Chapter 3: They're Watching

The giant gear above Jaune clicked in place the moment he'd stopped talking.

He stared at his hands instead of at his teacher and headmaster, cold fingers coiled tightly on his knees. Even though he hadn't looked at them, he couldn't keep from imagining their looks. Consternation perhaps, skepticism...maybe a little unsettled.

On the chance glance he took, he at least found himself halfway right. Ozpin looked at him, clasped hands hiding his mouth and nose as deep brown eyes stared at Jaune like he was trying to put something together in his head. Goodwitch's mouth was half-open, and it looked like she might say something, go into a condemning lecture maybe. Right now, he almost would have preferred that to the silence.

He did expect to be a little sad when he returned to Beacon, a nostalgic kind of sad, yet hopeful going into his second year. He'd expected it to be refreshing in a way too, but as Professor Goodwitch opened and closed her mouth in trying to find the right words to say, Jaune came to the conclusion that perhaps his story was hard to swallow. Jaune had hoped for weeks that it was all a dream, just something he'd made up. He'd believe it too.

Well, sometimes.

"That's…" Ozpin removed his glasses. Closing his eyes, he leaned forward as if that slight difference made all the difference to what he was about to say. " Mister Arc. I hope you realize you've caused your teachers in Vacuo much grief."

"...yes," Jaune responded, voice scratchy.

"And your teammates as well." the Headmaster continued, "Missing the beginning of the school year can have disastrous effects on your education. Mister Arc, you are a second-year now, it is more important now more than ever to be stable and reliable. You are a leader as well, you are responsible for more people than yourself. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir."

"No, I don't think you do." Ozpin said, "Listen, if you are having difficulties, then it is important to talk them out. It is important to not let them fester and spiral out of control as you have done. It cannot go on, am I understood?"

Jaune's knees began to hurt. "Yes, sir."

"If you require any help, anyone to speak to, then you have the health counselors here. And, perhaps more importantly, you have a team waiting for you. Ready to support you. And they cannot support you if you don't let them. Look at me, Mister Arc."

Jaune looked up, stared into the dark brown eyes that pierced into him, made him uncomfortable in a way Professor Ozpin never used to. It wasn't even due to any fault of his own, but it felt like even he was looking at him differently after hearing everything.

"I want you to get some rest, Mister Arc. You have a long year ahead of you. What's happened has happened. We can only move forward, yes?"

"Yes sir." Jaune answered quickly, "Can I go?"

Ozpin reluctantly nodded, and Jaune was out of his seat and pressing the elevator button before he knew it. His eye strayed, lingered on the hand that pressed the button. He could still feel the flesh under the tight bandaging sting a bit.

"Mister Arc." It was Goodwitch, looking at him with what he could only imagine was concern. "It is true, you are a second year and you must shoulder much responsibility. But do not forget that you are merely human. You cannot shoulder everything alone. Understand?"

The good intent was there, but Jaune didn't want to hear it. He didn't want to talk about any of this ever again. All he wanted was to see his friends. To listen to them, to talk to them, to hug them. Nothing else mattered. Not anymore.

Halls, endless and ever forward. It was walking through them again that Jaune wondered if anything had changed at all. It was almost as if the school itself had stagnated without him, had become frozen in a deep cryostasis—it'd certainly explain why they felt so cold now. The walls, the floors, even the cool conditioned air smelled and felt the same. They were empty for the most part, save for a few stragglers who seemed to have no clue where they were going. First years.

"Need help?" Jaune stopped a boy. Dark brown hair and freckles and just a head shorter than him.

The boy stared at him wide-eyed. Almost paralyzed where he stood like a ghost had brushed his shoulder. "Uh, P-Professor Rowan's?" he said. "Sorry, I thought I'd get a tour, but…"

Not at Beacon, Jaune had learned that much the same way. It was very much the jungle here, you either found your way or you didn't and suffered the consequences. He remembered complaining about it for weeks, and it wasn't until he'd left that he realized why it was that way. A Huntsman needed to find their way, by themselves if they had to. Finding a classroom was easy mode compared to what they'd face in the future.

Jaune pointed him down the hall. "Straight down, second left. Last door down that hallway." he then patted him on the back, "And I won't tell you not to be nervous, but just know that it'll pass."

He nodded, thanking him as he ran off. Poor kid. Rowan tolerated lateness like Weiss tolerated, well, anything you disapproved of. Which was to say not at all, but that'd be good for him to learn. Weiss...how is she?

She couldn't look that different now, but how much more skilled was she now? How much had she progressed? Then he thought about Blake and Yang and Ruby and all the others. He hadn't talked to them in so long…and he had no idea how to go about explaining that yet. Until then, he hoped he could tide them over with gifts.

It was the first thing he noticed—the smell—when he opened the door to his dorm. It didn't have the scent it used to which had become the collective smell of those living there. Now It was empty and cold, even if it all looked the same for the most part. Nora's bed was a disorganized mess of multiple multi-colored blankets and half-open canisters of pink Dust sprawled on her desk that she'd always sneeze up at night. Ren's was the exact opposite, neat to the point of obsession. Books lined the small shelf above his head—he was a big history buff. Jaune could also see the X-ray and Vav comic he'd tried to get him to read too, squeezed between The Great War and the Advent of Industry. Still, not even Ren was without a little bit of messiness, as Jaune could see some strands of hair either on his bed or the floor.

Pyrrha is here. Jaune's heart lurched when his eyes fell on her bed. It had never been anything notable, some trinkets there, a book or two. Plain white sheets and comforters that almost made her look like a ghost or a body being dressed for a funeral. She slept in his bed more than her own.

Her bed now was different, to say the least.

Dark red sheets fell over it, almost like her hair in a way. A golden comforter, like the circlet she used to wear. A pumpkin shaped pillow, her favorite vegetable, it even had a cute face smiling up as if to welcome her to it. More than that, her desk used to not have anything on it than organized school work and projects. Perhaps a bit of makeup and her scroll, but nothing else. Now there were pictures. Her mother and father in each other's arms, smiling. Then Pyrrha herself between them in another one. One with them at the prayer statues. Another with Arslan in a yellow sundress. Nadir, Reese, and Bolin in one more, in a forest somewhere, dressed for hiking. And finally one with an orange tabby cat in her arms, one she cuddled close as if she'd just gotten it. It looked like she'd tried to fit as many of them as possible on it, to the point where one looked like it might tip over the edge.

Then on the wall just over her bed was a poster. A pudgy Beowulf hanging on a clothesline and saying "Hang in There." It was enough to make him smile a little.

It was so...different. So not Pyrrha, but then, what did he know? A year was no small amount of time, maybe she'd had all these things and just never bothered to put them up. Maybe during her time away, she discovered them. Who knew? And all it once, it made Jaune want to unpack his own things to set up his bed. So he did.

He'd decided to change things up, opting for simpler colors this time around. He needed nothing special. Just some gray sheets and comforters, a few same colored pillows. He'd used to have pictures on his desk, his family album that Team RWBY would look at entirely too much and laugh at him. He'd left those at home during his break there. Same with his comics—he'd read them all anyway. His favorite mug—Ethan's. He didn't want it to get ruined or lost so he left it home as well. A lot of precious things that he didn't want to get ruined or lost, best left in a safe place. And when Jaune finished setting up, he looked proudly at his finished work.

A bed as gray as a rainy day. A desk empty and ready to store his classwork. All he needed, all that was necessary. Jaune set down his bags, sat on his bed, and rubbed the sheets. Soft. Cold. Tempting him to lay in it and sleep the day away. It was too late for him to go to classes, so he'd be spending the rest of the day alone anyway. Rest did sound good, he couldn't think of anyone else.

The door unlocked, and Jaune hopped up as someone walked in. Ren.

