AN

Hello eveyone, for those of you know this is a one-shot story that is alternate version of DPLxStrife (with permission) own story but this time in reverse with Jaune and Qrowella, and that this is base on the post-Volume 5 timeline. Now this maybe a one-shot however I can see myself of adding more chapters if people are interested. Especially with certain family members and friends for their reactions. Anyways enjoy!

DDK does not own RWBY

About hours after the battle for Haven Academy, with remaining forces of the White Fang being arrested as well as finding Headmaster Lionheart dead in his office, the reunited Team RWBY had taken the time to catch up and inform Blake of what had happened during their time away from one another. It was also later on that Sun's teammates of Team SSSN had reunited with their leader, as well as Neptune scolding his best friend for not getting in touch with them sooner when word got out that Haven was under attack, and as such being as they were all in Mistral the Haven students had offered to show the former-Beacon students around where they could go celebrate on their victory in which RWBY and JNR had gladly agreed…well except for one. Jaune had decided to take some time to himself, after having assured Ren and Nora that he will be fine so they wouldn't worry the blonde boy had wonder the streets of Mistral on his own for the time.

He was thinking back of what had happened at Haven, of how he lost himself to anger when confronting Cinder over the death of his partner Pyrrha…and how it nearly cost Weiss own life because of his stupidity had Jaune not discovered his semblance to amplify her aura. Despite that they won the battle Jaune still felt at fault for nearly costing another friend's life, in which the blonde Arc was wondering around and thinking over a scenario of how things could've gone different until Jaune soon found himself standing in front of a bar and had decided to head inside. It was mostly empty at the time, with few patrons minding their own business and drinking at their pace, yet among them sitting alone at the bar Jaune saw a familiar face that he shouldn't had been surprise to see.

When the blonde had first met Qrowella Branwen all that he could think of in mind was Yang, of how both niece and aunt look so similar in appearance yet in different style that anyone could've mistaken Qrowe as his friend's mom…and he a teen with hormones can admit she was hot for someone her age. And after spending enough time to learn of the older Huntress that she did love to drink yet knew when to tone down the liquor when she can be serious such as 'life an death' battles or telling his group about the relic's, maidens, and even Salem. As Jaune continue looking at the older woman Qrowe would turn his way when she felt someone was watching her, an upon on seeing who it was the red eyed dark hair woman would wave him over to take a seat in the empty barstool right next to her.

"Hey, thought you'd be out with the rest of the group with the Haven students for a victory celebration?" she questioned the blonde boy after he seated down.

"Not me, didn't felt up to celebrating." Jaune answered her back, he took a moment to observed what Qrowe had before in which there was a glass that had a quarter left of her drink…and a pen in her hand an paper laying before the huntress, "What's that there?" he asked in wonder.

"Writing a letter to General Ironwood, with the CCTS still down this is the best way to word to James to let him know what's happened here and that we're on our way to Atlas. Assuming that Oscar recovers soon." Qrowella answered as she settle the pen down, being as she'll finished it later. As she had said Oscar was back at the house recovering after the Battle of Haven, entrusting Ozpin to protect the Relic of Knowledge while they rest up, Qrowella would then turn her full attention to the Arc boy, "So…taking a wild guess here, this has something to do what happened back at Haven? About your little 'outburst' towards Cinder." she asked of him.

"I…I.." Jaune couldn't find the right words to use at first, till he would let out a breath before speaking again, "I haven't told the others about this…Pyrrha had kissed me before she went and fought Cinder. At first when it happened I felt shocked, confused even, but then I started to get mix emotions. One thing I was certain I had felt…was fear, fear right after when Pyrrha had parted our lips away and she pushed me into the locker to sent me away." Jaune would pause a moment as he looked down and fiddle with his thumbs together as he continued, " I was afraid that I would lose her and knowing I was too far away to do anything, so I called Ruby…begged her to save Pyrrha. But in the end it didn't matter…because I think she knew she wasn't going to win…" the blonde stop speaking, until Qrowella would speak next.

"And part of you believes that its your fault that she's gone." the older woman said in theory, in which she didn't get a answer from him but she did saw that he nodded his head, " Look kid…Jaune, I too lost some friends as well. Some that I grew close during my days in Beacon. And their deaths…it doesn't get any easier with this job. But you…you honestly remind me of a old partner of mine in a way." as she said this Qrowella would put the letter she had written away, being as she'll check on it again later after re-reading it.

