The Spring Equinox Dance

RWBY

Chapter One

Jaune's Life

Genre : Romance/Humor

Summary : After an academic meeting with Goodwitch his poor grades, Jaune contemplates leaving Beacon. However, Ozpin offers him a chance to prove his worthiness to stay enrolled. Jaune must overcome his challenge by the Spring Equinox. Obstacles from teammates to former friends threaten his task: capturing the most dangerous of hunts, a date to the school dance.

Every so often at Beacon, each student is scheduled a meeting with the appropriate academic adviser. The stated purpose was so that students are given an opportunity to discuss their performance as aspiring hunters and huntresses and ways to improve their craft of Grimm-slaying. For Jaune, it was going to be an hour of Miss Goodwitch chewing him out for his grades.

Goodwitch sat behind a desk with her back to the window reviewing Jaune's transcript.

"A C in the History of Flora and Fauna of Remnant... comments, 'While Jaune Arc displays potential with regards to identification and collection of herbs, he demonstrates repeatedly poor handling of the specimens. Allergic reactions from pollinating plants have caused repeated destruction of his and other students samples.'"

"Something about spring just bugs my nose."

Goodwitch decided to move on and looked at the next item.

"Ah yes. F in Home Economics. Unsurprising."

"Hey! I said I was sorry about the fire!"

"Please tell me in what realm of reality does pouring a milk into a bowl of Pumpkin Pete's cereal result in the aforementioned bowl of cereal spontaneously bursting into flames?"

"People fly from shooting their guns and you want to talk physics?"

Goodwitch checked Jaune's transcript. "Not bad. B-" Goodwitch appeared genuinely impressed.

Jaune looked confused.

"We have a physics class?" Goodwitch sighed.

"No Mister Arc. The physics class does not exist. It was a joke." Placing down the transcripts and comments, Goodwitch raised her glasses and leaned closer to Jaune."Mister Arc... do you believe you are meant to be here? Truly?" Rising from her seat, Goodwitch did not wait for an answer and approached a row of busts lined alongside her office. "Do you know who these people are, Mister Arc?" A moment of thoughtful silence.

"... I'm gonna have to go with a solid 'no'."

"These statues are master huntsmen and huntresses from ages past. Each one a legend in their own right and has done much to secure peace for the Vale." Goodwitch stopped at a particular bust. "There is a master huntsman I'd like you see."

Jaune rose from his seat. Approaching the bronze bust, Jaune was surprised at who he saw.

"Is that... me?"

"Do you know who he is?"

"A time traveling future-me?" Goodwitch raised a palm and brought it to her face.

"That is your grandfather, Mister Arc," said Goodwitch with a slap with her riding crop onto Jaune's head.

"Ow!"

Goodwitch continued looking at the bust. "The Arc family has produced a long lineage of hunters and huntresses. Their contribution to the history of Vale is not to be understated. While I am loathed to enable any sort of favoritism due to family legacies, Headmaster Ozpin sees something in you."

Jaune rubbed his head and looked at his grandfather and said in a low voice, "all I see is a failure."

Goodwitch made no reply.

"You are the last of my appointments today, Mister Arc. Feel free to contemplate your future here at Beacon for as long as you'd like. If you feel the need to inform me of any changes to your enrollment, you may find me at the headmaster's office."

Goodwitch departed.

Some time later the door opened.

"Confirming my suspicions you are still here," said Headmaster Ozpin as he entered the office. "There you are."

It was just past noon, yet the sky was dark with rainy clouds forming. Jaune looked to the headmaster, a pair of coffees in hand, and looked back to his grandfather's bust. Handing Jaune a coffee, Ozpin looked upon the bust of Jaune's grandfather.

"Ah, the patriarch of the Arc family," said Ozpin. "He must be proud his grandson has enrolled in a prestigious institution."

"Headmaster... there's something you have to know."

"Hm? Oh yes. You've found a partner for the Spring Equinox Dance? I heard it will be an entertaining time."

"Uh... No... but listen, headmaster." Jaune looked to the darkness of the coffee for guidance. "I... I don't belong here. I got some fake transcripts and used them to get into Beacon. I'm not who you think I am and I'm not as good as anyone thinks... I'm just a failure."

Ozpin took a sip of his coffee. "Go on."

"That's... about it. I don't belong here."

"Oh. But you do."

"But I lied."

"I know."

"So you've knew I lied about my transcripts but you still let me enroll?"

"Yep," said Ozpin with a sip.

"Why?"

"'It takes a village to raise children but I suppose every village needs its idiot.'"

"Ouch."

"...is how miss Goodwitch replied, after I informed her of your circumstances," said Ozpin. "She was furious at the thought that someone with your background enrolled at Beacon. However, after some time reflecting, she decided it would be best if you had the opportunity to stay. Conditionally, of course."

"I can't believe she said that about me."

"Do not think yourself so lucky, Mister Arc. Your enrollment is still conditional upon my grace and mercy." Taking a sip, Headmaster Ozpin walked to the window situated behind the desk. "What do you believe is the goal of education?"

Jaune thought for a moment. What did his parents always begged of him? "To get good grades?"

Ozpin chuckled. "I suppose that's to be expected. What do you think is the goal of Beacon?"

"To train hunters and huntresses."

"Naturally. But to hunt what?"

"The Grimm. Right?"

"Hunters must hunt whatever it is that is tasked of them." Taking a sip, Ozpin looked out into lamp-lit gardens of Beacon. "There may come a time when your enemies are not simply monsters but beasts, criminals, other humans. Family. Friends. Even those closest to your heart."

"H-headmaster?"

"So I propose to you, Mister Arc that your enrollment at Beacon be determined by the test of a true hunter. One which every single one of your ancestors has bravely achieved time and time again. You, Mister Arc, will hunt for the most unpredictable, the most unstable, the most uncompromising prey of them all..."

Jaune gulped. "Which is...?"

Ozpin took a sip and looked out to the darkness of the sky. A roar of thunder resounded.

"Teenage girls."

It was late afternoon when Jaune asked Ren to join him for a lunch conversation.

"Just for my personal clarification, so I'm not misunderstanding or misheard anything...," Ren began. "You had your academic meeting this morning and Ozpin knows you used false transcripts to enter Beacon. Instead of expelling you outright, they decided to let you have a chance. This chance being fulfilling a certain hunt. This hunt being..."

Jaune grumbled, "I'm as boned as a fish."

"...a hunt for a date to the school dance."

"Boned." Jaune buried his face into his palms. "So utterly boned."

"It sounds completely do-able. The Spring Dance is still a long ways off. You'll find a date by then."

"You don't understand! It's a date, Ren! A date! As in, a female and a male meeting with romantic intent that begins a relationship that could possibly last an entire lifetime and lead to marriage and a wedding with a family and kids and family legacy and the Arc name being passed off from one generation to the next..."