Different clothes, his hair wasn't tied back as he remembered, but it was Ren all the same. His teammate's eyes widened as they met his. "Jaune...you're back."

Jaune nodded. "Uh, yeah. Hey."

There was a moment of silence, but Jaune didn't want it to linger. Maybe Ren would find it weird, but he hadn't hugged anyone in a while. And he was right about to fill that need, but Ren held out a hand to stop him. "When did you get back?"

Jaune blinked. "Today. Maybe thirty minutes ago."

Ren's eyes narrowed a little. "And you couldn't call to let us know?"

"You were in class," Jaune said, it wasn't the best excuse, but that was hardly the only reason. He beamed as he unzipped his bag, "Plus, I wanted to surprise you. Sit down, I brought you something."

"I just came to pick something up. I need to get back to lunch." Ren said.

"This'll be quick, really. Come on, you'll love this!" Jaune searched his bag with haste, throwing things onto his bed with disregard. Giving out all the gifts to everyone at once would be a pain—at the very least he could have a moment to see how Ren reacted to his gift.

Ren relented and took a seat, Jaune handing him his gift. Ren looked up at him, between him and the small wrapped thing in his hands. Jaune rubbed his hands together, strangely excited for him to see it. Ren had a strange way of unwrapping things so neatly it was as if even his own excitement carried an air of patience to it. But that was Ren for you, and it was something Jaune didn't think much about until recently.

Certain things could make you appreciate the smaller things in life.

When Ren was done, he held it up to the light peeking through the window. A small dark green plaque that was blank on all sides. "What is it?" asked.

"Its something I got in Mistral," Jaune said, stepping closer to touch the face of the plaque. "You activate it with aura, and…"

There was a small hum, scribbles etched themselves onto the thing like an invisible pen. A reddish-magenta, glowing dim as it took shape from the center, spreading out more and more until the final image left its shine on Ren's face despite its messy design. A glowing flower. A lily.

"Sorry, I can't draw to save my life, so you can only imagine how engraving went for me. I had to do them myself and it took a couple of tries. And you would not believe how much it cost, I got robbed, I swear."

"My symbol? Why?" Ren asked, lips in the thin frown.

Jaune sat next to him. This was the hard part. "Remember when Yang and Nora had that drinking contest last year? You were smart to go to bed early, cuz they only got more wild that night...anyway, Nora...she told me about Kuroyuri," Ren flinched, Jaune could see the way his fingers clenched, "but I don't think she meant to. And I didn't want to ever bring it up. It's your business and...yeah. So while I was in Mistral, I figured maybe you'd want a memento. That symbol represents your whole village, right?"

A pause, but Ren eventually gave a slow, contemplative nod.

"Well, I thought maybe having a piece of them with you would be good." Jaune's chest pounded with hope, "You like it?"

Ren stared at it for a moment, Jaune could swear his eyes narrowed. Then finally they closed and he let out a breath through his nose as he sat the plaque on the shelf, right at the very end of his row of books. Weird place to put it. Ren wouldn't be able to see it from his bed at all. "Everyone is in the cafeteria. They've all been waiting to see you."

"Um, okay…" Jaune's gaze darted back and forth between the plaque, almost unable to believe Ren had simply set it aside. Sure, he didn't expect him to cry or anything, but no reaction at all? Not even something to say? Even if he hated it, Jaune would take that over silence. "Ren?"

A sharpness. Like a javelin had been thrown into his chest the moment Ren looked at him. Almost emotionless, like Ren was already tired of seeing him. No, Jaune was just being delusional, reading too much into things. Maybe Ren just hadn't gotten any sleep, that was far more likely.

"I've...missed you. Everyone." Jaune said. It probably made him sound wimpy or emotional, but right now he didn't care. He just wanted to tell him, everyone that he could, that he loved them. More than they probably realized. "It's good to be home."

Ren held his gaze for a moment, something in those pink eyes made Jaune swallow, waiting for something. He just wasn't sure what he was waiting for. Clearly, Ren wasn't waiting for anything, for he headed out the door in a brisk, almost dismissive turn. Nor did he call for him to follow even though Jaune followed closely behind him.

Nor did he say anything else to him the entire walk to the cafeteria.

—RA—

Jaune had never seen a tarsier before, at least, not outside of animal books. Personally, they'd always creeped him out a bit. Tiny things barely bigger than an infant human, but with eyes so big that the sclera almost bulged out of their sockets, and pupils so tiny it was like they were dotted there by a pen. What did these harmless little creatures see that others didn't? The ghosts that haunted the land? Another dimension?

Perhaps those eyes could see why the gods had decided that a tarsier Grimm was a good idea. Jaune would certainly appreciate knowing.

Blake and Weiss bickered in the background, the baking sun beating down on his neck just like it had every morning here so far. Distantly, Jaune could hear Ren trying to stop them while going over the plan for the day with the others. He'd have been paying attention too if not for his new friend.

Its thin dark fur almost looked temptingly soft. Small, perhaps five or six feet if you ignored the long rat tail coiled tightly around the branch it perched itself on. It hugged the branch with thin white fingers, hooks at the finger points. There was white bone on its back, but very little, he doubted it'd provide any form of protection.

But had Jaune not looked away from the eyes, he probably wouldn't have noticed any of that. They swam with red as if the creature's blood vessels had exploded and filled the scalera like balloons. The question was clear. Kill it...or not?

It seemed like he was the only one that cared, either way. Looking back, the others were getting their things together. Ruby checking her ammo cartridges with shaky hands, dropping bullets in the grass and fumbling to pick them up. Pyrrha talking to Yang and Ren as he pointed North, Yang didn't look particularly happy with where the conversation was going. And isn't there a lot of that these days. Nora, oddly enough, was not far away, just shaking her head as if she was tired of it already. And of course, Weiss and Blake were still arguing. What about? The crash. Again.

The Grimm tarsier had not moved or changed when Jaune turned back to face it. Likely hadn't blinked either. They knew about it and decided to ignore it. Which was a fair point to make, they couldn't be sure what exactly this Grimm was trying to do. Best to ignore it if it wasn't attacking. It was certainly not a Grimm Jaune knew much about.

"All your fault!" Weiss snarled, "I cannot believe you got us into this mess!"

"Right, because it was my bad attitude alone that summoned a giant Grimm. Grow up, Weiss!"

Jaune looked back again, Ren was trying to cut between the girls. Keyword: Trying. Sometimes, he'd get their attention, but they'd outright ignore him and go straight back to arguing. Jaune sighed. All that bitching would only draw the Grimm. He'd have been more worried, but he'd slain the Grimm to the North for the next two miles. They'd be okay, at least for a while.

He looked back at the Tarsier. Still hadn't moved, still stared at him, even as Jaune leaned closer to meet its blood-red eyes. Grimm wanted to kill humans, that was obvious. So why wasn't this thing trying to pluck his eyes out or something? Where was its poisonous bite? What was this thing's purpose? To stare?

To watch?

Jaune drew his snapped sword, placed it's chipped edge to the monster's face. It didn't flinch. Didn't blink. Maybe the others were content to leave it be, but Jaune wasn't. Its body slumped to the ground, starting to fade right away. Jaune watched until it was all gone, almost didn't notice when someone touched his arm. Ruby. "Come on, Jaune. Ren wants you in front."

Jaune frowned, staring up at the group that was beginning to move. Blake and Weiss had quieted...for all about a minute. Ren had learned something then, Jaune just wasn't sure if it was the right one to learn. A rare thing indeed for Ren to do any yelling, but against attitudes like Weiss and Blake? Great work there, Ren. Superb.

"Jaune, remember the first thing Professor Lin taught us, right?" Ruby asked.

