For some reason Jaune was feeling out of it lately… and workload such as homework was driving him mad. Why do teachers think it's necessary to learn all these about Grimms and their history of terror on humanity? Don't people learn such knowledge when they're a toddler or something? Yet being force-fed such knowledge when all he wanted was to hurry up and defeat Grimms and someday… become a hero who goes around saving people from the creature of the night.
That was what he expected when he faked his transcript to enter Beacon despite knowing next to nothing about being a huntsman or any skill eligible for him to be one. Yet he was here, still up on his feet and hadn't been kicked out.
Even greater surprise was that he landed himself with an astonishing teammate who had his back all the way through, willing to help him to better his skill, and support him when he needed to. He sometimes wasn't sure if he deserved such support from his loving teammate. Often in the past he wondered if they'd be better off winding up with a more experienced leader, instead of a saggy, dorky, unskilled leader like him. However, when he told the guys about his unconscious thoughts, they immediately denied it, saying he was a great enough leader for them.
He didn't believe it at first, convinced that they only said those sweet words to not make him depressed or blame himself in any way.
Yet the gaze they gave him made him feel certain they truly believe he can become a great leader—and he could see no lies in their eyes.
Because of that, he works harder and harder in order to live up to their expectations. No, both them and his expectations. Regardless, he was desperate to not be a disappointing leader towards such trusted friends, and comrades. Sadly, homework from Professor Port and Professor Oobleck still gives him a headache. He can only take comfort in his highly educated friend, Pyrrha, to help him with that too. To be honest, he felt really bad to have dumped all this on Pyrrha when she went through the trouble of training him every day… It's a wonder why Pyrrha was still putting up with him, still. Hopefully, in the near or far future, he can repay her in some form of ways. It was an Arc's promise to himself.
Joining Beacon Academy was a decision he never wanted to regret.
Surprisingly, he wasn't regretting it now, nor will he in the future.
After all, he got friends to support him, including the one from another team, Ruby. It's honestly funny to say, but dorky, socially awkward people may somehow attract each other. Because Ruby was the first friend in Beacon he made, and like him, was a leader of her own team. Since they were friends they hung out a lot, though other than Ruby he still doesn't know much about the other's in her team. Except one, of course, who else but Weiss… the person he had a crush on, yet seems to make no headline in his journey to woo the fine and fair Snow Angel. In the end, perhaps he really was too dorky for Weiss to pay any attention to.
God damn the world!
He knows it from the first day he begins his attempt at wooing, but refuses to admit it. Because he's Jaune Arc, he'll never admit defeat unless necessary or he himself decides that it was enough. That said… One day, he woke up after dreaming about a reddish-black sparrow giving him cookies.
And that was the day where all the tragedy on his first friend, and her team started.
At first Ruby said she had a nightmare, but he laughed it off, and so did the others.
But this got terrible as her nightmare remained constant for weeks. He wanted to help, wanting to cheer his first friend up, but it didn't help. As a result, his once outgoing, dorky, awkward, and great leader whom he envied yet looked up to fell into a state of gloominess.
This didn't stop there, soon Blake and Weiss somehow winded up in the same case as Ruby… overtime, the remaining member as well.
It was terrible, unusual, beyond his understanding!
Why was such a thing happening to a team composed of diverse and great characters? He inquired of Pyrrha and Ren about what they thought of the mysterious matter, but they hopelessly shook their heads, it was beyond their understanding as well.
This was all too strange. Bad dreams can be caused by several reasons, for instance, trauma, stress, anxiety, sleep deprivation, etc.
However, Ruby, Yang, Weiss, Blake, case was odd. They didn't have a history that would suggest being flooded with continuous bad dreams. At least, that was what they were told by the headmaster and headmistress themselves. Beyond that, the case of Aura decreasing overnight was still pretty much a mystery. No one has gleaned any headlines into this mysterious problem.
The nurse in the office says Ruby and his comrade didn't have any mental health condition or taken any unsuitable medication to have caused this. The Headmaster says they'll reach out to the four's family to see if they can glean the leading cause of this unfortunate ordeal. Sadly, has it already been days since then but no useful information was gathered.
At this rate, they'll be shipped back to their family for their own well-being.
He wondered if they'll now be burdened with set-back from their huntsman career. No, forget careers, the more pressing matter is whether they'll be well or not. He hoped, to the gods above, they'd be alright.
