[RWBY] RWBY Shorts

[AndrewJTalon]

I know this is supposed to be humor, but I genuinely think it wouldn't get off the floor. Yang would explain herself/her plan, and Jaune would basically explain the whole point of the Jaundice Arc—Manhood, and in her case, Womanhood, is not a "thing" that is "decided." It's not any more or less manly to ask for help despite traditional values, and it's not more or less feminine to prefer less traditional/more physical means of entertainment. If anyone can't understand or appreciate that, (or her) they're as much of an idiotic fool he was when he snuck his way into Beacon, nor should they have the right to be someone she confides in. Cue her being flustered.

Click to shrink...

Jaune Arc got up early. It's just what he did: Years as a farmboy had ingrained the habit into him.



It may have also been a combination of a few other things: The responsibility he felt for his team as their leader, the drive to improve so he wouldn't hold them back, wanting to encourage and motivate them by making them breakfast...



And it was kind of fun to see Nora cuddling up to Ren. No matter what, she always found his way into Ren's bed to sleep next to him. He always seemed a lot more relaxed, too.



Also, perhaps teasing Pyrrha a bit over her drooling?



He shook his head.



No... You owe too much to her to do that, he thought.



Well... Maybe a little. Once he made it clear he did respect her. Right? Right.



He headed out into the common room, silently shutting the door behind him. He yawned then... Sniffed. He smelled cooking eggs and bacon. He looked over at their kitchenette and blinked.



A shock of golden hair greeted him, attached to one Yang Xiao-Long. She was in a purple sundress and an apron, with her hair tied back. She was cooking up a storm. She looked up and smiled at him.



"Hey VB! Good morning!" She whispered loudly.



Jaune blinked.



"Uh... Hey Yang," he greeted, walking towards her, "What's the occasion?"



"What occasion? I just felt like getting dressed up and cooking breakfast," she said with a warm smile. Jaune blinked a few more times.



"You're wearing a lot of make up," he pronounced.



"Yeah? ... Does it look good?"



"I mean, yeah," Jaune said with a nod, "Little thick on the eyeliner though and the lipstick is uh... M-Maybe a little too dark?"



He blushed. Okay, up close she was a lot prettier. Honestly, her in a dress and apron was... Wow. He already thought she was a knockout but... Damn!



Yang frowned and paused in her cooking. She pulled out her makeup kit and examined herself in the mirror.



"Yeah, I guess I did go a little heavy on it," she admitted. She looked over at him with a raised eyebrow. "How do you know so much about it?"



"Seven sisters," Jaune deadpanned. Yang's eyes widened in disbelief. He pulled out his Scroll and flipped to the same picture he showed whenever anyone reacted like that: The one of himself with his seven siblings on a couch, and he was holding a sign that read "Help".



Yang snorted in laughter.



"Wow! You're not kidding!" She snickered. Jaune nodded.



"Yeah. Also? Turn your eggs."



"Ah!" Yang grabbed a spatula and turned them over. She looked over at Jaune with a speculative smile.



"So... You're probably a good judge of what's girly and what's not, huh VB?"



"I mean... I guess?" Jaune shrugged. Yang nodded with a beam.



"Then you're perfect!"



"For?"



"Helping me be more feminine, of course," Yang insisted. Jaune blinked a few times.



"What? Why do you need help with that, Yang?" Honestly, he felt like he'd walked into another universe with that statement.



Yang sighed and shrugged. She didn't meet his eyes.



"I, well... What's wrong with wanting to be more feminine?"



"Nothing," Jaune said with a smile, "But it's a little sudden, you know? And I don't think a purse is great for combat class."



"I would have set it down," Yang grumbled. She sighed and looked back at breakfast, flipping some pancakes off the griddle. Jaune dutifully grabbed a plate and caught them all in a stack. Yang raised an eyebrow and grinned.



"Not bad," she said.



"Thanks," Jaune nodded, "So... What brought it on?"



Yang sighed again.



"... It's stupid," she said, "Neptune said I was a tomboy."



Jaune bit back a growl. That freaking guy that Weiss was mooning over?



"And, well..." She shrugged, "I dunno... I wanted to prove him wrong, I guess." She smiled at him. "So! You wanna help me prove him wrong?"



Jaune held her gaze for a time, before he slowly shook his head.



"Yang? Why do you care what he thinks?"



"I... I dunno," Yang muttered, glancing away again. It felt very familiar.



Jaune sighed and flipped through his Scroll. He held it up to her. Yang stared... And snickered in disbelief.



"I-What?! You're in a dress?!"



"Yup," Jaune said with a nod, "Seven sisters and I was their dress up doll. I also did plenty of sewing, cooking, and other 'girly' stuff."



He flipped through a few more pictures.



"I also helped my dad fix the tractor, put in fence posts, and wrangle livestock," he stated. Yang flushed. Jaune frowned in confusion and glanced at the photo: What was the big deal? He had lost his shirt wrestling that pig in the mud. What was embarrassing about that?



"I guess that, well, what I'm trying to say is: If you want to dress up, cook, and all that? That's great," Jaune said with a smile, "And if you want to be a bruiser with a bike? That's even better. You clearly know how to dress and cook and take care of Ruby."



"I..." Yang looked at him curiously, "How much did she-?"



"A lot," Jaune said with a nod, "It couldn't have been easy."



Yang sucked in a tight breath and glanced out the window for a moment. She returned her gaze back to the food cooking on the stove.



"It... It wasn't," she whispered.



"But that's how I know," Jaune said with a smile, "That you'll be a great mom and wife someday. You don't have to be this... This image of yourself in your head. You just have to be the best you can be. Truly."



Yang glanced at him. Her blush was a bit more pronounced.



"When did you stop being such a... A goof?" She asked quietly. Jaune shrugged, his memory going back to the fight in Forever Fall.



"Let's just say I realized I was trying to be something I wasn't, and I needed to be honest with others and myself," he said softly.



"Well..." Yang sighed. "I... Thanks."



"Any time," Jaune replied with a smile. It made her blush harder for some reason. Weird.



A thought then occurred to him.



"Uh... Why are you cooking in here?" Jaune asked.



Yang coughed.



"Weiss uh... Weiss kind of destroyed our oven when she tried to bake a cake... Wanna join us for breakfast?"



Jaune grinned.



"Would love to. Maybe I could impress Weiss with my cooking? What do you think?"



A flash of annoyance appeared on Yang's face, before her smile returned to normal.



"I don't think she'd appreciate it, Stud... But hey. If it doesn't work out, wanna go blow off some steam training with me?"



"'Stud'?" Jaune asked, confused, "What happened to 'Vomit Boy'?"



"You got promoted," Yang grinned, "What do you say?"



"Sure," Jaune agreed with a smile. Man, did he have great friends.

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Also, I finally thought up a potential flaw for Arslan. I mean she is strong, kind, generous, religious, and a good leader and fighter. All good traits to have. She is also calm and wise beyond her years. Her Semblance required her to cultivate her calm, as Pneuma boosts and enhances her Aura and her Aura Control as long as she keeps control over her breathing. It's why she's so phenomenal at Aura-based martial arts (And in the game Amity Park, she can unleash Hadoken-like blasts of Aura).

But at the same time? She can make errors in judgement and misread people. For instance: She made the error that Pyrrha had no desire to be her friend. That she understood Arslan's entreaties for rivalry. As a Stonebreaker, or a member of a Warrior Order in the Church of the Broken Table, rivalries are meant to be friendships. To drive the other towards greater heights and to keep them honest. She thought that Pyrrha understood... But Pyrrha didn't get it. Never reached out or corrected things.

Arslan assumed it was because she was a terrible rival for Pyrrha. After all, she never beat Pyrrha once. And as a result, assumed Pyrrha didn't see her as a worthy friend, either. Which Arslan was very sad about. She found herself lacking and she didn't know in what.

Of course Arslan didn't know that Pyrrha was terminally shy, and that Pyrrha didn't understand what Arslan was doing due to a culture gap. Pyrrha's mother may have known about this but didn't let Pyrrha make friends with Arslan out of paranoia of Pyrrha being used by her.

So Arslan tends to assume that the fault is hers, and she must work very hard to overcome it. She withdraws and while she remains polite and kind, she also stays guarded. She does have a habit of trying to fix things on her own, even though the tenets of her faith demand fellowship. She can be stubborn and too introspective.

So! Other than time travel, how else might Arslan and Pyrrha learn of this misunderstanding and try to become friends?

 

[AndrewJTalon]

It was seldom that Blake Belladonna would ever admit to making a mistake. She wanted to believe they were just setbacks, wrong turns, not full on errors on her part. After all, she was trying to bring justice to the world. She was fighting for her people to be free and equal!



She couldn't afford to make mistakes.



However, she'd started to re-examine that assumption after leaving Adam and the White Fang. With the White Fang she had felt increasingly isolated and alone as she voiced her opinions and desires, and was humored, patronized and ignored. She had felt like she was the only one who had kept sight of their mission: Equality, not domination.



When she'd had enough, she ran away. She found Jaune, and for the first time in a long time? She had felt listened to.

She didn't tell him everything, but she did voice her worries and concerns. He had listened. Even if he couldn't do anything else for her, he had listened and taken her seriously. He had done his best to help her. They had trained together and he had helped her feel safe.

Blake hadn't felt safe in a long time. And for a time, her new team had also made her feel safe. Beacon had felt safe.



So when her team found out she was formally White Fang? That safety was gone. So she had run away again.



She'd run into Sun Wukong, a nice enough Faunus boy. Honestly? Too nice, too flirty. He was confident and sunny, yes, but took nothing seriously. Not as much as she would like. Still, he was kind enough to tell her about a White Fang operation at the docks, and even kinder to fight with her.



She hadn't made a mistake. She was... She was going to fix things. She was going to correct an error. It couldn't be the White Fang at the docks, or if it was? They were taking orders from some human criminal.



Well... As she laid on the hard concrete after taking a powerful hit, her Aura flickering around her, she realized she was half-right.



Roman Torchwick, gentleman thief and gangster, scowled at the tall, hulking reptilian Faunus who swaggered up beside him. He was swinging around a giant monk's spade with Dust-powered flamethrowers attached. He wore only a pair of pants and a White Fang mask around his neck like a collar: He was heavily muscled and covered in scales, bald, with sharp teeth, red eyes, and a long swinging tail behind him.



He was Thanh Qingquong, a gangster and murderer, a Komodo Dragon Faunus... And a former member of the White Fang.



Or so Blake thought.



"Took you long enough," Roman groused, "Kitty-Kat was all over me!"



The reptile Faunus grinned, baring his sharp fangs.



"I had to deal with the monkey whelp," he sneered.



Blake sat up and gasped.



"Sun! What did you do to him-?!"



"Knocked him out," Thanh chuckled, "I'll suck the marrow from his bones soon enough! You though..." He pointed the monk spade at her, "Adam's gonna want you back, kitty." He grinned terribly.



"But not before I get a piece~..."



"You-You can't work for Adam," Blake gasped, "You-You murderer! He banished you! He told me-!"



"He lied, Little Cat," Thanh cackled, "Just to spare his little princess' feelings! How do you like that?"



"But you-you can't work with humans!" Blake growled.



"Said by the cat whoring herself out to humans," Thanh sneered, "I can smell them on you even now. Pathetic."



He stomped over to her. He swung his monk spade down, and she barely rolled out of the way. She got to her feet, unsteady, and unleashed several shots. Thanh ignored the bullets as he charged, swinging wildly. Blake dodged with her incredible agility, but a blast from the flamethrowers forced her to evade in mid-air with a clone.



He twisted his spade upwards, and smacked her across the face. She tumbled through the air and slammed into a crate, smashing it beneath her. She groaned as Thanh stalked over towards her, drooling over his sharp teeth.



"Now... Adam didn't say how to bring you back," he chuckled, leering up and down her body, "But I don't think he'll mind if I have a taste~..."



Blake gritted her teeth. It was... It was all her fault. Everything... She had to get away, she had to...!



Thanh raised his spade over his head, and swung down. Blake tried to move, tried to summon her Aura-



The monk spade clanged loudly against steel. Blake blinked, dumbfounded, as she saw a familiar boy with blond hair and a sword and shield standing in front of her.



"Jaune?!"



"Blake! RUN!" Jaune shouted. He shoved Thanh's spade aside and thrust his blade for his stomach. His sword pierced through, right to the hilt. Jaune looked up in shock. Thanh just smirked, and laughed. He then swung a great arm and backhanded Jaune, so hard he went flying.



"JAUNE!" Blake screamed, as Jaune slammed into some nearby crates with a loud crash. Thanh cackled as the wound healed.



"Another simp trying to help you, huh?" Thanh laughed. "You only attract the weak, just like you..."



She could hear gunfire nearby: Familiar gunfire. Ruby and her friends were storming in, she could hear it. But Thanh was already stalking towards Jaune, twirling his massive weapon around. Blake struggled to her feet and dashed after the brute. She leaped up onto his back and wrapped her arms around his throat. Thanh's tail cracked like a whip, several times, beating Blake on her back as he reached up to grab her. She tried to evade, but a tail whip forced her down and Thanh gripped her arm. He pulled her over and held her up and away from him, laughing at her. She struggled to get free, kicking and punching and biting, but Thanh just kept laughing.



"End of the line, princess!" He snarled. He slammed her to the ground, cratering it under her body. She yowled in pain, and shrieked when he stomped down on her chest. He leered down at her as he reached out for Jaune.



"First, I'm going to eat your little boyfriend," he sneered, "Then? I'll see about you~..."



No... No, please, Blake prayed, please... Someone... Anyone...! PLEASE! Don't let him pay for my mistakes! PLEASE!



Thanh's terrible face leered down at her. He licked his lips, his sharp teeth glistened in the moonlight... And then a fist met the side of his jaw.



His eyes widened in shock. His jaw deformed from the force of the blow. Teeth and blood flew out of his mouth as he was knocked off his feet. He went flying right into a forklift, breaking it in two and making it explode.



Blake stared at the fiery wreck, before slowly looking over at their savior.



Doctor Knowall stood there, cracking his knuckles, his face a stern mask of pure, cold rage.



"Belladonna," he barked, "Look after Arc. I'll handle this."



"Y-Yes sir," Blake managed, too shocked to disobey. She got up and checked on the groaning Jaune as Knowall walked in front of them.



Blake pulled out her Scroll and linked it to Jaune: His Aura was regenerating, and he was conscious. Relief filled her as she squeezed his hand. He opened his eyes and blinked away stars.



"Ugh... You okay, Blake?" He asked.



"Yes," Blake insisted, "How did you-?"



"Heard about White Fang operating here," Jaune wheezed, "Called in everyone to come here when I heard gunfire... I-I'm sorry I couldn't-"



Blake smiled and squeezed his hand, fighting tears.



"There's nothing to apologize for," she whispered.



Thanh burst out of the wreckage, roaring in rage.



"Who has the fucking balls?!"



Knowall eyed him with a bored look, the wind from the ocean making his white coat wave slightly.



"Thanh Qingquong, aka Thanh the Immortal?" Doctor Knowall asked. Thanh sneered.



"That's me!"



"You possess a Regenerative Semblance, correct?" Knowall asked calmly, his sensible shoes making barely any sound as he walked towards him. Thanh cackled.



"YES! I can regenerate from any injury, no matter how severe, little man!"



Elsewhere, she could see the rest of RWBY and JNPR appear, fighting through the White Fang members. She could even see Sun: Unconcious, but being carried by Nora. Relief flooded her.



He's okay... He's okay...



Thanh cackled again and pointed his monk spade at Knowall.



"So you have no chance, little man! No matter what you can throw at me, I'll just keep coming back!"



Knowall nodded.



"Well, that's great news!" Knowall said cheerfully.



"Oh? And why is that?" Thanh sneered. "You happy to die to an immortal, foolish ape?!"



Knowall calmly pulled his labcoat off, and tossed it aside. Weiss caught it, flushing bright red, as Knowall next pulled off his jacket and then unbuttoned his sleeves. He rolled them up, loosened his tie... And grinned the most terrifying smile Blake could ever remember seeing.



"Because I don't have to hold back," Knowall growled, before he lunged.



Blake could admit to making many mistakes. She would deal with that. But it was somewhat comforting to know that Thanh the Immortal had made even worse ones.



- - -

Click to shrink...

Doctor Knowall's first attack was a series of jabs, quick and calculated. Nothing fancy, nothing too complex. Thanh contemptuously blocked each one, then let loose a roundhouse kick at Knowall. Knowall took the hit to his temple, and skidded a bit from the impact. He heard his students and his younger self gasp in shock. He heard Thanh laugh, and saw the rest of his White Fang goons cheer.



"HA! Is that the best you can do, doctor?" Thanh sneered, "I'll enjoy making these girls my bitches while I gnaw on your bones!"



Knowall slowly turned back to Thanh. He cracked his neck. He spat out some blood. He resumed his terrifying smile.



"Thanks. All I needed to know," Knowall stated, "You won't be hitting me again."



Thanh laughed mockingly, and swung a clawed hand at him.



"I think not-!"



Knowall ducked under the swing and planted his fist into Thanh's floating ribs, shattering them with the blow. Thanh's laugh turned into a cry of pain, and the big Faunus punched and kicked furiously. With contemptuous ease, Knowall blocked, slapped away, or dodged every blow before he put an uppercut into Thanh's jaw, again knocking out a lot of sharp teeth and blood.



"Attend, students," Knowall said, almost conversationally, as he slammed a palm strike into Thanh's nose, "While Aura can protect you from many injuries, the proper application of force can still let you damage vulnerable areas on an opponent's body."



The Faunus roared and fell back. He swung around, cracking his tail like a bullwhip. Knowall caught it with one hand, not moved an inch.



"For instance, joints are always a potential target in a fight, and only require the proper leverage to exploit," Knowall went on, snapping several vertebrae in Thanh's tail. Thanh roared in pain, and swung back around as his face and mouth healed. He again attacked, this time swinging his monk's spade at Knowall.



The doctor calmly jumped over the swing at his feet, and delivered a kick right into Thanh's face with a bony crunch.



"Other targets are an enemy's eyes, nose, mouth," Knowall went on over Thanh's howl of pain, "Or anything else sensitive and external."



He dodged around Thanh's wild swings with his polearm, and calmly grabbed his wrist. He then thrust his palm against Thanh's elbow, snapping it and making him drop his weapon.



"AARRGGHHH!"



Thanh again retreated, breathing hard. His eye and face repaired itself, while his elbow returned to its previous state. Thanh snarled, bloodlust in his eyes.



"I WILL USE YOUR HEAD AS A CHAMBER POT!" He shrieked, lunging with his claws and sharp teeth. Knowall again dodged out of the way and slammed the people's elbow into the back of his neck, ramming him into the pavement so hard it shattered like glass.



"And of course, keep in mind other weakpoints you can exploit," Knowall went on. He grabbed Thanh's tail and held it out of the way as he stomped on Thanh's left thigh, "breaking the femur is almost always a death sentence to an enemy."



"GYAAHHHH!"



Thanh rolled and slashed at Knowall again. The doctor nimbly jumped out of the way, as Thanh staggered back to his feet. He was panting hard, his femur healing quickly. He snarled in rage at Knowall.



"I'LL EAT YOUR ENTRAILS! YOU CAN'T BEAT ME! I AM IMMORTAL! I AM-!"



His Aura flared around him... And then shattered. Thanh fell to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut, his body twitching sporadically. Thanh gaped in disbelief at Knowall, as did the rest of the White Fang and the students.



"Wha... Whab dib you... Whab...?"



"Funny thing about automatic Semblances," Knowall said almost cheerfully, "If you don't have good Aura control, they'll just keep operating and draining away your energy. In your case, it's to regenerate from damage. So while I hit you, I inflicted a few... Shall we say... Status effects?"



Thanh's eyes bugged out in horror. He began to cough up blood as Knowall continued.