Professor Lin, she led the team leader courses. Long time since he'd thought about her. "Yeah, Rulers point. Leaders show."

Ruby looked between him and Ren. She didn't look angry, or upset, she looked more bothered than anything, like there was a bomb and she was waiting for it to go off. "So why are you the one in front instead of Ren?"

~RA~

So...much...complaining.

It made Ren's eye twitch. Two hours of walking, only two goddamn hours, and the only break Ren got from Blake and Weiss was when they were catching their breath.

The sun showed no mercy, bright hot rays burning down so intensely that not even the thick canopy above could shield him from it. He could smell his own musk, sweat drenching him as if he'd jumped into a pool of it. To the point that he'd rolled up his sleeves and opened his collar so his neck could breathe. Very little good it did. With every step, his breaths came out in puffs. He'd stopped controlling them through his nose, now feeling the raspy itch in his throat with every throaty suck.

Thick clumps of foliage and fallen branches made the once wide and roomy path narrow and unwelcoming, practically burning his every footstep in brush crawling with insects. Dragonflies and flying beetles buzzed around them, battering against his face like big clumps of hail. His thighs burned, his back ached from the bag on his shoulder. His stomach croaked with fervor, almost convincing him that the bugs sailing around him were a fine meal and definitely not too risky to eat at all. But maybe all of that was tolerable.

"—because you couldn't control yourself. Really, Blake? You just had to push Mister White, didn't you?"

"Did you hear anything he said!?"

If only Blake and Weiss would shut up.

He could even see that it was bothering the others, Nora had pushed on ahead to walk with Ruby and Pyrrha, while Yang's fists visibly shook. Although, the latter could have also been because she was hungry...because Ren had denied her food.

It was for the best. Yang might hate him right now, but he knew what it was like to go for days without food. It was awful but doable. Shelter, water, food. Once they found one, the others would come soon after. It had worked every time so far for him and Nora in the Badlands, it would work now. It had to work.

"You would do the same in my position! But you aren't, you don't have to sit there while he calls me and my people mongrels!"

"He did not call you anything! How dense are you!?"

How could they argue so much? Of course, he'd heard they often did from Yang and Ruby, but he'd never been around it enough to get annoyed. He could just walk away and let them handle it. Not anymore. Not while he had to make sure everyone stayed together. They were on their last bits of food now, it wouldn't survive another night, that was for sure. There would come a point where Ruby would have to use some of her bullets to catch birds. They'd sacrifice protection for food, and it only became a steeper incline from there.

Maybe they were fine for now, but how long would that last? How long until everyone was starving? How long until the Grimm sensed that hunger and closed in?

"Or did you forget something as basic as that?" Ren frowned as he recalled Jaune's words. He hadn't forgotten that, but Jaune had been right, hadn't he? Being conservative on food between eight people was impossible, and on into their fourth day, that was becoming more and more apparent. People were getting hungry, getting angry. And if Weiss and Blake were bitching now, he could only imagine what it'd look like if more days passed without water. Then of course...the Grimm would come.

But this is still the right path. We'll find water and food better going this way. Ren stared at Jaune's blonde hair as he stayed ahead of the party. He knew some things, Ren could admit that. He dodged and weaved through the brush like it was practice, and as a result, he was way ahead of everyone, stopping once in a while to wait for everyone to catch up. Even with sweat dripping off his brow, he didn't look even a little out of breath. Wasn't he burning up in that thick jacket? Didn't his shoulders hurt carrying most of the bags? No, apparently not.

Aren't you being unfair? Ren's traitorous mind considered. Maybe he was, but perhaps Jaune was too. Where had he been when Ren was stressed and needed help? Where was he to comfort Nora when she needed someone to help her weather her knee pains? He knew about his home, but never once thought that not returning calls and ignoring them for months would hurt him? Ren had to bury disappointment after disappointment, and he had no one to talk to about that but Nora and those two lonely beds. For a whole year. That wasn't fair, that wasn't right.

And what? He was just supposed to accept them both back like it never happened? Pretend everything was fine?

No. Ren answered himself. He'd sat on his hands for too long. He let Jaune and Pyrrha handle their problems last year and thought that was for the best. He was wrong. Had he stepped in earlier, maybe he could have changed things? Maybe they never would have had to leave.

Ren glared at the back of Pyrrha's head. Maybe Pyrrha wouldn't have caused Nora's arthritis.

A problem that put her through horrible pain and yet Nora talked and laughed with Pyrrha like it was nothing. Like it wasn't a big deal. Sometimes, Ren felt like he cared more about her condition than she did, But that was just like Nora. She was forgiving. Too forgiving.

Ren shook his head, trying to ward off a boiling feeling in his stomach. Likely just his hunger. Just focus on getting everyone to safety and fed. Worry about everything else later

"MOVE!" That was Jaune. A booming bellow immediately followed.

The ground shuddered, Ren barely catching sight of the others leaping into the trees as a giant boulder crashed into the pathway and began ripping apart the ground as it came toward him. Ren sailed over it, knee scratching its sharp surface as he rolled off it and landed on the other side. Just in time to spot the other. Someone yelled out something about 'it being over there', but Ren couldn't see where, as he dashed through the bushes to escape the path of the second boulder. Ahead of him, Weiss and Blake were leaping through the branches, yelling something he couldn't hear, and Ren promptly gave chase.

A deep, mighty roar rang his ears. Ren didn't need to guess what it was before he broke through the treeline. A Beringel. A big one.

With arms as thick as tree trunks and an actual tree trunk in one hand, the Grimm was in a howling frenzy as it bore down Jaune and Yang. Jaune rolled out of the way, chunks of dirt slashed into the air by the uprooted tree trunk, vines attached to it lashing at the air. Pyrrha called out to Jaune but was forced to jump away when the Beringel's other arm came toward her. Ruby jumped at it, tried to bury Crescent Rose into its mask. A light ping, like a coin being dropped onto concrete. Ruby had no choice but to jump away, barely a scratch left behind. That was weak even for Ruby...was it because of the hunger?

"Yang! Brace up!" Jaune called, "Pyrrha, Ruby, cover fire!"

"No!" Ren yelled, but they were too far to hear him. They couldn't use up their bullets, they were too valuable, but it was already too late. Pyrrha snatched the monster's attention, her shots bouncing off its face or barely piercing its hide. Jaune meanwhile touched Yang and she braced her arms in front of her before Jaune sparked in Brave mode and stuck. She didn't move.

But her hair instantly erupted. Almost blinding.

Jaune let himself shine gold as well, him and Yang splitting off to intercept the Beringel from opposite sides. Its hulking arm, thick-plated like knight's armor and decorated with spikes, tore through the grass, sending up chunks of dirt and mud. The beast swung with its other hand, Pyrrha leaped out of the way as the trunk rolled past. Anyone hit by that would surely be killed if not outright have their aura shattered.

So, sensibly, the trunk stopped like a car with its brakes being slammed the moment it touched a golden Jaune.

The boy held up his arms as if attempting to catch it, which didn't amount to much no matter how tightly he held onto it. But that seemed to be the point, The Beringel lifted him up with the trunk and would have flung him away if Jaune hadn't stabbed his sword into it and held on tight. He yelled something out. Orange hair, Nora, sliding under the swinging trunk and closing the distance between her and the target. Yang awaited her, feet touched down on Nora's shield, allowing herself to be launched. A blazing streak slammed headlong into Beringel's face, flinging its head back and sending chunks of its mask flying. It was perfect. Seamless.

It all happened in less than a minute.

"Ren, move!" he heard someone call out from below.

The world was spinning, the ground had left Ren when a giant body came barreling into him. He crashed into the grass and through muddied vision, he saw his attacker—A King Taijitu or something like that.