Ren looked at Jaune.

"Whoa there, buddy. Calm down. It's just a date. It's like you're looking for a life partner." Ren rubbed his chin. "But now that you mention it, Nora did always keep bringing up how she wanted a shotgun wedding. She kept saying there's something romantic about two people blasting shells into the sky."

Jaune continued mumbling his impending expulsion to chicken and dumplings.

"It's just that, my dad married the the girl he took to his school dances and so did my granddad and his dad before him and stuff..." Jaune groaned. "My dad said all girls want is confidence but all I get are slaps in the face."

Ren shrugged. "It was a different time. People were going off to war not sure if they'd ever come back. Marrying young and quick was the thing. You don't have to be so old fashioned and stick to what your parents and grandparents have done." Jaune shook his head.

"I can't... oh man, what am I going to do... I know I flirt with girls all the time but deep down I knew they'd reject me. Seriously, I don't know what I would do if a girl says yes and now when I actually need her to say yes I have no idea how to go about it." Jaune banged his head onto the table.

"The solution is obvious. Explain your situation and I'm sure anyone of the girls would help you out."

"No no no man. I can't do that. It'd be pitiful."

"I'd rather be pitied than expelled."

"Well you aren't me!"

Ren jumped back. "I'm sorry. I didn't realize how much this is affecting you." Ren thought through possible solutions. "Well is there anyone you like in particular who you wouldn't mind spending the rest of your life with?"

Jaune groaned.

"I have trouble picking out which pair of jeans to wear in the morning and now I'm deciding my entire life future." Ren furrowed his nose. Jaune has sixteen sets of the exact same jeans, down to the faded left knee rip. "Why does this have to be so hard?"

"It's not. It's just a dance." Ren watched Jaune groan again drop his face to the table. "Okay, how about Pyrrha?"

"What about her?" Jaune mumbled, his mouth pressed against the table.

"You can try asking her out."

Jaune's head shot up. "She's out of my league. She's strong. She's aces every test. She's got great legs and a cute face. She slaughters Grimms by the hundreds and saved me more times than I can count." Jaune shrunk into the lunch bench. "I'm just not worthy of a girl who was on the cover of a cereal box..."

"There's Weiss, I guess," suggested Ren.

"Yeah... Maybe you're right, Ren. Snow Angel definitely seems more in my league..."

Ren brought a hand to his face and pinched the bridge of his nose. The average mind will have difficulty comprehending how being on a cereal box makes one out of their league but not a girl who is heiress to the largest, most powerful company in the world that controls the lifeline of every kingdom's economies.

"Sorry I haven't been much more help," Ren finally said.

"It's not your fault, Ren. I just... don't know what to do. I mean, how do you do it with Nora?"

"Do what with Nora?"

"You know... do that."

"I'm not following."

"Oh come on. I hear you guys going at it every night."

Ren paused for a moment. "I'm afraid to ask what you think is going on."

"Talking! Talking, Ren! How do you talk to girls?"

"You talk to girls all the time. You talk to an entire team full of girls. Half of our team are girls. You talk to them just fine."

"Yeah, I talk to them as friends. But how do I woo them like you do with Nora?"

"Woo...?" Ren twitched his nose at the old-fashioned term.

"You know! Impress! Interlope! Instigate!"

"Your vocabulary is difficult to follow."

"Can't do it. I just can't do it. Girls are live on Atlas and I'm off floating on a moon shard choking on my own cowardice. I can't ever do what you and Nora do. It's too embarrassing. I can't ever do that... I mean it feels like I'm-" A cry interrupted Juane.

"Please! Stop it! That hurts!"

Cardin laughed as he pulled on the ears of a brown bunny-eared faunus. "Guess they're still real today," Cardin mocked. "I guess you save a lot of time for costume parties, huh?"

"That's terrible," said Ren.

"I know. That last insult was bad," said Jaune. "Man. She must have it rough and now with Cardin getting on her case..."

"Someone should do something about," said Ren. Something definitely not me, he thought.

"You're right... Man. Be right back." Jaune stood up. "I'll go tell him to stop."

"Jaune..." Ren was about to stop Jaune but then decided against it. This might be a good opportunity for Jaune to vent off some steam from this mess, Ren thought. Looking down at his plate, a realization dawned on Ren. He could finally eat his sandwich.

"Lay off her, Cardin," said Jaune as he approached.

"What did you say, dunce?"

The confrontation between the two had captured the attention of the cafeteria. Tall and bulky, Cardin still found it difficult to accept humility with grace. His grip was tight on the girl's ears. Jaune gave her an apologetic look. Cardin wasn't going to let go easily.

"You heard me..." Jaune mumbled taking a step back. "Yeah! You heard me! Lay off her!"

"Uh... who are you again?"

"Huh?"

Cardin released the bunny girl's ear. Scratching his head he turned to Jaune. "Was your name, doofus?"

"No..."

"Oh? Maybe it's idiot."

"Maybe. Look, Cardin-"

"Now I remember! Your name is the Most Embarrassing Shame of the Arc Fam-"

Cardin was interrupted by a roasted chicken to the face. Dazed, Cardin stumbled backwards before he was tackled onto the floor by an enraged Jaune Arc armed with a roast chicken. The stress of the previous night made Jaune's heartbeat quicken.

"Look at me."

"Get off," Cardin mumbled, still dazed by the strike.

"Look at me!" Jaune straddled a top Cardin, a whole roasted chicken in his hand and the other arm pinned Cardin's neck to the floor. Jaune leaned close, his breath smelled of burnt dumplings and grape drank, and told Cardin, "say my name."

"Wha...what?"

A whole roasted chicken slammed into Cardin's face.

"Say. My. Name."

"What..."

The chicken splattered into white meat and bone.

"Is my name 'What'? Do you hear Professor Port check attendance for a 'Mister What'?" Jaune grabbed a fish and whacked it across Cardin's face. Jaune huffed up his voice in imitation. "Oh it appears Mister What has taken another day of absence. Ho ho ho. Let me continue to rant on about my glory days over a century ago." Whack. "You see here, is a fine specimen of river Grimm called the Cardin-beater." Whack. "Cardin-type Grimms are well known for being pathetic." Whack. "Arrogant." Whack. "Pieces of unwashed, unwanted, uncivilized doo doo heads!"

Whack. Whack. Whack.

"Stop... please..."

The irony was that moments before, Cardin had held a girl by ear who begged him to stop. Jaune, armed with a fish, was now a top of Cardin who begged the same from Jaune. Jaune did his best not to smile, however much he knew he was going to enjoy this.

"But let me repeat the question," Jaunce exclaimed to the audience of the cafeteria, like a gladiator in the arena. "Can. You. Say. My. Name?"

