Title: Berried Delights
Genre: Adventure, Hurt/Comfort
Summary: We've all heard the story of Pyrrha coming back as a Grimm. But what if, that night Beacon fell, Jaune had realized her plans sooner? Back then, if their positions were switched… would their… fates… be different? Would she have his life, and his hers?
A/N: this is in no ways subtle btw. Regardless, enjoy!
Chapter 1: Immortal Temptation
Beacon Academy was burning. And there was nothing Pyrrha could do about it.
With her heart thumping in her ears she fought through hordes and hordes of Grimm, desperately cleaving her way through the darkness. In her mind was only one, single thought:
She had to find the others – she had to get them to help Jaune!
She was the one who was supposed to fight Cinder up there, not him! But he had pulled her in close and switched their positions, and now, and now-!
'Why? Why did you switch with me?! You'll DIE, JAUNE!'
After what felt like hours of fighting, she finally made her way to safety – she had finaly reached the escort zone for the remaining students, and into the company of Ruby and Weiss.
Pyrrha quickly ran up to them, her words a mess and her face flushed with worry. "Ruby, Weiss, you need to follow me! Jaune, he- I couldn't- Please, we don't have much time-!"
Ruby quickly comforted her. "Slow down, Pyrrha! What is it, you're not making sense!"
Pyrrha took a deep breath. It did little to calm her racing heart. "It's Jaune. He's… He's fighting Cinder alone!"
Ruby and Weiss' eyes widened in shock.
"H-he won't last a minute against her!" Weiss sputtered. "I mean, didn't he- he killed Headmaster Ozpin!"
"Not if we can get there fast enough!" Pyrrha begged. "Please, you need to help me!"
"We're with you!" Ruby nodded. Weiss did as well. "Show us the way!"
And so, the three of them made their way back to the tower. Her heat beat in her chest, her fighting spirit fueled by adrenaline. Her fighting skills went into overdrive. With Ruby and Weiss flanking her sides, her newfound backup, it was much easier for Pyrrha to cleave her way through.
But they were too late.
By the time they made it to the tower, and with Weiss sending them up with Glyphs, the only person atop that greeted them was Cinder, spotless and sporting at them a wicked smile.
And beneath her feet were pieces of Jaune's cracked shield and armor, spattered with blood clearly not Cinder's.
Ruby felt her breath hitch. "J-Jaune…!"
But Pyrrha didn't have time for such a reaction; for her world had already crumbled apart the moment he wasn't there.
"CINDERRRR!"
And the bitch only smiled in return, even as Pyrrha leapt to kill.
Pyrrha opened her eyes and sighed. Rising from her bed, she wiped the sweat off her forehead and took a glass of water by the bedside table.
That night had been close to a decade ago, and yet still the nightmares remained.
She put the glass down, switched to some work-appropriate clothes, and exited her bedroom. After that, Pyrrha made her way down the stairs and set up the front desk of her agency.
If one were to enter, the first thing they would see would be her, her large mahogany desk, and stylish new computer. The next thing they would see were the three words printed bold on the wall behind her;
Crescent Moon Solutions
And right beneath it, the picture of Team RWBYNPR the day they took down Salem.
It had taken blood, sweat, tears, and many lives, but in the end, they had done it. Three long years of fighting, of travelling from one kingdom and another, watching people live and die for each other, but in the end with their combined teamwork, Salem had been taken down for good.
But there was a space in between the words and pictures that had previously always been occupied. A space just fit for a sword, the only thing Pyrrha had managed to recover on that night all those years ago. No matter what, he was the closest loss that she ever felt.
So, that sword not being there today meant that it was a special day. Pyrrha looked down on her desk and saw that very sword, the Crocea Mors, cleaned and polished like the first time she laid eyes on it.
She checked the clock, and then the calendar.
Yes. Today was the day she was giving it to someone else. One of their comrades who had fought against Salem as well.
