I'll be completely honest, I saw Exvnir's picture (Cover Art), then I saw a picture by 'GrapesWithCoffee' on reddit and thought, 'What the hell, why not make a Lancaster Valentines.'. This is the result of following through with such thoughts.
Where's My Chocolates!?
It was Valentines day, a day that Ruby both loved and hated. Loved because it meant that she could potentially get free candy, mostly chocolates, from her friends and other classmates, but hated because the same candy could be a symbol of someone's affection for her. And if there was anything Ruby truly knew about herself, it was not having a clear understanding when it came to love. In fact, she had never really gone out on a date with anyone, or even kissed a boy, though that might be because of Yang's overprotective tendencies.
Getting back on topic, Ruby didn't feel like leaving her team's dorm room on the off chance that someone did have their eyes on her. Unfortunately for her, they had classes today and, by school obligation, she and her team were forced to attend class and risk getting candy from their fellow peers. However, there was one exception to her rule, one person that she wouldn't mind getting a chocolate from. Jaune Arc, the blonde dorky knight that managed to catch Ruby's attention, and shortly after, her own heart.
Ruby couldn't exactly tell you the exact reason why she cared for Jaune, but she could give a decently sized list of the things about him. And while it was a bit frustrating that he was pinning for Weiss, Ruby knew that the Heiress wasn't going to return the feelings. So, the young reaper let out a heavy sigh as she turned the page in her book. Unfortunately, she also forgot that the rest of her team was with her in the room and all turned to her when she sighed.
"What's wrong sis?" Yang asked, looking up from her scroll with a somewhat worried glance.
"It's nothing, I just wish today would be done already." Ruby said, getting the other three members to raise an eyebrow before realization entered Yang's head.
"Oh~? What's wrong Sis, worried some boy might give a box of chocolates?" Yang said, getting the other to raise an eyebrow in response while Ruby buried her head deeper into her book.
"Oh please, just because today's Valentine's Day doesn't mean you have to get chocolates." Weiss said, getting the Yang and Blake to look at her. "To be honest, I'd prefer that I don't receive anything. You never know how people may act when giving out chocolates." Weiss said, before Blake rolled her eyes and Yang snapped her fingers.
"You're just worried that Jaune might try his luck today, aren't you?" Yang said, her smirk growing when Weiss simply 'hmph'ed' in response. "What about you Blake? Excited to get some chocolates? Maybe from a certain monkey Faunus?" Hearing that Blake simply let out a sigh before she marked her book and closed it.
"Yes Yang, I'm just dripping with anticipation." Blake said before she shook her head. "I've never really celebrated Valentine's day, I'd be surprised if I do get something from someone other than Sun." Yang simply shrugged before she looked back at Ruby.
"Don't sweat to Ruby, handing out chocolates more like a formality at this point. If you get some, when whoopee, you got free candy." Yang said, smiling when Blake and Weiss nodded in agreement. Calming down a bit, Ruby slowly removed herself from her book with a smile before she also smiled.
"You know Yang? You're right, I shouldn't have to worry about getting candy." Ruby said, getting her sister to nod. Just as Ruby started to get back into her book, the four looked towards their door after it received a quick series of knocks. Giving a quick look at her teammates, Ruby looked back at the door when all of them shrugged in response. "Who is it?"
"It's me! Can I come in?" A voice called back, getting Ruby to smile before she looked at her team for confirmation. Receiving two shoulder shrugs and another 'hmph' Ruby called back.
"Sure, come on in Jaune." Hearing that, the doorknob quickly turned before the door was pushed open. Once it did, the four girls were surprised to see the blonde was currently balancing three large baskets in his arms as he slowly made his way inside. Once he was in the center of the room, the blonde slowly set the baskets down took a moment to catch his breath before he looked back at Team Ruby.
"Hey girls, how has your day been?" Jaune asked, only getting silence in response. Letting out a nervous chuckle, the blonde rubbed the back his head before he grabbed one of the baskets. "A-anyway, since today's Valentine's day, I thought 'What better way to celebrate than to get something for each of my friends?'." The blonde said as he picked up one of the baskets and held it out to Blake.
"This is mine?" Blake asked, getting Jaune to nod.
"Yep, since I see you reading, I figured I should buy you a few books. I don't know what you like to read so there's different genres…as well as a few chocolates in case you get hungry." Jaune said, smiling at Blake when she looked through the baskets and pulled out the various book. While she did, Jaune grabbed the second basket and held it out to Yang. "For Yang, I got some boxing stuff, including tape and a pair of gloves as well as some movies that have a lot of fighting in them, as well as some more chocolates."
