Disclaimer: The one who owns RWBY will forever be Monty Oum not me.

Morrighan: EX (This means it's so blatantly OP that numbers can't even quantify it)

Nao: EX

Crimson Blades: Lvl 90

[RWBY:]

Ruby: 52

Weiss: 49

Blake: 49

Yang: 50

[JNPR:]

Jaune: 52

Pyrrha: 54

Nora: 50

Ren: 50

Cinder: 90

Mercury: 67

Emerald: 67

Adam: 85

NOTE: I know there were concerns about the pacing, as I've said before I've just been cleaning up the original four chapters. We are CAUGHT UP NOW. This means updates will be much SLOWER as everything after this chapter will be 100% NEW (plus I have to finish a chapter for another story now). That said, the pacing will relax after this so expect some slice of life chapters here and there along with some more character development, etc. They will also be SHORTER since the chapters you see written now were all one-shots as opposed to actual chapters.

Also, it has come to my attention that some of you who are not familiar with Vindictus think Fiona, Arisha, and Delia are characters I have made. They are not, they are Vindictus characters. Read the AN I've added in the previous chapter and Chapter 1 to see where you can find some cool gameplay of them and get a visual of how their powers work.

Betaed by: The Undying Will

{Beta's Notes: Flu will not be enough to kill me! I conquered it! The Beta has approved this chapter!}

RebuffX7: You're alive! Yay!

Featured BGMs:

See What I've Become-Zack Hemsey

PVP [Arena] Extended- Vindictus OST

Between the Sheets-The Isley Brothers

Must be nice (Instrumental)-Lyfe Jennings

Chandelier-Sia

Brave Shine- Fate/Stay Night OST (Want an English version? Look up one by Amalee/LeeandLie on YouTube)

Level 3: Empire: White Knight

(Also, one more thing about the transformations, they are cool…they are flashy…they are…barely viable, even in the game. They are used mainly as a way to get HP back honestly. I'm explaining this so that the people who might think they are overpowered realize that they aren't as big of a boost as one initially thinks. Let's not forget there exist enemies who are so strong they literally make it impossible for transformations to be used in the first place.)

-?-

Jaune frowned as he found himself staring at the back of a blonde haired man whom was garbed in black armor. It didn't even take him a second to register that he was staring at his father's back. The older man was standing in front of the statue of their ancestor silently and before Jaune could open his mouth, Fiona and Arisha appeared at the man's side. Before he could say a word, the silhouette of Delia appeared next to them as well.

*Rumble*

"What?" Jaune wondered with a frown as the ground shook before all four of his family members began rising high into the air on their own pillars. The pillars extended until the four were completely out of Jaune's field of vision, the size of them casting a shadow so large and dark that Jaune thought he was standing in a black void. Jaune trembled as chains extended from the ground and wrapped around his limbs, forcing him to down to his knees. After a while he stopped fighting…

For this is where he belonged.

Trapped in a shadow–a shadow, that was far too large for him to escape.

*FLASH*

Jaune looked up with a frown as he saw an older female rabbit Faunus approaching him with a gentle smile, her body covered in a vibrant golden flame. The woman's expression was peaceful as the flames engulfed her body as if she knew where she was meant to be. It was a tragic sight for Jaune for he knew that despite her calm demeanor, the scolding flames burned her to her very core. Tears fell from Jaune's eyes as her light burned away the shadows.

"Be patient my child, for one day you too will reach the heavens. You, will shine the brightest of all…so bright that even my light will be eclipsed by your sheer brilliance." The woman said calmly as she embraced the young man. The flames merely comforted him as they viciously burned her alive eventually reducing her to ash within his arms.

-Beacon-

*Gasp*

Jaune's eyes snapped open as he sat up quickly in his bead, panting tiredly as tears fell from his eyes. His body shuddered as he shut his eyes in sorrow.

-?-

Weiss' body trembled in pain as blood slid down her porcelain white skin from her new wound on her face. The cut was so deep that she doubted even her aura could heal it completely. She flinched when someone stepped in front of her and paled when she looked up to find her older sister staring down upon her as if disgusted by her existence. The older girl was about three years her senior with bright white hair that reached below her shoulders and cold blue eyes.

"Pathetic. Is that the best you can do?" Winter asked with disappointment lacing her words.

"That's enough. This training is over." An older voice said coldly making them turn to see the form of their father approaching them. "Winter, excellent but you're still lacking in power…Weiss…just clean yourself up." The man ordered making Winter grit her teeth before bowing her head respectfully. She waited until he was gone before letting a tear escape as she glanced back at her downed sister.

"Oh no…" Winter whispered as she turned back to the bloodied form of Weiss with nothing but regret and pain etched on to her face. "What have I done?" Winter asked as she fell to her knees as her father rushed to get Weiss immediate medical attention. "Why?" Winter wept as she silently prayed that her sister could make it out of this in one piece.

Never again, she swore. Never again would she ever harm her sister…

…Even if she had to leave her alone for the rest of their lives.

-?-

Unknowingly, just like her neighbor, Weiss too sat up quickly in her bed with tears nearly blinding her as she thought back to that horrid training session which changed her family life forever and cost Weiss her sister. Weiss put her hands together and for the first time since she was a little girl, she prayed…prayed that someone or something could save her from her despair.

-Beacon Locker Room: Noon-

["You've managed to impress Arisha, congrats. This means you're finally ready to carry our name. You can walk the walk now, but can you talk to talk? There's more to our family than skill, we have an image we need to carry. Spar with me for a bit."]

BGM: See What I've Become-Zack Hemsey

Jaune stood in the locker room and strapped on his armguards as Fiona's words rung out through his head.

-Flash-

*CLANG!*

*CLANG!*

*CLANG!*

["Is that the fucking best you got? You've barely grown since I trained you."]

Jaune rapidly clashed his sword with Dove's at an increasing speed until he knocked his opponent's blade across the arena before stepping forward with Crocea Mors clenched tightly in his fist while Fiona's words rung throughout his head. Dove's eyes widened in fear when he saw Jaune's weapon, internally Jaune hated the look of fear on his classmate's face and was going to turn around to deal with the other members of team CRDL.

-Flash-

Jaune looked down at his chest plate for a moment before putting it on.

-Flash-

["You're an Arc! You don't have the luxury of hesitation!"]

Jaune's blade never pulled back as it stabbed into Dove's chest, making his chest plate shatter like glass and sending him rag dolling across the arena.

-Flash-

Jaune sat down on a bench and tied his shoes.

-Flash-

["Fool. Look at your damn surroundings!"]

Jaune spun around and slammed a powerful kick into Russell's face which landed with a sickening crunch that would have sent him flying away had Jaune not suddenly dashed forward and delivered a vicious sword combo that tore apart his armor before he spun around and kicked him once more sending him crashing into the arena walls.

-Flash-

Jaune picked up Crocea Mors before making his way to the locker room's exit.

-Flash-

*KRAAANG!*

Jaune raised his shield to block a shockwave from Cardin's mace before blasting forward and slamming his shield into the taller hunter three times before slashing at him twice. Interrupting his combo, he spun around to perfectly block Sky's Halberd, sending blue sparks flying everywhere, before continuing his combo on the silver haired hunter. Being able to interrupt his combos with a guard and then continue them was a skill he was all too happy to learn from Fiona before she left with Arisha. Suddenly, Jaune stepped to the side just in time to avoid an overhead swing from Cardin. Taking a step back, Jaune raised his foot and kicked the large hunter down on the ground.

"You bastard!" Cardin shouted as he swung wildly at Jaune whom kept dodging with narrowed eyes. "You think because you got some big family name that you're better than me!?" Cardin asked as he charged his mace with as much power as he could muster.

"No." Jaune said honestly as he extended his index finger from Crocea's handle and went to parry the mace with it.

*RIIIIIINNNNNNGGGG*

*BOOOOOOOM!*

"My family has nothing to do with why I'm better than you." Jaune said as bead of sweat slid down Cardin's face after his mace's power was suddenly redirected back towards it with twice the force, sending it blasting from Cardin's hands and up through the ceiling.

["Humility is a great virtue Jaune, but not towards your enemies. Let them know how much better than them you are, your victories must be overwhelming and absolute! That is the only way besides killing to prevent future battles."]

"Lower your head." Jaune said as he slammed his foot into Cardin's stomach. Jaune gritted his teeth as he recalled how he spotted Cardin bullying Velvet earlier that day.

*CRASH!*

Cardin fell to his knees and coughed up blood when his armor shattered from the force of Jaune's kick. Crocea Mors was ignited in a golden flame as Jaune gazed down upon Cardin.

"I want to hear you forfeit." Jaune said making Cardin clench his fists tightly as he lowered his head

"I…I surrender." Cardin said quietly making Jaune frown as he tilted his head.

"Speak up." Jaune said making Cardin glare at him.

"I said I surrender!" Cardin snapped making Jaune nod his head.

"Watch your tone." Jaune said before kicking Cardin in the face, knocking him out instantly before sighing. "Man that was hard to do! Guess it's just not in me to be so cruel, a few more minutes and I would have relented." Jaune thought with a frown as he sheathed his blade.

"Well done, if not a bit extreme Mr. Arc. Still, you are definitely ready for the upcoming tournament." Glynda said as she walked onto the stage. "Now I know that's a tough act to follow but we have time for one more sparring match. Any volunteers?" Glynda asked as Jaune looked up at the students to find a good amount of them, including his friends, blatantly gaping at him. He averted his eyes a bit when he felt their stares, he knew he went a bit far but he had his reasons. "Ms. Belladonna? You've been rather docile for the past few classes–"

"No! Please I'll do anything! Don't make me fight him!" Blake all but cried making her friends sweat-drop, though her fear seemed to be mirrored by the few Faunus students that were in the classroom. Cinder narrowed her eyes as she gazed at Jaune before glancing at Emerald. Getting the red-eyed woman's attention Cinder simply nodded her head towards the arena making Emerald nod in understanding.

"Now Ms. Belladonna you won't be fighting Mr.–"

"I'll fight." Emerald said as she stood up, cutting Glynda off in the process making the teacher blink in surprise.

"Oh, well then, let me just find–"

"Actually, I want to fight him." Emerald said making Pyrrha frown to herself as Jaune looked at her confusion.

"Mr. Arc has just finished a fight and will not–"

"I don't mind." Jaune said with a shrug. "A little more practice wouldn't hurt." Jaune said making Glynda sigh before nodding.

"Just like his father, he doesn't know it yet but he's actually enjoying this." Glynda thought to herself as Emerald quickly made it down to the arena. Jaune unsheathed Crocea Mors while Emerald pulled out what looked like a pair of handguns.

BGM: PVP [Arena] Extended- Vindictus OST

Jaune and Emerald circled each other as they tried to gauge their opponent. Jaune watched her cautiously as Emerald simply smirked and gave him a flirtatious wink which made him blink in confusion. At that moment, Emerald spun her guns in her hands before aiming at him and releasing a storm of bullets which he was barely able to block in time with his shield as he charged her. Emerald frowned as she was forced to roll to the side to avoid being shield bashed by the ancient shield.

*BANG!*

*BANG*

"Whoa!" Jaune yelped as he spun around swiftly and blocked the bullets. "She's fast." Jaune thought in surprise as she charged him releasing bullet after bullet as he quickly moved his shield to protect him, releasing countless bright blue sparks in the process. Once she was close enough, her revolvers transformed into a pair of sickles making Jaune curse as he was forced to continuously parry them with his sword. Swiftly blocking two slashes of her sickles perfectly with his shield, Emerald was forced to hop back to avoid a vicious counterattack from the knight. Once she landed, Emerald blasted forward and swung her left weapon at Jaune.

*CLANG!*

Jaune quickly parried the strike with his blade but grimaced when she slipped inside of his guard, so close that even his shield was incapable of warding her off. Time seemed to slow as she swung her right sickle at his neck intent on drawing first blood but as soon as it made contact…

*RIIING!*

"What!?" Emerald thought in alarm as a small blue flash erupted from the would-be point of impact that completely reversed the force of her attack back at her making her stumble back. Her weapon flew out of her hand and into to the stands forcing a few of the students duck to avoid the blade.

"My turn, let's try out my new move!" Jaune said as he stepped towards, his blade held tightly in his hand making her curse when she realized that she would be unable to protect herself from whatever he had planned.

"I forfeit." Emerald called out making him blink owlishly as he stumbled past her while she regained her footing.

"Wh-what?" Jaune asked incredulously as she holstered her weapon. "You just quit?"

"Hey, I know when to pick my battles. Besides, you're an Arc–pretty much spells out death don't you think?" Emerald said with a shrug as she brushed past him. "Maybe you can show me your moves later when there is less of a crowd." Emerald whispered to him making him gape as she pinched his rear and sauntered back up to the stands. She put an extra sway in her hips knowing that he was no doubt still watching her.

"Looks like Mr. Arc is the victor again, next time you might want to think a little bit harder before choosing an opponent." Glynda said sounding slightly annoyed as the bell rung. Up in the stands, Nora looked on at the stage with wide-eyes before turning to Pyrrha.

"Hey, she was pretty good." Nora pointed out before tensing as part of Pyrrha's desk cracked from the force of her grip as she stood up abruptly. "Ren help!" Nora yelped terrified of the ominous aura that was flowing from her teammate.

"Remember, the dance is this weekend and you all have your first mission on Monday!" Glynda called out as the students left the room.

-Later: RWBY's Dorm-

BGM: Between the Sheets-The Isley Brothers

"Ah~ W-wait, I'm not r-ready…" A blushing Crocea stuttered out as she lay on her back in Ruby's bed.

"Don't be shy, I'll be gentle." Ruby swore as her hands began to move at a steadily increasing pace. "See this isn't so bad, is it?"

"I-it's been awhile–wait! No don't touch there-ahn~" Crocea gasped out as her eyes began to glisten.

"This feels good doesn't it? See I told you it would be okay." Ruby chuckled as sweat dripped from her brow while Crocea panted breathlessly as she hid her face in her hands. "Wow, you're a dirty one aren't you?"

