Jaune Arc:

It was cold.

The night was dark, with the tree branches above the small clearing ensuring that the light of the moon was barely visible. The branches themselves took what was left of the shattered crescent moon and fractured it even further, separating the satellite into bright alabaster fragments in the sky. The stars were largely spared this fate due to their size, ether being lucky enough to be framed by the dark branches above them, or unfortunate enough to be blotted out entirely by them.

The ground was covered in snow from the winter and shadows from the trees surrounding them. But in the middle of it all was the glowing, yellowish-orange light of a campfire, which was surrounded by four small logs that served as makeshift benches. The fire was dim now, having been started hours ago. Even still, it provided enough light to illuminate and warm the two tents on opposite sides of the fire. The snow on the ground had melted near the campfire, but was otherwise only disturbed by the remnants of footprints and other markings left by the team of two huntsmen and two huntresses that were camping there for the night.

The boy wearing blue jeans and a black hoodie underneath some white metal armor was both outside the campsite and the range of the campfire's dying light. Jaune Arc was off alone in the bleak, lifeless forest, practicing.

One. Two. Three. Four. Five. The huntsman was holding his sword in both hands, reliving a sparring match in his mind's eye. The stokes of his own blade never completed, the sound of metal soaring through air was always cut short by an opponent who was wielding her own sword in both of her hands as well, mirroring and improving upon his own style of fighting. The first move of his own blocked an overhead strike from his opponent, the blade of the huntsman and the huntress interlocked in his mind's eye. For the next two strokes, he took the initiative, swinging from the left, then from the right, only to have both strikes blocked by the vastly superior skill of his opponent. Once again, he cut from the right side and was blocked, and finished the duel with an overhead strike. Like all the strikes that came before it, it was stopped by the imaginary blade of his opponent.

Jaune realized what was happening and dropped his fighting stance with a sigh as he started walking the perimeter of the campsite, well beyond the range of receiving any of its warmth. I can't keep doing this. Reliving training sessions isn't going to help me. It had started out innocently enough: Ruby had told them there were few grimm on Patch, and none of them were more powerful then standard beowolves. So, he figured there would be no harm to anyone if he spent his shift on watch practicing his swordplay. He didn't have to convince anyone that he needed the practice. Before long, he had been reliving old battles and sparring matches with her, acting out the duels as if she were standing in front of him. Finishing his circle around the perimeter of the campsite, the boy sheathed his sword into the folded shield on his side and headed back to the campsite, back into the light of the campfire.

The fire didn't make him feel any warmer.

Heading to the log where his backpack resided, Jaune sat down next to the dying fire and stared at it blankly for a while in silence. What is there to say? With a long sigh, he looked towards his backpack, resting next to the log he was sitting on. After a moment of hesitation, he reached into the bag, digging all the way down into the bottom before his hands made contact with an icy cold circlet of metal.

Pyrrha. The circlet was made of bronze- masterfully crafted and and finely made. The emerald, tear shaped jewels that hung on chains that had encircled the invincible redhead's ears softly glistened in the dying light of the fire, becoming dimmer every moment as the fire turned what was left of the wood into ash.

Jaune pulled out his cracked scroll from his pocket. Scrolls were not useful for communication anymore, but some of their functions worked independent of the CCT network. Thankfully, the somewhat damaged device still had all the photos Jaune had taken of his old team. He spent the next few moments browsing through the various images before finally stopping on the last image he had of her. Pyrrha Nikos, standing triumphantly with her sword raised up in the sky in victory at the end of the double's match in the Vytal Festival tournament.

He had gone for a month before looking at the old pictures, not wanting to ruin the memories he had of her. It had taken him that long to realize that slowly but surely, he was starting to forget what she looked like. As the world began to decay from Fall into Winter, his memories of her had begun to fade with it. He had clung to those photos like the leaves on a tree in the final days of Fall, trying to hold on to the last bit of life they had before Winter inevitably came.

