Disclaimer: RWBY belongs to Rooster Teeth. I own nothing.
10. Beacon Days 04
Beacon Locker Room, early morning
It wasn't supposed to be like this.
"Do it! We can't let them walk over us."
He didn't think he'd have to go so far.
"Look at me. They made the first move. They made the worst move. Do it."
Ren gulped.
Ren looked into the eyes of the man who instigated all this. The 'leader' of Team JNPR, Jaune Arc. The man affected a veneer of benevolence and class, but Ren knew the truth. The swagger, the suit, the blade, the expression of mocking disdain. Jaune Arc could not hide what he was. A Yakuza walked the hallways of Beacon. How one of those scum found their way out of Mistral, Ren wanted to know.
Behind Jaune, Ren saw Nora's face etched with hatred. Her hair still carried traces of black paint. He recalled her angry tears as she tried to wash it off. Nora was in too deep, she wanted vengeance. She would never agree to leave this team with him.
Pyrrha stood behind Ren, idly spinning her spear. It picked up speed as time goes by without Ren making a move. He began to suspect that the spear was meant for him. Nevertheless, he had to try to stop this from going too far.
"Is this truly the best way? We can go to the professors." Before the leader of Team JNPR could answer, Nora pushed her way forward.
"Do you see what they did to me, Ren? I look like a failed goth, and the professors won't do a thing. Boss Jaune's right, we can't let this stand. If you won't do this, then move and I will!" Jaune added his thoughts.
"It's actually not too bad. The orange and black makes you all Halloweeny, and that's just around the corner. You're being festive!"
"Awwww, thanks Boss. But that's not the point!"
Boss Jaune, she called him. Good Oum, it was too late.
It began with little things.
A shove from Cardin Winchester, answered by a leg tripping Dove Bronzewing. A stolen homework for History class, ended with Cardin's locker defaced. Petty pranks, Ren thought, and he gave his leader the benefit of the doubt. Pyrrha Nikos raised her objections to her partner, appealing to his honor to ignore such immaturity. Ren believed it to be the end of the matter.
Then, Jaune Arc pulled Pyrrha aside, speaking in animated whispers. The next day, the girl joined her leader in his retaliation against CRDL with a zeal that terrified Ren to the core. The Champion of Mistral became an enforcer in Jaune Arc's regime, eschewing pranks almost exclusively in favor of violence. He noticed his teammate began carrying her weapon with her every day, attempting to hide the bulky spear in her school blazer.
Ren approached Headmaster Ozpin to express his concerns about Jaune Arc's intentions for Beacon. Despite Ren's pleas, the headmaster absolutely refused to take action without proof of serious crimes. The man needed something that was worth expelling a Huntsman, even if that Huntsman might be a heinous villain. Lacking such evidence, Ren watched on.
Jaune fell down a staircase, and Sky Lark slipped on Ice Dust into a table corner. Jaune lost his scroll, and Sky got locked out on the roof. Cardin flipped Jaune's food tray, and Jaune tied Sky upside down to a tree. What Sky did to offend Jaune so, Ren hoped to never find out.
All through the week, CRDL just won't get the hint, and Jaune Arc simply refused to back down. Until last night, when CRDL targeted someone other than Jaune, and Nora received a bucket of black paint on her head. Now, she followed the Yakuza, heart and soul.
Ren, in a fit of rage, agreed to lend aid to punish those who've hurt Nora. Perhaps he'd rudely flip a lunch tray, or bump shoulders with excessive strength. He found himself here, standing judgment in front of a metal coffin.
"Ren?" Pyrrha sweetly asked. "Are you up for this?"
Will you let me leave intact if I'm not, mad woman?
Ren took a shuddering breath. This was a test. They wanted to know if he was loyal to the team. Press the button, and he washes their doubts away.
"Ren?"
Those puppy eyes are just unfair, Nora.
Giving in to his best friend's urging, plus caving in to his fear of the enforcer, Ren hit the button. The rocket locker launched in the direction of Vale with Cardin Winchester on board. They had Glynda Goodwitch for Combat at 8AM. The first Bullhead arrives in Beacon at 9AM, far too late for Cardin to return before classes start.
The active sabotage of the academic career of a future hero, or at least of a future Grimm fodder, must surely be a crime. Ren had his evidence.
He's also an accomplice.
Damn that Arc.