"I…do? How?" Jaune asked as the blonde boy looked in her direction as he was paying attention.

"You've met Taiyang, right? Before you all left from Patch?" she asked, and after he nods Qrowe continued, "He was in a difficult state of mind you see, first with my sister Raven leaving shortly after Yang was born. However, Summer Rose had stepped in to help him raise Yang then one thing after another they got married and little Ruby was born." Qrowella would paused a moment.

A memory flash in her mind of a happy Summer holding a new born Ruby with a young Yang showing enthusiasm of her half-sister along with her father, that had made Qrowe smiled as she felt happy that her partner and best friend after settling down and began a family of their own along with Yang. And during that time Qrowe had notice through the hospital window of a raven sitting on a branch outside and looking on with its red eyes, in which Qrowella was certain it was her sister but didn't say…that was until Summer called her over so that Qrowe can meet her new adorable niece. However as joyful as that memory was Qrowe had to stop and frown abit as she continued.

"Then a couple years later, Summer had been called on a mission that she went on…and hasn't come back. At first she was put on MIA in order for us to search for her, however after a month or two later she was declared KIA with no body for us to buried." Qrowe explained as she remember comforting a kid Yang who cried at Summer's funeral while a young Ruby looked confused as she didn't understand that her mother wasn't coming back until Qrowe explained it to her, and when Ruby cried in sorrow the older woman comforted her too while shedding her own tears at the lost of her best friend and leader, "That's when Tai had started shutting down, first it was depression at the house…then it was out on long nights of drinking at some bar that I had to go get him next morning. He even neglected at being a father to his daughters that needed him the most, so it was mostly me that I had to take care of the girls and making sure they were fed an bathed…then it happened." Qrowella told him before pausing to wave the bartender over to get a refill of her drink

"Uh…what do you mean 'it happened'?" Jaune questioned her, the blonde boy having patiently remain silent and letting the huntress talk, he had heard bits and pieces of Ruby's family when they were on the road in Mistral to pass the time, but hearing another member telling their side had caught his interest as Qrowella would thank the bartender and took a sip of her drink. Then continued on and what she said surprised him.

"The incident where my nieces were nearly killed…" Qrowe answered and the memory of it still wasn't pleasant.

She had one day came home from mission that left her tired, she wasn't surprised that Tai wasn't currently home…yet what did was neither Yang or Ruby had been there and Qrowella had started looking around the house for them. Minutes ticked by an she started to panic of not being able to find them…until Qrowe notice the picture of STRQ was missing along with the map of their old log cabin in the woods that was stored in the picture frame. Her panic had turned to dreaded fear as Qrowella had grabbed her weapon, Harbinger, and ran outside towards the forest then shortly after turn into a crow to take flight in the open skies. Even at such a high advantage view she still couldn't find the girls, as well as not remembering where the cabin was located since its been a long time of moving out after Yang was born, not to mention that fatigue was starting to catch up to her and most likely her semblance acting up against her the longer this search was taking. That's when unexpectedly a red portal opened up that are usually caused by her twin sister, and having remembered Raven's semblance Qrowella would dive into without hesitation and exit out from it only to come across a terrifying scene. She had found the girls and the cabin, however the latter was housing a pack of beowolves that had moved in with one of them stalking towards a petrified Yang while Ruby had just woken up from the red wagon an suddenly scream in terror. That had snapped Qrowella into action as she shift back to her human form mid air and dive down with Harbinger in scythe form, fatigue be damn if her nieces were gonna get killed by monstrous wolves as Qrowe cut the first beowolf that lung out to attack the frighten girls in half that dissolve into ashes then the whole pack attacked when they saw the Huntress had appeared.

"After the pack were killed I took the girls home, I was dead tired after the fight and would've collapsed half way had the local Huntsmen that were out on patrol had found and took us home. As well as informed Tai what had happened." she told the young blonde before taking the last sip of her finished drink, been a long while since she can freely drink more of the stronger kind before continue, " After he came home, and putting the girls to bed, I started talking to him…well more like started scolding after I slapped his face hard. I told him that it wasn't what Summer wanted him to be, and that he wasn't the only one that was in grieving as well yet that she'd wanted us to continue living on to take care of Ruby and Yang. However I did gave him a ultimatum…" she would pause to let Jaune think this over, and a moment to shake off the drowsy drunkenness that was effecting her.

"And what's that?" he asked and Jaune couldn't help but shivered when Qrowe had looked his way with a cold stare of her red eyes.

