A/N: And the followers keep growing O.O Thank you all for staying tuned to the Moonbunny network, I am your host for tonight. We're a little light on the humor today, I must say. Lights, camera, drama!

I am currently in the early planning stages for an AU fic featuring Jaune as a Bullhead pilot. Anybody know a good place to learn actual flight terminology and procedures? Also looking for a co-author or beta for said fic.

Disclaimer: I have been playing a crap-ton of Zelda:BoTW. That is all.

xXxXx

Jaune pulled at his collar as the bullhead landed in Vale and he stepped off. His motion sickness had gotten better compared to when he first came to Beacon, but it still felt a bit nauseating when he didn't have anyone there to talk to and distract him.

The clock on his scroll read '9:30'. Walking to the meet up spot by the docks would take about fifteen minutes, so he was actually early for the date; however, knowing that did little to settle his nerves. 'Focus on making a good first impression, Jaune. Wait, we kind of already know each other. Nevermind, just keep focused!'

He was snapped out of his thoughts by his scroll buzzing. Jaune brought it up thinking it was Velvet messaging him, so it surprised him to see that it was from Yang.

[If I have you figured out like I think I do, Vomit Boy, you're probably freaking out about doing things right; but have some faith that you're gonna have a good time, okay? Velvet's a big girl, she can handle the normal you. Don't be fancy, be honest. Be you; and, if you can, start things off with a Yang!]

Jaune found himself smiling as he put his scroll away. 'I never thought I'd be cheered up by a pun, but I can't help feeling better about this. Today is going to be a good day.'

Nerves? What nerves?

The few clouds that were in the sky reflected perfectly off of the coastal water, bringing to mind childhood dreams of being a pirate. It struck him as funny that he considered that to be a viable career choice when his job path now involved apprehending such ne'er-do-wells; well, and killing Grimm.

He arrived at his destination fifteen minutes before the hour, a small statue of a sailor with his stoic gaze aimed over the horizon. Velvet wasn't there yet so Jaune decided to plant himself on the statue's base and mimic the rusted hunk of metal, scrunching his face into something between 'contemplative' and 'scowl'. After a minute of maintaining that pose he heard the distinctive click of a camera shutter and couldn't help but laugh. "I had a feeling you wouldn't be able to resist!"

Velvet did her best to stifle her own laugh with the back of her hand. "It was just so funny! Most of us make fun of 'Ye Olde Sailor', not pose as him." She was wearing a modest red tank top with a blue sweater covering her shoulders and arms. Her jeans formed to her hips and legs without pressing tightly, giving her an all-around comfortable look. The camera (which Jaune could now identify as a DSLR) was worn with a strap around her neck. He only realized he was staring when Velvet continued talking, "It's good to see you, Jaune. I didn't make you wait, did I?"

"Nah, I only just got here in time to do the pose." His hand instinctively went to the back of his head as part of his nervous habit, but that didn't stop the smile from spreading on his face. "You look great, Velvet."

"Thanks, Jaune, but I think you look even better than I do." She stuck her tongue out playfully, not bothering to hide the blush on her face.

Jaune took the words a bit too far, however. "Oh, uh... did I overdress for this?"

"You're fine, I promise. I think Coco would have been angry if you didn't look that good." Velvet put on an imaginary pair of sunglasses and did her best impression of her leader. "His job is to make you look good, Velv. If he underdresses for this I'll have to set him straight."

The air between them was silent for a moment, only to be broken by them both cracking up with laughter. Some people walking by gave them odd looks, but neither of them could bring themselves to care. So what if they looked weird? They were having fun.

The pair walked along the docks, going anywhere and nowhere as they chatted. Eventually, they wound up in one of Vale's quieter parks. Velvet would occasionally stop and snap a picture of the scenery, but the silence that would occur at those times was comfortable rather than stiff.

The conversation was great, until...

"Please tell me your family has a picture of you with that ponytail, Jaune."

"I ordered them to delete it, but I'm pretty positive that Violet printed out a copy first. I caught Dad laughing over it once." Jaune stopped and stared into the distance, seeing something that wasn't there. His mind began to replay memories he didn't want.

"Sorry, son. I know I said we would train today, but I've got some errands to run."

Naturally, Velvet noticed. "Jaune? What's wrong?"

"It's just..." He lowered his head in thought. "I was thinking about everything that's led me to this point. Coming to Beacon, being a team leader. Have I told you what my family said to me before I left for initiation?" She shook her head. "They said 'It's okay if you mess up, Jaune. We'll be waiting for you here!' My own family didn't have faith in me, and it... It hurt pretty bad knowing that."

