Ah, another chapter of White Sheep – how you punish me so with your high word count, no time and various other things. Like the most irritating child in the world, I still kind of love you, but I love you more when you're with your mother.
By which I mean College Fool, of course.
Alas, there is no such recourse. It's Tuesday now; this needs to be written for tomorrow – let's go.
Beta: College Fool
Cover Art: Kegi Springfield
Chapter 10 – Relationsheep Problems
Yang cackled as Ruby's character slumped to the floor in defeat. `You win` the game informed her, though she already made more than sure Ruby knew that, with a series of exaggerated eyebrow waggles and a repetitive, "eh, eh?" sound.
"You cheated," Ruby complained. "You kept using the same move."
"Then you'd think you would learn how to get out of it, sis. Oh, and by the way, you can thank Ren for that." She glowered at her partner as she said that. Ren was good at games… too good… but it was in an overly methodical way. He'd use perhaps two moves and combos, and that was all he'd use. He still beat her every time.
"Your own advice back at you," the black-haired boy said distractedly. He was busy trying to escape Nora, who wanted to drag him in for a round with a bet about how many pancakes he'd need to make her if she won.
"Bah," Yang scoffed. "I'm tired of losing to Ren and tired of beating you."
"You're ahead of me by one… we were even for the last ten games."
"Tired," Yang repeated. "I need a new challenge."
"You're just afraid I'll even up the score, aren't you?"
"A new challenge with a fresh opponent. Where's Jaune, already? Wasn't he supposed to come with you?"
"I don't know," Ruby sighed and looked towards the door. "He said he would come straight after me, but that was an hour ago." The smaller girl frowned and looked down at the controller in her hand. It was too good a chance to miss.
"Oh, Rubes," Yang sighed dramatically. "Only apart for an hour and already you miss him. Young love truly is something wonderful."
"It's not like that." Ruby groused and elbowed her in the side. "We're teammates, not… not that."
It was hard not to tease her further, but there was only so much her sis could take, and it wouldn't do to make her resistant to the teasing already. There was still so much distance she could draw out of that love bite. Then again, if dad ever found out, I don't think there would be any distance Jaune could run without being hunted down.
"Where is he, then?" Yang asked. "You did tell him where our room was, right? He's not wandering across Vale?"
"We're opposite rooms, Yang. I doubt he could get lost in Beacon finding this place, let alone Vale."
A knock on the door cut into their conversation. Yang grinned and leapt to her feet. "I've got it!" she called to the others. Blake waved a hand dismissively, while Nora cheered, finally having convinced Ren to face off against her. She rolled her eyes and padded over to the door barefoot, leaning an ear against it. "Who is it~?" she crooned.
"Um… it's Jaune," his muffled voice came back. "This is Team Ribbon's room, right? Sorry about being late. I got lost in Vale."
Yang heard a loud slap of hand meeting face in the room, but did her best to smother her laughter. "I don't remember ordering anything from Vale. You sure you got the right address? Is this a pizza delivery?"
"Um… no. Should I try again another day?" He sounded like he might actually leave.
"Wait, wait, wait," she started to unlatch the door and pull it open. "I was just kidding, Jaune. Sheesh, you don't need to take everything so liter-" Her words cut off. Mostly because of the bright and beautiful bouquet of flowers which was presented before her. "-ally…" she finished, open-mouthed.
Jaune poked his head out from around the side, a shy smile on his face, but sapphire eyes sparkling. "Hey Yang," he waved with one hand, the others still holding the flowers forward. "I got these for you."
Her hands closed around the bouquet, pulling the stems against her breasts. The petals tickled her chin, the fragrant scent dizzying her senses, even as the vibrant colours dazzled her eyes. Her mouth opened and something probably passed through it, but for the life of her she couldn't remember or hear what. Her heart was too busy banging in her chest. "F-For me?" she stammered, and then instantly regretted how stupid that sounded.
"Of course," Jaune smiled. "Can I come in?"
No. I'm unprepared for any of this! "Sure!" she yelled, pulling the door open for him and wincing when she did so far too hard and slammed it against the back wall. "Come in, come in." Yet again, her voice felt several octaves too high. Oh gods, were her cheeks going red? They felt like they were.
"Hi Jaune," Ruby called from where she sat. Silver eyes blinked a second later, however, as she looked at the beautiful arrangement Yang carried. "You went to buy flowers?"
"Yep," Jaune nodded. "It took a while too since I had to go out to Vale and then find someone who sold them this late in the afternoon."
Yang's cheeks darkened, her arms unconsciously hugging them closer to her.
"Why bring them at all?" Ruby asked.
"Oh, I got them for Yang, of course."
