I don't own RWBY or Overwatch. They belong to their respective owners. Shout outs to Noble4259 and Jauneforever for helping me out with this. ENJOY!

Chapter Four: Sparks

There was a stillness that came right after Jaune's two short words that cleared up any and all misunderstandings within the last few days. It was unbelievable for everyone who occupied the small home.

Jaune was left speechless at the man before him. It all came back to him in droves. He remembered the countless bits of advice his grandfather gave him, the times the older man chastised him for cutting corners with his chores, and the unforgettable moments of taking in unbelievable views after long days of hiking during their summer camping trips.

There were no more words to be shared as Jaune felt himself quickly engulfed by his grandfather's arms and pulled toward him. Jaune gasped at the sudden and tight embrace of his grandfather and paused for a moment to take it all in. Grandpa Jack's all too familiar and nostalgic scent came back in overwhelming droves and was the cause of the tears that formed in Jaune's eyes. Jaune let out a long breath as he reciprocated his grandfather's gesture and matched his strength with ease.

"My, boy," Jack said as Jaune could feel him shake ever so slightly.

Jaune smiled at his grandfather's words and remembered the countless times he heard them from years ago. The two broke apart from their hug a few moments later, yet Jack still had his hands on Jaune's shoulders. Jack retained his smile and the joy in his eyes as he couldn't help but laugh.

"Look at you. You've grown so much."

"Nine years does that to people, Grandpa." Jaune said before he let out a quick chuckle.

"You're as tall as I am now!" Jack said with a bit of disbelief as he measured himself to his grandson. Jaune couldn't help but give him a toothy grin. "I don't believe this! Who let you get so tall?"

"Saph asks me that every time I see her." Jaune said as he rolled his eyes at the memories, but he could see Jack's eyes widen at the mention of his sister.

"THIS IS WONDERFUL!" Jaune jumped at the sudden outburst as he saw the massive man behind his grandfather shoot up from his seat and quickly make his way over to both of them with a joy that dwarfed Nora's. "JAUNE! IT SO GOOD TO SEE YOU!"

"Wha-AAGH!" Jaune cried out as the hulking stranger lifted Jaune off the ground in a hug that Jaune swore broke something of his.

"I tried to keep him in his seat, Jack." Ingrid said as she and Torbjörn stood up from their seats and joined their friend and Jack's grandson. "But you know how he is."

"It's alright, Ingrid," Jack said with his hands on his hips. "I don't blame him." Jack couldn't help but smile at the sight of Jaune struggling within Reinhardt's hug.

"HAHAHAHA! WHAT A GLORIOUS DAY!" Reinhardt cheered as his volume nearly made the walls of Torbjörn's house shake. "First Jack, now his grandson! It has been too long all around!"

"Let the boy breath, Reinhardt." Torbjörn said as he swatted the massive man's thigh with his prosthetic arm. "Brothers know he needs the air."

Reinhardt only laughed in response as he let go of the blonde huntsman in training. Jaune gasped as he was released from the sudden pressure and took a few steps back with confusion rising within him.

"Jaune," the blonde knight's attention turned to his grandfather who walked in front of the massive, mustached man. "This is Reinhardt Wilhelm. He knew you when you were a toddler and I doubt you remember him. Or even Torbjörn and his wife, Ingrid. They would come by every so often at gatherings."

Jaune's gaze turned to the rest of the new faces and he didn't know if should have felt happy, or unsettled at the familiarity in their eyes. He chalked it up to being too young to remember and decided that it would be best to just embrace it.

"It's nice to meet you all… again apparently." Jaune said with a nervous smile. He scratched the back of his head as he didn't know what else to say.

"Jack's not kidding either," Ingrid said with a bright smile as she walked up to Jaune and pinched both his cheeks. "I remember holding you when you were a few months old and pinched your cheeks just like this. Your sisters laughed so hard at the sight."

"Huh," Jaune said at the revelation. "I'll be sure to ask if any of them remember." Jaune rubbed his cheeks the second Ingrid let go.

"Where are my manners? Sit down!" Ingrid said as she tied her luscious blonde hair up into a pony tail. "I'll get started on the pie. Do you drink coffee, Jaune?"

"Not really," Jaune said with a shaky voice as he complied and sat down at the well-furnished table. "Could I perhaps have a glass of water please?"

"I got you, Jaune." Brigitte spoke up as she walked over to the sink with cup in hand. The two locked eyes for a moment as they tried to process what was happening. Disbelief was apparent in both of them as they both took in each other's reactions. "Here you go." she said with a cheerful voice as she placed the glass over a coaster that she set in front of Jaune. She then sat to Jaune's left and gave him a reassuring thumbs up and a toothy grin.

"Thanks." Jaune said as he immediately picked up the glass and took a big gulp of water.

"Mrrow." everyone's attention was aimed at Mitzi who had hopped up onto Jaune's lap and made herself comfortable on Jaune's lap.

"Oh!" Jaune said with a nervous grin. "Didn't know you had a cat."

"She likes you." Brigitte said with a grin as she pet Mitzi's head.

"I still can't believe this," Jack said as he sat down, across from Jaune. The disbelief in his eyes was still apparent. "I mean, look at you, Jaune!" A hearty laughter escaped the older man as he placed a hand on his knee and leaned forward. "How have you been? I know there's so much more to ask, but still. How have you been?"

"I've been alright," Jaune said. "Definitely busy." He set the glass down on the coaster and scratched the back of his head.

