Disclaimer: Wolfpackersson09 and I do not own RWBY or Kingdom Hearts. RWBY is owned by RoosterTeeth and Kingdom Hearts is owned by Disney and Square Enix. Please support the official release.

Beacon Academy; the most well-known training schools in the kingdom of Vale and, one of the most well-known training facilities in the world of Remnant. This combat school is created with the purpose to teach teams of the next generation to hone their skills and techniques to combat against the creatures of Grimm.

It is here where heroes train, test, and nurture to become future teams of Huntsmen and Huntresses to defend the kingdoms of Remnant.

Like a beacon, they are the light. Setup to ward away the darkness, no matter what form they may take.

"So as you see class. While Beowolves always follow the usual pack mentality, there is always an Alpha Beowolf. They are the ones that lead the pack and to take them out first cause the rest to break into a frenzy of confusion." Professor Peter Port explained to his Grimm studies class as he displayed two diagrams of werewolf like creatures. "A pack without a leader, become nothing than chickens with their heads cuts up! Haha! Now that brings me back to my days hunting down packs in Ol' Los Santos...!"

Unfortunately, the students of Beacon were now doing more sleeping than any testing or training. It wasn't that the portly huntsman was an awful teacher. It was his tendencies to tell stories that dragged out and tire out his students.

Jaune Arc is one of those students that were having trouble enjoying the teacher's epic tales as he fought to keep his eyes open. He looked around the room to see how a few of his friends were doing.

His fellow leader, Ruby Rose, almost beat him to dreamland if it wasn't for her partner Weiss nudging her awake every time she drop. The snow angel was still awake like a good student though she was reaching her limits. Other good students like Blake Belladonna, Lie Ren and Pyrrha Nikos were also barely staying alert while others like Nora Valkyrie and Yang Xiao Long have long since fallen to sleep at their desks like the majority of the class. After another few minutes of listening to Port's Hunting Tales, Jaune finally closed his eyes and let the world go dark around him.

(Scene Change)

Two pools of deep blue opened again and were still greeted with blackness that seemed to stretch out for miles. Looking up, he saw he was falling slowly down in the middle of a faint ray of light. The fall quietly ended as feet touched solid ground. The floor immediately erupts into doves that departed into the black skies, leaving Jaune in the middle of a glass platform.

Flustered and confused, Jaune looked around to see the glass portrayed a princess with an apple in hand. Surrounded her are many forest animals and seven men, each one expression different emotions.

"Whoa…" Jaune called out in awe and just then he noticed a strange fact.

Instead of his Beacon uniform, he was in his usual combat clothes, a black hoodie with reddish-orange colored sleeves, brown wrist length fingerless gloves, blue jeans, two crossing brown belts and black shoes. Over those clothes was armor, a chestplate and pauldrons, along with metal plates on his gloves, giving him the appearance of a modern day knight.

"Uh, where am I?" He asked sheepishly, trying to decipher why he was here. "How'd I get here? And out of my uniform?" He asked as well, but as before there was no answer; only a response.

So much to do, so little time.

A voice seemed to speak from everywhere and nowhere, startling the blond knight.

"Who's there!?" Nervous, he reached to his side only to grab air. It had just clicked that he did not have his weapon with him.

Can you approach the light? At least do that.

"The light?" Jaune wasn't sure what the voice meant. In most stories walking towards the light was the wrong idea, he was sure. But the voice seemed reassuring, calming, he stepped more forward towards the center of the platform and bathed in the light.

The voice spoke again.

Power sleeps within you.

Three pedestals arose from the platform as the voice continued. If you give it form, it shall give you strength. Three weapons appeared on each pedestal in a flash of light: a Sword, a Staff, and a Shield, all suspended in air.

'Am I supposed to pick one of these?' Jaune thought to himself. Deciding once again to trust the mysterious and calm voice, his eye was naturally drawn immediately to the sword. It was a symbolic weapon, and one that had the appeal of heroism. The weapon of a hero, the weapon his father and his fathers before have used.

Power of the warrior. Invincible courage. A sword of terrible destruction. Is the power that you seek?

Now if you have asked Jaune Arc that question before coming to Beacon, he would have taken the sword immediately, but already one semester had him thinking otherwise. He started to have second thoughts. If the sword could only destroy, then how was that heroic? Is the terrible destruction worth invincible courage?

His thought then went to the staff; images of expert dust users filled his head. As he thought more about the staff, he began to picture Weiss' use dust spells with her weapon and her semblance. It seemed to be pretty powerful if mastered. Jaune placed the sword back and walked to the next pedestal to his next option.

Power of the Mystic. Inner strength. A staff of wonder and ruin. Is this the power that you seek?

"I don't know...The sword only destroys, but the staff could help a lot of people. So, why does it bring ruin too? D'oh this is hard!" Jaune asked out to the faceless voice, but he received no answer. Sighing dejectedly, he placed down the staff to think about it more. Looking over to see there was only one more object left to look at before he made his choice: the Shield.

"Not really my first idea of a hero's main weapon, but Pyrrha and I are pretty handy with a shield." Jaune spoke as he placed his hands on the defensive weapon.

Power of the Guardian. Kindness to aid friends. A Shield to repel all. Is this the power you seek?

'Finally, one without a negative! At least not one that I can see.' Jaune smiled as he grasped the shield. Kindness to aid his friends, a shield that repels evil. Whether against the Grimm or even his fellow classmates Jaune wouldn't allow anything harm his friends. All of those thoughts run through his head as his grip tightened around the shield's handle.

"This one is for me. Definitely!" Just as he said that the shield bursts into severally balls of light. Before the blond knight could where his weapon went the voice spoke again.

Your Path is set. Now what will you give up in exchange?

That threw Jaune for a loop; he didn't think he would have to give something up in order to "shape" his power. It was a tough decision for him to make, give up the power of the warrior or the mystic? Jaune walked back over to the sword, to examine it again.