"Mister Jaune Arc!"

"Yeah thanks," Jaune looked up from Cardin. "But I was hoping he... would..."

Jaune dropped the fish and stared into the eyes of Glynda Goodwitch.

A quick wave of her riding crop restored the food back to the tables before collecting the parties involved with this incident and bringing them to her office.

"I want a full explanation," said Goodwitch as she stared down the three students seated before her desk. "Now."

"Cardin started it," said Jaune pointing at Cardin.

"Arc went ballistic for no reason," said Cardin pointing at Jaune.

"No reason? You were being a jerk!"

"I was just playing around. Not beating people to death."

Cardin fumed. His face was red while his hair was sticky with chicken bits and fish scales. Goodwitch sighed. The two biggest troublemakers of the year never fail to disappoint her. She smacked her riding crop on both her heads giving each of them a bump. She turned towards the third and final person in her office.

"Well, Miss Scarlatina?" Goodwitch crossed her arms. "Care to tell your side of the story?"

"Um... ah... You see..." The girl looked to Cardin then glanced nervously towards Jaune. "Never mind..." Goodwitch sighed and lightly tapped the girl on the top of her head, causing the girl to squeak, "owie!"

"Miss Scarlatina. Mister Winchester. Both of you are dismissed." Goodwitch opened the door. The girl hurried her way out and Cardin strolled, giving a quick shove to Jaune before reaching the door. "And Mister Winchester... if I hear another report of bullying be sure to expect severe repercussions," said Goodwitch as she closed the door on a growling Cardin.

Turning around, Goodwitch returned to her desk. Jaune sat fidgeting.

"So... am I off the hook too?"

"Mister Arc," said Goodwitch as she looked out the window. "Do you exist to cause me grief?"

"No? I mean, Cardin was being rude and stuff... but..." Jaune sighed. "I know what I did was out of line and I shouldn't resort to violence unless absolutely necessary. But I'm not apologizing to Cardin. So..." Jaune clenched his fist. "So expel me if you have to!"

After a glance, Goodwitch returned back to looking out the window.

"On the contrary, Mister Arc. I applaud your actions."

"Really?"

"You are incredibly inept at studying."

"Ouch."

"You lack skill in fighting."

"Double ouch."

"And you've the thinking and mannerisms of a simple-minded buffoon."

"Please. Stop. I'm dead," said Jaune as he felt the hits keep coming. He covered his face in shame.

"But you know right from wrong. And that's something we at Beacon cannot teach."

"Huh?" Jaune peaked an eye out between his fingers.

"Although slapping Cardin silly with poultry was uncalled for. The entire cafeteria can vouch for you defending Miss Scarlatina. So I will not punish you for that. However, attacking another student was indeed out of line."

"So... I'm not going to be expelled?"

"I believe Headmaster Ozpin will be deciding that fate depending on the success or failure of your hunt. Although he insists the details remain confidential, he will inform me of the results after the school dance which I presume is the deadline."

"Uh... yeah... school dance... deadline for that hunt. I'm on it."

Goodwitch leaned towards Jaune, her hair hung low in front of his face and he stared into her green eyes. Jaune could smell sweet perfume which made him think of fresh strawberries by a babbling brook. Her breath was warm. Her eyes were intense as Jaune slowly became mesmerized and instinctively leaned closer.

"Good. See to it you keep your vigilance," said Goodwitch moving her face away from Jaune's. Straightening herself, she returned to her desk and withdrew a piece of paper. "This is your appropriate punishment. I believe you will find it a relief in comparison to expulsion."

"I'm going to guess suspension with a side of corporal punishment via riding crop."

"Not quite."

"Detention in the isolation tank?"

"Cleaning duties, Mister Arc," said Goodwitch handing Jaunce the paper. "It just so happens that the cleaning robots are undergoing scheduled maintenance. I want the chalkboards washed, floors swept and windows gleaming, Mister Arc. Is that clear?"

Jaune looked at the list of chores. A far cry from his expected expulsion.

"Getting right on it now, Miss Goodwitch," said Jaune with a salute as he exited the office. Before closing the door completely, Jaune peaked his head in. "And, uh, thanks... for the slap on the wrist."

As Jaune closed the door, Goodwitch leaned back into her chair with a smile.

Humming a tune, Jaune scrubbed the chalkboard with a sponge. The bucket was rusty and filled with soapy water.

It was early afternoon as Jaune decided to get his punishment done and over with after leaving Goodwitch's office. It had taken a while to locate the cleaning supplies as most of the staff weren't aware they possessed any actual cleaning supplies. However, after following a map through storage rooms and brushing away blankets of cobwebs, Jaune found the necessary equipment: yellow sponge with rusty grey bucket. Classic.

Finding a classroom with no classes scheduled for the day, Jaune began his cleaning adventures there.

Humming along his merry tune, Jaune did not notice he was not alone in the classroom.

Behind Jaune, a pair of brown bunny ears were bent slightly in his direction.

"Excuse me..."

Jaune shrieked.

The sponge in his hand flew into the air as Jaune jumped. As Jaune calmed down and turned to face Velvet, the sponge landed flatly on his head. Soap began to drip down his hair smelling of chalk and dust. Looking at the person who startled him, Jaune removed the sponge from his head and tossed it into the bucket.

"Please." Jaune breathed in deeply. "Please don't do that," said Jaunce. "I'm not so hot with surprises."

"I can see that," giggled the girl. "Jaune, correct? I'm Velvet Scarlatina."

"Oh. You're in that one class with me..."

"Yes... I am," said Velvet with a smile. "You also helped me out a lot today with Cardin. I appreciate it. Thank you."

"I didn't do much."

"You slapped him around with a chicken until he started sobbing like a child begging for his mother."

"He did?"

Velvet put a finger to her lips and whispered a hush. "Tell a lie long and hard enough and people start to believe it. I'm hoping this one sticks with all the rumors flying about." Velvet brought her hands behind her and walked to the bucket off to the side. "I thought for sure you'd be expelled... I heard you were on your last legs academically."

"Lucked out. Just got cleaning duty." Jaune walked to the bucket and picked up a sponge. "I should be expelled for beating up another student, though."

"Do you clean often?" Velvet watched as Jaune squeezed out the sponge before applying soap.

"My granddad makes me clean. I'm used to it. Plus he's scared of robots. He doesn't trust anything you can't stick a sword into and blood and guts don't come out." Jaune scrubbed the unwashed section of the board. "And since my parents told me to do whatever my granddad said, I just ended up doing chores. Polishing armor. Washing windows. Sweeping."

"Your grandfather doesn't sound the same as the one in the stories."

"You know about my grandfather?"

"Light reading in the library."

"Figures. They've got entire novels written on him and my dad. And my uncles. And aunt. And cousins..."

