Not this time, Fate

by Coeur Al'Aran

When Jaune woke up back in his house with his sisters and family, all he could do was sigh. Every time he died he was forced to start over again, and this was what... the one thousandth time? More? If it doesn't matter how hard he tries, doesn't matter how much he fights. Then maybe it's time to just kick back and enjoy himself. Fate can find someone else to be its whipping boy.

10. Chapter 10

So I thought I might answer a query or two some have raised. Last chapter I pointed out that the story is still serious despite the comedy, so long as you look at the reasons why Jaune is acting in such a way. This time I thought I might mention why the PoV has switched to feature Jaune so sparsely – compared to say the first five chapters which were all about him.

Essentially it's a design choice by me, in which this allows us to see the actions of Jaune from the outside. His PoV would actually be fairly angst-ridden, with every little thing he says or does analysed within his own mind. It would rob a lot of the mystery from "why" he does things, while also making it a chore to read. This is the reason why I mostly have been writing from the PoV of people from outside looking in.

As the series progresses, it will start to inverse a little, slowly becoming more Jaune PoV centric. But yes, it was a decision choice by me.

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Beta: College Fool

Chapter 10 – Swing it like you mean it

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"Your handwriting is terrible." Yang leaned back on her mattress, arms crossed behind her head. On the bed beside her lay her partner, nose buried in yet another book. At the end of the cramped room, on one of the two large desks, sat their leader Jaune and his partner… though at this point the distinction on whether she was his partner or his slave driver was in the air. "No one could hope to read this. Write it again."

"Nooo," Jaune Arc whined, one hand reached out as pieces of torn paper sprinkled down before him. "Couldn't you have at least let me copy it before ripping it up?"

"W-Well," Weiss looked away, clearly having not thought of that, "this should help you memorise the material. It's not enough to go through the motions of homework. You must learn and absorb it." That sounded like a weak excuse, even to her, but she watched the unfolding drama with barely concealed glee. There really was nothing better than a real life soap opera. It was still a shame no one had taken her idea of bunk beds seriously, with Weiss shooting it down and Jaune commenting that it sounded like too much hard work. Even her own partner had just shrugged, giving in to the majority.

That was probably why she felt he deserved to put up with Weiss' badgering. It definitely wasn't because she found it entertaining as hell. No way! It had been particularly funny in the first day, when Weiss had still held onto some misplaced belief that he would try his best and put in every effort to learn from her. It hadn't taken twenty-four hours for the girl's optimism to shrivel up and die. And then the frustrated anger had come out... and that was when it had become good viewing.

"We only got this homework today," Jaune sighed, "this is like the first week… it's not required until next Monday. I was going to do it this weekend." Weiss planted both hands down on the table, the girl hovering over him as she fixed a baleful expression onto the unfortunate man.

"Fool me once, shame on me," she snarled. "You already missed out on Professor Port's homework yesterday. I won't let you trick me again!"

"He doesn't even take in the homework he sets! He literally forgot he had ever set it… nobody did his homework."

"I did it," Weiss crossed her arms, "and so did Yang and Blake." The two girls in question shared a brief look over the top of Blake's novel. The raised brow her partner gave suggested she might have done the same thing Yang had and just sketched some random words down. He was right though, the teacher hadn't asked for it in, so neither of them had gotten in any trouble.

It was only four days into Beacon and already Yang was starting to figure out some of the classes and teachers. Like the fact that Port liked to talk about his own adventures in every lesson and that, much like Jaune had said, he didn't actually collect or mark the homework he set. Professor Oobleck on the other hand, very much the opposite. That was what Jaune was working on now.

"Doesn't the saying go fool me twice, shame on you?"

"There will be no second time. Less talking, more writing!"

"Those two are a real laugh, eh?" Yang rolled over, turning in such a way that she lay on her side looking directly towards Blake. The girl twitched, ever-present bow in place as she answered without ever looking away from her novel.

"It was a laugh the first three times. This is becoming old."

"Oh don't be such a sourpuss," Yang laughed, catching the narrowed eyes but thinking nothing of it. "It's like an old married couple. Weiss is the mother nagging the father to get a better paid job – and the two of us are their children."

"If he was my husband then I'd poison his drink," Weiss snarled, apparently having heard her comment.

"If she were my wife, I'd drink it."

"See?" Yang turned back to Blake with a grin, watching but listening as Weiss spluttered and ranted at him – as though it were somehow unfair or disgusting of him to say that even when she had mentioned poisoning him. "Those two are a real riot."

"I am in stitches," Blake turned a page, voice deadpan. Lilac eyes turned to slits. Sheesh, her team could be a real nightmare at times. Wish I could have been on Ruby's team, they look like a lot more fun. Or rather, Nora did. Still, even if Pyrrha was a bit overly polite and Ren was a bit… well, overly polite… Nora and Ruby were enough to bring a little life to the squad. Instead I get a bookworm, an over-achiever and the laziest idiot on Remnant. Is this Karma for all the puns? I knew I shouldn't have trusted Uncle Qrow on that.

"What'cha reading?" Yang asked instead, going with her usual approach to sparking friendships. It was an odd plan, where she liked to get in their faces and be bothersome enough that they had to accept her, but it hadn't really failed yet.

Blake sighed but answered, "It's the man with two souls, two."

"Two souls two? Like twenty-two souls? That sounds pretty complicated."

"No. Like two souls, the second book in the series. A sequel." Digging words out of Blake was like squeezing water from a rock.

"The man with four souls?" the voice of their leader came from the writing desk, where he was lazily scribbling something down onto a piece of paper. Weiss sat on the desk beside him, legs and arms crossed with a ruler in her hand.

"Yes…" Blake answered uncertainly. She still seemed off around the guy, like she wasn't quite sure what he would say or do. Just another reason for Yang to feel awkward in the room that should have been her solace.

"That's not a bad book. It's the one where the protagonist is torn by the indecision of the four souls, ultimately succumbing to madness and killing his love interest, before realising what he has done and sacrificing his life to seal the souls away. I liked that ending."

Blake twitched.

Violently.

"I hadn't finished this book," she whispered, voice barely audible. Even so, Yang felt the desire to scoot a little further back in her bed.

"Oh right," Jaune didn't look back, "Spoiler warning I guess."

It's a little late for that, Yang's thoughts were a little hysterical, as she watched her partner's fingers turn white as she gripped the cover of the book. With an almost reluctant finality she pushed it down atop the dresser, retracting her hand and crossing them over her chest. Blake Belladonna could have redefined the word `pout` with her current expression.

"You could keep reading," Yang tried to offer, laughing nervously when furious golden eyes turned on her.

Blake huffed, "Now that I think about it. I finished this homework in class, but has Yang even started?"

"Xiao-Long!" Weiss locked on like a laser-guided missile, even as Yang fixed a filthy look on her partner. "What are you waiting for? Get up here and start writing your own as well – we're running out of time!"

"Traitor," she whispered towards her partner, pulling herself up with the reluctance of a person walking to their execution. Sure, she could have argued – but what was the point? The work had to be done at some point and an argument was only going to make things worse.

"Misery loves company," Jaune whispered as she sat down, flashing him an irritated look.

"Daddy," she cooed, holding both hands before her chest, "mummy's being mean – can't I skip the homework this time?" Weiss spluttered angrily, but Jaune simply turned to face her, expression serious.

"Sure." A second later, his face was pushed down, impacting the desk as Weiss' hand settled on the back of his skull. Her normally pale face was red, eyes narrowed.

"No you can't! And don't call me your mother! And you… don't encourage her madness!"

"Mrfl…" he replied into the pages.

"If you get spit on that, you're writing a new one!" She threw her hands in the air, "I don't see how the two of you can be so blasé about this, these are the grades that will determine your success in life. You fell asleep in Professor Port's class yesterday, again!"

"In my defence, and I think it's a pretty good defence, you were pretty much the only person who didn't." Yang had to admit, he had a point there. She'd been out like a light, and though she was fairly sure Blake had stayed awake, it was only to finish her homework and read a book.

"Well how about history class? Professor Oobleck asked you a question and you got it completely wrong - in front of the entire class!"

"Hey, he asked me what caused General Lagune's loss at Fort Castle."

"He wasn't technically wrong," Blake chipped in, leaning over for a new book and turning the page.

"Stupidity was not the correct answer. Every mistake made by mankind could be chalked up to stupidity."

"That's what makes it such a good answer."

Weiss sighed, "The General underestimated his foes due to a lack of understanding on the capabilities of those he faced. He lacked information."

"A lack of intelligence," Jaune said. "In other words - stupidity."

"If you'd phrased it like that then you probably wouldn't be a laughing stock among the students right now." The Heiress gripped her hair in both hands, but wisely chose not to tug. "After your forfeit in combat class and now this? It's a wonder more people aren't bullying you in the halls. In fact, it's only the performance of the rest of us that has prevented you being a bigger target."

"Whoa wait," Jaune leaned back in his chair, genuinely confused. "I'm being bullied?"

"You didn't even notice?" Weiss growled. She did that a lot lately. "How could you not notice that people keep laughing and talking about you?"