Velvet took a moment to find a nearby bench and walked over to it, gently pulling him by the hand. As they sat down she asked, "Why wouldn't they believe in you? You work as hard as anybody else in your year, they must have seen that as you trained in the time before Beacon."

Jaune paused before answering. How much could he tell her? Would Velvet still want to be involved with him if she knew what he did to sneak into the school? Idly, he took out his scroll and began fiddling with it. His eyes snapped to a section of the screen as Yang's message reopened.

[Velvet's a big girl-] His breath hitched. [-be honest.] Jaune took a moment to steel himself.

'Do or die time, I guess.'

"I didn't have any kind of training. I never went to combat school, and my father refused to teach me anything about fighting. Hell, I didn't even know what Aura was before initiation, much less have mine unlocked." Out of the corner of his eye he saw Velvet's eyebrows raise with an unasked question. His voice lowered to a whisper. "Velvet, I forged my transcripts to get into Beacon."

Velvet felt her mind go blank at that sentence; not out of anger or any such emotion, but sheer incredulity. 'He managed to fake his way into Beacon?' She was tempted to ask for details on the forging, but was dissuaded when she looked at his face. He was tense and looking down at the ground, like a child that expected to be yelled at. She decided to be as gentle as she could while she wrapped her head around everything. "How... did you survive initiation without your Aura unlocked?"

Simple answer there. "Pyrrha. She pinned me to a tree to catch my fall from the launch pad, and then unlocked my Aura as we walked to where the relics were. Without her being there to save me, I would've been paint on the forest floor."

"Okay. My next question is: who knows about your transcripts besides me?"

He still couldn't bring himself to look her in the eyes. "Pyrrha again; also Cardin, but that's another story."

"Cardin!?" The volume of her voice surprised both of them, and she flushed in embarrassment as she continued, "Why would Cardin know about that?"

"He overheard me telling Pyrrha. Apparently his room is the one right below the rooftop where she and I train." A laugh escaped from his lips. "Taught me to be careful of what I say and where I say it."

She was silent for a moment. "I see. My last question is- well, I want you to look at me, Jaune." He complied, expecting to see disappointment reflected in her eyes; instead, he saw... caring. Velvet's eyes held no judgement within them, and as he started to gawk she cupped his right cheek with her hand. "Why tell me? Why risk being expelled?"

A heartbeat passed, and then another. After several tense moments, Jaune covered her hand with his own without removing it from his cheek. It was with no small effort that he answered, "Because I don't want a relationship founded on a lie. I almost let it destroy my friendship with Pyrrha, so when I thought of you and how you'd feel if I covered it up... I just couldn't. I understand if you don't want to be with me, I-I-I-" He slapped his other cheek to stop his stutter. It stung a little. "I'm sorry I ruined our date with this."

"Thank you."

'...What?' Jaune felt his head reel backwards as he processed what she said. "'Thank you?' Why are you thanking me?" His line of questioning stopped when Velvet put her forehead on his, her eyes closed as she let her warmth flow into him.

"Thank you for caring enough to lay your heart open, Jaune. Thank you for being honest. Thank you for being forthcoming on a subject that would eat at any couple. I know that was hard on you, especially since you had no idea how I would react."

None of it made sense to him. "You aren't mad?"

"Oh no, I am angry; but not at you." She opened her eyes to meet his. "I'm mad that your parents would do so little to prepare you when they knew that life as a huntsman is dangerous. You weren't untrained just because you were lazy, right?" He nodded. "Then they should have done more. It's as simple as that."

The smile on her face reminded Jaune of his mother, wanting nothing but his happiness. He returned the pressure Velvet was putting on his forehead. The first words that tumbled out of his mouth were, "Have I told you how much I appreciate having you in my life, Velvet?"

Her laugh was quiet, but still heavenly in his ears. "You know what? I'm not sure."

"Well, I do. Thank you for everything."

"It's my pleasure, Jaune." She separated from him and stood up from the bench. "I'm feeling pretty hungry, and I just remembered that there's a shop near here with a window terrace. Coco said that they don't mind you eating food at the outside tables as long as you actually buy something while you're there." Velvet stuck her hand out as an invitation. "Interested?"

Jaune found himself laughing once again. "Sure thing, but a question first: when did you lose your wallflower side and get so energetic?"

"I didn't," she answered simply. "There isn't anyone around to see my shy side, and I'm in too good of a mood to be withdrawn around you."

He took her hand and they made for the mystery shop. "So if I want to make you happy, I just have to reveal my deepest, darkest secrets. Noted."

