Blake's Mistake
By wildstraydog
Chapter two: "Fake" Date
Thanks so much for the response to this story guys. I really hope this turns out to be a story that you can all love. I also got some tips from some great authors, so expect some improvement in this next chapter. As always please read and review, it only takes a second and I love to see what people think. RWBY belongs to Rooster Teeth and Monty Oum.
Friday had arrived, the awaited day, the day when Blake would assist Jaune by going on...a date. Just saying the word sent a twisted feeling in her gut, something so unbelievable that she thought it was something out of a romance novel she read once. So far Jaune had done as he promised and told no one of their arrangement.
She had received no strange looks from her teammates, and there was no indication from Yang that she suspected anything. The day had been normal for her; going to classes, reading in her spare time, enjoying the antics of Ruby and Yang as they annoyed Weiss. It was only once when Blake passed by Jaune in the halls that he gave her a nervous look, which Pyrrha thankfully misinterpreted as jitters before their training session later that night.
Through discretion and stealth, Blake was able to acquire Jaune's contact info, obtaining it from him through small messages using balled up paper. Just before the end of her last class she contacted Jaune and told him to meet her outside by the docks. Jaune wouldn't be enthusiastic to board a dust ship, so Blake made sure to come prepared.
Blake thought of herself as a very patient person, especially considering her teammates. Though they were nowhere near the excitement level of Nora (lord knows if anyone is), they were a lot to handle. So she enjoyed her alone time whenever possible, treating it like nirvana. She checked her scroll and noticed that Jaune was five minutes late, already a sign of trouble to come.
Paranoia was something Blake avoided, but thoughts of Jaune slipping up and revealing to Pyrrha or even Yang of their plans for the day. She could already picture the teasing and endless jokes that would be thrown upon her, her entire image of being calm and serene thrown down the drain in an instant. She liked to be mysterious, it was her thing.
Her ears caught the stomping of shoes and panting, turning to see Jaune rushing up to her, already out of breathe, and wheezing as he bent over. Blake crossed her arms with an amused expression on her face, and Jaune looked up to catch her stare, letting out a small chuckle. She pulled out her scroll and pointed to the time, tapping her small nails against the screen.
"S-sorry I'm late Blake, I ran into some trouble."
"What kind of trouble, does anyone know?" Blake questioned.
Jaune wiped his brow and shook his head, "No, I made sure of that, but it was difficult to shake off my team with an explanation before they headed to their next classes." Blake let out a sigh and fished in her pockets, pulling out two small blue pills that she thrust in Jaune's face. The blonde knight blinked a couple of times and looked to Blake for help with a confused look.
"Uh...what are these?"
"Medicine for your motion sickness, I don't need you vomiting the whole way there." Blake saw Jaune's eyes light up like a child, examining the pills with a keen eye.
"They make medicine for that," Jaune shouted in excitement. Blake only shook her head and motioned for him to follow. They arrived at the dust ship and found some seats near the front. Jaune took a quick trip to the bathroom so he could down the pills, while Blake sat near the window and looked at Beacon Academy.
It was a secret, but Blake preferred the window seats. Back when she went on missions for the White Fang, she liked to take in the lush scenery of the different kingdoms. It was a habit she never could break, and now unfamiliar face would be sitting next to her, one she never expected to share with.
The date had begun...she would be spending most of the day with Jaune Arc. It sounded weird every time, no matter how she tried to rationalize her situation. Blake scanned the ship to see if she recognized anyone. There weren't many students present. Not surprising because of how early in the day it was, and to Blake that was perfect.
A minute later Jaune rejoined Blake and sat down, putting on his seatbelt and clapping his hands together, bracing for the inevitable lift off. Blake could hear him mumbling some mantra about not vomiting, causing her to worry about any projectiles being shot her way. She didn't have much confidence in his bowel movements, regardless of any medicine.
Their ride turned out to be quiet, Jaune being too nervous to start a conversation and Blake not caring to talk during their ride. Jaune resorted to acting almost like a child as he took in everything in the ship, unable to do so before so many times because of his condition. She was already embarrassed for the boy, and they hadn't even landed yet.