"We just heard that you're a student at Beacon," Torbjörn said as he leaned forward and rested his forearms on the table. "Leader too."

"Brigitte told you?" Jaune asked with raised eyebrows.

"Just now," Jack said. He matched Torbjörn's intrigue as he focused on Jaune. "I got to say, this does clear up the confusion on my old sword."

"Wait, your sword?" both Jaune and Brigitte said at the same time, which earned a chuckle from Torbjörn and a strong laugh from Reinhardt.

"Yep," Jack said as he leaned back in his chair with his arms folded. "It used to belong to my grandfather's, until he gave it to me. Still though, I haven't used Crocea Mors for a long time."

"I thought it was only used in the war." Jaune said as he remembered what his father used to tell him about the old sword.

"Believe me, Jaune, it has seen more action than you think." Jack said. His voice grated for a moment at the sudden memories of utilizing the sword to its fullest in the heat of battle. "With later jobs becoming more and dangerous, I decided to opt for more advanced weapons and let the old blade be an heirloom once more." his attention turned away from his grandson and focused on Brigitte. "You did a damn good job on the repairs by the way. Hadn't felt the shield open that smoothly in a long time."

"Oh! Uh… Thanks. It's the first time I've worked on a weapon like yours, I mean Jaune's. I mean…" Brigitte's gaze averted Jack's as she stumbled over her words much to everyone's amusement.

"So, this is what it looks like from the outside," Jaune said as he propped his elbow onto the table and cupped his chin in his palm all while giving Brigitte an amused glance.

"It's fine, Brigitte. It's Jaune's sword." Jack said with a small nod towards his grandson. "It was supposed to be his anyway."

Brigitte wasn't too embarrassed to notice Jack's eyes narrow ever so slightly at his comment. Not to mention the uncomfortable silence from Reinhardt or her father. Even Jaune seem to know what Jack was about to ask.

"How has she been, Jaune?" Jack suddenly asked with more caution than anything else. "Does she even know you're here?"

Brigitte looked over to Jaune with a bit of confusion and it only grew as she saw Jaune look away from Jack with definite distain.

"Mom's been alright." Jaune said as he rubbed his neck all while looking down at his shoes. "And yeah she knew I was accepted into Beacon. She definitely wasn't excited about it." Jaune internally winced at the four-hour conversation he and his mother had the night he got his acceptance letter.

"Guess that explains the sword." Torbjörn piped up as he looked at Jaune. "Most huntsmen and huntresses in training make their own weapons. It allows them to really work their style or who they are into their combat."

"Mom told me I'd get no support from her," Jaune said with a discouraged tone and noticed his grandfather glare not at him, but at the subject at hand. "So, I picked the next best thing and headed off. Beacon has been really generous with me using their facility. They've allowed me to stay during the break."

"That's a relief," Reinhardt interjected. "When we were students and break would begin, we had to fend for ourselves as a survival assignment."

"Wait," Jaune said as he turned to Reinhardt. "You were a student at Beacon too?"

"I was a student, yes." Reinhardt said as he put a hand on his knee. "But I went to Atlas. We all did. The three of us," He pointed to Jack and Torbjörn. "were all on the same team."

"Don't forget our third year at Beacon for the Vytal Festival." Torbjörn said with a smirk, to which Jack cupped his face in his hands.

"Don't remind me of all the trouble you two got me into," Jack groaned. "I couldn't look Ana in the eye for two weeks after the noodle incident?"

"The noodle incident?" Brigitte asked as her voice rose with curiosity.

"That's when it took place?" Jaune suddenly asked wide eyed and with a huge grin.

Jack shook his head and let out a breath. "Telling you that story was a mistake, Jaune. And we don't need anyone else to spread it around." his eyes shifted over to Brigitte and he pointed a finger at her. "All of the Huntsmen schools knowing the whole story thirty-eight years ago is enough for my lifetime."

"Aww." Brigitte said as she looked down dejectedly while Jaune snickered at her misfortune.

"Speaking of Ana," Reinhardt said before he looked to Jack, and Jaune noticed the sudden intrigue within Reinhardt. "Have you heard from her lately?"

"Not really," Jack said with a shake of his head before he took a sip of coffee. "Last I heard from her was a couple years ago."

"I see," Reinhardt said with a small nod before he turned to Jaune. "So Jaune, Brigitte also mentioned that you're a team leader?"

"Yeah." Jaune said as he hid the pang of guilt he felt at the top of his heart. "Ozpin made me the leader of Team JNPR."

"Well done!" Reinhardt bellowed with folded arms. "That's quite the accomplishment! I know Ozpin wouldn't just give that title to anyone."

"It hasn't been easy," Jaune said as his hand instinctively went and cupped the back of his neck. "But I didn't expect it to be."

"Well you're not in it alone," Jack said as grinned at the memories "I remember what it was like to be a leader too and you're on the right path with the mentality you have. If it's easy, then you're doing something wrong." Jack chuckled at the last part as well as Torbjörn and Reinhardt.

"Haven't heard that one before." Jaune grumbled a bit as he looked at his water. He let out a small groan as he remembered the countless times his grandpa had told him that.

"So, who's in your team?" Jack asked curiously. "I pray it's nothing like us. I pitied Ana the moment we all discovered she would be teamed up with the three of us for four years."