"Eh, probably because I don't care enough to listen to them." He scratched his nose at that, the sheer apathy in his voice drawing a little giggle from Yang. "Should I?"

"Well no… but what about Cardin?"

"Who?"

"The guy you surrendered to in that fight," Weiss had one hand against her face.

"Oh him… wait, is he bullying me?"

Yang coughed, drawing attention to her as she put her pencil back down. Her eyes rolled towards the ceiling a little, as she recalled the events of just the previous day. "Remember after history class, when he held his leg out to trip you up?"

Jaune's eyes widened, "Oh yeah! I walked straight into his leg and ended up knocking him into the door frame. Do you think I should apologise?"

"How about the time he fired a spit ball at you in Peach's class?" Yang tried another occasion.

"Didn't that hit Weiss?" The white-haired girl growled in fury at the memory. No doubt Cardin still shivered whenever he thought about it. In an attempt to keep the room descending into chaos, Yang chose to not mention how he'd only hit Weiss because Jaune had gone from being fast asleep to suddenly sitting straight up – effectively dodging the shot at the last second and leaving his partner open.

"Well how about when he stood up in the middle of the cafeteria and proclaimed that you're a man who likes to hide behind women and make them do your fighting for you?"

"Well he isn't technically wrong... Would you be offended if someone called you blonde?" Yang sighed. He wasn't supposed to be proud of that fact, nor accept it as nothing more than an accurate description. "I think you're all overreacting. I mean if he really wanted to bully me then surely he could just hit me or something?"

The three of them could only stare at him. No doubt each of them was remembering the events of just yesterday, when Cardin had finally lost his cool and made to attack Jaune. The blond had simply blinked and walked away, not even noticing as the other teen's fist missed his face by an inch and impacted the wall. Cardin certainly noticed, if the way he'd cradled his hand was any indication.

"Winchester's lack of skill at bullying is no excuse for you being bullied!" Weiss announced, putting the argument to rest. "Whether or not you realise it… whether or not the idiot even knows how to do it, people are trying to bully you. That is bad."

"Is it tho-?"

"It is bad," Weiss repeated, placing emphasis on the word as she glared at him. Jaune wisely kept his mouth shut. "As such we need to help boost your image within Beacon, and the best way to do that is book smarts and achievements. If you are the best in class then there's no way you will get bullied."

"You were private schooled, weren't you?" Jaune asked.

"By the best in Atlas," Weiss nodded proudly.

"It shows."

"Thank you," Weiss curtsied at what she no doubt perceived a compliment. Yang grinned and got back to her homework, wondering what other fireworks would come. The heiress had the right idea, but perhaps not the experience… his reputation was already scuppered – and becoming the teacher's pet would just make it worse. Ruby had gone through similar, but she'd had the benefit of a kickass older sister to put the fear into any bullies. And in time, Ruby had shown exactly what she was made of.

He could do the same, she considered as they both scrawled away. There was no real conversation now, just the scratching of pen on paper interposed with the occasional hum from Weiss as she looked over what they had written.

She, Yang Xiao-Long, had trashed Cardin Winchester. It hadn't even been a fair fight as much as a massacre, especially since she'd been angry at the words he had thrown around. That was to be expected. She was a badass melee combatant, all the instructors at Signal had said so – though many using different words than badass… that had been all her uncle. Either way, she'd been the top at Signal and while it was too early to say where she was in Beacon, she was confident it would be in the top ten per cent or so.

And Jaune Arc had fought her unarmed.

Okay, she'd been unarmed too, but the point still remained. Between a person who used a sword and one who used fist-based weapons, if they were both unarmed – she had the biggest advantage. He lost his entire style of combat while she only lost a bit of striking power and the use of her shotgun blasts. It hadn't been a fair fight, all the more reason for her to have felt guilty over it. All the more reason why she should have won.

He'd fought her – and he hadn't been creamed. It was more of a brawl than a real fight, she had to admit. From what she could tell he'd been hammered for one, and she hadn't exactly been prepared for it either. But he'd fought more than well enough… well enough to make her concerned. Well enough to make her draw her weapon in the heat of the moment.

Was he a pacifist? Like one of those martial arts masters in the movies, where he'd suffered some great loss as a child prodigy but sealed his strength away behind a wall of iron-clad discipline? Except that under the influence of alcohol, his emotions came forth, unleashing his power upon her?

Jaune Arc yawned, eyes closing for a second before Weiss slapped her ruler against the back of his head. The sudden impact made him jerk; waking up in an instant and causing him to lurch back so violently he fell off his chair. Okay, maybe not a hermit martial arts master. She really needed to cut down on watching movies on her scroll before bed.

Four days… or only three really, if you considered initiation as the first day, then three days since. But still, they had been on a team for three and a half days and she still felt no closer to understanding him.

Blake and Weiss were easy, at least in a sense. Yang wouldn't dare believe she knew everything there was to know about either of them, but the basics were there. Blake liked peace and quiet and enjoyed reading, she was a smart girl but also had a vicious streak hidden behind her words at times. Yang liked that. It made verbally sparring with her all the more exciting.

Weiss on the other hand was an over-achiever, someone determined to be the best and as such make sure her team was also the best. She was also spoiled, proud and arrogant – but not cruel about any of it. It was more like she was a naïve bitch than an actual bitch… which made it easier to bear. Naivety would wear off given time.

The thing with Weiss was that she genuinely thought she was helping with this whole forced homework thing.

Their leader though? Ugh… it wasn't that he was hard to get a grip on. Lazy, sarcastic, a bit dopey – Yang had a faint suspicion he might suffer from narcolepsy, because some of the places and times he could fall asleep went well beyond laziness. It was hard to fall asleep in the middle of a conversation with Weiss… even harder when her volume quickly spiked from eight to one thousand.

Either way, it was easy to get a read on him, or a first impression – and that should have been enough for her. And it would have been… were it not for the inconsistencies.

He was rude and anti-social, ignoring them at random moments and generally refusing to even give the time of day to most other students. But he put up with Ruby. That had been the first sign to her, especially since she'd been ready to step in at any moment to protect her little sister. Why oh why the shy and nervous girl had chosen him of all people to befriend, she had no idea. Why not someone a thousand times easier, who actually responded to people or looked like he was paying the slightest attention? It should have been impossible… and yet it had happened… Ruby chatted with him incessantly, just about every time she could. Yang didn't think she'd ever heard him give a proper response, at least not more than a yes, no or grunt that might have counted for words if she were a caveman. But he'd also never flat-out ignored or shooed her away, either.

Her little sister, as adorable as she was, could be over-enthusiastic at times – and the way she monopolised the conversation with him was a prime example. Yet he let her get away with it, when he absolutely didn't have to.

His combat ability was another thing, but that could be explained away. He hadn't actually fought yet… so while he had been able to drunkenly brawl with her, it might make sense that he wasn't confident in his skills against someone like Winchester. It was silly… but maybe he just thought the bigger man was too strong. Or maybe he was just an aggressive drunk... it wasn't like their fight had been filled with extreme technique. She could still remember him headbutting her in the face.

It was his personality which confused her the most, however… and she had to wonder if she was the only person who saw it. Jaune Arc was lazy, uncaring and slow… the kind of guy who talked like he was fighting back a yawn and who you could trust to be the last to finish just about anything. He might put up with Ruby, but he definitely didn't seem to care about anyone. That clashed immediately with what she had seen and heard in the police station. She had only been present for the conversation between the Headmaster and he, but it had been time enough to see a different side of him – one that was sharp, angry and emotional. He'd accused, he'd pushed and fought – he had argued with the Headmaster of Beacon Academy, she could even remember him sticking up for her, saying how she wasn't at fault.

That person just didn't mesh with this person, and that contradiction was almost agonising in how much confusion it caused her. It was… it would be like if Ruby suddenly turned around and explained that she was a sex-craved psycho who wanted to rule over Beacon with an iron fist and an eclectic harem. Not impossible… but so unlikely that Yang wasn't going to start worrying about her virtue anytime soon.

"Mother, I fear our daughter is developing an Electra Complex."

"Don't call me mother," Weiss slammed the ruler down on his head once more, producing a mighty crack. "Yang, stop staring at him… you're beginning to creep me out as well."

"Lost in thought," Yang shrugged. She wasn't one to feel embarrassed at being caught.

"What, did you try to count to five?" She spared a smirk to the man beside her as Weiss hit him again. Smart ass he may be, but he wasn't particularly smart if he hadn't realised what the girl's response to that would be. "There, done. Ow, why!?"

"Automatic reflex," Weiss had the decency to cough as she placed down the ruler and accepted his homework, scanning over it with an experienced eye. She hummed, tilted her head to the side and frowned. After a few seconds, however, she let it drop with a sigh. "Passable. I'll let it go this once but I will expect better in the future."

"Here," Yang sighed and handed her own over, getting a raised brow above the pages.

"It's… pretty much perfect." Yang rolled her eyes. Did Weiss have to sound so surprised?

"When your father and uncle are teachers, you don't get an excuse for a poor report card." Say what you would about the two of them, and there was a lot to say about Qrow being drunk in lessons, but Taiyang and Qrow were not the kind of people to accept anything but the best from their students. Being a family member didn't make it any easier. And to think, some of her old friends had complained that she must have had it easy.