"Your mom also wrote a cookbook!"

"Wrote it? More like she said things and I wrote it down," Jaune grumbled. "You know how many recipes of rose-apple pies she had? One! You know how many she made up for that book? Seventy-two. Seventy-two variations of the same rose-apple pies except with a dash of blueberry extract or chocolate syrup swirl for that finish. It's so easy to write things when all you have to do is ramble for an hour and have your son copy down your ramblings..."

"Were the pies good though?"

"...yeah."

Velvet laughed before pausing thoughtfully.

"Can I have your autograph?"

"Huh?"

Velvet coughed to clear up her voice before repeating, "Can. I. Have. Your-"

"No no no. I heard you. I just... what? Really? Um... Why?"

"You wrote a cookbook. Technically anyways. I think I have a limited edition somewhere..." Velvet fumbled through her thoughts as she traced a mental image of her room with her fingers. "Was it in the blue trunk or the red trunk... Or maybe I left it at home."

"I mean, sure I technically wrote it but-"

Velvet waved her hand in front of Jaune. "I'd still like the autograph. It'd be very special to me," said Velvet with a smile.

Jaune looked at that smile and felt the need to protect it.

"Okay."

Jaune went back to washing the chalkboard while Velvet sat on the lecturer desk and dangled her feet in the air while he cleaned.

Sometime later, when night came and Jaune was done with the cleaning. He returned the supplies and reported to Goodwitch. All the while, he was accompanied by Velvet. She sat outside of Goodwitch's office on a low wall and dangled her feet. Jaune exited the office and took a stretch before noticing Velvet.

"You didn't have to."

"I wanted to." Velvet looked to the starry sky. "It's dark. I have a phobia of being attacked by Grimm at night. May I ask you the favor of escorting me to my dorm?"

"Sure but I'm not much use in a fight."

Velvet giggled. "Then we'll just have to run far away!" Velvet began pulling Jaune towards the direction of her dorm. As their pace slowed, her fingers were still gently tugged on Jaune's sleeve. The pair passed the lamps and lawns until they reached the entrance of Velvet's dorm building. Velvet took a few steps up the stairs before pausing, looking back at Jaune.

"Well, there you are," said Jaune. "If you need anything else I'm always that blonde kid getting Fs on tests." Jaune stepped back slowly, waving, as he began to make his way towards his dorm building.

"Juane," Velvet called out. Velvet's ears twitched before they hung low. "If... If you'd like..."

"Hm?" Juane turned around.

"...I could tutor you," Velvet offered in a low voice.

"That sounds great!" Jaune ran up the steps and grabbed Velvet's hands. "Oh god. Everyone else gave up on me but not you!"

Juane bowed so low, he didn't realize how red Velvet had become.

"Of course," said Velvet. "Anytime."

"Oh this great," said Jaune, tears in his eyes. "Finally someone is willing to-Ow! Ow! Argh! Stop! Let go! Mercy! Mercy please!"

Pyrrha held Jaune's ear in a death grip.

"Jaune, where have you been all day?" Pyrrha asked with a tone of annoyance.

"Cleaning! It's my punishment for that fight with Cardin this morning! Please let go! Please!"

Pyrrha looked at Velvet who stood atop the steps. Velvet's ears were high and alert but she smiled. Pyrrha forced a smile back. "I'm going to be taking my Captain back now… Miss…"

"Velvet Scarlatina. But you may call me Velvet, Miss Pyrrha Nikos."

"Have we met?" Pyrrha tightened her grip on Jaune's ear, causing him to whimper on his knees.

"Nope. But I do like reading up on things of interest to me," said Velvet as she skipped down the steps. "Pyrrha Nikos of Sanctum. Top of her class and Mistral Regional Champion four years in a row. People say you may be one of the greatest huntresses of our time in the making."

"She's also on the cover of Pumpkin Pete's Marshmallow Flakes box!" Velvet giggled at Jaune's comment. "Ow!" Pyrrha tightened her grip on Jaune's ear to silence him.

"I didn't know you were a fan of mine."

"My interests lay elsewhere, Miss Nikos."

"Just Pyrrha is fine." Pyrrha began tugging Jaune towards their dorm. "Now if you may excuse us, my captain has some explaining to do for his team on how he should inform us of his whereabouts in case of emergency."

"Don't be so hard on him. I occupied him afterall."

"I'll keep that in mind," said Pyrrha as turned to walk away with Jaune in tow. "Come Jaune. We are going to have a training session."

"What? Now? B-but...Ow! Okay okay!"

Velvet placed a hand over her chest as she watched the pair depart. She took a deep breath before shouting, "Good night Pyrrha. Good night Jaune!"

"Night Velvet! Ow! Ow! Pyrrha ease up, please... Ow!"

As Pyrrha tugged Jaune away, Velvet had a smile that gave a hint of her true feelings.

Sweet smelling body wash graced Weiss slender and pale body.

As per her routine, the heiress of the Schnee Dust Company enjoyed her bath. The school' bathing commons were not per her standards and so Weiss had a private bathing room constructed in the dormitory wing. Polished marble and state of the art, Weiss' personal cleaning facilities exhibited nothing but the highest class of comfort and cleanliness.

Weiss lowered herself into a bath heated to perfect temperature, careful to not allow her hair, held in a towel, to touch the water.

If there was a time where Weiss Schnee felt in harmony with the world, it was now.

Weiss gave a soft sigh. Squeezing a sponge, she ran it along her soapy arm.

But alas, the burdens of royalty, Weiss thought. However, between the Grimm and Beacon and the family company, it was far from the most pressing issue in Weiss' life. Weiss squeezed every drop from her sponge, tightening her grip on the sponge as if her hands were on a certain person's neck:

Jaune Arc, the buffoon of Beacon.

Between the blatant flirting and embarrassing displays of ineptitude in class, Jaune Arc was a nuisance. The uncivilized sloth hails from a respectable family yet shows a complete lack of common knowledge and sense. There was no greater display of Jaune's ignorance than his overbearing confidence in his poor attempts to court her while referring to her, much to Weiss' horror at his familiarity, as 'Snow Angel'.

Weiss brushed the sponge down her leg.

What an insufferable man, Weiss thought but as she stared into the pool of water, Weiss reflected that perhaps Jaune was not the most insufferable man.

"What an unpleasant thought," said Weiss as looked at her reflection.

In her nightgown, Weiss decided to take a stroll. The bath was less enjoyable than she had hoped and she needed a stroll to clear her mind.

Weiss decided to check her mailbox, a primitive but still functional service. It was particular trait that Weiss enjoyed the monthly issues of various magazines and coupon cutting. But more often than not, it provided Weiss with an excellent supply of paper plane fodder in the form of love letters. Old fashioned but Weiss did not dislike that sort of romanticism as futile as it was.