Power of the warrior, Invincible courage. A sword of terrible destruction. Is this the power you give up?

Jaune pondered on that a bit. The shield was often paired with a sword for a reason: the shield defended while the sword struck. The sword was a warrior's tool, and warriors were always courageous. He did like the idea of invincible courage, but was courage really worth the price of terrible destruction? He placed it back down so that he could look at the staff once more.

Power of the mystic, Inner strength. A staff of both wonder and ruin. Is this the power that you give up?

Jaune's thoughts were going a mile a minute. While the sword brought courage, he started thinking about inner strength. Was it something like Aura? If it was, Pyrrha had mentioned that he had a lot of it. There was also the time in the forest of Forever Fall, when he let Cardin beat him up after making a choice to not throw that sap at Pyrrha instead of trying to save himself. It was pretty heroic, courageous even, but it also took a good deal of inner strength just to do it. He could have just dropped the bottle, he probably could have just walked away and taken any punishment that Beacon would give him for lying his way in, but instead he just let the guy beat him up. Then there was the fact of 'wonder and ruin'. What did that mean? He was too curious just to give it up something like that and he had all the courage he needed and more. He placed the staff down and returned to the sword.

Power of the warrior, Invincible courage. A sword of terrible destruction. Is this the power you give up?

"Yes." Jaune spoke with a heavy heart. Each one had good points that he didn't want to give up truly, but if Aura id used for healing and fighting, then he wouldn't give it up the chance to learn how to use his aura more efficiently. Like the shield, the sword vanished, however instead of showering him in light, the light simply faded away.

You have chosen the power of the guardian. You have relinquished the power of the warrior. Is this the path you truly wish?

Could he have chosen a different set? Yet, while he wished it was so, he wouldn't regret not choosing the path of a warrior.

"Yes." He said, but as had done so the pedestals began to fall. They sank into the platform as it began to shatter, causing Jaune to fall further into the blackness.

As Jaune continued his descent, another platform came into view. The knight closed his eyes, wanting to avoid the incoming crash landing, only to feel his fall slow to an easy drop. Jaune opened his eyes just as he landed on his feet. A new princess was depicted on this platform. On the violet glass was a sleeping woman in an elegant dress; a vivid staircase and scenes of castles and chariots around her. She was just as beautiful as the last one, but for now Jaune paid that no mind.

As Jaune took a step forward, his right hand began to glow. He raised his hand, trying to figure out what the light meant only to be shocked as the shield appeared back into his hand. The blond stumbled a bit, almost dropping his new shield from surprise. He began to swing it around, testing its weight. It was much lighter than Crocea Mors' shield, but he felt that this shield could still do its job as a defender. Jaune swung the shield around a bit more to test the feel of it some more.

You have gained the power to fight.

"Fight...with just a shield?" Instinctively, with his free hand, he reached again to his hip where Crocea Mors would've laid sheathed only to remember that he was still without his family's weapon. Grasping hard on the handle of his new shield, Jaune recalled his training with Pyrrha and shifted into a more solid footing. He swung the shield around as he would his sword, though he would also thrust the shield forward. It seems like he could use the shield as a blunt, bashing weapon, however, the edge felt fine enough to cause damage if used the right way.

All right! You've got it! The voice cheered this time as opposed to its usual monotone. As the blond finished off testing his new weapon, the voice spoke again. Use this power to protect yourself and others. There will be times when you have to fight.

"Fight, you mean fighting Grimm?" Jaune asked out to the voice. He looked around the platform, until he spotted something unusual. A small shadowlike creature was moving flat along the glass on its own. "What in Remnant...is that thing?"

Jaune continued to look at it until the shadow rose from the floor. Its appearance was strange, with its two sharp looking claws and childish height. It had two antennas, a roundish head, and glowing yellow eyes. It certainly was not a Grimm, as it had no mask or bonelike armor that the ferocious creatures of Remnant shared. It suddenly leapt at him and Jaune quickly reacted by swinging his shield to defend himself. Thankfully, he managed to block it and strike back, knocking the creature away. While looking harmless, the creature seemed a bit stronger than Jaune expected. It tried again, only Jaune was ready this time. Dodging the flying strike, he struck back with a simple combination of swings. Repeated bashing with the shield caused the creature to vanish in a haze of darkness.

When in battle, always keep your surroundings in mind.

Look out!

Jaune heeded the warning managed to dodge a second of the creatures. Looking at his surroundings, Jaune watch as two more appeared. The first shadow rushed to swipe at the blond knight, causing Jaune to use the shield to block the shadows claws. Like a bat, Jaune knocked the shadow out the air. A few more bashes and swings, had all three shadow creatures knocked into a pile. Just like the first one, they become nothing more than a haze of darkness after their defeat.

"All right, anyone else?!" Feeling more confident, walking around to see if more would spawn until his foot began to sink into the floor.

"Huh?" The blond knight asked himself before he started to panic. The platform under him seemed to be swallowed up in a pool of darkness. Murky black pools, with occasional dark red and purple began to spread across the glass and start to drag him further down into it. Grabbing onto his leg, Jaune tried to pool his leg from the sinking pit, trying to stay above the watery darkness. It continued to spread, pulling him further and further down, the darkness reaching up his torso and to his face. Jaune struggled to breathe, smothered an ebony coffin until he finally felt relief. No longer swallowed by darkness, he first calm himself down and opened his eyes.

A new glass platform, this one colored in shades of pink, replaced the dark pool he had sunk in. Three princesses decorated the glass, only he could make out any of their features like he could the last two.

"Okay, it's official. This is one crazy dream that I'd like to wake up from...and I'm talking to myself." Jaune mentioned as he looked for a way out. As if to mock his request, all he got was a transparent doorway standing in the center of the platform.