Even still, there was one moment Jaune had shared with Pyrrha hat he knew would never leave his mind, no matter how many years would pass.

Whoever was on the microphone. They're the ones that did this. He had told Pyrrha, believing in her then just as she had believed in him when he arrived at Beacon. And we have to make sure they don't take anyone else. He handed the champion her weapons, certain that she would not fall that day. That she would be the one that ensured that the rest of the people of Vale were safe. That they would protect one another through all that the world threw at them that night.

An hour later, she was gone, and he had been unable to do anything to save her.

The airship was completely silent. Everyone else had long since evacuated Beacon, and Jaune was one of the last people to leave. On the other side of the barren aircraft was an older man, holding an unconscious child in his arms. "You're alright Ruby... You're alright." If Jaune had bee paying attention to him at the moment, he would have noticed that the older man sounded more like he was trying to convince himself more than anything else. The worry in his eyes had been evident ever since Jaune had seen him come down from the top of Beacon tower with Ruby in his arms. But Jaune hadn't noticed, having kept his head in his hands the entire flight, his elbows resting on his knees as he shed the last of his tears

Jaune sat on the opposite side of the aircraft, facing the man on the bench across from him. Only the narrow hallway down to the cockpit separated him from the uncle and the niece.

It had been around half of an hour since Jaune had looked up at the CCT tower and seen a brilliant flash of light poor out from the top. It had nearly been blinding, even from as far away as he was. When he finally looked back up, the massive grimm wasn't moving any longer. Jaune had waited on the ground, completely speechless as older man had finally run past him. The only reason Jaune followed was because he also saw him carrying a bronze circlet in his hands. He hadn't wanted to believe it, but he known what would happen the moment Pyrrha had launched him away.

Hearing some shifting from the bench across from him, Jaune pulled his head out of his hands and looked up to see the man shifting the unconscious girl away from him, resting the back of her head on his lap and letting her body lie down on the bench, "Get some rest, Rosebud. You've earned it.", the man said using what Jane could only assume was a nickname based on Ruby's surname. Tousling the girl's hair one last time, the man looked up at the boy in front of him.

"So...you're Ruby's dad?" Jaune asked.

The man sighed softly and looked down before answering. "Nope. Just her uncle," he looked back up before continuing, "Qrow."

"Oh." Jaune said softly as he gazed to the man's right side, down to the empty circlet he had rested on the bench next to him. Out of the corner of his tear stained eyes, he noticed that Qrow had followed his gaze.

"You loved her. Pyrrha." The uncle said, stating it as a fact rather than asking.

"How did..." Jaune began to ask.

"Lets just say I know how a fool in love with someone out of his league acts like.", he said. "I saw the two of you fight in the tournament. You reminded me of a couple of dumb kids I knew when I was at Beacon." With a melancholic sigh, Qrow picked up the Bronze circlet and handed it across the isle. "I've been in your shoes kid - more or less, anyways. Let me give you a bit of advice."

Jaune didn't care what the man had to say. That's not how Pyrrha and I were like. You didn't even know us. He had thought. But more than anything else, he didn't feel like fighting about anything now. "Sure. Go ahead." He said, not caring a wit what the man actually had to say.

"Find something else that matters," He said while looking down at the unconscious form of Ruby Rose, "find out what it is, and soon. The longer you wait," the man said as he took out a whiskey flask, "the harder it becomes, and you'll only hurt whoever's left. " Qrow finished as took a swig from his flask.

The two of them didn't exchange another word during the entire flight.

It had been several weeks before Ruby contacted Jaune from her home's radio. She had told him that Qrow said that there might be a way for them to help stop Cinder and her allies if they went to Haven. She didn't have much information about it, but it had given Jaune something to do beyond mourning. He had set out to Patch with Ren and Nora the next day.