Scratch that. This was not at all like a King Taijitu.

The thing was fast, its giant slithering body almost gliding along the grass as if it was ice. It lunged up, and only then did he see Blake slashing at it while hanging off of one of its scales. No, heads. Thousands of snakeheads all in one beehive-like conglomerate, impossibly long bodies coiled and inter-wrapped so tightly around one another it was like they'd been braided together. A crash, Ren was lifted off his feet as the thousand-headed snake slammed its face into the ground, sending thousands of its tiny selves raining on them.

"What are you doing!?" Something tackled him. The Shield Knight, it pinned him to the ground and covered him. All around him, clear fluid glistened as it hit the grass and made it sizzle and begin to rot away. Like the hisses of the snakes themselves, the venom's kiss melted away at the world around him. The Knight was no exception, as the left side of its head had been ripped away. Ren instinctively looked away.

"Fool." It said as it yanked him up, only to then dash off toward Blake. The snakes littering the ground all slithered up a tree, a legion of scrambling devils. They reformed at the top, recreating the thousand snakeheads that gutted the air with its ear-numbing hiss.

He was nearly knocked off his feet when the thing dived down to them, Ren pushed himself to run, drawing on Stormflower as he jumped away and fired. If no one else was conserving, then him holding out wouldn't make a difference. A shower of leaves as the snake Grimm rattled the trunks, Ren's bullets hammering at its heads, measuring success in only as much venom as he shot out of their mouths. Blake came in a flash, a spin earning her the heads of several before leaping away. She was smart to—a gush of the venom came spraying out. Was it a countermeasure for bullets and blades?

"Any ideas?" Ren asked, landing next to Blake as she switched Gambol Shroud to sickle and chain.

"Aren't you the leader?" She spat, then wasted no time getting back into action, the Knight was close behind. A gush of vom, falling toward them like a sloppy net. Blake and Ren stayed out of range, right as the Knight hacked off a chunk of the head. The heads couldn't grow back at least, certainly explained why there were so many of them. A plan. He needed a plan.

And that's when he realized it: when was the last time he'd had a plan for this?

Beowolves, Ursae, and other smaller Grimm, those were easy beasts to understand in the Badlands. Same as at Beacon, the most dangerous thing was a Deathstalker or Nevermore and they were tame by comparison to this thing. He'd never made plans to take down those things, he hadn't the faintest clue. Someone else had done that.

Someone who wasn't here to help.

Someone cried out. Nora. Aura flaring, he headed right for her. She'd been knocked aside by the Beringel, tumbling in the dirt. With a snarl, she jumped back up and rejoined the battle without an ounce of thought. She couldn't, not with how her leg was. He had to stop her. He had to save her!

Nora jumped away from a swing, but just barely. The Beringel hadn't killed anyone yet and it was starting to show. It roared, furiously pounding at the ground with its giant fists like a tantrum-throwing toddler. Nora barely avoided the madness, trying to stay sure of her foot, a giant fist came right at her. Ren lunged forward, reaching out, praying he'd make it in time.

But someone else did.

Because like a car with slammed brakes, Nora tanked the blow with her shield. Body giving off a faint white glow. She wasted no time leaping out of the way, letting the fist bury itself into the ground before driving the shield in the Beringel's jaw.

"Ren, what are doing!?" Jaune yelled, "Go help Blake and Weiss, we've got this!"

"I don't...I don't know what..." Ren fumbled for an answer. A response. Why didn't he have anything to say?

"It's a Helixhead! Same deal with a Taijutu! Use Aura!" Jaune tanked another blow, pushing the monster back and clearing room for Yang to get in a hit. "Go now!"

Ren clenched his fist but went to help Blake. She was holding off the Helixhead, but barely. She stumbled, a piece of her leggings gone and leaving eaten through flesh underneath. Like a rampant belt, the Helixhead slammed itself into the ground, trying to crush the Knight under it. The Knight sparked white and scrambled out of the way, and Ren quickly got to Blake and out of the way of the venom spray.

"Blake, your sword beam. Can you do it?"

Blake snatched her arm away. "I need a few seconds."

"It's yours." Ren molded aura into his arms. "Weiss, hold its attention!"

"You're a bit late on that idea!" Weiss screamed from somewhere. Ren pushed it aside to open fire, the knight hacking at the monster with reckless abandon, seemingly unaware of the venom melting at its body. The head of the Grimm split into two, one side barreling toward Ren. He stayed mobile leaping back again and again as it gave chase. The ground was a brutal mess of dead and living nature, everything at the mercy of the Grimm chasing him down. Ren redirected his aura flow, focused it, let it rise in his palm. He stabbed one of his weapons into the monster's back and dropped the other.

It only took a touch.

Chunks of flesh and black smoke shot up into his face and around the world as the aura exploded through the creature's organless body. Its headless body writhing and lashing, no venom left to spray.

"Move!" Blake yelled.

A shining violet blade, contrasting beautifully with the sunbeams falling on the earth, flew under Ren as he took to the air. In a smooth, soundless motion, the second half of the Helixhead was split in two, destroying the Shield Knight in the process. The monster withered on the ground, twitched, and desperately clung to life. It wouldn't for much longer.

The Beringel was battering the ground, tremors rocked Ren's footing. The others were sticking close, but not yet making a move. That was until Ren saw Jaune waiting for the monster several strides away, shining gold. The Beringel rushed at him, spit flying out of its big jaw, muscles bulging to put its enemy to death. Jaune was supposed to be nothing but an ant to this Beringel's boot.

But the monsters didn't realize that it was the other way around. Jaune didn't even flinch, holding his ground with squared legs. Yang, Pyrrha, and Nora were right on the Grimm's heels. Pyrrha went up, landing on Nora's shield, allowing Nora to launch her over the hulking monster.

A mighty crash, Jaune yelling out as he held back the beast. Pyrrha flew over him, ponytail dancing in the wind, doing everything but disturb her aim. Upside down, she fired, the Beringel crying out as it stumbled back, one hand clawing at its eye. Yang was overhead by that point, fist reared back as she descended on the creature, yellow hair billowing behind her. Crunch. Like biting into an ice cube, Yang's fist punched straight through Beringel's other eye, right up to her elbow.

Nora and Jaune were at its feet, Jaune sparking red as Nora reared back her shield. "Do it!" he yelled. They hit its right foot, and Ren swore he saw the flesh cave in. The beast toppled onto its back, allowing Yang to leap away and Jaune to replace her. Red lightning sparking off his body like a haywire generator as he buried his sword into its head. He pushed the blade deeper and deeper, ignored the spit that hit his face as the monster roared in agonized fury. It didn't faze him in the slightest it seemed, more like it stoked his teeth-grinding fury. Jaune continued to bury his blade into the beast's head, staring in its face and taking in its rotten breath most likely. Almost enjoying its suffering. Seconds passed, the roars became growls, which became slowly quieting murmurs. The monster's arms twitched and spasmed until it finally lost its will. Gasping for its last shred of life, the Beringel stopped moving.

There was a collective of haggard breaths, stumbling, and injuries amongst the group. But no missing limbs, all eight accounted for. It was a victory, at least, Ren hoped that was what it'd feel like. Instead...

"Is that proof enough for you?" Weiss said, directing it at Blake. "Your insufferable attitude almost got us killed!"

Blake looked like she might ignore her, or perhaps Ren just thought that the Gods would be merciful. Someone was a fool there, and he didn't like the answer he was thinking. "This is not the same situation and you know it!" Blake snapped.

And that was it, even when the others came to regroup, Weiss and Blake were at each other's throats again. Ren boiled inside, were they really doing this again?

