I'm starting a series of One-Shots inspired by Endless Possibilities For Jaune Arc. Check it out, it's pretty fun to read. All one shots will be their own story and will have Jaune as their main character. Different pairings will be presented in each story.
I'm starting off with my take on The Killing Joke, because Alan Moore is amazing.
Where on Remnant where they!? They where out in Vale just a moment ago.
"What the hell just happened!? Where are we!?" Yang was the first to openly ask. They all looked around and noticed that they where in fact in a room. But this one had no doors or windows. The members of team RWBY, JNPR, Glynda, Ozpin, Qrow (Who was pretty sure this was an alcohol induced dream), and Summer (somehow).
Everyone attempted to find a way out, without any success. It began to slowly dawn on her, and soon Pyrrha noticed something out of place.
"Where's Jaune!?" They all froze. Everyone except for a certain blonde knight, was present and accounted for. The atmosphere in the room dropped slightly. Until Summer spoke up.
"Who's Jaune?" She looked at Yang with a confused look, until a black and red blur slammed into her.
"MOM!" Ruby hugged onto her tightly, not wanting to let her go again. She returned the hug with equal happiness. Yang ran in and joined the hug as well. There was a small moment of happiness for everyone watching, until Weiss remembered the situation at hand.
"Wait!! Where are we anyways!? And where's Jaune!?"
"He is still in Vale. Don't worry, he is still safe." A strange figure suddenly appeared before them. Their voice sounded like a mixture of every single voice on Remenant.
"If you are all wondering why you are here, it is because I want to show you how much you should appreciate Jaune. That and I'm running out of ideas and need something to pass the time. The deity waved its hand and a large television appeared in front of them, as well as multiple seats and snacks.
"I want to show you all different worlds in which a single action, even the smallest one's, have changed Jaune Arc's history dramatically. Please, do not worry. You will all return to your world as soon as this is over." Yang growled at the being and stepped forward defensively.
"And why should we listen to you!?"
"Because if I had the power to bring you here, and allow you to see different worlds, you would not like to see what else I can do, Xiao-Long. And all your weapons have been placed safely in their respective places. Now please sit." Slowly, they all did as they where told. The deity vanished as the screen turned on and an image began to form.
Everything seemed to be foggy, and three figures where standing just near the outskirts of Beacon as soft rain poured down on them. The image cleared, and showed three men in tuxedos, two of which seemed to be older than the third.
The third man seemed to be sulking, as if he had lost something important to him. Without warning, his thoughts where being shared with the audience.
'What am I doing? There's no point in this anymore, Pyrrha's dead, my baby is gone... It's no use...'
It became clear who this was. Everyone, especially the people that knew him, where shocked. Especially Pyrhha.
"I'm... dead?" A small tear ran down her cheek as she looked at Jaune's somber expression, wanting to know exactly what happened.
Everything became a blur and a flashback was introduced in a noir-ish black and white fashion, with the red highlights of Pyrrha's hair, and the pile of cooking shrimp in a pan on a stove behind them in the kitchen being the only things with color.
A pregnant Pyrrha sat across a slightly older Jaune, who looked down at a small pile of papers in distress, gripping one tightly.
"Ooo~. Looks like P-Money and Vomit-Boy got busy then~" In her typical fashion, Yang began to tease Pyrrha as the Spartan girl blushed brightly, momentarily forgetting what had happened to that reality's version of her.
This new information was crucial a select few of the people in the room. Mainly Blake, who began to write down a few notes, and Ruby, who felt a small pang of jealousy
"Jaune, it's going to be alright. You don't need to worry about this." She grabbed his hand gently. This seemed to calm him down slightly as he let out a shaky breath.
He remembered that earlier that same day, Jaune had gone off to audition for a job as a comedian. He wore his best suit, a strange parting gift from Ozpin and Glynda, and made sure to look as charismatic as possible.
Luck wasn't on his side however. His skittish, nerve wracking behavior had causes him to stumble over his words and blow a simple punch line. He came home wanting for the earth to just open up and swallow him so that Pyrrha wouldn't have to put up with him, and look for someone better.
"I can't just do that, Pyrrha. I'm a failure! I... what are we gonna do? We'll end up on the streets, and the baby... Oh God Pyrrha!"