"D-don't tease….I-idiot." Crocea said quietly as she turned her head away from Ruby whom smiled before slowly moving her fingers down to a place that was rarely touched on Crocea. "W-wait, no-AHN~!" Crocea cried out loudly as her back arched, her mind exploded in ecstasy before she simply passed out on Ruby's bed.

"There, done!" Ruby panted out with a smile as she wiped her brow.

BGM: END

"Here you go, better than ever! Good idea buying that metal from Mistral, this poor girl was a couple battles away from breaking after taking so much punishment from your sister." Ruby said with a smile as she picked up the newly enhanced blade before turning to her friends, all of whom we're doing their best not to look at her. "What's wrong with you guys?"

"What did I just witness?" Ren muttered in confusion as a blushing Jaune looked away with a frown.

"I need a shower…why do I feel like my weapon has just been violated?" Jaune asked himself in confusion as Pyrrha simply covered her eyes, her cheeks as red as her hair while Nora hugged Ren tightly.

"R-Ren! I feel unclean!" Nora wept making Ren pat her back as he whispered comforting words to her.

"Yang, we need to have a long talk with your sister." A blushing Weiss said to Yang whom nodded quickly, her cheeks burning brightly. Blake just averted her eyes from the young huntress while muttering something about Ninjas in Love.

"You all are weird, have you never seen someone upgrade a weapon before?" Ruby asked skeptically as she handed the blade over to Jaune whom held as one would a dirty tissue with a grimace. Still, he couldn't help but appreciate the expert craftsmanship Ruby had done to his weapon. He couldn't wait until he could change into it.

"Glad I listened to you, the gold accents her nicely." Jaune said as he smiled at his partner whom averted her eyes with a blush at the praise.

"Yeah, and I hope you don't mind but I sort of used your weapons as an inspiration." Ruby said sheepishly making the Spartan wave off her concerns quickly.

"No, no, it's fine! It came out rather well, if anything I'm flattered you all think so highly of me." Pyrrha said modestly.

"Sorry, but the rest isn't ready, you're armor will be done in time for the festival though, I promise!" Ruby said making Jaune smile.

"Great! I look forward to it." Jaune said as he looked down at his current set. "This has helped me for a while but I doubt Dad wanted me to use it forever."

"It felt s-so good master~" Crocea said with a tired smile before fading away once Jaune sheathed her.

+1 Righteous Judgment Crocea Mors (+15)

"Wait…" Jaune trailed off as he could see a faint orange glow above his weapon, even when it was sheathed. "Is Crocea glowing? Well, more than usual anyway."

"I am very passionate about weapons." Ruby said firmly while hundreds of miles away in a distant continent, every single one of the Crimson Blades felt an urge to kill their resident blacksmith.

(Fun Fact: Let me explain for you non-Vindictus players out there. In Vindictus you can enhance your weapon 1-15 by going to a black smith named Ferghus. Problem is, this fucker sucks at his job. The higher he enhances it-the bigger chance there is for something to go wrong with it during the upgrade. 10+ has a high chance of straight up destroying your weapon each upgrade that only goes up. Truth be told hitting higher than 12 is a pipe dream. With this in mind, look back up at Crocea again and understand the gravity of his weapon enhancement.)

The fact that Jaune felt his power increase drastically just by having Crocea Mors back in his possession told Jaune that he was incredibly lucky to have befriended Ruby Rose.

["Remember Jaune, strangers are just friends you haven't met yet."]

"I love you mom." Jaune thought as he resisted the urge to weep once more grateful for deciding to talk to Ruby on his first day.

"R-right…well then." Weiss said as she cleared her throat before turning to Jaune. "Moving on, we need to go shopping in the morning and find us some formal attire, more so you than me I suspect."

"Right, now that Yang finally paid me I have more than enough cash to get something to wear. Gotta admit though, I didn't expect to be spending any of the money on this." Jaune said making Weiss nod with a sigh.

"I'll apologize in advance, it's completely last minute I know but my father is too stubborn." Weiss muttered making Jaune wave her off.

"Hold up. What's going on? You two going somewhere?" Yang asked in confusion making both Weiss and Jaune sigh.

"My father wants to celebrate our…union." Weiss said with obvious distaste, an expression that was mirrored on Jaune's face. "He's throwing an engagement party tomorrow night, so Jaune and I are going to use this opportunity to try to make him see reason."

"And since this is so last minute I need to go grab a suit which, now that I think about it, isn't such a bad idea with the dance this weekend." Jaune mused. "Our plan is to go to the party, act like a couple to save her father some face…then break the news to him afterwards that we refuse to get married so that he can come up with some excuse later to explain why we aren't hitched." Jaune quickly explained as he felt the piercing glare Pyrrha gave him.

He didn't even have to look at her to know she didn't like the idea, her rage was almost palpable. The slight annoyance on Ruby's face didn't make him feel any safer.

Oh dear God if Delia found out…

…Jaune shuddered…

Now don't get him wrong, Weiss was beautiful, smart, and rich, he had no qualms about dating her at all but even he couldn't just up and get married at seventeen. Not to mention the fact that his relationship with Pyrrha was still in a grey area since they both still hadn't talked things out after his resurrection and their first kiss.

Then there was the fact that Ruby turned out to be slightly possessive when it came to their friendship. He marked it off as them being each other's first legit friend but he was prepared in case it turned out to be something else. Their friends tended to write Ruby off as a kid since she was fifteen and–let's face it–adorable. He almost did too until he remembered what he was like a fifteen…or more specifically his twin and many of their sisters.

No, Jaune knew very well that in this day in age innocence died quickly which is why he refused to let his guard down around Ruby.

Then there was the issue with Delia…no…he wasn't even going to begin to open that can of worms. Truth be told, he could see himself being happy with Weiss, Ruby, or Pyrrha…that said, Pyrrha fucking terrified him on a level he hadn't felt since his sisters. He's seen her fight and knew it was in his best interest to not play around with her heart.

["Jaune, my boy, let me tell you something that I want you to remember for as long as you live. No matter how powerful an Arc man is–it pales in comparison to their women. I don't care how strong you think you are because your woman will still find a way to kill you. They are simply the one person you have no hopes of ever truly being safe from."]

The words of wisdom of Jaune's father rang out through his head for a moment before he shook his head to clear it. Every last woman in the room had the potential to kill him if they truly wanted him dead, if not face to face then at least in his sleep. Sometimes the overbearing estrogen was so much that he and Ren had to take "bro-cations" and just hang out in Vale for a few hours.

Jaune loved all his friends equally despite the genders, but after that one month when team RWBY, Pyrrha, and Nora all simultaneously received a visit from their 'aunt flow' he and Ren had become brothers in arms. The best way to describe that month would be to compare it to that old movie "Saving Private Caboose". To this day, he and Ren still had flashbacks.

-Insert sounds of gunfire and explosions-

"…Go…Go on without me…"

"I'm not leaving you Ren! I'm not–"

*BOOOOOM!*

"Run, Jaune! Run and LIVEEEE!"

"RENNNNN!"

"…aune, Jaune!" Weiss shouted, snapping Jaune from his thoughts. His and Ren's tale of heroism would have to wait for another day.

"Sorry, spaced out, what did you say?" Jaune asked as Ren shook his head in pity.

"I asked if heading out right after school sounded good to you?" Weiss asked again sounding a bit annoyed making him nod sheepishly.

"Sorry, yeah, we'll go after class, get something to throw on, and the sooner we get this party out of the way, the sooner we can be single." Jaune said with a nod. "Also, I gotta pick up some things for my guitar as well."

"What? You can play the guitar?" Yang asked curiously making him shrug.

"Hey, we all need a hobby. Besides, if this huntsmen thing doesn't work out–traveling bard is my back up." Jaune said with a chuckle.

"An extra stop won't hurt I suppose, as long as we make it to the docks on time." Weiss said with a nod and deep down Jaune really hoped the plan could just be that simple, after all.

"What's the worst that can happen?" Jaune wondered to himself.

-Meanwhile: With Cinder, Mercury, and Emerald-

"So tell me Emerald, what did you find out about our little knight from your fight?" Cinder asked curiously as they sat in their dorm.

"Well combat wise it's pretty straight forward, he uses a sword and a shield. Though he's proficient in both his blade is merely a distraction, his damage output comes mainly from that shield of his in the form of counterattacks. Honestly, I haven't seen someone that skilled with a shield before." Emerald began before frowning. "Though from that fight with team CRDL it's obvious we cannot rule out his blade, it seems he has a trick or two with it that can be dangerous if you are not careful when fighting him."

"And his aura?" Cinder questioned curiously making Emerald frown in thought.

"That's what separates him from the rest, he has a lot of Aura, possibly even more than you ma'am…well before your upgrade that is. If anything it's on par with or just lower now." Emerald said as she noted the fire that seemed to linger behind Cinder's eyes. "I could feel it just by being close to him in combat and it seems he has a Semblance worthy of it." Emerald explained. "It appears that he can use his aura to turn his body into a shield that reflects damage back at a greater force by adding his own power into the mix, how much he can reflect–I don't know–but it seems to be a lot. The only way through it seems to be to attack faster than he can track and attack him in a blind spot but that is a speed I can't reach easily." Emerald said with a frown.

"So basically in a head on fight he's invincible?" Mercury said with a frown making her nod.

"His shield, high aura, and Semblance pretty much make him immortal on the battlefield, this could pose a problem. Also, you've watched the news. He stopped a demon in Vale during his first semester. His sister slaughtered all of Adam's men and mortally wounded him and if the gossip here can be trusted, he even put up a fight against his sister." Emerald said as she turned to Cinder who actually looked a bit excited. "What should we do, ma'am?"

"Nothing." Cinder said with a smirk making Emerald and Mercury's eyes widen in confusion.

"Excuse me?" Mercury said in surprise, it wasn't like Cinder to let a potential threat this big go unchecked.

"Ma'am, surely you're joking–"

"Not at all." Cinder said with a dismissive wave. "We try to harm him, we die. It is really that simple. Say we do kill him. Don't you know what happens then? I'll tell you. His family will become our enemies and that is something we cannot deal with this early, if at all." Cinder said before grimacing. "She is powerful enough to face them, but the rest of us will be collateral."

"Are you…are you actually afraid of the Arcs?" Mercury asked incredulously as Emerald gave him a glare as if telling him to be silent.

"I've seen the security footage of the assault on Adam. I've seen a glimpse of what Jaune can become–no–surpass. We can take him down but his sister would require me to go all out and even then it is fifty-fifty and that's if another one of his family members don't intervene. That said though, he and his siblings are not what I'm trying to avoid." Cinder drawled.

"Then who–"

"Of course!" Emerald interrupted Mercury, confusing him as he turned to her. "Think Mercury, if it isn't Jaune or his siblings–who else is left from that family that poses a threat?" Mercury frowned in thought for a bit before his face paled as he felt his heart plummet.

"Oh."

"Yes oh." Cinder drawled unimpressed. "Believe me, the current patriarch is the last person you want as an enemy. Do you think killing his only son is going to help us in any way?"

"Then what do we do? They aren't going anywhere–the only way this plan succeeds now is if we deal with the Arcs." Mercury said making Cinder chuckle.

"Now, now, Mercury. There is more than one way to skin a cat. We can always simply get the Arcs to side with us." Cinder said with a smirk. "The little knight is young and impressionable, I'm sure between myself and Emerald he can be…persuaded…to join our side. We get him, we get the Arcs when he comes of age and takes his father's place."

"But won't that cost us the White Fang's loyalty?" Mercury questioned.

"You don't really think there is a place for that menagerie in the end-game do you? They cannot stop first years, one Arc slaughtered dozens of them without mercy a mere week ago before proceeding to walk into Beacon, a school filled with powerful teachers and students, and starting a fight. No there is no room for those weaklings, but I'm willing to make room for the Arcs as is she." Cinder said with a sinister chuckle. "We get Arc, we get the world."

"Brilliant as always ma'am." Emerald said with a smile making Cinder nod.

"We need to hurry things up. We need to take complete control of the White Fang. To do that, we need to remove Adam from the equation unfortunately. Crush their hope, give them no choice but to follow us and then we can use those pawns however we see fit." Cinder stated as she turned to Mercury. "Junior has informed me that there is a gathering at the Schnee mansion in honor of our ill made knight and the heiress. Tell Adam the plan is to attack there, he'll have no complaints about attacking the Schnees."

"How's that going to rid us of Adam?" Mercury questioned in confusion.

"The Arc patriarch is attending, Adam will attack and he and his followers will die. Jaune is still green, such carnage will no doubt traumatize him…if we're lucky he might even get his first kill and really have his will shaken. That will give me the perfect opportunity to see to his…healing." Cinder chuckled. "I will show him how rotten this world is and prove to him that it is up to the strong to change it." Cinder said as she gained a thousand yard stare. "The strong are the only ones who can."

-Flashback: Mistral: Fifteen Years Ago-

A little girl of about eight years of age ran through a destroyed village on her bare feet. Her skin was covered in ashes and her wrists and ankles were covered by iron cuffs. Over her body was a simple large tattered white shirt that reached down just above her knees. Her ebony hair blew in the air as embers rained down like snow and reflected in her golden eyes. She kept running until she stumbled to a stop when she saw a large blonde man, garbed in black armor standing with his back to her.

*CRACK!*

*CRASH!*

The girl didn't even flinch when a building collapsed as she gazed at the man's back with wide eyes. Around his neck was a collar of black fur, hanging off his shoulders was a black cape that had a golden arc embroidered on it. On his back was a long double-edge two-handed sword. The blade was black with a golden edge and written on the side of the blade in silver was a single word.

E.X.-Calibur

"Hm?" The man muttered as he turned around and faced the young girl, his cold blue eyes widening slightly as he saw her panting tiredly. He scratched his short golden beard in thought as he tilted his head. "Looks like there was a survivor, apparently I didn't arrive too late after all." The man mused. "You're probably too young to understand but the inhabitants of this town were bad people, so I took care of them." The man said before narrowing his eyes at her cuffs. "Or maybe you're not too young."

The girl said nothing as the man approached her and knelt down until he was eye level with her and broke off her cuffs with sheer strength alone.

