DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything RWBY

Rong Shan. Some called him sword saint. Others called him slaughterer. It is a name long forgotten in the minds of mortals. All that is left are myths of old. Some say he had broken through the confines of the mortal flesh and soared into the heavens. Others insist he had died from old age in self-induced isolation.

*** In Diyu ***

A small hut lies on top of a mountain overlooking the cosmos.

An elderly woman and a young man stand stand across from each other, conversing. Despite her old age, her skin tone, posture, and hair all speak of good health. It is quite obvious that she was quite the beauty in her younger years. The young man beside her has rather ordinary looks. His shoulder length hair is a soft brown, and his height is neither short nor tall. The most distinctive feature are his eyes. Deep blue, bordering on black.

"Meng Po." The young man softly says. "Please do me this favor."

The elderly woman, now revealed as Meng Po, sighs. "Rong Shan... you had such a future ahead of you, and you just let it all go."

"I grew tired," Rong Shan replies. "What was the point? I had already accomplished what I'd set out to do."

"What a shame." Meng Po shakes her head. "I'll ask only once. You are sure this is what you desire?"

Without hesitation, Rong Shan nods. "I am. Perhaps I'll find a new purpose with a new life. Though, I will not let go of her memory."

"Very well." Meng Po sighs and puts away the cup of tea she had been offering Rong Shan, then gestures to the edge of the mountain.

Rong Shan, standing on the edge of the mountain, peers down to a swirling pool of light. Breathing in and closing his eyes, he leans forward, allowing himself to plunge into it. With a soft look in her eyes, Meng Po murmurs, "I wish you good fortune, Rong Shan. May you find true fulfillment in this life."

A blonde knight jerks awake. He abruptly sits up in the crater and takes in the view around him. With a deep breath, he closes his eyes and concentrates on the stream of foreign memories rapidly merging with his own.

'This boy... Jaune Arc... he died when he hit the ground at high speed. The cause was... launched from a cliff?' One of his eyebrows raise. 'Hmm... weak in body, but strong in the heart. Admirable, but unfortunate. Pass in peace Jaune Arc. Your life was cut short, so I will carry your name. In this life, I am not Rong Shan, but Jaune Arc.'

A sudden rush of energy courses through his body, bringing about a refreshing feeling. Jaune's eyes close shut in respond and he concentrates on the unfamiliar energy. By instinct, he directs the energy to course through his muscles, organs, and bones, strengthening them. In less than a minute, he feels the stream of energy wane and dwindle, and Jaune slowly reopens his eyes.

'Intriguing. That felt similar to qi, but not quite the same. It also seems to be replenishing.'

Taking in his surroundings once more, Jaune recalls more memories. 'Hmm... an initiation for Beacon Academy? Find a partner and secure a relic, whatever that is.'

With an annoyed grunt, Jaune peels away whatever is left of his armor and checks his weapon. Bringing Crocea Mors out from its scabbard, he admires its craft and sheen. 'Excellent sword, at least by mortal standards.'

A ferocious roar of a beast sounds out from behind Jaune. Turning around, he is faced with a large bear-like creature with bones protruding out from its back. Its glowing red eyes laser onto Jaune and charges to maul him. As Jaune steps into a stance, preparing to engage, he notices a newcomer.

A red and bronze spear launches out from the brushes and pierces the creature's right arm, rendering it useless. A girl with long red hair, clad in bronze armor, dashes out from where the spear had emerged. With a running start, she launches herself, feet first, onto the creature's skull. As she kicks off from the head, she grabs her weapon and lands with her back facing Jaune, shield raised. Meanwhile, Jaune watches the scene with keen interest.

'She looks familiar... what was her name again? Py... Pyre? Pyree? Pyrrha. That's right, her name is Pyrrha Nikos. That was a very... acrobatic way of fighting, though I do wonder how she compares to the others.'