Beacon Academy's courtyard was alive with students mingling amongst themselves. And yet, even to an untrained eye, today's activity seemed more festive than the usual coming-and-goings of the student body. Teams were hugging each other with tears in their eyes, flowers were being exchanged, and the cheers of joy were much louder than any other event.
But then again, everyone in Vale knew that today was the day of Beacon's graduation.
The road to rebuilding Vale, and then Beacon Academy itself, was in no way easy. It had taken them years of long hard battles – just because Salem was dead didn't mean the Grimm had disappeared completely, and the despair that its citizens had experienced greatly motivated the monsters to dig their roots deep in there. But through the renewed vigour of Remnant's citizens, the power of the Relics, and the skills of a certain Silver-Eyed Huntress, former and current people of Vale had managed to take back what they had first lost.
Professor Glynda Goodwitch had then assumed post as the Headmistress of the Academy, with both Professor Port and Doctor Oobleck both sharing the title of Deputies. Beacon Castle was restored to its former glory. A memorial was constructed to the side of the entrance, a half-circular wall etching the names of those who had fallen into the annals of history never to be forgotten.
And in the middle of the memorial stood a grand statue of a knight in shining armour, its family heirloom sword and shield raised to the sky in triumph.
And it was here that Pyrrha found Oscar.
"Congratulations for graduating." Pyrrha put a hand on Oscar's shoulder. "I'm proud of you, Oscar. So, so much."
"T-Thanks, Pyrrha." Oscar looked down and blushed. He couldn't meet his mentor's eyes, the person who had shown him so much ever since Ozpin had moved into his head. Only second to the Headmaster himself, of course.
Pyrrha smiled. "But I have to ask… I didn't expect to find you here of all places."
Ozpin shared a small smile. "I know. Most of my friends are already out planning a party or something but I… I just thought it might be good to remember what we've lost."
"Then I'm sure you'll make a good Huntsman. If you never lose sight of what's most important to you…" Pyrrha's eyes drifted to the statue. She was the one who commissioned it, and it was in no ways subtle on who it was.
Then again, no one was complaining.
"…I'm sure he would've been proud, Pyrrha." Oscar said. But Pyrrha's eyes were blank, lost in far-distant memory he only knew by stories.
Pyrrha's voice came out barely louder than a whisper. "…Maybe,
And that's why I need to give you this."
Pyrrha pulled out Crocea Mors, its sheath shining beneath the sunlight, and presented it to Oscar.
Oscar's heart stopped, his eyes widening in shock. "P-Pyrrha…"
"I've been waiting to give this to you for a long time now." Pyrrha said calmly. Her voice struggled to remain even.
In doing this, she was letting the last part of him go.
But it was for the best, she knew.
"Kneel." Pyrrha commanded. Without another word, Oscar did as he was told.
"Oscar Pine." Pyrrha stated. With a twirl of her wrist she unsheathed Crocea Mors and placed its tip on Oscar's left shoulder, and then his right.
"For it is in passing that we achieve our legacy. Through it, we become a beacon of light for others… and make our mark on those closest to us. And by my heart, I'll pass on this part of me to you."
Faster than the eye could see, Pyrrha flipped Crocea Mors, sheathed it back, and handed it grip first to Oscar.
"Take care of it well, Oscar."
Oscar gingerly took the weapon and strapped it to his hip, standing up and testing its weight. "Feels… odd. I can feel your Aura here… but someone else's is still here as well."
"Jaune always did have more Aura then most." Pyrrha chuckled. "I suppose my years of using it never managed to erase that part."
"Now." Pyrrha slung her arm over Oscar's shoulder. "I took half the day off, so how about we do some lunch? The others will be there too!"
"Really? Even- Even Ruby?"
"Yes, even Ruby." Pyrrha giggled. His little crush never did seem subtle, save to the one person that crush was for. "But judging by how you look, I'm sure you'll take her breath away!"
Oscar sputtered. "Pyrrha!"
