House of Lancaster
It was a rare thing for Jaune to find time to himself. With his nightly training with Pyrrha and his week days filled with classes, there was only the weekends, most of which was spent catching up on homework, and for history, actually trying to learn what had been said in class. Professor Oobleck was great, but he spoke way too fast to actually hear anything. Let alone learn it. So when he finally managed to sneak out off his dorm room, for which he had Nora's obnoxiously loud snoring to thank, he made his way out of Beacon to the edge of the cliffs where he settled down under a large Oak who's roots made for a perfect seat.
Or, at least, that would have been his plan, were it not for him spotting a vague outline of a hooded figure sitting just where he had planned to sit. He grumbled to himself internally about his seat being poached, then turned to walk away, only to stop as a familiar voice reached his ears. "Jaune? What are you doing out here?"
The blonde in question looked back, meeting silver pools that reflected the broken moon that hung in the sky. He frowned at the question. "I could ask you the same." He retorted, before Ruby stood with a shrug, pushing the hood of her cloak back.
"You could..." Ruby replied, dragging out the word. "But I asked first." She replied, sticking her tongue out at the Knight.
Jaune sighed, waving a hand at the girls feet. "Well, I was coming out to sit and enjoy the view, but I guess it's taken."
Ruby looked down at the base of the tree, tilting her head in thought. "There's enough room for both of us. This tree is huge!" She fell back down against the base of the tree, one of the many twisted, rows of roots providing a good seat, and true to her word, room enough for another. Just.
It wasn't until Jaune sat beside her that he truly realised just how close they were sitting. The tree behind them had warped and twisted during its growth, making something like a loveseat in the trunk. No doubt, some strange Semblance could be thanked for that. But with Jaune being acutely aware of how their bodies pushed against each other as they were, thoughts of how the tree came to be were not on his mind. Even Ruby seemed more than slightly annoyed at the constant jabbing from his elbow.
After a few moments and several apologies as they both shuffled to get comfortable, Ruby lifted Jaune's arm, then draped it over her shoulder, elbow now out off the way, the Reaper angled herself so she could rest against him and the tree behind them.
A faint warmth settled in the face of the young Knight as he ask but cuddled up with possibly one of the most dangerous girls he had ever met (Not including his mother, he quickly added to himself) and he couldn't help but notice how warm she was. It was a losing battle, but eventually he relaxed, letting the smaller girl lean into him, while he wrapped his one arm around her, keeping her close. After a few minutes passed in silence, and not the uncomfortable, awkward silence that usually followed him, Jaune noted, he spoke, remembering that she had dodged the question earlier. "So... I answered, now what about you? What are you out here for?"
Ruby remained silent, her eyes locked out over the forest. When Jaune playfully nudged her, she looked up at him, her silver eyes bright with determination, fierce and with a hint of something else that Jaune couldn't quite place. If the look in her eyes, as well as just how close those eyes were to his, wasn't scaring him so much, then he may have noticed the bright blush that had burned itself into her cheeks, all but blending with the crimson of her cape.
"You." The girl stated with as much conviction as she could manage. Which, for a fifteen year old girl, who uses one of the most deadly weapons, was a fair bit of conviction.
"Pardon?" Jaune replied with his usual wit, finding the words the articulate himself horribly, as per usual. He internally kicked himself, shaking his head to himself, before suddenly stopping as he watched as Ruby all but droop in his arms. "I mean, I didn't expect- Not that I don't like you- I do like you, lots! But-" His rushed, stammered explanation was cut off abruptly by a warm pressure upon his lips. It only lasted a few seconds, and by the time Ruby had moved back, all he could do was move his hand to touch his lips. For a few seconds, he didn't even realise what had happened.
"Yang said that it would be best to make it as obvious as possible... Because, you know... You're not that good with people- like me. But I like you, and I hope you like me, so I figured I may as well try and see if you are, and the most direct thing I could think of was to kiss you and see what happens and it turns out my heart beats really really fast and-" Ruby's chatter, which had slowly grown faster and faster until it reached speeds that rivled even that of Professor Oobleck, was promptly cut off by Jaune leaning forward into her lips. A startled 'umph!' came from the girl, before she melted into the kiss. Fully enjoying the soft touch of the young man's lips.
Jaune, on the other hand, had switched off somewhere along the way, his mind failing him, so he just allowed his body to move. Much like Pyrrha had taught him to trust his instincts, they never failed him. She really was the best friend ever, a small, distant past of his mind thought. He pulled back from the girl after a few moments, his own cheeks just as warm as hers, now. All he could hear, for miles, was the sound of his own heart. "I like you, too." He stated after he noticed the look of expectation from the younger girl. Her eyes lit up with sheer joy, even as she spun around, jumping into his lap and wrapping her arms around him, pulling him into one of Yang's signature bear hugs... With a lot less strength, though it was certainly more than noticeable, if the way air vanished from his lungs was any indication. "Ruby! Can't... Breathe...!" The poor knight managed to gasp out, taking a large gulp of breath as soon as she released him.
"Ehehe, sorry Jaune." She apologised, giving a small, sheepish smile, one that didn't detract from the joy in her eyes in the slightest. The Knight couldn't find it in himself to be upset with the girl, and simply returned the smile in kind.
A few seconds ticked by, and his smile slowly faded. "Yang's gonna kill me." He uttered, shaking his head in acceptance of his impending demise. Ruby could only giggle in response.
"Nah, she said it's fine. Something about you knowing what would happen if you did anything." The reaper cheerfully commented, doing little to set Jaune's mind at rest. "Besides, I wouldn't let her." She quipped, leaning forward and resting her head against his chest, arms working their way around his body once more. His own arms coiled around Ruby, finding a strange, unfamiliar sensation in the simple act. He couldn't quite put his finger on what it was, as just seconds later, a shutter noise could be heard from just to the side, much like the one from a scroll's camera, followed by a blinding flash of light. The two looked towards the light, being able to make out a yellow blur quickly retreating from the scene.
"YANG!" Ruby was the first to react, all but ripping Jaune's arms off as she disentangled herself and took off after the retreating figure, leaving Jaune in a storm of rose petals. He took a second to process what had happened, then jumped to his feet just as quickly as Ruby had, taking off after the siblings.