He broke down crying. He couldn't support them. He had quit school after Pyrrha became pregnant, and she broke off her contracts with all her sponsors to make time for the baby after the discovery.
They where only in their second year at the time too. Both of them had been dating since the end of the first year and it was going so smoothly. But now, things where a mess. They couldn't ask for any help from their friends because they where almost always away, and Jaune wasn't on very good speaking terms with his family members either.
Nora whimpered slightly at this. Jaune always spoke of his family while holding them in such high regards, it almost seemed impossible to picture them shunning him. Even Weiss looked pained.
So there they where now. Jaune was struggling, and with a baby on it's way. Jaune struggled to find a job as a comedian, but it seemed that the universe hated him for simply existing and wanted him to suffer.
"Jaune, please look at me! I promise you, everything is going to be fine. The landlord is letting us slip on the rent a little more, she feels sad for me, and she happens to be a fan." She smiled a bit, thankful that her fame had actually done something good for her. Jaune stood up and began pacing around the room.
"Well, she hates me. She always comes out into the hallway to scowl at me whenever I take the stairs... God, this place smells like cat piss and old people. I just need enough money to get us set up in a decent neighborhood before the baby comes. For crying out loud, those twins down at Junior's bar earn more than my parents did in a week!" This earned an honest laugh from Pyrrha as she stood and walked over to him.
"Listen Jaune, I love you. Job or no job, you'll find a way to get us through this. You always have."
Everything blurred back to the present as Jaune stared down at a puddle down at his feet, his expression blank and eyes red with tears.
He became desperate after his botched comedy attempt and sought out help from the only man that could help him make more money than him in a single run.
Roman Torchwick.
"Wait! He did what now!? ROMAN'S THE BAD GUY! Why would Jaune do something like that!?" Weiss was confused. Sure the reasoning was clear, but even Jaune was above criminal action.
"Desperation causes people to make stupid decisions miss Rose. I should know..." Ozpin trailed off as he began to rethink his choice of offer for Pyrrha.
He laughed when Jaune asked for his help, but came around when Jaune told him about the amount of Dust hidden within Beacon academy. He knew for a fact, where it was stashed and how to get his hands on it. All he needed was some help from the right people and he'd be set.
Jaune's assertive attitude to the situation, made Glynda realize why exactly Ozpin allowed the young Arc enroll into Beacon. Not because he could become better in his fighting skills, which is very obvious, but because of what he could selflessly do for his friends. She smiled at this, but was brought back to the current moment.
Roman would sell the Dust, he would get paid, and Pyrrha could live a proper life.
At least that how it was supposed to be. Some time during the day, something happened. While Jaune was getting acquainted with the men he would be working with, he received a call from Ren. It was a surprise, as he had not talked to him in over six months. He was hoping for this to be a casual chat, with both of them catching up and making plans to meet up whenever they had free time. Instead, he was told that Pyrrha had died. He tuned the rest of Ren's words out as his world came crashing down around him.
Pyrrha was dead. His baby was dead. He was all alone now.
He tried to call the heist off. But threats of having his friends all hunted down like animals where enough to force him aboard again.
"Hey! Blondie! We doin' this or not?" He looked up to his left as he came back to his senses.
"Yeah, sorry. Just remembering something... Pyrrha and I used to walk around here during the weekends sometimes..."
"Yeah Yeah, whateva. Put this on." He was handed a bright red cape and a pair of white gloves. This was part of the deal as well. Being as strange as it was, the outfit was part of these two's heists. Whoever was leading, always wore the infamous Red Hood. They told him it was to give the sorry, desperate idiot wearing it an added sense of anonymity. That sounded stupid to him.
Surprisingly, Qrow sputtered at the sight of the strange, pill shaped helmet.
"I've seen that before!! That's Alistair's Hood!!" He looked over at Ozpin and Glynda, who had a blank expression and a look of rage respectively.
Alistair Arc, Jaune's uncle. He attended Beacon academy until he was discovered as the Red Hood. His skills where no better than Jaune's at the time, but it was a massive surprise to them at how he managed to take down both Tayang and Raven with a simple deck of cards.
"We'll explain things when we get back..." Ozpin tightened his grip on his cane.
He quickly pulled the gloves on and swung the cape over his shoulders. It was kind of funny to him to be wearing something referred to as the "Red Hood". It seemed like something only Ruby would wear. The thought brought a bittersweet grin to his face.