What a joke.

"Well you've finished just in time for lunch too," Weiss pointed out, checking her scroll and seeing it would be five minutes until the bell rang. Beacon had a number of free periods through the day, since being a Hunter wasn't something that required an abundance of varied lessons. Things like politics and herbs came in the upper years, but for first years it was more important that they had the free time to hone their skills and fitness.

And to think, just the other day I had laughed and proclaimed how awesome it would be to goof off during said free periods… damn Weiss, damn treacherous Blake.

The halls of Beacon teemed with students, some in uniform and others in combat dress. It all depended on the year and timetable, but they all moved as one towards the cafeteria, hungry beyond belief. Being a first year again… it was a strange feeling, especially after she'd once been the undeniable top dog of Signal. It was honestly a shock to see people look at their team and laugh, and for some to even go so far as to walk into their leader, shoulders clashing against his.

He didn't budge, however, which brought a satisfied grin to her lips. If they expected him to fall over then they were surely disappointed, for he just walked through them with the same kind of blank expression he always wore, not once noticing the teasing, not once realising that some people staggered after knocking into him. Not one dared to harass the remaining three… not since she'd made such short work of Cardin Winchester.

"Do you think he does it on purpose?" Yang whispered, trusting her partner to hear. Blake's yellow eyes narrowed, a short sigh slipped from her lips.

"No. I don't even think he is intentionally defending himself. It's not that he squares his muscles or takes a better stance, he simply walks through." Yang hummed, even as she agreed with the comment. As a fighter she was used to reading minute movements, or at least she knew the theory behind it… that wasn't the kind of skill anyone truly mastered. But she was experienced enough to know that he wasn't preparing himself for each person.

"Yang!" Ruby called as they entered the cafeteria, "Over here!" Jaune groaned and made to move to a different table, but Yang's hand snapped out to grab his shoulder with ease, dragging him along with the team as they went to sit down with Team Rubine.

"Hey sis," she greeted as she forced her leader down into an empty seat. The rest of the team each took a seat on the long table, opposite their counterparts from what was fast becoming their sister team. Well, that was literal in her case. "Thanks for saving us seats. Yo Nora, you looking after my baby sister?"

"Of course," the orange-haired girl scoffed, reaching across the table to bump fists with her. "Just this morning I made sure she had a healthy breakfast of pancakes, syrup and cookies." That was… not exactly what she'd have called a healthy breakfast, but then again it probably had more nutrients than the just cookies, Ruby would have chosen on her own.

"Eh, good enough," Yang grinned down at her own tray packed high with meat and vegetables. A lifestyle like hers burned calories off at a crazy rate, that being almost literal if she activated her semblance. That said, she still needed to make sure she got plenty of protein to keep her toned muscles. Heh, and who said eating healthy is hard?

"So you come up with any new ideas for the team name?" It was Pyrrha who spoke, a small smile on her face as she brought up what seemed to be a daily discussion for the team. Weiss and Yang groaned, shaking their heads. "Have you considered an abbreviation?"

"An abbreviation," Blake didn't look up from her book, "like JBWY?"

"I was thinking a little more abbreviated," Pyrrha didn't take any offence, or rather if she did, she kept it well hidden. "Perhaps just two letters?"

"Team JB?" Yang winced.

"Weiss fits the image," Jaune replied, only to go silent as a butter knife planted itself between his thumb and forefinger. It vibrated gently, buried a full inch into the wood.

"I don't think those letters work well in either order," Weiss delicately dabbed her lips with a napkin. "Nor do the others combine to make anything that sounds less foolish than what we already have. I believe the problem here is Blake, since her initials are the same."

"My profound apologies," Blake turned a page in her book.

"We could always marry her off," Yang grinned as she felt Blake's eyes leave the pages and lock onto the back of her neck. She could just imagine how frigid those eyes were. Truly, her partner had the best reactions to teasing. "Do you think it would be easier if she married Jaune or Ren?"

"Neither works particularly well… we could use a consonant in all honesty. Perhaps an N?"

"Great, Pyrrha, you want to marry Blake."

"I do?"

"Great!" Nora and Ruby were stifling their giggles as Pyrrha's green eyes widened in alarm.

"N-No wait, I didn't mean it like that!"

"Ow!" A loud voice cried out in pain, disrupting their conversation. The light mood died in an instant, as a scene that had played out just the previous day occurred once more. "Please don't, that hurts!"

"See? I told you they were real," Cardin Winchester laughed to one of his teammates, "It's damn weird, you can feel how warm they are. What a freak." His cronies laughed, as did a few others nearby. Yang sighed, good mood forgotten as she balanced one elbow on the table, chin slumping into her hand.

"He's at it again," Weiss rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Looks like it's not just Jaune he's trying to pick on… perhaps he's gone for a target who shows more of a response."

"He rubs me the wrong way," Pyrrha agreed, munching on a stick of celery with more force than was strictly necessary. "What's worse is how everyone else laughs along… like it's normal."

"It is," Blake turned another page, but Yang could see the frustration in that simple act. The speed at which she did it, the lack of delicate care and attention she paid to her beloved tomes. "Faunus are used to putting up with things like this."

Yang sighed, "It's di-"

"It's disgusting..." A voice practically seethed from her left. Such was the animosity in those words that the blonde felt the hair on the back of her neck prickle. She wasn't the only one, it seemed, as eyes widened and utensils slowly lowered to the table. As one they all turned to look at the blond man who had been so quiet.

He was frowning down at a half-eaten chicken wing in his hand. With a worn out sigh he placed it down and pushed the plate away. "So disgusting… I've had better meals straight out the microwave."

"Of course you're talking about the food," Weiss sighed and raised a hand to cover her face. "How foolish of me to think you were actually interacting with the world around you." Her eyes narrowed behind her fingers, "You are going to eat more, right? We have another sparring class this afternoon and I want to do some training before then."

"I'll be fine on what I've had."

"You've had half a chicken-wing and the smallest portion of salad I've ever seen. Where is the protein, the vitamins and minerals?" Weiss sighed the sigh of someone who had given up on any hope of the person she was speaking to actually giving an intelligent response. Instead, she leaned over and started to push some vegetables off her plate, spilling them onto his.

"I'm sorry, are you my wife or my mother?"

"I'm neither!" A carrot ricocheted off his forehead, "Stop saying that!" Ruby caught Yang's eye across the table, but she mouthed a quick `don't ask` in response.

"I wish someone should do something about Cardin, though," Pyrrha drew the conversation back to the matter at hand, leaving Weiss to try and force more food down Jaune's throat. "It's bad enough that he tries to lord it over the other first years, but now something like this?"

"It's not our business." Yang frowned at Blake for that, even if it wasn't strictly untrue.

"Then whose business is it?" Ruby asked, silver eyes hard, "The girl being bullied, Cardin's, or is it just the responsibility of the air itself to do something?" No doubt Ruby recalled her own early years in Signal, where she'd been a source of bullying for not being the same as her big sister. Even now, the thought of it had Yang's fist clenching. Another cry from the distressed faunus didn't do anything to calm her emotions.

"If we intervene then things will become worse for her. We can't look out for her every second of every day and the interference will only make him treat her all the worse when we're not there." Blake sighed and put the book down on the table. "Sometimes it's best to just accept what is. He will get bored once he realises there's no real response." Was it her imagination, or had their leader's eyes strayed to Blake at that statement, narrowing just the tiniest bit?

"It's her lot in life to accept abuse like that." All eyes on the table snapped to the apathetic teen who had spoken. He pushed his plate away with a short sigh. "After all, she's just a faunus. If she doesn't want to deal with it, she can always go work in the Schnee mines." Yang swallowed as she felt the temperature around the table drop. It wasn't just Blake who glared at him, but Weiss and the rest of Ruby's team too.

"How dare-" Blake began, only to go silent as a pair of blue eyes fixed on her.

"Isn't that what you just said? Sometimes it's better to just accept what is?"

"Hey now," Yang leaned between them, trying to break line of sight, "let's not argue over dinner." Blake leaned forward, however, pushing Yang back.

"I didn't mean it like that. The abuse humans heap upon the faunus is obscene. You wouldn't even mention those mines if you knew what went on in there." Weiss shuffled uncertainly. She looked like she wanted to speak, to defend her family name, but at the same time was afraid to. It was the first time Yang had seen her look so stricken.

"And yet here we are, sitting back as one is tormented." He didn't sound angry. If anything he sounded bored, one finger poking distractedly at his scroll. "An interesting way to show how much you care."

Blake's fingers clenched around her utensils, knuckles white as bone. "And what about you? I don't see you doing anything."

"That's because I don't care." Yang winced at the way he said it, lilac eyes strayed to their sister team in time to see the dark look Pyrrha sent him, along with a disappointed expression from Nora and Ren. Her little sister looked frightened... like a young girl watching her parents argue, who had no idea whether things would ever be the same afterwards. "Should I care about someone I don't know?"

"Yes." Blake almost snarled.

"We're training to be Hunters Jaune..." Ruby's voice was quieter, as the girl reached across the table to lay two fingers on his arm. Her sister seemed hesitant, as though worried what his response might be. "It isn't right for us to sit back and watch injustice happen."

