Nightmares [a RWBY short story]

[Woogwoo Wren]

"Jaune! Jaune! Wake up."

He was shaken awake and found himself staring up at Ruby, her eyes wide with worry.

"Are you okay, Jaune?" she asked.

Was he okay? What did she think?

The nightmares plagued him.

He often woke in the night, the visions that danced across his mind as he slept bringing tears to his eyes and an ache to his heart.

At first, he tried to ignore the dreams, tried to forget them as soon as he woke. But they didn't always end when he woke. He would lie in his sleeping bag, listening to the soft breathing of his travelling companions and the sounds of the night animals around him.

And he would know the one he wanted most was not with them - that she was gone. Forever.

The nightmares plagued him.

And with them, guilt.

How had he been so stupid? How had he not noticed how much she liked him? He had shunned her again and again, thinking her out of his league - instead of chasing after one even farther out of reach.

He had learned to rely on her, to trust her, to go to her when he needed help. Why hadn't she done the same?

The nightmares plagued him.

The ground vanishing under his feet as she threw him away to safety - while going to her own doom. The helplessness he felt as he found himself half a city away. The realisation that he loved her back - and that he had no way of saving her.

He remembered that horrible sight as he finally returned to the tower. The dragon, frozen on top. The top itself smashed to pieces. Qrow, a limp Ruby in his arms.

He knew he should have felt worry for Ruby, but at the time he was only thinking of another friend - a friend who wasn't there.

He remembered Qrow's look, remembered seeing two sparkling pieces of gold land at his feet - her shield and helm. He remembered hearing Wiess call his name, Ren and Nora rushing towards him, the ground spinning, the gold laughing up at him.

She's gone and you couldn't do anything. She's gone and you couldn't do anything. She's gone and you couldn't do anything.

The nightmares plagued him.

He saw her, begging for help as hordes of Grimm surrounded her. He watched helplessly, trapped behind bars, as they moved closer.

He never saw her die, but he relived the helplessness, the anguish, the horror, again and again, night after night.

The nightmares plagued him.

So he did the only thing he could - he trained.

It hurt every time he saw her face on the screen, smiling at him, encouraging him, telling him she would always be there for him - all the while he knew he could never truly see her again.

But it was better than never seeing her again - except in his nightmares. He trained, pushing himself harder each night, the irrational part of his brain saying that if he perfected the swordplay she would come back to him.

But the rational part knew it would never happen. She was gone.

The nightmares plagued him.

He just wanted to see her one last time, to hold her, to tell her how much he loved her.

"Are you okay, Jaune?"

No. I'm not okay.

"Yeah. Just... A nightmare."

[ᴍᴀᴏᴄɪғᴇʀ]

Poor Jaune, always thinking of the ice queen over cereal girl.
Everyone misses Pyrrah.
I was expecting a proper fight scene between Ruby and Cinder at the end of the last season, or at least Jaune and Cinder (Even JNR+RWY versus her maiden powers) but nah... Cinder Fall simply... Fell.