The 30 minute ride went by faster than expected, and Blake and Jaune walked into the city, taking in the breathtaking vistas and large crowds. Jaune had a more confident stride as he walked off the dust ship, as he patted his stomach with a laugh. Blake had to admit that seeing Jaune not fall to his weakness was uplifting. He turned around and looked at Blake with a suspicious grin and scratched the back of his neck.
"What is it Jaune?"
"Well...since you decided to help me today, I went ahead and planned out our first stop...if that's ok with you of course." Jaune lowered his gaze under Blake's fierce golden eyes as they pierced into his ocean blue irises. Blake began to consider the offer.
On a date, a man is usually the one to plan it all out, but this was Jaune; a boy who had little to no experience in the dating world. Blake wouldn't admit it, but she also had not been on a real date, it was one of the main reasons why she was so nervous about their arrangement. All she had to do was give him some advice about girls, and their outing would be over. She wanted this all over quick.
Blake bit her lip and conceded, "What do you have in mind Jaune?" Jaune perked up and pulled out a sheet of paper he cut out of a newspaper.
The paper was crumbled and had numerous creases on it, and a small red stain that looked like ketchup smeared on the corner. Blake didn't want to get her hands dirty so she hovered and read the contents. Brand new coffee shop opening Friday! Come enjoy java at, Java Joes! She was intrigued, it was the first she was hearing of a new coffee shop in Vale, and Blake always enjoyed a nice smooth cup of coffee.
"What do you think?"
"Not bad Jaune, I think it's a nice place to start." Blake shot him a half-hearted grin, relaxing Jaune. They began their trek into Vale, the date off to a somewhat good start. Blake was a little impressed with how thoughtful Jaune had been when picking a location to have lunch.
Java Joe's was a nice little location. A giant golden banner hung over the door with the words Grand Opening sprawled across it. The doors had dark-stained glass and red curved handles, with a striped carpet as a welcoming mat. Blake was hesitant when she opened the door, but was greeted with a soothing aroma that relaxed her. The place was already packed with customers and a waitress in a frilly white skirt and tie welcomed them with a menu.
"How many do you have today, two?" They both nodded, and she led them to a small booth in the corner. When they sat down, the waitress left them and they took in the rest of the establishment.
There was a large mahogany bar with different labeled machines in the middle of the restaurant where several baristas making drinks, flipping cups and shaking containers, the smell of coffee and fresh food mixed together to create an alluring scent. The walls were decorated with paintings from old and lined with red sheets that fell to the floor, the windows had different shaped stars tattered across, while slow jazz-like tunes played in the background.
The menu showed a variety of meals and drinks from coffee to alcoholic beverages. Jaune was scratching his cheek, still indecisive on what to choose. Blake just wanted a simple coffee with cream and two sugars, and a small grilled cheese sandwich. She was simple girl when it came to lunch. Jaune would eventually make up his mind and order a cheeseburger, which seemed strange for a coffee shop.
"This place is a lot different then I imagined." Jaune chuckled, as he attempted to break the ice with Blake. She had to admit though, it was anything than normal.
"I kind of like it, something that exceeded my expectations. Now that were here Jaune, we should get to the reason that we came out." Jaune began to shift uncomfortably in his seat. She could understand his position. It was really the first time he went out alone with a girl. She wouldn't let him know that the feeling was mutual.
"Um...where should we start?"
"Hmm, tell me something Jaune, why have you never asked Pyrrha out?" Jaune almost squirted water out of his mouth and nose, leaning over the table and grabbing some napkins to clean off the water that fell from the cup. Blake hadn't even notice when they received the waters.
"Pyrrha, well...to be honest, I never really thought about her that way. I mean she's beautiful and talented, but she reminds me of one of my sisters." Blake took a sip of her coffee and nodded. She imagined it was something like that. It was too bad for Pyrrha though.
"Explain to me this then. How are you approaching women? Why all the fake bravado and pickup lines? Even you have to know how awful they sound." Jaune fiddled with his fingers and laughed, it a nervous chuckle, but Blake was glad he would at least admit his problems.
