- - -
Ruby was trying to do some work on Crescent Rose at the desk in the RWBY Dormroom. Her beloved weapon had been making a squeaking sound while shifting between forms, and it had been driving her crazy! She had been working very hard, trying to fix it all Sunday.
'Trying' being the key word, as her sister and Weiss argued behind her.
"We should train Jaune in the rapier!" Weiss insisted, "I-I've already had a custom blade commissioned for him! He already uses a sword, that's the perfect method to strengthen his Semblance!"
"HA! Totally transparent, Weiss-cream," Yang shot back, "Jaune as Johnny obliterated a tree with one punch! That's what his focus should be!"
"You just like him because he's as uncouth and brutish as you, dolt!" Weiss growled.
"He also goes around without a shirt constantly," Yang smirked. Weiss's face burned bright red.
"E-Even so-!"
"UGGGGHHHHH!" Ruby groaned, turning and scowling at her teammates, "Can you stop talking about Jaune's Semblance for five minutes?!"
Weiss flushed.
"What? I'm actually trying to help him!" She defended herself. "He's your best friend! Aren't you going to help him with his Semblance?"
"Yeah Rubes," Yang stated with a smirk, "You haven't really said anything, and now you're upset? Why?"
"You did want us to get along, didn't you?" Weiss pressed.
Ruby growled.
"You don't care about Jaune for Jaune! You care about his Semblance!"
"Well..." Weiss shrugged. "He's finally coming into his own, so..."
"And he's gonna need a lot of help with it," Yang pointed out, "Something wrong with that?"
"N-No! But I liked him just fine before he found his Semblance, and now you only like him for his power! That's my problem!"
"Or maybe you're just jealous," Blake suggested, reading her book.
Ruby went bright red. She glared, and picked up Crescent Rose.
"I don't have to put up with this!" She growled. "And I'm not jealous!"
She turned and stormed out, slamming the door shut. She took a deep breath, and let it out as an angry groan.
"Uhhhhhggggghhhh!"
"Hey Ruby. What's up?"
"EEP!"
Ruby jumped, and turned her head to the source of the greeting. She held her hand over her chest, taking deep breaths, as Jaune stood there with a nervous smile.
"J-Jaune?"
"Shh," he shushed her, "Come on. Let's go."
He took her hand and led her off. Ruby followed, confused but complying.
He led her down to a common room in the dorms. Nobody else was around at this time of night, which Ruby was grateful for. Jaune guided her to a table, and she set down her scythe on the table. He sat down with her in two chairs, and smiled gratefully.
"Thanks," he said, "I've been dodging Nora and Pyrrha all day to test my Semblance."
Ruby nodded with a small smile.
"Yeah, Yang and Weiss won't stop talking about it," she laughed nervously, "It's... It's really getting on my nerves."
She paused and paled. She shook her head quickly.
"N-Not that it's not good you have your Semblance!" She said quickly. "I-I mean, that's great! Really, it is!"
"Y-Yeah! I'm... I'm happy, really," Jaune said with a nod. He looked down at the table, and sighed. "Everyone's... Pretty great about it."
"But?" Ruby prompted. Jaune glanced at her, and shrugged.
"Just... I mean..." He sighed. "I'm... Worried. Worried about... About never coming back."
Ruby frowned.
"Jaune..."
"I mean... Yeah, those personalities come from me," Jaune explained, "But... They don't feel like me. They feel like other people. I want to be a Huntsman... A hero, as myself... But if I can only do that as other people, I..."
He shook his head and sighed.
"Makes me feel like I'm... Nothing," he admitted quietly.
"That's not true," Ruby insisted. She leaned against him with a bright smile. "I... I care about you, Jaune. I did before you got your Semblance. If your Semblance is so amazing, it-it's because you're amazing!"
"You-You think so?" Jaune asked, looking over at her with a hopeful smile. Ruby nodded eagerly.
"Yeah! And, maybe the other personalities are just a side effect! One you can overcome! When I first got my Semblance, I threw up after every super speed jump!"
Jaune laughed. Ruby pouted.
"It's not that funny!"
"It kind of is!" Jaune snickered. She pouted harder at him, as he grinned at her.
"But... You overcame it?"
"Of course! I'm not Vomit Girl!"
"Maybe I should start calling you that-"
"Don't you dare!" Ruby gasped. Jaune laughed again, and patted her on the head. She pouted up at him, as he beamed.
"That... That actually helps a lot, Ruby," he said. "Thanks."
"Hey, we-we're best friends, right?" Ruby asked. Jaune nodded.
"Of course we are," he said.
He shifted a bit in his chair. His elbow nudged Crescent Rose, and the huge Sniper Scythe began to slide off the table. Ruby gasped, reached out to catch it-
Jaune's hand reached it first. He held it up, staring intently at it.
"Oh, thanks Jaune," Ruby said with a sigh of relief. Jaune remained silent. Ruby blinked.
"Jaune?"
His eyes lit up, glowing briefly. Ruby gasped.
Oh no! His Semblance! What if he's a crazy grim reaper?! Or a mad killer?! Or a-?
Jaune shifted Crescent Rose into rifle mode (which produced a loud squeak), and pulled it up to his face. He pulled out a pair of goggles from the school workshop, and tapped it to activate the light on the side. He opened up the mechashift control panel and began examining it.
"Jaune?" Ruby tried.
"That doesn't sound right," Jaune muttered. He tapped Crescent Rose's internal mechanisms for a second. "How long has it been doing zat?"
"Er," Ruby began, "About two weeks? After I did a circuit board upgrade."
"Sanux Systems MSB-55, right?" Jaune prompted. Ruby blinked in amazement.
"Yeah! How did you know?"
"You told me, of course," Jaune chuckled, his voice a bit... Strange. He held out his hand. "Tweezers, please?"