"That he either get his shit together or I take the girls away." she told him before letting out a sigh and turning away, making Jaune let out a breath, as she went on, " About a week after Ruby was born Summer had wanted me as her godmother should anything happened to her and we'd went to get the papers signed, the same thing for Yang being as I am closely a relative on her mother's side. So technically I'd have every right to take the girls in and raised…but I didn't really want to do it because it would hurt them of no longer seeing their father, and turns out I didn't need to do it after Tai had recovered and became a devoted father for them to the young women they are today." she'd finished her tell as well as turning in Jaune's direction, " The moral of this tale; don't let grief let you do stupid things, and not alone. You're not the only one that missed Pyrrha." she told him.

Jaune thought for a moment of what she said, while it was true that he missed his partner greatly…but he didn't take in account on how Ren and Nora must feel. And remembering back to Ren's behavior during the battle against the Nuckelavee Grimm and that Nora snapped him out of it…the leader of JNPR will have to find the time for all of them to sit down and talk.

"Right…thanks Ms. Branwen." he said as he offered her a small smile, in which he got a response when said woman had lightly jab his shoulder.

"Kid, you can just call me Qrowe, I'm not much one into formal and shit…" the dark hair huntress told him, then she turn back to the bartender to call him over, "Hey, two glass of your best scotch whisky. Double on the rocks!" she called out as the man behind the counter nodded and went make them.

"Uh Qrowe, I'm not much of a drinker…nor did I ever had any alcohol before." Jaune said in a uncertain tone before a glass was slid in front of him and Qrowella.

"I'd figure that, but this is a way of sharing toast with those who had similarly lost someone they care for. Not at their deaths but the memories that we've spent with them." she told him while raising her glass.

In which Jaune took a moment to look down at the golden liquid in his own glass an thought over what she said, the huntress did make a point. His time with Pyrrha may had not been long however between Beacon up to the Vytal Festival along with Ren, Nora, and the rest of RWBY, his partner had been happy to had gotten to know and love her friends while also spending time with him weither it was training on that roof top of their dorms, bonding with their friends, or even getting into all kind shenanigans like the massive food fight they had in Beacon's cafeteria. Just thinking of all of it cause the blonde to smile and in turn raised his glass up to meet with Qrowe's.

"To those we have lost yet never forgotten." he said to her, not just for Pyrrha but for Qrowe's friend Summer as well which brought the dark hair woman to smile.

"And may they watch over us all, wherever they are an make them damn proud." Qrowella replied back till their glass tap against one another as they drank.

Next morning after.

"Does anyone know if Jaune and Aunty Qrowe made it back last night?" Ruby asked everyone as they were on in the dining room for breakfast.

After last night the whole group had return to the house where they were staying to get some rest, however besides Oscar neither Jaune nor Qrowella were home yet they were all exhausted to go search out for them. Team SSSN had took them to a club where they could cut loose and have fun, though not without flaws when Yang had to beat back a few shady guys that were eyeing her sister and thus it became a 'Brawl at Juniors' part two with everyone having pitch in to defend themselves. Never less they high tailed it out before the authorities had showed up and Sun expressed his enthusiasm while Neptune mope of having to find a new location where the team can hang out as well as pick cute girls. In any case Ren and Nora were worried for Jaune yet Yang and Ruby assured the two that he would be fine, as long as Qrowella was with him then the blonde boy was in good hands.

"I believe I did heard them coming in last night, but I wasn't too sure." Ren answered her as he was busy making another stack of pancakes for everyone, of which he would have to yank the plate away when Nora reach it so she doesn't hog it all to herself with said girl pouting before she went and eat her own stack.

"If they did then they must've still be sleeping in, I know I would after last night. It was a blast!" Yang said as she cut her own stack after covering the pancakes in syrup.

" I'd would've figure that you'd learn your lesson to avoid getting into random fights in a club, Ms. Xiao Long. I don't need to tell the amount of paperwork I had to work with before I've met Ms. Rose." the voice of Professor Ozpin had spoken through Oscar, while said blonde girl had red cheeks sunk into her seat in embarrassment, before Oscar regain control back and gave an apologetic look her way, " Sorry, he couldn't resist to take the opportunity to say that." the young boy told her, in which Yang would wave him off at not taken offense.

"Well they can't stay asleep for long, we still need to pack if we are going to make the trip to Atlas." Weiss pitched in as she would wipe a napkin to her lips after a pause of eating her meal.