"There, now I must be going. People are coming soon that will take care of you, give you a life you deserve. Just stay strong a little longer kid–" The man stopped when the girl hugged him tightly, her shoulders shaking as she sobbed into his neck.

"Take me with you!"

"You don't even know me."

"I don't care, take me with you!" The girl shouted making him sigh as he pried her off of him and stood up.

"I'm traveling this world, fighting things that would give you nightmares. You're not strong enough to come with me." The man tried to explain making her glare up at him, her tears and dried blood staining her face

"Then make me strong! Strong enough to stop the bad people myself!" The girl ordered making him sigh before pulling off his blade and stabbing it into the ground right in front of her, making her jump back in fear.

"Tell you what, carrying this thing hurts my back. I need someone strong enough to carry my burdens, you want to come along? Carry my sword." The man ordered making the girl nod with a frown before she grasped the hilt tightly in both hands and struggled to move it to no avail. Minutes passed as the man watched her strain herself until the point of tears in a vain attempt to move his blade. "As I thought. You need to be strong to survive this world, you are either born that way or you aren't. You need a tenacity I simply cannot teach you." The man said as he crossed his arms. "Give up." The man ordered as the girl was practically hanging from the sword at this point, both feet planted firmly on the side of the blade as she leaned back. "I said–"

*BOOOOM!*

"What?" The man muttered with a frown as he saw her aura unlock, nearby windows shattered and the broken fragments of glass shot down towards them, digging through the earth surrounding the blade. Eventually, the girl fell to her back with the blade falling next to her before weakly standing up, grasping the hilt tightly in her hands, and dragging the massive blade towards the shocked man.

"Take me with you." The girl demanded again making him frown as he stared at her, before a small smile graced his lips.

"You got a fire in your eye girl, fine, you can tag along for a bit but as soon as you're strong enough I'm ditching you." The man drawled. "What's your name, kid?"

"…"

"Ah, well slaves don't normally have names I suppose." The man mused as he watched specks of flame fall down around the girl as the village burned behind her. "Fine, from this point on you'll go by Cinder…Cinder Fall, seems fitting." The man said before turning around, his cape billowing behind him like a flag and hitting the girl in her face. "Let's go, try to keep up." The man said as he began walking away, the smirk on his face growing by the second as he heard his weapon being dragged behind him.

Flashback: END

"Yes, the little Arc will become strong. I guarantee it." Cinder thought with a smirk.

-The Next Afternoon-

"Hm, not bad. I must say you clean up quite nice after all, Arc." Weiss said as Jaune stepped out of a changing room in an expensive looking black tux.

"Thanks, you're not so bad yourself." Jaune said as he gave Weiss a once over. She was wearing what could be best described as a black version of her usual attire only her jacket was missing and the skirt hugged her hips a bit more. Embroidered in white on her left breast was her signature Schnee snowflake emblem. "Though, you're missing a couple of things."

"Excuse me?" Weiss asked sounding slightly affronted making Jaune raise his hands defensively.

"Relax, you look amazing. You're just missing some things no one else would think to bring to this kind of party, that's all." Jaune said calmly.

"Oh like what?" Weiss questioned skeptically as she crossed her arms.

"Well for one you're missing a holster to carry your sword, I saw this coming though and bought you one while you were getting dressed." Jaune said as he tossed her a black leather holster. "Call your locker and grab your weapon later."

"Why would I need Myrtenaster? We're just having dinner and talking and the party." Weiss said making Jaune sigh.

"I know, but for this to work we need both sets of our parents to believe us. This means it is key that you can pass as an Arc woman. So first thing is first, you need your weapon on you at all times. An Arc is always ready for battle, even my younger sisters keep a blade hidden on them at all times." Jaune explained making her shake her head as she strapped the holster around her waist.

"Are you serious?"

"Yup. I might even catch hell for showing up in just a suit, expect my dad to be wearing his full battle gear." Jaune said and chuckled at her expression of disbelief. "Mom's probably washing the blood off of his equipment as we speak."

"But…but Grimm blood doesn't even stay on your equipment for long before evaporating, what could she possibly have to clean!?" Weiss asked making Jaune give her a pitying look.

"If you think Grimm are the only thing my Dad hunts, you are mistaken. He hunts monsters, Weiss, even people can be monsters." Jaune explained making her pale a bit. "Weiss, I don't know you well despite being…friends? Acquaintances? Whatever. I get you might not have the…closest…relationship with your father, and it's not my place at all to say this…but be glad you never had to watch him come home covered in blood that both was and wasn't his with a blade sticking out of his back." Jaune said with a shudder making her grimace.

"R-right…" Weiss muttered. It was one thing to see a man you barely like coming home angry day after day. However, she couldn't imagine seeing a man you loved coming back after who knows how long in pain or even near death.

"Anyway, enough of that. I also made this for you." Jaune said as he handed her a black and gold version of her usual jacket that had the Arc emblem in gold on the back. "If we're engaged you need to wear my emblem."

"You made this?" Weiss asked incredulously as she put it on. Honestly, the quality of this jacket actually surpassed her usual one.

"Seven sisters." Jaune deadpanned as if that explained it all…and in a way it did.

"Two emblems…well this is not something you usually see." Weiss said with a still slightly stunned expression on her face, as if the fact she was actually engaged had just began to sink in.

"Two emblems, that's right! If we really need to seal the deal you still need to hear that story."

"What story?" Weiss asked in confusion.

"The story behind my second emblem…well not exactly my emblem, but we won't talk about it here. Come on we can grab some ice cream and go to the park for this, kill some time until the party." Jaune said with a smile as he led the heiress out of the shop after paying for their clothes.

-Later-

"So you said you had a second emblem? I've never saw it before at all." Weiss said making him nod.

"Like I said, it's not technically an emblem. It's just Pumpkin Pete, It's under my chest plate, stitched in to my hoodie. You can see it a bit when I move around now that I think about it." Jaune said and after thinking about it for a second, Weiss realized that there was some sort of grayish pattern that peeked out from under his chest plate from time to time.

"What did you do? Send in a box top for a prize?" Weiss asked as she looked at him skeptically making him blush before pouting.

"Yeah…like fifty…"

*Snort*

"Don't laugh!" Jaune said as Weiss burst into a fit of giggles at the look on his face making him pout more…that pout stopped for a moment, though, when he realized how pretty she looked when she didn't have a scowl planted on her face.

"Look, its tradition that we all wear the image of a rabbit somewhere on us." Jaune revealed confusing Weiss. "It's in honor of the greatest Arc in our family, Joan."

"I thought the greatest Arc was the one in the Great War, I mean there is a statue of him at Beacon!" Weiss exclaimed before grimacing slightly. "Not to mention animal emblems are usually only found with the Faunus families."

"To the general populace it is him that's the greatest, but to us Joan earned that title easily. Look, I know you have your…reservations…about the Faunus but at least hear me out." Jaune said with a sigh. "You knowing this story is the final thing we need to make sure no one suspects anything during the party."

"Alright…I'm listening." Weiss said with a small frown.

"My Ancestor…the one who started my family, no one knows where he came from. He is literally the farthest back we can trace our bloodline. Legends say he appeared from the sky of all things." Jaune said with a chuckle, though now he was suspecting that was truer than originally thought. "He came to Vale, wounded and was looked after by a young rabbit Faunus named Joan. Time passed and he took her with her on his travels and even his battles. She fought alongside him with an unwavering loyalty and eventually they fell in love."

"But back then…such unions…" Weiss began making Jaune nod.

"Resulted in death." Jaune finished for her. "A few years after she gave birth to their son, rumors began to come out that she and my ancestor were heretics. Even though he denied the claims, no one would believe him…the only way was to prove that he did not care for her. She agreed to be taken away, chained up and dust only knows what else before they finally set her ablaze."

"What!?" Weiss asked in horror, she was just getting around to accepting the Faunus herself but that…that was just horrifying. "Surely he could have saved her–"

"And then he along with my family would be branded traitors instead of heroes. Persecuted rather than praised and Joan didn't want that for us. My ancestor fought her every step of the way and even planned to escape with her but she slipped some sleeping medicine in his food and turned herself in that night." Jaune said with a sigh. "Ever since then, even when that kind of thinking was abandoned, rabbit Faunus in particular have had our protection."

"So earlier...with Cardin…"

"Yup." Jaune said with a nod. "He messed with Velvet, if word had gotten out that I knew about that and did nothing, there is no telling what my family would have done to me…and even if they would do nothing, he still pissed me off." Jaune said with a frown. "Sorry about sharing that, I know it's not the most uplifting tale but it's family history you might be expected to know–"

"–Stop, don't explain, I understand." Weiss interrupted with a frown. "Thank you for sharing that despite of knowing my reservations towards Faunus but do not expect me treat you differently…" Weiss trailed off before a smirk crossed her lips. "You silly rabbit."

+ 1 Title: Silly Rabbit

"Oh hell no, you are not going to start calling me that!" Jaune exclaimed making her laugh.

"Only if you insist on calling me by that damnable nickname." Weiss threatened making Jaune sigh.

"Sorry, Snow Angel, no can do. If I did that we'd never see emotion from the infamous ice queen." Jaune said making her roll her eyes.

"Oh I'm not that bad!"

"Hate to break it to you but outside of our teams, people are beginning to wonder if you even have emotions." Jaune said bluntly.

"…That bad?"

"Yup, seriously a smile would not kill you every once in a while, especially if we're supposed to sell this couple in love thing." Jaune pointed out making her sigh before giving him a radiant smile that actually made his heart skip a bit. "Huh, what?" Jaune asked as he realized he missed her say something.

"I asked, how was that?" Weiss repeated sounding a bit annoyed.

"G-good. *Ah-hem* keep that up, it should fool anyone." Jaune said seriously making her nod. "Even me…what was THAT!?"

"Good, now let's go we need to head to the music store, head back to the dorms, and then catch the next airship now if we are expected to make it to my home in time." Weiss said as she stood up. "Thanks for the ice cream, by the way."

"Please, you bought the clothes, it was the least I could do. Lead the way Snow Angel." Jaune said with an exaggerated bow.

"It'd be my pleasure rabbit."

"Ugh!"

*Giggle*

-Later: Bards, Bands, &Beyond-

"Finally, I've been putting this off for way too long." Jaune said as he handed the cashier some money. Weiss frowned a bit as she swore she saw the old man behind the register before. In fact, he looked a lot like the owner of the Dust shop.

And the flower shop.

And the tea shop.

And the coffee house.

And the ramen stand.

And the bakery.

And a few of the bookstores.

And a nearby bar

And…wait was that him crossing the street outside right now?

Weiss blinked owlishly as she glanced out of the window of the store and saw a similar man whistling as he walked across the street. Glancing between the two frantically, she was about to say something when the man gave her a quick look that told her it would be in her best interest to remain silent.

"Ready Weiss?" Jaune asked as he strapped his guitar on his back, startling Weiss.

"Uh…yes…" Weiss trailed off as she looked at the shop-keeper apprehensively before both she and Jaune left the store. Frowning, Weiss checked the time on her scroll before glancing up at Jaune. "We still have an hour before the air-ship to Beacon arrives. I wasn't expecting you to be so…easy to shop with."

"Seven–"

"–Sisters, got it." Weiss said with a small smile which he returned. "So what do we do now, then?"

"Simple, we sit down…and we relax." Jaune said as he pulled off his guitar and sat down at a nearby bench, stretching a bit as he did so. Seeing Weiss looking a bit perplexed, Jaune raised an eye-brow. "What? Don't tell me you don't know how to relax?"

"What? Of course I do you dolt!" Weiss said as she crossed her arms with a huff making him chuckle a bit. "I'm just…"

"…Not used to it?" Jaune questioned getting her attention as he hit the nail on the head. "Man, I feel you, it feels like things haven't stopped moving since we joined Beacon. If we're not training, we're studying. If we're not studying, we're fighting monsters and family members…or violent extremists in your case." Jaune said as he looked at her skeptically while letting the end of his sentence hang.

Seriously, he didn't know which team got wrapped up in the crazier situation.

Team RWBY with the terrorists or team JNPR with the random demons that wanted him dead.

"Exactly." Weiss said before eventually sitting down next to him. It was strange, when she thought about it. This really had been the first time she just had time to relax in God knows how long. "Though in my case, I haven't had time long before entering Beacon."

"You're kidding me right?"

"Not at all, at home it's always been so…tense…like you're constantly walking on eggshells day after day trying to uphold the family image. Anything less than perfection is frowned upon." Weiss said before frowning. "I apologize, I have no idea why I'm telling you this."

"Uh, because we're friends?" Jaune said making her blink before turning to face him. She stared at him for a moment before she felt her lips curl up slightly despite herself.

"Hm, I suppose we are aren't we?" Weiss mused as Jaune tuned his guitar.

"Still, you didn't even have a hobby or anything to entertain yourself?" Jaune questioned making her frown.

"Well…I liked to sing."

"Liked?" Jaune repeated looking a bit affronted. "One does not simply give up a passion for music!" Jaune said with a mock glare making her roll her eyes.

"When my father found out I was good at it, he turned it into a tool for him to use. Concert after concert, he'd have me sing to please his colleagues." Weiss said with obvious distaste as she clenched her fist slightly. "My hobby, became a simple business tool." Weiss explained making Jaune grimace before she released a long breath. "No use getting upset over it now. So…" Weiss began as she turned to face him. "Playing a guitar, is that your hobby?"

"For a moment, I thought it was my calling. I was always the least talented of my siblings when it came to fighting and was honestly going to just give up and go into music, my family supported the decision…but at the same time…"Jaune trailed off before smiling fondly. "…my mom always said a dream never chased is a dream never achieved. So despite everything I kept on fighting, literally, no matter what anyone said."

"You should be very grateful, I wish I could do that."

"Do what? Chase your dream? Isn't that why you're here?" Jaune asked curiously making her laugh a bit as she shook her head.

"No, not that. I'm a person who can get nearly everything I ever want, but you, Yang, and Ruby still make me envious." Weiss said honestly making him look at her in confusion. "I wish…I wish I could talk about my family the way you all do. You can tell that you're loved by the way your eyes light up every time you mention them."

