"Bad things do happen in the world, like war, natural disaster, disease. But out of those situations always arise stories of ordinary people doing extraordinary things"

Daryn Kagan

Chapter One – A meeting with Ozpin

"I'm sorry Mr Arc, truly I am." Jaune hung his head in shame. Here he was. The end of the line. After all his desperate efforts to make it work, to try his hardest to blend in, just when he thought he may have gotten away with it, it came back like a Beowulf to bite him on his complacent arse.

"As you may be aware, I always try to give each and every one of my students the opportunity to prove themselves," continued Ozpin. "However, recently I have been made aware that you have had no formal training prior to Beacon. You faked your transcripts." Ozpin's unwavering gaze bore into Jaune. Somehow, he managed to sink into his chair even further.

He tried to hate Cardin, he really did. Even after everything he'd done to try to keep him silent. After what he'd done to his team for that bully. He'd still gone and ratted on him. He wanted to direct all his raw emotions at someone, anyone! Anything except letting them fester inside him like poison. But he knew exactly who's fault this was. The hatred that boiled inside his stomach like acid was solely directed inwards.

Ozpin sighed, and continued, "I am afraid I have judged the risks simply too great. This is no playground Mr Arc, nor do we live in a fairy tale. One mistake in our world can, and will, get you killed. You should have known this." Jaune's eyes burnt with barely held back tears.

"I am afraid," Ozpin said, with the voice of a man about to read out the execution order at a trial, "that I cannot, in good conscience, keep you on as a student at Beacon Mr Arc. It is with great regret, that I must ex—"

"Please professor Ozpin!" Jaune couldn't take it anymore. His whole body was clenched in frustration and misery. "I can't leave. I've got nowhere else to go, nothing else to do!"

"I believe," replied Ozpin, his voice impassive, "that you have a family waiting for you back in Ansel."

"You don't understand Ozpin!" Jaune cried. "My father was a hero. My grandfather was a hero. Even my great-grand father was a hero," he was begging now. Oum above he was actually begging. "I can't go back, knowing that I will be the first Arc in generations to not be a hero." Jaune slumped back in his seat, his grief draining him of all energy. "Please sir. I can't go back a failure."

Ozpin stared long and hard at Jaune. Jaune stared back, hoping, pleading to him with his eyes to let him stay, let him keep the dream alive.

Ozpin rose and moved to the window of his office, gazing out over Beacon. Jaune remained seated, his eyes glued to the headmaster's back, searching for some kind of sign of his internal thoughts. Ozpin remained like that for a few minutes. Jaune held his breath for most of it, desperate for an answer, yet despairing what it may be.

Finally, excruciatingly slowly, Ozpin turned, and walked back to his seat. Fear gripped Jaune in a death vice. He couldn't breathe.

"So, you want to be a hero, do you?"

Jaune was momentarily stunned by the unexpected question, but he stammered out a, "Y-yes. More than anything else in the world."

Ozpin hummed and leaned back in his chair, his eyes searching Jaune's for a moment longer, before, apparently satisfied with what he saw there, he stated simply "I am sorry Mr Arc, but Beacon is not the place for you. However, there may be another option." Jaune, half way down the never-ending tunnel of despair, froze. Was there some hope for him yet? Could it be that Ozpin—no. No, he wouldn't let hope go there. That would only make the let-down hurt even more.

"I would not normally recommend this to a student of mine, but I feel that this is a unique case. How would you feel about joining the military?"

The military? Jaune looked up at Ozpin to make sure he wasn't joking. His face was deadly serious. "The, the military? But… but I'm seventeen. I haven't had any training. I can't go to war."

"Your concerns won't be a problem Mr Arc. As I understand it, the Valesian military allows entrants from sixteen and only recently in fact, started a rearmament program. You will receive full training along with a number of other new recruits. As for war, I doubt you will have to worry about that. We are at a time of peace. I hope it remains that way for many years yet. The military is simply responsible for maintaining a reduced threat from Grimm around Vale where Hunters are unavailable, and occasionally doing so for smaller villages outside the kingdom. It can be uncomfortable at times, and the pay isn't as good as a huntsman, nor will your name be sung about in songs. But you will be helping people."