That was the last straw. Yang covered the distance between herself and the bathroom in an instant, grabbing the only person she could think to en route. "I need a conference!" she yelled, slamming the door shut behind them. She stared into wide, yellow eyes. "Help me!"
"Help you?" Blake asked, hair sticking out wildly from where she'd been dragged along the floor. "Why did you drag me in here? What's even the problem?"
What was the problem? There was no problem, oh, except for the problem, of course. Yang paced left and right, already feeling too confined in the tiny bathroom. Blake was forced to back up into the shower as Yang started to walk in circles. The flowers were still in her hands, dripping water on the floor.
"A vase," Yang gasped. "I need a vase!"
"We don't have any vases, Yang. Why would we?"
"Well obviously, I know that, Blake, otherwise I wouldn't be so panicked, would I!?" Lilac eyes danced from side to side as she tried to find something – anything – that could suffice. There, against the wall atop a pile of clothes!
"Oof!" Blake caught the bouquet as it was pushed into her hands. "Yang, what are you…"
"Ta-da!" Yang cheered, turning away from the tap with vase in hand, now half-filled with water. Blake looked at it with a deadpan expression.
"Yang, that's your left boot."
Yang placed it down on the counter, grabbing the flowers from Blake and gently placing them down into it. She looked at them, sitting there beautifully, and then – because she didn't know what else to do – reached over to fluff them up.
Somehow, they looked even more perfect after that.
"What are you going to do tomorrow when you only have one shoe?" Blake asked.
"Tomorrow? Forget tomorrow! What am I going to do now!?"
"Er…?"
"There's a man in there," Yang gasped, "who has bought me flowers. He literally travelled to Vale and back to buy me flowers. I'm in my pyjamas, I haven't had a shower, my hair is a mess and I'm barefoot." Yang took one look around the bathroom and promptly panicked. "I only have one shoe!"
"Technically, you have both," Blake pointed out, and then balked when she saw Yang's face. "Okay… um… so, this is fairly serious for you, huh?"
Yang squirmed on the spot, somehow feeling naked and uncertain. "No one's ever bought me flowers before," she whispered, almost too quietly to be heard. It felt humiliating to even admit but… well, she was the tomboy, the fighter and the rough one. Who would ever buy Yang Xiao-Long flowers? Hah, what a joke – buy her a drink or some fighting magazine. She wouldn't like girly stuff.
She quickly turned and fluffed the flowers up again, inhaling their scent.
"I'm… really not the best person to ask on this," Blake sighed. "I've never had someone make a romantic gesture towards me, either."
"Should I ask Nora?" Yang gestured towards the door. "Ren, or - gods forbid - Ruby!?"
"Huh, when you put it like that, maybe I am the best person to ask." Blake said. "That's… kind of sad."
Yang politely reminded her teammate of the problem at hand by igniting her eyes and hair red and gold respectively.
"Okay, okay," Blake waved her hands. "I get it, Yang. It's just… what do you want me to suggest? Does he like you? Do you like him back?"
Did she like Jaune? What kind of question was that? They'd known one another for all of… three days tops. Three days and a brief meeting at a café out in Vale, that wasn't enough to form that kind of attachment for someone. Sure, she thought he was pretty funny and nice, and he laughed at her jokes – even the bad ones. He wasn't bad looking, either, and he was nice with Ruby and all but it was three days!
Her heart wasn't ready for this.
Her brain wasn't even ready! For crying out loud, she was holding a boot filled with water and flowers, in her pyjamas, trapped in a tiny, tiled bathroom with another woman. All the while, the man who had given her said flowers stood outside with her sister and teammates.
She had to do something. She couldn't just ignore him and hide in the bathroom all night.
Wait, and didn't Ruby like Jaune too? This was like, a recipe for disaster! She didn't want to break her own sister's heart.
The scent of the flowers reached her nose once more, but looking down at them only made her head spin even more.
/-/
Jaune smiled at her and sat down next to her when she patted the cushions on the floor. "Sorry I'm late, Ruby," he said, "It was really hard to convince the Bullhead pilot to take me to Vale and back."
"How did you even manage that?" she asked. From what she remembered, they had a curfew in place, though you could call for them in an emergency and they'd come pick you up. Miss Goodwitch had explained how that would normally result in a meeting with her, however.
"I just explained what was going on," he said. "The woman there seemed reluctant at first, but when I explained why; she got this misty look in her eyes and wouldn't stop smiling. She helped me pick them out too. Do you think your sister liked them?"
"Er…" Ruby glanced over to the bathroom her sister had locked herself in. Standard Yang operating procedure didn't normally include that, but she figured her sister's red face wasn't because of anger. "I think so?" she guessed. "Why did you bring her flowers anyway?"
