Nicholas Arc walked into the room only to find his son sitting on his bed in a daze. Nicholas sighed, he closed the door behind him and walked over to his son, and sat next to him on his bed.
"Your lucky the boy's parents didn't try to have you arrested," Nicholas said, "Jaune... what were you thinking?" he asked
Jaune didn't answer at first, no doubt trying to find the right words. "I... I just wanted to be strong like you, I wanted to prove to him that I was just as strong as you are,"
Nicholas looked at his son with a disappointed expression, however, he should be, after all, his son didn't know any better. "Jaune, what do you think strength is?" Nicholas asked
Jaune shrugged his shoulders, "I don't know... but one of the 5th graders said that being strong means that you are the best and that you have to show that you are by beating everyone,"
"For some, that is what strength means, but for me, that's not what it is," Nicholas said "Can I tell you a story son?"
Jaune groaned "Aw dad this isn't going to be another boring lecture is it?"
"Hey now, you got yourself into this mess and your gonna listen to what I have to say, boring or not, you got that?" Nicholas asked
Jaune nodded
"Good," Nicholas said, "Now then, this is about an old friend of mine, she and I were very alike when we were young, and back then we thought the same way some of those boys did, that being strong is what mattered in this world, we did whatever we could to prove we were strong, even sparring against each other, either one of us lost or won during those sessions, we were hailed as two of the strongest people, at the time, that's what we thought strength was, destroying those weaker then you were and proving you were the best..."
"But that wasn't it... right?"
"Yes, however, We- I didn't learn that by myself," Nicholas asked, "You see while we were strong, there was someone a lot stronger than the both of us, she always beat us, no matter how much we trained or thought we had her on the ropes, she managed to beat us, and finally, one day, she knocked some sense into us, she showed us the strength wasn't about crushing those beneath us, or not caring, or proving anything..."
Jaune was confused, "Then what is it about?" he asked his father
Nicholas looked over to Jaune and a soft smile graced his lips, "For her, and later on I, It's about using it to protect others weaker than you, about caring for every innocent life," Nicholas said, "But, truthfully, there are many definitions of strength, everyone has their own meaning, and I'm sure you'll meet other later on who have different definitions of strength" He told his son.
Jaune nodded, "Dad... what happened to your friends?" Jaune asked
Nicholas's expression changed, to one of sadness and he looked to the floor, "Well the one who was like me, she never quite let go of that way of thinking, for I time, I thought she did when she met a good friend of mine, but when she abandoned him and her daughter and seeing as where she is now, I wished she did, I wish she was strong enough to see just how wrong that way of thinking is," Nicholas said with a sigh, "As for the one who showed me what strength was really about, well last I heard she married that good friend of mine and even had a daughter with him, I hear she's doing great,"
Jaune sort of smiled hearing that, and hearing the story, he remembered his actions earlier that day that got him in trouble. "Dad... I'm sorry about what I did, I'm fine with whatever punishment you and mom have for me," Jaune said
Nicholas smiled and ruffled his son's hair and left his son's room, telling him he would be punished soon and that he was sure his mother would find something for him to do.
"Wake up!"
Jaune quickly bolted up as of waking up from a nightmare and looked around with confusion, he realized he was in a large tent, but he looked to the side and then looked up to see none other than Vernal standing next to him, and she was looking down at him with a glare that could give Weiss a run for her money.
"Where- What the happened?" Jaune asked, "Where am I?"
"You're in our camp," Vernal told him
Jaune was surprised, "What!? Why am I here!?"
"Tsk, don't ask me," Vernal said rudely, "Raven's the one who wanted you here and alive, if it were up to me, I'd leave you bleeding out on the side of the road," she said muttering the last part
Jaune was confused about why Raven wanted him alive, but he wasn't going to ask why, he was alive, that was what mattered to him, he still had a chance to do what he needed to do, but then he remembered something. Jaune stood up and looked to the side Raven had stabbed him and saw the hole in his hoodie, and then he lifted up his hoodie halfway only to see that the wound Raven had given him was healed, the only prof of the wound was a small scar that was about an inch in length.