"At the end of it all, I pitied us more." Torbjörn muttered and shuddered at the relentless memories of their time at Atlas. Reinhardt nudged the engineer before gesturing to Jaune.

"Well," Jaune said as he grinned at Jack in his friends, all while having a death grip on his glass. "Ren and Nora are my teammates and Pyrrha is my partner. So far we've gotten along pretty well."

"Pyrrha?" Ingrid asked as she turned towards Jaune's way from the kitchen. "Why does that name sound familiar?"

"Brigitte would watch Pyrrha Nikos fight a few years ago when she competed in the Mistral tournament." Torbjörn called out to his wife. "Girl was practically obsessed with her for a while. She couldn't walk around the house without her nose glued to her scroll."

"Oh, yes!" Ingrid said as she snapped her fingers. "I remember seeing something online a while back saying she goes to Beacon now. Mistral was not happy about that."

"You're telling me." Brigitte said with folded arms and a sigh. "I couldn't go on any of my usual sights without someone having a meltdown." She then shook her head with an amused grin. "That's got to be rough having your partner be confused with a celebrity around the school."

"Uh, Brigitte," Jack earned the mechanic's attention and nudged his head towards his grandson.

Brigitte looked to her new friend and noticed that he was scratching the back of his head feverishly with a nervous smile on his face.

"No…" Brigitte said with wide eyes.

"She pinned me to a tree during initiation with her spear. The first person we made eye contact with would be our partner for the rest of our time at Beacon." Jaune said with a nervous chuckle. There wasn't much to be said after as Brigitte remained still, yet kept her wide eyes directly on Jaune.

"I think you broke her, Jaune." Jack said as he finished the rest of his coffee.

"Can confirm." Torbjörn said as he cracked an amused smile. "Give her a minute. She's just taking it all in."

"Is this normal?" Jaune asked with concern as he waved a hand in front of Brigitte, only for her to not respond at all.

"You wouldn't act the same if you found out your friend was partnered with one of your role models?" Reinhardt asked jovially.

"Point taken." Jaune said before he shrugged.

"Pyrrha Nikos is your partner?!" Brigitte yelled, causing Jaune to jump in his seat and winced as he felt Mitzi's claws dig into his thighs.

"Y-yeah." Jaune said still a little shaken while picking up the cat and setting her down on the floor. "She's been…" Jaune paused for a moment as he looked at the excitement in Brigitte's eyes. "She helped me out when we started school. I owe a lot to her."

"First a Beacon student, then a leader, now this?!" Brigitte said with an exuberance that confused Jaune.

"Should I be concerned?" Jaune asked as he nervously leaned away from his friend.

"What?" Brigitte aske bewildered. "No! I'm not mad at all." Brigitte tilted her head to once side "Maybe a bit jealous, but not mad."

"Jealous is an understatement." Torbjörn said under his breath, but the glare he received from Brigitte made it apparent that he didn't speak soft enough.

"Brigitte, why don't you show Jaune the work you did on his blade?" Ingrid asked from the kitchen. "It'll take a bit for the pie to be ready, so you can finish up what you need to do and let him try it out."

Brigitte looked to her mother who had an endearing smile as she cut the apples with confident precision. Brigitte matched Ingrid's delight as she stood up from her seat.

"Come on, Jaune." Brigitte said. "I'll show you the progress I made." she then turned to Jack. "Would you like to come to, Mr. Morrison?"

"I'll catch up with you two." Jack said with a friendly wave.

Brigitte gave him a curt nod before she and Jaune headed to the forge. Leaving the older team in a small pause.

"Quite the grandson you have there," Ingrid said while flattening the dough for the pie. "You must be proud."

"I am, Ingrid," Jack said as he rubbed his chin while eyeing the door Jaune just exited from. "I really am."

#

"Well that was something." Brigitte said as she and Jaune entered her and her father's workshop. She couldn't help but laugh at Jaunes reaction to the sudden heat as he closed his eyes and put his hands up.

"You're telling me," Jaune said as he slowly blinked in order to get used to the sudden rise in temperature. "I can't believe it's him."

"You said it was a decade since you've seen him?"

"About nine years," Jaune clarified. "There's so much I have to ask him. I don't think I was able to get a question in back there."

"Papa and Reinhardt can be overwhelming like that sometimes." Brigitte rolled her eyes at the amount of times her newly acquainted friends were intimidated by her family.

"Is the big guy your uncle?" Jaune asked as the two made their way over to Brigitte's workbench.

"He's my Godfather, but I treat him like my uncle." Brigitte looked back at Jaune and smiled at his surprised reaction. "He and Papa go way back. I think they knew each other before they were students at Atlas."

"Huh." Jaune said. "Grandpa rarely mentioned his times as a huntsman. It was mostly camping trips and stories about him growing up."

"By the Brothers, don't mention the word 'stories' around Reinhardt." Brigitte said as she couldn't help but facepalm at the hours wasted by the jovial man. "You'll thank me later."

Jaune rose an eyebrow at the sudden downgrade in Brigitte's mood, but shrugged off the notion as her mood reverted back to its cheerful demeanor. "So! I know it's not entirely done, but would you mind if I finished it up? It won't take too long, I promise."

"Sure," Jaune said with a shrug. "I certainly don't mind waiting around." The blonde knight couldn't help but let out a low whistle as he eyed the ludicrous number of tools and finished weapons that were mounted on the walls. "Did your father make all of these?"

"Mhm," Brigitte said as she focused on her work. "They're mostly Papa's work, but I contributed to the sets of armor a few years back."