Jaune held onto the circlet, growing colder with every moment he spent out in the open. Jaune likely would have stayed frozen there for hours, lost in his thoughts, had it not been for the quiet beeping sound that came from his scroll. Placing the circlet down on the log beside him, Jaune checked his scroll. 1:00 AM. Time to get Ruby for her shift. Jaune stood up and walked over to the tent Ruby shared with Nora on the opposite side of the camp.

Their tent was a bright orange color, contrasting the navy blue tent Jaune shared with Ren. The sound of Nora's snoring - something Jaune had grown quite accustomed to in his time at Beacon academy - was intermingled with the sound of some gentle rustling. Jaune hadn't even reached the tent when he heard Ruby whisper to him, "I'm coming. Give me a second, just trying not to wake up Nora."

Nora continued to snore, and let out a noise that sounded like the word, "pancakes." She had a tendency to mutter random things in her sleep, generally about things that went with syrup.

Jaune waited outside the tent for a few moments longer until Ruby finally emerged with a yawn. "Morning Jaune.", she whispered.

"Morning. See you in about six hours," Jaune said as he turned around and headed back over to his tent. With the thought of sleep on his mind, he became more acutely aware of how tired he was. I'm going to need my rest, we've got a long day ahead of us tomorrow.

"Alright. See you then," Ruby said with a portion her usual enthusiasm, slightly muted due to the time of day. Jaune didn't respond as he headed over to his tent. Just as he was opening the flap, he heard some footsteps behind him and a sharp breath from Ruby. "Hey," she said softly a few moments later. Jaune stopped himself, tuning around with his his hand on his sword hilt, ready to defend the campsite from any grimm.

Instead, all he saw was Ruby standing silently a few steps away from her tent, her eyes locked on Pyrrha's circlet resting exactly where Jaune had left it moments ago.

Ruby spoke slowly, as if she wasn't entirely sure what she was going to say. "Can we... can we talk for a bit? I don't want to keep you up much longer, but -"

"No problem," Jaune said flatly, cutting her off as he went down to sit on the log where the bronze circlet rested.

"Alright. I'll be right back. Just want to get a few more branches for the fire. It's getting kinda low." Ruby said to make an excuse for herself. Jaune waited for her to go off into the woods before letting out a sigh as he pushed Pyrrha's circlet back into his backpack. He knew what to expect. He had dealt with plenty of people who had tried to comfort him about what had happened. She's gonna say she's sorry for what happened to Pyrrha. I'm not going to tell her about every single emotional up and down since then and just brush off her concerns. Just like every other time I've had this conversation. We all need to focus on the task at hand, and I am not going to slow down my team by having them worry about me.

However, there would be something different about this conversation. Another weight he had to carry. I can't tell her how I felt. How I blamed her for what happened. I was so childish for ever thinking... she doesn't deserve to hear that. Nothing good will come from that.

Jaune waited in the cold until Ruby came back to the campfire a few moments later, carefully placing some sticks and dry leaves on to the fire. Saving one of the larger branches for herself, Ruby sat down and started tending to the fire. Keeping her gaze focused on the fire, Ruby started to speak, "You know, I don't think I ever thanked you."

Huh? Jaune had not expected this. "Ruby, what are you talking about?"

Ruby continued poking at the fire, brightening the embers as she continued. "Back when we first arrived at Beacon, my plan was basically to glue myself to Yang and... well, yeah, that was it really." Looking up at Jaune, his leader went on, "If you hadn't helped me up in that courtyard, I don't think I would have made as many friends as I did back in Beacon. I don't think I would have known any of you guys, and I probably wouldn't have gotten along with Blake or Weiss that well either. So... yeah. Thank you Jaune. You're the one who broke me out of my shell, as Yang put it. Even though I didn't admit I had one at the time. " Ruby finished with a gentle smile on her face.

Jaune stayed quiet for a while longer before eventually responding. "Thanks Ruby. I..." Jaune trailed off for a moment before finishing his response. "You're welcome." The fire started to shed a little bit more light as some of the leaves.