The dinner and party were somethings out of Oscar's dreams. It might not have entailed dancing and raving, nor any wild drinking of the sort, but being surrounded by those he loved and cherished, it was more than enough.
After sharing last smiles and pats of congratulations, his friends began to part ways one by one. Ren and Nora to fly back to Mistral, to take care of their budding family. Yang and Blake to get ready for their next mission tomorrow. Weiss to fly back to Atlas, the current CEO of the SDC always busy. Pyrrha giving him one more encouraging smile before heading back to her office.
That left only Ruby and Oscar, walking together before reaching their separate apartments here in Vale.
And before Pyrrha had left, he had known what that encouraging smile meant.
"So, Ruby…" Oscar began, "I heard you'll be applying to be a Professor at Beacon."
Ruby nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah! But I wanted to wait until you graduated at least." She made a face, "That'd just be weird. We're only two years apart!"
"Hahah. Yeah…" Oscar blushed. "A-Anyway… I've been meaning to ask…"
"Hm?" Ruby tilted her head – she was a grown woman now, but in Oscar's opinion she never lost that cute charm of hers. "What is it?"
"I- I was thinking…" His heart began to beat at his chest. Oh, why was he always so nervous around her?!
But screw it – he was a Huntsman now!
"MaybeyouandIcouldgowatchamovietomorrow?" The words came out in a rush. "Justyouandme?"
It took a while for Ruby to decipher his words; but when she did, her face went equally red. "Y-you mean like a date?"
"Yeah!"
"W-Well, I don't have anything planned…" Ruby stuttered, "S-so, okay! Okay, we can go!"
"O-Okay! I'll see you then!"
"Okay! Yeah!"
"Yeah!"
Silence stretched on, and then…
"OkayIhavetogobye!" Ruby dashed out of the street with her Semblance, leaving a trail of rose petals in her wake.
Oscar pressed a hand to his chest. His heart was beating rapidly, his cheeks and ears burning red.
But the smile on his face could never be wiped.
Oscar calmed his breathing and started to once more make his way to his apartment. Today would be the start of a new day, and he had to get ready!
But on the way home, even lost in the clouds as he was, Oscar still somehow encountered something strange.
For when he was just a few minutes away from his apartment, when the streets had somehow turned from lively to no one but himself, he spotted a hooded, cloaked figure stumbling, shuffling towards him.
Normally Oscar would lend a helping hand. Give a struggling man some help, for it was in his nature and his duty.
But this stranger's very existence seemed to unnerve his very soul.
He seemed weak, yet his very presence indicated some form of otherworldly strength. His legs seemed to almost give out under him, his figure though covered by the cloak seemed gangly and thin, and yet it was like reality was bending around him, the air getting colder and the pressure borderline suffocating.
The stranger seemed to notice Oscar's shift in stance and looked up. "Hah…" the man took a raspy breath.
Oscar stood on guard. "What're you looking at?"
And that seemed to set the man on edge.
Oscar fell back into his years of training – and the knowledge of Ozpin. And yet even then, he couldn't read this strange man…
The man's dull blue eyes peeked at Oscar beneath his ragged, pitch-black cloak. Unbeknownst to the newly-graduated Huntsman, the thoughts in the mysterious man's head began to rage once more.
This boy holds no sins against you.
He holds your legacy. He must be in league with them!
They are not at fault. You chose your price.
They left you behind. They have forgotten you. They have abandoned you!
The voices were overwhelming. He tried to silence them, like he had for so, so long, but they were tied to his very soul.
He took a stumbling step forward. The boy in front of him shifted.
And that was when the man saw the boy move his hand towards his weapon.
"RARGH!"
The man lunged, faster than Oscar could reach Crocea Mors nor activate his Aura. With a roar he forcefully tore the sword away from the young Huntsman with inhuman strength;
RIP!
And with it, cut Oscar's right hand clean off.
Oscar went flying to the ground, blood quickly pooling under him as he cried out in pain. He struggled to stand, his senses overwhelmed with the loss of a limb. "AGHHH!"