"Kidney disease here, lymphatic function disorder there... Your Semblance kept curing it all! But that all drains Aura." He paused. "Especially the amyotrophic lateral sclerosis I gave you from the start."



"A what?" Blake gasped, having gotten Jaune over to teams RWBY and JNPR (with Sun too, though he was still out). Jaune's eyes widened.



"It-It's a progressive neurological disease," he explains, "It destroys the nerve cells in the brain and nervous system..."



Thanh swung an arm desperately at his troops, drooling helplessly.



"KILL! KILV HIB!"



The White Fang stared at their leader, and then at the doctor. Knowall smiled unpleasantly.



"You have two options," Knowall stated coldly, "Surrender and turn yourselves in... Or you can join 'the Immortal' in the hospital ward of the local prison for the rest of your lives. You have ten seconds."



It only took a second for the terrorists to begin throwing down their weapons and putting up their hands. Knowall nodded in satisfaction.



"Wise decision."



- - -



Yes, Knowall did hit Thanh with the same disease that Doctor Stephen Hawking had.

 

[AndrewJTalon]

- - -

Ruby liked Range Days. Jaune went with her to practice her shooting, and he was always good fun. Pyrrha went too... And while that would be a little annoying, she did like to learn from the Invincible Girl. Despite everything, she was a very good teacher.

"Remember," Pyrrha said, "Pumping Aura into your bullets does change their performance characteristics. While it does make them go faster, you also have to keep in mind the diminishing returns on range. The Dust will burn up faster the more Aura you use."

Ruby nodded and lined up her sights. She fired another round at a distance holographic target, and it flickered. She grinned as she saw she'd hit very near the bullseye.

"Great!" Ruby enthused. "But given the rounds I use, that's not a huge issue! The mass ratio helps keep it going as long as I manage my Aura properly!"

Pyrrha nodded.

"That's true, but it's always something to be mindful of," Pyrrha said, "I've found that pumping Aura into metal can actually expand it. For a bullet, even a tiny expansion can have massive effects on aerodynamic performance!"

Ruby huffed. Jaune chuckled.

"Honestly, you barely even use the gun mode on Crescent Rose," Jaune said, "You mostly go fer melee and use the gun for propulsion."

"Yeah, but uh... Well..." Ruby winced. "I'm... Not as good at the shooting part as I'd like. Just like I'm really not good at the fighting without him part."

"'Him'?" Jaune asked, raising an eyebrow. Ruby blushed.

"What?! Crescent Rose is a he! I built him myself!"

Jaune and Pyrrha continued to stare. Ruby's blush got brighter.

"WE'RE JUST FRIENDS! HE'S LIKE MY SON!" She babbled.

Jaune chuckled kindly and patted Ruby's shoulder. Pyrrha smiled awkwardly.

"Well, he's growing up mighty fine, ain't he?" Jaune said kindly. He squeezed her shoulder. "It's all right, Ruby."

"You... You don't think I'm weird?" Ruby asked. Jaune blinked and looked thoughtful.

"Well... We're all a bit weird, ain't we?" He shrugged. "Seems to be a requirement of Hunters, I reckon. We all have our quirks and foibles."

"That's true," Pyrrha nodded, "I did read a few papers on how releasing your Aura and using your Soul's energy to interface with the world has all sorts of strange psychological side effects..." She blushed at Ruby's downtrodden look. "Oh... Um, sorry."

"Nah," Jaune chuckled, hugging Ruby brieftly, "Just means we're all in good company. Sides, my mom and dad could be strange at times. Maybe there's something... To..."

He stared at another lane at the shooting range. Pyrrha and Ruby followed his gaze.

Dust-based weapons were funny in that unlike conventional firearms, they didn't "bang" loud enough to cause hearing damage at close range (unless the Dust was overpowered). As a result, nobody needed ear protection while using them. So they could have normal conversations around the gun range.

It also allowed both girls to hear Jaune's soft gasp as he stared at a girl in a hoodie firing a sniper rifle several lanes down. They traced the path of the bullets she was firing, and their eyes widened.

"She... She hasn't missed a shot?!" Ruby gasped. Pyrrha pulled out her Scroll and logged into the accuracy scores. They were available for anyone to see in order to keep track of their progress.

"Oh my," Pyrrha murmured, "She... She hasn't missed once. Since she transfered!"

"What's her name?" Jaune asked quietly. Ruby frowned as she saw the look on Jaune's face: He was seemingly entranced by the girl as she continued to fire.

"May Zedong," Pyrrha said, also frowning. "Is something wrong, Jaune?"

"Scuse me ladies," Jaune said, walking over towards May. He waited for her to finish her magazine before he spoke.

"Howdy, Miss Zedong. I'm Jaune Arc."

"Ah!" May flinched and then turned around. She looked up shyly at Jaune, not able to meet his eyes., "Um, y-yes? I mean, um, hello!"

Ruby's eyes narrowed a bit. Even more as she saw how Jaune was smiling.

"You're mighty good with that rifle, Miss," Jaune said politely, "It's really impressive!"

May blushed even more deeply.

"Oh, um, I-I just practice a lot... I'm the only one on my team who-who has ranged capability, um... I-I have to be as good as possible..."

"Well, that's mighty commendable," Jaune said with a smile that made May turn bright red, "You wanna shoot with us? We'd love to learn from you."

"O-Oh, well, um," May stuttered, "I-I guess... I um, I'm not very good at teaching but um... I can try?"

"That would be great!" Jaune beamed. He rested a hand on May's shoulder and gently guided her over-Even as she fretted with bright red cheeks.

Wha... She's like one of those cute shy characters in Blake's Mistralian anime! Ruby thought, She even has big boobs!

Ruby looked over at Pyrrha. Her fellow redhead's eyes were also narrowed, even as she smiled.

"Oh yes," Pyrrha said, "We would love to work with you, May."

"R-Really?" May managed with a shy smile. "I-I would appreciate that... Um... Maybe if I worked with M-Mister Arc first?"

"Call me Jaune!" Jaune said happily. May smiled.

"I... O-Okay, Jaune..."

Ruby and Pyrrha shared a look. They scowled a bit.

He got another one! They thought in exasperation.

They then noticed the soft look on Jaune's face... And they narrowed their eyes further.

AND HE LIKES HER TOO?!

- - -

More substantial stuff is coming for Cowboys of Remnant, but I wanted to get this out to possibly use in the future.

 

[AndrewJTalon]

- - -

Weiss walked out to the stables. It was a familiar path to her by now, something she couldn't have imagined months ago. Going down to see a man working hard. Talking to this man. Even... Being friends with this man.

Said man was hard at work, holding one of Orleans' legs up under his armpit. He scraped away at her hoof with a knife, shaving away curls of keratin. Orleans was nickering softly, then snorted.

"There there, just stay calm girl," Jaune said gently, "Easy, easy..."

Orleans resumed nickering quietly. Jaune then looked up and smiled at Weiss.

"Howdy, Weiss!"

"Hello Jaune," Weiss greeted him warmly. "Am I bothering you?"

"No, just getting some work done," Jaune said. He reached down and picked up a horseshoe. He pressed it to Orlean's hoof, then grabbed a hammer. He pulled some nails out of his shirt pocket, and began hammering them into the keratin. Orleans nickered a bit, as Weiss watched in fascination.

"It doesn't hurt her, does it?"

Orleans snorted, shooting Weiss what could almost be considered a scowl. Jaune chuckled.

"No," Jaune said with a smile, "her hooves are like big fingernails. And her Aura protects her, too."

"Then why the horseshoes?" Weiss asked, walking a bit closer as she tilted her head.

"Same reason we wear shoes, even with Aura," Jaune said, finishing pounding the nails in. He patted Orleans' hoof, and let her go. Orleans trotted off around the paddock, as though showing off. She probably was, the vain primadonna.

"There we go," Jaune said with a smile and nod, "Better, right?"

Orleans whinnied happily, and went off to drink from the water trough. Jaune looked to Weiss with a smile.

"So, what brings you out here Weiss?" He asked.

"I was assigned an extra history project and I was hoping you could help me?" Weiss asked. Jaune blinked.

"Well... If I can, I will. I ain't too sure how much help I'll be, Weiss."

"Well... It's about the nomadic tribes of Vale," Weiss said, "You've met a few, haven't you?"

Jaune frowned thoughtfully, then nodded.

"I have. Some dealings, good and bad," he admitted, "Wouldn't the CCTnet be better for that though?"

"I think a personal touch would be a lot better," Weiss said, "Besides... You tell Ruby plenty of stories."

"I just..." Jaune colored, "I uh... I think Nora's a better storyteller myself."

Weiss smiled warmly. She leaned against the fence.

"Please?" She asked. Jaune shrugged and looked out at the valley beyond.

"Well... They live like most folks, I expect. They move around a lot between fortresses when the weather changes, or go from settlement to settlement following herds of bison, deer and the like."

"Why do they want to live like that?" Weiss asked curiously. "Why not just settle down?"

Jaune shrugged. He rested his hand on the fence, and rested his other hand on his gunbelt.

"Cause their fathers and their fathers before their fathers did it. Plenty of their people are more settled, or civilized. Plenty more don't trust the kingdoms to protect them. Ain't too different from the settlers on the frontier, I suspect: They wanna make their own way."

"Are they dangerous? Like in the old movies?" Weiss pressed. Jaune shrugged.

"They can be. Most, you treat fairly with 'em, they'll treat you fair back. Plenty took to the Church of the Broken Table and are as devout as the Archpriest down in the Holy City." He shrugged. "Some are bandits, preying on anyone weaker than them. They stick to their warrior ways, think that attacking defenseless settlers or travelers makes 'em strong." He snorted. "Never saw no bandit pick a fight with someone stronger than them. Always after easy pickings."

"You hate bandits?" Weiss asked quietly. Jaune sucked in a breath through his nostrils, and let it out as a snort like his horse.

"I try not to, Weiss," Jaune stated firmly, "I really try. It ain't easy."

Weiss held her hands together.

"I'm sorry," she said quietly. Jaune shook his head.

"Ain't nothing to be sorry for... You wanted something specific? I dealt a lot with the Rhiannon Tribe. Joseph, King is their leader."

"You mean King Joseph," Weiss corrected. Jaune shook his head.

"No, they always place 'King' after," he said, "Quirk of the language, I believe. He's a crazy old coot, but he deals fairly. Tries to keep his braves from going the bandit route. It never goes well when they do that. Many tribes have been wiped out for trying to relive their glory days."

"All of them?" Weiss gasped. Jaune slowly nodded.

"If they don't surrender? Yes."

"It seems cruel," Weiss murmured. Jaune sucked in a breath.

"It is. Least they get a quick death by the Rangers. They don't extend the same courtesy to their victims," he gritted out, "Or their captives."

Weiss stared at him. She wet her lips. She didn't know why, but...

"You've... Fought them?"

"Once? They attacked us," Jaune said grimly, "Fought them off. Two other times, Mister Duke helped out some Rangers in their assaults on Bandit camps. They were called the Cruálach. They raided settlements. Took everyone who couldn't fight as captives."

Weiss covered her mouth. Jaune kept going, his eyes locked onto the mountain range.

"We tracked them down to their camp. Old ruins from before the Moonbreak, I was told. A great city, whose name is lost to history. The Crualach kept their camp in one of the ancient buildings, like an old coliseum."

He paused, his eyes hardening.

"The captive men? They skinned them alive. Hung their bones as trophies, their skin as banners. The women and children...?" He slowly shook his head. "They were..."

He couldn't continue. He looked down at the ground, his fists clenched tightly. Weiss clutched her hands together, unsure of how to help him. Extending physical comfort wasn't something she was familiar with.

"God... How could such people live around Grimm?"

Jaune snorted.

"They keep moving, like I said. They hide. They use their killing skills on Grimm..." He shook his head, his eyes distant.

"Grimm are monsters... But they ain't cruel or sadistic. They just do what their instincts or whatever tell them to do. Humans and Faunus? Well... Sometimes I wonder if we used monster too hastily for the Grimm..."

Weiss frowned.

"I'm sorry," she said quietly, "I-I didn't mean to..."

Jaune shook his head, his face stony.

"The world's a cruel place, Weiss. But it's also a wonderful one. Besides, I reckon everyone's got pain in their past."

Weiss sucked in a breath. She debated internally, between her instinct and her feelings. She then took a deep breath.

"I... My father wouldn't let me attend Beacon unless I fought an Armored Geist and defeated it," she said. "He watched... Shouting at me to give up. To just accept his orders, his rules. I got this scar," she touched her eye scar, "From it. I managed to defeat it, with next to no Aura left... And he just snorted. Didn't say a thing."

She shook her head.

"I'm sorry. That's nothing compared to-"

"Everyone's got pain in their past," Jaune stated firmly, "It ain't a contest. We're all different." He slowly shook his head back.

"I'm sorry you had to go through that, Weiss. I know it ain't easy."

"No," Weiss said with a smile, "But I'm... I'm glad I got this scar. It means I got to be here. And meet all of my friends."

Jaune smiled warmly back.

"Well... That's how I feel too, Weiss."

They were staring into eachother's eyes. Weiss again licked her lips.

"Tell me," she began, "Um... How do the men and women of the Rhiannon Tribe express affection for eachother?"

STUPID! Her brain shouted at her. It was getting to be too much, too fast. She was at war with herself.

Jaune chuckled.

"Well... A brave goes and kills a deer. He then brings it to her with flowers and presents it to her. He then says 'I will provide for you, and your table will never be empty as long as we are together.'"

Weiss laughed.

"Really?"

Jaune shrugged.

"Well! It seems to work for them. Of course, now the brave has to keep that up. Can be awful hard on a man if his wife has expensive tastes."

"I-I imagine you wouldn't have any trouble with that," Weiss stuttered. Jaune's cheeks turned red.

"Uh, well... ACK!"

Orleans then grabbed Jaune by the poncho and yanked him up. She then tossed her water trough up into the air, drenching Weiss with water.

"ACK! HEY!" Weiss cried.

"ORLEANS! WHAT IN TARNATION?!" Jaune demanded.

Orleans then stomped on her hooves and neighed angrily. Jaune scowled at her.

"What the hell do you mean your horseshoes are crooked?! You complain about this now?"

Orleans squealed angrily. Jaune groaned and looked back at Weiss.

"Sorry Weiss, I gotta handle this," he sighed. "I'm sorry about the water-"

Weiss scowled.

"Oh, don't you worry about that," Weiss stated icily, glaring at Orleans, "I'll go and change."

"Yes ma'am," Jaune said, a bit pale. She softened her expression for him.

"Thank you Jaune. See you later," she said with a nod. She swore Orleans shot her a smug look as she departed.

"I'm beginning to see why Pyrrha is so aggravated by that horse," she muttered.

- - -

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Just a short write up of what would probably happen if Cowboy!Jaune met Adam during the fall of Beacon...

Adam: "You can't escape me, my love. You never could, you never will-"

Jaune walks in, his spurs clinking ominously. His hat is shadowing his eyes.

Blake: "Jaune!"

Adam: "Who's this? Your master? Is he here for his pet?"

Jaune: "I believe you're going to walk away from the lady right now."

There is no humor in Jaune's voice, no warmth. Only cold, dead certainty.

Adam: "Or what?"

Jaune: "Or I'll put a bullet between your eyes. As many as it takes to put you down."

Adam: "You think you're some kind of hero?"

Jaune: "Nope... Just a man with a gun, and a friend in trouble. Last chance. Walk away."

Adam: "..." His chuuni heart can't resist "I'll give you until the bell tolls on that clock. Then... You die in front of the traitor as a lesson on what happens when she defies me."

It doesn't even take a second for Jaune to reply.
Jaune: "Deal."

Blake: "Jaune, run!"

Jaune: "We gotta get to the tower to help Pyrrha... This won't take long."

The bells toll... Adam swings and unleashes Moonslice, Jaune drops and fires his revolvers!

Adam falls back, the Dust rounds having gone right through his Aura and stomach. He staggers back, holding his stomach as he bleeds.

Adam: "... H-How...?"

Jaune: "Pump enough Aura into a bullet... They'll punch through Aura just fine."

Adam: "You...! No human can defeat me! No human can-!" He charges and thrusts his sword for Jaune.

Jaune opens fire, putting every round into Adam. He falls.

Jaune: "... Miss Blake? I believe we have an appointment to keep. Can you walk?"

Blake: "N-Not well..."

Jaune: "Then I'll help you walk to the Tower."

Blake: "Is he dead?"

Jaune: "Don't know. Not sticking around to find out."

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Naturally, there are many methods the teachers would use to push their particular ship. The most obvious being...



Glynda: "Miss Nikos, you're already tutoring Mister Arc in combat, yes? You will increase your sessions under my supervision."



Port: "It seems to me you need partners to aid you in the Grimm Studies portions of my class! So you will have these 'study buddies' to aid you! You will also go on field training assignments as needed! First pair, Mister Arc and Miss Xiao-Long. Second pair..."



Oobleck: "Group assignments tend to just get all the work shoved onto one person. As a result, this semester project you will be put into pairs to help facilitate your work being efficient. You will also look after the well being of your partner. First pair, Mister Arc and Miss Belladonna. Second pair..."



Ozpin: "While I seldom intervene directly in school affairs, I do manage the Leadership Class. I feel you're all coming under a lot of pressure this semester. Therefore, your assignments will now be split between two. Different leaders of different teams will work together to help handle this increased workload. First pair, Mister Arc and Miss Rose, second pair..."



Peach: "Arc! While you're decent with medical dust, you have almost no experience with the other kinds! Therefore, Miss Schnee will pair with you to bring you up to snuff! This semester long project will help you both, as Miss Schnee is not very adept with Healing Dust. I expect nothing but good results from you both!"



Anne Green: "Miss May Zedong! Your survival skills are adequate but could be MUCH better-Especially for a sniper! As a result, you'll be paired with Jaune Arc: He scored very highly on the survival tests and will be a natural tutor. I expect you both to work very hard and very closely!"



Mombi: "Um... Arslan? Jaune? Since you're both part of the Church of the Broken Table, I could use some help with St Lucy's Orphanage. I think the kids would be very cheered up if they met you while I went down to read to them."



Later...



Neptune: "Is it my imagination or is Arc suddenly very popular with the ladies?"



Sun: "I'm sure it's all in your head."



Scarlet: "Well, something had to be in there."



Neptune: "HEY!"

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Neptune wandered by a common area in the Beacon dorms... Then walked backwards. He gaped at the scene before him.

Jaune Arc was sitting with Yang Xiao-Long, going over some homework. That was bad enough!

But Blake Belladonna was sitting behind him, laying on the top of the couch like a cat, occasionally pointing things out. Sitting in his lap was Ruby Rose, cheerfully talking about a few other things, while Pyrrha Nikos sat on Jaune's other side, smiling gently as they went over a few other things.

Weiss Schnee sat across from Jaune, looking a bit exasperated but also giving him small smiles. May Zedong was shyly going over some homework herself at the table, looking up and blushing at Jaune every so often.

In a split second, it came to Neptune. He stormed up to them and pointed a finger at Jaune.

"ARC!"

"Ack! Yes, Neptune?" Jaune asked. Weiss turned an annoyed glare at Neptune, as did Yang. Blake sniffed, Ruby huffed, Pyrrha gave him a far too polite smile, and even May looked a bit annoyed.

"What do you want, Neptune?" Weiss demanded, "We broke up, remember-?"

"I know what you're up to!" He growled. "I know all about your grand-grandfather Shirou! He had three wives!"

Jaune blinked rapidly. The gathered women all looked at him curiously.

"Wait, what? No!" Jaune waved his hands, "My Great Aunts Rin and Sakura just lived in the same house and had kids who were cousins and..." He blinked a few more times. "Oh... Oh geez..."

"YEAH! And now-NOW you're starting your own harem!" Neptune growled. "You made a fool out of me to add Snow Angel to it!"