"Come on Weiss, I'm sure you're loved. Even if your Dad completely sucks ass at showing it, I'm sure deep down there is some sort of love in his heart." Jaune said before frowning. "Truth be told, my Dad and I didn't get along until I was ten." Jaune said as he placed a hand on his guitar. "Until then he had tried so hard to train me whenever he finished training Arisha, given up so much of the little he free time he had only for me to disappoint him. When I told him I was thinking of switching to music, I thought he'd disown me…"

"But?" Weiss asked curiously.

"He gave me this guitar instead, sat down with me and said if this is what I wanted he'd help in any way he could. That's when I realized…he wasn't mad at me, he was mad at himself for not being able to help me." Jaune said with a sad smile. "I'm not saying your father is the same way, of course. What I'm saying is that there is a chance that he has his reasons for being the way he is. Tell you what, after tonight when this blows over just ask him what exactly he wants form you. Even if it's an answer you don't like, at least you'll know."

"I…I guess I'll give it a shot, what else do I have to lose? I'll be lucky if he doesn't disown me after we call this engagement off." Weiss said making Jaune laugh.

"That makes two of us, my Dad will kill me when he finds out I let you 'slip' from my fingers." Jaune said before giving her a playful wink. "You're one hell of a catch." Jaune said making her blush lightly. "I mean you're so rich."

"You jerk!" Weiss said, though she was smiling as she slapped his arm. "You're only after my money?" Weiss asked with a laugh as he grinned at her.

"When have I ever said that I wasn't a gold digger?" Jaune questioned curiously. "Do you know how many repairs I can buy from Ruby if we got hitched?" Jaune asked as he did his best to keep a straight face only for it to fall moments later as both he and Weiss burst out into laughter. After a few moments, Weiss calmed down as she wiped a tear from her eye.

"So, your father was really okay with you not being a hunter?" Weiss asked making Jaune laugh.

"Okay? He taught me my first song!" Jaune said surprising Weiss.

"Oh? Well we have time to kill, let's hear it."

"What?"

"You heard me." Weiss said with a smirk. "Unless you're all talk and can't play at all."

"See what you did? Now I have to show you how it's done." Jaune said with a sigh. "You brought this upon yourself."

"I feel sorry for my ears already." Weiss said getting a half-hearted glare from Jaune whom got a better hold on his instrument.

-Seven Years Ago: Arc Household-

"Arthur, you know you should be in bed, I just did your bandages!" Jaune's mother called out from the kitchen where she was preparing that night's dinner.

"Don't worry honey, I'll be fine, I need to show these brats of ours how it's done! My pride is at stake." Arthur said petulantly as he sat on a chair in nothing but a pair of black slacks while his chest was covered in bandages.

"You sure you're okay, old man?" A sixteen year old Fiona questioned skeptically as she sat on a couch with Jaune and Delia. The latter whom was snuggled into her brother's side as she watched her father curiously while playing with the flower that was in her long blonde hair.

"You were run through by an Alpha- Beowulf after all." Arisha said calmly as she leaned against a nearby wall, her face showing nothing but pure skepticism.

"Please, it's just a flesh wound!" Arthur said as he waved off their concerns. "Now get ready, Jaune." Arthur said with a grin as he faced his son before strumming the chords. "This is the tool to win any woman's heart."

"Mooooooom, Dad's corrupting Jaune again!" Fiona called out.

"What!?"

"Nothing honey!" Arthur said nervously, giving his smirking daughter a glare before clearing his throat. Now here we go." Arthur said as Jaune looked on in interest.

BGM: Must be nice (Instrumental)-Lyfe Jennings

"No way." Fiona mutter quietly as she heard her father play the guitar expertly while humming to himself. Behind him, the heavily pregnant form of Jaune's mother leant against a nearby wall as she crossed her arms, smiling a bit to herself.

"Here is a lesson for you, Jaune. Whenever you do find the girl of your dreams. Don't you dare let them slip through your fingers." Arthur said seriously. "We don't find love easily." Arthurs told Jaune whom blinked when he felt Delia tighten her grip on his hand as Arthur began to sing.

"Must be nice
Havin' someone who understands the life you live
Must be nice
Havin' someone who's slow to take and quick to give
Must be nice
Havin' someone who sticks around when the rough times get thick
Someone who's smile is bright enough to make the battlefield feel like a mansion
Must be nice
Havin' someone who loves you despite your faults
Must be nice
Havin' someone who talks the talk but also walks the walk
Must be nice
Havin' someone who understands that an Arc has feelings too
Someone who loves you for sho'
You just remember to never let 'em go

'Cause even when your huntin' days are gone
She'll be by your side still holdin' on
And even when those missions start endin'
And all those gold-diggin' women disappear
She'll still be here"

Jaune's mother placed her hands on Arthurs shoulders, massaging the stiff muscles before she leant forward and pressed a kiss to the side of his cheek making him smile a bit as he sang.

"Must be nice
Havin' someone you can come home to from a long day of work
Must be nice
Havin' someone you don't have to show they know exactly where it hurts
Must be nice"

-Present: With Jaune and Weiss-

Weiss was blatantly gaping at him as they ended up drawing quite the crowd.

"Havin' someone who trusts you despite what they've heard
Someone as mighty as a lion but still as gentle as a bluebird."

Jaune sang as he winked at Weiss whom felt extremely embarrassed when she heard people "awing".

"Must be nice
Havin' someone you don't have to tell you don't want to be alone
Must be nice
Havin' someone you can grow old with until God calls ya'll home
Must be nice
Havin' someone who understands that an Arc has feelings too
Someone who loves you for sho'
You never let 'em go"

Jaune was smiling brightly at Weiss as he continued to sing. So into it he didn't notice the crowd whispering or that a few of them had their scrolls out. Weiss definitely noticed but even she couldn't find it in her to stop Jaune at the moment.

"Cause even when your huntin' days are gone
She'll be by your side still holdin' on
And even when those missionss start endin'
And all those gold-diggin' women disappear
She'll still be here
'Cause even when your huntin' days are gone
She'll be by your side still holdin' on
And even when those missionss start endin'
And all those gold-diggin' women disappear
She'll still be here"

Jaune's eyes were closed as his face showed nothing but emotion as he began to bring the song to an end

"'Cause even when your huntin' days are gone
She'll be by your side still holdin' on
And even when those quests start endin;
And all those gold-diggin' women disappear
She'll still be here."

BGM: END

"See, told you–" Jaune stopped talking as he saw the stunned look on Weiss face. He was about to gloat when a sudden applause got both of their attention making Weiss blush as she and Jaune noticed the rather large crowd that had gathered. "Uh...how long…"

"Awhile."

"…"

"…"

"…l-let's just head back to the docks." Jaune said eventually as both he and Weiss grabbed their things. Jaune almost wished he had brought Crocea with him because moving through the crowd proved to be quite the task in of itself.

-Hours Later: Schnee Family Mansion-

"Okay…that's way too much house." Jaune said in awe once they entered the main gate. "And that's saying something without how big my family is."

"Always throwing parties for new investors or potential business partners, we needed a fashionable place to entertain them." Weiss explained before tilting her head. "Though I will admit it is a bit much, never got the chance to bunk with my sister as a child."

"What? You mean you never had to listen to gossip about boys when trying to take a nap before?" Jaune asked sounding scandalized. "Tell me that you've at least fought for the bathroom before."

"Nope, there are actually eleven bathrooms, maybe more–mother did always enjoy spontaneously renovating." Weiss mused making Jaune shake his head.

"You have no idea what you've missed."

"You're probably right." Weiss admitted with a touch of sadness in her voice. "Share your experiences with me one day, it might give me an idea."

"Haha, if you want to hear the misadventures of me and the seven deadly sisters just let me know. I could probably write a book." Jaune chuckled as they approached the entrance.

"Madame." A butler said with a bow as he opened the door before turning to Jaune. "Ah and pleased to meet you as well Master Arc, your parents are already inside."

"Thank you Klein." Weiss said with a bright smile.

"Well better not keep them waiting." Jaune said as he nodded to the butler as she stepped through the door. "Thank you."

"Oh and Master Arc." The butler continued as he put a vice like grip on Jaune's shoulder, making the knight shudder as he felt a surge of killing intent directed towards him. "I know Madame Weiss is your betrothed but please be sure to treat her with care…it would be a shame if something…bad…would happen to you. Do we have an understanding?" Klein questioned and for a moment, Jaune swore he saw the man's irises go red.

"U-Understood." Jaune said making the butler nod with a smile as he entered the house. "Uh…that's a very…interesting butler you have."

"Hm? Oh Klein? Yes he was my fencing instructor and body guard when I was younger, nice man." Weiss said with a small smile making Jaune nod.

"That explains a lot." Jaune thought with a sweat drop as he glanced back at the butler whom drew a line across his neck before closing the door.

"Jaune? Ah you made it just on time, son." A masculine voice said making Jaune grin as he turned to face his father whom was garbed in black armor, a matching cape on his back with two golden arcs. His expression was firm but not unkind and his cold blue eyes seemed to hold nothing but wisdom. All in all to Weiss, this man seemed to be the text book definition of a warrior, especially with the blade on his back.

"Of course he made it on time, he knows better than to show up late to an event such as this. Isn't that right Jaune?" A raven haired woman with bright violet eyes whom had her arm interlocked with the armored man questioned coolly. Now at this moment, Weiss was sure that anyone whom claimed she was an ice queen would take that back upon meeting this woman whom had to be Jaune's mother. Though if she hadn't already seen both of Jaune's older sisters she was positive she would have mistaken the woman before her as one of them.

"This woman had eight children?" Weiss wondered incredulously before repressing a chill as the woman's piercing gaze slid over to her.

Now Weiss was a brave young woman whom feared nearly nothing.

But this woman before her disturbed her in ways she couldn't quite fathom.

"Morgana Arc." Morgana said as she extended a hand towards Weiss whom took it.

"Weiss Schnee." Weiss said nervously, not sure why she was on guard with this woman.

"Oops, seemed to have forgotten my manners. Arthur Arc, pleased to meet you." Arthur said with a smile.

"Hmph, eat better. A body like that is incapable of caring for an heir." Morgana muttered making Jaune face-palm.

"Oh dear dust, no." Jaune said before looking up at his father pleadingly. Now…Jaune was not the coolest person in the world but when he was younger, to what he would guess is many people's surprise, even he managed to get the occasional girlfriend, somehow charming them with his special brand of awkwardness…the problem was they didn't last long. In fact, none of the children in that household could forge lasting relationships. The boys and occasional girls whom liked his sisters were too terrified of their father and the girls that liked him? Well…they didn't last long under his mother's scrutiny.

…That's if Delia or Arisha didn't get to them first anyway…

Safe to say, Jaune and his siblings had all considered the possibility of being loners the rest of their lives at one point. The messed up part about it was that Jaune was positive his parents were hypocrites as his Dad would always try to get him laid while protecting his daughters' 'virtue' and his mother would always try to get her daughters to find a good man while cock-blocking Jaune at every turn claiming Jaune was too much like his father for comfort.

Jaune didn't understand what that meant until he sat down and did the math one day.

His father was forty.

His mother was thirty eight.

Fiona was twenty three.

Do.

The.

Math.

Life was…interesting…at the Arc household. Still that too was a story for another day for now Jaune had to count on his number one wing man to get him out of this situation ASAP.

-Father/son mental link: Activate!-

["Help. Me. Please…Dad!"] Jaune tried to convey with a glance which was thankfully received by his father whom nodded back.

["Don't worry son, I got this."]

As the only two men in the household, this was an art that was mastered quickly in Jaune's youth.

"Now, now, honey. The girl is fine how she is, besides she's still young." Arthur said attempting to diffuse the situation.

Now, Weiss was more than just a little affronted by the woman's remark, her body was something she was sensitive about especially after being partnered with a girl two years her junior that had a bigger bust than she had…meeting Fiona and Arisha recently didn't help matters either…nor was looking at the woman standing before her.

["I drink milk!"]

Weiss' eye twitched as Ruby's voice decided to ring out through her head.

But once again the woman frankly terrified Weiss for a reason she had yet to understand especially when she was positive Arthur had the largest body count between the two…if the woman even had one to begin with. So she just forced a smile on her face and gave a stiff nod. Arthur quickly gave the young woman a once over before glancing back at Jaune and raising an eyebrow.

["You hit it?"]

["What? Dad…no…just no."]

["I have no son."] Arthur simply glanced away from Jaune with a sigh as if frustrated by his existence.

["Dad!"]

Taking a moment to ignore her inner irritation at Jaune's mother, Weiss frowned when she noticed the woman had no weapon on her.

"Excuse me, Mrs. Arc-"

"Please, call me Morgana." Morgana said as she waved off the formalities.

"I was just wondering where your weapon was? Jaune told me that Arcs always needed their weapon on them even in events like this." Weiss asked getting an approving look from both Arthur and Morgana. Morgana simply gestured to her purse in response to the question.

"I'm a dust Sorceress or I was back in my youth." Morgana answered as she pulled out a dust crystal that had been carved into a sphere making Weiss' eyes widened in surprise.

"Ha! The havoc you could wreak with one of those was magnificent!" Arthur said with a laugh making his wife wave off his praise.

"Yes but I've retired, content on simply taking care of the girls at home or patching up this clumsy oaf's injuries." Morgana said modestly, though Weiss could tell she felt pride for her current role in life. Possibly even more so than her earlier career.

"Modest woman, she says this but she pretty much trained an old pupil of mine single-handedly whenever she got some free time when we would stop by between expeditions. She even helped one of your teachers now that I think about it…what was her name? Badwitch? Evilwitch? Coldbitc–"

"Goodwitch?" Weiss asked incredulously.

"She seemed far from it but sure, if you say that's her name." Arthur said with a dismissive wave. Making Weiss turn to the woman in awe, previous resentment all but forgotten.

"Perhaps if it's not too much trouble, you could look over my work one day." Weiss asked making Morgana look at her in slight surprise while Jaune wondered if his "fiancé" had forgotten about the plan.