Examining the door, he passes his hand through it a few times before he came to an obvious conclusion. "So I can't even touch the doors, let alone open it. Hey, random voice in my head, I could use a little help here!" Jaune called out to the heavens hoping to find something to help him progress further through this weird dream.

Almost immediately, his call was answered by a light descending from the sky, lighting up a chest in the corner of the platform. Having no other choice, Jaune walked over to the chest and tapped it with the tip of his shield. The top of the chest flung open, showing nothing inside before vanishing into light.

"I ask for help and I get an empty chest, good job Jaune." After a pat on the back he turned and saw that the doorway gleam a soft light before becoming solid. Ever the curious one, Jaune ventured forward placing a hand on the doors, checking if it wasn't just a trick of the light. Pressing his hand and feeling solid wood he was about to call for joy until logic invaded his head. Jaune backed up and looked around the doorway to see that it leads to nowhere.

"Where do these doors go? This doesn't make any..." Jaune came to a realization. "It's my dream so it doesn't have to make sense but my dreams aren't ever this freaky. This looks like something Nora would dream of if she has too much syrup on her pancakes." Walking back to the door he noticed that it began to open on its own. Jaune had to shield his eyes as a harsh intense light sprang forth from the moving doors. He walked closer to the light, reaching out before his entire vision went white.

Blinking the spots away, Jaune looked around and finally saw something familiar. Instead of another platform with a princess or even Professor Port's class, he found himself right in front of Beacon Academy courtyard.

"Did I sleepwalk the whole day? How am I out here now?" Looking around he saw that he wasn't alone. Standing out in the courtyard as well were Ren and Nora, his teammates from JNPR and Blake from Team RWBY.

"Maybe they know what's going on. I hope I didn't do anything embarrassing while I sleepwalked." Jaune walked towards the nearest person, Nora.

The orangette gave him a bright smile as he got into hearing distance. "Hey, Jaune, what do you reaaaalllyyy want out of life? To see rare sights, be a hero, or maybe you'd wanna find some romance!" Nora randomly threw at her leader out of the blue. Surprised by the sudden question and Jaune had to think about it for a moment. These questions felt more, important that they should. Still he couldn't help but wonder if he was just being paranoid.

"Um, maybe being a hero, but Nora why the questions? How did I get out here after…?" Jaune wanted to finish but it seemed that Nora was ignoring everything besides his answer.

"So, being a hero's all it's cracked up to be? Your choice Jaune." Nora said and then went back to ignoring the blond.

Shaking his head, Jaune decided to ask Blake what was going on. She'd have the sense to actually talk to him. Nora usually isn't the first choice to get answers from because of her randomness, at times. Though he had to admit it was kind of funny or addictive to get caught up in her pace. Must be how Ren lasted through their friendship.

Back to Blake, the B of Team RWBY was in the middle of reading her book as Jaune approached her, he noticed the cover of the novel: Ninja's of Love. Jaune wanted to ask why Blake was reading that kind of book out in the open (yes he knew all about what that book was about), but he decided against it and focused only on getting answers.

However; before he could call the feline Faunus' name, the book closed and a pair of yellow eyes stared back into a stunned blue.

"Jaune, what is most important to you? Being the best, your friends, or your prized possessions?" Blake asked the confused Knight.

"Most important...? Friendship of course but Blake..."

"Friendship, is that such a big deal?" Blake interrupted him before going back to her book.

Jaune wanted to talk what she meant but it looks like the Cat Faunus was ready to ignore him as well like the Valkyrie before her. Defeated, Jaune walked past her towards Ren, though he thought he saw a smile on Blake's face as he passed her for a second. Thoughts of Blake aside; hopefully Ren will have an idea of what's going on, next to Blake, he was the most sensible out of their group of friends.

Just like the other two, as soon as approached him Ren looked at him and asked a question as well. "What are you most afraid of: Getting old, being different, or being indecisive?" Jaune just slumped at the irony; he was being asked questions while he was trying to get answers. He picked himself up and like before, he answered.

"Being indecisive I guess, but what's with the questions? I'm trying to ask the questions here." Hoping one of them would stop acting weird and answer him, a familiar voice finally did.

So, you are afraid of being indecisive, you want to broaden your horizons, and friendship is most important to you.

"Oh, it's you again." Jaune sighed. "I guess this is still a dream."

Your journey begins at midday, if you keep a steady course you shall do just fine.

"Damn, this is even freakier then I thought...still think it's something Nora would come up on a pancake high though." Jaune said as the world turned bright white around him and he was suddenly on another platform with yet a different princess. On the red glass, the princess in the violet dress lied sleeping with a rose on her chest. Three fairies flew around her, around the thorn and roses. The same black skies, and quickly he noticed that the door he walked through was no longer there. That was when he noticed those shadowy creatures again, crawling up from the floor.

"And here we go again." The shield appeared in his hand and Jaune got prepared for another fight.

The creatures all leapt at the blond at once, claws ready to rip into his flesh. Instead of trying to defend them all at one, Jaune rolled his way out causing them to collide into each other. Jaune quickly bashed the closest one that fell towards him with his shield turning it into a haze. He then swung his way through the waves of enemies, constantly switching from attacking to blocking. Claws swiped and bounced off his shield, stunning for a moment and allowing the blond knight to maneuver through them. Quickly spinning and swinging he attacked his way through the hordes of shadows. With a full, final arc Jaune turned the shadowy creatures into a black mist.

"Those things aren't Grimm, but they weren't friendly." Jaune stopped to catch a quick breath after that surprise battle. He then spied another light that lead him to a path of glass steps floating up high into the black void.