"You didn't need any help doing that yourself, Blue Boy," Yang sniffed.

"I KNOW WHAT YOU'RE UP TO!" Neptune growled, pointing his finger in Jaune's face. "YOU WANT ALL THE HOTTIES FOR YOURSELF! WELL! I WON'T LET YOU SUCCEED! I'M ONTO YOU!"

He glared.

"I'm onto you!" He turned and stormed out.

The Hunters-in-training stared after him.

"What's his problem?" Yang scoffed.

"Geez," May muttered.

"No idea," Jaune sighed. He rubbed his temples and laughed. "Ha! He almost had me going there though. Like my Papa Shirou has three wives. Pfft."

"And like you're cunning enough to do that," Weiss sniffed, "Let's move onto the next problem..."

"What's a harem?" Ruby asked curiously. Blake smiled.

"Well, it's-"

"BLAKE!" Yang shouted.

Ruby pouted.

"I wanna know! Jaune?"

"I uh... I'm not having this conversation with you in my lap."

"So how should I be sitting on you?"

"RUBY!"

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Jaune: "Ruby, could you come here for a second?"

Ruby: "Sure Jaune, what's up?"

Jaune shows her the cylinder of his Goldstone Customs.

Jaune: "As a professional weaponeer, what would you say these are chambered in?"

Ruby takes a closer look.

Ruby: "Aren't these just .44's? Wait, no, the cylinder is too long. Some kind of custom loaded .44? But that would be annoying to resupply out in the field and Nell Goldstone made the best Huntsmen arms in the world so she would know better..."

Jaune: "You're never going to guess."

Ruby, pouting: "Give me a second."

Ruby stares at the cylinder for a bit longer before her eyes widen.

Ruby: "No Way! She chambered them in .30-30!?"

Jaune: "One of the most common rifle calibers in the world. Makes resupplyin' at any outpost way easier."

Ruby: "A rifle round. In a revolver. Okay, cowboy..."

Jaune: "What, you questionin' the incredible Nell Goldstone?"

Ruby: "I'm questioning your ability to use Aura to reinforce your wrists. Part of the reason Crescent Rose mecha-shifts into a scythe - a big part - is so I can stab it into the ground to brace it when I fire it."

Jaune: "I practiced with 'em until I could shoot nice and steady... Which admittedly took a damn long time."

Ruby: "We gotta find Yang and have you two spar. I bet you could catch Ember Celica's punches with that kind of conditioning!"

Jaune: "Eh? Well... I don't think I-"

Ruby: "YANG! Jaune wants to catch your punches! He thinks he can!"

Jaune: "Wha-I said no such thing!"

Yang: "Oh does he?"

Jaune: "I did not-"

Yang: "Let's SEE!" She swings her fist right at Jaune's face!

Jaune's hand snaps up and catches her fist. The ground underneath his feet is shattered and wind rushes away from the point of contact. But he stays on his feet.

Jaune: "... Breaker Above Ruby! You tryin' t' get me killed?!"

Yang: "Hey! Not bad cowboy! Now let's see if you can block it when I'm actually trying!"

Jaune: "Uh, thank you kindly-Wait what?!"

Yang raises her other fist.

Jaune: "Now wait a minute Yang I ain't-!"

His hands went back up.

Yang punches him way harder the second time. Jaune catches the blow, but is knocked off his feet by the sheer force.

Jaune: "WOAH!" He is Slammed into a tree... And through it.

Ruby: "Yang!"

Yang: "What? He said he could catch it."

Jaune: Slowly stands up "Urgh... Nice hit."

Yang: "Nice catch."

Jaune: Waves his hand with a wince "You're incredible as always, Miss Yang."

Yang, fingerguns: "Damn straight!"

Jaune: "Geez... My dang fingers..."

Ruby: "Don't worry! I'll look them over! I've been training in first aid!"

Jaune: "Well, thank you kindly Ruby..."

Ruby is looking over Jaune's hands, touching them, massaging them...

Yang: glares "Oh, I see how it is."

Ruby: "I-I don't know what you're talking about! I'm sure Jaune appreciates a girl with a gentle touch..."

Jaune: "I would if I could feel anything."

 

[AndrewJTalon]

- - -

Jaune was sitting in the ballroom of Beacon at a table. It was quiet this time of day, and he appreciated it. His Nell Goldstone revolvers laid out on the table in front of him, disassembled. He carefully cleaned and checked each part, applying the right amount of gun oil to each.

He held up the cylinder, pushing a bush through each one and making sure there was nothing left.

It was oddly soothing in a way. Ren said that it was a method of ordering the things that mattered in your life, and thus, ordering your life. Allowing you to face the day without worries. Not unlike meditation, which Ren practiced regularly.

Jaune wasn't sure it was quite the same thing. Ren's medtitation was part of his religion of Pathism, after all. Still...

"Tablebreaker," he murmured softly over the revolver as he began to put it back together, "Come down and touch the mountains, make them smoke. Teach my hands to fight, and teach my mouth to speak better. Teach me to aim with my heart, my mind, and my soul, not with my anger, my envy, or my pride. Let me be a shield to those in need, and a protector for those in trouble. Let my bullets find their mark, straight and true. Teach me to be humble, but always remember my greater duty to all that is good."

It was an old prayer, one Mister Duke made at times. He claimed an old Valean general recited it before going into battle.

Jaune held up his revolver, all the parts back where they belonged. He spun the barrel, listening to the sound, and nodded in satisfaction.

"Amen," he concluded. He reloaded the revolver, a barrel at a time, and spun it again.

The lights lit up overhead. Old instincts compelled Jaune to stand and scan around, his gun at the ready. The stage lights went up next, and Jaune looked up at it in confusion.

A shadow appeared on the curtains, a silhouette of a woman in a feathery dress. Hot Vacuoan music began to play as the curtains slowly parted. Jaune's eyes bugged out and his jaw and gunhand both fell.

"R-Ruby?!"

Ruby Rose did indeed stand there... But transformed. She wore a black and red dress, cut short and low to show off her growing female curves and muscular legs. She wore high heels, red lipstick, and black gloves. She lifted up a rose and put it into her teeth as she began... To dance.

Jaune's mouth went dry as Ruby danced to the music, strutting, slinking, so elegant and slick. He was reminded of a graceful crane at a pond edge he had once watched: Especially with the feathering on the hem of her short dress. He was further reminded of the bawdy dancing girls he had caught sight of in many a seedy bar or casino he had peered through on many a stop in towns during drives.

She then approached the stage, her eyes hooded and seductive. She smiled and his heart began to pound hard in his chest.

He had always known that Ruby was cute, pretty. He'd seen her in a sundress after all. She was a girl.

This though? This was the first time seeing her as a woman.

Ruby then took a daring step towards the edge of the stage... And tripped.

Her sultry expression turned into a more familiar expression of shock. She flailed her hands wildly as she went over the edge.

"UWAH-!"

Jaune charged and caught her in his arms. Both their cheeks were red. Blue and silver eyes met.

"Um, h-hey," Ruby managed. "So um... Uh... D-Did you like my dance? I-I worked hard on it."

Jaune slowly nodded.

"Ah... Eeyup," he said softly.

Ruby smiled nervously. She held onto his arms. Her touch was like fire.

"I-I still hate these lady stilts," Ruby softly, pursing her red lips while she resisted licking them, "But uh... M-Maybe they're not so bad?"

She trembled in his arms. She was so warm. His eyes were locked on her face. She pushed her head up towards him. He bent his head...

He shut his eyes tightly and stopped. He then set Ruby down on her heels. He took a step back, and several deep breaths. He opened his eyes and looked at Ruby. Her silver eyes were wide with confusion and hurt.

"Jaune? What's wrong? I-I-"

Jaune shook his head.

"I'm sorry Ruby," he said softly. Tears began to bead at the corners of Ruby's eyes. It felt like a dagger was being driven into his heart.

"Is..." Her head bowed. "I get it. It's Yang, isn't it?"

Jaune blinked.

"Wha-?"

"I'm used to it!" Ruby cried, tears now pouring down her cheeks and ruining her cheeks, "I-I mean, she was the most popular girl in school! The best fighter! Wh-Why would you-You want me-I'm just Ruby and I-I'm-!"

Jaune, alarmed, saw that Ruby's edges were turning into rose petals-About to use her Semblance to jump out. He managed to swing his arms out and caught her by the shoulders.

"NO! Ruby, no, wait! WAIT!"

"It's fine!" Ruby bawled, "It was stupid-I'm sorry-!"

"RUBY!" Jaune shouted, slapping her cheek. Thanks to her Aura, it did no damage. It did shock her out of her Semblance. She gaped at him in disbelief. Jaune bowed his head in shame.

"I'm sorry Ruby," he sighed. "Look... Hit me back first, and then let me explain, huh?"

Ruby blinked twice.

"I-Why would I-?!"

"I hit my friend, and I hit a lady," Jaune stated firmly, "I deserve a hit back in return. Go ahead."

Ruby gaped.

'I-I don't want to hit you! I just... I want to... I just-?"

Jaune took Ruby's hands in his and stared into her eyes.

"Ruby. I love you."

Ruby turned bright red, redder than her namesake. Steam might have shot out of her ears given how high her temperature went.

"Whaaaaaaa-?!"

"I love you, Yang, Weiss, Pyrrha, Blake, Nora, Ren," Jaune went on. Ruby's jaw dropped as she trembled.

"Whaaaaaa-?!"

"Er, not that way," Jaune quickly assured, "For Ren I mean! And Nora, cause Ren would kill me-" He sighed. "Lemme explain?"

"I-I... Um..." Ruby managed a bewildered nod. Jaune took a deep breath and lifted up another prayer to center himself.

"Look: I care about all of you. And if we weren't Hunters on the same teams? Yeah. I'd date you. Marry you. Have a family..."

Ruby gaped. Her face again resembled her namesake.

"A-All of us?!"

Jaune nodded firmly.

"Yes. It's hard enough for you with Yang on yer team. If our teams were on a mission and you got in danger with Pyrrha, and I had to choose between you? I might hesitate. That can get someone killed."

"B-But we're friends and-" Ruby said, but Jaune shook his head.

"Not the same. A friend of mine had a girlfriend on the cattle drives. She and another hand got in trouble during a stampede-Both the same kind of trouble, equal distance between them. He chose his girlfriend... And the hand died."

Ruby rapidly shook her head.

"We would never! I-I mean, my parents were on the same team at Beacon!"

"Like my parents. And they got married after Beacon," Jaune stated firmly, He pulled his hands off her shoulders and shook his head. "I'm sorry Ruby. I love you all too much to risk your lives."

Ruby scowled.

"What about Velvet?" She demanded.

"We did decide we were better off as friends," Jaune pointed out. He took a deep breath and shook his head. "I'm not risking that. I love you all too much to risk that to happen."

He cupped her cheek.

"No matter how much I want to," he said gently, "And I promise? I really want to."

Ruby blushed deeply. She then scowled and punched him in the chin. His head was knocked back and his Aura flared, but he stayed on his feet. He looked back at Ruby, and nodded.

"Well... That's that."

"No! I didn't punch you for-for that!" Ruby growled. Jaune blinked several times.

"Eh? What did you punch me for then?"

Ruby rapidly shook her head and glared.

"I punched you for being stupid!" She growled. She pointed her finger in his face and waved it around angrily.

"You're just being stupid! Or-Or something! Because I'm gonna make you see that we CAN be in love as Hunters and things will be all right!"

Jaune raised his hands.

"But Ruby I-!"

"Nuh uh! I'm gonna prove! You! Wrong! We all will!" She nodded before she turned and vanished via her Semblance. Jaune stared after her in disbelief. He sighed and shook his head, reaching up to rub his chin.

"I will never understand women. Not if I live to be three hundred..."

- - -

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Doctor' Knowall's first attack was a series of jabs, quick and calculated. Nothing fancy, nothing too complex. Thanh contemptuously blocked each one, then let loose a roundhouse kick at Knowall. Knowall took the hit to his temple, and skidded a bit from the impact. He heard his students and his younger self gasp in shock. He heard Thanh laugh, and saw the rest of his White Fang goons cheer.



"HA! Is that the best you can do, doctor?" Thanh sneered, "I'll enjoy making these girls my bitches while I gnaw on your bones!"



Knowall slowly turned back to Thanh. He cracked his neck. He spat out some blood. He resumed his terrifying smile.



"Thanks. All I needed to know," Knowall stated, "You won't be hitting me again."



Thanh laughed mockingly, and swung a clawed hand at him.



"I think not-!"



Knowall ducked under the swing and planted his fist into Thanh's floating ribs, shattering them with the blow. Thanh's laugh turned into a cry of pain, and the big Faunus punched and kicked furiously. With contemptuous ease, Knowall blocked, slapped away, or dodged every blow before he put an uppercut into Thanh's jaw, again knocking out a lot of sharp teeth and blood.



"Attend, students," Knowall said, almost conversationally, as he slammed a palm strike into Thanh's nose, "While Aura can protect you from many injuries, the proper application of force can still let you damage vulnerable areas on an opponent's body."



The Faunus roared and fell back. He swung around, cracking his tail like a bullwhip. Knowall caught it with one hand, not moved an inch.



"For instance, joints are always a potential target in a fight, and only require the proper leverage to exploit," Knowall went on, snapping several vertebrae in Thanh's tail. Thanh roared in pain, and swung back around as his face and mouth healed. He again attacked, this time swinging his monk's spade at Knowall.



The doctor calmly jumped over the swing at his feet, and delivered a kick right into Thanh's face with a bony crunch.



"Other targets are an enemy's eyes, nose, mouth," Knowall went on over Thanh's howl of pain, "Or anything else sensitive and external."



He dodged around Thanh's wild swings with his polearm, and calmly grabbed his wrist. He then thrust his palm against Thanh's elbow, snapping it and making him drop his weapon.



"AARRGGHHH!"



Thanh again retreated, breathing hard. His eye and face repaired itself, while his elbow returned to its previous state. Thanh snarled, bloodlust in his eyes.



"I WILL USE YOUR HEAD AS A CHAMBER POT!" He shrieked, lunging with his claws and sharp teeth. Knowall again dodged out of the way and slammed the people's elbow into the back of his neck, ramming him into the pavement so hard it shattered like glass.



"And of course, keep in mind other weakpoints you can exploit," Knowall went on. He grabbed Thanh's tail and held it out of the way as he stomped on Thanh's left thigh, "breaking the femur is almost always a death sentence to an enemy."



"GYAAHHHH!"



Thanh rolled and slashed at Knowall again. The doctor nimbly jumped out of the way, as Thanh staggered back to his feet. He was panting hard, his femur healing quickly. He snarled in rage at Knowall.



"I'LL EAT YOUR ENTRAILS! YOU CAN'T BEAT ME! I AM IMMORTAL! I AM-!"



His Aura flared around him... And then shattered. Thanh fell to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut, his body twitching sporadically. Thanh gaped in disbelief at Knowall, as did the rest of the White Fang and the students.



"Wha... Whab dib you... Whab...?"



"Funny thing about automatic Semblances," Knowall said almost cheerfully, "If you don't have good Aura control, they'll just keep operating and draining away your energy. In your case, it's to regenerate from damage. So while I hit you, I inflicted a few... Shall we say... Status effects?"



Thanh's eyes bugged out in horror. He began to cough up blood as Knowall continued.



"Kidney disease here, lymphatic function disorder there... Your Semblance kept curing it all! But that all drains Aura." He paused. "Especially the amyotrophic lateral sclerosis I gave you from the start."



"A what?" Blake gasped, having gotten Jaune over to teams RWBY and JNPR (with Sun too, though he was still out). Jaune's eyes widened.



"It-It's a progressive neurological disease," he explains, "It destroys the nerve cells in the brain and nervous system..."



Thanh swung an arm desperately at his troops, drooling helplessly.



"KILL! KILV HIB!"



The White Fang stared at their leader, and then at the doctor. Knowall smiled unpleasantly.



"You have two options," Knowall stated coldly, "Surrender and turn yourselves in... Or you can join 'the Immortal' in the hospital ward of the local prison for the rest of your lives. You have ten seconds."



It only took a second for the terrorists to begin throwing down their weapons and putting up their hands. Knowall nodded in satisfaction.



"Wise decision."



- - -



Yes, Knowall did hit Thanh with the same disease that Doctor Stephen Hawking had.

Click to shrink...

The police came and took in all the criminals. Roman Torchwick had managed to escape despite Penny Polendinia doing her best. Knowall couldn't fault her for that, he supposed-She wasn't nearly as powerful as she had been in his timeline now... And even she had fallen to Salem. Even she had...



He did his best to not think about that. He stared out at the Azur Bay, leaning against a cargo crate and smoking a cigarette. He'd given his testimony to the police and now he and his students were waiting for a Bullhead to arrive.



Sun Wukong had suffered some injuries, but nothing Knowall couldn't fix up. He was resting some distance away, while the rest of Team JNPR watched over him with Penny. The orangette was excitedly talking to Nora, both energetic girls happy to converse. Pyrrha was talking softly with his younger counterpart, while Ren looked over Sun.



Team RWBY was some distance away, talking things out. Blake looked back at Jaune every so often, as though to reassure herself he was all right, before she turned back to her teammates. It seemed to be going well, for the most part.



He hoped he could avoid any further interaction before the Bullhead showed up...



"Doctor Knowall?"



A hope that was dashed. He looked over at Ruby Rose, standing there nervously. The doctor nodded.



"Yes?"



"Um... Are we in trouble for our little, uh... Fight?" She asked with a wince. "Is Blake in trouble for running off?"



Knowall sighed. He stared at her. He had never met her himself, but Yang had told him all about her little sister. How brave she was. How energetic.



He had seen her once. They called her the Silver Eyed Demon-A woman wrapped in ragged red and black robes with a scythe, fighting the Grimm everywhere. Unleashing the power of her eyes, and then running off to try and help others. In a world gone mad, she was a symbol of hope.



Knowall had seen those eyes in action once, the day after Yang was killed. The woman had appeared at the ruins of the church he'd been staying in. Where he'd buried Yang.



She'd stared at him with those eyes. He'd stared back.



They were silver like the moon, beautiful... And so empty. Like even the effort of trying to muster an emotion was too much.



Then she was gone, like a specter. He had never seen her again.



He stared at this young woman with the silver eyes. Ruby fidgeted.



"Doctor?"



"I can't promise you won't get detention for this. However..." He smiled gently. He reached out to rest a hand on her shoulder.



"You did the right thing," he said. Ruby blushed and nodded happily.



"Thanks! Also uh... Thanks for saving Jaune. And Blake."



Knowall shrugged.



"It's my job," he said.



"Also," Ruby began, "I have a few questions to ask you about-"



The Bullheads arrived. Glynda Goodwitch stepped out of one, looking cross. Knowall smirked a bit.



"Maybe later," he said.



- - -



He kept silent and pretended he couldn't hear any of the students' requests on the trip there. He even turned off his hearing.



Mainly because Glynda was giving them all an earful, which helped him stay in the background.



However, when they touched down, she gave him a look that would brook no argument or slinking away. So with a slow nod, he followed her to her office, while Professor Port led the students off. The older man gave Knowall an encouraging look and thumbs up, while the students all looked mortified.



Save for his younger counterpart. He kept staring at him intently. Knowall tried to ignore it.



Glynda didn't speak on the trip to her office. She opened the door and motioned him in. He went in, scanning around the clean but warm interior with its bookshelves and pictures of past classes. Glynda closed the door behind them. He took another drag off his cigarette. She walked past him and sat on the couch. She stared up at him, her expression a bit warmer than before.



"Are you all right?" She asked him quietly.



Knowall let out a sigh, smoke filling the air around his head.



"I don't know," he admitted, "I managed to restrain myself from killing them. I could have done so. Very easily."



He stared at the wall.



"I've done it before," he admitted quietly.



Glynda sucked in a deep breath. She crossed her legs as she stared intently at him.