Ruby's smile faded as she began to look back down at the campfire. "You helped me out from day one. Back when I was a stranger to you. I owe you..." Ruby hesitated for a moment before she continued. "I'm sorry-",

"Don't." Jaune said forcefully. Ruby looked a bit surprised at the mild outburst from her friend. "You don't have anything to apologize for. I know you did everything you could."

Ruby sighed as her entire body relaxed. The gentle smile returned to her face as she faced Jaune , "Well, I guess I've got something else to thank you for now. But that's not the only reason I wanted to talk to you. Jaune, you've been worrying me. I don't think you've said more than a dozen sentences since we left my house. It's a bit worrying."

"Ruby," He began, "have you ever been in a position where you were just about to get something you wanted - I'm not talking about little things. I'm talking about something that matters. "

The smile faded yet again. "Yeah. I think I know what you mean."

"I was with her, Ruby. Pyrrha and I were together for one, perfect moment. And then, just like that," Jaune tried to snap his fingers but failed, but continued anyways, "she was gone. Out of my life forever. Nothing I can do will ever bring that back. I keep going over that moment again and again, wondering if I had done something, anything differently, if Pyrrha would be here instead of-" instead of you, he had almost said, catching himself. You know Ruby doesn't deserve that. "instead of sacrificing herself up on that tower."

For a time, huntsman and huntress were both silent. Ruby looked down at the fire, poking it with a stick. "When true hearts lie withered," Ruby said sadly, her voice sounding almost like a song, "and fond ones have flown. Oh! who would inhabit this bleak world alone?" Ruby was quiet again, the only sound coming from the rekindled campfire.

That's the most depressing thing I've ever heard you say Ruby. "Was that from a song or something?"

"It's the ending of a poem," Ruby said, continuing to tend the fire. "My mother liked it, which I thought was kinda weird. The poem doesn't exactly have any happy moments. I always wondered why my mom -she was always kind, sweet and caring- would like something so hopeless. But I think I get it now." Jaune was silent while he waited for Ruby to continue, "The poem's a warning. It shows what happens when we try to deal with everything on our own. Jaune, let us help you. We all know you're going through a lot. You don't need to 'inhabit this bleak world alone', and you aren't going to do any good if you try to. You have your friends. You have me."

Plenty of people had tried to convince him to take their help on this. Until now, he had viewed it as nothing more than a burden that he would be forcing on other people. That really was dumb of me, wasn't it? For the first time in a while, Jaune allowed himself to smile. It wasn't much of one, but it was genuine. "There's a reason Ozpin made you a leader Ruby." Jaune stood up and began to head towards his tent. "I'm glad you're the one keeping all of us from falling apart on the way to Haven. I'll see you in the morning."

"Huh?" Jaune turned around to face Ruby, who now had a confused look on her face. "Wait, I'm keeping you all glued together? What do you mean?"

"Wait, you don't know?" Ruby just shook her head with a confused look on her face. "You're our leader. Ren, Nora, and I all agreed that would be for the best..." Jaune paused for a moment. "Did none of us tell you?"

"Uh, no. Wow. I did not expect this." Ruby said with a somewhat shocked look on her face. "Well then." She snapped out of whatever shock she had and looked over to Jaune with a smile. "As your fearless leader, I order you to get some sleep. Our team has a long road ahead of us tomorrow, and sleepy heads slowing us down will not be tolerated." Jaune nodded and headed back to his tent.

As Jaune headed to the place where he would sleep, he didn't feel quite as cold anymore.

AN: Sorry that this chapter was behind schedule. The next chapter is also probably going to take two weeks to finish as well. Again, thank you to everyone who left a review on my last chapter. Your feedback is always helpful, and I certainly took it into account when writing Ruby's dialogue in this chapter. As always, feedback and helpful criticism are encouraged. Special thanks to Texan Red Rose for helping me with editing and typos and whatnot.

Hope you enjoyed!