"Guess I'm going up." He lightened the mood as he ran up the path appearing in the light. Running up he saw that they were leading him to another platform. "How many more of these do I have to see before I wake up?!" Jaune yelled as he reached the top of the newest golden platform. This princess in a yellow ball gown and behind her was an angry, snarling beast. Above the two of them was a single rose. The blond knight then saw a single light shine in the center and by instinct walked towards it.

The closer you get to light, the greater your shadow becomes.

"My Shadoooo-oooh my dust!" Jaune turned around and scrambled back as he saw his own shadow had grown and started to rise from the ground much like the creatures before, towering over the smaller knight. The shadow continued to share his likeness until its features began to distort into a new form.

But don't be afraid.

"Easy for you to say!"

Thin black and curly feet landed on the ground, leading up to the colossal shadow. Its shorter legs led to a large muscular body with a hole in the shape of a heart in his chest. It had long black arms, almost reaching the ground, small twisted wings spread from its back and its face with hidden by dozens of thin, black, threads. The only thing not black, were the glowing yellow eyes staring back at Jaune.

And don't forget...

Jaune kept on backing up until his foot felt nothing and almost fell from the platform into the darkness below. After righting himself he turned and saw the giant moving closer towards him. Looking down at his shield, he got prepared for what may be the fight of his (dream) life.

That you hold the mightiest weapon of all.

"A shield isn't exactly a weapon, but then again I'm not Pyrrha, or Ruby, or Yang, or anyone else, especially Weiss." Jaune commented as he managed to roll away before the creature slammed its fist down where he was standing. A dark energy gathered from its fist, creating a pool of darkness and summoning the same creatures that he fought earlier, and he realized that this colossal creature was the one making them. It was also the one who tried to pool him into the darkness.

"So, I can get out of here if I beat you huh?" Jaune took care of the smaller creatures easily enough, but that's when he saw the colossal creature got down on its knees, and gather a pale light within the center of its chest.

'That doesn't look good.' Jaune thought as his suspicion was correct: it was three energy blasts, similar to a dust spell, and they were coming right at him. He managed to block with his shield, but the recoil actually knocked him to the ground. The creature fired three more shots, and quickly getting to his feet he blocked the blast with more success. But Jaune needed to think of a way to counterattack instead of trying to tank the hits with his shield and aura. Thinking up a strategy, he could think of only two ways to take on the colossal shadow.

Strike the energy blasts back and hope it hurts the monster.

Or try to climb his way up to its face and strike there.

Neither choice was really appealing, but he had done crazier before. He must've been crazy at that moment as he decided to try his options out.

Running towards the giant, the knight rose his shield up in time to deflect an energy blast away, sending it flying into the darkness. Liking his results he angled his weapon to fire the Colossus' shots back at its head, causing the giant shadow to rear its head back in pain. The Colossus decided to fire multiple shots at one in order to pressure the blond haired knight more.

Not wanting to risk getting overwhelmed by the blasts, Jaune stopped and held his ground in order to black the creature's assault from behind his shield.

Peeking from behind his shield, Jaune had to roll away as he was barely able to roll out the way of the Colossus' fist. Another familiar pool of darkness opened up and from it, hordes of the smaller shadowy creatures began to rise and target the young knight.

"Ok, more company." Jaune said as he began to knock away the ones that attacked him immediately.

Experimenting, Jaune began to use the chance to attack the giant arm while ignoring the smaller threats. Bashing the colossal shadow with his shield, few swipes at the arm, sparks flew from the giant's arm causing him to draw his limb away from the blond knight. The creature quickly swiped at the blond; creating distance for itself as Jaune backed away to avoid the flailing limbs. Crossing its arms it began to fire another round of energy from its chest, attempting to overwhelm its tiny adversary. Already used to monster's timing, Jaune quickly deflected all the blast back at the Colossal causing it to stagger backwards. With that window of opportunity, Jaune vaulted, using the creature's legs and struck a harsh blow to its head.

The monster howled in pain and anger all while Jaune landed back on the platform. Jaune, filled with confidence, got ready to attack, until his weapon vanished in his hand and the platform began to rumble, the force toppling him to the ground. The pools of darkness returned and ensnared him all the while the creature stepped ominously towards him.

Do not be afraid

The yellow eyes bore down on Jaune as he struggled to get out of the sinking pool of darkness. Pulling against the black .vines that were binding him, the distance between him and the creature quickly disappeared

And remember...

Jaune couldn't even come up with a retort as he was being cocooned by the darkness around. The giant also sinking into it, but unlike him it didn't struggle. It seemed to become one with the murky ebony around them, staring down at him with those soulless glowing eyes. He continued to struggle to the end, with no weapon of any sort to help him get out of this situation. Soon his vision and everything began to fade to black.

That you are the one, who will open the door.

(Jaune of Hearts)

"...And it seems that shall be all for the day." Professor Peter Port finished up just as the bell rang, rousing the sleeping students from their naps.

Jaune jumped awake and held back a potential scream. His heart was still racing as he looked around and was thankful that the dream was over. Breathing a little fast, he wiped a bit of the cold sweat off his forehead as he began to gather his things.

"You okay Jaune?"

Looking up, the blond spotted who ask the question.

Ruby Rose, a girl two years his junior, with short black hair that ending in red tips, and silver eyes wearing their academy uniform: a brown jacket over a tan vest, white shirt, red plaid skirt, long stockings and black shoes but it also had the addition of a red hood.

Standing next to her was another girl, much taller than her. This girl, Pyrrha Nikos, was his age with jade green eyes and bright red hair in a long ponytail. She was wearing the same uniform as the younger girl, only she also had on a bronze circlet headpiece, a pair of green teardrop-shaped emeralds hanging from them on thin chains.

"H-Huh, yeah just class dragging on is all." Jaune answered her while straightening himself out after his shock from sleep. The two girls turn to each other for a moment before turning back to the blond.