"Isn't that what we were just doing?" He rolled his eyes, "Fine. Yang, go punch Cardin in the face."

"Me!?" Yang spluttered, a few droplets of grape juice spraying from her lips. "When did I become a part of this?"

"Initiation, I think..." he rubbed his chin as she fought back a groan. I didn't mean the team...

"Why do I have to be the one to go and sock him?"

"Because I can't be bothered? Because I said so? Dealer's choice, I suppose."

"Fine," she sighed and pushed the chair back, already cracking her fists. It wasn't like she didn't want to go up there and stop this... plus, now she had the perfect excuse. If anyone asked her why or tried to get her in trouble then she could just say her leader ordered her to. It wouldn't get her out of trouble, but it would mitigate it a little. Feh, worth it to stomp someone like him. You made a mistake in reminding me of Ruby getting bullied, bucko.

The rest of the table watched as Yang stomped off, not one of them missed the dangerous gleam in her eye - nor the tiny grin on her face. "Problem solved," Jaune clapped his hands together, like a man brushing off the accumulated dust of a hard day's work.

"That level of apathy isn't something to be proud of." Pyrrha broke the silence, green eyes stern as she locked a fierce glower onto him. "Nor is forcing someone else to handle the matter because you are too lazy to." There was a cry in the background, no doubt from Yang having reached her prey. None of them even bothered to look, since the result was a foregone conclusion.

"Funny, and here I thought this was what you all wanted. Someone stepped in to do something." Blake's eyes narrowed but she didn't quite meet his eyes. Ruby's face too became scrunched up. A war between conflicting emotions that threatened to break through.

"When Nora and I were young we once met a young boy," Ruby's gaze turned to her teammate, who had leaned forward to rest both elbows on the table. "He wasn't able to stand by as two complete strangers were bullied. Even outnumbered and with someone of his own to protect, he stepped in to help them. At no benefit to himself." Nora looked sad as Ren spoke, the normally bubbly girl picking at her meal. "Sometimes I wonder what happened to him."

"Maybe he grew up." Jaune shrugged, "Or maybe he developed breasts and grew his hair out. Maybe he's up there right now defending that girl. I'm not sure why you're asking me."

"Me neither." Ren shook his head but would say no more.

Ruby could only let out a small, distressed whine.

---

After the events at the cafeteria the teams had only been too willing to split up. Ruby had walked away with her team, sparing a weak smile for them as she promised to see them again in the combat halls. Jaune wasn't sure whether the rest of her team would want to. What a mess. On the bright side he'd managed to get Velvet out of trouble... even if it had been a roundabout way of doing it.

Mission complete, and he'd managed to keep his cover too. He should have felt proud. Instead he just felt tired... and the girl in white standing across from him in the middle of an empty field wasn't helping matters.

"Isn't it a bad idea to do exercise like this before a big fight? I could pull a muscle or hurt myself, not to mention I'll be out of energy come this afternoon. Can you imagine how distraught you would be if I were to get beaten into the ground by Cardin?"

Weiss stepped towards him, the handle of Myrtenaster held in one hand, the point in the other. With nary a word she whipped it out towards him. "I think I will be capable of living with the guilt," she snapped. "You, however, will not be capable of living at all if you don't quit with the excuses."

Jaune sighed. Really, what had he been expecting – that Weiss of all people would back off and let him welch on training? Perhaps he should also go out into Vale, find Adam and open up a cabaret band with the guy, turn him away from vengeance and hatred so they could become hippies on the road together?

Really, Weiss was the worst partner I could have ended up with. Pyrrha at least would have held off until I asked for help, even if she would have felt bad about it. Ah, the benefits of hind-sight. He'd been so determined not to end up with Pyrrha that he'd gone and upstaged himself entirely.

That didn't mean he wasn't going to try, however.

"But we've just eaten too, my stomach is full, I'll get a stitch-"

"You'll get twenty stitches if you're not careful!" Silver flashed through the air, a perfectly-executed thrust as Weiss crossed the distance between them. She was holding back… she could have used a glyph to cover the distance in a tenth of the time, but murder wasn't her true aim. A great sigh echoed in the back of his mind, an exhausted heave of breath as he stepped to the side and let her pass by him. "A good dodge… at least your reflexes aren't beyond repair."

Ah… he hadn't thought about that, had he? It had been an automatic response, a rather obvious desire to avoid the sharp end of a sword that probably cost more than the Arc family home. But it also told her that he had the reflexes necessary to track her approach, and the sense to get out the way. Simply put, it was letting her judge his ability.

Which wasn't on. If I come across as too good… or even good at all, then she's going to get suspicious. Her pale eyes narrowed, the girl took one step to the left and then another – slowly circling him. A bead of sweat dripped down his brow. Do I circle with her, or does that make it look like I know what I'm doing? But if I stand still in the middle it makes it look like I am confident enough to handle whatever she throws at me.

When had pretending to be worse than he was become so hard? In the end he stepped with her, making sure to hold his blade in a weak grip. The point was a little to the right too, his left side open. It felt awkward and uncomfortable, his instincts struggled against it, but with iron control he just about managed it.

She saw it, he knew. It was clear from the moment her eyes narrowed, as her frame lowered, coiling back on her legs like a bird about to take flight. His body screamed at him, dodge, defend – counter attack, do something. He could step to the side, take the point of the blade on the flat of his so that it ricocheted down the steel. A solid punch to her face, little more than a distraction. She would reel back and in that moment he could swing Crocea Mors across his body, across her throat.

Instead his nerves screamed with agony as she struck. His aura strained and stretched, the impact dulled so that it didn't pierce flesh, but still landing with all the force of a sledgehammer to his flank.

"Your guard needs work." She whipped the blade down, a move designed to clear it off imaginary blood. He could only cough as he fell to one knee, a hand clutched to his bruised stomach. I must be a masochist to take something like that on purpose. "On the other hand, your endurance must be good to take such a blow without complaint."

Oh come on… now he was blowing his cover by not showing enough of a response to being hit? How hard was this supposed to be?

"Maybe he's just too dim to feel it." Jaune spared a flat glare for the black-haired girl reading a book. She was sat on the side-lines with Yang, the two apparently cheering them on. Naturally it was only the blonde doing so. Blake's being even more stand-offish than usual… I thought she'd calm down if she thought I didn't recognise her. What a paranoid little cat.

But what was he supposed to do, say that yes he recognised her but don't worry, he'd keep her secret? Yeah sure, he could imagine how that would go. She would either be out the door or burying Gambol Shroud in him before he could blink.

"He made it into Beacon, so he must have some skill or potential to show."

"Maybe I made it in on non-combat skills," he tried, "You know, things like book-smarts, leadership and…" he waggled his eyebrows "other things." He trailed off, watching as the three girls stared at him, brows raised. It was the first time this loop he'd seen them in complete agreement. He just wished it wasn't over him.

"If we're finished with your poor attempts at humour, let's get back to training. Since you already did some cardio and weights this morning, we'll focus on technique right now. Take a ready stance once more." He sighed but did as Weiss asked, adopting the same stance he had held a few moments before. She didn't probe it by sword point this time, much to his relief. Instead she strode forward and took his hand and arms in hers, adjusting his stance to something that satisfied her. "You need to put one foot back, a stiff breeze would blow you over. Hold your sword out a little, if the centre of balance is off then a good strike will send the blade back and have you cutting yourself in half. Bend your knees – your knees, did I tell you to bend your back?"

He suppressed sigh as she pushed him into what resembled a normal stance. A beginner one at best, it wouldn't suit his normal style but it still felt more natural than what he'd used before. Another excuse that had been stolen from his repertoire…

She was pulling apart his cover… and the worst part was that she didn't even realise.

"So what do I do now?" he asked. "I suppose I chop people when they come near me? Are you going to throw fruit at me to cut like they do in the movies?"

"We don't have time for a long training montage." At any other time he might have been impressed Weiss of all people had made a joke. But the way she lowered herself once more was making him lean more towards worried. "And if I wanted my fruit sliced I'd have a butler do it."

He caught Yang roll her eyes and make some snappy comment to Blake.

"Focus on your defence," the girl warned, "Don't try to knock Myrtenaster aside with the tip of your blade but instead use the full length of it."

"We don't have to do this. You're just going to tire yourself out kicking the crap out of me."

"It's a sacrifice I'm willing to make for your development." And with those words she was off, grass pushed up and sent flying behind her as she charged across the field towards him. It looked like she crossed a great distance but in reality it was only a few metres. The rest came from his mind, the world slowing down as adrenaline kicked in. She was going for his left again, likely to make things easier for him. His side still smarted, the skin raw and tender.

He had to take the strike… he couldn't knock it aside, that would be too much improvement and the success would egg Weiss on into knocking more out of him. His fingers tightened on leather. His arms shook. It would hurt. It would really hurt. Not even a second passed and she was beyond his guard, his sword moved clumsily, slowly, but didn't stop her. Blue eyes scrunched shut, ready for agony.

His body moved.

Jaune hissed in pain as the blow glanced off the side of him. Weiss continued past, her momentum slowly bleeding as she turned to face him. She looked pleased… a stark contrast to the chagrined expression on his own face.