7:59:59 AM, Combat Auditorium
Later that morning, Jaune sauntered into the auditorium at the last second, surrounded by the best team in Beacon. His heart soared, freed from his previous worry that he was alone, that CRDL may best him. Jaune laughed at his old self. He just needed to talk to his friends, and they readily gave him help. Pyrrha wholeheartedly supported Jaune with her usual brand of enthusiasm, even if she might not fully understand the idea of appropriate force yet. He even feared that Ren would remain apathetic to his plight, but the quiet boy roused himself with righteous anger the instant a sweet, innocent girl was hurt. Nora never deserved what happened to her, and Ren clearly thought so too. In many ways, Jaune saw himself in the other boy. Had he not done the same scant weeks ago?
Even Weiss lent him Ice Dust when he asked. Jaune had the numbers now, more than Team CRDL, especially with their leader blasting off into the sky.
Professor Goodwitch eyed his team as they seated themselves.
"You are cutting it very close, JNPR." Jaune grimaced.
"Apologies, professor, we had early training before breakfast."
The truth, an alibi, and an excuse, all rolled into one. Jaune has honestly been practicing with his team against the training robots every day, as he discovered the lower-level bots displayed a textbook set of fundamental movements. He copied their stances and attacks, explaining to his team that he wanted to perfect his basics. It also happened to give them a plausible reason for being in the same hallway as the locker room, a fact that led Jaune to opt for shoving Cardin in a rocket locker this morning rather than a Bullhead luggage compartment last night. Dragging a body in the dark and sneaking above an airship would raise many questions Jaune had no answers to. Yet, even with Cardin's punishment, the team's training, and breakfast, they could have arrived much earlier if not for their speed.
In his defense, Jaune walked as quickly as his swagger allowed.
He mustered an earnest Ruby-like face, as the combat instructor considered his words.
"Hmmm. Do be mindful. I do not tolerate lateness." Safe!
As Glynda Goodwitch turned her attention to her tablet, Jaune tapped the shoulder of the student in front of him. Addressing the shaking individual, Jaune spoke in a cheery voice.
"Good morning, Sky! Ready for combat class?"
In lieu of answering, Sky desperately searched the stands for something. Or rather, someone.
"Hehe, Cardin won't save you." Jaune's grip tightened as Sky paled. "I hear he's ditching classes today. Something about learning to fly without a parachute."
"Ja-jaune, Goodwitch will-"
"She'll do nothing, because she saw nothing. How this ends is on us, and I am getting really tired of your team." Sky jerked in shock.
"It's Cardin's team! He made us mess with you, not me!"
"That makes it OK for you guys to target me? Then don't complain when you get what's coming to you! I'm no easy fish, remember that."
Jaune let the nervous wreck stew for most of the hour. Sky Lark never fought last week, and Jaune never had a proper bout. Glynda Goodwitch wanted those kinds of students to get their turn, so Jaune can easily gain her approval for his match. If Jaune was called on again, he would challenge Sky. If Sky got chosen, Jaune can volunteer.
The time came all too soon. The dulcet tone of the professor's voice rang through the stands.
"Sky Lark!"
Jaune jumped to his feet.
"I volunteer! I volunteer!" The woman raised an eyebrow at his eagerness.
"Very well, the next match is Sky Lark versus Jaune Arc."
Sky Lark whimpered.
The two students made their way to the arena, facing each other. Sky held his halberd, Feather's Edge, with both hands. He shifted from one foot to the other, twitching every so often when he thought he saw Jaune moved. Jaune fell into his most comfortable stance of one hand in his pocket, the other holding his long knife cradled on a shoulder. An impressive pose against common thugs, a rather stupid stance against almost anyone in the room. Here and now, it hid Jaune's intentions, further adding to Sky's anxiety.
Professor Goodwitch, from the edge of the stage, observed the two fighters. She gave the signal.
"Begin!"
Jaune augmented his legs with Aura, quickly dashing forward.
Sky, with his Feather's Edge halfway-shifted, backed away to buy time for its transformation.
The weakness of mechashift. The point between one weapon and the next, where a Huntsman has neither.
Eight more steps, seven, six. The rifle clicked into place.
No time to aim, Sky shot wildly. His first bullet hit the ground. Five steps.
The second impacted Jaune's left thigh, and Jaune grunted as it left a dull ache. Four.
The third glanced off his hip, the pain immediately soothed by Aura. Three.
Sky witnessed the object of his nightmare bearing down, and hastily shifted his weapon again. Too late.
Jaune fished his hand from his pocket, throwing its content just above Sky's head. Two steps.
