~'I do not own RWBY. It is owned by Rooster Teeth and was created by Monty Oum.'~
~'This wonderful cover image was made by: Viperium Prime from DeviantArt.'~

Note: I must admit, in the time I've been gone it's been this story that's surprised me the most in terms of growth. For some reason, it's gained quite a few new readers. (200-300 new followers since the previous update somehow!) So, to those here for a live update for the first time: Welcome! Please, let me know what you think: Reviews help me to help you.

Now, I am here for this story today! Tomorrow, if all goes according to plan tonight and tomorrow afternoon/evening, there should be a Woman Whisperer chapter. If not, it will be released Saturday, making the only thing not updated my smut.

What a shame.

Also, an announcement: I am looking for Beta readers! I've currently got three people, but I need two or three more! So, if you generally enjoy my writing, know grammar, and would like to be apart of the creative process, feel free to send me a PM.

Jaune Arc: Augmented

Chapter XVII

It turns out that when you've got kids spewing fire from their fingertips, busting silhouettes of themselves through brick walls, and knocking one another out on a regular basis, you'd need a few places for them to train without destroying the school.

While yes, there was such facilities for class, there was the lesser known but no less useful 'combat simulation rooms' on the first basement level of the school that were open twenty four seven. As long as it wasn't already in use, you could waltz in, and start blowing shit up to your heart's content.

Filled with noise, and explosives, and weapons alongside hormonal teenagers, it really was the perfect place to commit a that thought in mind, Jaune was shot by one of his two girlfriends four times in the chest, caught by complete surprise.

"Gah!" Gasping and flailing moments after his chest compressed, and the air was driven out of his lungs, he fell backwards onto his back, head hitting one of the hard foam mats with a thud. His teeth clenched, and Jaune's eyes flickered open against the bright white light.

Rapidly releasing his aura back into his system, Jaune felt the warm white infuse his limbs and spread out through his chest, pulsating like a second heart as it covered his insides. Rolling over his skin, it repaired anything that might've been damaged, but was pleasantly surprised to find nothing there.

He hadn't expected for it to work that well.

Seeing a hand appear in his vision, he reached a black metal one up to meet it. Allowing himself to be pulled to his feet, Jaune stood now beside his team. Moving his hands out, he gestured to himself and then to them.

"So what do you guys think?"

Jaune was met with a bit of excitement, as he and the team chattered away a bit. "It's really light! I love how it feels no heavier than my combat skirt! In fact, it's lighter! That fabric was heavy! Not to mention this way I don't have to worry about the APSS of the combat skirt failing…"

"The what?"

"I'll tell you later." Blake said with a bit of a sigh. Whatever Ruby kept mumbling about was mostly kept to herself as Jaune looked around, a bit confused. "I agree with Ruby. The fact that it's as light and unrestrictive as it is, is a really good thing. This is something special."

"Well thank you, Blake." He said, looking over his work.

Plucking the bullets out of his chest with a pair of very steady fingers, he gently watched as the super-light, foam-like plate began refilling the hole they'd created. "Really, this stuff is great. With aura, there's no way any of us are getting shot. Not by a grunt at least."

Currently, he had been showcasing the armor he'd spent a majority of his break designing and having built. Stumbling across the material like he had had been an amazing break. Never would Jaune have thought something so perfect would fall right into his hands.

Though it didn't come without its flaws.

"So, what's the range we're talking about here?" Ruby raised from the sidelines, hefting Crescent Rose over her shoulder. "Blake was like twenty feet away, with her SMH there, could it take my sniper from that close?"

He shook his head. There was significant firepower behind something like that, and from that distance it would hurt to the point that the bullet not piercing wouldn't even matter. Aura was amazing, but it can't fix internal damage and bleeding if it was highly widespread… At least, not before it killed you.

"Shock would kill you, and if it didn't then internal bleeding would get you."

"But that's where the blood's supposed to be!" Yang said, chirping in with a grin.

"You say that now, but it's nasty stuff. Internal bleeding itself can cause shock, which as we've established, can kill you." He shivered. "Last thing I'd like to happen is someone gets hurt because they trusted something I made a bit too much."

"Jeez, it was a joke." She said, eyeing him up a bit.

"Yeah, I know. Still worth establishing the dangers of it." Jaune said, continuing in his admiration of his own work before turning that admiration a bit more towards his girlfriends, and his girlfriends little sister.

They looked damn good in their new armor.

Making it colour appropriate to their usual styles had been a bit annoying, since it turns out fashion was a tough bitch to understand, but he'd managed it somehow. The designs themselves were easier, as it was essentially the same one over again three times, with altered sizes, and then one extra armored version for Yang.

Starting with Yang's, it was clear that she continued her role as the tank of the group. The light, foam plates were put on her body at important locations, and what joints were left had their own specially fitted plates, so even then there was little way to get past them. Plating ran up and down her spine, then spread around her shoulders, and down her breasts stopping just below them. What was below the plates was a weave of nanotubes that was tougher than steel. There was little if any way anybody could hurt her when wearing that.