"Nothing that drastic is needed, promise. The fact that you told me all of that shows how much you care, and that's what I appreciate." She leaned against him while they continued walking. "I'm grateful that Pyrrha was there, because I wouldn't have gotten to meet you otherwise."

Jaune smiled and squeezed her hand harder. "I'll agree with that one. She's a great partner."

xXxXx

The message from Ren was short and simple. [Pyrrha is on the student dorm roof. Good luck.] Yang leaned her head against the dorm room's wall with a sigh. She wasn't looking forward to talking to Pyrrha. The champion was as stubborn as they come, even if her viewpoint on relationships was a bit skewed. All she was waiting for was the message from Coco-

Ding!

Speak of the devil.

[The boy and the bunny have entered the pen.] It was code, of course. Coco had volunteered to be her little spy on the budding couple, which gave her time to do what she needed to do with Mistral's favorite redhead.

Yang reached the door to the roof in a matter of minutes. Beacon was simple to navigate, once you got the hang of it.

Opening the door, she was greeted with the sight of Pyrrha in her school uniform sitting on the roof's edge staring out towards Vale. She didn't respond to the newcomer walking up behind her, so Yang took the initiative as she sat down. "Do you always sit alone to think, P-Money?"

Her voice was soft yet steady. "No, but I'm not always in a 'sit and think' mood."

"Fair enough. Lien for your thoughts?"

"Only one Lien?" Pyrrha smiled in spite of herself, before resuming her solemn expression. "Do you think I made a mistake in regards to Jaune, Yang?"

There was no point in sugarcoating it. "Well, duh; but what matters is what you do now."

"He seems happy, Yang. Truly happy. How can I dare to get in the way of that?" Yang chose not to answer that one, which Pyrrha took to mean that she agreed. "I don't have to tell him anything now, so I'll carry the feelings in my heart in silence. The last two days have helped me... get over it, as it were."

She flashed her 'Champion' smile. "Don't worry, I'll go make up with my team in a bit. I owe them an apology for ignoring them when they tried to talk to me."

"You've really made up your mind about not saying anything? You're just going to separate yourself from Jaune as much as you can?"

"I have, and I will. He's a great guy, and he deserves to be happy."

"Well, at least we agree on one thing." Yang stood up and brushed the dust from her clothes. "I'm glad you talked about it openly. I'll make sure the others know that you'll be feeling better once you return to your dorm room."

"Thank you. I'm sorry you had to spend time with me acting as I am right now." Pyrrha turned to face her without rising from her position. "It's funny how I could talk with you about it and not my own team."

"Maybe you just needed time? Or I could just have that effect on people." Pyrrha started laughing at that one. "Now that you're smiling, I'm off to go get me a Jaune."

The laughter stopped. "Pardon?"

"Yeah, I've had Coco follow them around so that I know where they are at all times today." To prove her point, Yang took out her scroll and showed Pyrrha the message. "The 'Pen' is a store near the small park on the east side of Vale. If I'm going to interrupt, now is probably the best time to do so."

Pyrrha's brain struggled to keep up with the new information. "You're... going to try and get Jaune for yourself? Forgive me for being blunt, but you haven't given even a hint of interest in him before outside of the teasing you do with everyone."

Yang shrugged and continued explaining in her cheery tone, "I didn't want to get in your way. He's a good guy, and a great friend-slash-co-leader to Ruby. Now that I don't have to worry about stepping on your toes, I can go after him as I want."

Pyrrha simple stared at Yang, searching her face for any kind of joke or hidden innuendo. The latter simply smiled back, patiently waiting for the former to respond. "I... see. So you're headed out to crash their date?"

"Yep. Speaking of, I really need to get going. Later, cereal girl." Yang made to walk back inside.

The Champion's brain finally caught up to the present. "Wait!"

Yang paused and turned her head. "Yes~?"

"Shouldn't you wait until they get back,

at least? It's horribly rude to interrupt them like this."

"It's rude, yes, but relationships wait for no woman. Jaune is a guy who wears his heart on his sleeve, so if I don't insert my presence now I'll be left in the Schnee-brand Dust. I made sure to message him earlier so that I would at least enter into his mind before I physically get there."

"What I'm saying is that however much you might love him it just isn't right to get in the way like this."

Yang put her hands in the air. "Woah, woah, slow down. What are you bringing up love for?"

"...What?"

"I'm sorry if I confused you, champ, but I didn't say anything about liking him."

xXxXx

End of chapter reached.

Cliffhanger . EXE activated.

Reviews let me know how I'm doing, so please consider leaving one. Have a good day!