"I thought you were a swordswoman?" Morgana questioned with a frown making Weiss pull out Myrtenaster so that Morgana could get a better look at the dust cartridges.

"Only when I need to be." Weiss answered as Morgana looked over the weapon with slightly wider eyes.

"This is…actually quite impressive. Looks to be on par with one of my creations, specifically the blade I made for Arthur. A couple of minor flaws, but nothing that can't be fixed. Jaune you've seen this in action?" Morgana questioned curiously making.

"Yes and it looks pretty scary to be on the other side of it and her Glyphs." Jaune said making Morgana turn back to the heiress.

"Ah yes, so you did manage to inherit that Semblance then." Morgana muttered before wrapping an arm around Weiss in a one-armed embrace. "I have a daughter."

"You have seven." Arthur pointed out as he and Jaune sweat-dropped.

"Now it's eight." Morgana stated simply before turn to look down at Weiss. "You must visit over the summer, dear, when I'm done with you–you will truly be a force to be reckoned with."

"Really? That sounds splendid." Weiss said before averting her eyes from the half-lidded stare Jaune was giving her. In the heat of the moment, she had completely forgotten about the plan.

"So why are we out here?" Jaune asked in confusion making Morgana turn to him.

"Pairs enter the main ballroom when they are announced, they are introduced by their name and titles then they enjoy the feast with the other attendees." Morgana informed him before sighing along with Jaune and Arthur, confusing Weiss.

"Can Weiss and I go first? You know what happens every time you and Dad take the lead." Jaune said dryly making Morgana nod.

"Of course, I made sure that the Schnees put us last for that very reason."

"What reason?" Weiss asked in confusion.

"You'll see soon enough." Jaune said as he saw a couple leave leaving him and Weiss alone with his parents. "Guess we're next, let's go."

-Ballroom-

"Next we have the guests of honor, Weiss Schnee-heiress to the Schnee Dust Company and Jaune Arc." A well-dressed man began as Jaune and Weiss entered the large room. "The Hero of Vale, The White Knight, Heir to the noble house of Arc, Son of Arthur." The man introduced making Jaune hum in thought.

"Huh wonder when I earned the White Knight title." Jaune mused as he walked with Weiss on his arm who looked up at him in surprise.

"Four official titles and only two that you earned at birth? That's pretty impressive." Weiss said making Jaune chuckle.

"You would think so but…" Jaune trailed off as he glanced back at his parents.

"And finally introducing Morgana Arc. Former High Dust Sorceress of Vale, Arc family Matriarch, Master Weapon smith, Duchess of Vale, and mother of the year for the past decade."

"Ah now I see what you mean." Weiss said making Jaune snort.

"What, Mom? No it's–"

"And last but not least, Arthur Arc. Arc patriarch, Hero of Vale, Hero of Remnant, the Black Knight, Son of Alexandrite the Great, Butcher of Mantle, King Slayer, Prince Slayer, Queen Slayer, God Hunter-"

"We'll be here for a while." Jaune sighed as Weiss gaped at the armored man.

-30 Minutes later-

"The Juggernaut, One bad mother–"

"Okay that's enough." A man with white hair interrupted with a chuckle making the man raise his eyebrow.

"But sir, I'm just introducing Arthur?"

"Yes but it'll be tomorrow by the time you finish." Arthur said with a laugh. "Let's just forget formalities and enjoy the party."

"Two hundred and fifty six titles…" Weiss muttered with an eye twitch.

"That you heard." Jaune corrected. "I wanted him to at least finish that title, it's my favorite but it always gets interrupted. It's one thing to be stuck in someone's shadow but in my family, I'm just eclipsed." Jaune muttered making Weiss place a hand on his shoulder.

"Well you're young, having even two titles at our age is rare give it time, keep getting in the situations you do and you'll pass him in no time." Weiss said, not a stranger of being stuck in someone's shadow. However, before Jaune could say something a young woman a bit older than them approached with a smile. She was wearing an elegant black gown and had shoulder length white hair the back of which was tied up in a braided bun. Her eyes lit up behind her glasses as she looked at Weiss.

"Weiss? Oh my, look how big you've gotten." The newcomer said with a smile making Weiss' eyes widen before she hugged the woman tightly. "Tell me, are you eating properly?"

"Winter! I had no idea you were back in the country!" Weiss actually gushed, making Jaune wonder who she was and what she had done with the Ice Queen.

"Oh like I would miss this, as soon as father told me a week ago, Ironwood got me on the first air-ship back here." Winter said with a smile before turning to Jaune and extending her hand. "Pleased to meet you, Winter Schnee." Jaune accepted the hand.

"Jaune Arc. Pleased to meet you." Jaune said with a smile

"I do hope you to take great care of my sister." Winter said with a smile, though the pain that suddenly shot through his hand from how hard she gripped it clearly conveyed the unsaid or else.

"O-Of course!" Jaune said as he did his best not to whimper at the smile on the woman's face which was a just a bit too wide for comfort.

"So tell me…is Whitley here?" Weiss questioned apprehensively gaining Winter's attention.

"Unfortunately, no, he had matters of his own to attend to tonight." Jaune couldn't tell but it sounded as though that was apparently good news as both of the sisters seemed to be happy about it.

"Uh…Whitley?" Jaune asked curiously. Sighing Winter gestured towards a family portrait that was hanging on a nearby wall.

"Our precious little brother." Winter said as Jaune frowned before looking at the portrait. It was that that moment, Jaune had an existential crisis. Why? Because Jaune was, by nature, a good person whom hated bullies…that said, even he couldn't resist the inexplicable urge to kick the kid's ass.

"Whoa! Is this how Cardin feels around everyone? Perhaps I should be a bit more understanding now." Jaune thought while Weiss looked at him in concern.

"Are you okay, Jaune?"

"I do believe your betrothed has had the sudden urge to beat up our little brother." Winter said calmly making Weiss look at Jaune scandalized. "It's okay, everyone gets it when they see him."

"Winter!" Weiss exclaimed looking surprised.

"What? I am not condoning such behavior, I'm just stating a recurring phenomenon." Winter said so seriously that Jaune wasn't sure if she was joking or not.

Wait, did Schnees even joke?

"Kids like him get beat up, it's just a rule of life. Succumbing to the urge doesn't make you a bad person either, some instincts are just hard to ignore." Winter said simply, and despite her best efforts, Weiss couldn't stop the giggle that escaped from her mouth. "The boy is lucky he's rich."

"I miss you Winter, do hope I can see you more, I barely even got to see you last year." Weiss said making Winter nod with a sad smile.

"Indeed, perhaps I'll find a way to see you during the Vytal festival. I assume you will be representing the family, well." Winter said making her younger sister nod with a smile. "Now come, we can eat with our parents, dance a bit, and mingle. This night is for you to have fun." Winter said with a small smile as she gestured for them to follow her.

-Later-

Weiss and Jaune could now be found at a table with their parents and Winter. Jaune, for one, was extremely surprised. He–like many of their friends–had assumed Weiss grew up with a cold hearted family that focused more on their business than they did their children but as it turns out, that was only partly true.

Winter was cool.

Weiss' mom was…there…but kind, he guessed.

Her Dad was a dick though, he was so fake it made him sick. In fact, if it wasn't for his mother, he was positive his Dad would have sucker punched him a few times by now. Not that he said anything rude per se….people like Jacques Schnee just got punched by men like his father.

That's just how the world worked–oh. Now he got where Winter was coming from.

"So tell me, the Vytal tournament is coming up. Either of you planning on entering?" Jacques questioned curiously.

"Of course, it's the perfect opportunity to improve my skills and test them against others." Weiss said with a nod.

"Yeah, I'm signing up, my team has actually begun training for it." Jaune answered making Weiss' mother, Eva, look at them in concern.

"Wait, doesn't that mean there is a chance you two might fight each other?"

"It's possible." Jaune answered before grimacing. "Just really hope I don't. Honestly? Your daughter scares me. I've been really lucky to avoid being picked as her opponent in battle class."

"You say that, but aren't you still undefeated?" Weiss asked dryly, surprising his parents greatly, making Jaune snort.

"That's only because when I spar with my team it's out of the public eye. Believe me, Pyrrha has made me tap out more than a few times." Jaune said before shaking his head. "I couldn't walk straight for two days after the whole…Arisha…incident. I thought Pyrrha was going to kill me that time. If Fiona hadn't said she was thinking of recruiting us into the Crimson Blades after we graduate, she might have." Jaune said as Winter seemed to cough a bit on her drink.

"Arisha, incident?" Jacques asked curiously and his wife looked equally as confused when Morgana gave her now sheepish husband an annoyed glance.

"His daughter thought it was a good idea to personally check if Jaune was ready to be a hunter." Morgana said sounding slightly annoyed. "Honestly Arthur, I told you we had to be stricter on her, especially after her fight with Delia, but no you said the legacy and her training were more important."

"Now Morgana it wasn't that bad–"

"She killed thirty five people, destroyed two buildings and that was before she reached Beacon...destroyed another building, part of a forest, and then nearly killed our son and his friend. A friend whom happens to be the daughter of a dear late friend of mine." Morgana interrupted as Weiss' parents gaped at them while Winter just blinked owlishly at her.

"In her defense, those people were terrorists." Arthur argued back weakly getting a glare from his wife. "Shutting up now."

"Be grateful to have such well-mannered children." Morgana told Weiss' parents with a sigh. "I love all my children equally but Jaune seems the only one my lessons of how to act in society seemed to sink in too."

"Thank you, though both of our girls have their own rebellious streaks." Eva said with a sigh making Jacques frown a bit as he thought about it. "You see both of them ended up inheriting my Semblance and of course both of them immediately wanted to be huntresses."

"A fine calling." Arthur said giving the sisters an approving nod.

"Yes, but the company needs an heir." Jacques continued. "As prestigious as being a huntress is, someone needs to run this company in the future. "I'd have my son do it, but as you are well aware the image is most important. He didn't inherit my wife's Semblance and as a result he lacks a certain image of power that the public adores."

It was then that Jacques frowned.

"I will admit this to you all in confidence, the Schnee Semblance is powerful but as a result it can cause a lot of damage." Jacques muttered. "In my mind, it's like watching my daughters go through life with a live bomb on their backs." Jacques said making Eva avert her eyes while his daughters looked at him in surprise. "As competent as my daughters are, of course, mistakes do happen which is another reason I'd like them to have a life that doesn't require so much…fighting."

"I understand completely." Morgana said with a nod. "Aura can be an extremely volatile thing, Semblances even more so. It's the main reason we try to teach our children how to survive without them. None of our children even have their aura unlocked." Morgana said making both Weiss and Jaune choke on their drinks. Hearing his parents actively choose not to teach him about aura was completely new to Jaune. He had figured they had just didn't know, but apparently it was as common as breathing in their world-impossible to not know about. "Are you two okay?"

"Yes it's just that…well…" Weiss trailed off not knowing what to say

"I unlocked my aura and my semblance, actually." Jaune said awkwardly before suddenly turning to his father whom had accidentally shattered his glass in his hand. The Arc patriarch had looked as though something had blown up in his face. Glancing to his surprised wife, the two seemed to share a silent conversation before he turned back to Jaune with a smile on his face.

"I-is that so?" Arthur said, surprising Jaune whom had never heard his father stutter before. "Well then, congratulations Jaune. This summer we will definitely begin training again." Arthur said making Jaune pale. There was another reason besides Jaune temporarily changing career paths that led to Jaune no longer training with his father. A good reason. Jaune loved his father, but when it came to training?

The man was a damn devil.

The sheer amount of times Jaune had considered calling child protection was simply staggering.

He wondered what about aura suddenly drew his parents' apprehension but that would have to wait until later as they noticed a couple of couples get up to prepare to dance.

"Oh now this just won't do, the couple of honor should be the first ones on the dance floor." Eva said with a frown.

"Agreed, hop to it you two!" Arthur said with a laugh as he gestured towards the dance floor. Making the two teens pale as they suddenly found themselves being moved to the dance floor with all of the guests looking at them with smiles.

Oh shit.

Gulping, Jaune awkwardly turned to Weiss as they held each other while the music began to play.

"Please tell me you can dance." Jaune asked making Weiss blink in surprise.

"Took the question right out of my mouth, Arc." Weiss said before nodding. "Yes, I have had to learn in order to entertain some of the guests before-"

"No, I'm not asking if you have any moves. I'm asking if you know how to dance." Jaune said again. "Dancing requires emotion in every movement, you need to feel the music. My mother can spot when people don't have their heart in the dance." Jaune said as they swayed, and as if to prove his point Weiss paled slightly when she saw Morgana frowning in confusion.

"You seem knowledgeable on this…why?"

"My parents made it a rule that my siblings and I had to each master an art. I chose dance because my sisters always made me dance with them, and I thought it would help me with my footwork when fighting. Not to mention it would be weird being able to make music but not dance to it." Jaune explained making Weiss nod.

"So how do we put emotion in this?" Weiss asked with a frown.

"Gimme a sec." Jaune said as he released her suddenly and ran to the musicians. Weiss watched in confusion as Jaune had a quick conversation with them before they smile with a nod making him grin and give his thanks before returning to the confused Weiss.

"What was that?"

"I asked them to play our song." Jaune said making Weiss quirk an eyebrow.

"Since when did we have a song?"

"Since forty seconds ago…let's go and follow my lead, and could you please put a smile on your face." Jaune said with a chuckle and despite herself Weiss couldn't help but chuckle along with him before plastering a smile on her face.

BGM: Chandelier-Sia

"Think you can keep up, Snow Angel?" Jaune questioned making Weiss smirk.

"If you don't step on my feet we should have no problem, Bunny Boy." Weiss responded making Jaune roll his eyes good naturedly as they began to pick up the pace.

+1 Title Bunny Boy

"God damn it. You really need to drop those names." Jaune chuckled as they danced around the room. Weiss smiled as he spun her around before bringing her close to him.

"You first." Weiss said as she looked up him making him grin.