Still showing off her amazing figure the suit was skin-tight and didn't contain a helmet, so her long lustrous hair still ran down her back to just above her butt. Designed to match her bright and fire-like personality, it started at a deep red near her boots, going lighter in shades until it reached the top of her armor, with a bright unapologetic orange. Rippling a bit in the light, it looked like she was walking flame, ready to start fires as she was in a firefight.

With the way it played to her strengths and weaknesses in battle, and physical good looks, she looked as gorgeous as usual.

"Everyone's suits works with their semblance, by the way. Yang, yours was a bit harder to make work, but I think I managed it in the end." She looked at him and raised an eyebrow. "Your aura still projects over your armor, so your semblance should still be activatable."

"Of course, I got really lucky. This stuff is fireproof."

"Ah yes. I hate it when my enemies would set me on fire and I was forced to stop drop and roll in the middle of a firefight." Blake said sarcastically, but not without good reason. Setting a person on fire was much harder than TV would have you believe.

People didn't burn very well.

"More important for Yang, since you know, she semi-sets herself on fire when she's angry." Jaune said, winking at his girlfriend and continuing on with his path of thinking. "Fireproofed from the inside out. Only unfortunate thing is that this stuff won't stay liquid, so I can't turn it into a fire extinguisher."

"Thanks!"

"You're very welcome."

Eyeing over to his other, more quiet girlfriend, Jaune's eyes stayed a bit too long on the lower part of her armor before roaming back upwards.

The form fitting catsuit was less thickly armored than Yang's, yet the lesser amount of armor let there be a slightly greater range of movement, that would surely benefit Blake's acrobatic style of fighting. Rippling in what light came from the overheads, it seemed like she was both there, and not there depending on the moment. This gave Blake the strange effect of having her head in perfect view, while her body seemingly came into and out of existence. In addition, he'd added some pieces that would further muffle noise, making her walk near silent.

Coloured like dusk, the armor was a darker purple when it came to the underlayer, while the plates themselves were a lighter purple that came through a nice matte when it was visible. It suited her well, and Jaune could tell that she was pleased.

"Blake's is either cooler, or less cool depending on who you are." Jaune said, looking at her as she let her own amber eyes roam over her forearms. Her eyes traced along the strange effect of the material, going down the slim gloved hands.

The suit itself was nearly one piece, save for a few that needed to be donned separately.

"As I'm sure you can see it's more of a stealth suit, made more for infiltration and hiding in plain sight. While not perfect, any amount of hesitation the texture brings your enemy will always be useful." He continued. "You can turn that setting off if you don't like it."

"I'm sure grimm are hardly smart enough to see past it, at least." Blake said, taking a breath. "While their sense of smell isn't dulled by this at all, I very much enjoy the thought of slipping behind one before putting it down."

What everyone sometimes forgets to keep in mind is that they're not always up against human or faunus criminals. The main job occupation, other than keeping the cities intact by the positivity their presence generates, is to slay grimm.

Some grimm, while intelligent, wouldn't be looking at her face specifically, or be able of paying that close attention through their bloodlust. Not to mention… With a suit that form fitting, it's very unlikely that someone would keep their eyes on her face.

Scent was a good idea. He filed it away later.

Strapping Ember Celica to her wrists, Yang twisted the shotgun gauntlets into place and they gave a small click. Appropriately coloured, the weapons fit perfectly in place for the rest of the outfit. Blake too, strapped Gambol Shroud to her back, using the magnetic clip to stop it from falling immediately.

Every day they looked more professional.

Looking over to Ruby for last, he was personally the most proud of her outfit. The design was very good, and held her form nicely, while keeping her far more protected than she'd ever been before. Her reddish black hair slightly rolled onto her shoulders.

The plates were a very bright red, and the undercoating was a bright, stark white that even Weiss would be proud of. The contrast made her look bright and cheerful, which was appropriate for the king young girl. As the leader of the team, she was their main interface with the rest of Beacon, and in another sense, the world. It was good to have such a brightly coloured individual in the forefront, and if there was anyone that would bring hope, it was someone dressed like a superhero.

Goth lolis were so twenty fifteen.

"Lastly is yours, Ruby. While I'm sure I didn't manage to fit enough in there for your liking, I did what I could. You've got quite a few new features… Too many to explain in the short time I've booked us for here." Jaune said, looking at the little girl grin.

"Did you make it so I can turn into a tank? Or a fighter plane? Can I fuse with you guys to control a giant mech? Is there swords!? I can't use swords, but I'd love to have them! Oo! And flamethrowers! I need a set of those!" Talking on and on about her ideas for his armor, Ruby continued on and Jaune was sure he'd have to show her how to fit her own ideas in there at a later point.

"Not quite. Besides, flamethrowers are my thing." He said, looking down at his hands. The palms opened like a camera shutter, spiraling back into the metal before leaving the opening of a tube visible. "And to be honest, I don't think I should let you play with fire."

"But Yang does it all the time!" Ruby said pouting, even as she strapped Crescent Rose to her hip.

"Just because your sister is a pyromaniac hardly means you should be too." Blake said, popping into the conversation from the side. Jeez, in his peripherals she'd been nearly invisible to his sight. He was a bit blown away by his own armor.

