Jaune was used to his and Yang's dorm room being a revolving door of lovers coming in and out. Where Jaune had taken to being serious about his studies and even a literature program couldn't shake his desire to keep acting in his free time, Yang liked to party, and partying often meant that either she didn't come home, or more often still, she came home with boys or sometimes even girls. People, Jaune rarely ever learned the name of as he kept himself holed up in his room, gaming into the deep hours of the morning or running off into the night. He owned an excellent pair of headphones to help block out a lot of the noise when the banging started, and it worked for the most part. A few people were exceptionally loud still, but most just kind of blended together.

One really stuck out for him, though; when he woke up and went to the kitchen for some caffeine, only to find Blake wearing an oversized t-shirt and literally nothing else, bent forward and burying her head in the fridge. He had, wisely, just slowly backed out of the kitchen and into his room where he waited with ear to the door until he could hear that it was safe to leave and get started on breakfast.

It was one of those events that made him just reevaluate his view of someone. He used to be surprised all the time when he first started his work at the production company but over time, after all the blood, tears, screaming, and sirens, he got used to all the exotic and crazy things the human mind can perform and as such, adopted an adaptive mindset. Rare were there times when someone outside of his work surprised him overtly.

Yang was an enigma. She just wanted to do whatever she wanted however she wanted and whoever she wanted and he was fine with that. And the fact that she could do so with close friends and somehow not turn them into awkward situations down the line? More power to her.

And well where was he to stand in the way of such passion? She wanted love from everybody and if they wanted to give it to her then no harm, no foul. He didn't mind that he wasn't included in that list and at this point, he was fine with it. Sure, she evolved from just being mistress who hired a butler to a sister who started taking his stuff but with all the money he had and all the work he was doing, he didn't really mind.

Now if she could maybe stop trying to drag him along to go out and do stuff with her friends because she pitied him, then everything could go on as normal. It wasn't that he was anti-social or anything but he was pretty much anti-social. Coming onto campus and making a fool of himself through three different cases of public embarrassment was hard to fix, especially when everyone was gossiping about anything.

Jaune long since stopped trying to play his suave card for the girls that would give him the time of the day. He simply resigned himself to joining the literature club, the chess club, the gaming club, just about anything that was considered nerdy or unmanly he had joined through some unspoken word. Any sports team looked at him like he wasn't fit to be the water boy and the jocks of the school made him a common target for just about anything.

He didn't really care honestly. It got old and boring after the second time someone tried to lock him up in the locker rooms or knock his books down like it was some stereotypical high school drama. He just learned to avoid all the negative attention and let it wash over him like the critics that tried to denounce him as an actor. Like in all honesty, he was past the point of caring. If he really wanted to, he could do something about it but then that would open questions, questions that he wasn't willing to answer.

No, better to be labeled as the nerd with no friends than rock the boat. Let the meatheads play their pranks, he wouldn't be the one with an unstable physically punishing job in the future that could potentially lead to long term negative effects.

Then again…he did unprotected stunts for fun that often ended up with someone getting hurt and hush money being thrown around. He also tended to throw himself in harm's way in the pursuit of art and well…sometimes that pursuit led him off cliffs. Or out windows. Or into the jaws of a predator. Or doing all the above while on fire.

Maybe he was overthinking it again.

Still, being known as biggest loser on campus had its perks. No one really cared when he disappeared for long periods at a time, no one thought much of it when he spent countless hours typing away in the library, and no one tried to mess with him when he was cooking in home economics because the last time someone disturbed his cooking, Yang had gone on an ass kicking spree.

And then she ate all his strawberry shortcake. The professor allowed it and gave them both A's.

=Immunity=

She loved that cake. It was the best damn cake she had ever eaten. And woe befall the next unlucky fool who tried to take it away from her.

Yang was used to being big girl on campus. With her friendship established with Weiss the Heiress and Pyrrha the Alethic Goddess, very few people could claim to hold that much popularity and influence over the student body like she did. Sure, there were some contenders but when it came down to it, Yang Xiao Long was the Queen.

