DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fan fiction using characters from the world of "RWBY", which is owned by Rooster Teeth. All the characters in this story are created and owned by Rooster Teeth and I do not claim any ownership over them or the world of Remnant. I am not profiting financially from the creation and publication of this story. Please support the official release.
He had just lost his appetite. While the others were caught up with Nora's retelling of her dream his attention was drawn elsewhere.
"Ow, it hurts!"
He clenched the knife in his hands. The metal handle dug into his skin but he didn't even notice the pain.
"She's been having this recurring dream for nearly a month now," explained Ren.
"Jaune, is everything alright?" asked Pyrrha.
She followed his gaze and saw what was bothering him. Cardin and his goons were picking on their classmate.
"Somebody needs to do something about that," commented the knight.
"I know," Nora declared with a smile, "we'll break his legs!"
A tempting idea, he had to admit, but not the solution he was hoping for.
After she finally freed her ear from Cardin's grip Velvet left the cafeteria in tears.
"Atrocious, I can't stand people like that," commented Pyrrha.
"You're not the only one," said Blake peering over her book.
"It must be hard to be a faunus," added Yang.
The members of team CRDL were their classmates. They were representatives of Beacon's first year students and the next generation of huntsmen. Any poor behaviour they displayed threw a bad light on them as well.
Something needed to be done.
Telling a professor seemed like the obvious choice but this wasn't kindergarten. They were all adults here and they needed to take care of their own problems.
Jaune played with his mashed potatoes trying to come up with an idea when a light bulb went off.
This was going to be good.
The next day
"Cardin Winchester," called professor Goodwitch.
The mace wielder took the stage with a confident stride. He eyed the stands with a toothy grin searching for an opponent.
"Any volunteers?" he asked.
The ginger haired teen towered over all his classmates and relied on brute strength to win his fights.
In truth, he wasn't looking for a fighter, he was looking for a victim.
"As a matter of fact," replied Glynda.
The door opened and the visitor ducked under the frame to enter. Everyone stared at the giant taking the stage. The blood visibly left Cardin's face as he was forced to look up to meet his opponent's eyes.
"Mister Daichi has volunteered to demonstrate the skills a second year huntsman-in-training possesses," explained the professor.
Jaune struggled to hold back his laughter.
Previous evening, Beacon's gym
"Hey, you need a spot?"
Yatsuhashi finished his set with a grunt and sat up.
"I'm good," he replied. He took a towel to wipe the sweat off his forehead.
"Warming up?" the knight asked eyeing the weights. It was well above his one rep max.
He responded with a light chuckle, "One more set and I'm done, actually."
"So I was wondering, you're teammates with Velvet, right?"
The giant went silent as he stared at the knight.
"You don't need my permission if you want to court her."
"What? No, it's not that."
He explained the situation and by the end the giant was huffing with anger. It took some effort but he managed to hold him back until he calmed down. The knight let him in on his plan and Yatsuhashi was immediately on board with it. All that was left now was to call in his favor with professor Ozpin.
"Good luck?" wished Cardin gripping his mace with both hands.
"I am not the one who'll be needing it."
Yatsuhashi reached behind him to draw his own weapon, a massive orange blade with a wicked gut hook ground into the spine.
"Begin!"
Cardin opened the match by slamming his mace against his opponent's head.
Yatsuhashi didn't even blink at the attack. A glance at the screen showed the aura meter hadn't registered a drop.
The mace wielder pulled back his weapon and gulped.
The giant reached out and picked up his opponent by the collar. He flung him to the other side of the room like a toy.
Cardin slid across the tiles before finally coming to a stop. He sat up and shook off the daze. He spotted his weapon and reached out to grab it but his opponent foiled the reunion by kicking it out of his reach.
Yatsuhashi pressed Cardin down with a foot on his chest and pointed his sword right between the mace welder's eyes.
"If you EVER pick on Velvet again," he quickly jabbed Cardin with the tip. A single drop of blood formed at the point of contact and the match was instantly stopped.
"That's enough, mr. Daichi," declared professor Goodwitch.
Yatsuhashi stepped off his opponent and put away his weapon. He thanked everyone for their time before leaving.
"As you just witnessed, students, in moments of extreme stress a huntsman may lose the ability to engage his aura. Mr. Winchester, please take your seat."
"Yes, professor," he replied before returning to the stands with his head hung in shame.
The only thing that was missing now was some sort of quip about the ginger's performance issues.
"What's the matter, Cardin, couldn't get it up?" commented Yang.
His pale complexion did nothing to hide his embarrassment.
Perfect
Velvet's demeanor changed in the two weeks that followed. With team CRDL avoiding her in a wide arch she was a lot more at ease during class as well as outside of it. He also noticed the rest of her team joining her for lunch on occasion. It was hard to synchronise time tables when you're not in the same school year but he was glad to see the team was putting some effort into strengthening their bonds.
Her happiness drew a smile on his own face. He was glad he was able to help the bunny faunus.
Sadly, there was no one to help him face his own demons.
School field trips were a nice break from the stuffy classrooms but for the knight they proved a different challenge, all together. He had excused himself soon after the ship had taken flight and, in a race against time, made it to the observation deck before his body could betray him.
His arms were crossed in front of his chest, his stance, wide and firm, and his steel gaze unwavering as he took in the sight. There was only one thing going through his mind right now.
"Ok, skipped breakfast, took the medicine and drank grandma's special tea. Now, as long as I keep looking at the landscape… I might just survive this trip without-"
"Hey, Jaune!"