He'd dodged…

Or rather, he'd moved to minimise the damage, using his spare hand to guide away the strike so that he took only a fraction of it.

"Not bad," she clapped one hand against the fist that held her weapon. "You weren't able to deflect the attack, but you didn't take it either. Maybe there's hope for you yet."

You are such a pussy, Jaune thought of his body, and also probably himself. Take the attack. It was only pain… it was so easy to say, but so were a lot of things. Weiss hit hard and fast, and aura wasn't the catch-all painkiller that some people thought it was. You still bruised, you still bled – and if the attack was strong enough – you still died. Weiss wasn't about to kill him, though occasionally she looked like she really wanted to… but that still didn't stop his body from wanting to avoid being hurt.

Especially when it was for something that was ultimately useless…

It wasn't Weiss who decided if he stayed in Beacon, nor was it his team. They could have the highest or lowest opinion of him, it really didn't matter. He just needed to seem weak and ill-suited in front of the teachers. All he needed to be in front of his teammates… was someone they could hate. Or someone they would keep their distance from, who they wouldn't fight for if he were to be expelled.

Someone they didn't want to get close to. So that it wouldn't be harder than it already was to leave them all behind – to die. Don't think about it, if I try my hardest or not they will still die. He had to think of the ultimate goal… the happiness they would feel when he finally saved them. All of it made possible because of this.

But in regards to this training, Weiss was going to work him through the remainder of their lunch hour no matter how poorly he did. He could either come out of it bruised black and blue, staggering to his next lesson. Or he could come out of it in one piece. She was the kind of person who would accept no other compromise.

Weiss really was the worst person to be his partner.

"I didn't really mean to do anything though, it was just instinct. Nobody wants to be stabbed."

"Any idiot can swing a sword like a bat," Weiss scoffed, "but it takes more training to know how to take blows. How to turn them aside without getting yourself killed in the process. I don't care if it's instinctual cowardice or just self-preservation. At this point I'll use whatever you have."

He held up one hand, "I like the first idea of just swinging my sword around. Can't I use that against whatever the guy I'm fighting is called?"

"It's Cardin, and no – you can't. Let's ignore the fact that he's wearing armour of all things and also consider the fact that his weapon is a lot heavier than yours. You need to know how to deflect attacks because if you try to parry that then you'll be in trouble." Jaune could have pointed out that actually he'd have been okay. Cardin moderated his blows so that he didn't push through your guard, though there was no kindness behind it. He liked to drag fights out so that he had more of an opportunity to revel in his victory.

He was also unusually vicious in what damage he caused too… not at all afraid to swing below the belt or break bones. The fact that the bully tended to grow up fast and mature into a generally good guy was hardly any comfort at the moment. If the pain from Weiss' probing strikes was bad, it was only going to be worse in the afternoon. And losing to him won't help either… if I recall, I always lost to Cardin and never got expelled the first time. It was hard to remember that time. The memories were mixed with too many others. But he knew for a fact he hadn't actually been expelled, despite cheating his way in.

"Hah!" Jaune's eyes widened, body twisting to the side as a white blur shot at him. Crocea Mors came up, one hand on the flat of the blade as he pushed aside his partner's blow. He didn't need to see the excited grin on her face to know he'd completely messed up. "Better, much better! I can't believe it. Maybe you do have the potential to be here."

What? Did he need to cement his feet to the floor or something? He could imagine the mental representation of his body, a small kicked puppy in his mind that whined a question of what it had done wrong. He couldn't even be angry… of course he would dodge an attack, he was used to them being more than a little fatal.

"I wasn't ready…"

"Exactly, an opponent is hardly going to wait for you to be prepared!" She threw another attack his way and this time he allowed it to land, moving his blade just a tad too slowly. Pain lanced through his shoulder. His breath came out in a strained gasp. Weiss frowned. "Keep trying!" She disengaged and came in for another, this time a horizontal cut across his body. It was so telegraphed that he had to assume it was a test… even a baby could have blocked it, so he brought up his weapon at the last second, the metal clashing together. "Better!"

It carried on like that for a while. As each strike came he would try to analyse it, try to understand if it was something he should realistically be expected to avoid, or a blow that he could afford to take instead. His aura flared and dimmed, pain settling in as his eyes became heavy. The last time he'd hurt so badly was when the Beowolf had torn his entrails out… but even that had been a sharp, immediate kind of hurt. This reminded him of battles with Adam or Cinder… fights in which he was cut down slowly over time.

The fact that Weiss' blows never cut flesh only made it worse… he felt each impact like a club, but his body never felt the need to send endorphins out to mute it. Aura was part of the body, and so the body knew how to work around it… just one of those frustrating caveats of the ability.

"Stop, stop," Weiss held out one hand even though it was a wasted gesture. It wasn't like he had thrown a single attack. "This isn't working… it's like you're getting worse the more you concentrate." She had no idea how accurate that statement was. "You were honestly better when I caught you off-guard."

"Maybe," Jaune panted, bent over with one hand on his knee, "I'm getting worse because I'm exhausted? Or because you've battered me half to death?"

"No, that can't be it…" Weiss turned with one hand beneath her chin, ignoring his shout of how that could totally be it. "You must be overthinking things, slowing your body down by trying to plan every strike. I can't believe I'm even about to suggest this of you… but I need you to think less." Weiss kept her eyes on his but gave a slow, purposeful nod. Was that supposed to mean something to him?

He rolled his eyes. Her low opinion of him aside, what she was even asking was a tall order. Was he now supposed to think less about thinking more about not showing off the skills that he was trying to hide? All that was going to result in was a brain aneurism.

Weiss' eyes widened, "Look out!" she screamed, pointing behind him in sudden horror.

A footstep, a faint sense of a threat – it was enough to have him tear Crocea Mors back from its sheathe in a violent crescendo of steel rasping against steel. A step back, body tilted, he could just make out a flash of black hair and golden eyes, of Cinder closing in for the kill. No, not to kill him, to kill Weiss – and then everyone else he cared about. Blue eyes darkened, one hand slammed out, catching the blade on the edge of his palm just enough to divert its path. The shadow passed beside him, a startled gasp escaping it.

Before Crocea Mors slammed down like a meteorite, cutting through flesh and muscle with ease and splashing blood all across him.

Blake's startled eyes stared back up into his.

He froze, weapon carved into her breastbone, straight through the shoulder and neck. Her body drifted off it with a sickening squelch, sliding back onto the soft grass.

"Good job!" Weiss crowed. His wide eyes darted to her. In the background he could hear Yang crying out her own support along with the near silent applause of her partner. But… there was nothing on the grass but the tell-tale wisps of distorted light from one of Blake's clones. She had…? But the blood, her clones didn't create blood.

And there was none on his hands, now that he looked at them. It was a task that was made all the harder by the way they shook. His vision blurred, the blood appearing once more, before coming back to reality.

"Well it definitely looks like there's nothing wrong with his instincts," Yang clapped a hand on his shoulder. He wasn't sure if she could feel him flinch, nor the way his body was shivering. He had… no, he hadn't done anything. But he'd been prepared to, and in some way that was just as bad. Blake didn't look the slightest bit like her, but the hair… the eyes… at a glance? No, that was no excuse.

"Why?" The word was torn from his lips without thought, cutting through their mirth like a kni- no, he didn't want to think about anything cutting through anyone.

"Huh?" Yang shrugged, standing on one leg with hands on hips. "Why what?"

"Why…" he pointed one hand beside him to where nothing lay, "why do that!?" How could they have thought that was a good idea? He had nearly gone off the edge, he was still barely coping, his anger rolled off him in waves. It was a wonder they couldn't feel heat radiating from his body.

"To test your reactions," Weiss rolled her eyes. "And it worked – you are better when you're not thinking about it. This is a huge development."

"It's not like there was any risk," Blake shrugged as she slid up beside them. "Without dust my clone wouldn't have been capable of hurting you."

It's not me I was worried about, he wanted to scream. He wanted to grab her by the shoulders and shake her, to rant and shout until Weiss and Yang understood what they'd just done. What they had just made him think he had done.

But he couldn't… because they hadn't done anything wrong, had they? At least not from their point of view. He could only watch with heavy breaths as the three girls avidly discussed what had just happened, Weiss waving her arms and Blake nodding along. In any other situation… if he were a normal man… that would have been nothing more than a clever prank. Something to laugh and joke about… for him to feel silly over.

He could taste blood in his mouth. He'd bit his tongue and it had started to pool up. He wasn't sure if he could swallow it, for there was also bile and vomit threatening to force its way up. "I'm getting a drink," he snarled instead, hiding his mouth behind one arm as he made his way over to a nearby drinking fountain. Weiss called for him to wait, and if it had been any other situation he would have, if only to prevent the argument. Not this time, however... not when he couldn't think straight. She would get over it. That or she'd write it off as him being rude or an asshole. At this point he didn't care which.

They didn't even realise how much pain he was in.

That was good. That was what he wanted.

Wasn't it?

"Fuck…" red swirled in the bottom of the basin, the deep cut slowly healing as he felt the cool water sting. He had to calm his breathing, had to get himself back under control. It had just been a training accident. No one had been hurt and no one would be. Calm down, you have a fight coming up that you need to throw… calm down.