And the Queen had her tastes. Rawr.

Jaune Arc was an enigma to her. Even with the impressive resources bought to the table through Weiss' help, she just couldn't crack open the puzzle that surrounded her roommate. He was a gamer, a nerd, a cook, and somehow, he disappeared for hours at a time into the dark yet acted like it was nothing special to be awake or gone for so long.

If he was some secret party animal or DJ, she would have heard of it. If he was sneaking off to work at some late night sordid job, she would have heard of it. If he was getting laid, like all the time, she would have heard about it.

That and be insanely pissed.

Here she was practically throwing herself at him and he was going out and potentially banging other chicks? Nope, not possible.

Ever since she (stupidly) tossed his butt out the window and he came back, she was on eggshells with him. The butterflies were there rumbling around in her tummy and she cursed the fact that even with all her experience of the sexual nature, Jaune could just smile and she would be blushing like some virgin school girl.

Damn it, that should not be possible!

But it was. He was husband material all right and whatever instincts drove her to go around and sleep and have fun zeroed in on him and she just wanted him. After all the good deeds he's done and all the horrible things that she had to apologize for, she wanted him to understand this much.

She cared about him. Maybe it could be something more but right now, she liked him because he treated her like a person and respected her wishes. He had done so much for her.

=Immunity=

"I'm sorry."

Jaune, working his way through a pancake, slowed his chewing.

"Sorry for what?"

Yang stared at him. Seconds ticked by and Jaune started to squirm.

"Uh…I accept?"

Yang closed her lilac eyes and breathed deeply before letting it out slowly, "I'm sorry for almost killing you."

Jaune blinked.

"When was this?"

Yang gawked at him before her eyes narrowed in frustration.

"When I tossed you out the window!"

"Ooooh. That. Yeah don't worry about it. I came out fine."

"THAT'S NOT THE POINT!"

Jaune could only firmly take in the fiery visage that was an infuriated Yang Xiao Long. Luckily the plates didn't go scattering to the floor from her hands slamming down.

"I got angry at you for no good reason! I've treated you like shit since I got here and you just took it all! Well that stops right now! Stand up for yourself! Tell me to do stuff! I'm trying to fix things but you won't let me fix them!"

Jaune weathered her diatribe with the practice born from listening to a worried mother nag his ears off. It was a nice refreshing memory from home that he happily drew from.

"Yang, it's fine," Jaune said as he stood up and grabbed her by the shoulders and made eye contact, "I didn't get hurt. I'm still here, I don't hate you. As far as roommates go, you've been one of the better ones. Yes really. Don't take this the wrong way but you don't even make top ten."

"Top ten? What could be worse than what I've been doing?!"

"Well, there was the drug dealer," Awkward stare, "And the split personality disorder man who crossdressed," awkward stare got more awkward, "And probably the dude who just didn't like clothes so he walked around naked. All. The. Time."

The awkwardness was immeasurable and Yang found enough strength to just mutter, "How?"

"My father liked to offer room and board to people passing by. Let's just say that there was a few bad apples of the bunch. But yeah, I'm used to dealing with weirdoes and such because of that and believe me when I say you're not as bad as you think you are. I don't mind cooking for us and I don't mind doing cleaning. It's cathartic for a guy like me because I grew up with seven sisters."

Stare.

"Yup, seven. And lemme tell you, it was not easy."

"Oh Oum."

"You just imagined seven Ruby's running around didn't you?"

"So much…cookie dough…"

Jaune couldn't help it. He let out a chuckle that slowly morphed into a laugh. Yang herself cracked a smile before joining in and the two just let the tensions melt away.

"Ok, but seriously. I'm going to do shopping and cleaning now. No buts. It's been nearly two semesters at this point and I just don't feel right letting you do all this after all I've done."

"If you really want to. I'm not going to say no but I wouldn't want you to cause trouble for yourself."

"Trust me…it's the least I could do."

=Immunity=

Other than that, Jaune was fine with the lovers coming in and out endlessly. It was just a thing that happened; Yang was on time with her share of the rent and bills, and so long as she didn't dip into Jaune's store of food stuffs, he didn't feel the need to comment on anything.