Jaune was surprised by just how fast it had healed, he was sure a wound like that would take at least a while to heal properly, but he felt fine. He got up and looked around only to see that his armor was gone, he looked over to Vernal, "Hey, where's my Armor?"
"Raven's got it, and she says she'll give it back when you prove yourself," Vernal told him, "Speaking of which, Raven wants to see you, so let's get going Arc," Vernal said
Jaune just sighed but he followed her outside of the tent only to get a good look at what was the Branwen tribe.
Wooden walls surrounded the entire campsite, and tents, both large and small, were spread across the campgrounds, he also noticed what appeared to be a large festive area, no doubt for celebrating whatever it was that bandits had to celebrate. Oddly enough, he also noticed some kids, really young kids, but they weren't running around or playing, they were training, which just seemed harsh to Jaune, and that was when he noticed it.
He noticed some of the tribe members looking at him, one of the people staring at him was Shay, giving him a glare that a bully would give. Jaune just pretended not to see him and kept following Vernal.
Finally, after a short walk, the two arrived at Raven's tent and entered it only to see the fearless bandit leader drinking a nice cup of tea as if she was at an Atlas dinner party. Raven set her cup down on her saucer and looked at the two, a small smile on her face.
Jaune looked at Raven and now that he could clearly see her face, he was a little taken aback, as she looked so much like Yang, if she had black hair, red eyes, and was a little older.
'Wait a second... doesn't Yang's eyes turn red when her semblance is activated?' Jaune thought to himself
Raven looked to Vernal with a small smile, "Thank you for bringing him here Vernal," Raven said
"Yeah, Yeah," Vernal said, taking a seat across from her on a pillow. Jaune followed suit and sat next to Vernal, much to her annoyance
"It's good to see you made it Jaune," Raven said, "How are you feeling?"
Jaune would be the first to admit... he had no idea what to do in a situation like this. Yesterday, she was trying to kill him, and now, she was asking how he was feeling like a friend. "Uh... I'm ok?" Jaune said with a raised brow
Raven just kept that small smile on her face, and did a quick nod, "Good, and your wound?"
"Oh, uh, well it's completely healed," Jaune told her
Raven raised a brow while still smiling, "Really?" she asked
"Yeah..." Jaune said awkwardly
Raven hummed, "You must have a lot of Aura if you're able to heal yourself so quickly," Raven said
"So I've been told," Jaune replied
"Tell me, how is Nicholas doing these days?"
Jaune was a little uncomfortable with Raven knowing his dad somehow, but decided to answer his question, "He's doing good, been working hard," Jaune said, "Retired from being a huntsman though,"
"I would say so, after all, you do have Crocea Mors," Raven replied as she took a sip of her tea
Jaune was now even more uncomfortable, Raven, knew his dad and his family weapon, which just raised too many alarms in Jaunes head. "Ok, I have to ask, just how do you know my father as well as my weapon?" Jaune asked
"Shouldn't it be obvious Jaune? Your father and I went to Beacon together," Raven said
'What!?' Vernal thought with wide eyes.
"What!?" Jaune cried with a shocked expression.
Raven gave them an amused smile, "Yes, I and Nicholas were good friends too, both of us loved to fight and to test our strength," Raven said "But that was a long time ago, I fell out of contact with him when I left my husband," Raven said
This was a little bit of a shock to Jaune, his father never told him he knew a notorious criminal, but then again, his dad never liked talking about his days as a huntsman all that much.
