AN: Well, I'm back with a new chapter! It didn't turn out as long as I had hoped, but I had found that setting up the relationships was a bit difficult. Once I got that fleshed out, it became easier to write. So I do apologize if this update seems a little light, but I think I've set it up sufficiently enough to make the next chapter come more smoothly. Setting up the Arkos was particularly tough at first, but I think I found a good way to make it bloom, and now hopefully the ship will sail (and write) itself. Also, I think I have a way to get Ren and Nora together (yes, "together-together") so I'm officially making them a pairing in this story. As always, read, review, tell me I'm awful, tell me I'm awesome, suggest plot points, anything you want! Enjoy, and stay awesome!


29 minutes and 55 seconds later, all four members of Team JNPR took their seats aboard the outbound shuttle. As the shuttle spun and jetted towards Vale, Jaune turned away from the window to try to quell his ever-present motion sickness. Come on, Jaune, you don't want to throw up before we get there. It'll be even harder to try to talk to Pyrrha with your breath smelling like vomit. Jaune sighed and looked towards the crimson-haired warrior. With as little time as they had to change out of their school uniforms, Pyrrha still managed to put together an outfit that made her look as beautiful as ever. She was wearing a maroon blouse that showed off her athletic figure well and matched perfectly with her bronze-colored skirt. Her red hair was in its normal ponytail, accented by her bronze circlet, which also brought attention to her flawless emerald eyes. Pyrrha didn't seem to notice Jaune staring, instead talking to Nora, who was excitedly chattering away.

"…and I bet there will be a midway there too! I wonder how many stuffed animals I can win by playing the games. Oh I'm soooo excited!" the orange-haired Valkyrie chirped, as Pyrrha listened on with a genuine, if slightly exasperated smile.

Ren, watching the whole situation with calm magenta eyes, nudged Jaune in the shoulder. "Everything okay there, Jaune?"

Jaune looked to his teammate. "Oh, yeah, everything's fine. Just thinking…about…stuff…"

"Stuff like Pyrrha?" Ren asked with a slight smile.

Jaune jumped a little in surprise at Ren's statement. "What? Ah, I mean, no! No, of course not! Why would you think…?" Jaune trailed off when he saw Ren give him a look of knowing. "Okay, yes, maybe about her."

Ren leaned back, smile still on his face. "Yeah, I figured. It was kind of obvious."

Jaune looked around to see if maybe Pyrrha had caught wind of the conversation. While the shuttle was small, there were enough students aboard the craft sitting in between Jaune and Pyrrha to separate the two conversations. Sighing relief, he turned back to Ren. "It's just that…I don't know…?

Ren chuckled. "Jaune, why don't you just tell her how you feel? It's clear you like her, and the fact that she keeps training with you and wants you to succeed, I'm willing to wager that she likes you too. If she was interested in someone else, she would have moved on by now. But she appears to want to stick by you. Just come out and say it. The worst that could happen is that she just wants to be friends, and that wouldn't really change your current situation, would it?"

Ren had a point. It was time to find out how far this relationship could go. "Yeah, that sounds good!" Jaune said. "And tonight might be the perfect night to tell her!"

Ren smiled. "I'll even help you out. When we get to the carnival, I'll take Nora with me to give you two the chance to be alone."

Jaune looked surprised. "Really? You'd be willing to spend the evening in an excitement and sugar-drenched environment with Nora, just to help me progress with Pyrrha? You're willing to take that bullet? Thanks, Ren!"

"No problem," replied Ren. Besides, he thought to himself with a smile, it's not taking a bullet if you don't mind getting shot…


"So, has he gotten the hint yet?

"Huh?" Pyrrha was drawn out of her stupor by Nora's sudden question. While Nora had been chattering nonstop since the shuttle left Beacon, Pyrrha had sort of zoned out amid discussions of cotton candy and Whack-A-Grimm. "What do you mean, Nora?"

"Oh come on, Pyrrha!" Nora was all serious now. "You've been trying to clue in a certain blonde for weeks now. So, I ask again: Has he gotten the hint?"

Pyrrha blushed. Of course, Nora was right. She had been trying to get Jaune's attention for a while now. Pyrrha had been attracted to the blonde knight ever since she first saw him in Beacon's amphitheater. She even pulled some strings during initiation to get paired with Jaune so she could get to know him better. Well, actually she literally pinned the poor boy to a tree, but little details like that didn't matter. But after weeks of time together, either studying, training or leisure time with team RWBY, Pyrrha felt that the subtle hints she had been leaving about her affection for Jaune weren't getting through to him. Either the boy was too stubborn to get the hint, he was too shy to make the first move, or he simply wasn't interested. "No, unfortunately." She finally replied, slightly defeated.

Nora turned towards her teammate. "Pyrrha, I've seen the way he looks at you. He definitely likes you! He's probably just nervous. You know how boys can be!"

"Yeah," Pyrrha murmured. "But how do I show him that I want to be with him?"

Nora giggled. "You could…oh, I don't know…just kiss him…"

Pyrrha gasped. "Nora! I can't just kiss him!"

"Why not? It'll certainly get his attention! All I'm saying is maybe you need to be a little more…obvious with you feelings."

"Because…what if he doesn't like me back?" Pyrrha asked. What If he's still trying for Weiss, or someone else?"

Nora snorted. "Oh, he gave up on Weiss weeks ago. Jaune even told me himself! He wouldn't tell me everything, but he said that he realized that Weiss wasn't the right person for him, and that there was someone else that he liked, but he didn't know how to tell her…"

Pyrrha was stunned. Is he referring to me? Is he really just trying to figure out how to approach me? I can work with that. Maybe Nora is right. Maybe I have to make the first move… "So, you're saying I should just straight up ask him out?"

Nora sighed. "What I'm saying, Pyrrha, is that if you truly care for Jaune, then you should tell him exactly that. If he rejects you, is it really the worst thing in the world? Although, I'm telling you, he really likes you back."

Pyrrha smiled. "Okay, Nora, I'll give it a shot."

"Great!" Nora chirped. "When we get to the carnival, I'll drag Ren off with me, so you can go do your thing!"

"Thanks!" Pyrrha said. "Are you sure Ren will be okay with that?"

"He won't have a choice!" Nora said with a slight smirk. "Besides, I think it's time for us to move our relationship status up from 'together' to 'together-together'…"

"Attention passengers!" the speaker aboard the shuttle came to life. "Please remain in your seats. We are about to land at the Vale Air Field. We hope you enjoyed the flight!"

"OHHH WE'RE HERE!" Nora squealed. "TIME TO GO HAVE FUN!"