He turned at the sound of Ruby's voice but immediately felt the wave of nausea coming from his stomach. He whipped his head back towards the window but that proved a mistake. The glassy saliva coated his mouth as his body prepared to purge his stomach contents.
He gripped at the rails tightly and took a few deep breaths to steady himself.
Thankfully, his willpower prevailed.
He felt a gentle hand on his back.
"You weren't kidding about your motion sickness."
"No," he replied without breaking his gaze from the tree crowns.
"I've got some salt crackers in my backpack, it might help settle your stomach."
"What, no cookies?" he asked with a smirk.
"Those are for me… Besides, I eat things other than cookies, you know."
"I know, I'm just trying to get my mind off the motion sickness."
"Oooh, in that case… umm… how'd you manage to convince professor Goodwitch to invite Yatsuhashi to class."
His heart skipped a beat, "...I don't know what you're talking about."
He was pretty sure the reaper was pouting but it couldn't affect him if he wasn't looking.
After a pause she sighed in defeat, "There's nothing wrong with doing a good deed."
"If you only do it for the praise it loses its meaning… I did what I did because it was the right thing to do. Not because I wanted people to know."
"It was still nice of you to help out Velvet."
"...Thanks."
She leaned on the rails with a smile of her own to share in the sight, "The forest is beautiful."
"Yeah," he replied.
"How do you think it works? I mean, how can a forest be locked in a season?"
"Magic?"
"Don't be silly, Jaune, there's no such thing as magic."
That had been common knowledge to him until just a few months ago but when someone opens your mind to the possibility you start noticing things. There were some phenomena that the world just took for granted without any real explanation.
The Forest of Forever Fall was one of such.
Could it have been a gift from a fall maiden? He couldn't help but wonder.
"Yeah... silly me."
The airship landed by the edge of the forest and once they were on the ground again Jaune could move without fear.
"Looks like we made it," said Ruby.
"And still not Vomit Boy," declared the knight.
Are you gonna be alright?" Ruby asked
"Yeah, thanks for the company."
"It was nothing, I like talking to you."
"Well, I appreciate it but we should probably get back to the group. I don't think we were supposed to be here and Goodwitch might throw a fit if she catches us."
"Yes, students, the forest of Forever Fall is indeed beautiful. But we are not here to sight-see. Professor Peach has asked all of you to collect samples from the trees deep inside this forest, and I'm here to make sure none of you die while doing so."
That was reassuring. Still he prefered the safety offered by his own weapons.
"Each of you is to gather one jar's worth of red sap. However, this forest is full of the creatures of Grimm, so be sure to stay by your teammates. We will rendezvous back here at 4 o'clock. Have fun!"
Team CRDL wandered off together. Their leader had been quiet ever since his humiliation in combat class.
A welcome change.
He wanted to find a nice spot to share with team RWBY but they were gone by the time he turned around. He lead his own team deep into the woods and found a nice clearing surrounded with the sap-containing tree species.
The first one he tapped left him with a rash on his skin and a runny nose. Thankfully, the reaction stopped there. He apologised to his teammates for his allergy but insisted on filling his own jar, watery eyes and all.
The nearby trees were soon drained but their total jar count remained at two as Nora kept resetting Ren's progress. The two headed out to find some more trees leaving the knight and the champion sitting side by side on a fallen trunk.
"That girl has a bottomless pit for a stomach," commented Jaune.
"Considering the amount of trash she puts in her body, I'm more surprised by how she manages to keep up her physique," replied Pyrrha.
"You think that…"
"What?"
"I mean, those two hang out all the time and they've been together for years. You think there's something more going on?"
"You believe them engaged in a romantic relationship."
"I meant more like an unspoken mutual attraction."
He noticed the blush on the champion's cheeks.
"Well, I for one think it's up to them to define the boundaries of their relationship."
"Sometimes people need a little push in the right direction."
He felt something brush against his fingers for just a moment. When he turned he caught Pyrrha pulling away her hand.
When he looked up she was already staring into the distance.
"Can I ask you something?"
"What do you want to know?"
"With your semblance you could've marked anyone... Why'd you choose me?"
"Jaune, this might be hard for you to believe but… I didn't exactly have many friends back at Sanctum."
"Better to have a few good friends than a lot of fake one," he said with a shrug.
"Even a few would've been good," she muttered.
He stared at her surprised by the statement.
After a pause she continued, "People talked to me but it was always just endless praise of my endeavors. After a while you realise just how empty those words are. When they looked at me they just saw a wall of achievements. To them I was always the champion, the icon, the prodigy… nobody ever tried to get to know the real me. Because of that I've been unable to form any kind of meaningful relationship in years," she turned to look him in the eyes, "You changed that, you broke my curse and for that I am eternally thankful."
He wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her into a side hug.
"I don't remember any curses… I just thought this cute redhead was checking me out so I went over there to talk to her."
They shared a laugh, but neither was in any hurry to escape the embrace. After a while she leaned her head on his shoulder and they just sat there enjoying each other's company. A breeze graced them with a show of dancing autumn leaves and the moment seemed to last forever.
When their teammates returned Nora elbowed her partner with a knowing grin and when the time came, team JNPR made its way back to the rendezvous point.
What struck him as odd, though, was the cleared path in the otherwise undisturbed woods. It was as if something had moved aside the leaves in a very straight line. What he didn't notice, however, were the rose petals that lay between the leaf litter.