"Jaune, have you been feeling all right? This is the fourth time this week you've fallen asleep in class. Have you been sleeping all right?" Pyrrha asked her partner. She was really concerned for his health and wondered if the lack of sleep and the dreams he's having are affecting him. The blond knight has been doing much better physically after they started their training lessons last semester, but that didn't stop her from having some worries about his mental health.

"Yeah Jaune, is something going on that you're not telling anyone? Stress isn't really the best thing a leader should have." Ruby advised her fellow leader. The leader of Team RWBY also had worries for her first friend at Beacon. It wouldn't be the first time he had acted strange to try and cover up a problem he's having. Thankfully the Cardin incident was months behind them.

"It's nothing; I've just been having strange dreams lately." Jaune stood up from his seat. "I was walking around in this...weird place. Fighting these shadow things, things that weren't Grimm, and then fighting some giant monster." Jaune then let out a breath after explaining the dreams he had been having. "Who knows, maybe I been stressing since we've started the new semester."

"Jaune, I understand you might be nervous but it's just another semester. You're doing much better in the combat classes and you're acing the theory classes. You'll do fine this semester." Pyrrha reassured him.

Ruby placed a finger to her a chin and thought for a second before a lightbulb went off. "Don't you worry Jaune. I've got a plan that will take all of your stress away!"

"Huh?" Jaune questioned the younger redhead. Pyrrha also looked at Ruby with a bit of confusion.

"Ruby what are you talking about?" Jaune asked the smiling girl.

"I can't tell you guys now, it'll spoil it! Just come to the cafeteria and have our teams eat together, I'll tell you guys then!" Ruby said to Pyrrha before vanish in a blur of rose petals. Before either then could get a clue what she meant, Ruby had already left thanks to her speed semblance.

"I guess we'll find out when we get there, huh Jaune?" Pyrrha smiled and asked him. Ruby's enthusiasm was very contagious.

"I guess so." Jaune answered as they both left to meet with Ren and Nora before they all headed to the cafeteria.

(Cafeteria)

Jaune and Pyrrha were sitting down with the rest of Team JNPR, enjoying their lunch as they waited for Ruby to arrive. Right now, they were busy watching their friends' antics.

Nora, a girl with short orange hair and turquoise blue eyes, was tossing food at another girl, Yang Xiao-Long, another girl with long blonde hair, purple eyes, and a voluptuous figure (Hey with Yang it was hard not to notice, Jaune was honest to himself). Yang was catching the food with her mouth while sitting next to her partner, Blake. The long black haired and yellow eyed girl was reading a book. Next to Blake is Ruby's partner Weiss Schnee, and someone that Jaune was attracted to not because of her background. She had a decent figure, more petite compared to Yang and Blake, long white hair in a side ponytail and blue eyes with a scar that Jaune noted but didn't think it made her any less beautiful in his opinion. Then again, he thought that most of the girls he knew were attractive in their own right. Before anything else could happen, Ruby came up with a big white binder and slammed it on the table.

"Sisters, friends, Weiss," Ruby started and ignored the indignant "hey" that came from Weiss as she continues. "Four score and seven minutes ago, had a dream! And that dream is to have the best day anyone has ever had…ever!"

"Is that my binder?" Weiss asked, noticing the crossed out 'Property of Weiss Schnee' on the binder itself. Ruby just smiled and held her hands to her side in a 'peace' sign of sorts.

"I am not a crook." The Rose said with a cheerful smile.

"What are you talking about?" Blake asked, shocked from her reading after her leader slammed down the heavy binder on the table.

"I'm talking about kicking the new semester off with a bang!" Ruby fired off.

"I always kick off my semesters with a 'Yang!'" Yang punned, only to receive silence all around. "Huh, huh?! Oh come on, that was punny!" Yang tried to justify her joke if an apple hadn't bounced off her head, causing her to glare at the thrower.

"Booooooo!"

"Nora..."

"Guys, with the new semester coming up and new students and people coming in for the tournament and the Vytal Festival; I thought we could all get together and have one full day of fun before we get thrown back into training, classes, and...homework." Ruby grimaced at the thought of the latter before her smile returned. "So let's throw away all our stress and worries, to have the biggest bestest Best Day Ever!"

"So that is what you were planning to help Jaune." Pyrrha mentioned as she thought about it aloud. A fun day of relaxing and not thinking about those troubling dreams or stressful work could help them all with relieving stress for a time. Also this would help with Jaune's problem and help lift his spirits. Too much stress could cause him to fail tests or not have enough energy to keep up with training.

"Wait, wait you were planning this to help out Jaune? Why would he need help, beyond his current lack of skill in the first place?" Weiss asked despite her harsh words, this got the attention of the rest. They all looked at Ruby, or Pyrrha, to get some answers.

"Well, I wanted something the eight of us could do to have fun together, and Jaune's been so stressed out he's even fighting when he dreams. I mean fighting a black not Grimm thingy isn't exactly stress-free." Ruby answered and Jaune guessed that it might've been something like that.

"Um, it's not that big a deal if I had some really weird and vivid dreams which would be something that Nora would have when she eats Ren's pancakes before bed." That got everyone a bit curious, while Nora and Yang were escalating the food fight of sorts.

"Dreams vary, and some books suggest that they are more important then you realize. What is this dream you've been having today?" Blake asked as she was somewhat intrigued. She had read a book on the subject of dreams from time to time; it's possible there was some meaning behind the blond knight's dreams.

"Well, I guess it started like this..." Jaune started to retell his dream to the rest of them. The blonde and orange troublemakers also paying attention, but it didn't stop them from flinging fruits at each other.

(Outside the Cafeteria)

"I'm telling you Neptune, these guys are awesome. You're going to love meeting them!" An excited teenager spoke energetically to his friend as they walked around outside the Beacon Cafeteria.