"Never." Jaune promised and before long the two actually found themselves forgetting that they were dancing for a crowd and were content on just enjoying the dance while continuing their silent conversation. To everyone it appeared exactly how they wanted it to, two star-crossed lovers simply enjoying each other's company.

"Oh my, I don't believe she's looked that happy in years." Eva gasped as Winter looked at the joy on her sister's face in surprise.

"It seems you've raised a fine man." Jacques complimented and if Arthur didn't know any better he'd say the man sounded…relieved?

"Level with me, why did you really choose us?" Arthur asked quietly so that only Jacques could hear him.

"I'm no fool, there is a fine line between love and hate. You can guess which side my daughters chose when it comes to me. Nothing I can do, no matter how firm I am, can stop them from growing up and doing what they want even if I fight it tooth and nail." Jacques muttered as he glared down at his drink. "So I decided, long ago when you saved my life, that I'd make sure she found her a family that could protect her from everything…including me." Jacques said before downing his drink quickly.

"Hmph, you're not half bad, Schnee."

"Keep it to yourself, I have a reputation to maintain." Jacques scoffed making Arthur smirk. Back on the dance floor, Weiss found herself having fun…in fact this entire day had been nowhere near as dreadful as she expected.

"I'm glad it's you." Weiss suddenly said confusing Jaune.

"Hmm?" Jaune looked at her confusion making her eyes widen as she realized she said it out loud.

"It's just…this is more…bearable…than I imagined but then again before this we didn't really know each other did we?" Weiss asked as a small blush appeared on her cheeks. "It is just good to know that if this doesn't work and we end up stuck together that it is at least someone…nice. You hear all these horror stories about people getting arranged marriages with monsters–"

"–Ah, I see what you mean. Fiona had the same fear and ran away." Jaune said with a sigh, surprising Weiss. "Personally, I was afraid I would get stuck with some stuck up gold digger–at least the gold digger part was wrong." Jaune added with a smirk.

"Oh shut up." Weiss said with a short laugh. "You would accept such a bad marriage?"

"If I had to, yes." Jaune said honestly making her look at him incredulously. "If only to end this drama once and for all, I won't let my sisters be forced into this situation. I'm their only brother, in my mind that means I have to be the big brother for all of them. There's a saying I keep hearing 'there is no princess waiting for you' and I've accepted that. I'm not a kid anymore I see what the reality of being a hero is and I'm content with just helping as many as I can even if I end up without a happily ever after."

"I kind of understand, normally this would be my sister's responsibly as the eldest but I already made her leave once." Weiss said sadly. "I won't let her give up her chance at love, so after this I'll probably engaged to someone else but that's fine…I really just want to be older when it happens, 'there is no knight in shining armor' at least that's what I've been told."

"But–" Jaune and Weiss stopped as they began to speak at the sometime making the chuckle.

"You first." Jaune said making Weiss nod as she averted her eyes.

"I was going to say you are the closest to that I've ever seen." Weiss admitted, her face burning making Jaune blink owlishly before smiling.

"Took the words right out of my mouth." Jaune said making Weiss' eyes widen as she turned to face him. Only to gasp when he suddenly dipped her while the music came to end. Her body trembled as she felt his arms around her as she looked up into his eyes. One thing she could admit to herself was that the sometimes dorky knight was at least easy on the eyes, she had not been lying she said he was cute back when she singled him out during the assembly on her first day at Beacon.

BGM: END

"Let's do it." Weiss suddenly whispered making Jaune's eyes widen as he gaped her, face flushing red but to his credit he didn't drop her on the floor…

…That would have been bad.

"Excuse me!?" Jaune whispered incredulously as he stood her up, making her face burn redder than Ruby's cloak.

"Not that you dolt! Get your head out of the gutter." Weiss said embarrassed. "I mean…why not just go through with it?" Weiss asked confusing Jaune. "From the sound of it we're stuck being wed off because we're too damned noble for our own goods…so let's just do it. There is enough power between our families to end this arranged marriage business for both of our families forever…and if it's you…it might not be so bad. I think I could get used to having you around."

Jaune couldn't believe it.

So caught up in the suddenness of the engagement and trying to get out of it, he never sat down and thought about it with a calm head. It was a blessing in disguise, Weiss was right, he was a hero–what was one more sacrifice? It was with that thought Jaune frowned.

"Weiss, I'm striving to be a hero. That's my dream, sacrifices are nothing to me but you…think about it, what if you find someone you love one day? Could you really give it up without a fight? I mean you have a thing for that Neptune guy, right?" Jaune asked quietly as he recalled the blue-haired man he had sometimes seen with Sun that were currently living in Beacon. Hearing what he said Weiss bit her lip as she glanced down.

"I…I find him attractive, yes, but it isn't anything more than that at the moment. We've only just met." Weiss said as she looked back up to him. "You aren't hard on the eyes yourself either. Look, obviously I don't love you Jaune." Weiss said seriously before wrapping her arms around his neck before getting on her tip-toes and pressing her mouth to his, surprising him greatly. "But so help me, I think I can learn to." Weiss whispered into his ear.

Jaune was positive his jaw couldn't drop further even as he heard a shout of 'I have a son!' off to the side as the guests clapped for them.

"Love at first sight doesn't exist. It starts with simple attraction and requires work from both sides, so I'm willing to try if you are."

"It won't be easy. Hunstmen don't tend to have healthy families." Jaune said as he remembered all of the times he caught his mother crying when she thought they were sleep, worrying day after day if her husband would ever return home. "We will hurt each other." Jaune said firmly, and to his shock he felt his resolve weakening.

"But better us than them, right?" Weiss asked referring to their loved ones making him pause.

"You're right, damn it you're right…" Jaune trailed off before groaning. "Fuck, Pyrrha is going to kill me." Jaune muttered making Weiss' eyes widen.

"You mean you–"

"We'll talk more about it later, but for now, tonight? We'll hold off on cancelling any arrangements." Jaune said with a tired sigh. "I'm way too young for this shit." Jaune looked down when he felt her place a hand on his shoulder and give him that smile that made his heart skip far more than it should have.

"Think of this as a business deal and leave the negotiating to me, I'll…speak with Pyrrha. I refuse to let my family matters cause any more stress for my friends, and as I said earlier I do consider you a friend." Weiss said confusing Jaune greatly. "One day at a time, we'll figure something out."

"I hope you're right." Jaune said making Weiss nod with a small smile, however, before she could respond a wounded Klein stumbled in to the room clutching his now bleeding side.

"The White Fang…the White Fang are attacking!" Klein shouted immediately putting the party goers on alert.

"Oh no…" Jaune muttered as Weiss looked at her butler with wide-eyes.

"Damn it, I knew those mutts would try to ruin this." Jacque cursed as Arthur smirked.

"Well then, this party is getting even better!" Arthur said with a grin as he pulled his blade off of his back. "Fear not! Jaune, Winter, and I will go out to deal with them. Morgana and Weiss will go hold the perimeter and secure the building. Jacque alert Atlas and have your wife handle the poor man's wounds. Everyone understand their roles?" Arthur questioned making them nod with quickly. "Good let's move out."

"Arthur…" Morgana called out with narrowed eyes making the man tense as he glanced back sheepishly. "Make it quick."

"Yes dear…" Arthur trailed off with a sigh as he activated his blade, causing golden runes to cover the blade before the entirety of the blade seemed to be forged out of a golden light. "Now it is going to be too easy, can't ever have any fun." Arthur muttered.

"I heard that!" Morgana called out again making him pout before she turned to Weiss. "Let's go dear, show me how to get to your roof." Morgana said making Weiss nod before glancing back at Jaune with a frown.

"Be careful." Weiss said making him nod before she led Morgana out of the room.

"Haha! Ready to fight alongside your old man?" Arthur asked with a grin making Jaune nod as he pulled out his blade and mecha-shifted his shield. "Let's see how strong you've gotten-"

"To think someone would dare target my sister on this day?" Winter said quietly as a dark expression covered her face. "These mutts really want to be put down." Winter said as they ran out of the mansion, upon exiting the building she cursed as she saw the numbers.

"Well, well, look at all of the targets." Arthur said with a grin as Winter narrowed her eyes.

"There are over a hundred of them." Winter muttered before chuckling as she stabbed her blade into the ground while her glyph appeared beneath her feet. It pulsed once before she disappeared in a blur of speed and reappeared before an unsuspecting lizard Faunus and beheaded him, the sound of his aura and bones crack, ran through Jaune's ears as she hopped back to avoid the blood splatter.

"D-did you have to kill him?" Jaune asked sounding horrified making her frown slightly.

"A…dear friend of mine once told me, 'violence solves everything'." Winter muttered. "I don't agree, but I'll be damned if it doesn't get the job done."

"Dad?" Jaune asked as his father gave him a grim nod.

"We fight to kill, Jaune, anyone we let slip past us means who knows how many innocent deaths. We must hold the line. These people chose terrorism, they chose their fate. Do not pity them." Arthur said before sighing when he saw his son's hands tremble as he held Crocea Mors.

Jaune still wasn't ready, it seemed.

"Up on the hill." Arthur said. "I can see a man standing back, he fits the description of the one whom escaped Arisha. Deal with him until I get there." Arthur said making Jaune frown.

It wasn't an order.

It was a dismissal.

"Death isn't the only option." Jaune muttered as he brushed passed his father.

"And that's why you are still a child and have not earned our mark." Arthur said making Jaune grit his teeth as he thought of the family emblem that was tattooed on Fiona and Arisha. It was the reward the head of the family gave to anyone who had their first kill. As Arthur's gauntlet shone brightly with dust runes covering it he effortlessly lifted Jaune up by his collar and slung him up to the mountain.

Good, now he had one less body to worry about covering.

-With Weiss-

"We're here." Weiss said once they reached the roof. The heiress paled when she got a bird's eye view of the invasion. The White Fang's numbers were simply horrifying not to mention the three airships approaching in the distance. If the Atlesian forces did not arrive soon, she shuddered to think about what would happen to them.

"Good." Morgana said as she poured some of the purple colored dust into her palm. "Stand back, dear. Don't want you caught in the splash zone." Morgana said before whispering something into the dust causing it to glow as bright purple runes circled her body while her violet eyes shone with power. Tossing the dust into the air, it shot up towards the sky in a purple blast of energy.

*BANG!*

Weiss looked on in amazement as the blast split into four and shot apart in the sky before landing around the mansion exactly North, East, West, and South of their location causing pillars of pure purple light to erupt from the points of impact.

"There, that should ward off any reinforcements for a while as their numbers get reduced." Morgana mused, her body encased in her purple aura as she turned to face Weiss. Morgana placed another dust crystal into her hand before clenching it tightly, causing her fist to spark with purple energy. Throwing her hand out to the distance, a bolt of purple lightning shot out with a resounding bang and struck down three of the Faunus without mercy, burning their very flesh as they died instantly. "Tch, weaklings."

For them to die so quickly, for their auras to be so weak–Morgana narrowed her eyes–were they being attacked by new recruits?

"You killed them." Weiss said with wide-eyes, never seeing someone actually die in person before. Morgana simply shrugged.

"Get used to it. To love an Arc, you must love death itself. Love battle, for if you don't you will never be able to protect the one you love." Morgana said as a sad expression covered her face, surprising Weiss whom was sure this was the most emotion she saw on the imperious woman the entire night. "Jaune resembles his father more and more every single day. Your love will be grand, but so will your sorrow." Morgana said firmly before gesturing to the White Fang. "These are not Faunus, they are monsters and you…you are a huntress are you not? Do not hesitate to end those who threaten your family. Your enemies will not show mercy so why should you?"

"B-but…you're talking about murder! I crafted Myrtenaster to slay Grim not people!" Weiss said sounding incredibly shaken at the prospect of killing anyone, Faunus or not.

"And once again these are not people. They attacked our family, the appropriate name for them now is prey." Morgana said coolly. "You heard the story of Joan, correct?" Morgana questioned making Weiss tense. "Love is filled with sacrifice, whether it be your life or your 'I'll nevers'. To be an Arc, is to be a judge on the battlefield. You decide who lives or dies."

"But who made the Arcs the Judges!?" Weiss asked incredulously.

"The world." Morgana said bluntly, stunning Weiss as she placed a hand on Weiss' head and gave her a warm smile. "My husband and I are not getting younger, dear. Soon you and Jaune will take the reins from us and bring forth the greatest age of our family to date. Why do you think so many have come today to oppose the Empire you two are forging?" Morgana asked rhetorically. "Together, our families have the force to change the entire direction of the world, that's how much influence they have."

"O-Our Empire?"

"Yes, Empire, you two could bring Vale or any of the Kingdoms to its knees when you become of a bit older should you choose to and they know this. They want to kill you two while you're young, before you can understand just how significant your lives really are." Morgana said as her hand glowed slightly in a golden light making Weiss gasp as her body was filled with a feeling of warmth.

"What was that?"

"An old tool I no longer have no use for." Morgana said with a small smile. "Find my son and walk down this wretched path of heroism with him. He's all grown up now, his protection is no longer his mother's duty. Watch his back in my stead. You have my approval." Morgana said softly, a sad but relieved smile on her face. Slightly humbled by the trust the imperious woman placed on her, Weiss nodded her head before leaping off of the roof and racing towards Jaune's location as she jumped from Glyph to Glyph. As she raced towards them, her chest began to glow as a white light originating from her heart slowly began to engulf her body.

-With Jaune-

It was official, Jaune was never leaving Beacon unarmored again.

Perhaps not for the first time in his life, Jaune found himself scared of an opponent. But this time it was not because of the difference in their power levels but rather his opponent's mental state. Adam's men were falling at an alarming rate as they were beaten-no-slaughtered by his parents and possible future sister-in-law. Jaune gritted his teeth as he tried to block a slash from Adam only to find the hilt of the blade shooting forward into his face like a bullet, too fast for him to use his semblance to block it.

"Damn it, will you call off the attack? How many people are you going to sacrifice just for some half-assed attempt to send a message!?" Jaune snapped angrily as he stumbled back.

"As many as needed, the world will learn of the White Fang's dedication, they will see that the Faunus are not meant to pushed around by you humans!" Adam said as he attacked Jaune with a prejudice. His superior skill was overpowering the young knight in a completely one-sided battle.