"Hey! I'm not a pyromaniac! … I just like fire, that's all." Yang said, finding matches somewhere, and holding them up for effect before blowing one out. "Besides, it's not like I can stop myself from going on fire. They had it coming!"

"There's stuff built into yours." He said, before looking down at his own suit. "Not as much as I will have built into mine when it's finally ready… But you'll have stuff."

Currently wearing a version of the armor most resembling Yang's at the moment bar the sleeves, his stark white plates were on top of a black under layer, and provided more than what was needed armor to his frame. He looked like a fit, young huntsman spokesmodel if he'd ever seen one… Assuming some people found scraggliness attractive.

However to be fair, he did have two girlfriends, which meant that number was at least two.

"Why is your armor taking so long to be done? Didn't you have ideas for it like four years ago?" Yang said, slightly jabbing him with the reminder of how long it's taken for him to create his own armor. It hurt, just a bit, right in the feelings.

"You can't rush perfection Yang." Jaune said, trying to steer the conversation away from what would quickly become clear was a lack of inspiration for his own armor. The design was done, but what finishing touches he would add simply didn't come to him.

And that frustrated Jaune to no end.

"Now, if everyone may take one of these…" Jaune said, holding out a small, rectangular box towards them. Crowding around, they each took a spot before he opened it, revealing four colour matched triangle-like little pieces of metal. They had a small light on it that looked to be an indicator, but that was about it.

Reaching in, everyone took their own before turning it over in their hands, inspecting it. Already, Jaune could see that Ruby was looking for any way it could be turned into a weapon, like a mind controllable missile.

It was not, though that was another idea he put away in his mind.

"Now, take it and place it above your left ear." Doing the same with his own, Jaune's robotic hand creeped towards his ear before stopping above and pushing the metal piece against his head. He felt a tiny snap, as it opened and attached to his hair.

"Ah!" Yelping Yang tried taking it off before pouting that it stayed on. "Damn thing bit me… Better not leave anything in my hair either, or I swear you'll be missing a girlfriend by the time the day's over Mr Rich."

Gulping, Jaune continued. "This, is called a focus. My previous helmet design was alright, but this one is better. Tap twice for a helmet."

Doing so, he felt it deploy in seconds, snapping around his head protectively. His own helmet was white to match his armor, while Ruby's was white and red, Blake's was various shades of shifting purple, and Yang's was a bright orange.

It was aggressive in design, but it was also effective.

Their eyes glowed thier respective themed colour, and from the outside they were a scary sight. On the inside however, the story was a bit different. There was a heads up display built in, feeding them information on one another as they looked around. He was already used to it, but let them awe for a second at the information appearing around him as they looked at him.

As it was designed to do, it fed them all sorts of information. Acting like a scroll, it fed them their own aura levels in a non-obtrusive way, while measuring the outside temperature, air quality, noise level, time of day, an estimated distance from one thing, aim assist… That was only for them.

The moment Jaune looked at Yang, he could see her aura level above her head like a game, as well as some general dimensions like height and estimated weight. That last little tidbit surprised him a little looking at Yang, but he supposed she was top-heavy enough for the number to make sense.

Tits weren't exactly light.

"What do you guys think?"

"Damn." Came a sound from Yang, that was then routed through the built in microphone and earpiece to the team's channel. "This is pretty freaking awesome, I've gotta admit that."

"I agree with Yang." Blake said, already tampering with some settings. There was simply no giving the perfect present it seems. "You can change all sorts of stuff here too. There's a lot of options, so I'd recommend taking a look like I am now."

"Ruby? Your thoughts?" Jaune asked, getting no response before looking at the girl. Yup, she was still there. Was it a calibration issue? Had he accidentally just killed the girl with something designed to protect her?

"Oh sorry! Apparently I muted myself! This is awesome!" She said, squeaking over. Jaune couldn't remember making 'muted' her default option for when she enters a chat, but he figured it might've been possible. "Now we can communicate and stuff!"

"Not to mention it'll keep others from hearing us. No more need for silly attack codenames, like 'bumblebee' or 'lancaster' or gods, 'knightshade'." Jaune could practically hear Blake roll her eyes as she said that last one, and he felt personally attacked.

"My feelings, Blake. Remember my feelings." He said, before grinning to himself. "Besides, I've already programmed those names in. Those are the codenames for our duos in class or when we're partnered up on a field mission or something."

"Aww. Are there no three person names?" Yang said, perking up. "I'd love to have a threesome… of names that is the name for three people at once."

"Whatever could Yang have meant before. Thanks for explaining, Yang." Blake said, amused with the blonde. "Really, well saved right there. Though I must admit, I'm flattered you're so enthusiastic about the idea."

"Woah, keep it PG guys." Jaune said looking at Ruby. Before tapping down the helmet. It snapped shut, but the heads up display was still there. It was an early bug that he later adopted to a feature. There was times it was better to have your helmet down, and being able to see all that information regardless was very helpful.

"Hey! I'm older than thirteen you know!" Ruby said, with a very clear blush present once the helmet had shut itself. "Also, why can I still see all this? You didn't burn it into my retinas did you? Gods the horror! Jaune why!?"

Shaking her fists at the sky, Ruby changed the setting to keep it on while she did so. "Much better."