"Dad was always clear you should bring a woman flowers on a first date."
"A date?" Ruby's cheeks flushed as she looked back to the bathroom. "Y-You're dating Yang?"
Since when did Jaune like Yang?
She thought he liked her… not that she wanted him to, or anything, but he always acted- didn't he?
Ruby chewed on her lower lip. Was she being replaced for Yang already?
"Well, she asked me," he said.
"She did?" Ruby asked. "I mean, not that there's anything wrong with that and Yang's a great girl and my sister an-"
"I know," Jaune sighed, and something about his voice made her pause. "I think of her as a friend too, which is why I didn't want to turn her down. Plus, she's your sister too. It's not like I expected her to ask me out, but I was caught off-guard and just… well, panicked, I guess. I couldn't just say no."
Wait, so he didn't want to? A wave of relief totally didn't flow through her, and she didn't sigh either. She was just breathing… heavily. Actually, now that she thought about it, since when was her sis the kind of person to just ask some new friend out? Actually, it all sounded a bit weird anyway.
"Um... Jaune. What exactly did Yang say to you when she asked you out? And where did she say it?"
"Hm? Oh, it was in the cafeteria earlier. When I asked if I could come and play games with you tonight, she said it would be a date."
"She… said it would?"
"Well, she said `it's a date` and that was it."
Oh. Ohhhhhh… Ruby smothered a giggle that threatened to take control of her.
"Jaune, I don't think she meant that as an actua-"
"Hi!" Yang cheered as the bathroom door slammed open. "Sorry about that. I just had to talk to Blake about something." Yang's feet padded past them as she stood in front of one of the desks and arranged the flowers atop them. When she stepped away with a smile, Ruby tilted her head to one side.
"Uh, Yang? Isn't that your boot?"
"Nope!"
"I think it-"
"Nope!" Yang repeated and flopped down cross-legged on the other side of Jaune. "It's definitely a vase," she added. "It's one of those avant-garde ones. They're totally in fashion at the moment."
"I'm glad you like them," Jaune said.
"T-They're great," Yang grinned back, cheeks a little pink but coming back under control. "You totally shouldn't have gone to so much effort, though."
"Why not? I think it was worth the effort."
"I-ah-I-uh…" Yang's eyes darted around the room, left, right, up and down, anywhere that didn't involve looking at him. "Maybe I need another conference." she said, already half-way to standing up.
"Stay!" Blake planted her hands onto Yang's shoulders from behind. To Ruby's amazement, it still looked like Yang might rise, able to push both their weight up. Blake scowled and pushed down with all her strength. "No more conferences," the black-haired girl said. "I never thought you'd be such a coward, Yang."
"I never thought she'd be so feminine," Ren mumbled from the other side of her. Yang drove an elbow into his ribs automatically, causing the boy to keel over and fall on his side.
"YOU LOSE!" the television screen helpfully pointed out.
"What!?"
"YES!" Nora cheered, controller in the air. "One hundred pancakes for breakfast, Renny. Make it happen!"
The whole scene happened without Yang once taking her eyes off Jaune, and never once did her smile falter. "Ha ha, well, t-thanks for the compliment, lov- Jaune, I definitely said Jaune. I love the flowers!"
"Really? I could always get you some more."
Yang giggled.
And giggled…
Ruby started to worry when it continued past the fifteen second mark; not to mention when Yang's wide eyes looked like she was begging for help. With a sigh, she reached over and nudged Jaune's arm, if only to save her big sister from him. "Maybe you should hold off for a bit," she said. "Who even buys someone flowers that often?"
"My dad?"
Okay, well, that was nice, but still… she had the sinking suspicion Jaune had the wrong idea, that Yang had the wrong idea – and that the only one with the right idea was her. "Nora?" she called in an effort to distract him and rescue her sister from an embarrassment-induced coma (even if Yang deserved every spec of embarrassment for what she'd put her through in the cafeteria earlier), "Didn't you want us all to play some video games?"
Nora's head perked up like a Beowolf who'd just sensed more prey during a meal. Ren, the carcass in the analogy, shivered on the floor as he imagined how many pancakes he'd need to make. "We need to have a tournament," Nora gasped. "With us four and now you and Jaune, we can have a 6-person tourney!"
"Count me out," Blake sighed. "Video games really aren't my thing and I want to finish this boo-"
"Truth beneath the covers?" Nora mused loudly. "Isn't that the detective novel where he bends her over the desk an-"
Blake sat down next to Nora with a strained smile. "On second thought, I'd love to play."
"Yay! Tournament."