"Tell me Jaune, are you an only child?" Raven asked
Jaune shook his head, "No I'm the third oldest,"
Raven hummed, "How many siblings do you have?" Raven asked
"7 sisters," Jaune replied
This sort of made Raven's smile widen a little bit, "Ah, so I see he married that Yalena girl after all, eh?" Raven asked with an amused tone
"You know my mom too?" Jaune asked
"Yes," Raven told him, "He and your mother were from the same town and she followed your father to Vale where she kept pestering him to marry her, I see he finally caved in the end," Raven said with a softened chuckle.
Jaune, as well as Vernal, we're officially weirded out. Jaune simply because he was processing the information of his father being old friends with a dangerous and wanted criminal and Vernal was also trying to process this but because Raven was acting out of the ordinary, it was like she was catching up with a dear old friend, which, when Vernal thought about it, was sort of true in a way.
"Ah, but enough about the past, I think it's time to move on to the present," Raven said "Do you know why I kept you alive, Jaune?" Raven asked him
Jaune shook his head.
"It was because you reminded me of your father back at Beacon," Raven told him, "despite your clear lack of training, when we fought, I saw the look in your eyes, and that look was so identical to the look your father would give me when we fought, and for the first time in a while, felt the same way I did all those years ago,"
This shocked Jaune, never had he been compared to his father outside of looks, many said that at Jaine's age, he and his dad were opposite, but no one ever told Jaune what that meant.
Raven smiled and decided to ask Jaune about a very important event that involved his father. "Tell me Jaune, has your father ever told you about his trip to Vacuo?" Raven asked
Jaune shook his head. He had never heard all of his dad's missions but he heard a few, but none of them ever involved leaving Vale.
"I am not surprised, it was the first time Nicholas had to kill," Raven said
Jaune was shocked. What child wouldn't be when they heard that a parent killed someone? "What happened?" Jaune asked, wondering what happened that led to his father killing someone
"It was during our 3rd year, My and Nicholas's team were sent to check in on a local village that was seeing some small Bandit activity, they sent us there hoping to scare them off, however, the Bandits snuck into town and began raiding the place" Raven began, "We fought as best as we could in order to drive them off, however, we found some of the bandits brutalizing some of the townsfolk, and when your father found out what they were doing, he went crazy, it was like he possessed some untapped rage or skill he had kept hidden, he killed those bandits, showed them no mercy, even when he was surrounded, even when he was hit, he didn't falter, he didn't let up until all of them were dead,"
Jaune was surprised to hear such things about his father, he always knew his father to be kind and gentle, he was the person who looked like he had never seen battle or even death, but hearing this now, hearing it come from Raven, he was stunned. Jaune knew the Huntsman life wasn't going to be easy but... he sometimes forgot that his dad has lived that way.
Vernal was surprised that Raven was talking about an Ex-Huntsmen so highly, but then again, Raven didn't respect a lot of people, and the few she did were mostly dead.
"However, I never saw your father be like that ever again, and he never used such power in order to better himself as a warrior, and that disappointed me," Raven said "But you, I'm hoping you won't"
Jaune looked at her with a confused look, "What are talking about?" Jaune asked her
"You have so much untapped strength that flows like the rapids of a river, Jaune, just like your father, However, your father failed to use his rage and fury in a productive way to better himself as a warrior," Raven told him, "Which is why I'm hoping to train you to use that better," Raven said with a smile.
Jaune was surprised, "You wanna train me?" Jaune asked Raven.
"Raven you can't be serious!" Vernal cried, looking to her tribe leader.
Raven turned to her right hand, "I am serious Vernal," She replied to the teen girl, "However, it won't come free of charge,"
Jaune looked at her with a peered gaze, "What do you want?"
"We'll get to that, but I wanna know something else," Raven asked
"And what's that?" Jaune asked, giving Raven a suspicious look,
"Why are you out here in southern Anima?" Raven asked, "I know that the new year for Huntsmen in training has started, so why is someone like you, who clearly wants to be a Huntsmen, out here?"