"The ends do not justify the means! All you are doing right now is creating orphans!" Jaune shouted as he attempted to deliver an Amaranth kick only for Adam to side-step the blow and ram his blade through Jaune's chest.

"Don't act so damn morally superior. Just how many orphans do you think your family has created? How many of my men I saw slaughtered before my eyes by your sister whom came to us unprovoked!?" Adam said coolly before kicking the mortally wounded Jaune off of his blade.

"W-why are you playing the victim? I know her, she must have given you multiple chances to live!" Jaune said weakly, blood pooling from his lips. "She didn't kill your allies! Your pride did you sad excuse of a leader!"

"Silence! It wasn't me it was you humans! It's always you humans! All you do is kill and oppress, I will see that the voice of my people are heard no matter how many bodies, human or Faunus, it takes!" It was then Jaune realized with a chill that there was no reasoning with Adam. Everything he said fell on deaf ears. Jaune's heart skipped a beat as a tear fell down his cheek…

…he understood.

He finally understood what his father had been trying to warn him about.

Life wasn't a fairy tale where people could be reasoned with peacefully, he heard his father say it and hell he even repeated but he never understood until now. Monsters came in every shape and size and had a myriad of origins. It was with a cold realization that Jaune knew…

…he was going to have to kill this man…

…or die trying…

…and if those Faunus shared his mentality, continuously charging forward to hurt a few humans despite their comrades being slaughtered before them, then it meant that there was a chance they would have to die as well.

His father and Winter saw this from the get go and wasted no time in dealing with the threats while he tried in vain to reason with them.

Jaune's heart broke when he realized that Arisha had simply spoken the truth.

["Let me tell you a secret, Jaune. There are no such things as heroes, just killers whom happen to be at the right place at the right time."]

This was the path he had chosen, the path of a Hero.

"What?" Adam asked with a frown as the wounds on Jaune healed far quicker than a hunter's should even with his high aura.

*FLASH!*

In flash of light, Jaune stood before Adam clad in a white suit of armor thanks to the first stage of his paladin transformation.

"So you did have a trick up your sleeve, no matter." Adam said as the red marking on his mask began to glow bright while a dark aura surrounded him as his skin paled even further. His power made Jaune tense inside his armor, not expecting the sudden power jump.

Was this really the same Faunus Arisha had defeated with ease?

"Jaune!" Weiss shouted, gaining their attention as she descended upon them, her body being covered by a blindingly white armor as well. "This power...is this what she gave me?" Weiss muttered before shaking her head. "I'm here to help, together we should be more than enough to stop him."

"Weiss…I'm not fighting to just stop him…" Jaune said carefully though his tone indicated clearly what he meant when he said he wasn't going to simply stop Adam.

"I…I know…" Weiss said as she released a shuddering breath. "You're not doing this alone, though. He attacked my family in a blind attempt to hurt humanity. No more will my family be targets of these beasts."

"Oh? So you kids want to play for keeps, I hope you realize this will be your last fight." Adam snarled as he charged them Jaune exploded in a flash of light a second time, sending the Faunus sliding back from them. "What?"

"Master, it's finally time to truly feed me." An older looking Crocea said as she licked her lips while her crimson eyes seemed to burn just a bit brighter. "Grimm are a good snack…but it's time for something with a little more…sustenance."

"So this is the power they we're using." Weiss thought as she placed a hand on her chest while she recalled the fight between Ruby, Jaune, and Arisha. "It's powerful but…I can feel the energy draining quickly." Weiss thought as she glanced up at Jaune. "Jaune…"

"I know, we need to fight!" Jaune said before dashing forward towards Adam whom swiftly brought his blade down upon Jaune.

*KRANG!*

"Nice trick, but I'm still much more powerful than you." Adam said as he side-stepped Jaune's counterattack and knocked the knight back with a kick to the chest.

"Yeah, maybe you are…but you aren't stronger than US!" Jaune declared and it was at that moment Adam realized he was trapped within a dome of glyphs.

"Now!" Weiss shouted from behind Adam as a two glyphs as appeared beneath her and Jaune's feet. Immediately, the two found themselves blasting at Adam at blinding speeds making the Faunus curse. Adam side-stepped a blow from Jaune and parried a slash from Weiss before both paladins disappeared with pure speed. Slashing his blade rapidly around himself, Adam parried each of their high-speed attacks before knocking them both back as the glyphs shattered around them.

*Flash*

*Rumble*

Jaune and Weiss both jumped away from Adam as a massive glyph appeared beneath his feet before a colossal hand made of pure ice began to arise from it. With one swing of his blade, Adam destroyed the frozen construct before raising it to parry Jaune's blade. Weiss leapt at the Faunus only for him to pull out his sheath with his free hand and shoot her out of the air with it.

"Weiss!" Jaune called out in alarm before he was forced to rapidly moved is shield in order to deflect each one of Adam's attacks.

Jaune was fast with his shield.

Adam was faster.

Jaune grunted in pain when Adam's blade slid past his shield and in between the small opening in his left shoulder pauldron, effectively stabbing the young hunter in his shoulder. Jaune wasn't sure if it was the blade or Adam himself, but the way the Faunus by passed his aura so easily terrified him.

However, not because of what it could do to him.

But because of what it could do to the unknowing Weiss.

Gritting his teeth through the pain, Jaune swung at Adam forcing the Faunus to put some distance between them as Jaune turned towards Weiss whom was dashing towards Adam. Jaune felt the blood drain from his face when he saw Adam smirk darkly. Thinking quickly Jaune swung Crocea, releasing a powerful arch of light which shot between Weiss and Adam, forcing the heiress to retreat so that she wouldn't be hit.

"Jaune!? What the–"

"Stay back!" Jaune ordered, surprising Weiss with how his voice shook slightly. "Fight from a distance, if you get too close you're dead. He can cut through aura."

"You think telling her is going to change a thing? I don't think you're aware of just how outclassed you are."

"I have an idea." Jaune said as he raised his shield. There was no point in trying to match Adam with his sword, the difference between them was like night and day. He couldn't out fight Adam, but maybe, just maybe he could out think him. Or at least last long enough until the Faunus slipped up. It didn't take long before Adam was upon him once more, attacking him relentlessly. However, with all of his attention being put on fighting defensively he managed to last against Adam's barrage despite the occasional attack that slipped past his shield.

"Damn it." Weiss muttered as she tried to take aim at Adam. Between Adams rapid movements and Jaune's erratic attempts to deflect as many blows as he could, send spark flying everywhere, Weiss couldn't trust herself to not hit Jaune by mistake. It was then that Weiss waved her weapon before creating a large black glyph beneath the men that cemented their feet to the ground.

"Fool! You just trapped him with me!" Adam said before turning back to finish Jaune off, only to pause for a moment when Jaune's blade erupted in a blinding light.

"No, she trapped you with me."

-With Arthur and Winter-

Winter gritted her teeth as she used her time-dilation glyph to enhance her speed and allow her to tear through anyone foolish enough to face her. One by one, Winter ripped through her opposition with so much ease it almost disgusted her. One by one they fell until she had a dozen corpses lying around her. Off to the side, Arthur swung his blade-releasing a golden Arc of light that tore through just as many Fauns as she had.

"Show-off." Winter muttered making him smirk, but before he could respond a golden explosion made them both glance to the side where they saw Adam sliding into the battlefield as he struggled to block a golden wave of energy. With a roar, Adam whipped his blade to the side and deflecting the energy to the side and into who knew how many of his followers. Just then, Weiss shot down from a Glyph and drop kicked him on the face making him stumble back as his mask shattered from the impact like glass.

"Fall!" Weiss shouted as she shot forward, her blade in a stabbing position as white runes covered it.

It was then that Adam did the unthinkable.

Reaching to the side, he grabbed one of the White Fang members and threw him at Weiss. Caught so off guard by the act of betrayal, Weiss' resolve wavered for a split second as she had to choose between killing the White fang member or diving to the side to avoid him. It was at that moment, she saw the expression on Adam's face, the condescending look he gave her as if to say that he knew she was too weak to go through with it.

*SHING!*

The expression was soon wiped off of his face as Myrtenaster tore through the airborne Faunus' chest as a propulsion Glyph appeared beneath her feet sending her blasting towards Adam even with the Faunus skewered on her blade.

"You monster." Adam muttered as he was forced to dive to the side at the last second causing Weiss to shoot right passed him. "Now get her!" Adam ordered causing his men to suddenly turn their attention to Weiss' exposed back. Winter narrowed her eyes as she went to intercept them only to find herself held back by Arthur. She was about to knock him off of her when Jaune suddenly landed behind Weiss and slammed his fist into his chest causing bright blue crosses to surround him and block their gun fire.

The fact that they had still followed Adam's orders despite seeing said Faunus' complete disregard for their safety was the last straw. Grasping Crocea with both hands, Jaune swung the blade in a wide horizontal arc, causing golden energy to tear through the White Fang as Adam flipped over it without a moment to spare.

"Let them handle this from here." Arthur said calmly as Weiss back flipped over Jaune and swung her blade in a wider arc causing a large blade of ice to suddenly appear in the air and swing quickly down at Adam. "I want to see their resolve."

"But–"

"I will intervene if it looks as though they will lose." Arthur reassured her making her frown.
"If you shelter your sister from this, she will never grow. She must learn like you did." Arthur said making Winter curse but she stayed back.

*SHING!*

Adam easily cut through the frozen blade before reaching up and grabbing the airborne heiress. With a low growl, Adam threw her back into Jaune with enough force to shatter the crosses before sheathing his blade.

"Enough." Adam said as he began to build up as much Aura as possible causing his body to glow with a crimson aura, the crimson markings on his clothes shining with a neon light. "I will not be beaten by two human brats who are still in school!" Adam said while Jaune placed a daze Weiss on her feet before standing in front of her just as Adam finished building his energy. "Now die!" Adam shouted as he ripped the blade out of its sheath.

*SHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG*

Time seemed to slow as everything turned a shade of black and red. Jaune raised his shield in front of him as an invisible wave of power completely disintegrated everything in its path. Jaune pushed Weiss down to the ground behind him as he stepped forward and slid into a perfect Heavy stander position. He couldn't risk reflecting the invisible force or he'd risk sending an even stronger one back at everyone around them no doubt killing both Winter and Weiss–possibly even his father.

"JAUNE!" Weiss screamed as the attack slammed into him.

*KRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNNNNNGGGG!*

*BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!*

*CRASH!

All Jaune saw was blue sparks and then nothing.

-?-

"…aune….Jaune!" Weiss shouted making Jaune's eyes weakly open as he found himself in a dome of ice alone with Weiss, their transformations had ended and their clothes had turned into tattered pieces of fabric that barely hung to their bodies yet managed to somehow keep them decent. Jaune groaned as he forced himself to stand up before grimacing as he realized his shield arm was broken. "Jaune, please, stay down, you're too damaged to keep fighting."

"Is my heart beating?" Jaune questioned curiously confusing her as she nodded awkwardly. "Then I'm not too damaged." Jaune said as he forced himself to his feet, blood dripping from dozens of deep scars that littered his body. "It's time to return the favor." Jaune said as the ice shattered around them, Jaune grimaced as he saw the jagged scar in the ground that led to Adam whom was on the opposite side of the clearing. It seems as though Adam's attack had pushed him far away as he held onto his shield to the last possible moment.

"What are you doing Jaune?" Weiss asked as she looked up at him confusion.

"Finishing this." Jaune said as he flipped his blade in his right hand into a reverse grip as the blade was engulfed with a golden light. "Time to test out the upgrade. Let's see if Crocea really is stronger now." Jaune said before he used his right hand to knock off his shield causing it to stab into the ground when it landed.

*Beep."

Weiss blinked in confusion before narrowing her eyes as she glanced at the scroll behind his shield before paling as it showed Jaune's aura being practically empty.

BGM: Brave Shine- Fate/Stay Night OST (Want an English version? Look up one by Amalee/LeeandLie on YouTube)

"Jaune…your aura…if you keep this up you'll die." Weiss said, concern lacing her voice as he glanced back at her. "There are still dozens of White fang members between you and that monster they'll gun you down before you even get close."

"If I die, would that make you sad?" Jaune asked curiously making her glare at him.

"Of course it would you dolt! And not just me but all of our friends and your family, my family, and–" Weiss stopped talking as he gave her a smile while his body began to glow white.

"Then I won't die, I'll come back to you. I'll return to you all." Jaune said matter-of-factly, his smile never leaving his face as he turned away from her. Weiss grimaced at his scarred back, even though he blocked the attack he was still heavily damaged…she shuddered to think what would have happened if it hit him head on. Glancing out to the distance, she gritted her teeth as Adam only looked slightly winded. He had far more of those attacks in him.

"You know he was barely fazed by our assault, right?"

"Yeah…"

"Then, why–"

"Cause he's cocky." Jaune said as he gave her a tired smile. "When you're cocky, you're sloppy. You drop your guard. If you drop your guard, anyone can take you out and that's how I'm going to do it." Jaune said as he held his sword in a reverse grip.

["Watch his back in my stead."]

Weiss closed her eyes as she grabbed the hilt of her weapon with both of her hands before stabbing the blade into the ground. Jaune's eyes widened, when Weiss created a time dilation glyph under his feet while his blade began to glow in a golden light.

"I don't have much Aura left, listen to me. If you give him a chance to charge up that attack again you're dead. You're also too slow to stop him." Weiss began quietly. "I'm going to give you everything I have left, you have to find your so-called opening soon or else you will die, do you get me?

"Yeah, I get you." Jaune said amazed that Weiss was putting the last of her strength into him.

"Good, now go." Weiss ordered making him nod.

*BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM*

Crocea Mors exploded in power as Jaune shot forward like a bullet, his body shone brighter and brighter with each passing second. Weiss' arm trembled as she tightened her grip on her blade so that she could maintain the link between her glyph and Jaune. A feat that grew more difficult with every step he took.