Nora quickly arranged them into segments, to face off against one another in a rather convoluted series of fights which would eventually earn them points and determine a grand champion. Jaune did make mention of whether the winner got a prize, but judging from how red her sister's face went, Ruby decided to head that one off early.
Her first opponent, however, had no such mercy, and Ren crushed her with a three round fight. Her only saving grace was that on the third she'd been able to hit him and thus ensured he didn't score three `perfect` bouts against her.
It was a small mercy, but it was there… he had to be cheating somehow. Still, that gave her a chance to push over to Jaune while Yang and Nora engaged in a fast-fingered battle. The familiarity of the game and the competition looked enough to draw Yang out of her embarrassment, but it couldn't hurt to be careful.
"Jaune," she hissed under her breath. He looked her way. "Um… you know earlier, when you said Yang invited you on a date?"
"Yeah?" Her teammate blinked, but then suddenly looked nervous. "Have I screwed up already? Did I do something I wasn't meant to? Damn it, I knew I should have dressed more formally."
"No, no, no – definitely no formal." Not when her sister was in pyjamas. She dreaded to imagine what that would do to Yang's already bizarre mood. "You're doing fine," she said, "It's just… how do I put this? Yang didn't-"
Ruby never got the chance to finish.
"Your turn, Jaune!" Nora crowed. She handed over the controller as Yang punched the ground in frustration. "You're against Blakey. Go easy on her or I'll crush your spine." Nora then smiled happily, as though she hadn't quite said what she totally said.
Ruby sighed, realising she'd lost the opportunity. Oh, how bad can it be? It's just another one of his little misunderstandings. Yang will be fine and it'll be something to actually tease her about for once.
Jaune took the controller with a vaguely confused expression, though he seemed to catch on once Nora pointed out the controls for it. The game was a fighting one, where each player controlled a single character. Jaune took a few seconds to choose someone he liked the look of, a rather weak character if Ruby recalled, but judging by how Blake shrugged and chose the first thing her cursor landed on, it didn't look like he'd be punished for it.
"Go Jaune!" Ruby called, offering support for her team.
"Kick her ass, Jaune!" Yang echoed. "What?" she added when Blake sent her an arch look.
"ROUND START!"
Ruby cheered as Jaune's character rushed in and ambushed Blake's with a flurry of blows. The others rooted for their respective sides too, until – by the third bout – it had become pointedly clear that Blake wasn't trying in the slightest.
"Oh dear," she smirked after the third perfect against her. "I guess that's me knocked out."
Nora's eyebrow twitched. "Oh, Blake," the orange-haired girl gasped. "You were defeated so easily. This won't do; not at all. That's it! From now on, each night, we're going to have remedial training until you can face even Renny with confidence."
"That's not necessary," Blake said, face suddenly far more worried than it had been before.
"Of course it is! What kind of partner would I be if I didn't try to help you with your difficulties?"
"No. It's fine. I don't need help!"
"She's so sweet." Nora stage-whispered to them all. "Don't worry, Blake. I'll make a true gamer out of you."
"That… really isn't necessary."
"To me, it is."
"You're wasting your time."
"You're my partner, Blakey. Time spent helping you is never wasted."
"Nora, no…"
"Nora, yes!"
Blake looked like she was about to pull her hair out, but stopped as loud applause filled the room. Ruby blinked too, and looked beside her in time to see Jaune clapping his hands together and… were his eyes red?
"That was amazing," he said. "I can't believe how close you two are. You'd really go that far for her, Nora?"
"In a heartbeat."
"It's not needed!"
"You've got a good partner, Blake," Jaune said. "You should be proud she's willing to take time out of her day to help you improve. That's the mark of a kind person."
"Aw, Jauney," Nora cooed. "It's so nice to have someone understand!"
Blake groaned into her hands.
/-/
All in all, for a first date, Jaune didn't think he was doing too bad. He'd brought flowers, as his dad always did. Mom always seemed lost for words when he did too, so Yang's reaction wasn't too surprising. He'd also technically gotten Yang half-naked, which while not great advice, was also what his mom often suggested he try to do with Cinder.
Still, for all his sister's warnings about boring dinners, conversation and awkwardness, he felt the night was going pretty good. Who knew you could just play video games with people for a first date? This is awesome.
Of course, as a gentleman (his father often extoled the virtues of that), he'd made an effort to let Blake win against him. That had been a little awkward, though, since it ended with a period where their characters both just rubbed up against one another, neither attacking. In the end, he'd been forced to beat her. Hopefully she wasn't mad, but at least she had Nora to help her improve.