It wasn't their fault. They were just trying to help. If anything it was his… for not paying attention, for getting distracted and letting Blake get the best of him like that - for losing sight of where he was and nearly killing her. The anguish vanished slowly. Draining away like the last vestiges of blood that spiralled their way down the drain. When he turned back to his waiting team it was with an embarrassed smile on his face, lips twisted up and bright eyes shining.

But it did nothing for the anger that festered beneath.

---

Weiss' emotions hadn't settled down any as the day progressed. At the back of her mind, from the very moment she had awoken, lay the cursed combat class at the end of the day. It taunted her… it almost haunted her. Her eyes slipped to the right to where her partner strolled nonchalantly beside her, as though there was not a care in the world that could impede him. But there was a certain edge to that, one that she could barely make out – but his eyes were a little harder. His steps a little more guarded.

Perhaps even he sensed the tension.

"Relax Weiss-cream," Yang chirped in, the abominable nickname generating a flash of anger before even that was drowned in anxiety. "We've put a lot of effort into training him. He'll at least be able to hold his own."

"A lot of effort?" Weiss laughed, the sound almost hysterical. "Yes we have, but the irony is that it all means nothing. So maybe he's some kind of idiot savant who has instinctual combat ability… that still means unless Cardin sneak attacks him, it won't actually help!"

She was doomed. There was no way he would be able to defeat Cardin with so little training. It had been a surprise to find the potential within him, and to be honest it was still little more than a theory between the three girls. But there was no denying that his combat ability was better when he was attacked off-guard. Blake's ambush had proven that... he hadn't gotten any stronger or faster, but the way he held his sword - the manner in which he'd dodged, the brutality? It was miles above what he'd shown before.

But it still wouldn't help him in this fight... Cardin would attack from the front, it was a regulated fight. He would be no better than when he fought her. Weiss' only consolation was that Miss Goodwitch had said he would have to fight. Which meant it wouldn't be as humiliating as his last bout. Even crushing defeat was better than giving up a full second into the fight!

"Do you at least have a plan?" she dared to ask.

He scoffed, "Of course I do!"

Weiss stared at him. Yang stared at him, Blake too… in fact it almost felt like some of the random passers-by on their way to the arena stopped to stare.

"So it's up to us to come up with a strategy for him," Weiss turned to the two sane member of her team. "We know who he will be facing so that lets us come up with something that might work. I'm open to ideas."

"Cardin is slow," Blake kept her eyes ahead as she spoke, "He telegraphs his attacks when he swings and his weapon doesn't have a great range of movement. A faster opponent would be able to run rings around him."

"He does have a decent aura though, so while that would work you have to keep in mind the fact that it's going to be a long fight to chip him down. I'm not sure Jaune has that kind of stamina."

"There are many women who would say otherwise." The man in question protested. Weiss rolled her eyes and ignored his fake bravado.

"He wouldn't be able to keep that pace up for long enough," she agreed instead. "His offence is still untested too, so unless he's unpredictably good with that sword of his, it's not going to be a single, clean strike that does Winchester in."

"We could look to abuse his range? Winchester's weapon isn't really all that complicated, where he swings it is where it goes. If Jaune can just stay out of range of it for long enough then the other guy might wear himself out." Yang shrugged. "Even the odd attack when he over-extends would be better than trying to fight him face to face."

"I could just hit him with my sword?"

Weiss patted his arm distractedly, as though acknowledging the words of a small child who didn't know any better. "That would suggest he knows enough to judge the distance and reach of the swing, it's not exactly something he's spent much of his life learning. We need to come up with a plan that's really simple. Remember the old proverb, so simple even an idiot could use it."

"I'm not sure that can apply to combat against a trained and skilled opponent…" Blake sighed.

"Not unless we ask Nora to borrow her weapon. Then all he has to do is hold down the trigger – job done."

"Explosives are banned in the arena," Weiss pointed out.

"Wait, what? That's unfair, how does that make the fights fair if some people can't use their weapons?"

"They are banned, Xiao-Long, because high-explosives indoors could kill everyone in the room. Or collapse the roof down on all the spectators. I think in light of that, a little unfairness can be accepted." Really did the girl have no common sense?

"I am glad to see you have all arrived." The voice of Miss Goodwitch cut into their comments, the stern woman looking over the four of them. "I trust, Mr Arc, that you are prepared for your bout today?"

We spent so long planning that we arrived, Weiss realised in horror. Students lined the benches around the rings, many in deep conversation. We weren't able to come up with anything!

"I am mentally and spiritually prepared," her partner smiled dopily up at the scary woman. "Thank you for asking." Weiss held her breath as the teacher looked down on them, whatever thoughts within her head were inscrutable, nothing more than flashes of light through her glasses.

"Very good," she said at last, releasing her gaze and moving away. Weiss began to feel like she could breathe once more. She wasn't sure how he could handle talking to her like that!

"Look, Jaune," she whispered. With one hand she reached out and took his shoulder, turning him so that he faced her. "I realise that our training has not been as successful as we might have liked." As she might have liked. "I also realise that your combat skills are relatively low… but I know you have potential. You wouldn't be here if you didn't, and as your partner… I have faith in you." Somebody had to, for goodness sake.

"Are you…" he blinked, "trying to give me a motivational speech?"

Her cheeks flushed, even as Yang and Blake shared amused looks. "Yes." Over his shoulder she could see Winchester making his way onto the stage, arms held wide as he basked in the scattered applause. "He's bigger than you, he's stronger than you and he has more stamina than you. If he catches you, you're toast. But you might be faster than him, and you're probably smarter than him too. Possibly…" she shook her head, Miss Goodwitch had already called for Jaune, but she had to get her message across. "What I want to say is… give it your best. If you are knocked around and ultimately lose, then it's okay – we can recover from that. Even if he is the favourite to win… there's always a chance."

She stepped back, her hands slipped from his shoulders as she looked into his blue eyes. One hand came up to push his hair back, his fringe popping up past his fingers as he rubbed his head.

"Wow… motivation doesn't feel much like what I expected it to. I thought I'd feel all fired up and ready to go… but now I feel like I'm about to walk into a burning building. Maybe I should go take a rest and let the motivation wear off."

"Onto the stage Mr Arc," the blonde woman called one more time, her crop snapping down onto her palm. With a long sigh, the young man moved away, less climbing onto the stage as oozing towards it.

"So uh... what's his chances?" Ruby asked with a wince as Weiss walked up to their two teams. Pyrrha, Ren and Nora still looked a little distant, but they were at least willing to give her a nod and a polite smile each as she sat down. Weiss never thought she'd say it, but she was actually pleased for Ruby scooting over to sit by her.

"He's screwed." The heiress flopped down with a sigh. "He is royally and utterly doomed." Yang and Blake spared her some sympathetic looks, but she focused on the stage instead, where Jaune had finally stepped up to stand opposite the armoured teen. The crowd were silent during his approach, even JBWY and RRNN not speaking up.

"You're actually going to fight me this time?" Cardin laughed and hefted his mace, pointing towards the blond as though he had just noticed him. "What's wrong? Did your girlfriends get tired of you hiding behind them? That's twice now you've sent that bitch to fight me."

"Eh," Jaune picked at the side of his nose. "I think Yang got tired of beating you up to be honest. It takes her more effort to prepare her hair in the morning." The crowd oohed as Jaune inspected his finger. "More time too."

Yang wolf-whistled, the act causing Weiss' head to fall into her hands. Oh good lord, it had become one of those trading of insult things; pre-fight banter straight out of a terrible Vacuan gangster movie. Nora, Ruby and Yang jeered loudly, and even Pyrrha bore a tiny smile. Good lord, she was surrounded by children. On the other hand, the members of Ruby's team seemed willing to support Jaune for this, even after the events only hours earlier. That might have just been their dislike of Cardin showing. Or was it that from their point of view no matter who won, they would be pleased?

Cardin gnashed his teeth, his hands clenched around the handle of his weapon. "We'll see if you're still able to quip once I knock you to the floor. Or do you actually believe you have a chance against me? You knew you didn't two days ago – I'd love to hear what you think has changed now!" She hated his words… honestly; she hated arrogant braggarts like him in general. But that didn't make him wrong.

"My partner," Jaune's face was bowed, eyes hidden in shadow. Weiss' own widened, as more than a few people turned to regard her. "My partner has been training me for this moment. She gave up her free time to help me!" Oh gods, she was flushing – damn it, damn it, that was bad. But the way he was talking about her, the clear gratitude in his voice when he spoke about what she had done for him? Well, he was right to sound like that, but still! She caught a fond look from Pyrrha, even a pleased one from Ruby – along with the eyes of her two teammates, and that only made her feel all the more embarrassed – more on the spot. But she would accept it all with the grace it deserved.

What else could she do?

"From the earliest hours of the morning, through the day and late into the evening she has trained me." He drew his sword, the cool metal creating a loud rasp in the silence of the hall. "She expects the best of me… she expects me to win and has invested so much of herself into making sure I can do so!"

There were whispered mutters around them all now, as people pointed and looked towards her, some even going so far as to flush and giggle. It must have looked all the worse for the fact that she was as red as a tomato as well.