"My dad always told me to be confident, so I ran with it."
"Maybe you took it a little too far, I've heard your attempts on Weiss before...there just horrible Jaune." Blake took another sip, the sweet smell dancing on her nose while Jaune lowered his gaze at the table. Perhaps she was a little too hard on him.
"You're right. I don't even know why I tried. I just thought maybe-if I was a little confident, some girl might give me a chance...guess I'm not that interesting huh?" She was definitely too harsh she thought. Blake knew she would have to reel it back it bit.
Silence seemed like the correct response, but it would only reinforce his opinion of himself. Blake decided it would be best to ask the easy questions. She knew nothing about Jaune, so having some information might help her. While awful to admit, Blake did indeed find nothing interesting about Jaune. Her initial impression was that he was some joker who got lucky. Well that might be little too harsh, Blake chastised herself. She couldn't judge someone just on looks.
"Tell me a little about yourself Jaune."
"Me, um...let's see, I come from a small village in Atlas, not near the mountains so it's not that cold in the summer. My house never gets boring, more annoying really since I have seven sisters. It's kinda a small place, not really much to do there really." So Jaune was from Atlas and a small village at that. Blake wondered if some of those influences had an effect on the boy.
"Jaune...what made you fond of Weiss?"
"..." Blake was met with silence again. Is Jaune really that embarrassed to tell me? Blake began to wonder if it was something silly that drove the boy to his unsuccessful whims on wooing the heiress.
"You can tell me Jaune, I promise I won't laugh."
"I never noticed Weiss before the initiation-in fact I had no idea who she was. The more I learned about her, the more I became enamored, inspired, she was so perfect. Someone so far away from me, someone I wanted to aspire to."
Only the chatter of customers beside them filled the silence. Blake was taken back. She never knew Jaune had truly thought of Weiss so deeply, it was touching. A genuine school crush, Jaune cared for Weiss and wasn't interest in her family name. The personal questions had gleam some light on Jaune Arc. His shining qualities weren't in his skills, but his honesty with others.
"Have you ever told her that?"
"Well...no. It doesn't matter now anyway, she likes Neptune. It's why I started asking girls out again that weren't Weiss." Now they were getting somewhere Blake thought, the truth was coming out slowly. Although she was surprised at how fast he recovered...if he ever had.
"Jaune, it sounds like you're a good guy, but you need to be yourself. Don't go around trying to be someone you're not. Honesty is your strong suit, if you tell a girl what you think, you might be surprised." Blake finished the last drop of her coffee and gave a relaxed sigh. Jaune was scratching his chin in thought, mulling over her words.
The world stopped, for a split second everything froze. Not so far in the distance, she could make out the silhouettes of Weiss and Neptune heading for the restaurant, hands embraced, giggling at some joke Neptune cracked. There was very little time. Blake had to act fast before they noticed Jaune was with her.
"Jaune don't say anything, and get under the table now."
Before he could voice a protest, Blake kicked Jaune in the knee under the table and forced him under. Jaune was met with pitch black, trying his hardest not to stare at Blake's legs, blushing as he closed his eyes. Blake tried her best to shift herself so she looked comfortable and heard the bell on the entrance ring. She asked for another cup of coffee and pulled out her scroll to make herself look busy.
"Blake is that you, well what a surprise," Weiss said in excitement. "Are you also checking out this new coffee joint?" Weiss and Neptune strolled over with wide smiles. Blake pretended to be surprise (not that she wasn't) and greeted them.
"Yes...I came out to buy some new books and decided to check the place out before I went shopping. I like it, it's different." Blake took a sip of her coffee, not noticing that her hand was shaking the cup, spilling some of the black liquid onto the table.
"Where's Sun, I'm surprised he didn't ditch to come with you." Neptune asked, looking back and forth to see if he was hiding. Sun was the last person she wanted to know about her little rendezvous with Jaune. The Faunus would have caused uproar of mayhem.
"No, I came alone...I needed some alone time."
"Tell me about it, Ruby and Yang can be so irritating sometimes. That's why I and Neptune got out early today."
