eam RWBY's Quest for Minimum Wage Earnings 4
AndrewJTalon
Experienced.
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These should probably be one chapter but oh well...
- - -
They drove from Vale on the new highway up towards Gallia, the sub-kingdom Radian was in. After the war, with the diminishing numbers of Grimm, construction was massively easier across all of Remnant and new areas opened up for resource exploitation and colonization.
Everywhere they looked along the journey was contruction: Building new homes, new businesses, new lives for people everywhere.
"HEY BUDDY MOVE IT!"
Jaune sighed and rolled down the window of the truck. He poked his head out to stare at the motorist shaking his fist and honking his horn at him in a red sportscar. One vehicle amid hundreds all now moving like snails on the highway.
"I can't! It's a jam!" He shouted back.
"YOU COULD MOVE UP A FOOT!"
"I'm not moving up a foot! A foot is nothing!" Jaune argued back.
"IT'S A FOOT CLOSER TO MY DESTINATION!"
Jaune sighed and pulled his head back. He rolled the window back up.
"This sucks!" Ruby groaned, glaring at the miles of cars ahead of them, "There are five lanes, how are they all jammed?!"
"According to Jaune's Scroll," Weiss reported, scrolling through data on the communications device, "A construction crane stalled and caused some accidents several miles ahead."
"Great," Ruby sighed. She grabbed the Scroll. "I wanna game!"
"No! No! I'm looking into dresses for the wedding!" Weiss insisted. "W-We need to look our best for Jaune...'s sister's wedding!"
"There's a dress shop in Radian," Jaune said with a smile, "And my sisters have a LOT of old dresses, believe me. We'll find you all something great, I promise."
Weiss blushed and smiled warmly.
"I-Thank you Jaune," she said.
"Yeah," Ruby nodded.
"Completely," Yang added.
Blake was trying to sleep.
Ruby pulled on the Scroll again.
"I want to game! It's been months!"
"NO! I'm going to look up the dress shop in Radian!" Weiss growled.
"You can WAIT! I need some stimulation!" Ruby whined. "This is soooo boring!"
"At least it's not aggravating like listening to you whine!" Weiss seethed.
Jaune sighed, reached back, and took his Scroll back. He looked over his shoulder and raised an eyebrow.
"Guys? Just share it," he said, "It's okay."
"Besides, he can't exactly turn this thing around and go home," Yang joked. Ruby and Weiss flushed.
"Ahem," Weiss managed, "Sorry Jaune... And Ruby. I guess."
"Hmph!" Ruby huffed. She sighed heavily. "Sorry Jaune. Sorry Weiss."
"It's fine," Jaune nodded, "It's been an exciting day."
He handed the Scroll back and the two friends began to scroll on the device in peace. Jaune looked over at Yang, who shot him a strange little smile.
"What?" He asked.
"Nothing," Yang said softly. Jaune blinked, then mentally shrugged as he looked back out the windscreen. Still a sea of slowly moving cars as far as the eye could see, sadly.
The guy behind them honked more loudly. Jaune rolled his eyes.
"Want me to shut him up?" Yang asked with a grin and wink. She held up her fists. Jaune shook his head.
"No. He's just blowing off steam," he shrugged. "Not like he can hurt us or anything."
The horn got louder. Blake grumbled and opened her eyes.
"Idiot," Blake hissed. She opened the window and looked back out at the driver. "Hey! Knock it off! We're all stuck!"
"Stuff it, you cat bitch!" He shouted back.
Jaune growled. Yang's eyes flashed red. Weiss and Ruby scowled.
"HEY! That's racist!" Blake shouted. "Are you anti-Faunus?!"
The man pulled his hat off, revealing dog ears.
"NO! I hate Cat Faunus!"
Blake gasped and then growled.
"You only hate us because we're better than you in every way, you flea bitten mongrel!"
"Uptight feline cunt!"
"TOILET WATER GUZZLER!"
"SAND BOX SHITTER!"
"Okay, that's enough!" Ruby said worriedly, pulling Blake back in. Yang helpfully rolled the window back up, reaching over Jaune's lap to the controls. Jaune coughed.
Weiss smirked a bit.
"Well, well, well... I suppose stereotypes are fine when a Faunus does it?" She snarked.
"NO!" Blake growled. "It's not a stereotype if it's true! Dog Faunus are all bastards! And they're just jealous of us! It's not racism when Faunus do it to other Faunus!"