"We can't have you running off and doing things on your own, Jaune," she said, "I know you survived that way, but you can't just head out alone. You could have at least alerted the rest of the staff about the situation."



"I did, when it was resolved," Knowall stated firmly.



"You know that's not how we do things-" Glynda tried, but Knowall glared. He pulled his cigarette out.



"Yeah, and if you did things like that in the old timeline, guess what? They didn't fucking work," he snarled. "I'm living proof it didn't work!"



Glynda remained unperturbed. Knowall took a few deep breaths, and a few more drags. He bowed his head for a moment, before looking back into Glynda's eyes.



"Sorry," he said quietly. Glynda nodded.



"I understand," she said in a soft tone. "Listen: Ozpin believes you. He believes everything you told us. So do I. I appreciate you have operated on your own for a long time and it was the only way you could survive. You're right: We clearly didn't do a good job back then. Which is why we need you to work with us. None of us can handle this war all on our own."



She stared into his eyes.



"Which means we need to be able to trust each other," she said, "We need to better understand one another."



Knowall stared back at her. Glynda held his gaze evenly.



"Which means," she said, "We need to talk. We need to bond more. So that we can trust one another. Because if you keep going off on your own without even informing us of the situation? We won't be able to trust one another. Which could potentially lead to disaster."



Knowall continued to stare. He took another drag off his cigarette.



"... I'm not really the touchy feely, spill my guts kind of guy."



"Neither am I," Glynda said, "But we need to start somewhere, don't we? You can talk to me about anything you want. You can ask me any question you want and I'll answer... Within reason. Same for you. We do this at least once a week. We can do it more often if you need to. We schedule it and stick to it. Would that be acceptable?"



Knowall sighed.



"And if I don't?"



"Then Ozpin will press the matter," Glynda said gently. "I feel that by making the offer myself, you'll feel less intimidated than if he was pushing it. I know he will push it. If I tell him I have the matter in hand, it will be less difficult for all of us."



Knowall stared at her.



"Why go that far?" He asked.



Glynda shrugged.



"Because it's the right thing to do," she said simply, "Do I need another reason?"



Knowall sighed.



"... Guess not," he admitted.



He walked over to the couch. He sat down on it next to her. He stared out into nothing, still smoking. He then looked over at her.



"Do you mind if I-?"



"I do," Glynda admitted, wrinkling her nose, "But if you need to? Go ahead."



Knowall smiled slightly.



"I appreciate the honesty," he said. He finished off the cigarette and held it out. Glynda used her Semblance to send it flying into the trashcan. He nodded and took a deep breath.



"I guess it started when I got caught by my parents trying to get on the train to Beacon..."



- - -

 

[SharkCultist]

Informational.

Welcome perspective Huntsmen and Huntresses to your first class on the deeper mechanics of Hunters and Grimm classifications.

Today's lesson will be on semblances. Due to the variety of semblances classifications are very broad, it's also possible for semblances to change classification.

First we have whisper semblances. These semblances are either very weak or show no combat potential. Most semblances in this classification take very little aura to use.

Next we have the general classification. This is where most semblances lie. Decently strong without being truly above and beyond.

Following this we have hereditary semblances. Though it should be noted that not all hereditary semblances are like the schnee semblance which are 1 to 1 copies of each other. Most are more like the pyrust family who's semblances all have to deal with flames in some way shape or form, a common theme without being completely the same.

Next we have the malevolent or broken semblances. These being semblances that are a negative impact to their holder and sometimes even fatal. These semblances are born out of trauma and deep seated psychological issues. It should also be noted that this classification can be in tandem with the others. It is possible to "fix" one of these semblances through changing of mindset and confronting trauma. Oftentimes this classification ends up on veteran hunters.

Finally we have Nobel Semblances. These are the semblances that stand above others. Either in power or mechanics they are exceptional. Some examples of Semblances in this category can be anything that can reshape a battlefield or something that effects the soul directly.

This concludes the end of the class. Any and all questions can be sent to your professor through scroll messaging.

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Jaune was rummaging around in a cardboard box in the JNPR dormroom when Ren entered. The stoic ninja raised an eyebrow as Jaune looked up and smiled.

"Hey Ren. I got you a drink from my farm!"

Ren was not prone to a lot of emotions, but his soft smile was genuine.

"Really? Thank you. What is it?" Ren asked. Jaune held up a green glass bottle and held it out.

"It's tea. Well, a special kind of tea," Jaune replied, "My sister Verdy likes tea ceremonies and culture, and so she sends me some special blends every now and again.

"I see." Ren opened the Ice Dust cool bottle and sniffed the aroma. He recognized it instantly.

"Ah, Jasmine... And it appears to be carbonated." He smiled and nodded to Jaune. "Thank you."

"You're welcome man," Jaune said with a similar smile. Ren sipped it gently, as Jaune unfolded some papers that had come in the box. Ren swallowed, and nodded.

"It's very good, with a bit of a burn. What's it called?"

Jaune scrolled down the pages and smiled.

"Oh! Jasmine fizz? It's a cocktail made with..." He narrowed his eyes, "Vodka?" He shrugged and looked up at Ren.

"Well, it shouldn't be an issue if you're not a lightweight-"

He stopped short. Ren's face was bright red. He was grinning like a loon, and wobbling slightly.

"Haaa... Thish... Thish is grrreat, Jauunnne!" He began to chug the bottle as Jaune's face fell.

Oh shit, he's a total lightweight! Jaune thought in horror. He couldn't imagine how embarrassed Ren might be if anyone saw him like this!

"Uh... Hey, Ren?" Jaune asked, reaching for the bottle, "Maybe you should take it easy on that stuff-"

"Nuh uh!" Ren declared, "Thish ish like... Like... Dancing unicornsh... On my tongues... Shee?"

"Huh?" Jaune asked.

Just then, Nora barged the room, as was her wont. She beamed happily.

"Hey Renny and Jaune-Jaune-!"

"NORRRRRAAAAAAA!" Ren exclaimed. He grabbed her and kissed her deeply. "OMNOMNOMMMMMM~!"

"MMPH?!" Nora was taken by surprise.

Jaune quickly pulled Ren away from the dazed Nora, holding him tightly even as he kept swaying.

"Woah woah woah... Are you all right, Nora?" He held Ren back, who was giggling drunkenly. Nora's mouth was stuck open as she stared in shock.

"Um, sorry about that. My sisters sent me some alcohol and I didn't know it was alcohol-I thought it was tea! Well, it is tea but it's made with vodka and now Ren's drunk! I had no idea he was such a lightweight-You okay?"

Nora was silent for a moment, which was easily in the top ten most terrifying things Jaune had seen in his life. Then, she calmly shoved Jaune out of the room (thankfully via the door this time). She grabbed the bottle of alcohol, tilted Ren's head back, and poured more down his throat.

"DRINK MAN! DRINK FOR OUR VALKYRIE NINJA BABIES!" she exclaimed. Ren gave her a thumbs up.

Jaune stared at the situation and decided to make a command-level decision. He shut the door, locked it, and put a "Do Not Disturb" sign up. He sighed and shook his head.

"I... think I'll avoid the dorms for a while..."

 

[AndrewJTalon]

They spent the night at the hospital on cots. Jaune didn't get much sleep, but he did his best.



The next day, they went out to Vale's Central Square in the New Town district for lunch. In the center of a large roundabout was a huge fountain and statue, commemorating the brave people who had lost their lives during the War of the Thrush: A huge conflict between the nations of Vale a few decades before the Great War.



It was also near the main gates of Vale itself... Where the train would breach.



Pyrrha: "Jaune? Jaune, are you all right?"



Jaune: "Hm? Oh..."



Nora: "I mean, you haven't even touched your food!" Nora grabs one of his crepes and scarfs it down "Mmmm~! Lunch pancakes!"



Nick: "Nora!" scowl "No stealing from your brother's plate!"



Nora: contritely "Sorry Dad."



Nick: "That's better. Seriously though sport, what's up?"



Jaune: "Just... Ya know..." shrugs "A little concerned about stuff."



Jaune's Brain: Ruby should have called me by now... Why didn't she call me? I was supposed to get a transmission, garbled, this morning... Did I change the timeline too much? Did they stop the train?



Nick: "Ahhh... I get it." chuckles "Worried for your girlfriend, huh son?"



Jaune: "Yes."



Nick: nods "Ahh... I was worried about your mother a lot, too. She had a tendency to charge in to rescue people on impulse. And to stand her ground to defend her patients, even if she was all alone. And to go to places I dared not enter, for fear of death!"



Ren: "Such as?"



Nick: shudders "The fashion department."



Nora: "HORRORS!"



Nick: brightly "But this is a training mission! I'm sure everything will be fine!"



Jaune: "Y-Yeah... Fine..."



Which was when everyone's Scroll, and the large holographic billboard screens overhead, began to flicker. A static-y image of Professor Oobleck appeared.



Oobleck: "Citize-of Vale-Imminent dis~ster-activate the emer-cy-now-train-main gat---Under---you must-!"



The image flickered out, going back to advertising. Nick frowned deeply, put his money on the table, and stood up.



Nick: "Check social media, see if anyone else saw that. I'm going to talk to the police."



Nick headed over to some cops sitting in a nearby police car, pulling out his Hunter ID. They talked for a bit while Jaune, Nora, Ren and Pyrrha all scrolled through their Scrolls. Jaune checked the time: 11:50 AM.



Pyrrha: "Seems like it only affected the billboards in this area, near the main gate... Is that what he meant?"



Ren: "But where's the disaster? What kind of disaster?"



Jaune's Brain: In the show, the area around the main gates was deserted... But here...



There were hundreds, maybe thousands of people wandering around. Jaune took a deep breath.



Jaune: "Guys? We gotta get everyone out of here. Now."



Pyrrha: "Wha-?"



Jaune: "Get people out of here! That's an order!"



Jaune gets up, rushes to his father and the cops.



Jaune: "Start the emergency sirens, get everyone out of here!"



Cop 1: "What? Kid, we're still trying to-"



Jaune: "The attack is imminent! You gotta start the sirens and evacuate the area! NOW!"



Cop 2: "Listen kid, we're already dealing with-"



Jaune: looks to Nick "Dad? Please."



Nick looks very thoughtful... Then reaches out and hits the siren controls on the police car dash, which goes off loudly. Lots of people look in their direction.



Cop 2: "Hey! You can't just-!"



Nick grabs the mouthpiece on the radio and hits the speakers.



Nick: "EVERYONE! THERE IS A TERRORIST ATTACK IMMINENT IN THIS AREA! EVERYONE EVACUATE! GET OUT OF HERE! NOW!"



He punctuates this by holding up Blont Joyuese, and firing a round that cracks like thunder. People scream and begin to run. Pyrrha, Nora and Ren dash out, breaking up the crowds and managing them. The first cop glares at Jaune and Nick.



Cop 1: "The hell did you-?!"



Nick: Grabs the Cop by the collar and looks him in the eyes, while growling like an angry lion "Get everyone out of here now."



Cop 1: squeaks "Y-Yes sir!"



Jaune and Nick head out, helping to kepe people moving. Getting them out of cars, picking up anyone who gets left behind or trampled. The emergency sirens begin to blare as barriers appear across the intersections.



Jaune's Brain: In the show it happened earlier than they planned... It looked like it was the afternoon at least. Now? It's high noon... Why'd they change it? Why'd they-?



He's near the gates when he spots a little girl hiding under a car. He lays down and extends a hand.



Jaune: "Hey! Come on, we gotta get out of here!"



Girl: cries, shakes her head



Jaune: "We gotta get out of here, it's not safe!"



The girl continues to refuse. Jaune sighs, then yanks the car up and rolls it over. The little girl looks at him in astonishment, holding onto a stuffed bunny.



Jaune: "Come on!"



He grabs her in his arms and heads for the nearest intersection... When he feels it. The ground rumbles and shakes.



Jaune's Brain: Oh no-!



In the show, it was barely rendered. Here... It was like the entire world just upended itself. The ground erupted like a volcano going off. Cars and boulders flew through the air. Jaune ran, keeping the screaming little girl in front of him when SOMETHING big hit him and forced him down. He held the little girl tightly as hell rained down upon them. Last thing he saw was a clock on a billboard reading 11:59.



Jaune's Brain: Damn... Butterflies... It's early...



Then everything went black.

Click to shrink...

For a time, all Jaune could hear was the whimpering of the little girl he was protecting, and the beating of his heart. The weight over him was massive, but he channeled his Aura and kept himself on all fours, holding up the weight.

Jaune: "It's gonna... Be... Okay... I promise!"

Girl: "Y-You mean it?"

Jaune: "Yeah! Yeah... Don't worry... My friends will be here soon and they'll dig us out. So don't worry... My name is Jaune, what's yours?"

Ginger: "Ginger!"

Jaune: "Ah, like the cookie."

Ginger: "I hate those cookies..."

Jaune: "Really? I like them but only in small amounts. Guess I'm just weird... Nngh..."

He felt the weight shift overhead. He heard something clawing at the rubble. Jaune grinned.

Jaune: "Hey... Told you! Stay close to me... WE'RE IN HERE!"

Ginger: "HELP!"

Jaune: "HELP! WE'RE IN HERE!"

The rubble was brushed aside. Jaune could push up, roll the boulders off... And came face to face with an Ursa. The Grimm snarled at him.

Jaune's Mind: MotherFUCKER!

But fortunately, Jaune had the presence of mind to channel his Aura into his fist, rear back, focus on enhancing his strength just as Pyrrha and his mother had taught him... And punched the Ursa as hard as he could.

The Ursa howled and staggered back. Jaune forced himself up out of the rubble, holding onto Ginger. He quickly put her onto his back.

Jaune: "Hold on!"

He drew sword and shield as the Ursa recovered and charged. He blocked the Ursa's charge, stopping it dead, then swung his sword! The head of the Grimm came clean off. Jaune scanned around the square. He saw his team and team RWBY fighting several Grimm nearby. He ran towards them, making sure Ginger held on.

He leaped over the ruins of the fountain and roared as he swung his blade, taking out an Ursa and two Beowulves trying to flank his teams.

Yang: "JAUNE!"

Ruby: "JAUNE!"

Weiss: "JAUNE!"

Blake: "JAUNE!"

Nora: "JAUNEY!"

Pyrrha: "JAUNE!"

Ren: "Jaune!"

Jaune: "SITREP!"

Ruby: "Your dad is plugging up another wall bombing nearby! He told us to hold the line!"

Jaune: "Good plan! Let's keep doing that! HANG ON, GINGER!"

Weiss: "Wait-Wait-You brought a child into the fight?!"

Jaune: "She's just tagging along... And... Okay yeah. Ruby? Get Ginger her to safety please?"

Ruby: "ON IT!" Ruby grabbed Ginger and vanished with her Semblance, before she reappeared. "She's safe! Throwing up though!"

Jaune: "GOOD ENOUGH!"

And so, together, all eight of them charge into the hordes of Grimm. And... No, it's not going well. Jaune can see why they didn't dig him out.

Jaune's Brain: Seriously, where is CFVY?! Or CRDL?! Someone, anyone...!

Jaune: "Okay... Okay, we need to buy more time... Uhhh..." He stabs a Beowulf through the neck and kicks it into another "Okay! Weiss! Can you throw up an Ice Dust Wall?!"

Weiss: "I'm out of Ice Dust!"

Jaune: "Crap...!" He slashes through a Boarbatusk and fights back to back with Yang, rotating to deal with several Grimm trying to flank them "We need something to plug the hole... Hang on... RUBY! There's a Dust shop two blocks away! Go check it out!"

Ruby: "On it!" She flashes away in a burst of rose petals. Jaune rushes to a downed police car, and lifts it up with a grunt.

Jaune: "NORA!" He tosses it "BLAST IT!"

Nora lets loose a withering barrage of fire at the damaged car as it falls into the gaping hole in the square. It explodes, its Dust engine going up and killing a number of Grimm.

Jaune: "Good... That bought us a minute... Come on Ruby, come on...!"

Nora: "Jaune! I'm low on grenades!"

Jaune: "Ren?"

Ren: "Low too."

Jaune: "I seriously gotta start carrying more gear-Ungh!" He slashes through another Ursa "Weiss! If we got you some Earth Dust could you plug that hole?!"

Weiss: "M-Maybe! I'm low on Aura!"

Jaune: "Will you try?!"

Weiss: "YES!"

Jaune: "OKAY! Stay in the back! Cast with what you've got!"

Weiss pulls back and unleashes Fire Dust blasts, as everyone keeping fighting. They have to keep moving back though, as the Grimm keep advancing. There are tall roadblocks at all the exits of the square, but the Grimm are clawing at them.

Jaune's Brain: Well, good they have better defenses in this world than in the show... But geez, if any of them get through-!
Ruby: appears again "GOT IT!" She tosses some Earth Dust capsules to Weiss, before unleashing several shots from Crescent Rose through the hordes of Grimm

Weiss takes the capsules, tries to summon her Aura and a Glyph... She struggles as the energy wobbles.

Weiss: "Nnngh... I'm... I'm too low...!"

Jaune's Brain: Okay... Okay... Look... In the show, I activated my Semblance because Weiss was in danger... Please... Please, let me be able to do it... Please...!
He ran over to her and grabbed her hand.

And... Nothing happened.

Weiss: "J-Jaune?! What are you doing?!"

Jaune: "Come on... COME ON...!"

Nothing happened. He kept flaring his Aura but nothing happened. Weiss's face was bright red and everyone else was glaring or gaping in disbelief.

Weiss: "J-Jaune! What are you-Why-?!"

Jaune: "Oh to hell with-" He yanked out his last packet of Healing Dust and held her hand between both of his "Here!"

He channeled as much of his Aura as he could into her through the packet.

Jaune's Brain: Okay, thank God my stupid fanon invention is real in this world...! Come on...!
Weiss's Aura lit up. Her eyes glowed. She waved Myrtenaster and unleashed a WAVE through the Earth, causing it to surge like water. It crashed into the ground, crushing and burying dozens of Grimm that all roared and screamed as the hole was engulfed in rock, dirt and rubble.

Weiss passed out, and Jaune managed to catch her as her Aura broke.

Ruby: "WOOHOO! WE GOT 'EM!"

Yang: "And now we've just got all these bastards to fight!"

Ruby: "Language!"

Yang; "Really?!"

Jaune took deep breaths. He set Weiss down. He stood his ground. Everyone else came together around him as the Grimm gathered around them.

Jaune: "Well... Just want you all to know... I love you all. Let's kill these bastards."

Yang: "I'm not saying goodbye!"

Ruby: "Me neither!"

Nora: "BRING IT ON!"

Pyrrha: smiles and nods grimly "Yes, let's kill all these bastards!"

Blake: smiles sadly, nods

Ren: stoic, manly nod

Weiss, woozy, manages to stand up.

Weiss: "I... I'm here too...!"

Ruby: "Weiss..." smile

Weiss: "I... I won't back down...!"

Jaune: "We know."

They stand there, heroic, ready to face hell itself... When dozens of crystal arrows pierce through several Grimm. A Dust powered minigun spins up, and everyone looks to a Bullhead flying overhead. Coco Adel is firing on the horde with Yatsuhashi, Fox and Cinder providing additional support. Isabel Arc is also with them.

Ruby: "YEAH! THE CAVALRY IS HERE!"

The teens dismount from the Bullhead onto the nearby roof. Fox and Yatsuhashi jump down and engage in the melee, while Cinder and Coco continue to fire. Isabel Arc... Has the Bullhead go higher, higher... And she jumps out.

She dives like an avenging angel, and SLAMS her fist into the large Deathstalker that was leading the pack. It evaporates from the hit as a massive BOOM sounds through the city. Isabel stands up and grabs an Ursa, swinging it by its leg and smashing another.

Jaune: "MOM!"

Isabel: "FOCUS SWEETIE!"