"Oh! I'll go and wake Jaune-Jaune, there's no way that he'll miss out on eating Ren's pancakes!" Nora declared after stuffing her face into her favorite meal, then gotten up and made her way to wake her fearless leader with a skip in her step.

"I'll go and get Aunty Qrowe up, knowing her she might've came back drinking." Ruby volunteered, in which her sister nodded in agreement, as the young red head had quickly grabbed a bottle of pain-killer pills for the headache the older woman would defiantly have and went off. Right after her sister left Yang would go back to finishing her meal…until she suddenly notice something wrong with her own partner, whom remain quiet and had not touched her pancakes.

"Blakey? Feeling alright there kitty cat?" the blonde girl asked, in which the cat faunus cheeks were bright red and her cat ears folded downward.

"I wish I was…" was all that Blake answered, sometimes the faunus girl wished she could've had other traits. Like having a tail like Sun, or even change her skin like her friend Ilia, but sadly all she has is her ears…in which they can pick up certain sounds the dark hair amber-eye girl wish she didn't hear, 'Like my parent's anniversary night at home.' she thought with a shiver.

With Ruby

Ruby would stand outside her Aunt Qrowella' s room, bottle of pain-killers in hand, and was knocking on the door softly so that the loud noises doesn't make the woman's headache worse, "Aunty Qrowe, are you still asleep? Its time to get up…Aunty Qrowe?" Ruby questioned when she gotten no response so the young teen had to turn the door knob and open it slowly.

The house they were in had four bedrooms in which two of them was made to hold more than one person, in which RWBY had one room to make some minor adjustments that was similar to their old dorm back in Beacon, minus the bunk-beds that is being as this house was a rental and Weiss did not want another 'death trap' that was Ruby's bed hanging above her while the former heiress slept. JNR had taken the other room in which Nora and Ren shared one bed not that they were 'together-together' like Nora had mentioned before, it was just the two childhood friends were used to it, in which the last two bedrooms host single person in which one for Oscar and one for Qrowella…and apparently as Ruby discovered it can now host two people.

First thing she saw was scattered clothing all around the floor an some on furniture, some of them she recognized Qrowe's clothing however in the mix of them Ruby saw clothes that she knew belong to Jaune, and if that wasn't enough to shock the young redhead it was what she saw on the bed. Her super cool badass aunt and her best adorkable friend in bed together…both partially nude with only their upper bodies exposed while the rest were under the covers. Ruby's poor innocent soul could do nothing but stared with wide silver eyes, and a growing blush on her face, all while not hearing Nora having approached her till now.

"Hey Ruby, I just remembered that Jaune wasn't in bed in our room this morning. I mean I saw it emptied and thought he'd just got up early, but when I couldn't find him anywhere I…Oh." Nora said as she paused and realized why Ruby was just standing there by her Aunt's open door until the ginger-hair girl had looked in the situation where Jaune was, in which like Ruby she too was blushing.

However though Nora notice there was a piece of paper that was by the door, and curiosity gotten the better of her when she lean down and picked it up, Ruby noticing her friend's movement would move to Nora's side as they read together. It was a document that had some stains on it with words blurry out that both girls couldn't understand, yet what was untestable to read was that this is a marriage document along with the license but what caught the most interest to the girls was…

Jaune and Qrowella Branwen-Arc

"Jaune-Jaune's married/ Aunt Qrowella' s married?!" both girls shouted, in which the former words had awaken the blonde boy that was in bed when he jolted up.

"Wait, I'm what?!" Jaune shouted, only to wince and grabbed his head in pain as the sudden headache had kicked in…however he would notice there was a golden ring on his finger. And upon the movement on his side followed by a groan did he looked and the blonde boys face turn red upon seeing Qrowella and her exposed breasts. Though his gaze shift when he notice a familiar on her own finger.

"What's with the damn noise?" Qrowe said in a groggy tone as she was wiping the sleep off her red eyes, until the dark hair woman notice something metallic rubbing against her skin as she pull her hand back to look the ring on her finger. Then look to a blushing Jaune, whom had got off the bed and had a pillow to cover his lower naked half but Qrowe notice a ring on his finger as well, it all connected in her head that Qrowella realized what this means.

'Crap, there goes my discount membership.' Qrowe thought with a frown for when 'Single Ladies' night came in one of her favorite bars.

End

AN

So I hope you had enjoyed this, and again if ya'll are interested to maybe adding more chapters in this story just let me know now.

Take care folks, DDK out!