*Author's Note*

Hello there readers. For those of you who don't know me, my name is Dravyn LeCrux, author of Love is a Knight-mare (the greatest Ruby and Jaune fiction on this site, as said by me.) Anyhow, this is a new project I was considering while working on LiaK-m. During the series, I had spoken to another author, Shiranai Atsune, and something was said that got me to considering; I need a new pairing. One that's not so done, but seems interesting. One thing led to another, and the RenxVelvet idea was born.

Anyhow, this is an experimental chapter, so let me know if you like it. If you do, I may continue it. No, it won't be slow, like LiaK-m. I plan to have it move faster, because it's a stand-alone chapter, for now. As usual, comments will be welcomed. Constructive criticism, or just support for the story itself is always greatly appreciated, and helps me improve bit by bit.

Now, without further ado, I bring you Down the Rabbit Hole.

"Nora! Give me back my sword!"

"Wahahah! Nope, sorry Jaune. You gotta take it back!"

Ren's day was like any other. He'd been at Beacon a little over a month now, and Nora was still as insufferable as ever. Her hyperactivity had not been curbed by all of the training and studying. If anything, she seemed to get worse at times. At present, she was currently giving his team leader, Jaune Arc, some trouble. Dressed in a black hoodie, simple breast plate armor, and jeans, and with his scraggly blonde hair, Jaune wasn't much to look at. Not in a vain way, but in a fighter's sort. He didn't look imposing. And Nora sometimes loved to take advantage of that.

Nora, hopping around in her pink skirt, short orange hair bouncing everywhere, along with her... assets, Ren was having trouble deciding where to rest his eyes. When Pyrrha tried stepping in to break it up, Ren had decided enough was enough, and left the dorm.

Wandering about Beacon, Ren reflected on the past month. The first day, with Nora making sleep nearly impossible; the test in the Emerald Forest, where he partnered up with his childhood friend and became a team with Jaune and Pyrrha; and all of the classes they had dealt with together. He figured it wasn't so bad. He just wishes Nora would calm down.

Walking through the courtyard, Ren reached the academy's "Open Garden." It was an area where anyone who wanted to could grow whatever they felt like. Ruby, Team RWBY'S leader and a good friend of his and his teammates, liked to grow her namesake here, Roses. Her older sister, Yang, liked to grow sunflowers. And not the small ones either. The massive, six foot tall ones that blocked out the sun from the poor, short plants below them. Blake, another member of the sister's team, liked to grow a plant called Atropa Belladonna. The name sounded sinister to him, so he didn't even try to find out what it was.

As he wandered the gardens, Ren saw a sight that made his heart skip a beat. Leaning down, in a rather large plot, was a young woman. She had long, chocolate brown hair. Her skin was smooth and pale, but not an unhealthy shade. She wore her uniform, and a wide brimmed hat atop her head. Around her neck was a carrot print neckerchief, which she seemed to be using to keep the dirt off of her face.

She was currently digging up and harvesting what appeared to be some vegetables. Getting a slightly better look, Ren saw that she had grown a vegetable garden. Carrots, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers. She'd had quite a variety. And she tended to them with swift, practiced moves. Wanting still a better view, Ren began to move closer. Had he paid attention, Ren would have noticed the hat twitch slightly before the girl turned around to face him. He'd finally gotten a good look at her face. It wasn't cute or sexy. Ren would describe it more as beautiful. Holding a sense of maturity and grace a lot of the girls in Beacon lacked. And her eyes. Those are what captivated Ren. Her eyes were large, very large. And they were a deep, dark black. As Ren looked into them, he was having trouble tearing away.

"Who are you?" She spoke. Her voice was soft, with a slight accent to it. One Ren couldn't exactly place.

"Oh, sorry. I had not meant to disturb you. I was just curious about what you were planting. My name's Lie Ren. Please though, call me Ren."