Jaune: "RIGHT!"

With these reinforcements, RWBY and JNPR manage to kill all of the remaining Grimm. Cinder takes out the last three with several arrows. Isabel then has everyone sit down and she examines them for injuries, starting with Jaune first.

Jaune: "Mom, I'm okay. My friends-"

Isabel: "I'll be the judge of that!" She examines him and nods with a smile "You're fine..." She squeezes his shoulders "Your father's contained the other breach too."

Jaune: "Um... We got a little girl named Ginger out of here-"

Isabel: "The rest of Cinder's team is keeping watch on them, but they're all right. It seems someone managed to get the alarms going and evacuated everyone." She smiles proudly at him

Jaune: blush "I just... Well... I had a feeling if the message from Doctor Oobleck was coming here, it would be the target...?"

Isabel: "Good instincts... I-I guess... I guess I was wrong. I'm very proud of you, Jaune."

Jaune: "Mom... Everyone else?"

Isabel: "Hm? OH! Yes, sorry." She gets to work healing everyone else. She lingers with Weiss and Ruby for a bit longer. Pyrrha and Yang sit on either side of Jaune.

Yang: "Nice thinking, Stud."

Jaune: "You okay?"

Yang: grumbles "Some bitch with a parasol... She made me look like an amateur!"

Jaune: "Sorry."

Yang: sighs "And well... We tried to stop the train but... Sorry."

Jaune: "Don't be. If you guys hadn't gotten that warning to us in time, who knows what would have happened?" He smiles warmly at her, wraps an arm around her waist and kisses her "Mmm... I'm just glad we're all okay."

Yang kisses him back happily.

Pyrrha tenses, but looks away. Jaune and Yang keep making out.

Ruby: "Geez guys! Are you going to do that all day?!"

Jaune: "Mwah... I mean, it beats paperwork... Which we'll probably have to do a lot of."

Cinder approaches with a smile.

Cinder: "Glad to see you're all fine."

Jaune: "Yes, you too..."

Pyrrha stares intently at Cinder. Yang nods.

Yang: "Yeah. Geez, a whole White Fang base at Mount Glenn? We gotta keep a better eye on that place."

Jaune: "No kidding..."

Cinder: "Still... Could have been worse. I believe this will do much to discredit their current leadership and make them more... Amenable to other directions they can take."

Blake perks up and stares at Cinder. Cinder smiles and nods.

Cinder: "One can always hope for the future, yes?"

Jaune: "In the end, hope is all we have..."

Yang: "..." snickers "Geez dude. You sound like a Space Trek captain!"

Jaune: smiles and winks "Well, I do know someone who would be perfect as a green space babe. You up for the part?"

Yang: laughs and hugs him "Maybe if you're good..."

Jaune: "And what if I'm bad?"

Weiss: "WILL YOU STOP YOUR-YOUR LEWDNESS?!! JAUNE! YOUR MOTHER IS RIGHT THERE!"

Isabel: While healing Nora "He's doing fine. No need to be jealous."

Weiss: "I AM NOT JEALOUS!"

All the while, amidst the horseplay, laughter and catharsis from survival... Jaune catches Cinder's eyes. She mouths "We need to talk."

And he slowly nods. As does Pyrrha.

Jaune's Brain: Well... This should be good...

 

[SharkCultist]

We're cranking Jaune into Himbo Overdrive!

---

Jaune Arc was afraid. Today was the cursed day.

February 14th. He doesn't know what causes it but for some reason every single female friend and acquaintance he has goes absolutely crazy on this day.

Attacking each other, breaking into his house, randomly losing their clothes, and wasting so much chocolate.

He just doesn't understand it. But luckily this year he has Bros!

"Sorry Jaune I'm gonna be busy."

"You're kidding right?"

"Velvet would kill me if I spent today with you....or worse she'd get Blake to draw it."

What are the odds that all his male friends had dates planned for today?!

In the distance Jaune could hear the sound of his doom.

"Jaune~"

A tide of female flesh was headed his way and if he didn't get out of dodge soon Beacon was going to be host to The Great War part 2.

So Jaune enacted his brilliant plan.

He snuck his way out of beacon and down to the weird fair that popped up (seriously. so much red and pink. Why?) and mugged a mascot for their costume.

Nobody would ever suspect the blonde teddy bear was actually him! But just in case he put his armor and weapons on over the mascot suit.

You know, just to be safe.

 

[SharkCultist]

Not a Valentine's Day one but had a Ren idea.

---

Goodwitch decided to switch things up in her class. Weaponless combat and (if you knew it) you were required to use your semblance in some way, shape, or form.

Yang was thrilled. Ruby was not.

"Miss Xaoi-long and Mr Lie. Please enter the arena."

Most people would look worried getting into a brawl with Yang, especially when she's using her semblance.

Ren didn't seem that worried and judging by her shit eating grin neither was Nora.

"This is gonna be great!"

Jeeze Nora what'd Ren do to piss you off?"

"Huh? Oh you guys haven't seen Ren use his semblance in combat...you might want to grab a barf bag."

"Huh?"

Crack

The groups attention snapped to the ring where to their horror Yang had snapped Rens neck with a punch.

"Why didn't his aura stop that?!"

"Oh Ren turns off his aura shield when he uses his semblance."

With another crack Rens head snapped back into place.

"It's funny. You're stronger than me, have way better endurance than me and a ton more formal training. And you have absolutely no way to win this fight."

Yang was still in a daze thinking she had killed a friend.

"Nora? Make with the explaining please?"

"You got it fearless leader! So Renny's semblance is called deaden. Usually he uses it to turn off emotions but he can also do that with his pain thingies."

"Receptors?"

"Yeah pain thingies. So he turns off his aura shield and redirects all the aura into stuff like healing. He even had a guy break all his bones at the joints so he could have bigger range of motion."

"Huh?"

Ren took this opportunity to throw a punch at Yang. His bones popping out of socket to add just a bit more oomph and range to his punch.

"That."

"I'm beginning to see why we need Barf bags."

Luckily goodwitch called the fight soon after. But not before most of the class was looking a bit green and Yang was thoroughly traumatized.

Ren won.

 

[AndrewJTalon]

After the final battle with Salem, there wasn't a place in Vacuo that wasn't celebrating. People were cheering, drinking, dancing and laughing. The streets were filled, the bars were packed. Yang thought her smile would never fade away as she made her way through the crowds. Sure, she was one of the heroes who ended the threat, but thankfully the news hadn't spread too much. Otherwise, she would never be able to get anywhere without being swarmed by fans.

She had a very important destination in mind, with a very important person to see.

She made her way to a house Menagerie's forces had used as a base for the fight. None of the Faunus guards paid her any mind, too busy drinking and laughing. She spotted a familiar dark head of hair and black ears on the roof above. She made her way through the courtyard filled with singing Faunus right into the building. She went up the stairs, up to the roof.

Yang's elation was palpable as she rushed up the steps and emerged onto the roof, her voice brimming with triumph.

"Blake! So this is where… You… Went..." Her words trailed off as her eyes fell upon Blake, locked in a passionate kiss with Sun Wukong, who had wrapped his tail around her waist. After a moment, Blake and Sun looked to the side and their eyes widened as they pulled apart.

A stunned silence followed before Yang managed to stammer, "What... What is this?"

Blake, caught off guard, pulled back slightly, her expression a mix of surprise and awkwardness. Sun just smiled in his usual good natured way, though with an awkward tension in his shoulders.

"Hey Yang!" He greet her.

"What is this?!" Yang demanded angrily. If Sun had been forcing himself on her, that would have been one thing… But she had been into it.

Blake finally found her voice.

"Oh... Wow... Uh... Yang? This is what it looks like," she admitted.

Yang's shock morphed into incredulity. "What?! You-You're cheating on me-?!"

"What? No!" Blake scoffed. "Cheating is an outdated concept invented to keep Faunus down! I've just been seeing Sun and Illia on the side while I was with you! It's called Polyamory!"

"Hey, welcome!" Sun grinned. Yang gaped at Blake.

"You-You didn't think to mention that?!" She demanded. "Maybe once?!"

"What? It's no big deal," Blake shrugged, looking a bit nervous, "Set relationships are just-just human oppression-!"

"You didn't even ask me!" Yang growled "You-You said I was the only one! You're still-How long has this been going on?!"

"Oh, since Beacon," Sun explained, as Blake tensed, "Yeah! She wasn't sure about adding you but she wasn't going to turn you down! I can agree!"

"YOU DIDN'T TELL ME A THING!" Yang snarled.

Blake sighed.

"Yang, it's just a Faunus cultural thing. As the future leader of Menagerie, I'm allowed to have a polyamorous relationship!"

"A harem?!" Yang demanded.

"It's not a harem!" Blake huffed, "Harems are for humans! You're all just my lovers and subordinate to me! You should be honored! I mean, you'll be the first human who is in the relationship in a consensual capacity! Sort of."

"What do you mean, sort of?!" Yang seethed, slamming her fists together.

"Well, " Blake quickly explained, her hands up in a desperate attempt to keep Yang calm, "In order to become the ruler of Menagerie, I need to marry a man to give me children. And Sun's a Faunus so he won't be rejected! So I get the position and power and everything!"

Sun, grinning, chimed in, "Pretty sweet, huh? And Illia will be our first concubine!"

"... And me?" Yang managed faintly.

"Well…" Blake shrugged, "You'll have to pretend to be a Faunus. I'm afraid my people aren't fully okay with humans being in relationships with us. Especially not their leader."

Blake, turning back to Yang, offered a proposition with a casual air. "So... You can be my unofficial side piece? How's that?"

Yang's heart shattered as she recoiled in disbelief.

"Wha... I thought you loved me!"

Blake's response was dismissive, almost flippant.

"What? No! I mean, of course I love you! But there are different levels, you know? Sun's been there for me the whole time and he'll be my consort, Illia is completely devoted to me, so you're like… You started as friends with benefits, but it could be more. Like…"

Blake actually smiled almost wistfully.

"Like a wonderful forbidden love in Ninjas of Love! My hidden concubine of our sort-of former oppressors!"

She gave Yang a warm smile and held out her hand.

"What do you think?"

Yang's heart broke, and the rage simmering beneath the surface erupted as her Aura burned like the sun and her eyes glowed like pits straight to Hell.

Two Faunus-shaped projectiles flew from the roof and crashed through the walls of another building across the street. Sun weakly raised his head, then spat out a bloody tooth.

"... I think she's mad," Sun said.

Blake, being unconscious, said nothing.

- - -

The bar was probably the only one in the city that wasn't filled. Hell, the celebrations around it were subdued and furtive. Jaune Arc, one of the heroes who had helped saved the world, decided that was a good sign he was onto his quarry.

He entered the bar-Easy to do since the wooden doors had been smashed into kindling. The wooden floor had multiple holes stomped into it, the furniture was piled in pieces, and the bar was in ruins.

Two stools remained, one of which Yang Xiao-Long was angrily drinking at all alone. The bartender had wisely fled and the entirely stock was at the blonde brawler's disposal.

Jaune slowly walked up and slowly sat down at the stool next to her. Silence dominated as neither spoke. Yang just kept drinking, in between her sobs.

"Yang?" Jaune asked softly. "Yang…?"

Yang shook furiously, before she drove a fist through the bar. It added to the holes in it already.

"FUCK HER! I was... I WAS SO FUCKING STUPID!" Yang sobbed, her voice raw with pain. "She... She just... She ran away! SHE ALWAYS RUNS AWAY EVEN WHEN SHE'S HERE! RUNNING OFF ON ME! WHY DID I THINK I'D BE DIFFERENT?!"

Jaune, without hesitation, pulled her into a comforting embrace. She resisted at first, struggling against his hold, but eventually relented, her body slumping in defeat. Jaune pulled out one of Weiss' Schnee Black Lien cards and set it down on what was left of the bar-Hopefully it would settle the exorbitant bar tab in some way.

He then gently guided her out of the establishment, out into the night. The celebrations were more muted out this far from the city center, and the stars and broken moon were above and shining brightly.

"I was so stupid!" Yang sobbed, "I loved her! I really… I thought I did! It just… It happened so fast, I just… I went with it and it all… I was so angry but she seemed like she had changed and…"

"I know," Jaune murmured quietly. "Hell, I don't think we talked once until the Ever After."

"She was so arrogant and I just… I just…" Yang hiccuped and resumed sobbing. "Like everything we went through was for nothing!"

Jaune nodded, finally guiding them out to a small park. He sat them both down on a bench, and held up a handkerchief. Yang sobbed into it, and Jaune kept holding her tightly.

It took quite some time, but Jaune never let up, soothing her. She sniffled, looking up with her red, tear streaked face.

"I just… It's stupid," she sobbed, "I-I just… Am I just stupid?!"

"You aren't, Yang," Jaune insisted, "Okay? And Blake doesn't deserve you. Not a bit. Not after all we went through and all she put you through."

Yang sniffled, and Jaune used another handkerchief to wipe her eyes.

"... I'm like Dad and Qrow," she whispered, "I'm… I'm alone."

"No, you aren't," Jaune countered firmly. "I'm here."

"For how long?" Yang demanded, her voice cracking. "Why... Why haven't you gone back to Ruby? You... You and her... You're heroes... Weisscream's wet over you all the time...!"

Jaune's response was steady and unwavering.

"They don't need me right now. You do, Yang," he said, pulling her into another hug. "I care about you. All right?"

Sniffling, Yang looked up at him, vulnerability in her eyes.

"... You... You'll never leave me?"

"No. Not ever," Jaune assured her.

"How do I know that?!" she pressed, desperation in her tone.

"Because I'm here, Yang! I've always been here! I took it all! I did it... Because I care about you!" Jaune replied, his voice filled with conviction.

Yang continued to cry, but she leaned into him, nuzzling his neck as she whispered, "I'm sorry I was such a bitch... I'm sorry... I'm sorry about Pyrrha... I'm so, so sorry..."

"Shhhh... It's all right, Yang. It's all right..." Jaune soothed, holding her close. "It's okay… Bottom line: We won. We saved the world. And… Okay yeah, Blake is still Blake, but you will never be alone. Never again." He brushed his hands through her hair, which was soothing rather than infuriating. Yang sighed softly against his neck.

"... I should have fallen in love with you... I was so stupid..." Yang murmured, her voice barely audible.

Jaune chuckled and kept stroking her hair.

"It's all right. You weren't as bad as me."

"Stupid," Yang mumbled as she fell asleep. Jaune then pulled her up onto his back and headed for the house their team had been staying in.

It took a while but he found it through the still partying crowds. He kicked the door open and carried Yang through it. He headed up to the room she had been sharing with Blake… Then thought better of it. He headed to his room, opened it, and laid Yang down on the bed.

He tried to pull away… When her arms went around him.

"Please," Yang whispered, "Stay."

Jaune hesitated.

"Yang," he said softly. Yang had a desperate look in her eyes, warm and hungry.

"Please Jaune," she whispered, "Don't leave me…" She held his hand and pulled it towards her chest.

"I don't know if this is what you want-"

"And what do you want?" Yang inquired, searching his face.

"I want you to be safe and happy..." Jaune answered without hesitation.

"Then... Then be with me tonight...," Yang said, her voice raw with need.

Jaune hesitated, concern in his eyes.

"Yang, you're hurt, you're drunk—"

Her eyes were clear as her Aura flared.

"And I know what I want. Please, Jaune..." Yang insisted, pulling him closer.

The battle had been long and arduous. They'd all nearly died to Salem. He was so tired.

"Yang, I love Ruby-" Jaune began, but Yang silenced him with a deep, desperate kiss.

"Mmmm... We saved the world. Let's work out our regrets later..." she murmured against his lips.

Jaune sucked in a deep breath. He very gently pushed her away.

"You know Ruby's feelings for me, and my feelings for her, Yang," Jaune said gently. "You love her too."

Yang's eyes filled with tears. She trembled and stared down at her hands, still on Jaune. She pulled them away shakily. She looked back past Jaune and gaped in horror. The blond knight turned around and his jaw dropped.

Ruby stood there in the doorway, illuminated by the hallway light. She stared intently at them both.

""Ruby... R-Ruby, I'm... I'm sorry! It's not his fault!" Yang insisted, "It's not his-I did it-Please don't-!"

Ruby walked over and hugged her big sister tightly. She stroked Yang's back with a warm smile.

"It's okay, Yang," Ruby whispered, "Shhh... Yang. You're my big sister, and I love you. You did so much for me when Mom died and Dad shut down. You deserve so much better than what Blake did to you. Please. Let me do this with you. Let us love you."

Yang blinked rapidly and blushed.

"I… Wha-?"

"Huh?" Jaune gaped. Ruby turned and smiled lovingly at Jaune.

"Jaune, Yang... I want us to be a family. Don't you want a family?"

"Yes, but-" Yang tried, but Ruby beat her to the punch.

"So Jaune, you and I will make one. Won't it be wonderful? All of us together? I know we'll get jealous and unhappy from time to time... We always do... But I know that all together? You, me, and Jaune? We'll be happy. And we'll never leave you, or abandon you." She squeezed Yang's hand with a happy smile.

"Maybe even Weiss, if she's up for it?"

Yang gaped in disbelief at Ruby. She continued to smile. Jaune was not much better.

At last Yang managed to say something:

"... I... Oh wow... We are really fucked up, aren't we?"

Ruby giggled and nodded, looking over at Jaune.

"Yes... But we're together. We always will be. Don't you agree, Jaune?"

Jaune, now that he was over his shock, managed a slow nod.

"Yeah. Always," he said.

"So," Ruby grinned devilishly, reaching for Jaune's pants, "Let's make this a real celebration, hm?"

And they lived happily ever after…

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Some thoughts on the Silver Eyed Warriors and the worldbuilding I've done:

In the past there were probably a number of different clans of Silver Eyed Warriors-They wouldn't have survived for more than a few generations if they were just one tiny community. So there were a few such communities across Remnant and they may have been in competition. At least one intermarried with Arjun and May's ancestors and gave the Sarkara family their Hereditary Semblance of Aura Sight, and may have produced a few Silver Eyed Warriors every few generations. Maria's Clan was also in Mistral and may have been rivals of the Sarkaras. However, she might have been willing to try and breed with a member of that clan when she became the last of hers.

The Sarkaras still have the potential to breed more Silver Eyed Warriors (though they got rarer and rarer with every generation), but were integral to Pandu's political landscape and so Salem couldn't just destroy them as easily as she did the more independent communities. But she did almost manage it by backing the Kauravas.

Even after Arjun retook the throne though, he was effectively the last of the Sarkara Clan and Maria was past menopause. She also still remembered when her clan was at odds with the Sarkaras, so she continued to lay low.

However, this does mean that Arjun may have tried to court Summer Rose while at Beacon in order to produce more Silver Eyed Warriors for Pandu in order to retake the throne. So why didn't he?

More than likely he was, like Sasuke, hyperfocused on retaking the kingdom. That and, if he settled down as an exile and had children, they would be targets of the Kauravas. So he was saving having any heirs for after he retook the throne, and by then he was in love with Saia.

But it might be funny if he had made friends with Summer and he ran the idea of them getting married in the future past her at some point to make more Silver Eyed Warriors. How did that go?

(Obviously it didn't end in marriage but it might be fun to explore).

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Velvet was cleaning the lens of her favorite camera out in the ruins near Vale. She had just set up a perfect shot of a butterfly alight on a daffodil, and wanted to ensure it was taken properly.

She focused, adjusted the parameters, and took the shot. Her camera squeaked digitally, several shots transferring to the data card, before the butterfly flew off with a graceful flap of its wings. Velvet tensed, hearing footsteps nearby. She turned... And her stomach fell.

There stood Cardin Winchester, scowling at her.

"I..." He hadn't come after her for weeks. Not after Forever Fall. For some reason, he'd begun to give her a wide berth. So why... Why was he here?