This was… insane. Jaune couldn't join the military. He was a kid! He'd never done so much as a day's hard work before Beacon. He was nothing more than a civilian in dress up, playing at being a huntsman. The life of an army man would be hard, painful, unforgiving. Not to mention the threat to his life, despite what Ozpin said. It was too much. He couldn't do it.

And yet…

What other choice did he have? Could he really return home? Yes. Of course he could. He loved his family, and they loved him. But could he live with the knowledge that they had been right when they had told him he was out of his depth at Beacon? Could he face their outward appearance of sympathy, whilst knowing that every time he turned his back they were sharing knowing glances? Their 'it's alright Jaune' and 'it doesn't mean anything Jaune' and 'you're still a hero in our eyes Jaune', all the while pretending that they knew what he was feeling when there was no way, no way they could possibly understand the pain and grief that would plague him every day if he went home now. Could he go back to his comfy life, knowing he had given up his dreams, just because the way had looked too hard?

No. No he couldn't. If he couldn't be a hero as a huntsman, then he'd become a hero another way. Jaune Arc, the army… person… thingy.

He'd need to work on that one.

And so, before Jaune's bravado could abandon him, he looked up at Ozpin and simply stated, "I'll do it."

"Wonderful," exclaimed Ozpin. "I'll get in touch with my contact in the military. I can have a bullhead ready to take you to the nearest military compound within the hour. You may use the time to pack and say goodbye to your friends."

Jaune's heart plummeted. "Only one hour? But that's not enough time," he cried.

"I am sorry Mr Arc, but I believe it will be easier this way. You may leave now."

Taking Ozpin's dismissal at face value, Jaune left the headmaster's office. As he miserably made his way back to his dorm, he noted all the insignificant things he had taken advantage of in Beacon. The things he would miss most. The amazing school meals. The beautiful gardens. The spacious library.

And his team. Most of all his team.

Jaune felt like he would be engulfed by the black hole that had formed in his heart. He ran the rest of the way to his dorm, which turned out to be empty; all his team were in lessons. Jaune wasn't sure whether that was a blessing or not.

Forty-five minutes later, he was waiting on the bullhead launch pad. His fingers hovered over his scroll, typed out a message, deleted it, typed it out again, deleted it once more. He had no idea what to say to his team. How could he after what he'd done to them.

Cardin's cruel taunts and threats. The bottle in his hand. His arm raised, ready to throw.

Jaune squeezed his eyes shut. No, no, no. Not this. Not again. He didn't want to relive the fear, the regret, the self-loathing. But the guilt smashed into him like a flood, sweeping through him, overwhelming him, drowning him.

The jar, sailing through the air. Ruby had told him he couldn't be a failure anymore. The implosion on the girl he had the audacity to call partner, as if they were on a par. For his team. The look on her face when she sees him. But he'd failed again. First confusion. Then dawning realisation. Then hurt. He'd didn't stay to see what happened next. He'd failed every day since he joined Beacon. He ran. Ran like the coward he was. Ran and ran and ran and—

Jaune's eyes snapped open, gasping. That had been just a day ago. He hadn't seen his team since. And now he would never get to see them again.

It was better like this, he tried to tell himself. He could accept if they hated him. If they never wanted to see his stupid, selfish, failure of a hide ever again.

The one thing he couldn't stand would be to see them hurt by his departure.

He didn't deserve that kind of love from them.

He thumbed through a short text to them just as the bullhead arrived. It was brief and factual, betraying none of the emotional turmoil Jaune felt at that moment, and simply stating that he was leaving Beacon and would be joining the military. Yet as the bullhead finished its pre-flight checks, and was lifting off the ground, Jaune spotted three small dots racing across the open front of Beacon towards the launch pad. A black-haired boy, a ginger girl, and sprinting in front, a flaming red-haired beauty. Jaune turned his head from the scene, and counted to twenty. When the urge to choke had passed and his eyes had stopped stinging, he looked back to see the tall spires of Beacon fading into the distance, leaving behind everything Jaune Arc had ever known.

OK guys, that's the first chapter for you. This is the first time I'm going for a multiple chapter fanfic so I hope you guys enjoy it. If you did, make sure to follow the story and leave a review as those really encourage me to keep on writing, and if you didn't like it, then also leave a review and tell me I suck or something. If this story is received well, then I'm going to update this fic at least every two weeks. That's the deadline, but if people really like it I might speed it up.

Again, thank you for reading and I'll see you next time for another chapter of Sergeant Arc.