"Well, hello Ren. My name is Velvet. Velvet Scarletina. If you really want to know, I was growing some fresh produce for myself. I find the lack of good salad options to be awful sometimes. So, I decided to grow my own."

"Impressive. And how'd you get such a large lot?"

"I'd brought my complaint to Professor Ozpin, who told me that I could do something about it myself. When I asked what, he allowed me an extra plot I the garden. I figured that was good enough, so I accepted."

So Ren and Velvet continued to chat, Ren proving to be quite knowledgeable about plants and botany in general. As the time went on, an hour passed. Then another. And another still. Having wasted the day talking, Ren had decided to get on his way back to the dorm. No doubt by now Nora would be going crazy, and he'd have to stop her. As usual.

"It was fun talking, but I should go."

"Oh, okay then. Will umm, will I get the chance to see you again?" Asked Velvet, with eyes as large and deep as a rabbit's.

"Sure. How about we exchange contact information?" Saying so, Ren brought out his scroll. Brushing her hands of the dirt, Velvet did the same. Reaching into her bag, she'd pulled out her own scroll, and the two exchanged info with one another. "How about we meet up tomorrow? Same place?"

"Sure."

"Well then, have a nice day, Velvet."

With that, Ren turned to return to the room. Having decided his day was well spent, Ren decided to catch some Z's and hit tomorrow running. Rarely had he ever been so eager for the next day to come, and to wake up and greet that day.

Entering the dorm, he found Nora harassing Pyrrha this time. She was grabbing at the red haired Amazon's chest. What the hell?

"Nora, what is going on?"

Noticing Ren, Nora's near-permanent Cheshire smile somehow grew even wider, and she scampered away from Pyrrha and over to Ren, where she started on some story about drinking hot chocolate and wanting to compare female chest sizes for "girl time". Pyrrha was being reluctant, so Nora was trying to measure her rather forcefully. In a fight, Pyrrha may be more skilled and agile, but Nora was doubtlessly stronger. Once she'd had her hands on Pyrrha, Nora had the advantage. Poor Pyrrha.

After giving her crazy explanation, Ren scolded her, and sent her to take a nap. After making sure Pyrrha hadn't suffered any mental scars from Nora's assault, Ren settled down and began to consider the night's dinner. He had trouble focusing on food however, because she kept appearing in his thoughts. Velvet.

After preparing dinner, though burning the fish slightly in the process, which upset Nora who loved fish, Ren prepared for bed. Brushing his teeth, Ren's scroll began to beep. Checking the caller ID, Ren saw that it was Velvet. She'd sent him a message.

'Hi Ren. It's me, Velvet. How are you?'

Smiling at the message, he responded.

'Hello Velvet. I'm fine. Looking forward to tomorrow.'

And with this, started a little back and forth between the two that lasted a few minutes until Velvet had to go to bed. Following suit, Ren went to his own bed, climbed in, and drifted to sleep. And as he drifted off, dreaming of carrots, a shadow watched over his sleeping frame.

"You've been with another girl, have you?" Whispered the shadow, to nobody in particular. "I can smell her on you. Damn it, who is trying to take you from me?" Finishing with some teeth grinding, the shadow simply hovered over Ren, watching him as he slept. Watching and, it seems, guarding. But from who? Competition?

In the morning, Ren was up earlier than usual. Getting ready in less time than it takes Pyrrha to beat most of her opponents, Ren was out of the room. Walking with speed and a purpose, Ren soon found himself in the gardens. He remembered the area, and soon he was back at the plot from yesterday. And leaning down, working on her veggie garden, was Velvet. Turning around, she noticed him, and smiled. A simple action that set him at peace.

*Afterword*

So yeah, enjoy it? Yeah, shorter than my average LiaK-m chapter, so meh. Sadly, my brain doesn't work well lately. But again, I hope you all enjoyed it. If there's enough of a demand, I may continue it. But hey, your call. Otherwise, constructive criticism is, as always, encouraged. Or even just support for the story itself, if you liked it. Anyhow, I'm off to bed. Ciao.