He stood there, silent, glaring. He then reached behind him. Velvet cringed, drew back. She winced, closing her eyes. Yes, she could fight, but she just... He was so strong and big and her natural instincts made her want to flee, want to-

"Here."

She opened her eyes. She stared dumbly at the bouquet of sunflowers and dark Vacuoan chocolates being held out by Cardin in front of her. Cardin glared at her.

"Uh... Wh-What?" Velvet managed.

"Here," Cardin grunted again, "I got these stupid flowers and chocolates from... From my sister, and I don't know what to do with them. So... Here. You have them. They're your favorites... Right?"

Velvet blinked several times, her jaw hanging low. Was... Was she hallucinating? Dumbly, she accepted the candy and flowers.

"I... Y-Yes, but why would she-?"

"I don't really care, or-or anything!" Cardin continued, red crawling up the skin of his neck towards his face, "You're just a-a stupid rabbit and I don't like you! At all!"

Velvet again blinked several times. Cardin glared.

"What, you don't like them or-or something?!"
"N-No, I do! I do!" Velvet insisted, clutching the items to her chest. She did actually love these!

"Anyway," Cardin muttered, "Um... My sister also got me this stupid... This table at some stupid restaurant. This Friday night. And I don't have anyone to go with."

He held up his scroll. He'd gotten a reservation email. Velvet again blinked. It was to the Minerva, a very high class and romantic restaurant.

"W-Wait," Velvet tried, her eyes widening, "Is... Is this a date? Are you... Are you asking me on a date?"

"No!" Cardin insisted sharply, his entire face red now, "N-No! I-I don't like you! I'm just... I've been kind of a jerk and I want to make it up to you! Th-that's all! Y-You don't have to go! I'll... It's stupid anyway..."

Velvet stared for a very long time. Her mind put it all together. She let out... A laugh.

"You... You were trying to get my attention because you like me?!" She asked in disbelief. Cardin, bright red, didn't say anything and didn't look directly at her.

"I-I'm just... Trying to make up for what I did. Th-That's all."

Velvet was a bit dazed. It seemed utterly ridiculous. Yet she could hear his heartbeat pounding with her ears. She could see his terror, smell it.

It was... strangely empowering. She smiled. Now? Now she understood what was going on, and her other rabbit instincts came forward.

"... I mean," Velvet began slowly, "I guess I could..."

She took a step forward and looked up into his eyes. He couldn't quite meets hers, despite their height difference.

"But only," she stated, "If you're honest. Why are you really asking me out? Why did you bully me?"

Cardin mumbled something, even she couldn't pick it up. She held a hand up to her ear.

"Hm? What was that?"

"I said... Because I... Like you," he mumbled. "... I'm... Not allowed to like Faunus. My grandpa says so..."

Velvet blinked and blushed herself deeply.

"Wait, so when you were bullying Jaune-?"

"That was different!" Cardin growled, his face an even brighter red, "He's a weakling loser who needed to know his place! You I uh... Um..."

Velvet giggled. Cardin flinched. She felt a bit bad for enjoying it, despite all he had done. Still...

"All right," Velvet said with a slow nod, "I'll go with you."

Cardin's face lit up for a second, before he scowled and looked aside.

"W-Well, good! I... I don't want to waste my sister's money and shit," he huffed. Velvet giggled again. "Hey! It's not funny! She paid good money for this!"

"Of course," Velvet laughed, patting Cardin on the forearm, "You really are very cute."

She stood on tiptoe and kissed his cheek. Cardin turned an even brighter red than she thought possible.

"Well I... Don't think you're beautiful or-or anything," he grumbled.

Velvet giggled again.

This was going to be fun.

 

[AndrewJTalon]

There wasn't much conversation at dinner. They all sat down in one of the hotel rooms and gobbled their food down: RWBY in particular eating like starving women. Even Weiss had thrown aside her usually impeccable table manners to happily devour the burgers, fries, and shakes.



Afterward, all five world saving heroes relaxed. Jaune had taken one chair, Yang, Ruby and Weiss the couch and Blake a small loveseat that she lounged on with some difficulty given its small size.



"Full stomach feels sooo good," Ruby sighed happily. She beamed at Jaune. "Thank you Jaune!"



"You're welcome, really," Jaune said with a laugh. Weiss nodded, tapping her fingers together.



"It-It's very kind of you," she added. "Though strangely enough, I miss the fire cooked meals we had on the road."



"Oh yeah, me too!" Yang enthused, "Especially that wild turkey! Mm! And the boar! You cooked it, didn't you Jaune?"



"Yeah, Ren and Nora caught it," Jaune confirmed with a smile, "Had to gather the herbs myself. Glad I packed the salt."



"We all are," Ruby enthused.



"It went better on fish," Blake opined. Yang snorted.



"You would think that, you stereotype."



Blake scoffed.



"I'm not a stereotype! I like fish! Lots of humans like fish too! Ren loved fish!"



"How are Ren and Nora, anyway?" Ruby asked quickly, more than likely trying to head off another argument between her sister and her ex. Jaune smiled warmly and helped his best friend out. Besides, he was glad to share more good news.



"They're great! They're living in Radian. They just moved into their new house. Ren is teaching Aura and martial arts at the hospital part-time, and Nora's serving in the militia and as a demolition company."



"Wait, it's just her?" Weiss asked. She then sighed at everyone else's looks and shook her head, "What am I saying? Of course it's just her."



"My sister Tangy helps with the finances and gets her jobs," Jaune said with a smile. "She and Ren are going to get married right after Lilac does."



"That's great!" Weiss enthused. "More weddings! I love weddings!"



"So," Jaune said with a smile, as his manners and instincts pushed him to a response he felt was a good idea, "How about your families?"



In an instant, the good mood vanished and all of RWBY seemed to sink into depression. Jaune could swear a dark cloud appeared over all their heads. He cringed, realizing his tactical misjudgement immediately.



"I-I mean we don't have to-"



"My parents lost the election in Menagerie to Shere Khan and Wile E. Coyote," Blake moaned, "By a landslide. Turns out they were doing some money laundering to get their big mansion. Not like, a lot? But enough they got sued. Plus the fact they couldn't act against White Fang because I was their hostage for years made them really unpopular when that got out. So um... They're still in the government but they're working to pay off their debt and uh... I'm avoiding them because I'm the one who found out about their money laundering and revealed it and um... Yeah."



She shrugged listlessly.



"Oops?"



Weiss bowed her head deeply.



"The Schnee Dust Corporation was essentially destroyed by the new anti-trust legislation the restored government of Atlas passed, and um, my father didn't actually leave me or Winter anything. At all. It all went to Whitley. He uh... He's still not happy about me pulling a sword on him and declaring we'd made up. He runs his own engineering firm now. Mother is um, is doing better. She's out of rehab. Winter is running the Atlasian military but uh, well... She wasn't happy with how I dealt with Whitley so things are uh, a bit strained? Eheh..."



Yang and Ruby tried to sink into the couch together.



"Dad ran off with some young hot millionaire heiress who wanted a DILF," Yang sighed, "He sends us money sometimes."



"Uncle Qrow won the lottery. He said he hadn't had a vacation in decades and so he ran off, we haven't heard from him since," Ruby mumbled.



Jaune very slowly nodded. He decided to choose his next words very carefully.



"That... That all sucks," he said. RWBY sank into a deeper depression. "But! But... This isn't as bad as when we were fighting Salem. We don't have to worry about her anymore."



He smiled and reached out his hands to them.



"And hell, I survived like twenty years in the Ever After," he said, "You didn't have to go through that!"



"We wouldn't have survived five minutes without you," Ruby grumbled.



"Doesn't matter," Jaune said firmly, "We're going to the wedding, and we'll sort things out after. I promise. Don't dwell on all that. It won't help. Let's look to the future, okay? It's been rough, but it's going to get better."



Ruby stared at his hand for a moment. She then slowly reached out and took it. Yang, frowning, reached out and took his hand too. Weiss, not wanting to be left out, wrapped both of her hands around his free one. Blake stared for a moment, making some kind of mental calculation... Before she got up, walked around and hugged Jaune from the side. Yang, Weiss, and Ruby all scowled. Jaune maintained his happy smile.



"Okay?" He offered.



"... Sure," Ruby managed, eyes narrowed at Blake.



"Okay," Yang agreed, her eyes glowing red as she shot Blake a very dirty look.



"Of course, Jaune," Weiss said, glaring daggers at Blake.



"We'll see, Jaune," Blake said, staring back at them intensely.



Some kind of silent conversation was being held between all the girls and Jaune didn't really know what it was about. They had been under a lot of strain and pressure lately. Again, probably something best nipped in the bud.



Jaune coughed to get all their attention on him.



"Well... Uh... It's getting late," he said. "Um... Anyway. Maybe we should get to bed and rest up?"



"Of course Jaune," Weiss said brightly. She got up and pulled Jaune to his feet. "Let's get to bed!"



"Yes! Let's!" Ruby added, also standing up and tugging on Jaune's hand. Yang got up and tugged harder, nearly pulling Jaune off his feet. She caught him, smiling strangely.



"Oops! Clumsy me!" Yang said, holding him against her chest, "But you had a soft landing, right Stud?"



"Uh, yeah," Jaune said carefully. He slowly stood up, pulling away from Yang. "Anyway, there are four beds. I'll grab the pull out from the couch and-"



"Nonsense!" Ruby insisted, hugging onto Jaune tightly, "We used to sleep in the same sleeping bag all the time on the road, Jaune! It'll be just like old times!"



"Um...?"



"I couldn't put you out like that, Ruby," Yang said, tugging Jaune her way, "As the big sister, I'll take the hit! You deserve a bed all to yourself!"



"Uh..."



Weiss joined the fray, yanking on Jaune's shoulder.



"Please Ruby! As your partner and friend, I will accept the burden of Jaune in my bed!" Weiss said with a gleeful smile.



"Er, that's not-"



Blake again intervened, hugging onto Jaune tightly around the waist.



"I've caused so much trouble," Blake said, "I'll handle this for you three. After all, I have the most experience."



"Yeah, like the alley cat you are," Yang snorted. Blake growled.



"You didn't want to do anything!"



"I didn't want to do anything you suggested because it was all from your porn books!"



"EROTICA!"



"I'm smallest, he'll have the most room with me!" Ruby growled.



"Please! I-I'm nothing next to him!" Weiss insisted, "I-I'll just get lost in his arms-!"



"Okay!" Jaune said loudly but calmly, pulling away from all of them, "I'll just go get another room. You all deserve to have beds to yourselves, and I've got the money. It's no big deal. All right?"



"But-!" Weiss insisted, but Jaune shook his head.



"You guys have a LOT of issues. Being at eachother's throats hasn't helped. So, we all sleep separately and we'll feel better tomorrow. That good with everyone?"



"I..." Ruby nodded, drooping like a kicked puppy. "Yes Jaune."



"Sure Stud," Yang sighed.



"Of course Jaune," Weiss murmured quietly.



Blake just nodded, still staring intensely at Jaune.



Jaune nodded back to them and smiled.



"Good. See you tomorrow," he said, "Good night."



They said their goodnights back. Jaune turned and went out the door. The moment it shut behind him, all four women glared daggers at eachother-Though three of them focused mainly on Blake.



"What the hell was that?!" Yang demanded.



Blake shrugged.



"Nothing you weren't thinking," she replied cattily, "Jaune's single. He's well off. He's dependable. And we'll be at a wedding. It's the perfect time."



"Perfect time for what?!" Weiss demanded. "For you to-to sink your claws into him?!"



"Basically, yeah," Blake shrugged.



"You-You shameless alley cat!" Yang snarled.



"How do you know he's single?!" Ruby demanded. "It's not like you searched through his social media accounts when he handed you his Scroll, is it?!"



"No," Blake smirked, "But you did."



Ruby went bright red. At everyone else's scowls, she glared back.



"S-So what if I did?!" She sputtered. "Just to make sure he was single! I-I'm curious about him! He's my best friend, despite, you know, everything!" She pointed an accusing finger at Blake.



"You just want him because you want an easy life!"



"Yeah, and so do the rest of you!" Blake shot back. "But he's also courageous, handsome, kind, and everything else a proper romantic lead should be!"



"You barely exchanged ten words with him during our whole adventure to stop Salem!" Weiss sputtered.



"Yeah, and I also didn't reject him when he courted me in Beacon!" Blake smirked.



"Yeah?!" Yang growled, "Well, you'll just run off on him the second things get tough or-or cheat on him with Sun!"



"WE HAD AN OPEN RELATIONSHIP!" Blake defended herself.



"YOU DIDN'T TELL ME!" Yang snarled. "Me? I'm going to stay with Jaune and-and build a proper home and family with him! I'll have twenty kids and we'll be happy!"



"Yaaaaang!" Ruby shouted, betrayed. Yang blushed.



"What?! You'll still be part of the family, Rubes! But you had your shot. I'm taking mine!"



"I'M TAKING MY SHOT!" Ruby snarled.



The argument continued... Until there was a knock at the door. Ruby scowled at her teammates turned traitors and stalked over to it. She threw the door open.



"WHA-Jaune?!"



Jaune stood there, looking disappointed. A hotel employee stood with him, looking annoyed.



"Guys," Jaune said, "This is why I said we should sleep and take care of this tomorrow, okay? Now everyone? Separate beds. Go. Now."



With his light beard and stern visage, he looked like the Rusted Knight again. All four girls nodded.



"Yes Jaune," they said meekly.



Blake and Weiss headed to their room, heads bowed, but still shooting dirty looks at eachother and Yang and Ruby. Yang and Ruby did the same, even after they were out of sight. Jaune shut the doors on both their rooms, sighed, and turned to the hotel employee.



"I'm really sorry about this," he said.



"Keep your harem in line, sir," the employee stated. Jaune scowled.



"They're not my harem!"



"Tell them that," he scoffed. "Also, you gonna tip or what?"



"For you responding to a noise complaint?" Jaune asked in disbelief. "Really?"



"Really!" The employee agreed. Jaune sighed and slipped some lien into his hand. He smirked saucily.



"Thank you sir... Though you know... If you and your ladies had a different sort of noise complaint, I could ignore it for a few more-?"



Jaune flared his Aura. It was like staring into the sun-A stern, powerful, angry looking sun in the form of a seven foot tall man built like a mountain.



The employee gulped nervously, handed the tip back, and tipped his hat.



"H-Have a good night, sir!"



He scurried off as Jaune glared after him. He sighed, released his Aura, and slowly shook his head.



"Some things never change," he muttered as he went off to his bed and his well deserved rest.



- - -



Yeah it's now a harem competition fic. It was going to happen eventually.



However, it's gonna require a lot more character growth to get to the happy ending.

 

[TheFabulousCustodes]

-RWBY and JNR managed to defeat Salem but she unleashed a final attack that killed off most of the world's population. So now the priority is: Have babies and rebuild civilization! I think humanity/Faunuskind is doomed with these idiots in charge.

Click to shrink...

Honestly?

Jaune probably wouldn't do a bad job.

The others though........

Jaune - "Why is the back of the truck only filled with tuna and cookies?!?"

Blake - "You said we needed to scavenge essentials for the Radian refugee camp!"

Ruby - "Yeah, essentials!"

Jaune - "Urrgh! Well, I'm sure Weiss and Yang were more sensible, and got those supplies & staff for the hospital."

Some time later.....
​

Yang - "Hey everyone, we're back!"

Jaune - "Oh, thank god! Ruby and Blake totally screwed up and..... what's that?"

Yang - "I got all the shampoo and conditioner the hospital pharmacy had. A girls got to look her best stud!"

Jaune - "Weiss, please tell me you brought back some doctors or nurses to help with hospital here in Radian...."

Weiss - "Why? There are already plenty. I found something far more valuable!"

Jaune - "Dare, I ask what?"

Weiss - "A baker, to replace my beloved cake butler!"

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Sixteen Years Ago...



Isabel was expanding every one of her senses with her Semblance, and speeding up her brain processing as quickly as she could. The stink of fear and Dust filled the air. The sounds of panic and gun fire were almost deafening. She could feel the heartbeat of the injured man she was trying to treat fading beneath her gloved hands, all in the wide railroad tunnel.



"Stay calm, stay calm," she insisted, pushing more Aura into the old, blood covered man, "It's okay, it's okay!"



She controlled her sweat glands to keep any of it dripping into her eyes. With one hand she pushed Aura through the Healing Dust into the man and with the other, she tried to stitch up his injuries. A nurse had plunged an IV into his arm to try and keep him going.



"I... I can't..." He whispered.



"Don't talk, it's okay, it's okay," Isabel insisted. The man shuddered.



"Did... Did my kids get out?"



Isabel didn't know. She hadn't gotten a name from the man. She sucked in a breath.



"I don't know," she whispered back honestly. The man shuddered, slumped. His heartbeat faded. She hissed, pushed more Aura into him.



"No, nonono, stay with me, stay...!"



Gone. The sensors she'd attached to his chest, linked to her Scroll, beeped in a low, mournful flatline. She took a deep breath, willed herself to stay calm.



"Doctor! More over here!" The beleaguered nurse cried. Isabel pulled the meager blanket over the man's body and headed over, already scrubbing her hands clean with antiseptic.



The barricade ahead was made of concrete traffic dividers. Valean Defense Force troops and militia members fired into the snarling darkness beyond as refugees tried to make it to safety. She tried to put it out of her mind, focus on her patients.



Two scraped up, crying children-She quickly sent them on ahead out of the tunnel with another refugee woman, they would be fine.



An old woman with a horrible thigh wound-She applied a tourniquet, a tiny bit of her Aura through Healing Dust, and had her loaded up on the train carts ferrying civilians out and troops in.



A man bleeding out, carrying his dead dog... She sat with him, gave him pain killers. He passed away. She kept her emotions off, stayed calm.



On and on and on it went. An endless stream of desperate humanity, fleeing from Mount Glenn, whose defenses were now gone. Her husband and her best friend, Mercer Sith, were in that same city, fighting desperately to protect people coming in. She hadn't seen them, smelled them, heard them, or heard from them over the Scroll in hours now...



No. Calm. The more she used her Semblance, the less Aura she would have. And she already had so little...



"Doctor!" One of the troops shouted. She turned-An Ursa had barreled through the gunfire and was clawing at the barricade. She sucked in a breath, summoned up some Aura, and charged. She had to save every iota of Aura she could, every drop-



She lifted up another concrete divider, and, using its mass, slammed it down on the snarling Grimm's neck, decapitating it. It began to dissolve, and the troops resumed firing as she pulled away and ran back to her patients.



Come on Nick, come on...!



She hadn't wanted to leave. Jaune had just been born, and he had been so weak! So frail! Even now, he was in a plastic bubble back at Arc-En-Ciel, not at home. She wasn't home, she hadn't wanted to come... But her baby was stable and Mount Glenn was falling. Every hand was needed.



So many people wouldn't be seeing their loved ones ever again today. More would if they weren't here. And yet...



I'm so sorry kids, I'm so sorry...



One of the soldiers (Captain Reynolds, her almost infallible memory provided) held a hand to his ear set. He shook his head. Even through the balaclava over his face and the helmet on his head, she could see he was outraged.



"They're what?!" He demanded.



He looked helplessly at Isabel.



"What?!" She cried.



"They say to pull back!" Reynolds growled. "They're collapsing the tunnel!"



Isabel's eyes widened and her jaw dropped.



"What?! They can't-There are still people in there-!" She shouted.



"It's too late!" Reynolds shouted, "They're sending a train!"



Isabel's heart pounded in her chest, her ribs rattling. She looked anxiously down the tunnel, praying, begging, she would see her husband and best friend.



"We have to go, Doctor!" Reynolds shouted, pulling back from the barricade while firing back. "Grab everyone you can, let's bail!"



"Get going!" Isabel shouted, "Go! I'm going to wait as long as I can!"



"Ma'am, we've all been ordered to retreat-!"



"You go then!" Isabel shouted, as calm as she could sound, "I'll help you load up everyone but get going!"



