WELCOME TO THE REAL WORLD

CH1: WAKING VISIONS

(re-edit)

It's so dark…

Am I asleep?

Then I'm dreaming…

Why is everything black?

*roar*

What was that?

*RRROOOOARRR*

Wait.

What is this?

Fur?

*roar*

What it that?

A skull? A bear?

Jaune woke up violently, breathing herd as he sat up from his bed. He held his forehead and tried to remember what he was dreaming. All he remembers was blackness. Same thing happens to everyone, remembering a dream is difficult. For Jaune, aside the blackness was something else.

"A skull."

It was difficult for him to remember what transpired in his dream. He then realized the light shining from his window and the loud ringing of his old alarm clock

"Holy- I'll be late!"

He jumped up from his bed and scrambled around his floor. After half an hour of getting ready, he made his way to grab some bread and meat from his fridge for breakfast. It didn't look like he had enough time to sit and eat. He grabbed what he could and made a simple sandwich and took a milk carton. He was now fully dressed for school. His usual short sleeve hoodie with his jeans. He grabbed his back and ID. For a moment he started at his ID. Black hair and brown eyes.

-Jaune Luna-

He stared at his name. The name felt foreign to him, but it has his. Yet something about the name felt off to him. He couldn't point his finger to it, but looking at his ID brought an uncanny feeling for him. Looking back at his clock, he brushed the thought and made his way to the door.

Beacon Academy.

A high school that was not so far from his place. So the commute was short, but making past convergence of vehicles and other people at a certain time would certainly delay the travel. Being so close to the school didn't matter if traffic got around before anyone did. Jaune ate his sandwich along the way. This simple sandwich wasn't totally going to fill him up, but it was better then starving all the way to lunch period. As he munched, he looked around, noticed some students walking along with him. He recognized some of them talking to each other.

A relatively short girl with orange hair, wearing a red hoodie was talking to a taller girl with blonde, straight hair. It seemed like she was spurring up quite a conversation from the way she flung her hands to describe something. Jaune couldn't make out anything she was saying from across the street.

-Yang Dunkleman and Ruby Jones.-

Alongside their different looks, they were step-sisters who were entering the same highschool as freshman. Ruby was a younger than Yang, but she did so well in her grade that she managed to skip a few grades, enough to walk side by side with her sister. Both ecstatic to know that they would share the life a a highschooler together. Yang had always been friendly with everyone. She had as much energy as her sister, but rarely acts like was known to everyone how much took care of her hair. Most of the girls were jealous of her long, straight blonde hair. So it isn't uncommon that Yang would gain enemies because of something as small as her hair.

Jaune had met these two in the beginning of the school year. Being friends with them made Jaune's thought of school be much better. The two continued to walk as they talked to each other.

"Hey! Watch where you're going!"

He watched Ruby bump into a girl that was equally her height. Ruby profusely apologized to the girl, bowing to the girl and putting her hand on her own head. This was not the first time this has happened. The girl she bumped into was none other than Weiss Eberle. Hair, paler than Yang's. Uptight and quite bossy at times.

This girl was known for her relations with the head of a powerful company. She was also known for her intellect.

Jaune may not be the only one to notice, but there are some who knew about Weiss and her relationship among other students. She didn't have a lot of friends. Most definitely because of her personality, people seeing her only as a valuable ally to have because of her family's name. She had a group of girls following her around, but none were really her friends. It was dead obvious that Weiss doesn't trust any of them to be called a friend. Yet she still lets them walk along side her.

Not many people pay attention to things, but observing Weiss from time to time, she always has this sad look in her face. Its as if the expressions she put up with everyone is just a façade to fit in, but that personality is making it it impossible to happen. Jaune guessed that it was normal for girls to put up a face, just to fit in.

Her not having any friends is from the treatment she gives to people whenever she's opposed. Ruby was getting that treatment right now. She kept shouting at the poor girl while a taller individual tried to calm her down. This girl sported long red hair and looked really feminine.

This girl was Pyrrha Brown. Noticeable crimson hair. She was the smartest girl in class. She was also pretty athletic. She seemed like a celebrity, beauty and athletic. She was a model student and hailed from a prestigious middle school. She had been the smartest person in her middle school throughout her time tin Sanctum. She's a nice girl, but her taste in men wasn't really good. Since the boy she's currently dating was a full on jerk named Cardin Ellis. Though that was only a rumor. A rumor that everyone seemed to believe. Pyrrha didn't look like she cared about it though.

Pyrrha managed to calm the ice queen and walked away along with her clique. She motioned her hand to apologized to Yang and Ruby. Ruby looked like she was in tears.

Not so long ago, she was happy. Only to be put down by the Heiress. Yang held her sister close as they continued walking.

Yang, even though she was the big sister, she wasn't able to defend Ruby like an older sister would. Jaune had seen occasions about Yang not being so strong. Back in middle school, girls had always picked on her and she just took it. Jaune would sometimes hear crying by the bathrooms whenever he had to go. Not long after graduation, her social status changed after her "puberty." But when things change, others stay the same.