The man let out a breath – ragged, tired, barely clinging on to life. But it seemed that the moment the sword entered his hands, he gained some form of life.
He turned to Oscar; and it was then that the boy saw a glimpse of stark, chilling blue eyes.
And as their eyes met, the man spoke to Oscar in a raspy tone, "I'm taking this back."
"W-Wait…!" Oscar gasped. He tried to shuffle forward, but once again stumbled in pain.
Now why did that voice sound so familiar?
The man turned around.
"I… I don't have much longer…" The mysterious man coughed. He gripped the sword tight and slammed it into the ground, opening a portal of darkness beneath him.
As quickly as the man came, he fell through the portal and disappeared without a trace.
And all that Oscar could do was watch helplessly as his consciousness and the proof of what happened faded.
The mysterious man fell out of his portal and landed on the grounds of the Emerald Forest. Still struggling to even stand, the man forced himself to take step after step, his mere magical energy disrupting any device that may have marked his existence.
His objective was to reach one place; the place where it all started. The ruins that were the centre point of Beacon's initiation.
And along his shaking steps, those voices began to speak to him once more.
You don't have to do this.
No, you must! Set us free and cast aside your weakness!
Deep within you, you know there is still good. If you reach out to them, they will never turn you away.
Don't listen to him! They merely use you to justify their continued existence. To justify their war and conquest. Did you forget?! When they won, they didn't even try to look for you!
Don't let her shadow control you. You can still make everything right.
Our Queen was always right. She always was! This power you wield, did she lie about its strength? Did she lie when she said that no one will come for you?! Your own partner left you, and didn't she swear to protect you always?!
The man groaned in annoyance. Those voices never left him alone. Tied to his soul.
He took another step and almost fell to the ground.
This body he was in was crumbling. Falling apart, an impure mix of light and dark. The magic of both pulling and ripping his soul apart, leaking to the outside and threatening to erase his very presence from this world.
But they can all agree that they didn't want to die. One from hope and spirit, the other from pure hate and rage. No, they had suffered too much to let it all be for naught!
As he took another step, he noticed pairs of red eyes watching from the dark of the forest around him. Monsters, Grimm of all calibre had been attracted to his negativity.
They growled and stepped out the shadows, ready to tear him apart.
The man stopped and scanned his surroundings. He was encircled, no way to get out as Beringles and Beowolves cornered his every escape route.
And with a silent signal, they all lunged to devour his flesh.
The man scowled. "Fools… You dare strike your master?!"
Faster than the monsters could react, the man pulled out Crocea Mors and swung the blade around him. In a single stroke, the sword sliced through every single Grimm around him and bathed the area in dark goo.
The man let out a breath, his cloak's hood falling back as he finished his swing.
Blonde hair, fair skin, and blue eyes were illuminated beneath the moonlight. But in a grotesque sight, all of them were cut cleanly in half, corrupted and perfectly split with chalk-white and Grimm-black corruption. As if man and Grimm had fused into an unholy monster…
But no, he could not die yet. He still had to reach that place, and to fulfil one more mission.
He had to know. He needed to.
To know why she never came looking for him. Why she never saved him.
"Pyrrha…" Jaune growled.
And so he continued on his path, burning chaos in his way.
Drifting in the ocean all alone.
Jaune finally reached the ruins after what felt like hours of walking. He took a brief scan of the area. No relics, no signs of life.
Where it all began.
Perfect.
He looked to the sky, to the broken moon that he dreamed of seeing for so many nights in Salem's darkest chambers. Yes, he had no more time. He needed to do it now.
Jaune pulled Crocea Mors once more and took a knee. He furrowed his brows and searched deep within what parts of his Soul that wasn't corrupted by darkness.
He called upon his Semblance, Aura Amplification, and amplified both the light and the dark.
And before he could be erased, he flipped his sword and stabbed himself in the chest.