"Oh, right!" Ruby nodded. She pulled out her mini-repair kit from her belt, and handed some tweezers to him. "I already checked for any bad bridges or soldering on my own work. I couldn't find any, but I redid it all anyway-"
"And you couldn't get to the original circuit board after sealing ze entire thing back up," Jaune said with a nod. He scooted a bit to the side and gestured to the circuit board housing. "See the air filter holes?"
Ruby stared intently. Her eyes widened as she saw some specks of solder metal falling out or sticking to them.
"Yeah," she muttered.
Jaune picked up one such piece and held it up to Ruby's keen eyes.
"It looks like your solder material," Jaune stated, "But look-Those gaps in them. You would never let so many air bubbles develop in your solder joints."
She scowled. "Oh geez... I got a bad circuit board?"
Jaune nodded gravely.
"Yes. The Sanux Systems MSB-55's had a massive recall for a lot of solder joints with voids in them," he said. "Enough power running through them damages the joints, then breaks them."
Ruby groaned, and covered her face.
"I assumed it was all in working order!" She wailed. "I feel like an amateur!"
"Now now," Jaune said, patting her shoulder, "Zat's not your fault. They're your go to brand, always have been. But they changed their management and clearly, they're producing kludge. Arschlochs, all of zem."
"Wow, thanks!" Ruby complimented him... Then started. "Oh geez... Uh... So... What's your name?"
"Jaune," Jaune said with a smirk, "But if you wish to refer to my current persona... Johann feels right."
"Wait, you're aware you're a different personality?" Ruby asked, astonished. Johann nodded.
"Yes. I think it may be because my focus is on problem-solving, deduction, and technical analysis compared to the others' more combat-focused personalities." He hummed thoughtfully. "Zat, and you are my best friend. If these personas manifest from me as part of my Semblance, then my existing relationships will influence how each persona reacts and behaves."
He smiled at Ruby kindly.
"For instance. The persona with the rapier is charming, charismatic, and hot blooded-All zings we wish we could be for Weiss. The persona with the gauntlets is boisterous, confident, and determined-All things that Yang enjoys."
"Wait, your Semblance is shaping your personas to match with us?" Ruby asked. "Why?"
"Good question," Johann said. He leaned back, tapping his chin. "It may be that we're responding to your Auras. Auras are the energy of the soul and leave a kind of psychic fingerprint on everything we interact with. It could be that my Semblance picks up on zat, and adjusts to fit the Aura remnants. Perhaps to enhance synergy, or to pick up skills from the other-Johnny, for instance, fights in Yang's South Mistralian Kickboxing style, despite us never training in it."
"Oh wow!" Ruby gasped excitedly. "That's so neat! So you're an Aura Chamealeon!"
"Perhaps," Johann shrugged, "Zat is only speculation though. We will need to experiment a great deal to discover all the mechanics of the Semblance."
"Oh, uh... But aren't you afraid of being overridden?" Ruby asked, worried. "That-That is what Jaune was-is worried about."
Johann nodded gravely.
"Yes, it would be a great tragedy," he said, "It will require a two-pronged approach: Reinforcing Jaune's baseline abilities and personality, while also studying what aspects of his psyche our personas are formed from. It is, however, too useful an ability to not train or explore. After all, without it, Weiss may have died."
"Oh, I-I don't disagree," Ruby nodded, "I just... I don't want to lose my best friend."
Johann smiled warmly and hugged her.
"Neither do I," he said. "I will need you for this, Ruby."
"Ah? Eh?" Ruby asked. She gasped as Johann held her shoulders and looked her deep in her eyes, their noses nearly touching.
"Yes. I trust you above all others," he said, "As fond as I am of everyone else? You are... Very important."
"R-Really?!" Ruby squeaked, now turning as red as her namesake. Johann nodded.
"Yes. As much as I care for the others-Pyrrha especially..."
And didn't that make Ruby's heart clench? Though she didn't know why, exactly.
"You were my first friend here," Johann intoned, "I need you."
"N-N-Need me... For what?" Ruby whispered. All of Blake's naughty books she had read in secret began to flood her mind.
Is he going to... Does he... Will he... Take off his pants... Take off my-?!
"To stand by me, and keep me from losing myself," Johann said, "As well as aid me in research, given you do have a scientific background."
He pulled back. She slowly nodded, her cheeks still burning red.
"O-Oh."
He smirked.
"Did you have... Something else in mind~?" He asked, cupping her cheek. Her entire body seemed to be burning up. Hurriedly, she pulled away and scooted her chair to the fair side of the table. Her eyes were locked onto Crescent Rose.
"N-N-No! No! Not at all!" She stammered.
"Oh," Johann shrugged. "Well! Zat's new. Most women seem to develop romantic feelings for me when I use their weapon."
"That-Wha-Who-?!"
"Not zat I'm returning any of zem at this time," Johann said, his eyes going back to Crescent Rose, "Too complicated. Still! Good to know my best friend isn't entirely driven by her hormones."
"I... Um... Er..." Ruby managed a slow nod.
"S-Sure."
"Now, shall we get to fixing your beloved Crescent Rose?" Johann asked with a smile.
"Y-Yeah! Yeah, that would be great," Ruby said, sighing in a mixture of relief and agitation. He smirked again.
"Good! Working on it together... It will be like we're making a baby."
Ruby's entire expanse of pale skin lit up bright red again.
"A-A-A baby?!"
"Well, I'll have to put in a lot of effort, of course," he said, humming with a devilish glint in his eyes, "To catch up, but I'm sure you'll be patient. I won't require punishment to correct my bad habits..."
He glanced up at her and winked.
"Unless you're into zat sort of thing?"
Ruby fainted.
- - -