The first guy is Sun Wukong, a monkey Faunus and friend/ally of Team RWBY. Faunus are a race of humanoid people who often had physical animal traits. Sun's trait is a long blond monkey tail, matching his short and spiky blond hair. The gray eyed teen was wearing his usual combat garb. Two red on black wrist bracers on his arms and an open white top with no shirt showing his tan and muscular abs. Interestingly; as a Faunus, Sun also had no belly button like humans would. Blue cargo pants and black and yellows sneakers completed his outfit along with a twisted gold necklace, white bandages around his legs, and chains hanging from the belt loops of his pants

"Dude, you said stuff like ten times since we've got here. I get it, they're cool. Especially that Blake girl you keep talking about." Neptune said back to his friend.

Neptune Vasilias, a Huntsman the same age as Sun and a member of the (self-proclaimed) Monkey King's Team. The messy undercut blue haired teen had a calm look on his face opposite of Sun's excited grin. Neptune's outfit was made up of a white dress shirt and black tie under a red jacket with upturned black collar, black fingerless gloves, gray jeans with black padding on the sides and also black shoes. On Neptune's forehead rested a pair of yellow tinted goggles.

"I can't help it man! We were fighting side by side and she was super-fast and I threw a banana at the guy, which sounds gross, but it was awesome!" Sun said, recalling his and Blake's battle against Torchwick.

"Nice!" Neptune said as they fist-bumped.

"Right? And the best part is she's a Faunus." Eyes widened as Sun caught his slip. "But that's a secret, okay?" Sun said seriously. "And I mean..."

"Right right, I won't tell Scarlet or tell Sage and have him tell Scarlet." Neptune joked around though he held his hands up in defense when he saw the blond's glare. "Chill out man, I got it." Neptune stopped their walk and reassured him. "I got it." He whispered.

"You better." Sun jabbed Neptune's chest until they heard something loud slammed against a nearby window. Though it didn't break, despite how the sound was.

"Did you hear anything?"

"Sounds like it came from the Cafeteria."

"Sweet, this place is looking fun already!"

The pair ran inside of the cafeteria, past a rushing stampede of students. Neptune and Sun would be the only two souls to bear witness to the greatest food fight to ever take place on Beacon's soil.

(Beacon Academy – Arena)

"I want to remind everyone here that these start-of-semester spars are just that. Spars that determine how much of a success your training at Beacon is and to see what fields you will need more improvement in."

Projecting her voice from the center of the arena is Glynda Goodwitch, another instructor and an important person in Beacon, second only to the Headmaster himself. Not one of the students knows her age, but guys and few girls agree that she was a beautiful woman. Fair skin and light blonde hair tied back in a bun except for a curl on the right side of her face. Her uniform is a white long-sleeved suit that exposes part of her chest, and puffy sleeves that tighten near the wrist. A black business skirt with buttons running up the front, lighter black-brown stockings, and black boots with brown heels. On top of that she wore a tattered cape that is purple inside and black on the outside, decorated by a row of diamond-shaped brown beads with her symbol, a tiara, above it. Teal earrings matched the small bead on her collar.

The arena as well as the room she and the other first years are in is the room used solely for sparring sessions and battles between teams. It was a class where the students learn the different ways of using their aura in combat as well as to test their techniques and hone their skills against new and familiar faces. Today's classes are one-on-one spars between teammates and now the two students were geared up to face each other.

"Do not worry, this is only a match." Pyrrha reassured Jaune as she got into a battle stance. Her weapon Miló in sword mode and her shield Akoúo̱ attached to her left arm. She had the utmost confidence that Jaune would give her an interesting fight since she began training him.

Jaune nodded and then assumed a more solid dueling stance. He drew his sword, Crocea Mors, and pulled out his sheath to change it to shield mode. He let out a small breath as he did his best to ignore all the people in the classroom watching him, most calling this an easy fight. Focusing solely on the girl in front of him, Jaune rushed forward to land the first attack.

As the two began their spar, Glynda noticed someone else had joined her in the faculty section of the arena.

"I didn't think you would want to watch this. Ms. Nikos always does exceptionally well in her spars, a much better win percentage than Mr. Arc." Glynda spoke to the new arrival as the two students continued clashing their swords. "I still do not see why you show any interest in his growth. He may have improved greatly than he when he arrived but he has ways to go."

"Mr. Arc may still be growing but all he has to do is look within himself to find his true potential." Professor Ozpin said looking down into the arena. Ozpin is the headmaster of Beacon Academy, he interviewed and checked through every applicant, accepting who he feels were the best.

"Beacon is only the door; it is up to him to provide the key." He said, causing his assistant's eyes to widen in surprise. Though before she could ask any more questions the cheering of the others students brought attention was brought back down to the battle. "Seems like Mr. Arc is surprising everyone today. Wouldn't you say Glynda?" Ozpin watched while sipping his mug of coffee.

Sparks flew as weapon met weapon, neither of the students giving an inch as they continued their deadly dance of steel. Crocea Mors bounced off Miló as the two students both kept on the offensive. Pyrrha blocked a feint to her left with her shield, her shocked look becoming a competitive grin. Normally, a fight like this would be easy for Pyrrha as she could easily control the flow with just her semblance alone. However, she decided against using that skill to see just how well Jaune has gotten in a fight. To say she was surprised is an understatement, weeks before Jaune would sloppily and recklessly swing his sword around, leaving his guard wide open. Now, it was almost frightening how different his style changed. The reckless rushes were stilled there but mixed in between feints, stabs and slices.

Recovering from the move, Pyrrha back up while switching her sword into a javelin. Pulling the trigger, she used the force of the shot to swiftly shoot forward towards Jaune's unguarded left. Jaune quickly held up his shield to block the thrust, deflecting it and pushing the red amazon back.

"You've gotten much better at holding your ground. That usually sends you flying." Pyrrha spoke some friendly banter.