Finding nothing of interest in her mailbox, Weiss dumped the bulk of her letters in the trash before taking a few with her to roof.

Opening the door, Weiss felt the cool night air on her skin.

It was a favored pastime of hers, folding love letters into paper planes and letting them fly where they may. Weiss opened a letter and pulled it out. She read it quickly, a token act of appreciation to see how people could express love and lust with varying degrees of mastery over grammar and vocabulary. With gentle creases and firm pinches from her fingers, Weiss made the first of many paper planes of the night. Standing from the edge, Weiss raised it high and closed her eyes. She waited for that perfect breeze before releasing it and watched the plane soar.

Except, this particular breeze, blew against her.

The paper plane flew off the edge and flew upward before returning towards her. Weiss ducked as the paper plane flew past her towards the roof entrance.

"Ouch!"

Weiss jumped. It was an unexpected cry as Weiss turned around.

"Jaune? What are you doing here?"

Jaune leaned against the wall beside the roof entrance, rubbing his eye. The paper plane had just flown into it. Weiss approached and kneeled beside Jaune, moving aside his hand to check his eyes which appeared fine.

"That stings! What? Do you like throwing paper airplanes at people who just happen to sleeping on the roof?" Jaune attempted to rise before his legs buckled and he collapsed. "Ow! Ow! Ow! Okay, okay, easy." Jaune breathed in and out deeply. Rubbing his legs, Jaune paced his breaths. "My legs are still cramped up so I apologize for not bowing at your presence, Weiss."

"What are you doing on the roof with a cramped leg?"

"Training with a cruel taskmaster," Jaune whimpered. "But she's gone now and left me here all alone. She told me I could crawl back to the room myself but I don't think I've got enough strength for that." Jaune sniffed himself. "Plus I smell." Jaune's stomach rubmled. "And I'm hungry..."

Weiss rolled her eyes. Jaune appeared fine.

"Will you be okay?"

"Yeah. I was just planning on, you know, sleeping here. Well I was already sleeping here. Then suddenly a paper plane came straight into my eye. Man, who throws paper airplanes off the roof?" Jaune looked at the paper plane in his hand. "Stupid paper plane professing my undying love for Weiss Schnee... huh?"

"Th-that's private! Give it here!"

Weiss panicked and grabbed the letter from him, inadvertently dropping the other letters in hand.

"To Weiss from my most elegant flower... To the beautiful and courageous Weiss Schnee... My most exquisite plum blossom... Are these fan mails?" Jaune asked.

"They're love letters you dimwit! Now hand them back!"

"Oh." Jaune looked at them before handed them back. "Sorry if they seemed strange. I've never seen a lover letter before."

Weiss huffed. "It's only natural someone of my qualities would attract attention."

"From people who sign their letters, 'Bigus Dickus'?" Weiss blushed.

"I-I'm sure he's a f-fine fellow."

"Right... now say. Weiss, darling, sweetie, my dearly beloved Snow Angel. I'm in a bit of a rut with me being hungry and sweaty and all and I'm kind of stuck on the roof with this bummed out leg and all..." Jaune twiddled his thumbs together. "...so you mind getting me something to eat and a wet rag? I'm starving."

"What's the rag for?"

Jaune sighed. "Well I can't take a bath..."

Weiss brought a palm to her face. "You're pathetic."

"I know..." Jaune sighed before scratching his eye. "Man, that paper airplane really nailed me right in the eye."

Weiss got onto her knees leaned forward. "Let me see. Ah, you got some dust in your eye."

"I'm sure you would know all about that," said Jaune.

"Know what?"

"Dust. You know... You're Weiss Schnee. Your family owns a 'Dust' company. You know 'dust' when you see it... oh never mind." Jaune shook his head, a hand still covering his itchy eye. It was a failed attempt at being funny.

"That wasn't even remotely clever," said Weiss shaking her head.

"Couldn't you humor me just-"

"No."

Jaune sighed. "Not even once..." Jaune began rubbing his eye.

"Stop, you can't rub your eye like that. It'll just make it worst. Hold still and don't move," said Weiss and she removed Jaune's hand from his eye. Bringing a hand to Jaune's cheek, she steadied his face and blew into Jaune's eye. Weiss' lips appeared so close to Jaune.

"Th-thanks, Weiss," said Jaune as Weiss pulled back.

"It was nothing. My mother taught me that trick." Jaune leaned back against the wall and stretched before wincing from the various bruises and aches on his body. "You sure you'll be alright?"

"Totally," Jaune assured. "I use to camp in my backyard all the time so sleeping on the roof is like a luxury hotel. I mean, look at all this gravel, soft as a pillow. And these wood chips, how did they even get up here? It's great bedspread. But yeah... do you mind getting me a wet rag and some food?"

Weiss couldn't tell if Jaune was joking or not.

"I'll see what I can do," said Weiss from the roof entrance doorway.

"Thanks," Jaune called out as Weiss left.

Weiss later returned with a blanket and pillow with some wash wipes and melon bread.

"It's n-n-not like I did this for you, or anything!" Weiss explained.

Ren sat and ate his pancakes.

Breakfast was served promptly and an important part of Ren's routine was eating his breakfast. Nora had wandered off somewhere and thus presented Ren with a rare opportunity to enjoy breakfast by his lonesome. Pyrrha had returned late last night, visibly upset for one reason or another. Ren shrugged it off as a girl thing. Jaune did not return at all. Perhaps he was mulling over who he should ask to the dance and ended up hitting a tree and got knocked out or something.

Either way, Ren thought, Jaune still had plenty time left to find a date to the dance.

Chewing on his pancake, Ren saw Jaune enter the cafeteria, covered in wood chips.

"Maybe he did hit a tree..."

Jaune approached Ren and dropped into a seat across from him.

"Good morning," said Jaune.

"Is it really?" Ren asked. "You look terrible and you've been missing since Goodwitch dragged you off."

"Long story," Jaune groaned.

"So any thought as to who you're going to ask to the dance?" Ren asked.

"I think I'll just take expulsion," groaned Jaune. "Maybe I'm just not cut out for this. I can always be a farmer... or something. Like a baker. I always wanted to own my own bakery... except the last time I baked something it got all black and then there were those fires..."

"Baking... scratch that, culinary arts is not your forte, Jaune. And I say this as your friend," said Ren. "You can ask Ruby. I recall you saying you had a thing for nice, quirky girls."

"Yeah... Ruby could work..." Jaune groaned. "But then that would mean I'd actually have to ask her to the dance."

"Where did all that confidence go?" Ren said jokingly. It sounded forced. "Where's Jaune the Lady-Killer? Breaker of Hearts? "

"I was quoting a cartoon..."