"Aw, you didn't' have to." Yang said before she began to dig into the basket, smiling at the movies she pulled out before she took one of the chocolates and took a bite. Smiling at Yang's surprised yet satisfied face, Jaune picked up the last basket and handed it to Weiss. "And for you Snow Angel, a quality tea set complete with a tea pot, tea cups, coasters and an assortment of quality tea I thought you might like." Jaune said, smiling when Weiss stared a little dumbfounded.
"T-thank you," Weiss said, getting Jaune to smile. Seeing the other receive personalized gifts, Ruby was practically ready to burst at what Jaune was going to give her.
"Well, that's I all got for now." Jaune said, smiling at the girls before he turned around and walked towards the door. "I hope you girls enjoy your things." The blonde said before he opened the door and left. Once the door clicked shut, silence blanketed the room as the older members of Team Ruby looked towards their leader. Seeing the heartbroken look on Ruby's face, they winced.
"M-maybe he forgot about yours?" Yang offered, wincing even more when Ruby's face turned even sadder. A quick smack from Blake later, and the Faunus tried her best to cheer Ruby up.
"He probably went to get it. He was having trouble carrying ours as it was." The Faunus offered, getting Yang to nod in agreement. "Just wait, he'll be back any minute with yours." Ruby nodded in agreement as she stared at the door. Unfortunately, after 20 minutes of waiting, Jaune hadn't returned resulting in Ruby being heartbroken once more as the class bell rang out.
"Ruby? You coming to class?" Yang asked, stopping at the door when she saw that Ruby was still in the process of getting ready.
-0-0-0-
After a few more minutes, Ruby found herself in Professor Port's class, tuning out the man's story of how he serenaded a princess from a bandit tribe. As the day went on, Ruby couldn't help but wonder why the blonde knight she fell for hadn't given her a basket that he obviously prepared for her teammates.
Even when she received a large amount of chocolates from other students, some of which were blushing and stuttering around her, Ruby couldn't help but wonder why Jaune had yet to come her with a basket or even chocolates. It wasn't until she realized that she received another chocolate from a rather good-looking student that Ruby's mind focused on one thing. Looking at the chocolate in her hand, Ruby's finger began to curl around it before she crushed it and let the broken pieces fall to the floor.
"He didn't give me chocolates…" Ruby said quietly, in the process, scaring the student that just watched her crush the chocolate in her hand. "He didn't give me chocolates!" Ruby said, lifting her head to glare at the unfortunate student that was still in front of her. "Who does he think he is?!" Ruby asked, her eye focusing on the student as the ran away from her. Looking at her hand again, Ruby immediately look up and narrowed her eyes before she began to walk through the halls.
With her body moving on autopilot, Ruby could only shift her eyes back and forth in search of a certain blonde. Making a few turns, and ignoring a few more chocolate bearers, Ruby's eyes widened when she found her target, Jaune Arc, currently giving a small box to a girl that was carrying a crossbow. As soon as she heard the girl release a laugh, Ruby narrowed her eyes and slowly began to make her way towards the two.
"ARC!" Ruby shouted, getting the two to stop and look at her. She must've looked fearsome since Jaune and the girl immediately froze in place. "You have some nerve buster!" Ruby said once she reached them, raising her finger and to jab Jaune in his chest. "Where do you get off giving everyone else something for Valentine's day?" The reaper asked, jabbing her finger into Jaune repeatedly. Unfortunately, it didn't seem to have the any effect as Jaune simply let out a sigh when he noticed the girl was gone.
"Look Ruby, I sorry but I don't have anything right now. Plus, I on kinda on a time limit right now." Jaune said, gently grabbing Ruby's wrist before moving it to her side. "We'll talk about this later, okay?" The blonde said before he began to walk way. Unfortunately, Jaune failed to see how angry Ruby really was and, as such, didn't pay attention to how red Ruby turned.
In the blink of an eye the reaper moved, running up to Jaune, Ruby jumped up high and grabbed the sides of Jaune's head before she opened her mouth and shot forward. It took Jaune 1.022 seconds for him to realized what Ruby did and another 2.034 seconds for her actions to register in his nervous system. Once everything clicked, anyone who happened to pass by were greeted to Jaune doing his best to shake Ruby off while the young reaper continued to chew on Jaune's head.
"ARGH! RUBY! PLEASE GET OFF!" Jaune shouted as he continued to shake Ruby off.
"WHERE'S MY CHOCOLATES?!" Ruby called back, doing her best to bury her teeth deeper into the blonde's skull.