"Anyways, here's your guys' presents, what did you all get me?" Jaune said with a cheeky smile, before being met with several faces that seemed a bit caught off guard by the question. Yang had a smile that for some reason wasn't reassuring, and Blake seemed somehow more quiet and awkward than usual.

Walking up to him, Ruby put a hand on his much taller metal shoulder. "I have some bad news."

~oOo~ Jaune Arc: Augmented ~oOo~

"I mean, can you believe it? I do all that, and their amazing gift is destroyed in shipping when coming from Patch by a giant sea grimm." Jaune said, looking Ren right in the eyes. "Unfortunate for me I guess, but hey. That's alright, they can hardly control the ocean."

Ren looked at him for a moment, and something unknown flashed across his face before he responded. "It's indeed quite unfortunate."

"Yeah…" Jaune said, before polishing off his can of PepSchnee and playing with it on the table for a second. "Anyways, like I said earlier you guys will have some packages coming late tomorrow afternoon, so as long as someone's in the dorm to pick them up there should be no problems."

The generally quiet man took a sip of his tea before humming in understanding. "Someone will be in the dorm waiting, I can assure you."

"Good, good. It's just that that stuff is expensive, and losing it because nobody's there to pick it up would be quite the unfortunate event." Jaune said, speaking of course of Team Lavender's own set of new armor. "The girls seemed to really like it, so I hope you guys enjoy yours too."

Both Jaune and Ren were currently sitting in an on-grounds cafe that had recently opened up at Beacon Academy. The food wasn't the best, but the coffee was alright, the atmosphere was pleasant, and they were part of a chain that sold PepSchnee, so it was generally a good meeting place for the young huntsmen.

"Your dust-weave was particularly difficult to produce, by the way. I had no idea how to fix it until browsing some older records, and talking to Weiss." Jaune said, looking at the man. "Thankfully they've kept that information open to the public, otherwise it would've taken a lot more R&D."

The concept that dust could be woven into a fabric and activated by aura wasn't an uncommon one. However, it was an old practice that few people could still do, mainly due to the fact that it was quite inefficient compared to using regular dust crystals or canisters.

Why get a tiny spark out when you could shoot lightning for less?

"But hey, if it all goes right then there's enough dust in that thing that you should be fine until the end of the term." He said, continuing as he looked at the tea-drinking ninja. The second term had just started, and would be ending just after the climax of the Vytal Festival, for a summer break.

"Pyrrha's was really fun to design though. It's good to see she's finally getting some proper armor." Still talking on, Jaune found Ren a generally good guy just to talk to. He was polite, quite bright, and a man. Sometimes Jaune and Ren needed to get away from the girls.

Their only solace was each other, and occasionally Team CRDL.

"I mean, with her…" He felt uncomfortable just saying it. "... rather large amount of cleavage, she's actually left with quite a bit of an opening. You and Nora wear clothes, but people like Blake Pyrrha and Yang show far too much skin for some reason. Even for huntsmen."

"And how does that make you feel?" Ren said, ever the therapist.

"Yang Pyrrha and Blake can wear whatever they want, they're certainly not children anymore." Jaune said, before looking at his watch. "All I'm saying is that if someone gets stabbed in the kidneys it won't be my fault. Then Mozambique would literally be repeating."

Taking some lien out of his wallet he put it on the table and paid for Ren's drink as well. He could certainly afford to. "It's been good catching up with you, Ren. Say hi to the rest of Team Lavender for me."

Nodding in farewell to him, Ren returned to his drink while Jaune strode out of the cafe. Another good thing about that specific cafe, was that there was few people who judged him here. While he may get irregular looks in a regular cafe due to the missing arms or b-list celebrity status, here people tended not to give two shits about you unless you were competent.

That said people cared a bit about his presence, but he was hardly a freak.

Making his way around the meandering pathways of Beacon, he pulled his light jacket a bit tighter around himself. A pleasant breeze came from the inlet just down the cliffs, taking with it whatever brine smell managed its way up. Rubbing his hands together despite the fact it wouldn't help, Jaune began his walk in the direction of the Cross Continental Transit System. It was another few minutes before there was a clear view of the massive tower.

It was huge.

Positively tall in every way, it reached for the sky almost like it was attempting to be a space elevator, before widening into the large floor in which the call booths were set up. Unlike the white Atlesian one, the Valean one was a grayish colour that shone slightly in the light of the afternoon.

Truly something that was this grand made for a good peace present.

Looking at the top right corner of his vision, he used his semblance to turn on his Focus before reading the time and turning it back off. His mother had said that she would be calling from a business meeting about some things, and he should be in the tower waiting for her.

While the business could run itself, would it really run itself well?

Unfortunately, it probably would not. There was a certain quality you had to have to run a business that large that some people simply didn't possess, and simply couldn't learn. But perhaps it was for the best: His family had done a generally pretty good job so far. Heck, as long as they didn't pull a Schnee and marry in someone who wasn't good for the company, or the world as a whole, their family should continue doing fine long into the future.

Or at least, that's what his prediction was.

Fiddling with his Focus a bit more, Jaune noticed something just on the edge of his semblance, tickling him in a way that he hadn't felt before. Like a piece of machinery he'd tampered with before, or felt out before with his semblance, it was familiar… Yet this particular piece was different, changing even as he probed it. It shifted and changed, and he became fascinated with it.