"I... I faked my transcripts to get into Beacon, Headmaster Ozpin found out about them and kicked me out, but he offered me to come back and prove myself when 2nd year started up," Jaune told her
"I see," Raven said 'I see what you're trying to do Oz, you see something in the boy, but your hands were tied, so your thought of this in the hopes he would return to you, and follow you just like the rest of those fools, but I have other plans old friend,' Raven thought
"So, what is it that you want?" Jaune asked
"I'll train you and turn you into a true warrior, one even better than your father, but in exchange..." Raven began "You will the Branwen tribe," She said with a smile
Vernal sat up straight and looked at Raven with a bewildered expression, "What!? Raven, there's no way you can let him join! This guy doesn't have the guts to be a part of us! He doesn't have the guts to live this kinda life! He's weak!" Vernal cried
Raven looked at her with a glare, "Is that for you to decide, Vernal?" she asked in a stern tone
Vernal shrunk back, "No..." Vernal said
"As I thought," Raven said, she then turned to Jaune, "So... will you accept my offer, Jaune?"
"No," Jaune quickly told her, "I... I'm sorry but won't accept your offer for you to train me, because if it means joining your tribe and becoming something that I swore to fight against... then I'll be going against everything I believe in," Jaune told her
Despite his clear refusal of her offer, Raven smiled at the boy, "You sure are strong of will and of your own belief, Jaune" Raven said, "I respect your decision,"
Jaune nodded, "If this is over... Can I have Crocea Mors and my Armor back?"
Raven, still smiling, raised a brow at the boy, "Who said you were allowed to leave?" Raven asked
Jaune's eyes widened in horror, and a sense of dread slowly began to make its way into his head.
"While I respect your decision, I will not allow you to just leave," She said, "If you wish to leave you will show me your strength leave on your own terms, until then, I will train you, because even if you say no now... You will join the tribe, one way or another," She said with a smile.
Jaune looked at her and knew that there was nothing he could do. Raven was right, he couldn't leave, what was he going to do? Fight an entire bandit tribe and its crazy skilled leader? No... he was screwed and Raven knew it, he wouldn't be surprised if this was all part of her plan, and now she was trying to force him to join by keeping him held here as a prisoner but still offering to train her, but he wouldn't let her completely win. He would take advantage of the situation as best as he could, but when he had the chance, he would make his way to Shion.
"If that's how it's gonna be, then fine," Jaune said "Keep me here, but I won't be helping you do what you do, I'll deal with Grimm, but nothing of the Bandit sort, Arc's word,"
Raven chuckled, realizing that the boy was not as foolish as she assumed, he was truly quite the opposite of his Nicholas when he was 17. "Very well, for now, I'll train you and let you deal with any Grimm near the tribe, but you won't be doing it alone," Raven said "Vernal will be helping with your training and helping you deal with any Grimm problems, you will also be staying in her tent,"
Vernal slammed her hands on the table, "No way!" Vernal cried "I-"
Raven shot her a glare, her red eyes almost seemed to glow as she glared at the girl, "You will do as I say, is that understood?" Raven told Vernal with a stern and threatening tone.
Vernal wanted to rebuttal but seeing her leader so angry with her outburst made her shut up and her anger deflate, "Yes, Raven,"
Raven nodded, "Good," she said, she once more, looked over to Jaune, "Now, since you are our guest, and will be training with me and Vernal, you'll need these," She said.
She then pointed to Jaune's right and he looked over to see his armor and Crocea Mors, however, the armor was slightly different, the dark grey lines of his armor were now a dark yellow, however, his sword and sheath stayed the same. It was a surprise but he had to admit... it looked good.
Raven smiled, "I thought a nice yellow color might accent the white nicely as it did with your father's," Raven told Jaune, "It looked dull with all that grey and white,"
"Uh... Thank you, Raven," Jaune said, still a little in shock but with a small smile on his face.
