts a hand to her chest and swoons exaggeratedly.
Weiss doesn't know how she can be so shameless but her actions causes Ruby and sections of their class to laugh.
"You won't be laughing when you get your hand cut off."
Just like that, the air in the room changes. Weiss' breath gets stuck in her throat and she sees Yang choke on her spit at the same time. The room quiets down and the only sound they can hear is the Rusted Knight's sigh of disappointment.
"One day, Yang. You will meet an enemy strong enough to kill you. If you charge recklessly, you will lose something important to you. I hope it will just be your hand and not your life."
The words were spoken with the weight of prophecy and Weiss can see Yang turn pale as her sister shakes in fear. She could not blame them because if the Rusted Knight says grave words to her like that she would take it seriously as them.
So when the Rusted Knight turned to the last member of their group, Blake Belladonna, everyone waited with bated breath.
"Blake, you have the same problem as Weiss."
Everyone tilts their head at that in confusion.
"B-but I didn't attack them."
"That's right but you didn't think of them as your team either as well. You stayed on the fringes of battle for the most part to avoid me and only actively participated when you thought they tired me out."
Weiss' eyes light up in realization. That's right. While Blake didn't hamper her, she didn't help any of them either. Though not that she could talk, at least Blake didn't hit another of their teammates.
"Trust in your team. Show them what you can do. Show them who you are."
It felt like the words were said with more importance than it should have but before Weiss could even think deeply towards it, the Rusted Knight turns to look at all of them once again.
"That goes to all of you. Individually, you are all gifted young women."
Weiss flushes shyly at the praise and she has no doubts her teammates are absolutely on the same boat as her. To be called gifted by the Rusted Knight felt like the highest of praises but he isn't quite done yet.
"But together...well, the sky's the limit for Team RWBY."
All of them look tentatively towards each other at that. Small, shaky smiles are exchanged. How could they forget? It was just yesterday that they defeated a Giant Nevermore together. Yes, that was right. They are capable of doing great things together. They just got swept up by recent events and got distracted.
Weiss was chafing not being chosen as leader. Yang was too excited at the prospect of fighting the Rusted Knight. Ruby was completely comfortable following her older sister's lead. Blake was...being Blake.
Weiss realizes two things then.
One, this wasn't a humiliation.
Two, this was a lesson.
"Next! Team JNPR."
And it was now Team JNPR's turn as everyone looks at them, specifically at the team's leader bearing the same symbol the Rusted Knight has on his shield.
Jaune Arc was 17 years old and too young to die.
Granted, the Rusted Knight probably wasn't going to kill him but hey, accidents happen all the time.
Still, it's probably not gonna be an errant that gets him. It's the nervousness and fear that's going to get him first.
Nervousness because he could feel all the eyes trained on him as he stands in the stage. If he was asleep and this was a nightmare, this was just the right moment for all his clothes to disappear as he is humiliated in front of all his classmates.
Alas, his clothes don't disappear.
Which means this is real. Which means the fear he is feeling is real. He can't help it. Standing here in front of the Rusted Knight who was bearing the symbol of Jaune's own family, Jaune felt like his ancestors were judging him. Judging him for stealing the family sword and running away with it. Judging him for forgi-
"Jaune? Are you okay?"
Pyrrha's words snap him out of the rabbit hole and into the real world. Shaking his head to get it back in the game, Jaune turns towards his partner.
"Sorry, just nerves, you know?" He answers shakily with a smile. Plus, it wasn't like he was lying. It just so happened to be that the nerves were compounded by the guilt towards his family.
"Don't worry, Jaune. We can do it together."
Best partner ever. He doesn't what exactly "it" is but he's sure they'll do it together. It's enough to calm his nerves.
"Together." He nods with a smile looking not just at Pyrrha but also at Ren and Nora.
"That's right fearless leader! You already stood up to that guy yesterday, we just need to break his legs today!" Nora yells enthusiastically to Jaune's embarrassment after remembering what he did yesterday.
In hindsight, he was probably a hindrance if a fight did start but dad's voice just kept ringing in his ears when he saw the guy walk towards his partner.
Confidence is all yo-
No, not that one. An older advise back when Jaune was just a kid and histened to how his mom and dad ended up together.
Listen, son. It's a man's duty to protect his woman no matter the odds.
Granted, Pyrrha wasn't his woman which wow, the thought of it just made him blush to even refer to her as his woman in his mind. She was still his partner and he'd do everything to protect her.
"I doubt we could break his legs, Nora. But I am open to doing our best."
Ren's words allows to focus again and Jaune nods towards his male teammate. Do their best. Yes, that was what they were going to do.
Turning his attention towards their instructor however, Jaune had a plan. Or at least the bones of one. The Rusted Knight wasn't subtle with what he wanted to see from them. He repeated it a lot of times back when reviewing Team RWBY's mistakes. He wants to see a team.
"Alright team, here's what we are going to do..."
Unsheathing Crocea Mors, Jaune Arc takes advantage of something that the Rusted Knight has given to every other team before them. The time to plan. If he wants to see a team. Jaune will show him a team.
A/N:
The next chapter is already up. Want to see it early? Please consider supporting me in my P a tr eon or subscribing to a tier in ko - fi.
pa tr eon.c o m (slash) MrLightbringer0
P.S. Rusted Jaune's Partner is coming soon.