Jaune had no idea what it was, and he loved that.

He tried to spot it but couldn't manage to see anything resembling what he was feeling in the slightest… Reaching out further, he tried to grasp it in his mind, to control, to alter it in the way he normally could, but it just slipped out of his mental grasp. However, he did get a feel for it…

It was Penny.

Ruby's friend the robotic girl from a few months ago was apparently in town, near the CTT. Jaune could remember her general body shape, and assuming that she was indeed an android like he had suspected at their first meeting, then her walking around would explain her movement.

The constant changing could be the aura… Inanimate objects tended never to have aura, and thus couldn't interact with his semblance. But that could explain why she was so slippery in his mind's eye. Why she was ever changing, and strange feeling to his semblance.

Looking around, he tried his very best to spot the bright orange haired girl, but to no avail. However in his looking he did managed to spot Weiss a little across the way in a new white outfit. Figuring that Penny must be in town for some reason, and he'd have a chance to meet her later on, he instead deigned to get Weiss' attention.

"Weiss!" Turning over her shoulder at his call, the chilly girl spotted him and stopped twisting, waiting for him to walk over with her arms crossed.

His first thoughts were that she was somehow cross at him, before he realized how cold she likely was. While it was a sunny spring afternoon, that didn't mean the temperature was back to normal yet.

"Good afternoon Jaune. How are you?" She said, brushing some white hair out of her face for a moment before looking around the general outside of the tower. He would've joined her looking had he any idea what she was looking for.

"I'm doing quite well, thanks. How're you doing?" He said, continuing their conversation before gesturing around at their surroundings. "I can't say I expected to see you at the CCT today."

"I'm doing alright…" Weiss said, before pulling her white coat a bit closer over her small frame.

"My father is making me go on a call with him to discuss… Discuss something or another I suppose." She said, shivering either at the thought of talking to her father from across the globe, or from the still chilly temperatures. "I'm not entirely sure of what he wants, but if it's really worth bugging me over then I suppose it's important."

"Hey, I'm sure it'll be fine." He said, before gesturing to the CTT. The two of them started walking side by side towards the massive set of doors at the base. "Your dad… Isn't the greatest guy, but he's still your father. He almost certainly doesn't wish death upon you."

"Only 'almost' certainly?" Weiss asked with a little bit of a smile tugging at her lips.

"Weiss, I'm very clearly not your dad. If I was things between us would be quite awkward, since I'm your age." Jaune said getting her to laugh, and he nudged her shoulder. "Since I'm not your dad, I can't say anything for certain. People are one of the few things you can't ever be certain about."

"Not exactly reassuring, Jaune." She said, continuing towards the elevator with him.

"Doesn't have to be reassuring, and it wasn't meant to be reassuring." He said quite bluntly, hitting the button for them both as they went up. "My mother just wants me to sit in on a conference call between her and some of the other board members... If you'd like I could talk with you to your dad."

"Really?" She asked, a bit surprised. "Not everyone would do that."

"At the end of the day Weiss, not everyone can." Jaune allowed himself a moment of pride. "Not everyone is able to disagree with your father and have their business survive. If I come now, and things escalate, I will have won twice, against your father."

"Oh... That most certainly wouldn't make him happy." She said, before she muttered it again, this time with a little smile. "Alright then. You know what Jaune? That would be rather appreciated. I've almost given up on winning against him, so it makes me glad at least you haven't."

Jaune smiled internally to himself. A warm feeling filled him, and he felt progressively better about himself as they rode the elevator up. Helping someone out was such an easy thing to do people often forget to do it at all. Just a compliment, or a simple thing like picking up the tab for someone's coffee could make a day. Men got complimented so rarely in fact, a single one could make their month.

Being able to help out a friend like Weiss in such a simple fashion truly was wonderful to him.

"I mean, just because I'm here now doesn't mean I always will be…" He said, continuing his chat with Weiss as they went up the colossally slow elevator ride. "You've stood up to your father before. That's why you're here at Beacon. That's why you're a huntress in training in the first place."

"Ah yes, my not-so-little little acts of rebellion against him." Weiss commented, puffing up with a bit of pride. It was a funny view, the small normally poised girl getting filled with that kind of self-pride. She was oftentimes a haughty girl, and dare he say it, to some even rude at times…

But Weiss was hardly a bad person. She deserved the best.

"Yup. Just keep going with those little rebellions, and one day… Maybe one day…"

"Freedom will be mine?" Weiss said, almost setting herself up for an maniacal laugh of evil, before looking up at him from her smaller stature.

"Well I was going to say that he would probably die at some point, and then you'd be free... But sure, I guess you could also get your freedom from little rebellions." He said, patting her on the shoulder as they finally arrived at their stop.

Stepping out, Jaune took out his scroll to text his mother while Weiss reserved a talking station.

'Helping Weiss with something so I can't make it. Love you.' Hitting 'send' Jaune let the CTT tower he was standing in amplify it like it would normally, before beaming the text across oceans and to his mother's own scroll. He folded his back up and slipped it away before looking at the white haired heiress.