A grenade, Sky feared. Sand, Sky figured. Neither.
Lien, precious Lien rained onto Sky. Money drew the eyes, the boy tilted his chin up to look at the white cards. In doing so, he exposed his throat.
Out flashed Jaune's knife. With careful aim, the blade struck dead center. Jaune wanted the knife to push forward, not skid away, to shave off more Aura.
Sky stumbled back, gagging. His left hand clutched his throat, his right swung his halberd to clear some room.
Jaune waited a beat to let the awkward, one-handed attack pass him. He batted the polearm with his knife as it goes by, sending Sky off-balance.
"C'mon, Sky! That missed by a mile!" Jaune mocked, a vicious smile on his face. "Firmly grip with two hands, like Cardin taught you."
Internally, Jaune cheered. He's doing it, he's truly winning the fight. With confidence, with aggressiveness, with tricks, with taunts, he can see victory. Melanie and Miltia's lessons worked!
The blonde stomped his right leg, bracing as his left knee launched forward. It connected with Sky Lark's face, snapping his head back.
"Stop staring at the sky, Sky. That's how you get hit. Like this."
Jaune followed the knee with a front kick to his opponent's stomach. Aura coursing through his leg, his kick blasted Sky back. The boy landed in a heap, halberd falling from his hand.
Jaune realized his mistake in kicking Sky away. It gave him the range needed to use his polearm. The only option was to advance, tanking through any shots again.
Feet pounding the arena floor, Jaune tried to close the distance as fast as he could. What happened next, halted him in his tracks.
Sky sat up, groggy.
He saw Jaune moving ever closer.
His brutal foe, intent upon inflicting pain and misery.
Sky did not reach for his weapon. He did not take advantage of the distance to turn the fight around.
Instead, Sky…broke.
It wasn't supposed to be like this.
Jaune looked on, as Sky Lark curled in on himself.
He didn't mean to go so far.
The boy stared, as his opponent wracked with tears and whimpers at the sight of the blonde.
Hesitantly, Jaune asked.
"Aren't you going to fight? Are you that scared?"
"YES! YES I'M SCARED!" Sky Lark sobbed, voice hoarse. "You. Cardin. You're all too damn strong! What's the point of fighting!?"
All Jaune did was use all he had. He identified the weak points of his enemy, and exploited those openings. He attacked, because he had been attacked. He came so close to defeating a combat-school graduate, to proving that he can be a Huntsman. Jaune could do it now, beat down his disarmed foe and claim his first victory.
All was fair in a fight, wasn't it? CRDL had it coming, didn't they?
Yet, those eyes.
Jaune never saw such terrified eyes before. He recognized it, all the same.
Reflected within those pupils, should have been the visage of a fire that walks, golden and terrible in its might. Instead, it showed him, bearing the smile of a wolf.
Bile rose to his throat.
Jaune Arc was Sky's monster.
Uncaring of those he hurt. Solely thinking of himself. Acting like a bull in a glass shop. Who does he resemble?
Not Melanie, who laughed at his clumsy blunders, yet helped pick him off the floor. Not Miltia, who ran him ragged in training, but always encouraged him after. Surely not Uncle Hei, who went all out on a festival, so everyone can have a good time. There can be cruelty and anger, yet there must be honor and principles. No, he has strayed too far from the Way.
He needed to fix this. Can he forfeit? It won't help Sky recover. Fake a loss? Nobody would buy that. The professor appeared ready to interfere, and Jaune panicked as his mind raced for a solution.
What drove him to fight a monster like Yang Xiao-Long? Miltia and Melanie... and a desire to be a hero.
He may not have a pair of twins handy, but the same ambition must reside somewhere in Sky Lark's heart for him to be in Beacon. This story already has a monster, so let's make a hero.
Jaune hopped two long strides back, giving the distressed boy space. A deep breath, a softening of the smile, and Jaune lost his intimidating demeanor.
"Pick up that halberd. You're not giving up." Sky barked out hysterically.
"Is this not enough for you!? You won! I quit!"
Glynda Goodwitch, looking unsure for the first time since he met her, raised a hand and prepared to end the match. She likely understood that Sky wasn't just talking about forfeiting the spar. Jaune shook his head to preempt her, and spoke again.
"Is that what you'll say, when the Grimm comes?" His tone ceased its mocking lilt. Jaune lowered himself to sit on the balls of his feet.
"We will be afraid, when the Grimm breaks down the walls. We will be afraid, when the monsters burn down our home and attack our family."