"Oh." Ren took a bite of his pancakes. "Well... damn. That's rough, buddy."

"Argh. My dad said women just want confidence... but why is it so hard?" Jaune groaned. "I can barely talk to girls."

"You talk to girls all the time. Literally, aside from me, all you do is talk to girls."

"Yeah but they're all friends! Not like... girls, you know?"

Ren took another bite. "I'm not following."

"I want what you and Nora have. That kind of playful banter that just scratches right below flirting."

"What."

"You know... that thing where both of you are having fun and both refused you're in love with each other but you still act like friends and say you're friends until that climatic moment hits at like a school cultural festival or graduation day when you're posing for pictures outside the school entrance when one of you finally confess your feelings."

"Jaune..."

"It was from a cartoon, okay?"

"I'm... just not even going to ask," said Ren as he lifted his tray and made his way to the disposal section.

"Do you think Nora would agree?" Jaune wondered.

Ren froze. "Agree... to what...?"

"To be my date to the dance," said Jaune. "I think it won't count if I ask out another guy's girl. Then that'd just be philandering. Yes! That way she'd technically wouldn't be the first girl I've dated and thus I don't have to marry her!"

"Jaune... I don't think you should."

"Why?" Jaune narrowed his eyes. "Oh I see! It's because you'll get jealous, right?"

"No. You don't understand. Nora is-"

"Ren is just jealous that ol' Jaune here is going to ask his Nora out before he can."

"Jaune. Please, let me explain..."

"Well, guess what? I'm going to go see Nora, right now."

Jaune strutted off towards the dormitory as Ren placed his tray away.

"That poor, poor idiotic buffoon," Ren muttered before noticing the cafeteria was now serving pudding and cheesecake. "Oh, I almost forgot about dessert!"

Rushing to his room Jaune found Nora and presented his proposal to her.

"So! You're asking me out, eh, Jaune?"

Nora sat in a chair, legs crossed and fingers forming a finger tent. The lights were dimmed and windows were closed, leaving the pair in darkness aside from a small lamp beside Nora. She had a sinister smile as Jaune looked confused at the entire display.

"Uh... yeah... there's a dance coming up and I was wondering-"

"Bark."

"Huh?"

Nora frowned. "Oh? Did I stutter? Bark."

"Woof...woof...?"

"Good. Now bark like a small dog."

"Wh-what?"

"Bark like a dog the size of your brain, maggot!" Jaune jumped back.

"Arf Arf!" Jaune whimpered.

"Good boy," said Nora as she lifted herself from her seat. She gently patted Jaune's head before going to he drawer and retrieving a bag. "From now on, you are not longer Jaune Arc. Your name belongs to me. Your life belongs to me. And right now your life is worth the same as these doggy treats," said Nora, wagging a bag of doggy beef-flavored treats.

"Do you keep those-" Nora smacked Jaune with a pillow.

"Dogs don't speak! They bark!"

"This is kind of creeping me-" Nora smacked Jaune again.

"You are my dog. Dogs bark. Do not make me repeat myself," said Nora with a smile. "Now be a good boy and bark if you understand."

Jaune trembled in fear. "Woof."

"Good," Nora smiled and tossed a doggy treat at Jaune before kicking Jaune behind the knee bringing him to all fours.

"Ouch!"

"Dogs walk on all fours," said Nora. Jaune stayed on the floor. "Good boy... I think I'll name you Fandango. You hear that? Your name is now Fandango. Bark if you understand what your new name is." Jaune stayed silent. "Bark!"

"Uh... Nora," Jaune began before being silenced with a pillow smack.

"Dogs. Do not. Speak!" Nora yelled.

"What have I gotten myself into," Jaune muttered to himself. "This is crazy!"

"Crazy..." Nora's eye twitched. "Crazy...? Me...?"

"N-no! What I mean was, you know... kind of strange to make your captain bark like a dog and try feeding him doggy treats... is... oh you know... kind of looked down by the rest of society as... just... a tiny... tidy-tiny... bit... crazy. "

"How is that crazy," Nora asked innocently as she approached Jaune with a smile.

"Yeah, you know what? I'm... so out," said Jaune as he ran out of the dorm with Nora screaming after him throwing doggy treats with accuracy.

"I own you Fandango! I own you! From this day to your last day I, Nora Valkyrie, own you!" Nora screamed to the heavens.

Returning to the table, Jaune looked as he made a deal with a demon.

"I'm guessing that didn't go too well," said Ren as he enjoyed a cup of pudding as a panicked Jaune returned.

"Dude! Why didn't you warn me about her!"

Ren sighed. "Well, now you know why Nora has never had a boyfriend last more than a day. She supposedly owns a zoo of boyfriends and has one for each animal. There was this one time she even started a horse racing circuit..."

Jaune groaned.

"It wasn't so bad. Nora had a good idea of who were the best racers. Made a lot of good candy then. There was a two lollipops minimum bet you see...," Ren reminisced.

"That's not what I was groaning about."

"I know. But, now as you can see, I am not in a romantic relationship with Nora." Ren took a spoonful of pudding. "I doubt there's a sane man alive who can do it," he muttered.

"What am I going to do? I need a date..."

"Ruby is coming this way. You two can have fun," said Ren as he left Jaune and newly arrived Ruby.

"Hey Ren! Oh, guess he's busy," Ruby said as she took a seat besides Jaune. "How you doing tough guy?" Ruby inspected Jaune closely. "Whoa! Did you... get caught in a tornado? Hey... why are there doggy treats stuck on your back."

Jaune dropped his face to the table.

"Long story," he mumbled.

"I got time," Ruby smiled.

Looking Ruby, Jaune realized she was a girl. Maybe she would have some ideas, Jaune thought. "Ruby... say... how do you think guys should ask a girl out?"

Anticipating an answer, and receiving none, Jaune looked at the silent Ruby. Her eyes were wide opened and her face pale. Her face slowly contorted before a giant smile appeared on her face and Ruby let loose a squeal that pierced the ears of everyone in the cafeteria. In an instant, Jaune found himself caught in a high speed tackle attack by Ruby.

"Who is it!?"

Ruby's hands held tightly on Jaune's uniform. Her face was nose to nose with Jaune and while he couldn't see her mouth due to the proximity, he knew she was smiling. "No one!" Jaune's response didn't faze Ruby.

"No! Please! Tell me! Tell me! Tell me tell me tell me tell me..."

"No really. It's no-"

"Is it Weiss?"

"No. But Ruby, please get off me-"

"Was it that cute girl with the brown bunny ears?"

"Velvet?"

"You know her name!?"

"Well yeah! She's in our class!"

"True true... Is it... oh did it really happen... is it Pyrrha? Please tell me it's Pyrrha!"

"No!"