"Our station is a few down this way." She said, gesturing in the direction of their station. Following her, Jaune reached his semblance out and touched all the systems of the tower, feeling it humm and turn and work.

Being able to control such a huge amount of things if he wished was an amazing feeling. He strove for control.

"Weiss, I forgot to ask earlier: Is that a new outfit?" Jaune asked, raising an eyebrow behind the heiress. She twirled around, and the skirt of the outfit took a moment longer than she did to turn. Walking backwards, she looked down at herself then at him.

He knew very well it was, but someone noticing that was sure to make her feel good.

"It is! I don't know why, but for some reason I rarely wear anything other than my usual dress. This is actually a breath of fresh air! For once I don't have to be chilly the entire time." Getting excited, Weiss preened. "And it has pockets!"

"Pockets are something I assume girls don't normally have the pleasure of having?" Jaune asked with a raised eyebrow as she showed off the pockets of the dress. She nodded, before sitting down again and slotting her scroll into the station.

"Yang has some normally, but other than maybe Nora, I think she's the only girl that has pockets." Weiss said, logging in quickly before navigating to her contacts, and scrolling down to her father's name.

While she'd been talking he had slid a stool from another station over to this one, and sat back and to her left. He was out of frame, and tried his best to fit in. He would've slouched but that would've been unprofessional, and instead he moved his seat back, and sat as straight as possible.

There was a brief moment as Weiss tried to make herself seem more presentable. She checked her face in a mirror which she withdrew from one of her pockets, before smoothing out her hair. Going over some last minute details, she mentally prepared herself as well it seemed.

Kind of sad… How one must prepare so much just to speak with their parent.

Jaune meanwhile moved his hair over a bit, before giving up when it slumped back into the same place on his face. Ensuring that at the very least his shirt collar would look decent, he took off his coat and removed any wrinkles he could find with a small amount of heat from his arms.

"Ready, Jaune?" Weiss asked, finger hovering over top of the 'connect call' button. Seeing him nod, Weiss let her finger fall and the station began ringing. Jaune zoned out for a moment and took in all the information around him, before focussing back on the moment.

Weiss' father was neither a kind man, or a man worth underestimating.

He would stand with Weiss no matter the outcome of things here today, because at the end of the day he was her friend… And if that meant telling one of the biggest businessmen in all of Remnant to go shove himself, then so be it.

The Schnee Dust Company was behind Jacques… But Jaune had Ozpin's network. Ozpin's people.

Ringing once more, the screen went black, before flashing to a crispy clear vision of Jacques sitting down at his desk. Nobody else was in frame, and Jaune took in the moment of surprise that was there ever so briefly as he recognized Jaune.

"Weiss."

"Father. How have you been?" She said, ever so carefully. Like she said it a thousand times, she left no room for error in saying the very simple greeting. "I trust that any issues at home have been lessened since my departure."

Her statement at the end there prompted Jaune's thinking to pause for a moment before he filed it away and continued.

"Things have been fine." Jacques said, looking to another computer screen likely at his side. "I trust that you have been doing only the best at your new school? Your semester's grades have come back, and I must admit, I'm disappointed."

"A average grade of one hundred percent is hardly something to be disappointed with Father." Weiss said, her icy blue eyes steeling for what was likely a very long conversation to come. Jaune himself looked over her shoulder, his own blue eyes locking onto the man's eyes after a brief roam over his fabulous mustache.

"If any child of mine is doing under one hundred and three percent, they may as well not be." He said, voice simmering over the line. Jaune very sincerely doubted he would go ballistic anytime soon.

He was not an impulsive man, only a cold one.

Jaune had met his type before. People who didn't care about how ethical or unethical a situation was… People who simply cared about their reputation, and the amount of zeroes on their check. People in their business were calculating, and cold, and it took everything he had not to feel… Angry, at the man right there.

Weiss let his comment slide when she should not have, and continued their conversation, getting straight to the point. It was remarkably clear that they were not close. Jaune remembered her from when they'd met, years ago. She had always seemed lonely.

Growing up in a place like that? With a father who didn't care, a mother that ultimately was selfish, a sister that was more concerned in getting out than fixing things, and a brother who was spiteful for no reason other than her birth…

That would make anyone feel lonely.

He was glad that she was happy now, or at least content. She had her team. Team Lavender was good people, and Jaune was sure that she had no lack of friends among Team Aubergine… Weiss was finding her place, it had just taken her a while.

And the fact that this man… This person wanted to still berate her for still being loyal to him made Jaune sick.

"Father, what do you want?" Weiss said, looking at him. He was impressed with her nerves. "Everytime you call you don't do it yourself, except for this time. What is it that makes this time different from the rest?"

He took a moment and thought before speaking. "What makes this time different from the rest, Weiss, is the fact that I have a reason to concern. You hardly speak to us, or communicate in any way. Recently I've been told that you were involved in stopping a White Fang plot in Vale. This is unacceptable."

She nearly winced and he how hard she struggled inside.

"Mr Schnee, I very much would like for you to know that the docks was my fault." Jaune said, entering the conversation. The man's eyes widened, not out of anger, but out of new energy found to be spiteful. To be hateful. "I was the one who coerced your daughter into joining. However I must admit, that the situation was very much under my control."