SHINK!
"Hrk!" It hurt, so, so much! But he had to push through – it was the only way he could survive.
"For… it is in passing that… we achieve immortality! Agh-! T-Through this… we become a paragon of virtue and glory to rise above all. AAAAH! In… Infinite in distance… and…unbound by death… I release your soul, and by my very shoulder… I. CAST. THEE. OUUUUUT!"
In just a few short days, Pyrrha's world had gone to hell.
Oscar had been attacked, becoming an amputee the day of his graduation. His assailant remained at large.
Grimm presence had spiked, attacking villages and mounting assaults even on Vale itself. Activity not seen since Salem's downfall.
And to top it all off, a giant tower of darkness had suddenly sprung up at Beacon's doorstep overnight; it was only a miracle that the Grimm in it haven't attacked the academy yet.
Pyrrha sighed and rubbed a hand over her forehead, barely able to stop herself from slamming her head on the desk. Her agency was getting a lot of calls now, begging the Saviors of Remnant to assemble and to get ready to save the world once more.
But of course, that was what she first did. Ren and Nora were heading here, as was Blake and Yang. Weiss was too, and with the support of the Atlas Military courtesy of her sister. Ruby was stuck at Oscar's bedside, but her Silver Eyes burned brighter than ever before.
All she could do now was wait until everyone was here. And until then, she'd do her best to get everything ready, including all the logistics that their agency needed.
The door to the Crescent Moon agency opened. Pyrrha instinctively waved the would-be client away. "If you're here to ask about our Huntsmen, I can assure you that Teams RWBY and NPR are already doing their best to prepare-."
"I'm not here for that." The man cut her off.
And that immediately caught Pyrrha's attention. She turned from her computer and papers to the new client and raised an eyebrow. "Oh? And what are you here for?"
"I am here for… answers." The man said. Pyrrha looked him over – the man was thin, leaning heavily on an equally thin sword. It was barely thicker than a rapier!
He looked at her and smiled, and it was here that she noticed his striking purple eyes and auburn hair. "Specifically," he said, "The one you have been looking for."
Pyrrha narrowed her eyes. "Explain."
"All the chaos that has been spreading lately… and of the eight, so-called Saviors of Remnant, you are the only one currently ready for action. You must be wondering; why now? And… who is behind this?"
Pyrrha abruptly stood up from her chair. "And you know who is?"
"I do. And I will gladly tell you, on one condition."
"Spill it."
"You come with me. I… we need your help. The one behind these attacks may not be attacking Beacon Academy right now, but they are plotting, residing in that tower in Beacon's Emerald Forest. If we can take down that tower now, strike pre-emptively, then his plans will be forever ruined."
Pyrrha took a deep breath. To most, going with only a duo, with a stranger no less, to a structure she was sure was filled to the brim with Grimm would be considered suicide.
But aside from Ruby, she had always been the strongest of their little clique. And she wasn't the Fall Maiden for nothing.
"I'll go with you." Pyrrha nodded.
"Good. Then let me introduce myself. My name is Felipe, and…" Felipe paced around the office's lobby. He seemed to drink all its details in, like a thirsty man in a desert. "The person behind all this is motivated by a desire for power. Not to avoid becoming weak, but to prove his worth."
"So. An insecure dark lord." Pyrrha summarized.
Felipe chuckled. "Oh, but it goes much deeper than that. An immortal temptation has taken over his mind, unrelenting in its insistence." He turned his eyes from the room and instead stared directly to her with a smile. "Unbound by the court of morals and justice, he seeks only one thing."
His purple eyes seemed to burn. "He is a paragon of darkness and death. Unbound by death, with the release of his soul, his shoulder destroys all."
Pyrrha's heart began to drop. She had said the opposite of those words to someone special a long, long time ago.
"He is…" Felipe began.
But even before he answered, Pyrrha already knew.
Already knew of her grand failure.
A/N Thoughts? Let me know in the reviews. See you next time!