"And I will do anything," the blade was levelled towards Winchester, the entire hall going silent as they hung on his every word. "Anything… to make sure I never have to go through that nightmare again."

"Eh…?" The high-pitched chirrup came from Weiss' own lips. It was possibly the only sound in the entire hall.

"Well," Yang snickered, hand clamped over her mouth – but even then her laughter could be heard, "looks like you made an impression on him, Weiss-cream!" Blake pulled the cover of a book up over her mouth, covering her face up to her eyes. They seemed brighter than usual.

I am going to kill him…

"Enough posturing," Miss Goodwitch interrupted before Weiss could – possibly with rapier via throat. "Three, two, one, begin!" Her hand cut vertically down between them, the woman leaping back as combat was declared. Weiss' anger was shelve, eyes going wide as she watched the taller teen charge forward.

"Wait – time out!" Until everything came to a stop, Jaune Arc – her partner – the cause of it. He stood with one hand held out, his sword at his side. Winchester was less than two feet away, weapon raised, but he too had paused.

"Mr Arc," Miss Goodwitch scowled, "What-"

Jaune turned to point to the doors, "The Headmaster is waving his hands like mad. Does he need something?"

Weiss turned to look towards the doors, as did just about everyone. But they were empty… huh? It wasn't until she heard a mighty clang, followed by the sound of something heavy hitting the floor that she even thought to look back to the stage.

Blake dropped her book. But that wasn't what had caused the sound.

"Mr Arc!" The blonde teacher screeched, rushing between the two teens to stop the fight. Even then it seemed a unnecessary measure, since Jaune hadn't moved from his original spot. Crocea Mors was still in hand, though he was gripping it by the blade instead of the handle, no doubt using his aura to prevent injury.

Presumably the reason he wasn't using the handle was because it had been used to deliver a devastating blow to the side of Cardin's face. The taller teen lay flat on the floor, arms spread wide.

"I-… it…-" Weiss choked but couldn't find the words.

"Mr Arc, would you care to explain yourself!?" The teacher growled. The audience was as quiet as the grave as he flipped his sword in his hands, happily sheathing it at his side.

"I took advantage of a clear opening in my opponent's defences, while also mitigating the effects of his armour on preventing what damage I could cause." He tilted his head back and smiled - as though waiting for her to heap praise upon him. "One should always keep one's eyes on the foe."

"Any idiot can swing a sword like a bat," her words from earlier came back to haunt her. "An opponent is hardly going to wait for you to be prepared."

Oh Gods, she'd caused this, hadn't she?

"You…" Miss Goodwitch fought for words, "you shouted time-out…"

"Eh?" He scratched his cheek. "You'd already said to start the fight though… it's not like a Grimm is going to stop because someone asks for a time-out." In the crowd, Weiss' hands twitched, falling into a pose which might have been familiar to anyone who had felt the need to strangle someone before.

"Team CRDL, come take your leader to the infirmary. Mr Arc... while I cannot disagree with your... strategy." The compliment came out with incredible reluctance. "I would like it on record that should you pull something like this, I shall be in charge of your remedial training personally." Weiss let her head fall in relief, particularly at the fact that the woman was going to let him get away with that. Talk about a lucky break.

"Shouldn't I be congratulated for teaching everyone a valuable lesson on the importance of remaining focused in a combat situation?" Jaune apparently didn't see Weiss' motions to be silent, not the waving arms nor the rapid throat-slitting motions she was making. He did see the dangerous look on the older woman's face, however. "No? I'm thinking that look is saying no… it definitely doesn't look like a yes kind of expression."

"Get off my stage." The teacher took a visibly deep breath, releasing it slowly. "The next fight is-"

"I need to go see the doctor too."

"How!?" The question was incredulous, as were most of the crowd. Weiss slapped a hand onto her face as her partner held out one hand, forefinger extended. She couldn't see much from such a distance, but she could full well imagine that there might be the tiniest, most insignificant of cuts there. Miss Goodwitch sighed. "Fine… just…go."

Jaune grinned, hopped off the stage and made for the door. At the last second he turned, waving one arm above his head. "Hey Weiss," he shouted, making her wince and cringe all in one motion. "I won thanks to your motivational speech!" The door slammed shut a second later.

"Well…" Yang coughed, "He did win…"

"I think I might have to reassess our theory that he's an idiot savant," Weiss sighed. "Clearly he is just an idiot."

---

Blue eyes watched neutrally as the three men dragged Cardin away. He wouldn't be waking up for some time after a blow like that, but his aura would protect him from any other damage. You let your anger take control.

It hadn't been like that… Cardin was a braggart and a bully. It took him his first real loss to open up and grow. Plus, if he'd remained the target of said bullying then the events of Forever Fall would have happened again. They took place so often he was used to it, but this wasn't a case in which he could afford to garner attention by decapitating an Ursa. That might raise more than a few eyebrows. It was better to act out a little now to prevent the bigger loss later. It wasn't like his little stunt had convinced anyone he was a trained warrior.

You can make all the excuses you like… you beat him because you were angry.

It had been nothing more than a momentary lapse… the same frustration from what had happened earlier bleeding through. Cardin had made a convenient scapegoat, one that wouldn't come back to haunt him. But did he deserve to be nothing more than a tool for you? Did he deserve to suffer for something he didn't even do?

"What a day," Jaune sighed. "Not how I planned for this to go..." On instinct his hand dropped to his trouser pocket, the familiar indentation of his scroll pressed against his hand. He could call his family… that usually calmed him down, helped him centre his chaotic emotions. The hand came away. No, he wouldn't do that… they weren't tools either, and they didn't deserve to get a call every time he felt down. He would call them later tonight… when he was in a better, happier mood.

His finger caught his eyes as he brought it back up, the tiny droplet of blood still present. Not the same, of course, but the most miniscule of lifeblood that oozed through. Normally his control over aura was enough that such wouldn't have happened. How odd. Had it been the vibrations of the pommel connecting with Cardin's skull? Perhaps that had travelled down the blade and made the edge cut. He wasn't going to the infirmary with something like that. With his current mood the last thing he needed was someone asking probing questions or accusing him of trying to skip lessons.

I just want to go to sleep… I don't care if it's not even five yet. A yawn pushed its way past his fingers, echoing in the confines of the hall as he made his way back to their shared dorm. It was the final lesson for the day anyway, so it wasn't like he had to wait for anything. Weiss and the others would roll their eyes, but they could do so as much as they wished. He had to sleep off such dark thoughts.

"Well, well, isn't it lesson-time for first years?" Jaune paused with a short sigh. It wasn't a voice he immediately recognised, the tall brown-haired girl was nothing more than a face he vaguely recalled. Among other things. "Combat with Miss Goodwitch if I'm not mistaken. Brave of you to skip on her."

"Just finished taking my opponent to the infirmary," Jaune lied, stopping to look the girl up and down. Third or fourth year, school uniform, long legs and light blonde highlights in her auburn hair. "I'm not expected back, so I wouldn't call this skipping."

"You injured someone in your first week?" She tried to sound disinterested, but he could hear the surprise in her tone. "I guess it's true what they say about young men and control."

"It wasn't control that was the problem," Jaune crossed his arms and stepped close, watching as her eyes widened. She wasn't used to youngsters she wanted to tease pushing back. He recalled that was how he usually met her, as much as he couldn't recall her name. Aimee, Amelie? Something with an A. She was on a rather nondescript older team... he'd never found out if she survived the fall of Beacon or not. Sometimes it was better not to know. "Or rather, control wasn't the problem for me. He couldn't control his mouth."

"Cute. I take it you're someone who thinks of themselves as a bad boy?" She laughed but he saw how her legs shifted. She liked guys who were aggressive. She pushed because she wanted someone to push back. But she'd broken her fair share of hearts if he recalled… she was neither ready not interested in a long term relationship. Her eyes widened as he pushed himself against her, catching her hands when she made to shove him back, pinning her against the lockers. She struggled briefly, or so it might have looked. He could feel her lower body grinding against him. "Okay, I'll admit... you don't waste time," she breathed.

"You talk too much."

"That's my line," her lips were a hair's breadth from his but she still grinned. "You talk good but are you sure there's anything more to it?"

Jaune grinned, "Guess you'll be the first at Beacon to find out."

It seemed there was more than one way to burn away his frustration. Thanks for the advice Saph, he thought as he pushed his lips against the girl's. Maybe this was what he needed most.

Something to help him forget.

---

"Did you see mine and Nora's fight?" Yang asked as she hopped and skipped down the corridor. "Damn that girl is good with her hammer." She hadn't been pushed so hard since she'd arrived at Beacon. And the best part was how the other girl treated the fight too, like it was nothing more than a game. None of that angsty `I must win` crap, or taking everything too personally. Just two people letting off steam and having fun.

She'd still won, of course. But even she knew it was hardly fair. Nora hadn't been allowed to use her grenade launcher form, even if Yang was still fairly sure she could have gotten past it. She liked to get in close and personal, and the girl wouldn't want to fire at that range.