"Hey, cheer up pall. We're practically giving you all this money for helpin' us. Tomorrow you bury your old lady in luxury, and you leave that piss stain of an apartment." The grin became slightly cheerful.
"Yeah. I guess you're right." He finished buttoning the cape as one of the men came up holding the dome shaped helmet and began to slip it on his head.
"Will I be able to breath in this thing?" He watched as the man turned the helmet to it's proper place.
"Not if you smoke."
"Heh, that's a good one..." He chuckled a little more at the small backhanded joke.
"Maybe I should be lookin' into your line of work instead of you lookin' into mine. You got a funny shaped head, ya know that?" Jaune frowned at this. It seemed to be his trademark appearance, second after "tall blond and scraggly".
"Maybe I should've been a clown instead of a comedian."
A red film covered his eyes as he looked around. It was slightly difficult to tell where he was looking at, but his eyes adjusted.
"Can ya see ?"
"Y-yeah, but it's a little echoey in this thing." He sighed in defeat. It wasn't as if he could do anything about it, so he would just get this over with.
"Oh well. C'mon, let's get goin'." He was dragged in through the back of the building. They wound up inside the chemical filter section of the school. The filter tanks where made to, clearly, filter out any harmful and dangerous chemicals that where being expelled by the Dust powered generators within the school. As a second year Huntsman in training, he along with other new second years, where given a tour of both areas. It didn't take long for Jaune to figure out where exactly they kept the Dust either, and he was glad that memory stuck with him.
"Alright, we just need to get past these filters, and through the pipe tunnels. The room holding the dust is easy to get into, so I shouldn't take long to-" He was cut off as a security guard spotted them.
"Hey! Freeze! Put your hands up!" Before Jaune could even breathe, all hell broke loose. They all dived behind some of the tanks as bullets bounced off the metal and concrete.
Everyone held their breath as they watched the action on screen. Ruby had a feeling she had seen something like this before, bit she wasn't sure what. It did have something to do with someone in a bat costume.
"You asshole, you said there was no security!" They kept firing back.
"T-they must have altered things since I've left! We gotta move!" He grabbed one of the men and ran for the stairs as the other followed.
"You better hope we get outta here alive, because I'm gonna kill you, you son of a bit-" He never finished his threat as a bullet ran through hia skull. His blood splashed on to Jaune's suit and part of the helmet, obscuring his vision.
"Wh-what the hell is this!?" He kept running with his remaining partner. He just wanted to go home. He wanted to just go back to Pyrrha and his unborn baby and be there for them.
A bullet grazed his partner's leg and caused him to fall. Three guards where running up to them, guns ready.
"H-hey! You don't want me! He's the ring leader! He's the Red Hood!" He couldn't believe his ears. He was set up. They planned to use him if this happend.
"Well obviously! Seriously, that daunce couldn't see that from the beginning!?" Despite the frustration Weiss had for the blond knight, she was scared to death. She didn't want to see him get hurt.
"Jaune is pretty dense when it comes to these sort of things. We really shouldn't be surprised. Although it should have been obvious, given thay they didn't have any disguises themselves." Ren's input solidified the fact that Jaune was pretty much clueless about the most obvious things in the world.
Jaune simply watched as a bullet pierced the man's head, killing him. This brought him back to reality as he rushed away up another set of stairs. This was a nightmare. He was going to wake up, and everything was going to be fine. He would get a job, and support Pyrrha and his little baby boy or girl, and they would live happily ever after!
Glynda, and pretty much everyone else, questioned Jaune's mind now. Not just in this universe, but in their own universe as well.
"Stop!" He froze at the familiar voice. He quickly turned around and found himself looking at a now, sixteen year old Ruby Rose.
"Hey, that's me!" Summer and Qrow smiled at this. She looked more mature in that world, but everyone could tell she still held a childlike sense of wonder just by looking at her.
Jaune was happy for once that entire day. Sure she might have been glaring daggers of death at him, but he found this opportunity to get out of his predicament, so he went to pull off the helmet.