"Blake, Weiss! Stop this right now!" he yelled, the girls barely acknowledged him, up in each other's faces without any regard for him. For anything he said. Ren pushed between them, tried to keep them apart, but no matter what they just kept yelling at each other. Ignoring and pushing against him as if he were but a plastic wall that was more of an inconvenience than an obstacle. Nothing he said would stop them. Nothing he did would stop them. How the hell could he keep letting this continue!?

Why wouldn't they just stop!?

That was when someone else came through, someone who pushed him out of the way gently and, just like the brakes on a goddamn car, stopped Blake and Weiss immediately. Jaune.

"Weiss," Jaune said evenly, meeting her red-faced glare with an almost tired calm. "Take a walk."

"What!? I refuse to—"

Jaune stepped forward. Weiss wanted to step back, Ren could tell. "You need a walk, Weiss. Take it, please."

She opened her mouth, closed it, opened it again, closed it again. And only then did she whip around so quickly that her ponytail kicked in the air and stormed off into the forest. Jaune nodded toward Yang to follow her, wordless, Yang did so. Jaune then turned to Blake, who stared up at him for a moment, only to look back down as if looking into his eyes made her feel guilty somehow. "I'm sorry if I caused—"

"No one caused anything." Jaune cut her off, "I need help hunting. You coming? I'll fix your leg while I'm at it."

Blake nodded slowly and followed after him. Jaune looked back at Ren. "Is that okay with you?"

Ren frowned. "I had that under control."

Jaune didn't answer, nor did anyone else. Leaving Ren to just stand there and sigh. Awkwardly, Nora and Pyrrha stood by, looking at him like they wanted to say something, but were also thinking against it. "Guess we're taking a break here then," Ren said.

But he had the feeling that someone else had made that decision already.

—RA—

"Do you think it's my fault?"

It was, perhaps, the first time he'd ever seen an emotional Blake. Easy to forget that she was human, well, faunus, when she never seemed to break the aloof and cool exterior outside of the occasional bouts of weirdness.

Blake kept pace behind him as Jaune pushed himself through the brush, looking around with purpose and listening for any sounds other than Blake's talking. Her voice quivered a bit, which he wished he knew better how to handle. It was easy to think that she didn't let Weiss's words get to her, but then, she would never argue with her if that was the case, right?

"Weiss is being ignorant. It'd take a lot of negativity for the Grimm to sense someone from so high and far away. We'd have the entire world swallowed by Grimm if every little bad emotion could draw a damn...whatever that snake thing was." Blake continued, shaking her head. "I swear, she's such a...ugh! It's like she doesn't even care what Mister White was saying about me. How is that fair?"

"Hm." Jaune shook his head.

"Exactly, and…"

No birds. No primates despite how densely packed the trees were. Occasionally he'd find a small critter, but they weren't enough for everyone and certainly not worth the effort. Maybe wild pigs? Those had to be out here and would be a worthy haul. They could cook the meat and squeeze it dry to preserve it longer. Jaune licked his lips just thinking about it. Why, if he let his imagination wander, all the leaves above his head could turn into juicy steaks hanging just a jump away. Seasoned. Coated with a spicy, tangy sauce. Maybe there'd be vegetables too, fried in oil and spread with butter. Maybe this forest had freshly baked bread rolls somewhere, their crisp brown surfaces coated with a dab of butter. Their insides white and fluffy like clouds. Soft. Delicious.

Jaune rubbed his stomach. Fantasies wouldn't help him out there, that was for sure. He'd be just as happy with a squirrel right now.

"—and how can she say that to me?" Blake was ahead of him now, fuming, black hair bouncing up and down with every aggravated step she took. "I'd never let this situation happen if I had control over it. And then she blames me for the Beringel and Taijitu? She's so immature!"

Immature, yes. Warthog, food. Jaune hummed at Blake's words again, eyes still scanning the world around him. Even with every step taken, it felt like he wasn't making progress at all. Maybe it was impossible. Maybe the universe was trying to tell him to stop trying, to just give up and lay there, hoping for the end to come painlessly. His stomach wouldn't let up no matter how much he tried to think of something else. He imagined Blake's stomach was no better. Everyone's, no doubt.

If he didn't get food, if he didn't provide for everyone...what good was he to the group? To anyone?

"He's Jaune Arc! He can do anything!"

"Jaune?"

Jaune blinked, Blake staring at him just a few feet away. "Sorry, what were you saying?"

Blake sighed and rubbed her forehead. It was only then that he'd noted how lank her hair had gotten, after so long in the heat, she was probably just as drenched as he was. Perhaps just as fed up with everything too. "It doesn't matter. Forget it. I doubt you care what I have to say."

She went on ahead, Jaune cursing to himself as he hurried to catch up, and put a hand on her shoulder. She didn't shrug him off, thankfully. "I care, Blake."

"Weiss doesn't."

"One person. Is anyone else blaming you?" No answer, Jaune continued. "No, Blake, I'm not. It wouldn't make sense for this to be your fault." Then Jaune paused and shook his head, "Not entirely anyway."

"What does that mean?" she asked.

Jaune scratched his head, shaking dirt and dander out of it. "I mean, out here where people rarely come, there isn't any negativity to fester. Which makes the Grimm particularly sensitive to any negativity that comes in. At that, it was a long trip. Yang was already bitchy from sitting around too long, Weiss was a bad mood, same with Ren, and...you get it. If the Grimm sensed us, it was because of everyone. Not just you."

"You too?"

Fuck. He'd walked right into that. "Yeah, okay? Look, can we hunt now?"

She nodded, and their perilous, perhaps pointless, journey continued. It wasn't long before Blake spoke again. "Sorry, I...I'm thinking too much about how I feel. I should be thinking about everyone else."

That was a good thought to have, but she was reaching for the stars chasing an ideal like that. "No one can be expected to do that all the time. No one will ever understand how you feel except yourself, right?"

"I just...how can Weiss accuse me of those things? How could she think I'd want anyone in danger? Sometimes, she just makes me feel like I did do those things even if I know I didn't." Blake's eyes moistened, but she did her best not to let them fall. Jaune made a point not to mention them.

What could he even say? This was why he kept quiet. Sometimes the things you said didn't matter, sometimes people would just believe what they wanted and force those beliefs onto others. Weiss wasn't the first person to do this, everyone had done it at least once...and been the victim of it too. "Just ignore her when she says that stuff. I doubt you even care."

"Well, shows how well we know each other. I care a lot more than I let on." Blake admitted. That...it was not what he expected her to say. Nor did Jaune think that it would leave him so taken aback. "If I don't say something, if I don't defend myself, she's just going to continue to think she's right."

"Well you fighting back hasn't changed her mind either."

"But at least I'll have tried, at least I'd have done something." Blake said, "You could have ignored it when everything with Pyrrha happened last year, but you didn't. Why should I give up?"

That was very positive, very progressive thinking. Jaune liked it, he really did, he could respect someone who stuck to their virtues in the face of challenge. Except...Jaune paused. "Blake…" he said, reaching for his sword.

Blake whipped around, spotting the very thing he had. Big red eyes, small furry body, thin fingers. Another tarsier Grimm. This area was probably filled with them, nothing strange about that and yet...it seemed strangely coincidental. That fight with the Beringel and the Helixhead. Two Grimm that operated alone instead of working together. They'd found them, what? Two hours after running into that first tarsier? Coincidence. Had to be. He took off the Grimm's head with a single strike.

" I get it, Blake. You don't want to back down." Jaune sighed, "But right now, fighting isn't helping anyone. The Grimm will find us and I can only imagine what other kinds could be here that we've never heard of before. So can I count on you to just ignore Weiss from here on out? I'll talk to her if I have to, but I need to know that you won't antagonize her either—and don't say you don't. You do."

He could tell Blake didn't like the accusation, but biting her lip, she nodded. "Fine, I'll leave her alone."