"Doctor, they said everyone-"



Reynolds placed a hand on Isabel's shoulder. She glared at him coldly, and grasped his hand firmly.



"I'm staying," she stated, flat and angry. Reynolds stared back at her, and slowly nodded.



"... Then I guess I'm staying too," he said. "BOYS! Covering fire! Everyone get out! GO!"



"But sir-!" One of the privates protested, but Reynolds glared. The private nodded hurriedly.



"Yes sir! MOVE! MOVE!"



Reynolds got back up on the line and continued to fire as his men withdrew. Isabel hurriedly used her strength and gathered up every patient she could move (and a number she shouldn't, but had no choice) up to the railcart. Her nurse was breathing hard, looking frantic (Inara, that was her name-Good girl, right from Radian), but was able to lay the patients on the cart properly even as the soldiers clambered around them.



"Doctor, that's all," Inara cried, "Are you really-?"



"YES," Isabel snarled. She summoned up a little more Aura, and kicked the railcart, sending it down the rail, "Now GO!"



She turned and picked up two discarded Auto Dust Rifles. She joined Captain Reynolds on the line, and opened fire on a few Beowulves heading for them.



"You can leave too!" Isabel shouted, "You need to go!"



"Lady, if you think I'm leaving the woman who kept us going behind alone, you're crazier than I thought!" Reynolds shouted back over his own rifle fire. Isabel allowed herself a smile, even as she stared down at the tunnel



Come on Nick, come on Mercer, come on...!



She could hear a train in the distance behind her. A loud, ominous whistle. She threw down her weapons the moment their magazines were spent, and picked up new ones, firing them on the Grimm.



At last she heard familiar fire-A railgun sword and a chaingun. Out of the darkness came Nick, running hard. He had a child over his shoulder. Mercer, the old cat Faunus, was right behind him, running backwards as he fired his heavy weapon behind them. A large crowd of people were with them, running for their lives.



"NICK!" Isabel screamed, "THEY'RE USING A TRAIN BOMB TO SEAL THE TUNNEL! HURRY!"



"A WHAT?!" Nick shouted back.



"HURRY!" She shrieked, grabbing another rifle to fire... And finding it spent too. She threw it at a Beowulf trying to pounce on one of the civilians, and the force of her throw split the Beowulf clean in half.



She wobbled. Her Aura flared around her, splintering...



Oh no, Isabel thought in horror, no, nonono, not now, NOT NOW-!



The train roared like an avalanche of steel. She collapsed to her knees and shook as her Aura shattered around her.



"IZZY!" Nick and Mercer screamed. Isabel grit her teeth, tried to stand...



Nick barreled through the barricade, smashing them aside. He picked her up and threw her over his other shoulder, running like a maniac. She held on for dear life, watching as Nick, Mercer, and Reynolds herded the civilians forward. Reynolds took the rear, firing furiously into the horde of oncoming Grimm as he moved backwards. Mercer sent out bursts as well, revving up his minigun to send more death back towards the monsters...



He looked back... His eyes widened.



"GET OUT OF THE WAY!" He bellowed, throwing himself to the side with a boy he managed to grab. Nick threw himself with the girl to the side. The civilians scrambled... A huge black mass barreled past her, so fast, so huge she felt the tips of rivets brush her hair...



The train charged on ahead, leaving death in its wake. It slammed into the horde of Grimm and kept going, undeterred by their numbers. She saw people all over the tracks, some dead, many injured-



"NICK! Nick, we can't-We can't just leave them-!" She shrieked.



Then there was a massive explosion. The world turned white, then black.



- - -



She awoke some time later-Her Aura was back, if weak. She was lying on a cot in a tent, judging from the smells and fabric flapping sounds. She opened her eyes.



Nick was sitting over her, looking grim. He squeezed her hand tightly.



"Izzy... Izzy, you okay?" He whispered.



Isabel nodded slowly. She sat up. Nick gave her water from a bottle, which she gratefully accepted.



"You... Are you okay?" She asked. Nick sucked in a deep breath. "Is Mercer okay? Is-?"



"I'm fine," Mercer grumbled, the grouchy old cat stepping into the emergency tent. He still wore his simple but garish outfit-Plaid pants, military boots, white undershirt with some tactical armor, and a khaki canvas duster. He scowled at her with his black eyes.



"You almost weren't," he stated, "Aura Breaking? You? An Arc? Your granny would be ashamed-"



"How many?" Isabel demanded, in no mood for Mercer's usual antics. "How many did we...?"



Nick bowed his head. Mercer sighed, and looked away as he lit a cigarette. Nick slowly raised his head and looked her in the eyes.



"We got the little girl out... A boy Mercer snagged... The rest..."



He trailed off. He bowed his head in shame. Isabel stared.



Her husband had almost never shown shame. Never seemed so... So lost, broken and sad. So defeated.



"... The tunnel collapsed," he whispered, "They... They wanted to be sure... We carried you all here but..." He shook his head. "I... Izzy..."



He sucked in a deep breath.



"I'm sorry, Izzy," he whispered, "I'm so sorry. I wasn't strong enough. I wasn't good enough... I'm sorry."



Isabel stared at her husband. Tears came to her eyes. She wrapped her arms around his big shoulders. He wrapped his arms around hers. Mercer sighed, smoking in silence.



There was nothing but the cold wind, and the dead so far below...

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Team CMEN (Carmen was the official title but some insipid idiots kept making the same tired joke) was sitting outside pretending to do some studying. Emerald didn't know why they bothered, but Cinder's reasoning that they couldn't let anyone suspect them was solid... Mostly.



"Hmhmhmmm... Mmhmm..."



Lately, Emerald suspected Cinder had other motives. Something even Mercury picked up on, as he sighed.



"You know Cinder," he said, "We could just leave you alone with the guy."



Cinder started, having been staring at... Him. She shook her head and glared at Mercury.



"Stop saying such ridiculous nonsense," she growled, "We are out here to maintain our cover!"



Mercury sighed. He glanced away.



"Oh look. Arc just popped a shirt button," he deadpanned.



Cinder glanced over... Then her cheeks turned red. She glared with fire in her eyes at Mercury, who, despite his fear, smirked.



Neo grinned and licked at her ice cream cone far more lasciviously than she had been before.



And Emerald seethed.



Emerald had devoted herself entirely to Cinder. Every waking moment of her existence was bent towards aiding her ambitions, in proving herself worthy of Cinder's trust and affection. No matter how terrible, how horrific, how difficult the task was, Emerald would accomplish it for her mistress.



And now, some ill-bred cowpoke was taking all of Cinder's attention!



"He's a potential threat to our operation," Cinder stated firmly, her cheeks still tinted, "And partners with Nikos. While his close range combat skills are poor, his ranged combat skills are very dangerous. The two of them could pose a significant threat, especially if Nikos obtained the Maiden Power."



"Perhaps we should test his skill then," Emerald piped up, barely hiding her anger and jealousy. Cinder raised an eyebrow and gave her a deadpan expression. Mercury smirked knowingly, while Neo tilted her head in a silent question.



"Oh?" Cinder asked flatly, "And how would you do that, Emerald?"



"Quite simply," Emerald stated. She stood up and turned, heading right for that guitar strumming lout. He was relaxing, as he often did, by a certain tall tree on the grounds. His hat was down over his eyes as he strummed away. His horse grazed nearby, though she poked her head up and stared at Emerald as she approached. Emerald paid the horse no heed, storming right up to stand ten feet in front of Arc. She glared and rested her hands on Thief's Respite.



"Jaune Arc!" She declared.



Arc poked his hat brim up to stare up at her. After a moment, he got to his feet, slid his guitar to his side, and tipped his hat with a polite smile.



"Miss Sustrai? What can I do for you?" He asked kindly.



It made her hate him all the more.



"I... Wish to see which of us is a better shot with a revolver," she managed, her calm tone somewhat ruined by her grit teeth. Arc blinked a few times.



"Well certainly miss," he said with a smile, "May I ask why-?"



"No," Emerald practically snarled. Jaune slowly nodded.



"Yes Miss. When and where?"



"Noon!" She spat. "The shooting range!"



Arc looked at her in concern. That it seemed be sincere just made her angrier.



"There something the matter, miss? I offend you in some way? If I did, I do apologize and would be happy to make amends-"



Emerald drew Thief's Respite and fired. Arc's hat flew right off his head. She fired a second time, then a third, then a fourth, making the hat sail higher and higher into the air. She then let it fall, like a crumpled leaf, right in front of him.



Arc blinked. He blinked again. The horse stared very intensely at the place between her shoulders.



"You... You...!" Emerald snarled. "You have this coming!"



Arc very slowly knelt down. He picked up his hat and examined it carefully, sticking a finger through the holes. He then calmly set it back on his head. He stood up. His eyes were shadowed... But the Aura surged through them, making his blue eyes glow. His face was as hard as stone, and his Aura felt like a thundercloud raging across the Vacuoan prairie before it unleashed its fury.



For a moment, Emerald was daunted, cowed... But she glared back in stubborn pride.



"Very well, Miss Sustrai," Arc stated, his voice as cold and hard as steel, "You've made your point. Noon. Tomorrow. We will settle this."



"Count on it!" Emerald growled. She turned and stormed back to CMEN's table. She took the time to calm herself, take deep breaths and regain her composure. She sat down, and bowed her head slightly towards the staring Cinder.



"This will allow you to truly gauge his ability, Miss Cinder," Emerald said, "And learn how to overcome him, even if he's paired with Nikos."



Cinder was silent for a few moments. She then slowly nodded.



"Inelegant, Emerald," she stated, and Emerald winced, "But effective. We will see what kind of fighter Mister Arc truly is."



Emerald smiled and nodded quickly.



"I-I will not fail you, Cinder!"



"Sure, that's one way to put it," Mercury muttered. Emerald punched him. "OW! What?!"



- - -



Part 2 coming soon...

 

[AndrewJTalon]

In Volume 5 after RWBY has reunited...

Ruby: "Yeah! We did it!"

Yang: "Yeah! We sure did!"

Blake: "Yes! RWBY is reunited! We're back together!"

Ruby: "I-Wait what?"

Blake: "What?"

Weiss: "What are you going what about, Ruby?"

Ruby: "I mean... Er... Yeah, we beat this bad guy and all but... Back together? As a team?"

Blake: "Yeah. I brought an army, we defeated White Fang and Lionheart-"

Ruby: "Yeah and that worked fine, but like, permanently?"

Weiss: "What do you mean? You're acting like you don't need us!"

Ruby: "I really don't."

Yang: "What?! Come on, I'm basically a Super Saiyan!"

Ruby: "Pfft. In short bursts, sure, but then you get carried away and then get beaten! Nora hits harder, her Semblance is easily recharged, and she's not making terrible jokes all the time!"

Yang: "They are NOT terrible! And who are you going to get for your tank instead of me, huh? Jaune?"

Ruby: "Yes Jaune! Did you NOT see him stop the Nucklavee? He's a freaking TANK! Also, Jaune's Defense and Support are super incredible! He's like a White Mage! He literally brought you back from the dead, Weiss!"

Weiss: "Which I appreciate but my Glyphs can-"

Ruby: "HA! His Dust Projector in his Shield lets him cast offensive blasts AND heal! And he can take a hit! You can't!"

Weiss: "I-I so can! I can move at super speed-!"

Ruby: "You did in your trailer. Never have since then."

Weiss: "I... I haven't needed to?"

Ruby: "Like when you almost died?"

Weiss: "HEY!"

Ruby: "Continuing on, Blake? Ren's way more useful than you as a ninja. He can manipulate emotions at range and while his weapon sucks, I'm gonna buy an upgrade for him in Atlas and he'll be complete. You? You just have your clones for a distraction and ninja tools that really needed an update."

Blake: "But come on, we have to get back together! We were separated for a while sure but-"

Ruby: "Oh? And why were were separated, Blake? Why don't you tell me? I mean, Yang joined me after she got over her PTSD... Weiss got kidnapped by her dad... And you...?"

Blake: "Umm... I ran off and... Kind of abandoned you. Um, but I had a good reason!"

Weiss: "Oh this should be good-"

Ruby: "We'll get to you too, Weiss. Blake?"

Blake: "Well, uh... I mean my psycho ex did maim my best friend and I thought you'd be safer if I wasn't... Around?"

Yang: "Oh gee, like he wouldn't have done to any other human?"

Blake: "It was personal!"

Yang: "He literally murdered a guy right in front of you! RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU!"

Blake: "Yeah well... I still came back! With an army! To-To save you-!"

Ruby: "Yeah, sure that's great Blake, why didn't you bring your army to save Beacon? Huh?"

Blake: "Well I-"

Ruby: "You were still Menagerie's Princess! Why didn't you call in an army to help then?"

Blake: "I'm not really a princess-"

Weiss: "She's what?!"

Ruby: "Yeah, she's the daughter of Menagerie's rulers. Has been this whole time. No idea how we didn't figure it out sooner but she grew up in a mansion."

Weiss: "WHAT?!"

Blake: "It's not even that big a mansion! It's like half the rooms of yours, Weiss!"

Weiss: "YOU HYPOCRITE!"

Weiss has to be held back by Yang.

Ruby: "Plus, I would like to remind you all that during Vytal, Weiss got kidnapped, Yang got maimed, and Blake ran off. Even before then, none of you listened to me except when we were about to die! You all had your own personal dramas that were more important to you than the team or me!"

Yang: "That's not true! I totally rejoined you-"

Ruby: "After being in self pity and trauma for almost a whole year. I saw people DIE, Yang! I saw PYRRHA DIE! And I still got up and went off with Jaune, Nora, and Ren, who don't HAVE your drama queen bullshit! Hell, his trauma and quest for justice makes him sexier!"

Yang: "I mean... You're not wrong about Jaune."

Weiss: "That's fair."

Blake: "Bad boys are overrated."

Ruby: "ANYWAY! Team RNJR has been saving the day just fine and I'm sure if I max our gear and grind a little (especially on Jaune) we'll be able to handle it! You guys can stay in the backrow. Later!"

Ruby shoots off. Yang, Weiss and Blake stare at eachother.

Weiss: "... By that she means-?"

Yang: miserably "Back row... With the unpopular player characters nobody uses unless they're completionist weirdos."

Blake: "It can't be that bad-"

Cait Sith: waves his Mog arm "Hey."

Blake, Yang and Weiss: Scream in horror

- - -

Yeah I never liked Cait Sith in FF7 and after rewatching some of Volume 4-5? Jaune, Nora and Ren were ride or die for Ruby, whereas Weiss, Blake And even Yang... Weren't. Yang got a little better, sure, but their personal dramas still dominated over SAVING THE FUCKING WORLD. So I'm letting out my mean spiritedness a bit and playing up Ruby as a gamer for laughs.

Seriously, fuck Cait Sith in FF7 so much. His story is cool but the character in play? Uggggghhhhh...

If you like him, that's fine, but I'm old school about it and never found him useful.

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Honestly?

Jaune probably wouldn't do a bad job.

The others though........

Jaune - "Why is the back of the truck only filled with tuna and cookies?!?"

Blake - "You said we needed to scavenge essentials for the Radian refugee camp!"

Ruby - "Yeah, essentials!"

Jaune - "Urrgh! Well, I'm sure Weiss and Yang were more sensible, and got those supplies & staff for the hospital."

Some time later.....
​

Yang - "Hey everyone, we're back!"

Jaune - "Oh, thank god! Ruby and Blake totally screwed up and..... what's that?"

Yang - "I got all the shampoo and conditioner the hospital pharmacy had. A girls got to look her best stud!"

Jaune - "Weiss, please tell me you brought back some doctors or nurses to help with hospital here in Radian...."

Weiss - "Why? There are already plenty. I found something far more valuable!"

Jaune - "Dare, I ask what?"

Weiss - "A baker, to replace my beloved cake butler!"

Click to shrink...

Some more time later...
​

Jaune: "Okay Ruby, first? Thank you for fixing all our vehicles and finding the spare parts."

Ruby: "Don't worry! I'll keep our fleet of vehicles running for years!"

Jaune: "But why did you turn one of them into a robot dog?"

Ruby: "His name is Zwei-II, and he's a good boy!"

Jaune: "He's humping the tractor."

Ruby: "He's young! He'll learn!"

Jaune: "He's going to wreck the transmission."

Ruby: "He's trying his best!"

Jaune: "We need that for food."

Ruby: "The tractor looked like a whore anyway!"

Even more later...​

Nick: "Well... That witch sure was a bitch. Unleashing an attack that devastated the planet. But hey! No more Grimm means we can rebuild! But we're gonna need a lot more people to do it!"

Jaune: "Sure are Dad."

Nick: "Which is why your mother and I are having another baby!"

Jaune: "Woah, really?!"

Isabel: "Yes! I used my Semblance and now I'm pregnant again..." Deep sigh "However, given how low the population is... Well..."

Willow: "HAHAHA! I WIN ISABEL!"

Nick: firmly "Willow."

Willow: "Ahem. I mean, I will be a loving and supportive sister wife?"

Nick: "Good."

Jaune: "What."

Isabel: "Well... I suggested that polygamy might be a valid method of increasing the population in the short term. We'll have to be very careful to avoid inbreeding or devolving back into a hunter-gatherer society ruled by harem keeping men, but it is something we'll have to make use of to ensure there is a tomorrow. So yes, Willow will be joining our family."

Willow: "I'm so glad, Jaune! Nick was... Well..." blush "I'm so glad I'll be here! Building a family! And having Nick's children!"

Isabel: "Just remember who was here first?"

Willow: "I'll try."

Glynda: "Ahem... I too will be joining the household, Mister Arc... I mean Jaune."

Jaune: "Professor Goodwitch?!"

Glynda: "It helps we're still friends. Plus, Nick is more tolerable than Qrow. Far fewer fart jokes."

Willow: "And he's hung like a horse!"

Glynda: blush "... That also helps."

Isabel: irritated sigh "Yes, well... It would be best to raise the children in a stable family unit so here we are."

Nick: "Don't worry Izzy! I love you! And I love you all!" hugs them happily "I promise, I'll love all of you and our kids until you get sick of it! Ahahaha!"

Isabel: blush, smile "Well... Maybe this won't be so bad..."

Nick: "And the rest of you young people will have to sort out things yourselves!"

Jaune: "Eh? You mean...? Um..."

Isabel: "Yes Jaune, you're probably going to need to take multiple wives as well."

Jaune: "Oh... Well... Can I talk to them one on one before that happens?"

Isabel: "Of course. This is a very serious discussion you need to have with the women in your life-"

Nick: "HEY LADIES! WE'VE DECIDED TO GO FOR POLYGAMY! YOU GUYS SORT OUT WHO WILL MARRY JAUNE AND IN WHAT ORDER!"

Isabel: "NIIIIICK!"

Nick: "What? Better to rip the band-aid off! Besides, I'm sure they're all very rational and reasonable young ladies-"

Weiss: "HE'S MINE YOU BITCHES!"

Ruby: "LIKE HELL! EAT SCYTHE YOU STUCK UP BITCH!"

Yang: "I'M NOT ENDING UP A LONELY LESBIAN WITH A CAT! TAKE THAT!"

Blake: "EXCUSE YOU BITCH?! HE'S MINE!"

Violence ensues.

Nick: "See? Totally rational!"

Jaune: moans

 

[TheFabulousCustodes]

Survivor's of Salem, Part 3

At a indoor cafe in Radian.....
​

Jaune - "Well, this is an certainly unexpected meeting. I didn't expect to see you again Winter, or you Fiona! That goes doubly so for you and May, Arslan!

Winter - "Yes, well, it may be somewhat presumptuous for me to say so, but I don't think any of us are where we expected to be in life. Atlas gone, and my mother soon to be married to your father, pregnant no less..."

May - "I'm grateful that you rescued me during the fall!"

Fiona - "Your town is very nice!"