"I really think Nora could be the first step in forming peace between Grimm and humans, Remy. She seems able to reach even the most difficult people. Plus, she's shown friendly feelings towards Grimm before."
"I'll repeat, Jaune, she rode an Ursa to death. That isn't friendship!"
It was close, though. His mother often said she rode Nicholas until he was comatose, and his parents were still together.
"The final round is Ren versus Jaune," Nora chanted, drawing his attention back to the miniature tournament. "This epic clash of titans has drawn together people from across all of Remnant."
"Nora, it drew Jaune and Ruby from across the hall…"
"Stop ruining my story with your wicked truths, Renny! This is an epic match, the decider – the chance for the reigning champion to defend his throne. And," Nora added, with an excited gleam in her eye, "I think an epic match needs epic stakes!"
Oh dear, this sounded exactly like what his sisters would do.
"Nora, is that wise?" Ren asked. "There's nothing I would ask for."
"I'm fine too," Jaune said, if only because it felt like the polite thing to do. Ren was such an upstanding guy that it felt rude not to try and mimic him.
"No, no, no, that's not how it works. If there's nothing riding on the game, then you won't give it your all. We need to raise the stakes so we can see who the true champion is, even if it's obviously going to be Renny." She seemed pretty confident in her friend's skills. "Ooh, I know, whoever wins will get a kiss!"
"A-A kiss!?" Ruby gasped, cheeks red as she stared at him for some reason.
Yang looked between Ruby and him too, and her face alternated between red and white. "I agree with Rubes." Yang laughed nervously. "I mean, it's just a game, right? There's no need to do anything like that."
"No!" Nora slammed a fist into her palm. "A kiss for the champion. That's the rule."
"I-I'm not sure about this," Ruby stammered. "I mean, you haven't even asked if we're willing to do that."
"Oh posh," Nora waved one hand. "Renny will win anyway so it's not like you have to worry."
Blake sighed from her bed. "Nora, you just want t-"
A pillow to the face cut her off.
"The rules have been set, the battlefield chosen – now, let the ultimate test of skill begin!"
Jaune shot a look at Ren, who only shrugged in response and handed him a controller. He took it and sat down beside the other man, crossing his legs and selecting his favourite character.
"Forgive Nora," he said. "She can be… excitable."
"It's fine. I think I like that; she's one of the friendliest people I've ever met."
"That's one way of putting it. Are you ready?"
Jaune nodded and focused on the screen, even as the girls around them started to cheer. Well, in truth, it was only Nora, but she cheered as loud as four. Yang and Ruby were oddly silent, which was weird since they'd both cheered for him in the previous games. Maybe they want Ren to win this one… he is Yang's team leader after all.
Or maybe it was something else entirely. Ren was a really cool guy, all mysterious and calm with a soft voice and sharp eyes. It wouldn't be too hard to imagine Yang or Ruby having a crush on him. He seemed like the kind of guy some of his sisters would have liked.
Ren came in carefully. He didn't seem overly concerned or invested in the game, and Jaune didn't feel that way, either. They probed one another with a few punches, one of which Ren deflected and pulled into a throw which took off a quarter of Jaune's health.
"Nice throw."
"Thanks."
Jaune decided to up the ante, using a combo move that knocked Ren into the air, followed by a mix-up of high and low blows which juggled the character. Beside him, Ren's neutral expression pulled into a frown.
Ren's character twisted in mid-air, recovering with an air-step and dodging the axe-kick that would have knocked him up once more. He hit the ground, pulled off a recovery and kicked Jaune away. Several energy blasts were sent across the field, each of which Jaune dodged by jumping over them – but the last one caught him because Ren changed the rhythm and made it so that dodging the first made him land atop the second.
"Round one – Victory!"
"Ren wins!" Nora cheered. The man in question nodded to Jaune, but there was the barest hint of a smirk there.
Jaune's eyes narrowed. Okay, that was fine, a loss wasn't anything to get worked up over. The battle reset, their health bars filled, and Jaune resolved to just play for fun.
Which was why he barrelled across the arena and instantly caught his opponent in a blistering combination, drawn straight into a disabling mix-up and then followed with a devastating finishing move. Ren hit the mat, only to be caught by a low kick and given not a moment's rest.
Okay, so maybe he'd been a tad competitive.
"Interesting," Ren murmured as the match ended in a dominating victory for Jaune. "I won't fall for that one again."
The third match was closer. Ren pulled out a variety of tricks, some of which he knew from his sisters Hazel and Jade, but with a methodical, mathematical style that reminded him of Coral. Breaking through Ren's guard was a nightmare, and what hits he did score rarely translated into anything more.
Ren, on the other hand, capitalised on every opening to devastating effect. He claimed the round.