"Ruby wait! I'm not a crook, I swear! It's me, Jau-" That last word never came out. As he took one step back, his heal caught the bottom piece of his cape, causing him to slip, and fall over the railings, but quickly grabbing on to it. His life flashes before his eyes as his gloved hand began to slip. Ruby rushed forward to grab him, but she wasn't fast enough however, and he fell down into the chemical vat bellow.
For once, even Qrow's stoic, drunken face broke into one of horror. Everyone knew what those chemicals did to anything that came in contact with it. Faunus, Humans, and Grimm would suffer one of the most painful deaths at the non existent hands of those chemicals. And Qrowmight have been hardened by years of being a Hunter, but this would always be something she feared the most.
Everyone thought that was it. Jaune would die in a few short moments and that would be that. Or so they thought as the screen showed something strange, but amazing.
Just a few minutes away from the school, down a river where the chemicals where dumped, out jumped Jaune, still wearing the Red Hood helmet.
"Look! He's still alive!"
He coughed and struggled to pull himself onto land, but managed to get a few feet away from the river.
He fumbled for the helmet and muttered to himself in a strained voice.
"Oh God! I'm itching all over! Gotta get this stupid hood off..." The helmet comes right off. He tosses it aside and coughs up some of the water.
"Oh Jesus, it burns! What's..." The rain begins to fall harder, and washes some of the itchiness away. He stares at one of the many puddles near him and begins shaking.
"God... please no..." He covers his face as the rain keeps pouring down on him and washes his suit.
He pushes himself away from the puddle, away from the face he just saw. How could he face Pyrrha like this? He was a monster now. A freak.
But Pyrrha is dead... isn't she? What happened to her anyways? A heart attack or something, right?
Who was Pyrrha anyways?
"No..." Pyrhha's eyes begin to water and small tears run down her face.
"Heh... hehehehe... Hee hee... ahoo ahoo ahoo hoo hoo!"
"Why is he chucking? What's wrong with him!?" Ruby shouts for an answer from the being that brought them there, but doesn't receive a reply. This puts everyone watching on the edge of their seats, waiting to see what comes next.
"BHAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! HEHEHEHE, HAHAHA!" His laugher fills the air as his hands grip his head. He continues to laugh as he looks up, revealing his chalk white skin, bright red lips and green hair.
"HOLY SHIT!" Everyone jumped back in shock at June's appearance and Qrow's outburst.
"What the hell happened to him!?" Pyrrha screamed in horror. This could't be their Jaune. What the hell did those chemicals even do to him? This couldn't really exist. Could it? It just couldn't be real at all, Jaune looks like some sort of demented... Joker now.
"Oooo boy~ Hehehe, I'm going to have so much FUN with you Beacon! HAHAHAHAHA! But first... I'm going to need a new suit... and maybe a few party favors... HAHAHAHA!" The scene faded to black as Jaune's haunting laughter rang on...
Nobody said a word as it ends. This was forever burned into their minds now.
"This is only one of many universes in which Jaune suffers a great loss. In ones like this, he embraces madness and eventually destroys himself from within. But in others, his loss becomes his reason for fighting, and growing strong. Don't let one result decide how he will end up."
Everyone gathers themselves as the screen begins to show another segment.
OMAKE:
The deity closes its eyes as it peers into the universe in which Jaune embraces madness... and smiles
A baby's cooing could be heard in a hospital room. A small baby boy, new born. He had red hair and the bluest eyes anyone had ever seen. Holding him, was a very much alive, Pyrrha Nikos. Tired and slightly injured, but alive. It was an unexpected event that caused her to suddenly come back, seemingly unscathed, save for a few minor injuries. They checked to see if the baby was alive as well, and to their surprise it was. Pyrrha spent the next three months in the hospital, and gave birth to a healthy baby boy. Next to her, are her old teammates, as well as team RWBY. Each of them looking both happy, and distraught.
"I'm sorry Pyrrha. But we've done all we can. Nobody can find him, and all we have to lead on is that he was last seen in Junor's club." Ren comforted her as best as he could. It had been a week since Jaune had disappeared, and nobody could find him. Aside from that, a string of murders have been occurring lately with every victim having their face contorted into a horrifying smile.
No other words are spoken. The baby reaches out to Ruby, smiling. John is his name, and as much as it pains everyone, he looks just like his father...
And I hate my writing a little more now. Next chapter will be up soon. Leave your suggestions on what I should do next, and maybe I'll do it