In the stand, Yang jolted.
"But come the hour, come the man. A Huntsman swings his blade, a Huntress takes her shot, and tragedy becomes triumph."
Sky sniffled. Though, Jaune thought he saw the boy's ears perked up.
"Some chose to stand, despite their fears. You did, when you joined combat school. Then you did it again, when they launched you off a cliff. Through the terror, through the pain, in our moment of despair, we rise against the odds and prove ourselves to be heroes. Was that not your dream, the reason you are here?"
Jaune noticed that Sky didn't shake anymore. In response, he released a trace of condescension.
"I've seen you this past week, content to follow. Meekly obeying. Always afraid. Cardin reduced you to a bottom feeder, I made your life hell. You went through combat school, you trained to be a paragon of mankind. How did the likes of us, get the best of you?"
Sky glanced up, the flash of fury unmistakable. The right taunt can tear a person down, but another can ignite their soul. Jaune rose from his squat, pointing his long knife at the blue-haired boy. His lips widened to make the same feral smile that Sky so feared. Jaune continued in a rising crescendo.
"Even if you are scared, don't quit. Remember your training. Take your blade in hand. Before you stands a monster. In what world does he win? So pick yourself up, hero. Pick yourself up and fight me! Fight me! FIGHT ME!" Jaune screamed the last words.
Sky Lark didn't cower. He snarled. His right hand reached out, grabbing Feather's Edge tightly. Pushing off the ground, he kept low as he rushed towards Jaune.
In elation, Jaune's wolfish grin became a mad laugh. He sprinted forward.
He calculated the distance. While Sky's weapon afforded better range, the wind-up for the swing left an opening. He intended to aim for that, and tackle Sky.
Sky allowed no such opportunity, and stole Jaune's move. He thrusted his halberd like a spear, and lunged. He leapt forward off his feet, his body parallel to the ground. An attack full of openings to punish. Except from the front.
Without time for Jaune to dodge, the polearm struck him in the sternum. The blonde's momentum worked against him, intensifying the impact. Sky's full weight behind the attack lifted Jaune off his own feet. The two flew through the air, the long knife leaving Jaune's hand along the way, and they collapsed in a pile.
Jaune laughed all the while.
A twist of the arm, and Feather's Edge dropped to the floor. Jaune kicked it away with one leg, his lapse in attention earning him a boot to the back of his head. Jaune kissed ground once more.
Sky scrambled to his feet. Jaune swept the boy's left leg with his own to send him crashing down.
The blonde tried to rise. Sky grabbed Jaune's tie, pulling him into a headbutt. Both boys dropped, disoriented.
Sky snorted. Then, he chuckled. As he returned Jaune to the floor with a slap, he began laughing. He laughed even as Jaune pushed off the ground, spinning into a backfist to Sky's nose.
What started as two warriors battling, became two boys flailing. Neither could get to their feet for more than a moment, before the other drag them down. Neither bothered to aim, their fists striking anything they could reach.
Sky locked Jaune in a chokehold, a flip and the blue-haired boy was looking at the ceiling. A heel appeared in his vision, dropping like a guillotine. Sky rolled to the side, then surged into a tackle. He laid out three punches, before Jaune caught his fist with one hand, and striking Sky's chin with the other.
They fought on, both cackling like madmen.
They didn't stop, as Sky's Aura hit red with an elbow from Jaune.
They kept punching, kicking, and pulling, as Goodwitch ended the match.
They laughed as they floated off the ground, upright at last courtesy of Goodwitch's semblance.
They went on, until they lost all breath, and collapsed on their respective teammates.
As Pyrrha dragged his sorry carcass out the door, and Sky gets carried by Dove and Russel, Jaune smiled happily.
A hero didn't win today, but a monster didn't either.
Author's Notes: Jaune, can you dial it back from 11? It's the second week of class. I don't want to put the Psychological tag on this fic.
Jaune got his Beacon wake-up call! Prone to arrogance, not knowing to moderate his attacks. In a new environment, some lessons need to be reinforced.
Lie Ren, a la Sleeping Dogs. He seeks to bring Jaune Arc's faction to justice from the inside, before they gain control of Beacon. For surely that is their goal. But what lengths must he go to, to earn the trust of Boss Arc? Can he keep from falling too deep?
On a last note, Story Idea 1 had its first chapter! Meet a different Jaune Arc in Conquered Menagerie: Annals of the Sixth Kingdom.