Breakfast was a muted affair. Instead of the usual set up of three servings, there was only two.

Jaune was putting the finishing touches on the French toast when Yang came back with a fresh bag of cartons of juices and galleon of milk. It had been interesting, seeing Yang pick up the slack on some chores and force less upon him. Grocery shopping had been one of those minor things that Yang just started to do around the place instead of forcing him to take care of it.

Cooking and cleaning was easier when you didn't have to constantly worry about the stock of ingredients and had a friend pick up the missing items.

"So…what's your schedule for today?"

Jaune didn't really become fazed anymore by the question. The first time she asked him that he thought she had been stricken with a fever and rushed off to go get some medicine. After he returned and was smacked in the face with a pillow for jumping to conclusions, Yang had explained that because she now had to worry about acting for the part she won on top of school and club activities, she would probably miss meeting with him like they usually would at certain times.

That and she didn't want to miss any of his breakfasts or dinners as much as possible. They had been such a cost effective and delicious routine that abandoning them now would drive her up the wall in madness.

Ain't no force strong enough on this Oum forsaken planet to make her miss one of Jaune's now infamous cooked meals.

Still, Jaune made concessions for her and started making lunches in addition to breakfast and dinner. They left around the same time anyways for classes and on the evenings, that she would be acting, he could catch up on some solo games or homework before setting things up for the next day.

At least, that's what he told her.

"I'll be back here around four o'clock. I'll probably get started on dinner at six and then end the night in my room at nine after the dishes are done."

"If I'm not back by the time you're finished, just start without me. And leave the dishes for me."

Jaune gave her a look that Yang just sighed at.

"Yes, I'm going to do the dishes from now on if you cook the food. It's the least I can do."

Jaune seemed to pause before giving her a small smile, "Thank you."

"Don't mention it," Yang's face suddenly turned lecherous, "And maybe afterwards you'll let me crawl into bed with you?"

"Haha, very funny," Jaune said as he put things away.

With his back turned, he didn't catch the look of disappointment on her face.

"So what about tomorrow?"

"Hm?"

"Oh you know, tomorrow is Friday, the prelude to the weekend. Everyone wanted to take a stroll out and maybe hit up the mall. Why don't you come with?"

Jaune paused and then thought about it. He could do with an update on his wardrobe and he had been eyeing some games recently. If anything, destressing by grabbing a bite to eat in the mall's greasy food court didn't sound too bad.

That and if he had his way, work would be finished by the end of the day and next week they could get started on the next project.

"That sounds great actually. Uh, you don't think anyone would…mind would they?"

"Who Weiss? Nah, if anything she'll just ignore your existence and be on her phone. Ruby's obviously cool with it and Blake probably wouldn't care. Nora might run off and Ren will have to chase after her while Pyrrha gets dragged along for the ride and I think Sun was going to bring his group of friends too. So it'll be a big party on the move."

"Ah, that does sound pretty cool. Ok, should I meet you somewhere or anything?"

"Just be at the front gate of school after you're done with your classes. We'll leave once everyone gets there."

"Awesome. I'll get things done here and then we can go."

=Immunity=

"Try again."

The words were spoken in that insufferable muffled tone that just made Yang want to break his mask along with his face. Two hours in and she already had to restrain herself from hurting her teacher more times than she ever did for anyone else in her life, including the idiots that thought they could treat her like she was some street walker instead of a certified badass.

The courts might not have agreed but they saw her way of thinking when her mother got involved.

Anyways! Back to the current situation of having to stop herself from doing something she might regret.

"Try again."

Like ripping off this stupid man's mask and beating him with it.

Yang Xiao Long growled low in her voice.

"You wished to do this part and as per our agreement, I am teaching you."

"You're teaching me how to dance!" Yang shouted back at him, "I signed up to do an action heroine skit, not some frilly froo froo dance montage!"

The Virtuoso didn't say anything before tilting his head and letting his eyes bore deep into her own. Blue as deep as the sea met fiery red as hot as the sun. The two butted heads since day one and two days had gone by with not much change.