"This is pretty intense…" Yang whispered from behind them.
Jaune wasn't sure what she meant. It was just a friendly game… just a bit of fun. He glared at Ren from the corner of one eye, in time to see narrow, pink eyes stare back. Their fingers tightened on the controllers. A bead of sweat ran down his brow.
It was match point to Ren, but that didn't mean anything. So what if he lost? It was just a game.
He swallowed and took a deep breath.
The match started. Jaune backed away, creating distance as Ren's character launched forwards in a special move that would have crushed him had he stood still. He countered with a kick, catching Ren in the brief millisecond of vulnerability between the invincibility frames of the animation. His fingers slammed down in intricate commands.
His breath came out in frantic gasps. Nora's cheers had faded, replaced with an intense silence and a constant click, click, click of tiny plastic buttons.
"YES!" Jaune crowed when he eked out a victory, only to cough and lower his hand a second later. "I mean, yeah, I won, uh, nice."
"Someone's getting competitive," Blake's voice was tinged with amusement. "Does he want that kiss so badly, I wonder?"
What? The kiss? Oh yeah, he'd forgotten about that.
For some reason, Ruby and Yang shared looks, then instantly turned away from one another, faces red. Jaune would have asked them what was wrong, but for Ren coughing.
"You're a good opponent, Jaune. I'm impressed. I don't normally have this much difficulty with people."
"Renny is the best," Nora said, almost defensively. "You told Yang you weren't very good."
"Oh, I'm not," Jaune laughed. "I don't think I've ever beaten my sisters in a game. They're way better than I am."
"Way better?" Ren asked, apparently more interested than Jaune had expected. Wait a minute, was Ren suggesting he wanted to meet with his sisters? Should he be worried about that?
"Well, they normally crush me," he said warily. "So yeah, I don't think I'm very good at the game."
Hmm… Ren was a pretty cool guy. Plus, he was friends with Nora, who already didn't hate the Grimm too much. His sisters could look after themselves too, so maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea to introduce them. He'd have to find out more about Ren, maybe see if he would make a good brother-in-law.
Nora would probably help if he asked.
"The final round," the girl in question said quickly. "Ren, you have to win, okay?"
"I'll try my best, Nora."
Jaune's eyes narrowed. If Ren wanted to prove himself worthy of his sisters, then he would give him a challenge to prove it.
/-/
Yang fidgeted nervously as she looked between the game tournament, her sister and the guy who'd brought her flowers and basically turned her evening upside down. She knew full well why Nora had gone ahead with the kiss idea, but that only seemed like a good idea when they'd been fairly sure Ren would win.
Now, that ending seemed in doubt, and Yang wasn't sure what she thought about it.
She also wasn't sure what Ruby felt. The girl's cheeks were red and her silver eyes flicked about the room as though considering every escape route.
Did her sister have feelings for her first friend at Beacon?
Was it possible that she was getting in the way of that?
Ruby's never shown interest in guys before, so I don't have any past experience to work with. Okay, what do we know? She blushes around him a lot, she always gets embarrassed when I tease her about him, she sits next to him and she gave him a love bite…
No matter which way she looked at that, it seemed like a pretty solid argument! Sure, Ruby claimed she hadn't, but she totally would say that, wouldn't she?
Okay, it's fine. Ren just needs to win. It'll be okay.
On the screen, and in front of it, the two combatants duelled. Any skills she might have claimed for the game paled in comparison and made it look like button mashing. The two of them seemed to grasp the range of every attack, dancing back instead of blocking and thus saving the tiny chips of damage that might have otherwise eaten away at them.
If the timer hadn't been turned off, it would have ended long ago. Thirty seconds was not long enough for a battle between these titans, and this one felt like it had gone on for two minutes already. Two minutes that felt like two hours.
If Jaune won, did she let Ruby kiss him? If Ruby did have feelings for him, then that was definitely the way to go. Yang was fairly sure she didn't feel the same way, even if she did go weak legged and feel a little giddy when she thought of the flowers. It would be safer to let Ruby do it… less chance of accidentally hurting her little sister.
That would mean letting Ruby kiss a boy, though.
Her dad would kill her. Qrow would be horrified, Zwei would go ballistic – and hell, she'd probably go a little mad too. Ruby was too young to be developing an attraction in anyone. She was definitely too young to be sucking face with them.
Also, what if Jaune is doing this because he wants a kiss from me? What do I do if he doesn't return Ruby's feelings?
So many questions, so few answers. How did Ruby feel? What about Jaune? What did she do about the kiss? What was she going to wear tomorrow now that her boot was a flower vase?