"Oh my goodness, it's Pyrrha," Ruby gasped.

"What? But I said no!"

"Guys can't be honest with their feelings. Yep yep," said Ruby with a confident smirk.

"I think you're getting the wrong idea," said Jaune as he pushed Ruby off of him. "I wasn't planning on asking any of them out or anything. I was just curious... about what girls think about how guys should ask girls out." Ruby narrowed her eyes and leaned closer towards Jaune. She gave a penetrating gaze that looked into the depths of one's soul. "R-really."

"Jaune."

"Ruby?"

"Were you going to ask me?"

"What? No! Of course not. That'd be ridiculous," Jaune mumbled, thinking back on his earlier conversation with Ren. The Ruby plan was certainly not high on Jaune's list of preferred scenarios and thus thought it best to abort it. "I wouldn't even dream of asking you," said Jaune.

Jaune heard a sniffle.

"R-really..." Ruby sniffled again. Tears were forming in her eyes. "Wh-what's so b-bad a-about meeeee!"

Jaune's father used to tell him the worst thing a girl can do after you ask them out isn't say 'no', they can cry. But this is the first time Jaune had seen a girl begin crying because a guy didn't ask her out.

"No! What I meant was you're great and you're awesome and, uh, a great team leader to boot!"

"R-really? Do you mean it!"

"Totally," said Jaune with a smile. "You're great in every respect. Looks, smarts, quirky personality..."

After a momentary pause, like the calm before the storm, Ruby began crying even louder, attracting the attention and gaze of the cafeteria. Gazes from the male population, upset at Jaune Arc for causing the popular red-themed school idol to cry, was causing Jaune to panic. Rumors were spreading and fast as people began tapping away messages spreading throughout the school.

"If I'm so great, w-why w-won't you ask m-me out!" Ruby wailed. She brought her hands to her eyes doing her best to rub away the streaming tears.

"It's not like I don't want to ask you out!"

"So why don't you!"

"B-because... you know... reasons," Jaune mumbled. "Look, please stop crying-"

The cafeteria doors burst open. The student populace within the cafeteria looked towards the yellow figure standing in the doorway, fire radiating from her body like the sun in the middle of summer and her hair burning with rage and fury.

"Jaune Arc!" Yang called out. "Where the hell are you!?"

Maketh Ruby cry, cometh Yang mad.

Jaune flew through a window and into the courtyard, launched there by a high-speed, dust-empowered punch from Yang.

A lesser man would have been broken in half.

"I think I just got broken in half... ow... I can't feel my legs. Ouch! Okay... there they are..." Jaune landed on the lawn, the once green area was now a crater as Jaune did his best to lift himself. From the window he had just flown through moments earlier, Jaune saw his maker, his reaper.

Yang slammed her fists together and the frame of the shattered window burst into flames.

Jaune gulped.

"You're dead meat, Jaune Arc!" Yang screamed as she launched herself into the sky.

Jaune looked up into the sky as Yang became one became one with the sun shining on her back. Jaune could see from the shadows that Yang was ready to unload her dust-shell punches into his face and until he was pummeled to a bloody pulp.

"So boned," Jaune sighed. He closed his eyes and resigned himself to his fate. Not feeling his face turn into a bloody pancake, Jaune opened his eyes. He saw an elegant back and a flowing piece of red cloth. A shield blotted out the sun.

"Stand up, Jaune," came a voice from a familiar teammate.

"Pyrrha?"

"Out of my way," said Yang. Her attack had been deflected by Pyrrha's shield. "My fists got a date with that guy's face."

"Regardless of the rumors you've heard, there's no need for violence," said Pyrrha as she readied her spear. Yang scowled and fired a shot. Pyrrha blocked it. "I understand you're upset but you must control yourself!"

"Tell me that when you've got a crying sister!" Yang screamed as she unloaded round after round in Pyrrha's shield.

Jaune stood in a daze. He should be dead. Now he had one girl who wants to brutalize him for making her sister cry and a teammate he was certain was upset at him for one reason or another defending him from the onslaught of the former. This couldn't get any stranger, Jaune thought.

"Fandangoooo! Where are youuuu!"

"Welp," said Jaune. "Such misfortune."

"There you are!" Nora skipped over to Jaune as Yang and Pyrrha engaged in a heated, high-octane action. "I got you a new collar! Do you like it?" It was a monstrous piece of leather attached to a steel chain. Placing it on Jaune, Nora adored her work.

"Uh... woof?"

"Good boy! Here's a treat! Now come, let's go," said Nora as she tugged Jaune away with a leash.

"Hey!" Yang yelled from the crater studded battlefield. "Nora! Jaune's mine!"

"Jaune!" Pyrrha called out.

Nora stopped in her tracks and looked back with a bored expression.

"Jaune? Who's that? All I'm doing is taking Fandango out for a little ol' stroll. Isn't that right, Fandango?" Nora gave Jaune a tug on the steel chain.

"Woof...I guess," Jaune mumbled. It couldn't possibly get worst Jaune thought as a spear was thrown that severed the leash Nora was holding. It came dangerously close to decapitating Jaune. Dropping the leash, Nora gave Pyrrha a death glare.

"Jaune! Run!" Pyrrha yelled out as Yang leaped towards Nora.

Nora withdrew her grenade launcher and unleashed a volley of canister shots at Yang. Through brute force and ignorance, Yang broke through the barrage and came within melee range as Nora transformed her weapon into hammer-mode and slammed Yang back into the cafeteria through the burning window. Reverting back to her grenade launcher, Nora turned her attention towards Pyrrha.

Pyrrha came up next blocking grenade shots her shield as she ducked and rolled to retrieve her spear.

Pyrrha now all that stood between Jaune and Nora.

"You know, Pyrrha...," said Nora with a lick of her lips, "I've been meaning to have this little showdown with you for a long time." Nora's eyes were dulled, oblivious to the world aside from her singular focus. She transformed her weapon into its hammer form. "I can't wait to see how you look after I pulverize you for trying to steal my precious Fandango."

"Jaune," Pyrrha said in low voice. "Are you okay?"

"Pyrrha! I thought, I thought..." Jaune was about to cry. "I thought you were upset at me."

"We can talk later." Pyrrha blocked a grenade shot from Nora. "Run!"

Jaune was way ahead of her.

"I guess my dog needs some more training. Maybe I'll just break his legs so he'll never run away from me again."

"Nora... please, don't make me do this," said Pyrrha. Nora gave her an immediate answer. If Jaune looked back, he would have seen Nora hurling herself towards Pyrrha in full force screaming a war cry at the top of her lungs.

"Fandangoooo!"

Peace was strange to Blake.