The mention of armor made Jaune notice more of her work that was propped up on a few mannequins and there was no doubt left in his mind that Crocea Mors was in good hands. The work was a bit on the amateur side in comparison to the other weapons, but he could see the amount of work that was within each plate of armor.

"These are amazing, Brigitte." Jaune said with wonder. "I haven't seen anything like this at Beacon."

"No surprise there." Brigitte mumbled just loud enough for Jaune to hear.

"What do you mean?"

"The combat that is taught at the academies is aura based." Brigitte said as she tinkered away at Jaune's weapon. "Offense, defense, and strategy are all based around a Huntsmen's aura and semblance. Atlas is the only kingdom that strongly encourages the use of armor, given their military stature."

Jaune felt a surge of unease as he noticed Brigitte's shoulder's tense up as she continued on with both her explanation, and her work.

"But Huntsmen and Huntresses around these parts? They think it's a hinderance on their combat ability." the ferocity of scraping metal only grew more intense. "All they care to rely on is there aura with no consideration if it runs out. They don't care if they run a high risk of getting hurt or killed, just so it doesn't mess with their damn clothes!" with one last ferocious scrape against Crocea Mors, Brigitte set the whetstone down with a sharp bang and lowered her head.

"Brigitte?" Jaune asked as he found himself suddenly scared to move forward, yet continued on anyway. "Is everything okay?"

Jaune walked up to her side and noticed that she blinked a few times before she looked up at the blonde knight. "Oh!" shock and shame came over her moments later as she did her best not to shrink before Jaune. "I'm sorry. Sometimes I get carried away, especially when I'm working."

"It's okay," Jaune said while he put his hands up in a calming manner. "You actually do have a point there." Jaune placed a thumb beneath his chin. "Most people I know don't wear any protection whatsoever. I think maybe three or four of my classmates do and that's it."

"Really?" Brigitte asked with more surprise in her voice.

"Yup." Jaune said and was internally relieved to the sudden frustration that radiated from Brigitte had dissipated. "Pyrrha wears some armor around her legs, and another student named Cardin wears a full set as well as two of his teammates. Other than that, no one I really know."

"Not even the professors?" Brigitte asked as she began to resume her work.

"Nope. But with good reason I think." Jaune said as he snickered. "Oobleck is too fast, Goodwitch knows how to keep her weaknesses from being exploited, Ozpin is headmaster for a reason, and Port is….Port." Jaune said with a reassuring nod.

"Do I want to know about the last one?"

"From what I got with just the first impression, Professor Port and your Godfather would get along well."

"Ah." Brigitte said as she squirmed in response to the brief silence. "Hey, I'm sorry for losing my cool there for a second."

"It's okay, Brigitte. Honest." Jaune said with a caring smile. "It makes sense, and you being that concerned for other people's safety is honestly more of a relief than a concern."

"Thanks, Jaune." Brigitte said. "I hate seeing people get hurt, especially when it's preventable."

Jaune stood there for a few moments as his head and heart ached at the same time.

"YOUR FAULT!"

"Yeah." Jaune said before blinking a few times. "Me too."

"I'd assume so, given that you're a leader." Brigitte said as she set her screwdriver down. "Speaking of which, how is it being the leader of Pyrrha Nikos?" Brigitte smiled as she folded her arms. "Out of anyone, I'd thought she'd be a leader at Beacon." Brigitte's eyes widened a moment later. "No offense."

"None taken." Jaune said with a laugh and a dismissive wave of his hand. "I think that too, from time to time. But when it comes to being her leader in particular, I'll have to say I'm really lucky."

"Because she carries the team?" Brigitte asked with a sly smirk.

"Nope," Jaune said with a smirk that matched hers. "She's just really supportive." Jaune hid his hands behind his back and balled them up into fists, "She listens to what I have to say about improving the team and isn't afraid to give polite criticism if I ever mess up. Not everyone has a team that gets along with each other."

"I'm not too surprised at that. It must be rough for some."

"You're telling me, my friend Ruby has Weiss Schnee as a partner and a faunus as a teammate."

Brigitte widened her eyes at the situation and let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. "That…sounds tense."

"It was for a bit, but they're all friends now." Jaune said with a reassuring smile.

"What about the rest of your team?" Brigitte asked as she turned back to Jaune's sword. Jaune was lucky that she was too focused on her work to hear him irk at the sudden mention of his team.

"Well they're childhood friends actually, Nora's our heavy hitter, and Ren is more mobile and proficient at mid to close range."

"That's pretty well balanced along with Pyrrha." Brigitte said with intrigue. "You're pretty lucky, Jaune."

"Yeah." Jaune said as he looked down at his feet and forced himself to keep smiling.

"You mentioned that you're staying at Beacon right now," Brigitte spoke up over her work. "Is your team with you?"

"Ah, no." Jaune said as his hand went up and scratched his head on instinct. "They're all spending their break in Argus. Ms. Goodwitch wanted me to stay here and get some extra training in. Nora and Ren don't really have a home besides Beacon, so Pyrrha offered them to stay with her."

"That was nice of her."

"Yup." Jaune said as he tried to quell his internal panicking. "They'll be back when school starts back up."

"Good to know." Brigitte said with a tone that was a bit too cheerful.

"So," Jaune asked. "How's it coming along? I swear I'm not being impatient."