"What can I say, I have a good teacher." Jaune smiled back and decided to try something new.

Swinging his shield, Jaune tried to strike with his sword only to meet with Akouo, Pyrrha's shield. Using Jaune's weight, Pyrrha caused him to stumble forward before attacking from behind. Panicking, Jaune recalled his dream and used the shield to swipe Pyrrha away, hitting her and causing her to move back in surprise. Long enough for Jaune to regain his footing and turn around.

"Whoa, I didn't think Jaune had it in him. He's definitely did better than he did last semester against Cardin." Yang said as she and the rest of RWBY and JNPR were watching their friends go at it from the student stands.

"True, but normally he would be outmatched. Pyrrha isn't using her Semblance at all. If she did it would be over quickly." Weiss commented, and while it was impressive to see him actually improve, he was still normally outclassed by the crimson haired huntress. "I wonder where he learned to fight like that, especially with a shield. I've never seen anyone use that as a weapon."

"Pyrrha's not using it for a reason. Maybe she wants everyone to see how much he's improved, how much stronger Jaune gotten since they became a team." Ruby suggested. A part of her couldn't believe this was the same Jaune that needed help to kill an Ursa Major. Now he could possibly be a match against Pyrrha or even her.

There were shrugs between Weiss and Yang as they watched the match continued on. Nora was cheering enthusiastically for both fighters while Ren watched was a calculated look on his face. Ruby and Blake were paying especially close attention to the blond's fight, for different reasons.

It was an impressive duel, but when it ended like everyone expected it to. A sweep to the legs by Pyrrha causes Jaune to land on his rear and before he knew it he had a javelin to his throat. It was practically an outcome that was known, but that didn't stop some of the students from clapping and cheering from the exciting match.

"You held back on purpose didn't you? Not using your semblance." Jaune asked as Pyrrha offered a hand to help him up. She just smiled for a moment before speaking.

"I wanted others to see how much you've improved. If I had used my Semblance, then they would have never seen the fruits of your labor. You really have improved Jaune." Pyrrha spoke sincerely, making Jaune smiled a bit in embarrassment. The knight still didn't quite have the confidence and that Pyrrha had, but he was getting there.

(Jaune of Hearts)

It was later in the at night as Jaune wandered outside the halls of Beacon, thinking about things such as the dream, and the fun impromptu food fight with team RWBY. He chuckled remembering how he wasn't much help in that fight, but his combat skills were definitely improving.

"I am getting better, but I still got a long way to go. Especially if I want to catch up to any of them."

Despite how the match and the food fight ended, Jaune still had a great time with his friends. However at the same time, it showed how much he needed to catch up if the little red leader of Team RWBY took all of them out with just her semblance alone. Before he knew it his walking had brought him out of the Academy and into the surrounding forests near Beacon. The reason why the blond was walking so aimlessly was to clear his head from the dreams he had been having lately. Pyrrha said they couldn't have training tonight, something must have popped up. Still this left an active knight walking around with nothing to do that night. Nora and Ren had quickly gone to sleep after a long day of Nora's madness and Pyrrha had gone off somewhere. Training doesn't go as well unless he had Pyrrha there to instruct him and observe.

A low crack sounded out into the forest, taking the blond from his thoughts.

"Was that...a gun shot?" Jaune ran quickly to where he heard the gun shot fire.

(Scene Change)

"Aw man… I guess I should've listened to Weiss when she told me not to mix up the dust in my bullet capsules." Ruby said as she inspected the sizable hole her sniper rifle left in the center of the tree...and the five others behind it. She looked down in depression as she took off the ruined silencer from Crescent Rose. Ruby had gotten into the habit of managing her dust ammunition along with her other equipment, buying new accessories from her sweetheart to use for different fights. She always used a silencer so as to not wake up other students or faculty or attract Grimm to her location, but now it looked like she needed a new one.

Mixing up dust rounds to get a bigger blast from her gun sounded better in her head.

"Good thing no one is around to see this. If Weiss found out I was messing with dust, again, she wouldn't let me never hear the end of it." Ruby sighed.

"Ruby?!"

"Gah!"

The surprise greeting caused the young Rose to fly into the trees, thanks to her semblance. "I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry Weiss! I'll never mix up dust, or take your binder, or leave my hood in your laundry again!" Ruby was cowering above in the rustling leaves, awaiting the lecture she thought she was going to hear from the angry Scnee.

"Uh, Ruby...what are you doing in a tree?"

"…"

Ruby blinked twice, hearing a familiar voice before dropping back down to the ground, her face red from embarrassment.

"Jaune! Ugh…you didn't...hear...any of that. Did you?" A pair of pleading puppy eyes followed the question.

Deciding to spare the girl, he decided to ignore her question. Teasing Ruby was almost like kicking a puppy, in his mind anyway. She was too cut and innocent to tease, unless you were Yang who knew how to push all of the redhead's buttons.

"I heard a shot fire all the way from Beacon. So I came to check it out." Jaune said, causing the girl's face to become even redder. "Ruby, what are you doing out here so late at night?"

"W-well...I was trying out some new dust combinations. You know, more firepower and extra kick for Crescent Rose, you know? Only, that was after..." Ruby stopped, as if debating with herself whether she should continue.

"You came all the way out here at night just to experiment with dust. I mean, you have one of the smartest dust users in the school as a partner. Why not ask Snow An, I mean Weiss?" Jaune asked.

The Scnee Dust Company are the number one suppliers of dust to all of Remnant, with Weiss being the heiress it would make more sense to ask her on how to efficiently use or mix dust together. Not to mention, Weiss' weapon uses dust as opposed to ammo so she would know much more about how to use it in a fight.

"I can't really say, but..." Ruby changed her weapon back so that she could attach it to her belt. She was debating whether to use her semblance to run or tell Jaune the truth. It's obvious he wouldn't let this go if she had left.