Yang was used to dealing with negative attention, the kind that involved insults and gossip about her actions. That was fine. She was also fine with having her mother always angry or disappointed in her. She didn't care. What was different now though…

"Try again. Once more, this time with feeling."

His voice was like he demanded respect and only offered contempt. He didn't sound like he considered anything his equal. The very way he carried himself was as if he was the king and you were the insect that was to be swatted.

But there was a tiny part, a little bit of inflection that sounded like he genuinely wanted her to be her best.

It infuriated her.

Yang grumbled as she got to her feet and tried the routine once more. Three days in, countless continuous hours, and all this wannable big screen actor kept saying to her was-

"Try. Again."

Ugh!

"I don't get what I'm doing wrong! You're not helping either!"

"You're thinking too much."

"What?"

"You are out of your element," he intoned as he stalked towards her, "You keep thinking both in and out like a boat being tossed around in the ocean. Do not do that. Free your thoughts and just let your body move."

The Virtuoso struck a pose before executing the dance steps that she was practicing without stopping. Yang had to admit, he was elegant in the way he moved.

"That is what you must achieve. This is only the first part. Once more."

Yang narrowed her eyes as she glanced back at the manuscript she was given. It was a thick booklet, filled with dialogues and footnotes along with stage instructions. She had only gotten through the title page before it was ripped out of her hands and she was forced into a yellow sun dress that was comfortable and practical. Already she could feel her feet aching, forced into unfamiliar moves and told to act without practice or proper direction.

It had been two hours since they started and she didn't even know what the first scene was going to involve. Only that she was dancing to a tune no one else heard except for her annoying mentor.

"Stop. That is enough for now. You may rest."

Yang scoffed as she plopped herself down into a nearby chair. Spying the manuscript, she reached over before recoiling as a gloved hand smacked down a top of it. A second later and she would have been hit. And then…well that wouldn't be the last one and she was pretty sure she was going to win that fight.

"You do not need this. Not yet."

"How am I supposed to act or learn my part if you won't let me read anything?"

Muffled soft breaths were all she heard as the veteran actor leaned closer.

"Reading will not help you move naturally. Reading will not make you comfortable with your body. Reading will not help you act. This routine was made in mind to teach amateurs how to properly move their bodies."

The Virtuoso leaned back and suddenly thrust a water bottle in her face.

"Drink. You will recover and you will master this art. I demand nothing less."

"Hmph," Yang guzzled her liquid down quickly, idling noting her teacher had somehow finished his own without removing his mask, "You know I only want to do this thing because it sounded like fun right? Wouldn't you get in trouble if you made me quit?"

"Much better to earn the ire of the producers than for you to damage our reputation."

"Hey! In case you didn't notice, I can bring in the crowds! Or was your mask squeezing your brain too tight to see how mostly everyone there was cheering me on?"

"The college population was but a small drop in the vast ocean. There are many many others around the world that watches our works. We may be based primarily here but to the East, the West, the North, and the South, we can find fans. I will not have our admirers disappointed."

"You sound like you're trying for a hundred percent approval rating. News flash, the world doesn't work like that. Especially the way trolls work. You see some of the comments on your videos?"

"The words of fools mean little to me. I choose this labor and give my passion because there is no greater feeling, no greater joy to experience in seeing someone become entertained…to be, happy and laugh at what we do."

He stalked over, pulling out two books. They were white and black, both covered in idyllic drawings and symbols. Bringing them over, he offered them to her. Yang opened the white one first and slowly leafed through pages, reading about all the positive reviews and feelings of enjoyment from the Company's works.

"Our critics may offer their judgements and thrive on their negative criticisms, but a bitter truth they must face is that in the grand scheme of life, their words are no better than the average piece of refuse. Can a critic always make a child smile? Can a critic always spread joy? My appetite for the creative arts may not touch everyone in the world but to those that it does, it means everything to me to ensure that they are never disillusioned."

The black book was mostly clippings or printed snapshots, comments and articles lambasting the Company and decrying all their works. The pages were filled with negative criticisms, most of it was constructive but few were just simple trolling.