"Oh really?" Brigitte asked with false suspicion before chuckling a few moments later. "I'm just about done. All it really needed was some sharpening and something else. I was almost done with that before Papa sent me on those errands."

"Really?" Jaune asked bewildered. "Earlier it sounded like he stopped you halfway."

"Not really. It made me mad that he did that right before I was finished." Brigitte said as she finished up the last touches.

"Alright! Here you are!" Brigitte held the sheathed sword horizontally with both hands and gifted it to Jaune with a sweet grin.

Jaune only stared on with awe at the sleek craftmanship. It took him a moment to realize the sword in front of him use to be the Arc's heirloom. He let out a breath and felt his eyes widen to unfathomable proportions.

"I…I don't know what to say."

"You don't need to say anything, Jaune." Jaune looked up from the craftsmanship to see Brigitte's eyes filled with nothing but excitement and accomplishment. "See how it feels."

"Oh! Right." Jaune said while taking the sword and strapping the shield onto his left forearm.

"It works exactly how it used to before I got my hands on it." Brigitte said with excitement as she watched Jaune feel the familiar weight.

"Alright." Jaune said as he made sure he had enough space. With a breath, Jaune flexed his left arm and the sudden change expanded his shield with a satisfying sound. "Woah."

"Sounds good, right?"

"I've never heard it sound this good before." Jaune said before he looked down and marveled at Brigitte's work. The paint was a solid white with a gold trim all around and the gold insignia of the Arc family shined brighter than ever. The rough wooden texture along with the indentations where the shield expanded outwards were gone. It was still Crocea Mors, but much more refined.

Jaune couldn't help but let out an exasperated breath of laughter as he shook his head. "This is too good to be true."

"That's only half of it." Brigitte said. Jaune looked up at his friend who was leaning against her workbench with folded arms. She nodded her head towards Jaune's weapon with a smirk.

"Right. Right." Jaune nodded as he unsheathed the sword.

Crocea Mors retained the same design it had before he met Brigitte, but the quality was out of this world. Just like with the shield, it felt more refined. It had more of an edge and Jaune dared not touch to see how sharp it was in fear of cutting himself. The grip was solid and didn't rub against his hand the wrong way, the weight was balanced as he held it upwards, and he couldn't help but marvel at the shine it gave off.

"This is amazing, Brigitte." Jaune said as he felt his smile only grow. He couldn't remember the last time he smiled this much. "I can't believe this."

"That's some weapon, Jaune," Brigitte said as she stepped forward. "I'm not an expert like Papa, but that sword gave me a run for my money. It's extremely durable and still kept an edge, despite not being maintained in a long time."

"Huh." Jaune said as he sheathed the blade.

"Oh! Check this out!" Brigitte said as she held her hand out. "Hand me your scroll."

Jaune wasted no time and pulled his scroll out of his pocket and handed it to Brigitte, who expanded it and turned the inside of his shield towards her, making Jaune closer to her than expected. Jaune held his breath at the sudden closeness as Brigitte pointed to the space above his forearm.

"See that?" Brigitte asked. Jaune complied and rose an eyebrow at the symbol in between his arm and the top edge of his shield. It was a symbol of a dark metallic gear with a solid center. The gear was broken into thirds, but retained a perfect circular shape.

Before Jaune could comment on what it was, Brigitte placed his scroll atop the symbol and Jaune widened his eyes at how the scroll remained attached to the shield.

"This feature was already a part of it before I got my hands on it, but I wanted to spruce it up. Give you something to remember me by." Brigitte said as she pointed to her tattoo on her left shoulder.

"Brigitte, I can't thank you enough." Jaune said as he grabbed his scroll and collapsed his shield. "This is more than amazing."

"It's nothing, Jaune." Brigitte said as she waved her hand dismissively. "The sword wasn't as complex as some meca-shifting weapons I've seen before. I was happy to help."

"Still, there has to be something I can do. It took you a few days right?"

"Yeah…" Brigitte said as she rubbed the back of her head, her ponytail swayed a bit at the short ruffling. "A couple of nights too."

"I gotta pay you somehow." Jaune said as he reached for his wallet.

"Jaune," Brigitte said, earning his attention. "This was the payment for helping you out in the Emerald Forest."

"Still…" Jaune said as he looked at his weapon. "This had to be a lot of work. I have to do something. Anything to really earn it."

Brigitte paused as she looked Jaune up and down. "Anything?"

Jaune nodded.

"Alright then," Brigitte said as she put her hands on her hips. "I want loyalty."

"Loyalty?" Jaune asked with a sudden raise of an eyebrow.

"Loyalty." Brigitte said with a nod. "Any and all purchases, maintenances, and upgrades of weapons and armor are going to be through the me and my family; no one else. I need the experience and what better way than having a Huntsman in training be a regular? I hope your weapon is a good example of what I can do."

Jaune nodded feverishly. "Of course."

"That one is free, but anything else is going to cost you. Are you okay with that?"

"More than okay."

"So," Brigitte said as she held out her hand, "Do we have a deal?"

Jaune was about to accept her offer, but hesitated as he noticed that her hands were a soft shade of red and her fingers were covered in small bandages.

'Did she go through all of that just for this?' Jaune thought to himself as he glanced at his weapon.

"Jaune?" Brigitte asked.

"Oh! Uh… yeah!" Jaune said before shaking her hand with a firm grip. "We have a deal."