"SERIOUSLY RUBY! I DON'T HAVE TIME TO PLAY AROUND!" Jaune said, gritting his teeth when he managed to get a hold of Ruby and pull her away. After a few painful tugs, Jaune managed to free himself from Ruby's mouth, dropping her to the floor as he ran off. "Sorry Ruby! I promise we'll talk later!" Jaune called back before he turned the corner. As he left, Jaune missed the sight of Ruby falling to her knees before sniffling, a chocolate heart that was given to her earlier broken in front of her.
-0-0-0-
"I just don't know what happened?" Yang whispered, looking back at Ruby's curtain covered bed after hearing her sniffle.
"You think she's still bent over Jaune not giving her anything?" Blake whispered back, getting Weiss to roll her eyes.
"Please, I'll admit, that dunce know how to make a good gift, but that can't be the reason why Ruby's like…this." Weiss chimed in, motioned to Ruby's bed.
"Well, if it is Vomit Boy…he's going to regret making my baby sister cry." Yang said, catching her fist in her hand.
"I can hear you, you know." Ruby called out, getting the three to wince. "And what happened doesn't concern you."
"Ruby, your my baby sister. Anything that makes you cry does concern me." Yang said, looking back at Weiss and Blake to see them nod in agreement. "Just tell me if Vomit Boy's involved."
"Yang…" Ruby said before she let out a tired sigh. Before she could continue, a knocking on the girls' door made them jump.
"Who is it?" Yang called out, only to be met with silence.
"It's Jaune…" A voice eventually called back, getting the three older girls to look at one another before Yang walked to the door and opened it up, cracking just enough to see Jaune with his hand behind his back. "Hey Yang, is Ruby here?" Jaune asked as soon as he saw the blonde brawler.
"Ruby's in the middle of something, come back later." Yang said, placing a hand on her hip before she began to close the door. It didn't get to close because Jaune place his foot in the doorway and spoke up.
"Yang, please. I promised Ruby that I would talk to her later and an Arc never goes back on their word." Jaune said, his voice a bit more stern. Yang only got to open her mouth before she felt someone place a hand on her shoulder. Looking back, Yang was surprised to see Ruby standing next to her, her hair a bit disheveled, but otherwise she looked the fine. Casting a look towards her younger sister, Yang gave Ruby a nod before she moved out of the way.
"Hey Jaune," Ruby greeted, doing her best to smile at the blonde.
"Hey, Ruby," Jaune said, lowering his head a bit. "I'm sorry…for, you know, dropping you earlier." Jaune said, getting Ruby to nod. "Can…can we talk out here, real quick?" The blonde asked, getting Ruby to look back and see that her team were 'suspiciously' doing their own things. Turning back to Jaune, Ruby gave a quick nod before she stepped out and closed the door.
Once the door was closed, Jaune let out a sigh before he removed his left hand from behind his back. In it, was a large heart shaped box that was wrapped in a ribbon with a tag that read 'To: Ruby'. Once she saw it, Ruby let out a quick gasp before focusing back on Jaune.
"Is that…?"
"I know it's not like those baskets I gave the others, but I wanted yours to be special." Jaune said, smiling sheepishly. "I was going to bring it over, but Nora ate my first attempt." The blonde continued as Ruby took the box and opened it. Inside were strawberries…chocolate coated strawberries. Before Ruby could thank Jaune, the blonde brought his right hand out, revealing another box, this one slightly larger, with a heart on it that read 'From: Jaune.'
Taking the second box, Ruby opened and felt her eyes water before she closed it and gave Jaune a hug.
"Happy Valentine's Day Ruby…" Jaune said before Ruby crashed her lips into his. Despite fearing Jaune's reaction, Ruby didn't remove herself until the need for air became a priority. Once she did, the two were left breathing heavily and in a deep shade of red.
"Thanks Jaune…" Ruby said, getting Jaune to nod before Ruby let him go.
"Uh…right! I'll just…uh…I'll see you tomorrow then…right?" Jaune asked, stumbling over his words as Ruby leaned against her door. "Good night Ruby." Jaune said before he opened his team's door and stumbled in. Ruby giggled at Jaune before she turned around and opened her own team's door, revealing Blake, Yang and Weiss waiting for her.
-0-0-0-
"Ruby, c'mon! We're going to be late to Oobleck's class!" Yang called out as she followed the others down the hall.
"Coming!" Ruby called back before she looked at the desk her team shared, specifically the two models of her and Jaune that were holding one another. Blushing at the two models, Ruby nodded to herself before she ran out of her team's dorm.
And that's that. Not that bad if I do say myself but then again, this is only around 2600 words, so it might not be much. Anyway, I was also thinking of a 'Knightshade' Valentine fic but, with an older cast.