"I can't imagine how your parents ever lost their election," Weiss drawled. Blake growled.
"I can't imagine how your dad lost his fortune!"
"You little-!"
Ruby winced. Yang turned, reached back and shoved them apart.
"Will you two quit it already?!" She demanded. "It's gonna be a long enough drive as it is!"
"You'd take her side!" Blake sniffed. "You're a dog lover!"
"I'm taking the side that's NOT MAKING EVERYONE MISERABLE!"
Jaune checked the clock and the fading light. The sun was already going down behind the Albus mountains. He sighed heavily.
"Hey," he said, "We're near the exit for Edge. How about we stop there at a hotel and resume the trip tomorrow? The wedding's in ten days after all."
"Sounds GREAT!" Ruby insisted with a strained smile.
"Yes, just fine," Weiss muttered, scowling at Blake. Blake scowled back at her and Yang, but nodded. Yang pulled back and sighed, nodding in agreement.
"Sounds good to me..."
They inched their way to the exit, the dog Faunus in the red sportscar honking the whole way. Jaune sighed in relief as they got into turning distance.
"Finally," he muttered. "Okay, here we go-"
"Just one second~," Weiss chirped. She opened the window and sent off a Glyph which hit the sportscar. It sputtered to a halt and died. The Dog Faunus driver gaped.
"WHAT THE-YOU LITTLE-CAT LOVING-BITCHES-!"
Jaune gaped at this utter abuse of power. Weiss pulled back and smirked.
"Now we can go," she said. Blake smirked.
"Well... Thank you for that."
"I didn't do it for you!" Weiss sniffed, "I did it because he's an annoying cad! No manners whatsoever!"
Jaune put on the gas and prayed the guy didn't have a dashcam. He sighed.
"This is like that time at Tin Town," he muttered.
"Come on," Yang laughed, "This is nothing like Tin Town! Nothing's on fire!"
The sportscar burst into flames behind them. The Dog Faunus man got out and yelped wildly.
Jaune's jaw dropped. Ruby's smile became even more strained.
"Gun it!" She cried.
Jaune complied all too eagerly.
- - -
Okay, so this one is a little more serious...
- - -
They found a hotel an appropriate distance from the highway-Nothing fancy but it was comfortable and clean. Jaune got them two rooms, and left to go grab some dinner for everyone while they sorted out the sleeping arrangements. He sighed as he came back from the local Biggy Burger with bags of food in a cardboard box he'd been given by the nice staff.
"I'll probably just sleep on the floor or something," he chuckled in some amusement. He walked up the stairs to the second floor, the hallways painted a neutral earth color, and headed for their rooms. He heard some chaos and yelling from the first room he'd bought... And so he headed to the second.
"Or maybe I can have a room to myself by locking the door," he muttered, unlocking the door with the card key and opening it up. He walked in, hearing the shower running. In front of the sink and large mirror was Yang, dressed in nothing but a towel while she was combing her hair. She flushed as she looked over at him.
"Oh! Hey Jaune. Sorry, Blake and Weiss were fighting over the shower so Rubes and I decided to come over here. You don't mind?"
"It's fine," Jaune shrugged, keeping his eyes on hers. "I brought dinner."
"Thanks!" Yang grinned. Jaune walked over to a small table and set the food down. Yang resumed brushing her hair... When her artificial hand jerked violently. She yelped. Jaune rushed over to her.
"Yang? You okay?"
"Urgh, I'm fine," Yang grumbled, gripping her artificial hand with a scowl. The brush she was holding had a chunk of blonde curls on it. "Just this stupid arm. Ruby's doing her best to keep it going but well... Uh..."
Jaune nodded. He gently took the brush from her hand. He then began to gently run the brush through her hair. Yang's eyes widened and her cheeks went red.
"J-Jaune, you don't-"
"I did this for my sisters," Jaune said with a small smile, "It's okay."
Yang sighed softly. She relaxed, a soft smile on her face. She seemed to practically purr under his attentions, the brushstrokes melting all the stress away.
It had never failed to make his sisters happy.
Which is why Jaune didn't know what the hell to do when Yang suddenly burst into tears.
"Y-Yang?!" Jaune asked, bewildered and scared. "You okay? Did I pull too hard-?"
He winced.
Stupid question...