Jaune tried to get comfortable under a table with only darkness and hit his head against the top, causing the table to hop, and Blake to almost drop her coffee. Weiss and Neptune looked at her with suspicion and she began to chuckle, waving it off as an accident.
"Are you two out on a date?"
"A d-date? This is just a simple outing between two good friends, nothing more." Weiss crossed her arms and blushed. Neptune gave off a small shrug and went to go find a table. Weiss gave Blake a small glare and puffed her cheeks.
"I'll see you back at the room Blake." Weiss turned around with a huff and followed Neptune, both finding a table near the back of the restaurant. If Jaune was to escape unseen, she would need a distraction.
She had to thank her scroll for bailing her out. She began to message Jaune that he would have to sprint for the door after she caused a distraction so Weiss and Neptune would not see him. If Jaune was caught the whole point of their trip being secret was for naught. Blake looked around and noticed a waitress carrying some plates full of food, and decided to be drastic. Blake pulled out some lien and left it on the table, she didn't want to be a criminal and not pay.
"Excuse me," Blake mumbled. The waitress tipped over and spilled the contents of the meal onto the floor. Pieces of cheese and coffee staining the carpet.
It was the perfect distraction Jaune needed. Blake bent over to help the waitress clean the mess, while Jaune slipped from under the table and ran for the door. Weiss and Neptune's eyes were focused on Blake, unaware as Jaune ran past the window behind them. When Blake was done helping and apologizing, she ducked out of the restaurant with a blush on her cheeks. The accident may have been intentional, but that didn't make it any less embarrassing.
Around the corner Jaune leaned against a wall next to a small red bench and a fountain, tapping his foot in worry about Blake's absence. When she appeared he rushed over and began stuttering, unable to find his words. The whole event went by so fast that Jaune was still trying to comprehend what had happened.
"Are you okay Blake, what happened?"
"Weiss happened...I didn't expect them to be here."
"Well yeah...Weiss has been talking about this place for a whole week now. I...guess I should have told you do that before huh?" Blake let out a sigh and checked her scroll, it had been hour since they arrived in Vale, so she figured they could blow off some steam a bit more.
A sudden idea hit here, something simple, a way for her to relax after the arduous last hour. Perhaps even Jaune might find it a bit entertaining. Hope was the keyword, it was hard for others to find the same excitement she did in her hobby, which was a shame she thought.
"Jaune, would you like to go to the book store?"
"Yeah sure, sounds fun." That was a quick response.
The two of them walked in downtown Vale, passing students, citizens, and police as they made their way to a local bookshop that Blake had come to fancy when she had arrived. It was a small store, unlike the bigger franchises, but it still held a wide variety of titles and new releases. Blake had even managed to find a few rare titles she had been searching for. The owner of the shop was nice too, and even a Faunus.
They arrived at the shop called Tukson's Book Trade, and Blake led Jaune inside, surprised to not be greeted by Tukson himself with his corny catchphrase for the shop. Instead a younger gentleman with short brown hair in curls greeted them with a smile. Blake peered around the individual to see if she could spot anyone behind him, but saw no indication that Tukson was there.
"If you're looking for Tukson he's gone I'm afraid.
"Where did he go?" Tukson loved his shop, and she found it hard to believe that he would just up and leave it in Vale without good reason. She wanted to believe he was safe, that he left for vacation and wasn't bullied out of the town for being a Faunus running a business. Or even worse wrapped up in some White Fang scheme.
"Oh don't worry, Tukson's fine, he just decided to retire is all. I'll be here running the business here for him, is there anything you need?" Blake gave the gentleman a sharp glare, looking for any signs that he was lying. She could find none in his innocent amber eyes, so she shook her head and returned to Jaune.
She began to look around the shop, heading for the romance section, absorbed in her own world, examining all the titles before her with a studious eye. Whenever a particular book caught her attention, she would slip it out and feel the wrapping, skimming some of the pages, and taking in the smell of new or old paper. So absorbed in her world, she forgot that Jaune was behind her, her cheeks tinted with red.