"But of course, anything for my guest, and the son of a good friend," Raven said with a smug smirk, "Now go try them on and eat, the both of you, because later today, we will be starting training," Raven told him and Vernal
Jaune did as Raven suggested and with Vernal's help, he was led back to her tent, where she told him to hurry up and put the armor on while throwing a jab at his hoodie, which did sort of irk him, but he put on his armor and when he was done, Vernal was shown where the food was and he ate as much as he could before they had to train.
XXX
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After a good meal and letting their stomachs settle, Jaune and Vernal made their way back to Raven's tent, only to see her gearing up.
She turned around to see the two standing there, Jaune had Crocea Mors strapped to his side and Vernal had her pistols strapped to her side. "Are you two ready?" Raven asked with a raised brow.
"Yep," Jaune said with a small smile
"Yeah, Yeah," Vernal said with a roll of her eyes.
Raven gave a quick nod, "Good because you two will be facing each other,"
Vernal smiled a little, "Oh good, I've been meaning to deliver some payback," She said
Jaune gulped out of nervousness, but nodded his head, "A-Alright," he said
"Head out back and We'll begin," Raven told them
Vernal and Jaune did so and saw the good amount of backyard that Raven had, it was large enough to train in, both for two or a single person, they walked down the stairs and stepped on the dirt ground just as Raven stepped out and stood atop the steps.
Raven smiled and looked at to two standing across from each other. "Are both of you ready?" Raven asked.
"Ohoh, I'm ready!" Vernal said with a smile as she put her hands to the side, like some cowboy out of an old movie, waiting for the clock to strike 12.
Jaune pulled out Crocea Mors and raised his shield in a defensive position, while Crocea Mors was pointed at Vernal, and just a bit above his shield. "Ready," Jaune said
Raven nodded, "Begin!"
Vernal drew her pistols like lightning and began firing at Jaune, but Jaune himself was also quick to react and raised his shield up to block her shots, he then began to circle around Vernal while also closing in the distance. Vernal realized what he was doing and instead of shooting both her pistols, she just began to fire one at Jaune and a plan formed in her head.
As Jaune circled her, he waited till she was out of ammo, and that's when he heard the shooting stop, and he quickly lowered his shield and charged at her, but Vernal smiled as she saw him charging in and aimed her other pistol at Jaune.
"Got ya!" She said.
She fired her pistol and her shot struck Jaune in his left shoulder, causing the blonde to stagger back just a little, but that's all Vernal needed as she fired two more shots, and the blonde knight was struck both times in his right side, and while he groaned in pain, Jaune pushed past the pain and once again charged at her, but as Vernal fired another shot, he raised his shield and blocked the shot.
Vernal growled but side-stepped his charge and shot him in the back, causing the boy to straighten up as if he was pinched on the butt, but Jaune quickly turned around and slashed at Vernal, and the teen bandit narrowly dodged the attack as she backed up and fired another shot, only for Jaune to block it with his shield and he stepped forward and slashed at her again, only for Vernal to use her other pistol to block the attack.
Jaune slashed at her again, she ducked under the swing and got back up, and then delivered a front kick to his gut, causing him to bend over only for Vernal to then deliver a knee to his chin, sending Jaune onto his back.
Vernal smiled and aimed her pistol down at Jaune, "You lose Arc," Vernal said smugly, as she pulled the trigger only to hear the clear sound of a click, letting her know she was out of ammo.
Realizing she was out of ammo, Jaune quickly used this and got up and delivered a blow to her side with the side of his shield. Having no aura, Vernal lost her breath for a little bit and backed up, feeling a lot of pain, but she pushed through it after taking a couple of breaths.
Seeing Vernal regain herself, Jaune rushed at her and quickly slashed at her, however, she tried to block the attack with her pistol only for Jaune to slice halfway through it, much to her shock, but Vernal took herself out of her shock and turned her other pistol around and gun butted him across the face, sending him stumbling to his right, and not letting up, she hit him again and sending him to left now, but before she could deliver a third blow, Jaune backed up and regained his senses and readied himself.