Jaune nodded, looked at the dead tarsier Grimm. He'd already planned to keep watch tonight, but now he had an idea of what to look for. He barely got a stop forward before Blake stopped him once again. "Weiss isn't the only one you have to talk to."

Gods, I do not need this right now. "Ren might be being a jerk, but he knows how to survive. He's lived that life. He just wants to make sure everyone survives and he's the best suited to lead the way on this."

"Don't give me that. He's a mess." Blake said, "He might know what we need to do, but he's never been in a rainforest. He isn't an expert on Grimm. And what? His bright idea was to starve us so the food could be preserved? How well did that turn out?"

"Are you telling me you can do better?"

"Nope," Blake instantly answered. She tilted her head toward him and Jaune immediately frowned.

"No way."

"Why?" Blake stepped closer to him. "No offense to your teammate, Jaune, but he's going to get us all killed. You saw what happened when those Grimm showed up. He froze. You were the one issuing commands the moment things got bad. Why did he rush to help Nora when she was fine and it was Weiss and I that needed help?"

"I'm not going to do any better. I can't even find us food." Jaune tried to stay calm. He couldn't even be angry at Blake, which just made it harder. "I've taken enough from Ren. I can at least let him have this."

Blake's eyes narrowed like she was looking at some foreign creature that her brain simply couldn't process. "So preserving Ren's pride is more important than surviving? More important than his life? Nora's? Mine?" Jaune swallowed, he had no answer for that one. Probably didn't matter, Blake was hardly done. "Why was it that you stopped us from arguing if he's the one that's supposed to be in charge? Why did I, why did Weiss, listen to you instead of him?"

Jaune bit his lip, frowning deeply. "I don't know, Blake. I just wanted you two to stop arguing."

"So you berate me for standing up to my teammate, and I berate you for not doing it when you know you should. I never took you for a hypocrite. Why should I listen to anything you say?"

Jaune stepped up to her. Very little personal space left behind, and even if he was taller than her, Blake didn't flinch. "Because I'm asking you to, Blake. Please."

Blake stared evenly at him, then poked him in the chest. "And that's why Weiss stopped arguing. Take it from me, no one listens to demands...but everyone will obey a command."

Jaune rolled his eyes. "Come on, I didn't command you. I asked. You could've said no."

"And what? You'd have just taken it? Don't bullshit me—you may have been asking, but I know an order when I hear it. But don't let me stop you from fooling yourself. You're certainly good at it."

Jaune chewed on his inner lip, watched as Blake moved past him. He followed, about ready to tell her all the ways she was wrong and why. Any second he'd tell her just that. Any second now.

God damn it.

—RA—

Ruby had never hated silence. As a kid, she spent a lot of time alone by choice. Even around friends and family, sometimes it was enough for her to just exist in the same room as them. She didn't think it was necessary to talk unless there was something to say.

But she'd stopped appreciating the quiet recently. Maybe it was because she had to sleep on an empty stomach, or had to remember that she was surrounded by monsters that wanted to rip her and her friends apart. Of course, then she'd remember the blood. Coppery, sweet. How it had flushed down her throat, warm and sickly when Mister White came apart. How his gurgling scream persisted even as she watched his head burst into flames until he slowly, surely...grew silent. After that, all she could hear were the waves and screaming pounding in her head. Waves and screaming. Waves. Screaming. Blood. Fire. Waves, screaming...silence.

No, Ruby didn't hate silence, at least not until now. She didn't hate blood either. Not her own, not her sister's, not Mister White's...no she had to stop thinking. Focus on something else. Her favorite color? Red. Roses. Strawberries. Hanging intestines splattered like paint in the sand. Something wet splashing her, warm. Ruby nearly lurched. Could there still be some inside her? Was it swimming around mixing with her own blood? Was it?

Ruby winced as she patted her cheeks a little too hard, leaving her skin tingling. Stop. Stop thinking. It's over with. She had to think about other things, yes that's what she had to do. when there was no conversation in the air and the only thing she could hear and feel was the twisting of her stomach, it became harder to push those thoughts away.

The others were around the campsite in varying states. Weiss was attempting to get dirt out of her hair to no real avail—mark her words, Weiss would be a true brunette in a few days. Yang was lying next to the bundle of sticks that would become their campfire in a few hours, staring at it with a boredom that was even making Ruby sleepy. Pyrrha was laying opposite of her, drawing circles on her belly with her fingers as she stared at the sky with as much disinterest as she could muster. Ren and Nora were together, the latter doing a good job of proving to Ruby that Ren could indeed smile if he wasn't so sour as of late.

You shouldn't say that. Sure, there was no harm in it, but Ruby didn't even like to think less than good things about others. Her dad did say it would come back to bite her at some point. When would he ever stop being right about stuff?

Jaune and Blake had returned an hour ago, empty-handed, which could only be an absolute boost to the team's already stellar morale. The bad news was that they hated each other. The good news was that they'd learned to hate each other in silence, which, surprisingly, Ruby was more than okay with right now. Normally, she'd advocate for peace. For everyone to love each other and for everything to just be great and happy and perfect all the time…

Right now, she didn't think she even wanted to be that positive. As for Jaune, he was...doing something.

He was circling the clearing, checking the boulders scattered about, and the trees lining the perimeter. He did it with more energy than Ruby expected him to have—again and again, he surprised her with just how long he could keep going. He was nothing if not a man on a mission, and whatever was on his mind, it was enough to make him look like a madman stalking the dark corners of an alley. It reminded her entirely too much of last year when he ran off in the pouring, leaving her to worry what dark corners of Vale he might wind up in.

Ruby went up to him, and it was as if Jaune hadn't noticed her, for he was looking around a tree trunk and feeling around like he couldn't sense her presence. Was he looking for something? "Jaune, what are you doing?"

He looked at her for a moment, then went right back to it. "Keeping watch for those tarsiers. What's up?"

"You're being a weirdo." Ruby said, "And it's freaking me out."

"You're calling me a weirdo?" Jaune said, "The cereal goes into the bowl first, Ruby. Not the milk. Those are the rules."

Ruby pouted. "You can live your life the wrong way if you wanna. Plus, you wore a onesie. A bunny onesie."

Jaune rounded on her, impressive, he could still pout. "Bunnies are cute, and I was a different guy back then."

Yeah, a guy who'd call his friends. Bad thoughts, Ruby sent them away. "I'm bored. Want to play a game?"

He raised an eyebrow. "Is now even a good time to be playing games?"

"We don't have to. I guess you're just too busy being a crazy person to have fun." she'd said it jokingly, even smiling a little just to show Jaune she was kidding, even if she wasn't completely. "No one is going anywhere for a while, so I figured, you know, maybe it'd be good for everybody." Good for herself too. "So what do you say? Please?"

He rubbed his forehead, looking back into the forest for a moment. "Uh, sure, I guess I can take a little break."

Ruby brightened immediately, grabbing Jaune's hand, she drew him over to their unlit campfire. Time to awaken the beasts. "Alright, up, up, up! Over here, everybody. You know what time it is?"

"For my dreams to come true?" Yang suggested with a raised finger.

Ruby let out a hoity-toity laugh, puffing out her chest as she sauntered around and used a deep voice. "Oh Miss Xiao Long, dreams are just falsehoods set upon young and impressionable children by societal constructs in a cruel and vain attempt to give them hope in a contrarily hopeless existence."

Yang blew a raspberry, the others gathering around in a circle. "Six outta ten. Professor Greene would always say something mean about his ex-wife at the end of that. Anyway, hit me. What're we playing?"

Ruby brimmed with excitement. "Never Have I Ever."

Some looked at her with surprise. Pyrrha most obviously. "Ruby, isn't that a drinking game?"