"Good." Brigitte said with excitement in her voice. "In the meantime, I hope you put it to good use." she gestured to Jaune's sword on his hip. "Maybe show your friends? We could definitely use more customers."

Jaune chuckled a bit as he folded his arms. "Of course, Brigitte."

"It's the least you could do, Jaune." The sudden voice that intruded on Jaune and Brigitte's conversation made both parties jump. Jaune turned around quickly and relaxed the moment he saw his grandfather. Jack leaned against one of the posts that kept the roof up with his arms folded and a satisfied smirk on his face.

"I intend to, Grandpa," Jaune said as he dusted off his jeans. "At least when everyone comes back."

"So, how do you like it?" Jack asked as he nodded to Crocea Mors.

"It's amazing," Jaune said. "Couldn't be happier with it."

"Not a surprise. It's Lindholm work." Jack said before he pressed off the post and looked toward Brigitte. "Torbjörn was responsible for creating and upgrading most of our weapons back in Atlas. Said he didn't trust anyone else with the gear we took on missions."

"Sounds like Papa." Brigitte giggled at the notion and put her hands on her hips. "When was the last time you talked to him, if you don't mind me asking?"

"A long time." Jack said before he rubbed his chin. "I've been too busy with some freelance work to really count."

"You're still an active Huntsman?" Jaune asked and his mouth gaped when Jack nodded his head.

"I don't go on as many missions as I use to," Jack said as he stretched a bit. "But I go on enough to keep in shape."

"Dang." Brigitte said with a low whistle. "You should take Papa with you next time. He needs the exercise."

Jack laughed a bit at Brigitte's jab at her father and shook his head. "He's too busy with keeping all this afloat. Reinhardt joined me on some occasions a long while back, but that's pretty much it." Jack snapped his fingers and pointed to Brigitte, "Speaking of Torbjörn, he wanted me to come get you. Said he wanted to go over some blueprints and wanted your input."

"Oh!" Brigitte said with exuberant realization as she took off her gloves and set them on her workbench. "I didn't know he wanted to do that today," she turned to Jaune with a cheerful smile. "Want to come with?"

"I actually need to talk to him for a bit." Jack said politely. "Mind if we get the keys to the practice room?"

"Yeah!" Brigitte said as she walked over to the exit of her father's forged and plucked a key off the hook. "I should have asked if you wanted to test out the new sword, Jaune. Sorry."

"It's okay." Jaune said as he couldn't help but feel uneasy yet excited to catch up more with Jack.

"Just head out the front exit and make your way around to the back. The entrance is going to be on your left." Brigitte said as she tossed Jack the keys. "I'll let both of you know when the pie is ready."

"Thanks, Brigitte." Jack said as he caught it with his right hand. "Jaune?" Jack called and nodded his head for him to follow. "Don't forget the sword."

"Right." Jaune said as he followed. He turned back to Brigitte one last time and saw that she gave him a thumbs up and a reassuring smile. Jaune nodded back at Brigitte before he and Jack out the door.

"So, I never got to ask," Jaune said as he jogged up to his grandfather and met his pace, "How have you been? I know you said that you've still been going on missions, but what else is new?"

"Not much to be honest." Jack said as he looked to his left. "After everything happened, I kind of threw myself into my work." Jack said before he fell silent for a few moments. "You mentioned Saphron earlier. How is she?"

"Great!" Jaune said with excitement. "She lives in Argus with her wife, Terra."

"She's married?!" Jack asked. His eyes widened with bewilderment as he looked to his grandson who only nodded.

"They have a kid too, Adrian Cotta-Arc."

"How old?"

"One I think." Jaune said before looking up in deep thought.

"Wow…" Jack said softly as he looked forward and let out a shaky breath. "That's… That's certainly something."

"I have pictures if you want to see."

"Most definitely," Jack said as he stopped at the door and unlocked it. "But first, you and I are going to talk about something else." He opened the door and allowed Jaune to enter first.

"What's that?" Jaune asked as he looked around the room. It was basic enough with four white walls with a comfortable training mat that encompassed the majority of the floor. Weapon racks lined the wall on the far end and there were two windows that faced each other on either side of the wall.

The all too familiar sound of a sword being unsheathed echoed around the entire room and Jaune turned to face his grandfather, who brandished a basic sword and swung at Jaune's neck.

"WOAH!" Jaune said as he back peddled and activated his shield. Jack was on him in an instant as he thrusted forward with both hands. Jack's blade bounced off of Jaune's shield, but Jack's strength sent the blonde knight flying back against the back wall. Jaune gasped as he felt the impact knock the wind out of him.

"Wha-AGH!" Jaune exclaimed as he dove to the side and barely dodged another downward strike from Jack. Jaune recovered and stood up with his shield at the ready and took the quick lull to brandish his sword. Jaune gulped at the sight of his silent grandfather pulling his sword from the wall with a blank expression on his face.

"Grandpa!" Jaune exclaimed as he planted his feet and tightened his grip on Crocea Mors. "What are you doing?!"

There was no response as Jack swung at a downward angle. Jaune's eyes widened as he parried the blade and kicked Jack right in his sternum, making the older man stumble back. Jaune took a moment to calm his breathing as he kept his shield up.

"Hm." Jack muttered as he tilted his head to the side. Jaune had no time to react as Jack was on him in an instant. Rapid and borderline rabid strikes bounced off of Jaune's shield and some were abled to break through the blonde knight's defenses. Jaune winced every time Jack landed a successful strike and in doing so, made him lose his focus.