After hanging out on the roof by himself in order to cool his head.
He stumbled down the stairs, through the hall, and back to his group's room. The door wasn't locked so he stumbled inside a few steps, raised his head and saw his worried friends. They all look at him, knowing exactly what's on his mind, he heaves and says. "So… um, did anything while I was gone?" What did they do? Other than worried about him, Jaune knew it was a stupid question to ask when he already knew.
Pyrrha sighs, shaking her head. "Jaune, we know the things happening… to them are making you worried. And we all are worried, but please don't put that all in your heart… it won't be good for you." Just like him, they too were worried about them, after all—the group indeed had hung up with the RWBY's for months, which was long enough to be considered a friend and ally of each other.
However, were they like him? For the strangest reason he felt the unnerving notion that this was his fault, somehow. It made him feel guilty, angered, and downcast, but he was sure he had nothing to do with this, like seriously, he didn't do any of this nor did he have the powers for all that matter.
So why does he keep feeling that this whole thing was his fault? It doesn make sense, not at all.
This led one to wonder why Jaune would feel that it was his fault.
Perhaps this question will never be answered, to him, of course.
On that night where the wind whistled past Beacon Academy. After spending time in the bathroom, Jaune rolled up his pants, washed his hands, and strode out. When he got out, Nora's snoring sound bounced up and down, while Ren leid motionless on his bed, making no sound as he slept. He cast his gaze on the last of his teammates, who, like the others, were also sleeping. As he looks at her, he wonders how such a great person like Pyrrha could be so kind to an idiot captain like him.
Period of time passed, only then did Jaune decide to go back to sleep.
It was already midnight, he woke earlier because his stomach was feeling uncomfortable.
Now, it was time to go back to sleep… but before that he gazed at the door, eyes seemingly bypassing the door and prying into the room across. At that moment, a strong feeling of self-blaming dug deeper into him again. "I hope they're… alright," he whispered.
Minutes later, he rolled up into his bed and gazed at the ceiling for sometime. I didn't do anything, yet I keep on having this feeling that it's all my fault, why? I really hoped. I really really hope Ruby and the others would get better soon, I hope so… he clutches his hand before sighing. Then before closing his eyes, he saliently said, "Why do I keep dreaming about animals?"
His consciousness slowly slips into slumber once his eyelid closes.
In the dreaming world, as an indeterminate period of time passes, a darkish figure appears within the pitch-black world. At first, it laughed, before saying, "Finally, another round can begin… hhhehehe." Immediately four images pointing toward four people appear before it. Smiling, it couldn't help but take pleasure in the mass it had created.
In case you haven't known, all the bad dreams hunting the RWBYs were all his doing.
Because the more it causes others to experience a never-ending nightmare the more the more pleasure it derives from it. Moreover, the feeling of pushing others into madness was all too fun, something he wholly enjoyed. However, as it looks at the dream showing Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and Yang. It begins to feel tired of tormenting these girls' dreams. It grinned eerily, "Why only these four? I now have the power to add more people." He grinned, "This time—more than just one more person, but three more instead."
Within a second, an image showing three people beside the RWBY appeared in his sight. It was a dream showing Nora, Ren, and Pyrrha.
He didn't know why such an evil act could give it such pleasure, but he didn't care to find the reason either.
At the same time, as Jaune dreamed, three new animals emerge in his dream. All symbolizing his friend, yet he doesn't even know a thing. After all, everything that darkish figure does. He will never know upon waking up. Everything that had happened in the dream, he would see animals, while others were suffering. But mostly shocking of all, except for the darkish color around that figure, it looked exactly like him.
Meaning this was his doing all along.
Correction, it was his Semblance that was causing the terror while he had no part in it. The reason why his Aura, whenever he wakes, seems to always be normal despite all this because while toying with others' dreams like the bogeyman. It also saps the Aura from its prey, replenishing Jaune's own Aura every night before he wakes up. What's most surprising is that his Semblance created bogeyman-self, seems to have an independent mind and does these things on its own accord.
Unfortunately, Jaune himself wasn't aware, if he was… he'd be breaking down in guilt, and self-hatred already. That said, tonight will certainly turn out badly for dear Nora, Ren, and Pyrrha.
Starting now, they will become a target of Jaune's bogeyman self. Hopefully, Jaune finds out about this soon or else… The stronger his Semblance becomes, the more catastrophe it can do.
The End.