"What!?" Adam shouted in anger as he saw Jaune blasting towards him. "Take him out now!" Adam ordered as he placed his blade back in his sheathe preparing to use the last bit of his power in destroying the young Arc.

"Brighter…" Jaune muttered as his body shone even more as he pictured his family. "…brighter…" Jaune repeated as the intensity of his aura continued to rise as he picture his friends from Beacon and Crocea Mors smiling at him. "…brighter" Jaune shouted as the bullets reflected harmlessly off his body as he ran, sending them flying back to their owners as his mental image focused purely on Pyrrha and Weiss. The pain from the bullets grew as he Aura weakened forcing him to enter a state of Slashing High as he attempted to ignore the pain. Suddenly, the image faded as he imagined a smiling Joan floating in front of him, her body still engulfed in the flames of the burden she bore for her family. "AND EVEN BRIGHTER THAN THAT!"

-With Weiss-

"Please…give me something…anything." Weiss pleaded as she could see Jaune's aura depleting even more from his scroll. "Don't let them take anything else." Weiss begged as tears slid down her cheeks and fell onto her glyph along with the blood form her wounds.

*Crash!*

Weiss felt her heart plummet when her glyph shattered only to be confused when it was replaced by a bright white one that had what appeared to be images of swords spiraling around it the sight of it made her gasp as she quickly looked back up at Jaune.

-With Jaune-

Jaune failed.

He could tell the moment he finally made it towards Adam when his Aura suddenly shattered. Even if he had an opening, he was completely defenseless. All he had now was his sword and a prayer, still if this was where he went down, he was going to go down swinging. It was with this thought that time seemed to slow down for Jaune as Weiss' strange new glyph appeared beneath his feet. Jaune's eyes widened when a light blue ethereal suit of armor appeared over his body, while a large ethereal sword encased Crocea.

"What is this!? A new transformation?" Jaune wondered in confusion before the image of a weeping Weiss flashed through his mind. "No…this doesn't even feel like armor." Jaune thought as instead of a suit of armor covering his body, he imagined Weiss embracing from behind. "No this is something much stronger." Jaune thought as he glared at Adam before the visor of his helmet shut over his eyes. This sight alone was enough to make Adam snap.

He had it!

This was the last straw!

"Why won't you just die!? Why must you Arcs live while my people die!?" Adam shouted as he swung his blade at the bright armored form of Jaune, the markings on his clothes burning red. His increasing anger was palpable as Jaune raised his left armored hand and blocked the blade.

*CRASH*

Adam's blow was powerful enough to shatter the armor on his left arm, but the armor was strong enough to knock the Faunus' blade back. Thinking quickly, Adam attacked him again only for him to block with his right arm now. The armor shattered as Adam's blade was repelled but Jaune maintained his grip on Crocea.

"Die!" Adam screamed in fury as he slammed the blade down on Jaune only for the hunter to lean back and let it slam into his chest plate, shattering his upper armor while Adam recoiled. Jaune went to deliver an Amaranth kick with his left leg only to have it parried by Adam's blade.

*CRASH!*

Cursing, Jaune used the momentum to deliver an impromptu Ivy sweep with his right leg only for that to be parried as well.

*CRASH!*

"Die already!" Adam said darkly as he went to stab Jaune through his heart only for the young Arc to slam his head into the blade, knocking it back down as his helmet shattered.

"NOW MASTER!" Crocea Mors shouted as Jaune drew on as much of her power as he could.

"This is it!" Jaune shouted as he stepped forward and stabbed his blade forward just as Adam brought his back up

*SCHLICK!*

BGM: END

"I...impossible…my Aura…" Adam muttered as Crocea's glowing blade stabbed through his chest and exited his back.

"…Was delicious." Crocea muttered. Adam had been so focused on fighting Jaune that he hadn't noticed Crocea Mors eating away at his Aura as the fight went on. Blood poured from Adam's mouth as he gave a rueful smile, an image of Blake flashing through his mind for a moment.

"At least…At least I took an Arc down with me." Adam gasped out as Jaune coughed up blood due to the sword that was buried in his chest. "M-My people…w-will remember me…I. With your blood on my hands I will be a martyr to them; this will be the spark to incite change."

"N-No…because there won't be anything left of you to r-remember." Jaune muttered tiredly confusing Adam.

"Wha-"

*FLASH!*

*BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!*

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Adam shouted as his body was completely engulfed by the blast which erupted from Jaune's blade… When the light died down there was no trace left of the revolutionary named Adam besides the sword sticking through Jaune's chest. Slowly Jaune stood up and looked up into the sky with a tired smile, his visioning darkening.

""Master!" Crocea shouted as Jaune's grip went limp, his blade falling from his hand and stabbing into the ground. He had done it, he held the line and kept them all safe.

"This…this isn't such a bad end." Jaune mused as he shut his eyes.

Jaune Arc had died on his feet with a grin on his face.

+1 Title: Shining Knight

+2 seals of enjoyment

+300 AP

+4,000,000 EXP

Jaune Arc: Level 54!

Weiss Schnee: Level 52!

-Soul Stream-

"You know, I've died far more times than I wish." Jaune mused as Nao shook her head at him as she approached.

"That world is only going to give you pain, why won't you go to your real home? Return to Erinn or even stay here with me?" Nao asked sadly making him tilt his head.

"Do I still have a destiny in Remnant? With how dramatic that end was, I doubt it…but do I?" Jaune asked making her face fall slightly as she glanced away from him, refusing to answer. "Well?"

"Yes…"

"Huh? Really? Wow that's a scary thought…but that means I can't leave them hanging just yet." Jaune said with a grin as he approached her. "It's not my time, not yet."

"Just….just please be safe it pains me to see any Millitian in pain, most of all you." Nao whispered before standing on her tip toes and pressing her lips to his, causing him to be engulfed with light before leaving her alone in the realm. Nao slowly fell to her knees and placed her face in her hands as she silently wept for the young man whom was ignorant to the heartache he was going to face in the future on Remnant.

-Schnee Manor-

*Gasp*

Jaune's eyes snapped open suddenly as he found himself being held tightly by a weeping Weiss. His mother crying openly as she held onto Arthur for support, a sight that was mirrored with Weiss' parents while Winter looked off to the side with a grimace. While the other party goers showed their own bit of sadness for his apparent death. Suddenly Weiss gasped when she felt a pair of strong arms wrap around her.

"J-Jaune?" Weiss asked incredulously as she looked up at the Knight whom was smiling down at her, this caught the attention of everyone else whom were now looking at him with varying degrees of shock. "H-How? Your aura…your heart-"

"Hey now," Jaune said as he wipe done of her tears away with his thumb. "An Arc never goes back on his word." Jaune said making Arthur smirk. "Besides this is like the second time this has happened, perhaps I should add resurrection to my list of hobbies." Jaune chuckled before getting smacked by Weiss.

"Don't joke about this you idiot you had me terrified…I thought you were dead…I thought you had left me…"Weiss said the last part quietly as she held him tighter making his expression soften as he rubbed her back.

"As long as you need me Weiss, I'll always be there for you. That's just the kind of person I am." Jaune said as his mother began crying tears of joy while cursing his father's DNA. Arthur simply held onto his wife as he gave his son a bright grin, never had that man thought it was possible to feel as proud as he did in that moment. Deep down he knew it, he knew his son was just like him in the sense that he had to find his own way to be a warrior that was best for him. Arthur chuckled at the amount of times his mother had called him a failure in his youth for his inability to learn how to fight from her.

Now he knew how she felt the moment he first showed his worth.

Arthur made sure Jaune saw how proud he was before his smile dropped as he glanced to the side at the spot where Adam was vanquished. It was there where he saw a single black feather resting on the fabric. Its power drained, the feather simply turned to dust as he narrowed his eyes while he imagined a black winged goddess.

"So it finally begins…eh Morrighan?" Arthur mused as he realized that the goddess had to have been the reason for Adam's sudden spike in power.

"Dad…" Jaune called out, still holding on to Weiss as he got Arthur's attention. The look on his face showed nothing but frustration but not towards what had happened tonight but rather at himself. Every battle he had won had been the result of team work or his transformation. Hell, the only reason he survived Arisha was due to him having his aura.

Jaune shuddered as he imagined Arisha with her aura unlocked.

He was still too weak.

"If I can't protect myself with my own power…then what good am I?" Jaune thought as he clenched his fist. "When I come home after the festival and we train please…"Jaune began making Weiss look up at him in confusion as she wiped her eyes. "…teach me." Jaune said making Arthur's smile drop as he saw the resolve in his son's eyes.

"Teach you what?"

"Everything."

-The Next Morning: Beacon-

Jaune and his friends were eating at the table having a joyful conversation. Not much seemed to change except that now Jaune found himself sitting between Pyrrha and Weiss, which wasn't strange as that seating arrangement tended to happen some days…but for some reason he felt as though this was not a temporary thing.

"So how did everything go for you two last night? Get everything settled? You two came back really late, looking exhausted…didn't do anything I would do did you lady killer?" Yang questioned making her friends roll their eyes at her attitude.

"More people showed up than we expected so we got a little side tracked, but yes you brute we did get everything 'settled'." Weiss drawled making Yang pout.

"Aw that's boring." Yang said before continuing her meal while Jaune was grateful for Weiss' ability to hide the truth with the truth. Their wounds had healed up nicely, he had some faint scars left but nothing anyone would be able to see with his clothes on and even if they weren't they have to be far too close for comfort to actually spot them. All in all, he was confident he could keep what happened a secret.

Though he would have to explain the golden Arc emblem tattooed on his right shoulder but that was another day's problem. Right now, life was back to normal after all…

"What's the worst that could happen?" Jaune mused before pausing mid bite as the cafeteria T.V.'s suddenly turned to the Vale News Network.

["Hello, as always I am Lisa Lavender here bringing you breaking news of a crisis that occurred last night in Atlas. Last night, myself and my cameraman were invited to the Schnee' Dust Company to celebrate the eventual Union between the heir to house Arc and the Heiress to the SDC. However, after pleasantries and a delightful dance from the love-birds, the mansion as attacked by the White Fang! The damage was horrifying and the loss of life was high. Luckily, the only lives lost were that of the terrorists thanks to the combined efforts of the Arcs and the SDC heiresses."]

"Oh dear God no." Jaune thought in horror as he and Weiss shared a terrified glance while Pyrrha's glass shattered in her grip.

["I will now show the battle from beginning to end but I warn you, the images will not be suitable for all audiences, but I will say that this nightmare did have a happy ending, one I was able to get on film with the young heir and heiress were not paying attention."] Lisa continued as screen began to show the battle from the point where Winter had drawn her weapon. ["The CEO of the SDC has announced this morning that nothing was changed by this and that his daughter and our newest hero whom has been making waves upon entering Beacon will have their wedding this summer as planned. The SDC stocks have since gone through the roof as Humanity as a whole wonders what this powerful union could mean in the future. Particularly with relations between Atlas and Vale."

At this point both Jaune and Weiss were stealthily trying to exit the room when a firm hand was felt on both of their shoulders. The grip was strong enough to make them whimper slightly as they glanced back to see a smiling Pyrrha standing behind him.

"Now where are you two off to? Come let's watch this with the others."

Both Jaune and Weiss silently wept as they were dragged back to the table.

Dark days were clearly upon them.

-Later: Rocheste: Bar-

"The kid shows promise, definitely can't wait to see what becomes of him after he graduates." Vella said as she watched the news stream on Fiona's scroll with the Crimson Blades. Her lips curled up fondly when she saw Winter. "And it seems my old partner has grown up to be quite the woman." Vella purred. "I wonder if her sister will surpass her like she suspected though?"

"Only time will tell, these kids just keep getting weirder." Fiona said with a smile.

"I don't care what mother says, she still must impress me." Arisha muttered as she watched the stream from her scroll before frowning. "Sister."

"Yes, Ari?"

"A thought."

"What is it?" Fiona asked with a frown as Arisha raised her scroll.

"We both got the news alert on our scrolls which instantly sent us to this video, correct?" Arisha questioned making Fiona look at her in confusion.

"Yeah, why?"

"You wouldn't have happened to have turned that function off before giving Delia her's would you?" Arisha questioned, a bead of sweat sliding down her face while Fiona paled before glancing at a clock and realizing that Delia should have returned from her mission hours ago.

"Oh God damn it!" Fiona cursed as she pushed out her chair and quickly ran for the exit with Arisha right behind her, leaving a group of stunned Crimson Blades behind them.

"Hey, Karok…you're Del's partner and her best friend…" Vella began getting the huge man's attention feeling suddenly scared for her friend's sister. "What's the chance snowflake survives?"

"Ha!" Karok released booming laugh as he wiped a tear from his eye, pausing when he noticed the horrified expression on Vella's face "Oh, you were serious. Girl is dead."

…Auto-Saving…

Next Level: Twins Reunion

Reviews:

EK12: Pretty much, yup and with this update I've reached that point where it was left off. Also, out of the previously posted chapters, this one has the most changes/additions.

I Want To Die69: Glad you like it!

AJ Lexie: Yup that same guy, lol glad you enjoyed the chapter! And yeah its ominous :D

Najdrox: Lmao thank you, bet it's only going to be worse after this.

Quadredurudoubleslash2: -Death glare- how dare you-eh fuck it. Half the people here don't read ANs and don't realize that I'm not Rebuke or male XD. Best believe he's been laughing his ass off at that too, but to answer your question this will be considered a LIAG despite the title.

Shunshinking: Glad you liked it so much!

Dark Durian: Yeah this chapter was a wake-up call for him, he's going to want to train even harder now that he has a complete understanding of just what kind of future he'll be having. Delia…it' going to be an interesting reunion.

Duskrider: Glad you liked it! Minor changes I'm making, but sometimes it the little things that make a fic.

NinjaFang1331: Glad you liked it and of course if Ruby is a Dark Knight then Weiss has to go Paladin.

Killjoy Funny Man: Glad you liked the chapter, hopefully you enjoy this one too.

Stonecold: Always pleased to help, glad you enjoyed it! Have a great day/night as well.

Charmeloen80: It's a complete rewrite/updated version.

~Read and Review and stay Beautiful

RebuffX7