Ever Happened

Jaune Arc stood at a distance, watching.

They were happy.

Ruby, Weiss, Blake, Yang, Pyrrha, Ren, and Nora—they were all talking, laughing, existing. And Penny… Penny was alive.

That should have been enough.

But it wasn’t.

Because Jaune could still see that damn bridge.

It didn’t matter how much time passed.

It didn’t matter that things were different now.

That horror of that moment would never leave him.

“Trust me.”

She had said it so easily.

So certainly.

And he had.

He had trusted her.

And that trust had ended with his sword driven through her chest.

His hands—shaking, desperate, bloodied, holding her together as her body end, her life fading, her Aura vanishing like dust in the wind.

He remembered the weight of her in his arms.

The way her voice had cracked as she reassured him.

The way her eyes had still held that same bright warmth as she died in his arms.

Trust me.

Trust me.

Jaune inhaled sharply, blinking.

The scene in front of him, Beacon, his friends, Penny smiling and laughing—should have been a comfort.

It should have made everything better.

But instead, it just felt wrong.

Like a stage play of a life that shouldn’t exist.

Penny was here.

She was alive, she was laughing, she was talking with his friends like nothing had ever happened.

Like she had never died in his arms.

Like he had never been the one to do it.

And Jaune…

Jaune was glad.

Of course, he was glad.

That

But that didn’t erase what he had done.

Didn’t change the fact that he had been the one to hold the blade.

Didn’t change the fact that when she had needed him most, when she had trusted him most…

He had failed her.

For all the compliments they had about his Semblance.

It was at that single moment that it failed him.

He clenched his fists, nails digging into his palms.

He was standing here alive, breathing, watching, and all he could think about was how none of this should be real.

Penny should be gone.

This shouldn’t be possible.

And yet, there she was, laughing with Ruby, joking with Yang, smiling as she didn’t remember.

That was good.

She didn’t have to.

Ever.

That was better.

Jaune should have gone over.

He should have walked up, smiled, joined in after that jester’s act of him..

He should have been happy.

But his feet felt like they were made of lead.

He couldn’t do it.

He had mustered enough courage and foolishness for that moment.

He couldn’t go over there and pretend like everything was okay.

Because it wasn’t.

Not for him.

They didn’t know.

They couldn’t know.

To them, he was still Jaune Arc, the lovable idiot, the senior, the knight, the friend.

To them, Penny was just another friend coming back into their lives.

But for him—

For him, Penny was a ghost in a body that wasn’t hers.

For him, her laughter was a reminder of what he had done.

For him, her presence was a weight he couldn’t shake.

They could laugh.

They could move forward.

But Jaune was stuck.

Stuck in that moment.

Stuck on that bridge.

Stuck, watching Penny die in his arms over and over again.

Jaune took a breath.

Let it out.

The world around him was so alive.

And yet, he felt like he was somewhere else entirely.

Somewhere distant.

Somewhere far away from all of them.

Standing here, watching her, hearing her voice—

It just made the loss feel fresh again.

Made it hurt all over again.

Jaune swallowed hard.

He would never say it.

Never admit it.

Never let it show.

Because he wanted her here.

But he didn’t know how to exist beside her anymore without playing as the jester.

So he stayed where he was.

Watching.

Silent.

Separate.

Like a man looking in on a life that was no longer his to have.

He had enough time now questioning his place in this time.

At first, he thought this was a dream.

Then, he thought it was a mistake.

Now?

Now, as he stood apart, watching his friends laugh with Penny, feeling a distance that could never be crossed, Jaune wondered if maybe—just maybe—

This was a second chance.

Not for him.

For them.

Jaune shouldn’t be here.

This wasn’t his Beacon.

This wasn’t his past.

And yet, here he was.

Standing alive and breathing in a life that had been ripped away from him once before.

Standing in a world where Beacon never fell, where his friends were still whole, where Penny was still smiling, and had never looked at him in certainty and trust as he drove his blade through her chest.

This was a world that should have never been his to see.

But it was.

And no matter how much it hurt, no matter how much he wanted to drown in the past, he was here now.

So maybe—just maybe—

There was a reason for it.

Jaune let out a slow breath, his fists clenching at his sides.

He still saw the bridge when he closed his eyes.

Still saw Penny falling from that woman’s attack.

Still saw the people he had lost.

But those people weren’t lost here.

They were alive.

They were happy.

They didn’t carry the scars he did.

And maybe—just maybe—

That was why he was here.

Maybe he was here to make sure this version of them never had to see what he had seen.

Maybe he was here to keep this life intact.

Because if he was being honest with himself—

Nothing else made sense.

He had been ripped away from his own, thrown back into a past that wasn’t quite his own.

If it was just cruel fate, then that meant everything he had gone through—everything he had lost—was for nothing.

And Jaune refused to believe that.

He needed to believe that this pain meant something.

He needed to believe that being here had a purpose.

So maybe—

If he could protect them…

If he could keep them safe, keep them happy, keep them laughing like they were now…

Then maybe, just maybe—

This would all be worth it.

Jaune exhaled.

His heart still ached.

His mind still lingered on that bridge, on that moment, on that choice he have made a thousand times over.

But as he stood there, watching them live, watching Penny smile—

For the first time, the pain felt… bearable.

Not gone.

Never gone.

But something he could carry.

Because maybe that was why he was here.

Not to relive the past.

Not to fix his own mistakes.

But to make sure they never had to go through what he did.

And if that was his purpose—

If that was the reason he had been thrown back—

Then he could accept it.

He could bear the weight of knowing.

He could stand apart if it meant they got to stay happy.

Jaune watched them a little longer.

Then, finally, he allowed himself to smile.

Even if he would always be separate from them,

Even if they would never understand what he had lost,

At least they were here.

And at least he could still protect them if trouble comes again.

And maybe, just maybe—

That was enough to make it worth living here.