Pyrrha glances back at the blonde, checking to see if he is alright. She was rather worried about his rather... unique form, when he was falling. Refocusing on the Ursa in front of them, she regards it for a second, then dashes forward. Weaving towards its weakened side, the Ursa fails to swing its left arm in time to defend itself. Pivoting from its right side to its back, Pyrrha cuts the back of the Ursa's knees with her weapon in xiphos form, bringing the Grimm onto its knees. With a flick of her wrist, her weapon flips into a reverse grip, and she stabs the point into the back of the Ursa's skull, slaying it. As the Ursa begins to disintegrate , she flicks the black ichor off her weapon and walks back towards the blond knight she'd saved. Her eyes take in his appearance.

'His armor is scrap metal now, and his clothes are all torn up. Did he forget to cover them with Aura when he'd landed? He looks rather nervous.'

Jaune tries his best to look nervous, but finds the act rather difficult to pull off as it is rather foreign to him. 'It may be in my best interest to practice my facial expressions a little, after this is initiation is over.'

"T-thank you for the assistance. Your name is Pyrrha, if I'm not mistaken? My name is Jaune Arc." Jaune holds out his hand.

Her eyes brighten and she enthusiastically grabs his hand for the handshake. "Well met, Jaune." Her eyes glance over him again. "Out of curiosity... why are your clothes and armor so damaged, but you look fine? Did you forget to channel your Aura into them?"

'Aura?' Jaune rubs the back of his head and sheepishly laughs, "I guess in the heat of the moment, I forgot to do that." Bringing his hand down to his hip, he lets out a grin. "Does this mean we are partners?"

Pyrrha smiles back. "I suppose we are. The only objective left is to retrieve a relic."

Jaune gestures an arm towards the South. "After you, partner."

*** Some time later ***

Jaune brings his shield up and blocks the claws of the Deathstalker. Ren and Pyrrha run around it and flanks its sides. Taking the opportunity, they shoot and cut at the base of the Deathstalker's tail, causing it to droop forward. Its stinger now positioned directly above its head, Jaune yells out, "Nora! Stinger!"

"On it!" The energetic girl jumps onto Pyrrha's shield as a platform, and launches herself high up into the air above the Deathstalker's head. At the peak of her launch height, Nora fires her hammer, adding into the momentum of her fall. With a mighty swing of her hammer, she marries the stringer with the Grimm's brain.

"Yeah! That was awesome!" Nora cheers as she picks herself up.

Chuckling, Jaune reverts his shield back to scabbard form, and sheathes Crocea Mors. Standing together with Pyrrha, Ren, and Nora, they watch team RWBY dispatch a Nevermore, which was now falling headless down a cliff.

After the announcement of their teams, JNPR and RWBY make their way to the dorms. Jaune absentmindedly walks with the group as his mind was preoccupied with various thoughts. 'That headmaster had quite the strange look in his eyes when he designated me as team leader. It was brief, but I definitely did not imagine it. Does he suspect something? And there is also the matter of Aura. I can't recall any memory of Aura in the memories of Jaune Arc, so I'll have to explore what it is on my own. There is much I do not yet understand about this world.'

"-aune. Jaune!"

Blinking his eyes, Jaune refocuses back to reality. "Hmm? Sorry, I was a little caught up in my thoughts."

"What can be so important that you'd be distracted from this decision we have to make?!" Nora exclaims.

Genuinely confused, Jaune asks, "What decision?"

"You silly butt! We need to decide which side of the room we sleep on!" Nora says.

Resisting the urge to facepalm, Jaune sighs out, "You guys can go ahead and decide for yourselves. I'll take whichever spot is left."

In the end, Ren and Nora claim one side, while Jaune and Pyrrha end up on the other As they ready themselves to go to sleep, Jaune fails to stifle a loud groan. Curiosity getting the better of them, they crowd behind their leader, seeing him holding Pumpkin Pete onesie in his hands.

His eye twitching, Jaune stares at the abomination he holds in his hands. 'I refuse to wear this. If it wasn't a gift from my sister, I'd burn it. But I will not wear this, I'd rather die!'

Jaune clears his throat, "Well, this looks like it will need a wash, so I can't wear this. Looks like it will have to be stored in my closet. Indefinitely." He shoves the onesie into the back of his closet and changes into a regular t-shirt and shorts. With blank eyes, he looks at his team.

"Good night everyone."

Pyrrha fails to contain a snort of laughter, Ren smirks in amusement, and Nora explodes with unreserved laughter.