The sounds of explosions reminded her of the vicious days in the White Fang. But for the first time in Blake's life, she was at relative peace away from conflict, no longer needing to hide underneath her bed for fear of her life. Such explosions were common at Beacon where people just decided to get into the action-packed fight of the day. Blake sighed. The noise did make it difficult to read..

A small explosion shook the campus.

"Today's fight sounds intense," Blake said to herself as she returned to her book. Though she enjoyed the book, Blake found the premise a bit unbelievable. It was about a boy who has to fall in love by the full moon but through his antics and sheer luck manages to enthrall the hearts of every major female character.

At least it was entertaining, Blake thought.

She had just reached the part where the main protagonist is caught in a storm and is banging furiously on the door of a quiet girl begging for refuge.

There came knocks on her door.

"Weiss! Blake! Someone please! Let me in!"

"Jaune?" Blake set aside her book and opened the door, finding a disheveled and panicked Jaune Arc. As Jaune entered the room, the room shook from the aftershock of an explosion and he leaped out of sight behind Blake's bed. "What happened to you? You look terrible. And why are you hiding?"

"I'm hiding from that," Jaune whimpered as he peaked from behind the bed. Jaune pointed cautiously towards the window. "Could you, uh, close the blind please? I'm think I'm getting more tanned than usual and I was hoping to, oh you know, avoid being outside. Not be seen by anyone because I'm pretty embarrassed and... yeah..."

Blake rolled her eyes and walked to the window.

Looking out, she saw Pyrrha, Nora and Yang engaged in a three-way fight creating craters. Havoc and debris were sewn all around the courtyard between the destructive force of the two heavy hitters of their respective teams and the magnetic power of Pyrrha. Students cheered from the safety of cover as the spectacle as pink grenades, dust-powered punches, and a certain shield flew around the once peaceful campus lawn.

"I... see..." Blake turned to Jaune. "I'm guessing you're involved in that somehow?"

"Oh no! I'm definitely not involved with that. Nope!" Jaune gave a nervous laugh as Blake glared. "Well... a tiny... little bit... involved..."

"So why not hide in your own room?"

"Lost my keys," said Jaune showing a hole in his pants pocket. "So mind if I crash here?"

"Make yourself as home, although I'm not sure if the others will mind," said Blake. She returned to her bed, opened her book, and continued reading for a moment. "But I am curious," said Blake, "why are they fighting?"

Jaune sighed.

Its a long stor-... oh never mind. So you see I'm trying to find a date to the school dance for 'reasons' and so I was talking to Ren about it but then I saw Cardin picking on Velvet, the bunny-eared faunus girl, and so I told him to lay off her and Cardin said some things and I lost it and I started beating him with a chicken, then a fish, then Goodwitch pulls me out and should have expelled me but didn't so she gave me cleaning duties and I was talking to Velvet and she seems like a nice quirky girl but then Pyrrha came and dragged me off to have a night of training on the roof and I was so sore I couldn't crawl my way back to my room and then Weiss hit me in the eye with a paper airplane so she felt bad and got me a blanket and some damn good melon bread so when I woke up I went to breakfast and I came to see Ren and I got this bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, bad idea to ask out Nora who now thinks I'm her dog named Fandango and I ran out of there and I was talking to Ruby and so I thought maybe she would have a good idea on how to ask out a girl since, you know, she's a girl and she ended up demanding I tell her who it was I was thinking of asking out and when she thought it was herself I told her I wasn't going to ask her out and I think she got offended or something and so she started crying in the middle of cafeteria then Yang came to beat the crap out of me for making Ruby Cry then Pyrrha saved me then Nora came and... here I am?"

Blake blinked.

"Wow."

Jaune assumed the fetal position. "So as you can see, I'm a little stressed."

A small explosion shook the room.

"Pyrrha and Nora are still going at it," said Blake. "Cheer up, Jaune. It might be good for team unity."

"Two teammates destroying each other leads to team unity... yeah right."

"I was just trying to be optimistic," said Blake.

"Thanks," said Jaune. "I wish I had your sort of optimism. All I see is gloom and impending doom."

"That was rather poetic."

A light-bulb went off in Jaune's head. "That's it! Instead of being a hunter I can be a poet! Yeah! I can live my life in a small country cottage away from everything just writing my ramblings and grow some rice and beans with my sidekick chipmunk."

"Whoa, slow down there," said Blake.

"Yeah, you're right. I should get a puma."

"Do you even know what a puma is?"

"Isn't it a big cat? Oh cats are so fluffy," squealed Jaune. "Cat ears are just so cute."

"Really?"

"Yeah! I think cat ears were look great on a faunus. They can go, 'nyaa nyaa' and wear maid outfits with little bells... Hey! What's that look for? I saw it in a cartoon!"

Blake's bow twitched. "I'm... going to go check on Nora and Pyrrha to make sure they don't hurt each other. You can stay here until this blows over," Blake offered as she holstered her weapons and collected a few potions.

"Good luck!" Jaune said as Blake closed the door behind her.

This was the first time Jaune was alone in a girls-only room. It smelled nice but was less pink than he imagined.

On Weiss' bed, Jaune spotted a bluish notebook peeking from underneath a pillow.

"'Dear diary. Tonight I found Jaune on the roof. It looked like he hurt his leg training. Oh and I did kind of hit with a paper plane to the eye... but still, as embarrassing as it sounds I just couldn't refuse his request. He seemed so helpless and weak I couldn't leave him alone. It seems like there's something always on his mind. I wish he would tell someone. I mean, I'm here-'"

Then the door opened.

"Weiss!" Jaune jumped and quickly shoved the diary back underneath the pillow. "I wasn't reading your diary or anything! I swear I was just-"

"Hello, Jaune Arc," said Yang who was covered in dirt and scratches. Behind her was Ruby who hide behind her sister. "My sis is embarrassed to show her face to the school after what you've done," said Yang. Cracking her knuckles she advanced menacingly. "Clench your teeth."

Jaune woke up some time later after the punch. Yang stood in front of him. Ruby behind her.

Jaune was tied to a chair.

"Go ahead, Ruby. Just say it." Yang urged. Yang stood on standby with folded arms as Ruby stepped forward. She was trembling. "No need to be nervous, sis," said Yang. "All you need to do is look him straight in the eye and just say it."

"Jaune... um... if you're not busy... would you like to go out with me, tonight? Like go out for a stroll around town… maybe get share a crepe..." Ruby averted her gaze away from Jaune. She her hands to her cheeks, blushing and fantasizing of a romantic evening.

Jaune was still tied to the chair.

"Can I say 'no'?"

Yang held her gauntlet to Jaune's family jewels and cocked a dust shell into the chamber. "Do you want to say 'no'?"

Jaune laughed nervously.

"I'm going to go with 'yes'. Haha... I'll pick you up at seven."

It is not enough that my ship sails, all other ships must burn.

Chapter One Fin