So panicked was she, that when she looked back to the bout, it was in time to see Ren and Jaune shout something out in unison, both initiating attacks at the same time.
Both connected.
Both characters sailed through the air.
Both hit the ground.
Neither moved.
"Double Knock-Out!"
"They… both lost?" Yang asked, more relieved than she dared admit.
"I guess it's a draw," Ren chuckled and put the controller down. "That feels like a fitting conclusion."
"Yeah, I guess so," Jaune laughed. "You were really good."
"You as well."
The display of sportsmanship was nice, but apparently not nice enough for Nora, who shook her head and stood up. "Two winners!" she shouted. "It's not that they both lost but that they both won. That means two kisses!"
Yang's shoulders froze. "Two kisses?" she asked.
"YES!"
"L-Like one for each, or two for both?" Ruby stammered.
"YES!" Nora then paused, face a little nervous before she looked around the room. "Blake! Blake and I for Ren, you and Ruby for Jaune. It makes perfect sense."
"It makes no sense," Blake sighed.
"You don't have to," Ren offered. To Yang's surprise, however, the normally quiet girl sighed, placed down her book, and leaned over to plant the most chaste, polite kiss on Ren's cheek that she had ever seen.
"She would just complain if I didn't," Blake said.
Somehow, Yang couldn't help but think Blake had missed the ball on that one, since the noise coming from Nora's throat didn't sound like it was pleased.
"W-Wait," Ruby's voice interrupted the drama. The younger girl's cheeks were red, and as she stared at Jaune, they only seemed to get worse. She took a step back, realised she was sat down, and promptly fell over. "We never agreed to this. We never okayed it!"
"Are you alright, Ruby?" Jaune asked, reaching down to offer her a hand.
Ruby looked at his hand as though it were a King Taijitu.
Like a good sister, Yang came to her rescue. "I can do it if you don't want to," she whispered, feeling a little self-conscious herself as well. So much for an easy afternoon playing video games. When had it turned into the sleep over from her nightmares?
"Y-Yang?" Ruby asked, shocked.
Yang instantly felt nervous. "Do you want to?" she asked. "I'll… I'll let you do it if you want."
She didn't want to hurt her little sis.
"I-I didn't say that!" Ruby said.
"So, you don't want to?"
"…"
Okay, this wasn't going quite as easily as Yang had hoped it would. "Ruby," she whispered. "Do you like Jaune?"
"What?" Ruby gasped. "No! Do… you?"
"What?" Yang gasped. "No!"
They both looked at one another suspiciously. Was Ruby just saying that because she was embarrassed – or worse – because Ruby thought she liked him and didn't want to get in the way? Both were possible, especially with how embarrassed Ruby had been lately.
Maybe the only way through was to sacrifice a little on her part too.
"Look," she whispered, "It only has to be a tiny kiss on the cheek, like what Blake did. How about we both just do it?"
"O-Okay," Ruby nodded her head. "Just a little one though, right?"
Was she asking that because she felt afraid to do more, or was she afraid Yang might do more? Argh, everything was so confusing.
"Do you want to go first?" Yang offered.
"Maybe at the same time?"
Yang nodded and took a deep breath. "Okay," she said, turning around. "We're read-y…? Where's Jaune?"
"He already left," Blake helpfully reported. "Maybe two or three minutes into your little conference with Ruby. He even said goodnight to us all and everything."
"H-He left?" Ruby asked. "Then that means no kiss. Thank goodness…"
Again, the relief meant nothing. Was Ruby relieved because she didn't have to kiss him, or was that relief grounded in more possessive desires, such as not wanting Yang to kiss him. I'll need to find out more, Yang decided. If Ruby really does fancy Jaune, then I need to know for sure.
"Well, if Jaune didn't get his kisses, then I suppose it is only fair to pass on my own," Ren said magnanimously. "All's well that ends well."
"Ha ha, yes," Nora laughed. She had a pillow in her hands, and looked to be crushing and tearing at it. Her teeth gnashed together too. "All ends well… so well… perfectly… alone, as usual. Ha ha ha. Nothing for poor old Nora."
Blake leaned away nervously.
"I think I'm going back to my room now," Ruby said.
Yang wished she could follow.
/-/
"We're heading to Beacon early?" Mercury asked. He exchanged a nervous look with Emerald, but the green-haired girl only shrugged in return. "I know it's not out place to ask, but…"
"It's not," Cinder said. She'd been irritated ever since returning to Haven, and now moved about their room in a huff, pushing clothing and equipment into a suitcase. "Our records have been adjusted and the request sent to the headmaster of Beacon. My… associate assures me we shall be accepted."
"Everything is okay, then?" Emerald asked. "Our position here hasn't been compromised?"