"How did you become such an avid reader Blake?" Jaune asked as he picked up a book and blushed as he saw the rather risqué title. Blake was thankful he didn't ask too many questions about her taste in titles.
"Back when I was...working, I was alone, no family really to speak of," Blake began with a soft whisper. "One of my old friends gave me a book to read, and I fell in love with it. Just escaping from reality and diving into a brand new world, the troubles around me fading into the dark," Blake noticed she had rambled and coughed.
"I never really read too much when I was young."
"Tell me Jaune, what interests you, do you like fantasy?"
"Hmm," Jaune cupped his chin and again fell into deep thought. Blake found it curious that Jaune had his own thinker pose.
The blonde knight was dragged by Blake into another section of the store labeled fantasy, and she began inspecting the aisles. There was one book that she had read in the past that hooked her onto fantasy, she was sure even an illiterate boy like Jaune could enjoy it. After a few minutes she spotted the title and handed it to Jaune.
"Try this Jaune. I think you will enjoy it: it's a story about three huntsmen whose lives are chronicled across the ages. Their lives soon become intertwined as a great war begins to ravage the land." Jaune looked at the book, rubbing the leather cover and smiled.
"T-thanks Blake...no one's ever given me something like this before." She turned around and hid the small blush that crept onto her cheeks, and led Jaune to the counter so they could checkout.
It was 3:43 when Jaune and Blake arrived back at Beacon Academy. Once they left the bookstore Blake saw no reason for them to stay any longer. There wasn't much advice to give Jaune, except for him to be himself. Blake actually found the outing somewhat enjoyable, except for their brief run-in with Weiss and Neptune. To Jaune's surprise Blake had another set of pills to give him for the return trip, and vowed to always visit the nurse's office before heading out on a trip.
"It's the best invention ever," Jaune exclaimed.
Walking with each other to the dorms would not be to suspicious Blake had thought, so she didn't mind Jaune escorting her like a proper gentleman. If there was one thing Blake had learned about Jaune on there "date", it was that Jaune was honest to a fault. His only problem was that he was too unsure of himself. Before heading further into the hall, Jaune turned to Blake and began to fiddle with his thumbs.
"So...how did I do today?"
"Well Jaune, you did a fine job actually. Of course that doesn't mean you don't need work. You have confidence issues, but you can work around that. Just do what you did with me ok?" Blake gave Jaune a rare smile and walked away, heading for her room.
Her job was done. There was nothing more she could tell Jaune. Whatever he planned to do with that knowledge was up to him, though she hoped the boy wouldn't just dart off to find some unwilling girl to ask out on a date. Blake would be lying if she said she didn't want to see which girl chose to accept his offer. In her opinion Jaune deserved a chance, and any girl would be lucky to have him.
Wow, I can't believe I said that, Blake thought, her bow wiggled a little, and she approached her door. She could hear no screaming from the other side, a strange silence filling her ears. She turned the golden knob and opened the door, attacked by an unknown fluffy object that obscured her vision for only a second...a pillow.
"And where have you been sneaky cat?" Yang began to chuckle.
Instead of heading for his room, Jaune took the new book Blake had gotten for him and headed for the library, ready to give the story a chance. Jaune had never really sat down and read a novel before, he found it boring as a child, and just bought comics for the cool illustrations. He wasn't a child anymore, he was 17, and if he could survive reading a textbook, then Jaune could try the novel.
The library was empty, and with free reign, Jaune decided to scope out a nice quiet spot to sit down and begin the book. Getting past the first page was always difficult for him, so he would need all the concentration he could muster. Jaune navigated through the large shelves that made a maze and turned the corner, crashing into a wall. Books flew everywhere and slips of paper floated down onto Jaune's face.
"Ow, oh my god I'm so sorry, I-I didn't mean to hurt you!" Jaune began to panic and collected the books that fell, finally noticing who he knocked down. When Jaune looked up, he blushed, almost dropping the books back onto the ground. The girl had long brown hair, brown eyes, and a pair of long cute bunny ears. She looked familiar, but he couldn't place where.
"You're name is Jaune right?"
"Um...yeah," Jaune stuttered.
"My name is Velvet, it's nice to meet you."