Jaune had finished eating his sandwich and milk. He was about to throw the carton to a nearby trashcan until he bumped into someone. Jaune flinched, surprised by the emergence of this person from his blind spot.

-Blake Zech-

Short black hair and a bow. She was reading a book before they collided. Jaune apologized awkwardly to her. She averted his gaze, pretending not to notice him. Blake and Jaune had some history together. He had gone out with Blake in middle school. They were both happy then. Blake's smile was quite a blessing to see. It was one of her distinguishing features aside her black bow. They broke up at some point and he has never seen her smile since.

Not the same smile she always gave him.

"Move it, dumbass."

He was violently shoved by a taller man. This man looked like he was a junior.

Blake dating older guys. That seemed like something she'd do.

Adam Hunter was the name this guy had. He fit the bad boy profile. Jaune hadn't had a clue what Blake sees in him.

"Sorry."

Jaune moved back, bowing his head. Jaune thought about Blake and their relationship from back then. They were together then and happy.

What happened between them that made them what they are now?

'When did we break up?'

His head was filled with so much thought. He tried to remember. He thought more of what was the more important question.

'WHY did we break up?'

But for the life of him, he could not remember. He shouted in his head, how can he forget something so important?

"Hey! Move it!"

He felt another shove. Jaune got Ruby beat today. The physical attack broke Jaune's train of thought.

A girl in front of him, who like about Ruby's height, glared at him. This feisty, brown haired girl was Nora Ireland. It was rare to see her going to school. She was a delinquent after all. She's pretty feared by others. She's quite a fighter and held quite a reputation outside school. What surprises Jaune even more was how in Remnant's name was Nora even in Beacon and how is she still there.

She doesn't attend classes often from days, yet she was still enrolled. He had never seen her grades and it didn't look like she was doing bad at class. He thought that it probably had to do with her gang threatening other students into giving her answers and school materials. Maybe it was something like that.

"Sorry!"

Jaune quickly moved back, letting the girl walked by him. He didn't want to get into a rumble with this girl. He didn't want to get in her bad side and get jumped by her gang. Jaune remembered during his first they when the holder kids started making a fuss with her and afterwards, the school was full of gossip about the same kids were in the hospital from aggressive assault. As Nora walked away, she looked back and gave Jaune a glare. Jaune felt the heat from her piercing eyes. She turned back stopping short from bumping into another person.

Nora's reaction was different this time. She moved back and whispered an apology. Why does that person get treated differently?

'Oh.'

Jaune noticed that the person was none other than Oum Ren. He was an enigmatic transfer student. Academically, he was quite a genius, but he made it seemed like he was better than everyone else, sometimes making smug remarks. Ren continued to walk without even noticing Nora.

His demeanor was what kept people from approaching him. Usually when teams are assigned, he was just placed by the teachers.

Does Nora like this guy? This wasn't the only time it has happened. There were occasions where Jaune noticed Nora stalking Ren when going home. It was a bit creepy, but that was the case.

"That's the gang."

Jaune had stopped and looked at the sky. It's been a few weeks since he entered Beacon Academy. It was a surprise that he managed to get into it, just barely. Jaune had hoped for a great high school life, but from how things have been going on, it seemed unlikely. It didn't take Ruby long till she was back to her old self, continuing her conversation with her older sister. It seemed like the incident with Weiss never even happened.

He took a deep breath and continued. People are just running into each other these days. Just bumping and making a scene. Jaune may not have been smart, but he is usually pretty observant of the people around him.

He was an approachable guy, and easy to get along with. Not pretty good with the ladies. Thankfully he did make a couple of friends in the first day of school. Jaune never regretted helping Ruby from Weiss's wrath in the first day. Yang had gone to get something for her to drink and the Ruby had been nervous about entering high school and the first thing in the day was bumping into the ice queen. Yang had seen what transpired and dearly thanked him.

Jaune had made quite a friendly status with these two.

Never once Jaune hit on them. He didn't want to destroy what he just got from them. Being friends with these siblings were enough.

Jaune walked quickly to them and greeted them. Jaune didn't want to tell them that he saw Weiss shouting at Ruby. Weiss wasn't in good relations with Jaune. Especially in the first day when he tried to soothe and asked her out to date, which ended terribly with his face marked with her hand. Jaune didn't realize Weiss remembered him when he saved Ruby from her.

He walked happily alongside them. For all the things that happened and didn't happen for his first year in Beacon, it was enough to know that he wasn't alone.

He stopped suddenly as he looked up at the sky.

Something felt off about the moon. It's natural for the moon to be out in the day from time to time, but…

"Is the moon…braking apart?"

"What did you say Jaune?" Ruby noticed Jaune's pause. Yang had turned around to see what was keeping Jaune.

"It's nothing. Let's get going, we don't want traffic to catch up."

"Okay! So yeah, this senior looked really pretty! Her black hair was like on one side and she had this sexiness going for her."

'Yeah, everything will be fine.'

Though as Jaune walked alongside Ruby and Yang, he can't shake the feeling of what he felt this morning. Whatever it was, he was sure that it was something ominous.

To be continued...