Jack took notice of this immediately and went in for another strike, but stopped as he saw Jaune flinch. Once he saw the confusion rise within his grandson, Jack quickly ducked down and swept Jaune off his feet with a low kick. The older huntsmen didn't stop there as he quickly turned on his heel and landed a successful back kick into Jaune's chest; returning the favor moments before.

"AGH!" Jaune yelled as he was once more slammed into the weapon racks. The crashing of wood and metal rang within his ears as he shook his head. He tried to get up, but closed his eyes and resisted the urge to groan at how heavy his left arm was and especially at how much it ached. With a few breaths, Jaune unstrapped his shield and got up off the ground. He wielded his sword with both hands and gritted his teeth.

Jaune used whatever strength he had left and charged at Jack with a ferocity he hadn't felt since the Breach. His breaths were rabid as he swung at his grandfather with quick and ferocious strikes. Jaune's frustration only grew as each swing was either blocked or dodged with minimal effort. All while Jack's blank expression fueled his frantic endeavor.

Jaune's breath hitched however as an inkling of an idea formed within his mind. Without taking another moment to flesh out his plan, Jaune pulled away from his final strike at the last moment. He gritted his teeth and closed the distance between the two of them, making sufficient sword swings impossible. Jaune wasted no time as he slammed the pommel of his blade right into the bridge of Jack's nose.

There was no cry of pain that came from Jack, only the sharp inhale of breath as he swung a left hook right at Jaune's head. Jaune saw his opening and ducked under the swing before bursting forward and making his way behind Jack. Jaune decided to return the favor and landed a strong and successful front kick at the center of Jack's spine.

Unlike Jaune however, Jack only stumbled forward and fell to one knee, all while keeping calm and consistent breathing. Jaune took the still moments to catch his breath and ready his stance. The blonde knight would be lying to himself if he said he didn't feel awkward without his shield though.

"Heh." Jaune heard Jack let out as his shoulders buckled once. The blonde knight was unable to question anything more as Jack shot up and turned on his heel with Jaune's shield strapped to his left arm.

The blonde knight felt the fear within him spike to unprecedented levels as Jack charged at him with his new shield up. In a last ditched effort, Jaune swung forward with little grace, only to widen his eyes as his grandfather collapsed his shield and let Jaune's swing hit nothing; making the blonde knight stumble forward. Jack stepped to the side and ceased his opening as he expanded the shield once more and smacked Jaune directly in the face with it.

Jaune couldn't let out a cry as he stumbled for a second and fell onto his back with a grunt. There was no time to recover as Jack was on top of him and slammed the pointed end at the bottom of the shield directly onto Jaune's sternum. A gasp escaped Jaune as he felt his aura shatter the moment of impact. Everything felt heavy in weak. Even his breathing felt weak as tried to push back the pain that radiated from his chest.

"Signal." Jack said in between a few pants and picked himself up by pushing off his upright knee. "If I were to give you a grade," Jack exhaled deeply as he put his hands on his hips and collapsed the shield before putting his hands on his hips. "I'd say you're at the level you should be at when you're training at Signal."

"Ah!" Jaune winced as he sat up and placed a hand over his chest.

"Which begs the question, Jaune," Jack said with an edge that Jaune hadn't heard in years. "How were you able to get into Beacon?"

Jaune looked up at his grandfather and didn't feel any anger, nor disappointment within his intent stare. But there was confusion and from his voice, he was more concerned than anything.

"It was tough," Jaune said as he looked down at his quivering body. "But I was able to get through initiation with the help of my team."

"That's not what I meant." Jack said before raising an eyebrow. "Also, you may want to work on your tell a bit. I've lost count how many times you scratched your head in the last hour." Jaune pulled his free hand back from his head and looked down at the relentless gaze his grandfather gave him.

"Jaune," Jack said as he crouched down to meet Jaune's eye level. "What's going on? That fight we just had told me enough when it came to your combat experience. You've had some training, but it wouldn't be enough to get through the application process."

Jaune remained silent.

"Jaune, are you even a student at Beaco-!"

"I lied." Jaune said without looking up.

"Lied about being a student?"

"Lied about how I got in." Jaune said with a whisper. "I took some of your old credentials we had in some filing cabinets up in the attic and put them on some false transcripts." Jaune began to shake even more than the time he told Pyrrha the truth. "It wasn't enough to be suspicious about, but enough to get accepted."

Jaune looked up to see that Jack wasn't shocked or even appalled at what he had to say, but Jaune couldn't help but squirm at his grandfather's narrowed gaze.

"Did you have any combat experience?"

Jaune said nothing.

"Did you even have your aura unlocked?"

Still nothing.

Jack let out a breath. "Unbelievable." Jack said as he stood up and put his right hand over his forehead. "Does your mom know about this?"

Jaune shook his head.

"Jaune, do you realize how easily you could have been killed?" Jack asked. There was no strain to his voice, nor any raise in volume, but Jaune knew he wasn't happy. "No combat experience is one thing, but no aura? Jaune, that's basically suicide. Why would you even thi-!"

Jack looked down at Jaune and saw the answer within his eyes. Jaune may have been older, but it was the same look he gave Jack nine years ago. It was a pained look that Jack had only seen once before and it was one of the last memories he shared with his grandson.

"Oh…" Jack said as any and all frustration died within his voice. "That."

"Yeah…" Jaune said as he stood up while still having his hand over his chest.