"I-I just..." She turned as she sobbed, putting a hand over her eyes, "God... I'm sorry... I..." She hugged him and bawled.
As a man with seven sisters, Jaune did what came naturally when it came to a sobbing girl: He hugged her and stroked her back. He guided her over to the nearby bed, setting them both down.
"Yang... Yang, it's okay..."
"G-God..." She sobbed hard, "J-Jaune...!"
She kept crying. Jaune held her, murmuring soothing sounding noises to her as she pressed her face into his chest.
After a bit, she got herself under control. She wiped her eyes hurriedly with her organic arm, and avoiding looking up at him.
"Jaune, I... I'm sorry," she whispered. "It... It's just... It's been so hard. We tried and tried and... And we just fucked up everything..."
Jaune sighed. He hugged her tightly. She leaned against him, a desperate need for some kind of comfort.
"I-I mean... I thought I could be a bodyguard or-or something... But every asshole wanted to fight us and the insurance made that impossible... Ruby tried running a weapon shop but she just went overboard and bankrupt... Weiss tried accounting, but she just didn't have the people skills and Blake... Fucking Blake..."
She sobbed again, angrily this time.
"Fuck, what was I thinking?!" She hissed. "That was... Was always going to end in a disaster! I was so stupid hooking up with her!"
Jaune sighed and stroked her back soothingly.
"We all made terrible mistakes, Yang," Jaune said, "I mean, I prevented the Afterans from ascending. I had to... To kill Penny..."
His eyes fell onto the floor, the old shames all springing back up again.
Yang sighed and nuzzled his chest.
"Yeah... But you were always the dependable one. The one who got back up and kept going, n-no matter what... We wouldn't have saved the world without you." She snorted. "Hell, Ruby killed herself. I mean, sort of."
"You remember that too? I'm not the only one?" Jaune asked in disbelief. Yang shrugged.
"I-I mean, I think so? That was really weird, right?"
"Totally weird," Jaune agreed. Yang sighed.
"And now we saved the world and... Fuck. We're just a bunch of disasters and screw ups. And you're here to... To save us from our own fuckups again."
"It... Wasn't that bad, right?" Jaune asked with a hopeful smile.
She shuddered.
"I... I was one missed rent check away from... From accepting this guy's offer to..." She trailed off as she shuddered in disgust. She looked to the side, tears in her eyes. Jaune felt a surge of rage, but kept it tamped down as Yang kept mumbling:
"If I was a better big sister... If we weren't just... Just losers... Maybe..."
Jaune, despite himself, tightened his grip around her shoulders protectively. He took a deep breath.
"Hey," Jaune murmured, tilting her head up so she had to look him in the eyes, "You're my friends. I care about you. And I'm going to do anything I can to help you. It's not pity, it's not charity. I care about all of you, and we're going to figure this out." He sighed.
"If it helps? I was pretty lost after we saved the world, too. My family though? They helped me, and I'm doing okay. Sometimes we all need a little help to find our way. From people who love us. And I'm going to do that for all of you, because I love you all."
Yang sniffled again.
"You... You mean it?"
"I do," Jaune said with a nod. "Look, don't worry about anything for now. We're just friends going to my sister's wedding, and having fun. Nothing else needs to be said, or done. I promise."
Yang sniffled again before she hugged him tightly.
"... Sorry I was such a bitch," she mumbled.
"You weren't," Jaune sighed, patting her head. "I promise... I mean, mostly."
"Mostly?" Yang asked, slightly offended. Jaune chuckled and shrugged.
"You did steal my shampoo a few times."
Yang flushed.
"You used the same brand I did," she muttered, "All flowery."
"Floral scents can be manly!" Jaune protested, pretending to be offended. Yang snickered.
"Sure they can... Sure..." She smiled up at him. "You made it so, Mister Rusted Knight."
They smiled warmly at each other.
The door to the bathroom opened. Ruby emerged, drying her hair with a towel.
"H-Hey," she managed, "Um... The food smells great."
"Oh yeah!" Jaune said with a smile, "There's plenty. You should get Weiss and Blake over here, too."
"R-Right," Ruby said with a smile. "I need you to come too, Yang. You should get dressed and I'll fix your arm!"
Yang nodded, blushing a bit before she pulled away and stood up. She smiled warmly at Jaune.
"Thanks," she murmured.
"Don't mention it," Jaune said with a smile.
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