"Was it? Then why is it the news say it was nothing more than explosions, death, and destruction?" Jacques said, scoffing. "Listen, boy. You may think you're being noble, kind even, by taking the blame for my daughter being there. For taking the blame of creating that situation in the first place."

"Now, whether you did or did not incite the situation, my daughter is a Schnee. Her responsibility, her duty is to put her family first, understand? And that means putting herself first, over the likes of you." He wasn't seething with venom, but he was near to it.

Jacques hated him with a passion.

"Coerced she may have been, it is her lack of will that caused her to follow anyways. Press coverage like this cannot be accepted. While this time, the die rolled well, and it ended up looking good, who is to say of the next time?" Jacques said, raising an eyebrow at his daughter, and Jaune.

"Next time?" Weiss asked, puzzled at his insinuation. Jaune too was. He hadn't been planning another anti-terrorist mission anytime in the future… He was a bit too busy planning for protecting the world from The Great Witch, and her armies of darkness.

Significantly different, that.

"Weiss, Valeans are a strange people. They get involved in things they have no hand in, and have no right to get involved in. I know that with you around them, you will no doubt be involved in more and more spectacular stunts, until finally you die, or civilians die." Jacques said, looking at them both.

"Mr Arc, you quite frankly are the worst of this problems. Like at the docks, apparently, you are here now getting involved with things you have no right to be getting involved in… The last I checked your name was not Schnee." He said, continuing onwards, powerful feeling. Jaune was sure his ego was inflating even as he spoke, soon able to fill the room.

"You're right but it almost was until what was it… You didn't want your daughter marrying a cripple?" Jaune said, looking him straight in the eyes. The other man was uncomfortable. "Because I'll say it straight, that's what it was wasn't it? There wasn't any situation involving 'other' proposals, or different people."

"I don't know wh-"

"No, it was because you didn't want a family that's not even yours to have what… The shame of having a cripple? The bad press of having a boy whose father was in a coma? The disgrace of having an heiress marry someone you deemed below her rank? Below your rank?" Jaune said, continuing onwards.

"Hardly I simply had a different offer. Weiss would've been happier." Jacques said, retreating. Trying to defend himself with whatever paltry defences he could find and throw together. At the end, this was the worst choice he could've chosen.

"Happier? Happier? Father, if you ever cared about my happiness you would've been different. You would be different now." Weiss said, clearly getting annoyed at his hypocrisy. This wasn't a moment where the father made the tough decision to save his family.

This wasn't that kind of tale.

In the end this was a tale where the father looked out only for himself, and tried to live on his 'success' through his children. The children he didn't care about. The children he saw as nothing more than a prolonging of himself.

"Don't speak to me in that tone!" Jacques said, looking down at his daughter before moving back to how he was before his outburst. The man was hardly Yang levels scary. Jaune had seen far, far worse.

"Well excuse me for wanting to be better." Weiss said, looking at her father. "My grandfather never would've wanted the SDC to become what it has, and you know that very well. Why he allowed you to take over I have no idea."

"He allowed me to take over because I know how to be a businessman." He said in response, face hardening. "So here is a deal, Weiss. This is what I have asked you to call about: Either you leave Beacon, and return to Atlas to continue your studies. Or, you remain in Beacon, are cut off from all Schnee Dust Company coffers, and must make your way alone, and without any support."

Weiss sputtered a bit, and for that brief moment of weakness he pounced.

"You will have until tomorrow afternoon to decide." Jacques said, looking at his daughter. As he reached to turn off the line, Jaune flexed his aura, filled with this… This anger towards him. That someone who wanted their family to be perfect didn't care about their family.

Jaune stopped the call from disconnecting.

"Leave me and him, for a minute." He said to Weiss, and she clenched her jaw before standing up and leaving. There was no use fighting it: Nothing good would come from resistance. Her little rebellions had been put to an end, here.

But, only if Jacques had his way.

"Really, I have had it up to here." Jaune put his hand over his head, which took it off frame. "You for some reason, continue digging yourself a deeper hole, each and every time we speak. You cannot get over the fact that people cannot be perfect, pristine like you so clearly desire your family is."

"My family is hardly pristine."

"I know, but you wish it could be. You're a sad man Jacques, and if and when you die, will people care? Sure, they'll care, for a little bit, but what kind of world will you be leaving behind?" Jaune said, looking at him. "Would it be one that your wife's father wished for when he started the company? Or one you dreamed of in high school?"

"What will be left behind is a company that will stand the test of time. I will leave behind a company on top of the world." Jacques said, looking at him with venom. "I know not how you keep this line open, but for as long as we're here we will duel words."

"I would but I don't fight the unarmed." He said, before giving a fake gasp. "Oh sorry, you might not understand that roast. I should've said: 'I would but I don't marry my daughter to the unarmed.'"

"Do you hope to accomplish anything, by angering me Arc? There is little you can do. Since the last time, I have kept a much tighter ship." Jacques said, looking him in the eyes more intimately than he would've liked. "Weiss will accept my offer, and return to me. Why? Because she must. At the end of the day, she is a Schnee. And without our coffers, our support, she's alone."