Vernal growled and decided to go for a very simple yet dangerous move. She dropped her gun and with her hand, told him to come at her, and seeing this, Jaune knew she was up to something but seeing as she was unarmed, he suspected she was just gonna side-stepped him and trying to punch him in the back, so he charged at her, ready to bash her with his shield, and running at her, Vernal focused and waited for the right time to make her move.
When Jaune was getting close, she was preparing to act, and finally, when he was in range, she spun to her left and side-stepped him just as Jaune predicted, both of them now facing the same direction, however, instead of delivering a punch to his back, Vernal grabbed his sword with her left and pushed him to the side, disarming him in the process.
Jaune fell to his side and looked over to Vernal, who now held Crocea Mors in her hands with a smug smile.
Vernal looked over the blade and whistled, she then looked back to Jaune, "You got a nice sword Arc, I think I might just keep it," She said as she rested Crocea Mors on her shoulder.
Jaune glared at her as he got back up and looked at her and trying to figure out how to retrieve his sword.
"Aw~! You want it back?" Vernal asked in a sarcastic sweet tone, she then glared at him with a smile, and pointed his own weapon at him, "Then come and get it," she said coldly.
Jaune began to get angry, not only because he lost his weapon, but because he couldn't think of a way to get it back He tried to think of any way to get it back, but that's when it hit him.
He didn't need to get it back, he just didn't need Vernal to have it.
He smiled at the bandit and charged in, and seeing him Charge in, Vernal swung his sword at his right, but the blonde teen blocked the attack. Vernal jabbed him in the leg, causing Jaune to fall down backward, and she quickly swung down at him, but Jaune blocked it with his shield, and then quickly rolled to the side and got up and backed away.
Vernal charged him and slashed upward at him, but he sidestepped her, only for Vernal to turn and slash at him again, getting him across the chest, but he then stepped forward, only to use his shield to bash her in the face, causing her to stagger back. Jaune used this and went for his sword, and while he grabbed it, Vernal held tightly onto it as well, both teens fighting over it.
Jaune dropped his shield in order to get a better grip, but Vernal did the same. Both fought over it, trying their best to wriggle the sword out of the other's grasp. Vernal glared at Jaune as he glared back at her, and she pulled her head back, before slamming it into Jaune's face, causing him to back up, but not loosening his grip on Crocea Mors, and he decided to try and force her to let her go by stomping on her foot, but she didn't let go either.
Vernal swung the blade down to the side, which actually gave the result of having both of them drop the blade. However, before she could go back for the sword, Jaune kicked it to the side in order for her or him not to have it. Vernal growled and jumped forward, causing Jaune and her to fall to the ground.
Vernal sat up and delivered a punch to his face, dazing the teen boy.
"You know Arc, you had a chance to strike me down, but you didn't take it!" Vernal cried, "How can a weakling like you call yourself a huntsman when the job is only half finished!? When you kill Grimm you make sure they're dead! The same goes for any human being that wants to kill you! When you're fighting a person in a life or death battle, you don't let up until they're dead! If you don't take the chance to kill them, they will kill you! If you can't kill your enemy who is trying to kill you then you deserve to die!" Vernal cried
The bandit teen began delivering punches to the blonde knight's face, and even with Aura protecting him, he felt every blow she gave.
"The weak have no rights! They don't get to make choices! All that the weak can do is be relentlessly crushed by those who are strong! I should know! I was weak! I let others crush me and beat me down! But I won't let that happen anymore!" She cried at Jaune, "You never been weak! You have no idea how far weakness will bring you down! but I was able to find my own strength and break away from the weak person I once was! I adapted to the cruel world that surrounds us! But you wouldn't know anything about that Arc!"
As she kept delivering punches, Jaune listened to her words and truthfully, she was right, he didn't know how it felt to be truly weak, how it felt to have no power to do anything to change your life.
That's when his aura flickered and then finally broke.