Arslan - "Your dad was one of my childhood heroes, so meeting him honestly let me cross a longstanding goal off my bucket list..."

Jaune - "I'm glad that you all made it through everything these past couple years, but what's this meeting about?"

Winter - "Of course, lets not forget why we're here. Your are aware, of course, of the current gender imbalance the world faces because of the war."

Jaune - "It's hard not to be, my mother actually caved on Willow being together with my father. If that doesn't say "potential looming societal collapse", nothing does..."

Fiona - "Yes, well, we talked amongst ourselves as to who we could all find as an acceptable husband, and well...."

Arslan - "You were at the top of our respective lists. May's in particular."

Fiona - "The little hearts she put around your name were very well drawn!"

May - *blushes*

Winter - "We wanted to meet to make our case to you, as to why we four are superior marriagable material, as opposed to my sister and her friends."

Arslan - "We're less disaster prone!"

Fiona - "Winter and I are grown women, and bring maturity to the table!

May - " I think... what's that noise?"

A pile of thrashing, biting, punching, and kicking bodies rolls into view...
​

Weiss - "Back off you sluts, I saw him first. First, I say!"

Yang - "More like you were the first to abandon him! Left him for dead, pinned to a tree in the forest during initiation!"

Ruby - "You abandoned me, your younger sister that day too! I never abandoned Jaune, we exploded together, and we journeyed across continents together for justice!"

Blake - "Jaune's first girlfriend was a faunus, that means he prefers me!"

Team RWBY rolls out of view...
​

Jaune - "Girls, you had me at maturity. Let's get hitched before they find us again."

 

[AndrewJTalon]

RNJR ends up taking over all those side quests, usurping the rest of WBY's roles. Weiss is horrified when Jaune unlocks Whitley as a party member and, by proxy, the Winter route.

Raven and her tribe become a late game boss fight to unlock Ruby's final equipment tier and the last stage of personal side quests.

Menagerie becomes a new quest hub, after a relatively innocuous sidequest introduces Shere Khan.

Click to shrink...

Before that, they realize the obvious:

Yang: "GUYS! We missed a critical thing: A critical quest hub that Jaune unlocked early on!"

Weiss: "Stop speaking in nerd! What did he unlock?!"

Yang: "His hometown... IS WHERE HE, NORA AND REN GOT EXTRA TRAINING!"

Blake: "What?! They trained during the timeskip?! OF COURSE!"

Weiss: "Timeskip? What are you talking about-?"

Yang: "So we're gonna get Jaune in here to share what happened!"

Yang later drags Jaune into the room.

Jaune: "Uh, oh, hey girls! I don't know what's going on with Ruby but you're still part of the team! We need everyone!"

Weiss: "You-You mean that Jaune?"

Jaune: "Totally! Though... She's right, you guys do need work."

Yang: "We do, VB! Which is why we came to you! So... How did you train during the timeskip?"

Weiss: "Again, what is a timeskip-?"

Jaune: "Oh, well, my mom and dad trained me, Nora and Ren in Radian. We did some sidequests and worked hard!"

Yang: "Wait, really? But what about Saphron saying your parents didn't care-?"

Jaune: "Eh? Come on, that's silly! What parents would say they didn't care if their only son lived or died? That's like something a hack writer for an anime-esque show that lost its actual creator would come up with!"

Something breaks. They all look at Blake, who is standing next to a table. A broken vase is in pieces on the floor.

Blake: "Sorry. I had to do it."

Jaune: "But uh... Yeah. I mean, what were you guys doing during that the six months?"

Weiss: "Um... Well, I was kind of trapped in my mansion with no supervision except my loyal butler?"

Yang: "Recovering from losing my arm."

Blake: "Brooding in my mansion in Menagerie."

Weiss: "You bitch."

Blake: "I said I was sorry!"

Jaune: "So uh, yeah. That's how me, Ren and Nora were able to get stronger. You want to try?"

Weiss: "I mean... We did kind of want to go on to Atlas-" Yang grabs her "Urk!"

Yang: "The Atlas Arc can wait! WE NEED TO BACKTRACK! Jaune! WE'RE HITTING YOUR HOMETOWN!"

Jaune: "Wait, why me-?!"

Yang: "Because your broken Semblance will let us level up faster! COME ON! WE'RE SPEEDRUNNING THIS BITCH!"

Meanwhile, in Atlas...

Cinder: "... So... We do have an evil plot with an election... Shouldn't we get on with that?"

Salem: shrugs "Eh... I'm in no hurry. Watts? Find a way to delay the election. Maybe stir up some kind of subplot with some new villains. We've gotta have SOMETHING going on!"

Watts: "Why do you keep speaking like this is some kind of show?"

Salem: "If it is a show, it's a boring one! Get Doctor Merlot to make some evil monsters or something!"

Watts: sigh "Yes Mistress..."

 

[AndrewJTalon]

- - -



Things became a lot more peaceful at Beacon after Aqua departed. Jaune certainly appreciated it very much. He had enough to keep on top of, what with the Vytal Festival in a few months, homework, and training.



It didn't help his social life had suddenly become much more active lately. He was now training with Pyrrha, Nana, Papa, Mordred, his team, and RWBY! And all of a sudden more people were dropping in! Not that he minded hanging out with his friends and family, but sometimes a guy wanted a little time to himself!



So he'd hid himself away in the kitchen of one of the unused dorms. He'd closed the blinds and left only the basic lights on, to further conceal himself. His unpacked his groceries, arranged them neatly, then donned his favorite Pumpkin Pete's apron. His plan was to cook a nice chicken dinner for all his friends, and whoever else dropped in. He'd actually become very good at cooking, and doing that for his friends was the least he could do for all they had done for him.



He had prepared the chicken thighs, deboned and defrosted. He had them on a cutting board. He stood over them, checking them over.



He lifted up his knife, and brought it down slowly on the first thigh... Only for a hand to grasp his with an iron tight grip and hold him tightly.



"That's not the way," a man's voice rasped. Jaune trembled. Why hadn't he kept his weapons on him?!



"That's not the way," the man continued, his dark form leaning out of the shadows. A cigarette was held between his lips. He closed his mouth to puff on it, the end illuminating his face.



"... To hold a knife when you're cooking chicken!"



Jaune stared into the face of the older man. He was blond, tall, with a thin dark beard. One of his eyebrows was curled over his forehead, the other, along with his other eye, fully concealed by a shock of blond hair.



In an instant, Jaune relaxed. He held a hand up to his chest and grinned.



"Uncle Trey!" He exclaimed. "Geez, you trying to give me a heart attack?"



Trey chuckled, pulling back enough to slap his nephew on the shoulder.



"Nah, just wanted to have some fun. You're almost as stiff as your mom! Being tense while cooking ruins the food, you know?"



Jaune nodded.



"Ah."



"And cooking in the dark?" Trey scoffed. He walked over to the lightswitches and turned them all on, fully illuminating the room. Trey was dressed in a simple (if somewhat ruffled) black pinstripe suit with a maroon undershirt and black tie. Jaune grinned at him and shrugged.



"Sorry. Just trying to get some time to myself. It's been hectic!"



"Mm, so I've heard," Trey stated, taking another drag off his cigarette before taking it between his fingers. He held it as he scowled darkly at Jaune. "You've disappointed me, Jaune."



Jaune gulped. Despite the lighting, his uncle's face was dark with shadows. He walked back towards Jaune slowly, grim fury in his eyes.



"I-I mean, what did I-?"



"I can't believe you," Trey growled, shaking some ash off his cigarette, "after all I've done for you... All I sacrificed for our family... To be betrayed by my own flesh and blood...!"



Jaune shrank back, taking several steps away until he bumped into the oven. He looked back, and then looked forward. He held in a squeak of terror as his uncle loomed over him, face to face.



"But I-What do you-?!"



Trey then sniffled... Pulled back... And began to cry. He held up his arm over his eyes and sobbed.



"My own nephew! Collecting a harem when his poor uncle is still single!"



Jaune blinked. He blinked twice. He sighed heavily and his shoulders drooped as he stared in exasperation as his bawling uncle.



"Uncle Trey, I don't have a harem!" He insisted. "I'm very good friends with several girls but we're friends! That's it!"



Trey glared death at his nephew.



"Don't lie to spare your uncle's feelings!" He roared, "That's unbecoming of a man!"



Jaune held up his hands and waved them.



"No! Nonono! It's NOT a harem! We haven't done anything!"



"WELL WHY NOT?!" Trey demanded, shaking his fists, "ARE YOU STRINGING THEM ALL ALONG OR SOMETHING?!"



"N-NO! NO! OF COURSE NOT!" Jaune insisted.



Trey held up his Scroll and flipped through several images. Images of Jaune out and about with many of the girls in his life.



"WELL EXPLAIN ALL THIS!" Trey demanded, shoving the Scroll in Jaune's face. Jaune gulped and shook his head as he looked at the picture of himself and Ruby in cosplay as Knightmare and Vampire Girl. Ruby was hugging his arm very tightly as they posed for the camera.



"Those?! We-We just went out for fun! Ruby wanted to go to a comic convention!"



"AND THIS?!" Trey demanded, flipping to an image of him winning a stuffed animal for a happy Yang.



"Well there was a street carnival and Yang wanted to enter the dance contest!" Jaune explained, "And I got her a stuffed bear! As friends!"



"AND THIS?!" Trey seethed, flipping to an image of Blake and Jaune eating sushi.



"We just ate some sushi! She fed me some, I fed her some-As friends!"



"AND THIS?!"



"Pyrrha needed a ride to a meeting with her agent! Epona wanted to go for a ride! She held onto me because she doesn't know how to ride a horse! Again, all friendly!"



"AND THIS?!"



"I just made Weiss some cake to apologize for Cousin Alice weirding her out! As friends! How did you get all these pictures anyway?!"



"I have friends who are very good hackers when they're NOT MAKING OUT IN FRONT OF ME," Trey seethed. He scowled at Jaune and held his Scroll up again. "You seriously don't think any of this is more than friendly? At all?"



"NO!" Jaune exclaimed. "Not a bit!"



Trey stared at Jaune. He looked back over the photos. Each girl wore a blush, or a not-so-hidden look of longing or admiration. Even Weiss, though that may have just been the cake.



Trey sighed, and kicked Jaune in the face.



"OW!" Jaune yelped, rubbing his chin, "What was that for?!"



"For making life harder for the rest of us," Trey grumbled. He shook his head. "Still! Since we're blood relatives and I love you and your dear mother... I will help you out!"



"Er... Thanks Uncle Trey?" Jaune managed. Trey nodded firmly.



"Indeed... I have to admire you, Jaune," he said. He began to sniffle. "Like me, you have put aside love with beautiful women for a greater goal! For the greater good!"



Jaune blinked, but slowly nodded.



"Yeah... I want to be a hero, like Dad, Mom, Nana, Papa, Uncle Alex, Uncle Brand, Aunt Irene... And-And you!" He said earnestly.



Trey sniffled, manly tears running down his cheeks. He hugged his nephew and slapped him on the back.



"That's utterly inspiring, Jaune!"



He then tightened his grip painfully and Jaune yelped.



"BUT WHY DID YOU HAVE TO INHERIT YOUR FATHER'S OBLIVIOUS HAREM LEAD POWERS?!" He roared.



"I-I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT!"



"EXACTLY!"



- - -



Second part will be up in a while. But how is this? I think I figured out how to fit Trey/Sanji in without too much bother.

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Again, trying to keep many of my old ideas going and expanding rather than just getting distracted by anything new. So without further ado...



- - -



Blake stares at Isabel. Blake stares back. An old clock ticks in the background as the silence stretches on. Blake crosses her arms over her chest.



Isabel: "Blake, it's perfectly fine. Nothing you say will go beyond this room, and your identity is safe."



Blake: "What are you talking about? I'm Blake Belladonna, a normal human girl."



Isabel: very patiently "Blake? My Semblance allows me to enhance my senses. You're a cat Faunus."



Blake: "I'm just wearing perfume that emulates that-!"



Isabel: "But I thought you were a human? Why would a human want to smell like a Faunus?"



Blake: "It's a double bluff?"



Isabel: "Blake..."



Blake: huffs "I just don't see how this is supposed to be beneficial in any way, shape, or form. I know I'm not crazy!"



Isabel: "Well, that's a rather narrow minded viewpoint of mental health, Blake."



Blake: sniffs "How do I know this isn't an interrogation?"



Isabel: "You chose to come here, Blake. Headmaster Ozpin let you in so you could redeem yourself. But that requires you cooperating. Now, we can talk about anything you like. Or you can choose not to talk. It's up to you, but the law is that after a Hunter-in-Training has been involved in a violent incident, they need to attend therapy sessions for evaluation."



Blake: glares "Fine. Then I'll just sit here for an hour in silence."



Isabel: "If you wish to. I imagine it will get rather boring though." She holds out a ball of yarn



Blake: "Wha-That's racist!"



Isabel: "What? The Sith Family nextdoor enjoy playing with balls of yarn. It helps them relax. Poor Mercer especially likes to use them to de-stress."



Blake: scowls "It's stereotypical! And anyway, this isn't fun at all..." She looks down and realizes she's been playing with the ball of yarn. Her ears flatten against her skull "... Shut up."



Isabel: "I didn't say anything."



Blake: "Hmph..."



Silence for a bit while Blake plays with the yarn. Finally, she speaks.



Blake: "So you know who my parents are?"



Isabel: "Yes."



Blake: "Have... Have you called them?"



Isabel: "The Headmaster has made them aware you are here and safe. But that's all. I think you'd do better to talk to them yourself."



Blake: "I... I can't do that."



Isabel: "Why?"



Blake: scowls "It's none of your business! It's personal!"



Isabel: nods "All right."



Blake: "... Why don't you tell me more about yourself? I can ask you questions, can't I?"



Isabel: "If you would like."



Blake: "Your neighbors, the Siths... They own their own farm?"



Isabel: "Yes. Their family has lived in Radian for generations. They were subjects of my ancestors when the Arcs were royalty, then nobles. All the way back to Bertrand de Sith, who accompanied our founding matriarch, Jeanne D'Arc, on her quest to defeat the Witch Queen of Argus."



Blake: "Subjects?"



Isabel: "Sworn nobility. At their height, when the Arcs were the royal family of the Gallian Empire, they were the Dukes of Radian."



Blake pulls out her Scroll and looks it up. She blinked in disbelief.



Blake: "Faunus as nobility...?"



Isabel: "Yes! Nowadays of course they're just our good friends. They've worked the same farmland for generations. Mercer was my best male friend growing up." She smiled in nostalgia "He was like my big brother."



Blake: "I... I haven't seen any of this. I mean, I learned a little about Faunus in other lands... There were Faunus nobles?"



Isabel: nods "Not many, I'll admit, but yes." She holds out her own Scroll and flips to an image of an older man with feathery hair "That's Father Percival, the head priest of the church in Radian. He's a dove faunus and is very good friends with my entire family. I've gone to him for church my entire life. He helped my siblings and I after our parents died to the Grimm."



Blake: stares in disbelief "I..." shakes her head "I still have a... A hard time believing this. I mean, in the White Fang... I never saw any of this. We were told Faunus who rose through the ranks or gained wealth and power were traitors to Faunus. Pets of humans."



Isabel: snorts "Mercer would beat the crap out of any Faunus who spoke such trash. He's proud of his family, as am I. His eldest son is marrying my second oldest daughter, as it turns out."



Blake: "R-Really? And you... You're okay with it?"



Isabel: "Why wouldn't I be? Mercer Junior is a little rough around the edges, but he's a fine young man. A great mechanic, a great racer, and he's a good boy. I've known him since he was a child!" smiles "And I do look forward to having more grandchildren."



Blake: "I... I see." She bows her head in thought, brooding "Again, I'm just... It's hard. I know the White Fang did so many terrible things. That-That's why I left. But the more I learn, the more I... I feel like I was... Wr..."



Isabel: "Hm?"



Blake: "Wr.... Wro... Wro..."



Isabel: "Wrong?"



Blake: "NO! I-I mean... Um... Mistak... en?"



Isabel: nods "I see... It's all right to make mistakes, Blake. We all do. The most important part is learning from them."



Blake: scowls "Do you have to sound like my mother?"



Isabel: "I'm afraid it's hard for me to sound like anything but a mother, given I have eight children."



Blake: huffs "Bet none of them became violent revolutionaries."



Isabel: wryly "In some cases that might have been an improvement."

 

[AndrewJTalon]

RWBY was inspired by shonen anime and JRPGs. And a classic part of the genre is a rival for the main character. Cloud has Sephiroth. Naruto has Gaara, Sasuke, etc. Goku has Vegeta, then Freeza, then Hit, etc. And so on.



So it's odd that Ruby doesn't actually have one.



"But Talon you man child obsessed with an animated webshow!" You might say, "Of course Ruby has a rival! She has Cinder! And Salem!"



No. For there to be a rival there needs to be some kind of personal investment, as well as a heavy juxtaposition between their worldviews, personalities, and philosophies. As well as a driving element of change in the story.



Yeah Cinder set up Vytal and killed Pyrrha, but everyone has a grudge against her for that. And we never saw Ruby and Pyrrha interact in any meaningful way before she died. If anything, Cinder is Jaune's rival. Their fight is VERY personal, for both of them. It's why Jaune trains so hard, pushes himself so hard, to stop Cinder. To avenge Pyrrha and stop Cinder. It DRIVES Jaune's character growth.



Ruby? Doesn't really have that with Cinder. She's another bad guy to stop. Yes, a big one, but there's nothing that multiple other characters wouldn't have with her. Ruby doesn't really CHANGE that much to deal with Cinder, not really.



(Which is another issue but bear with me.)



Salem is too impersonal to be Ruby's rival or main enemy. She's the Big Bad. It's not as personal, as visceral, and isn't concrete enough as a driving force.



So I have three ideas.



First? Someone who deceives Ruby during Haven or Atlas. An infiltrator who gets close and hurts Ruby in a very personal way. Neo might fit there, and giving her more to do is always good. She also wants revenge on Ruby for "killing" Roman, which... Doesn't make a lot of sense but you could always fix that up somehow. Neo would also need to rise in importance to Salem and become a more important villain. Problems with this are that Neo is too free spirited and independent. Sure she wants to kill Ruby but the connection is very one-sided and always has been. So this requires the most work to make possible.



Second? Tyrian. He is antithetical to Ruby in every way. She cherishes life, freedom, and takes joy in the everyday. Tyrian is a misanthrope, who worships Salem and only enjoys killing for his goddess. Ruby is being mentored by Ozma/Oscar, Tyrian is guided by Salem. But how to make it personal? Simple: Tyrian killed Ruby's mother, Summer. He reveals this to her during his first attack on RNJR. He gloats over her, makes her feel weak and powerless. This enrages her and pushes her to fight on, to figure out a way to get out, to get stronger. He takes a personal interest in Ruby after she injures him-Slices off his tail. He also changes to some extent interacting with her-Not like a romance, but a good rivalry between characters often brings out new things in both of them. This could work pretty well.



Third? And this is the weirdest one... Summer. Not as a Hound, because that concept was rather... Meh? Rather, Salem did kill Summer... But kept her body. She used her magic to create an artificial soul to power the corpse and made use of her as a weapon. Over time this Summer revenant developed her own feelings and personality, a dark echo of the original. Salem uses her as a weapon against other Silver Eyed Warriors, and to defend her from them. The Red Reaper became a Dark Reaper. Now that Ruby has been revealed as a potential threat, Salem sends Dark Summer after her. But Dark Summer hesitates to kill her, due to some lingering parts of the original Summer. Then it becomes more insidious: Dark Summer begins to appear to Ruby, and Ruby thinks it's a dream. Dark Summer gains Ruby's trust, and reveals herself to be real... Then comes the reveal she is working for Salem. A revenant in thrall to the Dark Witch of the Grimm. You could play with a lot using this concept.



What do you guys think?