"Does your team know about your transcripts?"

"Pyrrha does." Jaune said softly. "She's been helping me… until recently."

"Change of heart?"

Jaune nodded his head. "I made a mistake during the Breach."

"You were there?"

Jaune nodded once more.

"What kind of mistake?" Jack asked as he took a step forward with curiosity.

"The kind that gets your teammate into a coma."

Jack widened his eyes at Jaune's statement as his mind pieced together any unanswered questions he had when conversing with Jaune earlier.

"If it was me who took the hit, that would be one thing," Jaune said as he fought back the tears and took a heavy breath to compose himself. "But it was Ren," Jack took notice at how Jaune's hands tightened into fists.

"What does Ozpin have to say about this?" Jack asked.

"He wanted me to use the break to reflect on everything." Jaune remained consistent in his lack of eye contact. "He's probably going to test me when school starts up again."

"I wouldn't put it past him." Jack said as he rubbed his chin. "What have you done since then?"

Jaune let out a strained chuckle, "Other than nearly get killed by a King Taijitu in the Emerald forest and having my weapon break on me, not much."

"Wait, what?" Jack asked.

"How do you think I met Brigitte?" Jaune asked. "If it weren't for her, I would have been killed. She even wanted to fix my weapon for free." Jaune chuckled a bit at how ridiculous that sounded.

"I take it she doesn't know about all this?"

Jaune's eyes finally met Jack's and widened them at the notion. "No. Please don't tell them."

Jack held up his hand and gestured for Jaune to calm down. "I haven't said anything to them." Jack narrowed his eyes at his grandson who let out a breath of relief. "You're going to have to tell her eventually, Jaune. It will be worse if she finds out on her own."

Shame quickly overwhelmed Jaune's relief as the blonde knight fell silent.

"So, what do you plan to do?" Jack asked with folded arms. "You have a few months before everyone comes back, and there's no telling when your teammate is going to wake up." Jack remained fixated on his grandson. "Do his parents know about this?"

"Ren only has Nora," Jaune said. "She went with Pyrrha to Argus so she wouldn't cause major destruction to the school."

"That bad?" Jack asked.

"Imagine your big friend back there on a sugar rush and a blood rage at the same time."

"Ah." Jack said, getting the point immediately.

"Because I'm the leader, I have to keep watch over him."

"Have you?"

"Every day," Jaune said. "Except when I went out to the Emerald forest." Jaune stretched a bit and winced at how much his body ached. "As for what's next, I guess keep up with my studies and train at Beacon."

"You think that's going to be enough?" Jack asked.

"Pyrrha was the one who made me realize I had to learn twice as fast and work three times as hard."

"But Pyrrha isn't here right now."

Jaune paused for a moment. "True," he said. "I'll just have to try on my own."

"I don't think you realize how difficult that's going to be, Jaune." Jack said in a stern tone.

"I can't let that stop me, Grandpa." Jaune retorted and Jack fell silent. Jaune couldn't help but feel the anxiety within him simmer as his grandfather gazed right into his eyes.

"You really want this, don't you?" Jack asked.

"More than anything."

Jack remained still before he unfolded his arms and put his hands on his hips. "Okay." Jack said. "We got a lot of work to do."

"Wait, what?" Jaune asked.

"You honestly think I'm going to let my only grandson keep going on this borderline suicidal path without a teacher?" Jack said as he put a hand on Jaune's shoulder. "Not a chance." any and all tension relaxed the moment Jack smiled at Jaune. "I don't know what's going to happen when Beacon starts up again, but for the rest of the break, I'm going to train you like I should have done years ago."

Jaune went rigid at the news. He opened his mouth, but nothing came out. This was the second time someone offered their help to him, but unlike Pyrrha, there was resolve as well as care within Jack's voice. It shook Jaune to his core as he couldn't believe this was happening.

"We're going to have to keep this a secret from your mother, of course." Jack said before chuckling, "But I think you can do this."

"I…" Jaune said as his hands were trembling. "Thank you." Jaune gave Jack no time to respond as he gave him a tight hug.

Jack smiled at the sudden gesture and retuned it in full. "Don't thank me yet," Jack said with a chuckle. "With what I'm going to put you through, you're going to wish you were dead." Jack couldn't help but laugh at how fast Jaune tensed up at his declaration.

"Jaune?" Jaune and Jack broke apart as they heard Brigitte's voice and the door to the training room open. "Pie's cooking right now, but I-!"

Both Jaune and Jack turned to see Brigitte walk in and Jaune paled at how her happy demeanor morphed into a look of horror.

"What happened in here?!" Brigitte yelled at the destroyed weapon racks as well as the training weapons that were littered across the floor.

"Sorry," Jack said. "Got carried away." he slapped Jaune's shoulder, which made his grandson yelp in pain. "Jaune here is going to fix all of this up before he gets any pie. Aren't ya, Jaune?"

The blonde knight paled at the smile his grandfather gave him and paled even further when he saw the stern look Brigitte had. "Y-Yeah." Jaune said. "No problem."

He honestly had no clue how this was all going to turn out.

And there we go. The beginning is done and man oh man am I excited to get into the thick of it. With everything going on in the world, I'm going to try and keep chapter updates more consistent and I hope you all enjoy. Comment, review, and as always, BE COMPASSIONATE AND BE FIERCE!

SPARKYDAPPERDAB19 SIGNING OFF!