But Vernal didn't let up.
"You have to understand weakness to know your strength! You have to adapt to the cruel world that surrounds both Huntsman and Bandit! Adapt Arc! This isn't Beacon! No teacher is gonna stop a fight and save you! You have no team to back you up if you're surrounded by Grimm! So fucking adapt you blonde fucking idiot! adapt and get stronger to defend yourself! Because if you don't adapt to how this world really works and know just how cruel it can be..." Vernal began, "THEN YOU DON'T HAVE WHAT IT TAKES TO LIVE IN THIS LIFE! TO LIVE THE LIFE OF A HUNTSMAN! YOU DON'T HAVE WHAT IT TAKES TO SURVIVE!"
Vernal raised her fist back only for it to be stopped and she looked up and behind her to see Raven stopping her.
"You won Vernal, he's unconscious," Raven told her
Vernal looked down to see that it was true, Jaune had been knocked out.
Vernal stood up and looked over the boy and Raven did the same.
"What now?" Vernal asked
"Take him back to your tent and let him rest," Raven told her, "You did great Vernal,"
"And him?" Vernal asked, pointing at him,
"He did well, but he could do much better," Raven said "We'll continue training tomorrow, I suggest you patch up, and take him back to your tent and have him rest and heal up,"
Vernal wanted to complain but knew it was useless, as Raven had already favored the boy for some reason, and she looked back down at the boy and wondered what was so special about him. Was Raven right? With the right amount of training could he really be useful to the tribe? Could he really be one of the strongest in the tribe?
She pushed those thoughts away and reluctantly picked up the boy and put his arm over his shoulder and took him back to his tent.
Later that night, Vernal was heading back to her tent with some food for her and Jaune, since he had been out for three hours and the sun was setting. Despite how she might feel or think about the boy, he was now their "guest" as Raven labeled him and technically her partner, which meant she needed to help him out, even if she didn't want to.
"Who's the food for Vern?" came the voice of a familiar annoying bandit.
Vernal rolled her eyes and turned to her right only to see Shay and his fellow goons, and the bandit had the smuggest smirk on his face like he was the coolest or the toughest out of all of them.
"Piss off Shay," Vernal said
Shay shrugged, "Hey, easy Vern, I'm just wondering if the food's for that blonde asshole in ya tent?" Shay asked her
Vernal looked at him, "And what if it is?" Vernal asked with a smirk,
"Well, what if you led us to your tent and I had a few words with blondie?" Shay asked with a devious smirk
Vernal would admit that she would like the idea, but if anything happened to Jaune, Raven would get punished her, and the only reason Shay wanted payback was that Jaune easily kicked his ass, and Shay being kicked down a peg was away more satisfying then anything. He deserved it, acting like he was hot shit around the entire tribe.
"As much as I want to kick as ass to the curb too, Raven would kill me if I let you do anything to Arc, also, I still think you'd get your ass kicked, after all, he knocked you out pretty easy," Vernal said with a smirk
Shay glared and growled, "Just you wait, that blonde asshole is gonna get it!" he cried
Vernal kept smirking and rolled her eyes, "Sure, whatever you say, Shay," Vernal said as she walked away and back to her tent.
When she arrived and entered the tent, she saw Jaune begin to stir away and heard him groan as he slowly got up.
"Look who's finally up," she said with a smirk
He groaned as he rubbed his jaw as he sat up, she saw his aura light up trying to ease the pain in his face.
"How are ya feeling Arc?" Vernal asked
"Like a Bullhead just crashed right into my face," Jaune said,
"Yeah, well this isn't Beacon, so don't expect me to go easy on you when we spar," She told him, she then handed him a plate of food, "Here,"
"Thanks," Jaune said as he took the food
He looked and saw that on the plate, which had some slices of chicken and a few roasted leaks on the plate. Jaune took a few bites out of the food and enjoyed it, finding the food rather delicious, but then he looked at Vernal and saw her sitting on the other side of the tent, and that was when he remembered what she was saying while beating him up.