"Yeah, and no I don't drink because it's still gross!" Ruby made a point to mention before anyone started making accusations. "But I have played it once with Yang when I was twelve. I didn't know it was alcohol at the time though."

Yang coughed into her fist as some looked at her judgingly. She then feigned innocence. "What? I was bored that day. And don't you guys tell me you never thought a drunk Ruby would be hilarious as hell!"

"Terrible influence." Nora shook her head with a cheshire grin, "You can't get returns on older sisters, can you?"

"I'll return you to last week." Yang countered.

"And get me out of here? Deal!" Nora presented her cheek, tapped it tauntingly. "Here, this is my good side. Make it count, bitch."

They were wrestling before anyone could stop them, bringing on a rather distinct lack of silence that may as well have been alcohol for Ruby. A good sign too, good spirits before the game had even started. Her tall friend sitting beside her didn't seem particularly amused but in due time. She'd get a good smile out of him before the game was done, guaranteed. "Alright, alright. Ground rules: Since we have nothing to drink, we just won't include that part and the winner will be decided if no one raises their hand to the question. And you can't say stuff like, "Never have I ever brushed my teeth", it has to be something that people realistically can go their whole lives never doing. And it can't be something unrealistic like "Never have I ever gone to space," okay?"

No argument to be made, with that, the game began. Ruby was first, tapping her chin as she searched her brain for a good one. "Never have I ever...been caught stealing."

A juicy start indeed. Weiss, Blake, and Pyrrha raised their hands. The latter of which wide-eyed as she looked at Ruby. "It was a dare from one of my signal friends...our teacher Miss Applewood always had a bag of sunflower seeds. So, every week, one of us would steal her bag and hide it somewhere in the classroom." Ruby giggled as she thought about it, "But when it was my turn, I couldn't find a good place to hide it and Miss Applewood was coming back, so I hid it in my desk. Problem though, I'd spilled some seeds and they left a trail leading all the way to me. Oops?"

It wasn't the outright uproar of laughter she expected, but it was still something. She'd take it over silence every time.

"And what about you Blake? You've never stolen?" Weiss asked.

Blake glared, but there was also a bit of smirk, as if Weiss had set her teeth on a hook. "The question was if we—if I'd ever gotten caught. So no, I was a little too good to get caught."

There was such a thing as a humblebrag, and Ruby did her best not to burst out laughing. Sure, Weiss and Blake were past the White Fang stuff, but they did still jab at each other from time to time. She did consider that it might result in another argument, but Weiss seemed to think better of it this time. "I suppose it is my turn then," she said, "I have never—"

"No, Weiss. It's Never Have I Ever." Yang corrected.

"Does it really matter how I say it!?"

"Yes, play by the rules!"

Weiss growled. "Fine. Never Have I Ever had a pet."

Ren, Nora, and Blake raised their hands. It was immediately clear why. Ren and Nora lived life on the harsh road, there probably weren't many chances to get a dog or cat. And faunus didn't adhere to the concept of pets in their culture. But then Weiss raised her hand.

"All the money in the world and you've never gotten a pet?" Yang pointed out, "I find that hard to believe."

"Meet my father and you'll believe it. I asked for a goldfish once and he wouldn't even let me have that, because 'A Schnee has no need for animals'." Weiss chuckled bitterly, "If my father were a humbler man, he'd realize just how much of a hypocrite he is."

Ruby did notice that there was a glint of disdain there but chose not to comment on it. Weiss didn't linger on much. It was Blake's turn, simply asking if anyone had gone dancing at a club, to which Ren, Nora, Weiss, and herself had raised their hands. Then it was Pyrrha, who failed to come up with a good one so was skipped. Then Ren chose to skip himself, which was just as well since Nora had been eyeing him mischievously the whole time. "Never Have I Ever...sent nudes to someone."

Palpable silence, only it was the good kind this time. Ruby raised her hand, followed quickly by Jaune, Weiss, Blake, and Pyrrha. Leaving Yang, Nora, and…

"Ren!?" Yang covered her mouth, falling onto her side as though her ass couldn't support her anymore.

The boy was uncomfortable, to say the least, trying to bury his chin into his collar. "It was only to Nora. She asked me to."

"What'd he send a picture of?"

"The only part that matters," Nora said with a grin that denied the very existence of shame, patting her boyfriend on the back. "And girl, let me tell you that Renny here is the master of angles."

That was all that was needed to get almost everyone on the ground belly-laughing. Ren closed his eyes, trying to weather the humiliation. He wasn't without a bit of joy himself, Nora holding him tight and giving his cheek a big wet kiss. He couldn't restrain a bit of a grin then, but had Jaune? It looked like he wanted to, the way he looked at his teammates, almost forlorn. As if he felt he was somehow far apart even if he was literally a hop and skip away. Did he just forget how to enjoy himself or something? Was looking around for Grimm the only thing he knew how to do?

"Well, that was definitely the highlight of the night, but let me give it a shot." Yang thought for a moment, looking around at the others. A devious smirk. "Never Have I Ever...had sex."

This time more silence, Ruby for one got her hand up immediately. Followed by Weiss and Pyrrha. "Damn Weiss, no one managed to get into your icy tundra? No one tickled the stalagmite?"

"They will never find your body, Yang." the heiress hissed, turning away with a humph.

That was when Yang turned to Jaune, who, oddly enough, began wringing his hands. "Ooooh, Jauney. You must be out there slaying, huh? How many girls got to ride the Champion rocket?"

Jaune's eyes narrowed, darkened even, as if Yang's words bothered him more than just an annoyance. Ruby could even see the nails of one hand dig into the palm of the other like he was doing his damndest not to respond. Everyone saw it, but Yang most apparently, for she backed down immediately. "Geez man, lighten up. I'm joking. How about you, P-money? You'd probably have boys licking your toes if you wanted them to."

Pyrrha shook her head, chuckling weakly. "Sorry to disappoint. I didn't have much time to date since I focused so much on training. That's not through lack of trying—I'd gone on dates before, just...they never got past dinner or a movie."

"Hm." Weiss said curiously, "Why?"

"Maybe she wasn't cute enough." Yang shrugged.

In a way, Ruby was glad to see a little bit of Pyrrha's pride show up again. It made the way her eye twitched all the funnier. "Oh no, I'm sure I was above their standards if I do say so myself. My courters weren't slacking in that department either, most were very handsome." Pyrrha lowered her eyes. A bit of their glow was lost. "That and...opportunistic. I used to forget how famous I was, forget that people saw my image before they saw me. They wanted free tickets to tournaments, pictures, money...and me, of course. I'd be the 'Ultimate Lay' is what they'd say."

Pyrrha's smile didn't fall, in fact, it just stayed where it was even as her eyes and eyebrows betrayed a different feeling entirely. "I think I stopped trying after this boy named Darrien. He seemed nice. We saw this horror movie together, even held hands as we were walking around town. I suppose he must have really liked me since he thought trying to reach under my skirt was supposed to be a compliment."

A crawl went up Ruby's spine, clenching her legs together instinctively. Even though she knew things like this existed, it surprised her that it was coming from Pyrrha. From someone she knew. Problems like that always seemed too high, movie star problems and all that. She hadn't given too much thought to it regarding Pyrrha.

"Pyrrha…" Nora said, "Shit, what happened to him?"

"Arrested. I can remember him crying and saying things about me as the police took him away." Pyrrha chuckled sadly, "I saw him once more after that. Tabloids were all over the story. Pyrrha Nikos was assaulted, Pyrrha Nikos was raped. It was blown out of proportion. Darrien and his family ended up moving to a different town as a result after some of my...less than scrupulous fans decided to set his house on fire."