"Somehow I'm not surprised you would enjoy a match that nearly destroyed the arena," the snappy white-haired girl growled. Yang spared her a smug look, not that she noticed. Ah yes, the most beautiful sight of watching her baby sister get one up on the arrogant girl.

So. Damn. Satisfying.

Blake had totally agreed, even if she wouldn't admit it. Her yellow eyes had almost glowed with pleasure. Hey, she didn't hate Weiss – but that didn't mean she didn't enjoy a well-deserved ass-kicking either.

The fact that it had been her badass little sister was just icing on the cake.

"My fight wasn't anything particularly special, sadly." The blonde reached over to clap a hand on the girl's shoulder, even if she didn't exactly look torn up over it. There was no disagreeing with the sentiment, however. Blake had brought her bout to an end within a minute.

Yang hated minutemen… though not in the way most women usually meant it.

"Well you know who else didn't even last a minute," Yang grinned, watching as the Heiress' shoulders went stiff. "Looks like your plan went off without a hitch Weiss-cream, congrats!"

"That was not my plan!" The girl whirled around, finger outstretched as if to spear through Yang's face. "I can't believe what he did, of all the underhanded, irresponsible-"

"He did win," Blake shrugged. "And he wasn't wrong… Goodwitch called them to start, Winchester shouldn't have gotten distracted." It was a weak excuse, even Yang knew. Before the next bout had even started the teacher had laid out rules that stuff like that was never to happen again. No one is allowed to forfeit before a match and now no one can call for a time out. Is he just going to keep forcing rules to be added to the list?

"It was humiliating is what it was! And then he had the audacity to talk back to the teacher," Weiss' hands gripped her hair in fury. "And then he waved to me, like it was all my fault – and what he said!" Her eyes widened, teeth gnashing together angrily. "If he thought that training was bad then he'd best be prepared for what I'll put him through, the ungrateful buffoon!"

"Wouldn't that count as domestic abuse?" Yang grinned and ducked Weiss' hand. As the girl continued to rant, she sidled over to Blake. "Pst, sis… I think mummy and daddy are going to have a fight."

"Funny, Yang," Blake pushed her away as she opened the door to their room. Sheesh, her partner was still a real bundle of laughs. Did I manage to find literally the only three people in Beacon who don't find my amazing jokes to be funny? In the background she thought she could hear Ruby let off a single loud bark of sarcastic laughter.

With a forlorn sigh, she followed after, letting Weiss in behind as the door slammed shut. The bathroom door opened a second later, the lone male occupant of the room appearing with a loose shirt and his boxers on. He seemed to freeze upon seeing them, as did they.

"Oh, hey," he greeted awkwardly. "Uh… I just need my pants?"

"Please refrain from walking around in a state of undress." Weiss sighed, reached over and snatched a pair before throwing them at his chest. Her face scrunched even further as she looked at him. "You're covered in sweat, what have you been doing?"

Yang could smell something. She wasn't sure what, but it was out of place. Nothing familiar, it felt light and peachy? Was he wearing aftershave? Odd, since it was definitely a woman's fragrance. Also, were those a women's pair of shoes by the door? Did Blake leave hers out?

"I –uh…" he paused, swallowed and looked between them. Blake seemed to take a deep sniff, before her face twisted in disgust. She walked away with a fierce scowl, flopping onto her bed and refusing to be a part of the conversation. "I've been training." He finally said.

Weiss and Yang could only stare. "Training?" Weiss asked, voice uncertain. Yang could sympathize. But he was covered in sweat and it did look like he had been about to take a shower. It just seemed… so unusual for his character. Another contradiction for her to agonise over?

"Well I…" he looked aside, "I thought about what you said… you did put a lot of effort into training me. So I thought I should acknowledge that by doing some of my own. In fact, how about we all go off and do some more training right now?"

"Weren't you just about to have a shower?" Yang pointed down at his still boxer-clad legs.

"Weren't you…" Weiss pointed directly at his face, but paused to try and find the right word. "I don't understand… but if you want to train then sure. Let me just use the bathroom."

"No, no, no, no, no. You don't want to go in there!" Jaune pushed the girl back, and Weiss did not look pleased at being manhandled by a half-naked man. "It's… it's a real mess. I took a dump, it got out of control, it grew legs. Give it time to fade."

"Ew," Yang pinched her nose and backed away. Was that what the peach scent was, vast amounts of air freshener that he had used to mask the smell? "You're totally cleaning that."

"I will," he promised, one hand coming to rest on Weiss' shoulder, the other on Yang's, as he gently guided them both away from the closed door. "But let's all go out and get some training. As a team." His inspirational words were interrupted by the bathroom door opening. Something they each saw over his shoulder.

"Not bad tiger," a brown-haired girl grinned. Her fingers worked on the last few buttons of her blouse, which looked wrinkled beyond all repair. It was a little wet too, almost see-through in places. Yang could only blink as the older girl walked past them, reached down and squeezed their leader. She leaned in and pushed her mouth against his, biting his lower lip as she finished. "I added my number to your scroll. Give me a buzz if you think you've got the guts to go again." She then seemed to notice the three girls, who were giving her horrified expressions. A hysterical part of Yang's mind noticed that Blake didn't actually join them in that, the girl studiously scowling into her latest book. "Oh hey, thanks for the use of your teammate. See you round freshmen."

The door to their dorm slammed shut, leaving the four of them in complete silence. You could have heard a pin drop… and in fact, the loudest sound was that of Blake's pages turning – and something that sounded like two objects being grated together?

"You…" Oh right, it was Weiss' teeth. That made sense. "In our bathroom…? I-… I can't even…" she shook her head. "What were you doing!?"

"Do you actually want the answer to that?" Yang did not. And nor did Blake judging from the way she covered her ears. Weiss' face went scarlet as she grabbed him by the collar.

"I meant what were you thinking? You can't bring your girlfriend to our dorm for that!"

"Ah well…" he scratched the back of his head, "She's not actually my girlfriend per se… she's more, well, she prefers things a bit more casual."

"I don't care for the specifics!" Weiss howled, pushing him back so hard he bounced off the woodwork. Yang still wasn't sure what she was supposed to do. On the one side she considered herself the party girl and free spirit, she was the cool kid. She wasn't meant to get angry at that, and hell, she'd been caught making out with boys once or twice.

On the other hand, ew… she was going to have to use Ruby's shower tonight… and possibly for the rest of her career at Beacon.

"Who even was she?" Weiss continued, all spit and fire as she stomped her way around the room. Jaune held one finger up, brow creasing for a few seconds. Yang felt the urge to slap a hand against her face and knock him out all at the same time. Was she supposed to stand up for women-kind here, or just lament at how idiotic her leader was? "You don't even remember her name, do you?" Weiss sounded like she was looking at the most disgusting creature she had ever seen.

"I do too!" he argued, standing up straight in what might have been an intimidating pose if he weren't wearing a loose shirt and his boxers. "I'll have you know that I would never forget the name of the sweet, independent, and beautiful Blake Belladonna."

"That's my name!" Blake slammed her book down atop the mattress. "I am Blake Belladonna." His mouth opened, "And no we have not had sex!"

"We haven't?" He threw his arms over his face, as though experiencing some great shock. Weiss growled that he wouldn't distract her, before then launching into a tirade about what he'd said and done in combat class. He shouted back, about teaching a lesson, about doing what she said – it continued from there.

Yang could only stand and watch it all, morbid disgust slowly transforming into something less troubling. As the two argued and Blake alternated between interrupting and furiously reading her book, she started to laugh.

It didn't make sense… so many contradictions, and it was hard to get a grasp on him. Now she had to add a new one too, he was a pervert – but that also came with the caveat that his sister's overheard words had proven true. He was good with women… somehow. But that didn't matter. Her team was a mess, a complete train-wreck of conflicting personalities and opinions. They had zero teamwork, zero understanding of one another… and technically zero leadership for the whole squad.

But it was kinda funny too, in a weird way.

"What are you standing there grinning at Xiao-Long!? Help me stomp this stupid, perverted, moronic… idiot into the ground!"

"Whatever you say, mum."

"And stop calling me that!"

---

Another chapter, another week – I hope you enjoyed. So about Jaune, aura and pain... I realise that people can ignore pain in life-threatening situations, because the feeling is pushed back by the body in favour of survival. But in training, I don't think so. There's a lack of "certainty" of death that would keep you fighting past exhaustion and agony. So yeah, Jaune is still a human… his mind may go back each time, but his body does not. Certain tolerances he may have built up (including his drinking) are unfortunately reset. As such, yes, getting knocked about by Weiss and Cardin does hurt him. A lot. Thus there is incentive to avoid it.

He can push through with mental discipline, as he did here in letting Weiss continue to wail on him. But that doesn't mean he won't end up feeling and regretting it. He is not an invincible tank; he just has more skill and knowledge than just about any other student. His weakness is conditioning. Hopefully you'll notice I used the word "instincts" instead of muscle memory too. Obviously, he has no muscle memory.

A personality switch with the girl, it's a hint at how he has tried so many different things. It's not that he is or isn't that kind of guy. It's that he knew the exact words and way to act to get what he 's almost a nod to how he has acted in previous lives.

---

Next Chapter: 21st July

P a treon . com (slash) Coeur