He swallowed his food and set his plat to the side and turned around to her, set his food down. "Thank you, Vernal,"
"You already thanked me Arc, no need to do it twice," Vernal said
"Not about the food, I wanna thank you for teaching me a hard lesson, for reminding me again that I'm not in Beacon, I... forgot that I was out in the world now, I have no team to lead or back me up, and no partner to watch my back, I need to adapt or I'll just end up like I used to be... and nearly getting myself killed," Jaune told her, "And your right, I may not know what it means to truly be weak, but I have felt that feeling and I hated feeling it, which is why I'm also doing this, I want to grow stronger, so I uh... I was wondering... if you um..."
"Spit it out Arc," Vernal told him
"I-I know that you don't really like me, but will you help me get stronger?" Jaune asked her,
Vernal smirked, "So, does that mean you're gonna be joining the tribe?" she asked
Jaune shook his head, "No, I'm still not going to be joining the tribe," Jaune said "But I'm gonna be using this opportunity to grow stronger, and when I am, I plan on leaving here,"
"So your just using Raven's hospitality?" Vernal asked
Jaune looked at her, "We're both using each other," Jaune said "Raven was trying to force me to join the moment I walked into that tent, by promising me strength she thought I was like my father back in her day, but I'm not like him when he was my age, I don't want strength just to prove I'm the best, I want it because I want to use it to protect people and to fulfill my goal of being a huntsman,"
Vernal thought this guy was being stubborn and an idiot with some sort of honor code or something, but now she could see he had guts, asked her, a person he knew disliked him, for help, he was smart enough to see through Raven's plan and held true by his convictions, which again, were admirable, but also were naive. There was still a lot he had to learn.
"Tell me something Arc, you know I don't have my aura or semblance right?" Vernal asked
Jaune nodded, "Yeah, I figured that out the day we met," Jaune told her
"And like I said before, You had a chance to kill me, why didn't you take it?" Vernal asked again
"Because I didn't want to kill you!" Jaune said frantically
"You really think that matters out here?" Vernal asked him, "You know if Shay had the opportunity, he'd kill you, hell if I had the chance today, I would have killed you! Because out here, when you're fighting Grimm, Bandits, or Rouge Huntsmen, every fight is a fight to the death! If you don't have the guts to kill your enemy who is trying to kill you, then you don't have what it takes to live the life of a huntsman," Vernal told him
Jaune took her words in and admitted she had a point, that out here if he didn't fight like his life was on the line, he would end up dead, but killing someone, even thinking about it, could he really do it? Could he really end the life of another?
Vernal set her plate to the side and moved over to him and looked him in the face. "So tell me, Arc, are you ready to adapt and kill, or are you just gonna screw around and die?" She asked him, "Are you ready to blacken your soul?"
"I... I don't know," Jaune asked "But if that's the reality I have to face... I'll learn to face it," Jaune told her,
Vernal smiled at him and moved away from him and smiled, "You know, you might not be so bad, Arc," Vernal said "You actually might have what it takes life this life," She said
Jaune rubbed the back of his neck, "Uh, Thanks I guess," he told her
Vernal crossed her arms and still smiled, "But don't think this makes us friends, I still don't really like you, but at least I know your not a complete tool," she told him,
Jaune chuckled, "Noted," he said
With that said, the two went back to eating, and Jaune couldn't help that some of the hostility between them was gone, but Jaune knew it would take time for Vernal to at least stand him. But for now, he had plenty of time to both get to know her a little better as well as grow stronger.
However, while he accepted the fact that sometime in the future, he might have to kill... it was still a hard pill to swallow, and his mind swirled with thoughts of questions if he could really kill, or if he could truly take the life of another. Did he really have the guts or the will to live this life? Could he adapt and kill any who tried to kill him?
Could he truly blacken his soul?