"That's where you're wrong." Jaune said, looking at the dapper man on the other side. "Here she's got more support, more friends than she's ever had before. So fuck you. You and your company. Let me tell you what: I'm going to make you obsolete."

"You know as well as I do our world relies on dust… That our world relies on my company." Jacques said. Full of himself piece of-... "For as long as the dust stores continue, my company shall continue, and shall continue making money. That's how it is. We're unshakable: There's no way to remove us. A hundred years ago, sure, but now?"

"See, that attitude right there." Jaune pointed at the screen. "That will be your downfall. You feel so secure, so… Safe, in your high tower, your position of power towards the world, you forget that the world has all sorts of ways of fighting back. You look down on everyone, laughing as their arrows cannot reach, only to forget the Grimm in the air above."

"No, your company will not be obsolete. That's not what I said. You. I will make you unneeded." Jaune said. He had no idea how he would do so, but he would find a way. Automation, government takeover of the company, buying the company, ripping the rug out from under him.

"Hahahahaha." Jacques responded. "Please. I beg you to try."

This time, he knew Jaune would let him leave the call, and he hit the button to leave. Jaune leaned back on the stool a bit, and looked for Weiss briefly before figuring that she had entirely left the building. Chasing her would be pointless, so he drew out his scroll to get her a text, before feeling it ring in his hand.

Seeing a picture of Yang show up, he smiled for a second before opening the scroll. "Hey, I ended up being at the CTT longer than expected… Do you guys need me for anything or do you need me to rush right back?"

Yang shook her head. "Nah. I was just wondering if you'd want to go clubbing with me tonight. Turns out Junior's is having its grand reopening today!"

Junior's… Junior's? Jaune put his finger to his lip before finding it and remembering that night so very long ago. "Goodness. Alright, sure… A little bit of relaxation would be good tonight I think. After the conversation I just had, it'll be real nice."

"Oof. Parents being tough on ya?"

"Most frustrating part is that it's not even my dad!"

~oOo~ Jaune Arc: Augmented ~oOo~

Note: And back to Junior's we go! Please, let me know what you thought. I feel like parts of it may have been rusty, and that's unfortunately just part of the process when I get back into it, and is another reminder that I need a beta-reader.

While I'm here: Some people have suggested that the toxicity I spoke of when explaining (very briefly) my unintended hiatus and loss of passion for RWBY was caused by Bumblb, or WhiteRose. While not these specific ships, I believe shipping as a whole, as well as the fandom (mainly the vocal minority) had grown too toxic, and was truly ragging on other lovers of RWBY for simply believing a different thing, or liking a different ship.

I must admit, I was like that. I do not like Dark Sun. However, I now see that I should not have been so harsh on some people who enjoy them. While I myself will not write it, if others want to enjoy it, they are more than free to.

Anyways, please: Leave a review, do as I did and drink a Pepsi tonight, get lost in some Warframe (I'm stuck inside it_ send help), be a good person to others in this fandom, get cucked from three wins in Magic: The Gathering (thanks a lot Alex), and have a wonderful evening.

Review Responses:

desdelor97: Thanks very much! Glad to see you around.

merendinoemiliano: I agree. In the year since I've been gone, I've come to realize that harems don't really work. It will be addressed more in the next chapter author's note. Likely, this will remain a three person relationship.

ZHsteven: Err, this is awkward. Also: I think the previous chapter was handled well, but what do I know! :D

DuplicateUserName: Illuminati symbol is shot into the sky.

1st Dragon King: PepSchnee is the correct branding of Pepsi, yes. My apologies if I ever forget.

psp reader: Hopefully this time it was a bit better. I understand the politics can be dull.

Tatydf: Thanks very much! I try my best, and strive to improve more. I take quality and consistency as seriously as I can, though I must admit I've made mistakes. Your last sentence got cut off, and I'm going to say now that assuming you were going to say what I think: Yes.

B1ackAshes: Thanks! Cinder will be touched upon again at some point. We're entering Volume 2 now.

LasTheJihadist: Thanks very much! Though your name makes my CSIS agent nervous.

Venom Spirit: Thank you. I have much to improve on, and still have some trouble (in my opinion) in balancing action and downtime. Video call!? Are you insane!? How'd you like the new gear? Jaune's by the way, was not touched on yet, but that was on purpose. The skill will be used more.

LasTheJihadist: Hello again? How'd this happen. Dumb FF. I will certainly consider it! This story in particular I would like to give some loving to in terms of quality of downtime, combat, and overall writing.

GunBlade2019: I was originally inspired by Ironman to make this story, and the first version was very much more so clearly based off it. However in this remake (the original has stopped existing), it's more my own ideas, with certain characteristics carried through.

lordrednight: Thanks! Haven't seen Volume 6 yet, but I figure I can make it work, and if not, I will just make it very clear this is all my way.

randomidiot1816: Speaking of IT, since last chapter about a year ago, I've begun a class on coding. I have no idea what I'm doing, but now I kind of think I might maybe know what I'm talking about… That alone means I truly am now a programmer.

As of a few months ago, Mozambique gained some real backstory. (Also, do you guys read through other people's review responses?)

-DragonManMax