"If you promise not to tell anyone, I can show you why I came all the way out here." She offered.

Confused, Jaune nodded and Ruby decided to lead him away from the ruined trees.

"What happened to those…?"

"THOSE WERE LIKE THAT WHEN I GOT HERE?!"

(Scene Change)

"Your secret place?" Jaune asked as the two students walked through a cave. Lighting the way was Ruby with her flashlight.

"Yeah...well, it's more like me and Pyrrha's but she usually only comes here during the day." Ruby answered. "Nobody else knows about this cave, and it's totally Grimm free too." She stopped as she began to build up the suspense. "But the best part is what lies at the end of this place! The real secret!" Ruby said as she grabbed his hand and began leading him further in.

"Whoa, wait, Ruby stop for a sec! There's nothing special in a cave that we can't just take our time!" Jaune tried to reason with her. It was hard to keep up with a girl who could break mach speed whenever she wanted.

"Oh really?! Then what do you call this!" Ruby smirked and stopped and presented the cave interior to Jaune.

The blond caught his breath and began to look around. It was your normal cave, except the walls were decorated with various marks and doodles. He could tell who the artist was after his eyes passed by a "Ruby's Spot" carved into the wall. In the back of the cave wall, lied the most peculiar thing. A door. A normal room door leading into the wall with no doorknob or handle in sight.

"What's a door doing way in the middle of a cave?" Jaune couldn't help but point out the old fashioned wood door that was at the end of the secret spot. Ruby tilted her head to the side in curiosity and started to think.

"You know, I never really thought about it too much...maybe there's a reason for the door? Maybe like there's some sort of treasure or really cool weapon on the other side." Ruby mentioned and Jaune shook his head at his first friend. Ruby was a weapons geek, and she had a tendency to gush at any available weapon she can get her eyes on. She even admired Jaune's heirloom sword Crocea Mors when she first saw it, and mentioned that not many had an appreciation for the classics.

"I dunno, but there has to be a reason why the Grimm won't come here to begin with..." Jaune had a strange feeling about the door, especially since his dream mentioned a door. Was this the door the voice was talking about?

"Ruby have you tried to open it?" Jaune asked out of curiosity.

"I tried, but nothing works. There is no grip on it so you can't pull it so I tried to be creative. Dust, bullets, even Crescent Rose's blade couldn't pry it open." Ruby glared cutely at the door. How dare a piece a wood get the best of her weapon!

Jaune began to ponder and look around. Along with Ruby's doodles were other drawings, some looked familiar but he could tell Ruby didn't draw them. His eyes then fell on another set of drawings that he could tell was much older. Walking to the wall he brushed his hand against the drawings of a door and a key.

"Maybe this door was part of an old temple or ruin; it needs a key to open it I think." Jaune said.

"A key, you sure?" Ruby walked closer to look at the markings herself.

"Yeah look here, either we need an actual key or it's part of some clue."

"So there is treasure! Yang is going to be so jealous!" Ruby made a large grin in excitement. Jaune smiled next to her, her attitude was really contagious.

"This world has been connected."

A new voice caught the two completely by surprise, making Ruby drop the flashlight. They turned to see a strange man in a robe and hood. It was dark, and the hood was pulled over to completely obscure his face. From what little they could see, he was also hunched forward. It didn't feel like a Grimm, but the man felt unnatural.

"How, why are you here?" Ruby asked, hoping that the secret place wasn't discovered, and yet there was someone other than her, Jaune, and Pyrrha.

"I've come to see the door to this world." The robed man spoke again. Always in an low monotone.

"What do you mean by that?" Jaune asked, more worried about what he meant.

"As I have said, this world has been connected. Tied to the darkness…" That was unnerving, downright eerie that someone would say that. Ruby even thought of either going for her weapon, or even shying behind Jaune. "Soon to be completely eclipsed."

"That doesn't really answer my question." Jaune mentioned as the man seemed to focus on him and Ruby, but paid little heed, save for one more answer.

"You want an answer? How about I state a fact." The stranger then continued. "There is much to know, but you two understand so little."

"Hold on…you said world…right?" Ruby, though still unnerved ask the man. "Does that mean…that there are more than one out there?"

"More than one? Ruby what are you talking about?" Jaune asked.

"So one of you is…enlightened."

"So I was right?!" Ruby moved from behind Jaune. "Are you from another world? How did you get here?"

"Ruby stop!"

Jaune's voice called the girl back to reality. The blond knight turned back to the man. "I don't know what's going on. What do you mean about other worlds?"

"It was in a book my Mom and Grandpa told me a long time ago. It said that every star in the sky is another world. That it is possibly for people to travel to see new and exciting worlds, way different than Remnant." Ruby explained. "But people always told me that was just fairy tale…but I know it has to be true. I want to see as many new worlds as I can."

Jaune was silent, listening to the younger huntress. His mind was trying to wrap his mind about different worlds; he could tell she meant more than other planets. Maybe it was…

"A meaningless effort." The man spoke finally, as if he too had stop to listen to what Ruby just said. "One, who knows nothing, can understand nothing."

As soon as he said that, the dark cave seemed to grow darker with every word. Jaune quickly picked up the flashlight and turned it on. Once the room had light again, the two students that saw that the mysterious man was now gone.

"Creepy…" Jaune said as he handed Ruby back her flashlight. "You know you have to tell me what you meant by other worlds right?"

Ruby nods her head, almost too tired and scared to speak. "Yeah, let's talk tomorrow during break. But right now…I just want to go back to my room."

Not arguing, Jaune let her lead the way out of the cave so that they could both return to Beacon. The two had no idea what that man meant by the door or the world being connected, but a shiver went down both their spines as they recalled his every word. It was a long night, they could think about it later after a full night's sleep.

To be continued…