"Life is beautiful and it would be a shame to let others decide how to live it," He picked up both books and placed them back in their shelf, "That's enough of a break for now. Once more, with feeling."

Yang nodded her head, a faraway look in her eye before shaking her head and gaining a determined face.

"Let's do this!"

=I-M

The mall itself was large, way larger than any mall Jaune had seen before. With five floors and taking up a ridiculous amount of downtown Vale City, the mall was a shopper's paradise. Crowds of people moved to and for, every store lit up and trying to entice shoppers to come in and browse their wares as multitudes of people browsed.

Couples on dates, families taking a trip, shoppers looking for good deals or gifts, hobbyists indulging in their vices, the list of people went on.

Jaune Arc didn't complain as the pile of shopping bags and boxes he was carrying started to climb to the ceiling. He didn't complain when his own vision was blocked by all the purchased goods and he had to focus on the chattering of his fellow peers to keep in step with them. And he didn't complain when he ended up tripping and elected to hit the floor first and act as a cushion so none of the fragile goods would be damaged.

Ruby was doting on him with a cold can of soda and some napkins while everyone was picking up their stuff. Yang was shooting him glances, an apologetic look on her face as she had the biggest haul out of all the girls there. Jaune waved off her concern and all their apologies, he was the clumsy one who failed to keep everything in check.

The shopping trip progressed at a sedate pace after that. He was still carrying quite a collection but the girls had left him just enough space so he could see where he was going as he trailed after them all. Being an errand boy and having to carry excessive amounts of clothes and shoes and other girly stuff was nothing new to him and quite honestly, it was good exercise.

"Ok girls, I got one more spot to go to. Why don't you all grab us some spots at the food court and then we can head out?"

If Jaune was paying more attention, he would have noticed some sort of byplay and messages being sent through body language between Yang and her friends. Instead, he was going to open his mouth and offer to take her bags before he was blindsided and all the stuff he had been carrying was taken from him.

With a gentle shove forward, he was pushed into the waiting grasp of Yang who happily told him that she needed his help grabbing this last item and that he could worry about everything else later.

Confused but not questioning, Jaune shrugged his shoulders and accepted his fate.

The two weaved in between the throngs of people, Yang clenching his hand tight as she led him somewhere. Jaune felt it a little strange to how tightly she was holding his hang but decided she was just trying to make sure he didn't get lost and waste more time.

"Ok, here it is! Tada!"

Jaune blinked and looked up at the name of the store before slowly trailing his eyes downward and examining the mannequins on display.

"Oh wow…got a special date soon?"

"You could say that. C'mon, I need a professional male opinion on these."

Being tugged along and into the store proper, Jaune found himself plopped down and told to stay in the one spot like a good puppy as Yang flounced around and seemingly teleported into the changing stalls with about ten different outfits.

The madam manning the cash register gave him a wink as he sat and waited. Jaune didn't really feel too out of place despite all the other patrons whispering or staring at him. In the end, sole male in the store only focused on the stall Yang went into, electing to just do what she said so they could leave and eat.

Then the curtain opened and she came out in a daring lacy piece.

"What do you think?"

"Looks comfy."

"That's it?"

"…It looks pretty?"

Yang gave him a flat look before going back inside.

The process repeated itself numerous times, Jaune just saying the same things as he couldn't really tell what she wanted to hear or look for. Yang looked to have gone through half of the store's stock by the time she declared they were finished with a huff. Not buying anything and the madam giving a sympathetic look to the young lady, both left and went to join the group.

Yang arrived at a slack pace and collapsed into her seat, internally wailing and smothering Ruby in a hug.

Everyone shot him a look that he couldn't decipher but he assumed it was nothing good.

"Girls are weird."

-Claws his way out of the grave-

I'M ALIVE~

A/N: Not much to say, sorry for being MIA for a year. Goal is to finish the story soon and move on to other projects. College sucks, etc.

Also curious, would anyone want a review response in the chapter? It would inflate my numbers but I would like to clarify things for those who ask.