Pyrrha looked up at the sky, shook her head at the slow-moving clouds. "It's funny. When you're on that impossibly high tower, you're bigger than anyone else in the world. The mere fact that you exist is enough to cause things to happen. Things you have no idea about and can't control, but you're still in it. You're the center of it, even. No matter what you want, when you're on top, it's not you that has conquered the world. It is the world that has conquered you."

Ruby didn't know what to say. What could even be said? She could only see that Jaune was looking at Pyrrha, moisture in his eyes. Something potent and powerful behind them that made Ruby nervous as to what he might say or do. But he never said anything—he just stuck to wringing his hands together.

"Uh, hey, let's try to lighten the mood here okay?" Yang looked at Jaune., "Come on, Jaune, your turn."

Jaune's eyes narrowed as if he'd tasted something foul. They roved about the party, analyzing everyone one by one until finally, he settled on looking at the sky, just like his partner had done before. "Never have I ever been stuck in a rainforest with a group of people trying not to be awkward around each other. And failing."

Why was it cold all of sudden? Ruby could still feel how sticky her body was, and even with the sun going down, the air outside was still a gross lukewarm. Yet her bones were as cold as ice, as frozen as a post in the middle of winter. No one said anything, no one raised their hands, but did they really have to? Ruby wanted to point out how that was too specific and unrealistic, but...

Jaune stood up, looking around at everyone with cold, sullen eyes. "What do you know? I win again."

He went off into the forest and no one bothered to stop him. Ruby Rose didn't mind silence, at least not until recently. But it seemed like she would either have to start liking it again soon, or she'd have no choice but to swallow it. Like how she'd swallowed that metallic blood that likely still floating in her stomach.

Sensibly, no one wanted to play anymore after that.

—RA—

"Hey, uh, I'll see you around then?"

Jaune had laid down his head, that was progress, wasn't it? He even managed to close his tired eyes. See, it was the getting to sleep part that was confusing. How exactly did people go to sleep? The most he knew was that he just laid down and it happened. But how? Did a switch go off? Did the brain just suddenly decide, independently of its owner, that it was time? He'd appreciate knowing, it'd certainly make the whole process a little easier pull off.

In lieu of that, he shifted in his spot, using his arm as a pillow. The dark forest stared at him, dared him into the impossible task of who would close their eyes first. Bastard. It was winning. It always won. That was the thing he hated about this forest, it just never seemed to let up or change. There was no relief from it.

He looked over his shoulder, saw several of his friends curled up together near a campfire that had long since gone out. Ruby had squeezed between Blake and Yang, while Weiss was a ball laying back to back with Nora. Ren kept Nora close, looking completely not pissed off for the first time in a while. He lingered on Pyrrha, right next to Weiss, clutching at the grass in her sleep, feeling around in a subconscious pursuit of something to hold on to. He could already feel traitorous thoughts creeping up on him and turned back around before they could fester.

Jaune rubbed his arm, trying to rub out the pain—just because a man could tank a Beringel's arm didn't mean he should. Huh, a rubout. He could use one of those right about now, but there wasn't much in the way of privacy lately. And the last thing he needed happening was one of the girls stumbling on him. The pain didn't linger for too long, thankfully. It was a sting he'd gotten used to, as familiar as his own muscles by now. It pulsed like his flesh was being squeezed as if something was trying to crawl out of him. Slowly. Painfully. He recalled the burn, the unrelenting burn that was his aura. Someone was screaming out at him—Jaune promptly banished the thought. Using his semblance tomorrow was a no go, no matter what.

Heh, what would Vel say if she saw me like this? She'd never let him hear the end of it, no doubt. Tending to his wounds while also giving him new ones with a rolled-up newspaper. Maybe give him the sternest talking to, before calming down and speaking gently, yet no less harshly, at the same time. Never needed to talk him down, let him feel the way he wanted to feel even if she didn't like it, didn't pressure him beyond what he was comfortable with. Even after a year without her, he still didn't think he'd had a better teacher.

A teacher that wasn't with him now. Her advice, her comfort, was thousands of miles out of his reach. Then he thought about what Blake said, her wanting him to take the lead. Who would be there to lead him though? Who would tell Jaune when he was screwing up? If Ren wanted that responsibility, he could have it. Jaune wanted no part of it.

It couldn't be denied that Ren wasn't holding the team together the best, but it wasn't a bad job by any means. What made Blake think that he could do any better? And was it worth stripping that responsibility from Ren when he clearly had the passion to see to everyone's safety? Jaune was happier just following and supporting. It was the least he could do after such a long time away, after worrying everyone today with months without calling. But as Blake said, was it worth their lives? No, clearly it wasn't. He'd burn down the whole forest before he let anyone die.

But if Ren was the one leading them to death, and Jaune didn't want to lead, then one of them had to lose. One would have to fall. And the scary thing was, Jaune wasn't sure which one he feared more.

Sleep. That's what he needed, to sleep all these thoughts off. Jaune curled in a little more on himself, pulling up his hood so he could hide his eyes. All he needed was rest now. His eyelids began to drift together, blinking its last few times as the forest in front of Jaune started to fade away. Then...bright red. The edge of the forest. Tiny dots piercing through the black.

It couldn't...

Jaune was up in an instant, a jackhammer in his chest. His hand shook with the sword clutched so tightly it might fuse with him. The lights grew brighter and bigger as he closed the distance. These goddamn Tarsiers. Even if they were harmless, they were really starting to grate at his nerves. All this time watching, and for what? Just annoy him? What the hell did this thing want? No, it didn't matter anymore, he'd just cut down every single one he found without further thought. And he'd do it right now. There it was, ten feet above his head, body hidden in the darkness. Wait…

Had it always had four eyes? And did those four eyes happen to have brothers?

Jaune had stopped counting at ten pairs. Like lightbulbs, hundreds of red dots began to light up the abyssal treeline, spreading across it like horizontal ghost lights. The light even managed to illuminate their fellows, casting their dark fur in a red hue that almost made it look like glowing blood had soaked their fur. And despite how far he had to turn his head, Jaune didn't doubt for a second that they were all looking at him. At his friends. A cold took him over, his very skin felt like it might peel away, and sweat was on the verge of freezing on its way down his brow. They were just tiny little things, tiny and harmless. What could they really do, even in numbers? Jaune could kill them all right now if he wanted to.

And yet Jaune backed up, staring at the collection of red lights, hoping for one of them to blink, to show an inkling of hesitance. But they offered nothing, and Jaune scratched his chest to ward off the itch running through him. Did he attack? Did he wait? Did he wake the others? Was it too late to do any of that?

Like fading images, the lights disappeared into the unknown. Thousands blinked out, two by two, then ten by ten. The wind whistled, the trees rustled as tiny bodies scurried away into the all-consuming darkness like the whispers of vengeful demons preying on the living. Then, just one left. It looked into his very soul as something stretched across its face. A red light leaked out as if the inside of its belly was a lava lamp. It stretched wide, the edges meeting at the ends of the hidden creature's eyes. A smile.

Jaune could almost hear its mirth. It's laughter.

Alright, so Tarsiers used to scare the shit out of me as a kid, so naturally, I drew on that for this chapter. Look them up if you can, let them stare into your soul.

Tensions rise, conflicts are coming to a boil, and the Grimm linger in the background, drawn to the madness. Its a cool idea to explore, one I'm sure other fics have done before, but I haven't yet and I'm really enjoying it. Especially when it comes to putting in interactions I haven't tried before, like with Jaune and Blake.

Will Jaune and Ren rekindle their lost love and make out? Did I skip Pyrrha's turn in Never Have I Ever simply because I couldn't come up with a good one for her? Have I now exposed myself for being a lazy writer!?

Ah who am I kidding? You all already know I never answer these questions.

ISA