"Nothing of the sort, dear Emerald," their employer, team leader and all around lady and mistress chuckled. Her amusement didn't mean she wasn't angry, nor did it guarantee his safety if he spoke. Usually, he just let Em do it.
"So, we're not to do anything extra?"
"You will not be required to, no. I, on the other hand, do have a little… problem to take care of. It shouldn't be any cause for concern."
"Anything we need to know about?" Mercury felt compelled to ask. When Cinder looked his way, he held his hands up and added, "It's just that I don't want us to mess anything up. We're both committed; it's not like we're going anywhere."
Cinder sighed. Her shoulders slumped too, which had to be the most emotion he'd ever truly seen from her. He looked to Emerald in time to catch her wide-eyed stare too. They were both surprised.
"It cannot hurt, I suppose." Cinder said. "It also wouldn't do for either of you to cause him any physical harm… we all might not survive that."
"Him?"
Cinder sighed; louder this time. She drew out her scroll and flicked it to show a zoomed in image of a guy their age with blond hair and blue eyes. He smiled widely, the kind of smile which had Emerald grimacing.
"He looks like a buffoon," Emerald dismissed.
"This is my brother."
"But looks can be deceiving," Emerald tried again. She glared at Mercury when he snorted under his breath. "Um… he doesn't look very much like you. Is he adopted?"
"No, I… it's complicated. You might say I am part of the family, though not in an official manner. All you need to know is that his name is Jaune- he will be going by the name of Jaune Arc. He is not to be harmed in any way. In fact, we are to do our best to keep any and all harm away from him."
"Will that be hard?" Mercury asked, looking at the guy. "No offence, but he doesn't look particularly strong."
"He could rip your legs off with his hands tied behind his back."
Mercury's breath caught. From anyone else, it might have been an idle threat. From Cinder Fall, it was a statement of fact. "Really?" he whistled. "That's pretty impressive."
"Really," Cinder confirmed. "I trained him myself and he could kill you in an instant," she went on. "He wouldn't, however. Despite his power, Jaune is… sickeningly sweet."
"Well, that's not so bad…"
"His mother, on the other hand, would make you wish you were dead. She would stretch the agony out. She would likely also assure the assistance of her daughters in this, who are… quite protective of their brother." Cinder looked over her shoulder back at him, expression deadpan. "You would suffer for the full extent of your lifespan, I would assume. Naturally, you'd be driven to madness part of the way through, but I believe they would drag you back – just to ensure you scream all the louder."
The room became silent, but for the rustle of clothes being folded and put away. Emerald looked at him, as though to suggest he continue talking. He shook his head in return. The guy sounded interesting… interesting enough to meet. Anything more, he'd figure out in person.
"So, this is a protection job?" Emerald asked. "We're to bodyguard him?"
"Officially, we are to convince him to leave Beacon and come back with us to his family. Jaune has… flown the nest, as it were."
"Officially?"
"Unofficially," Cinder smiled, "we are to continue with the original plan, while ensuring his survival. I want the maiden, and I shall have her powers. Our plan is the best chance of achieving that goal and I'm loathe to see it ruined now. Jaune is notoriously stubborn, so my… employer will understand that it might take some time. We'll continue the plan as it always was, and then flee with Jaune at the end."
Short, sweet and without too many changes. Mercury found that a relief, especially if there was a new random element being introduced. Beacon wasn't going to be too different from Haven, he assumed. Homework was homework, pretentious good-guy brats were the same wherever you went. How hard could it be?
"One last question, ma'am," Emerald asked, apparently feeling a little braver than usual.
"Hm?"
"If this… if Jaune is so much stronger than us, and we can't exactly fight him, then how are we going to convince him to leave with us once we crush Beacon and steal the maiden's powers?"
"There's no need to worry, my dear," Cinder chuckled darkly. "While Jaune is stubborn, there is one person he trusts and relies on more than any other."
She stood up and flicked her raven hair behind her, shooting them a cunning smile.
"Let's just say I have him wrapped around my little finger. He'll do anything I say."
/-/
"And then Jauney was like `I shall defeat you Ren; I shall end thy days as overlord`, and then Ren was all `oh no, not me` an-"
"I don't believe I said that Nora."
"Less talk, more pancake making, mister!"
Ren sighed and went back to his task, leaving Pyrrha to giggle behind one hand, both at his expression, but also Nora's tall tale. It sounded like she'd missed quite the event, though truth told, she'd been too distracted and bothered about what Jaune said to really enjoy it. She would have just dragged everyone down.
"Did he win, then?" she asked.
"He totally did!" Nora cried. "Ren is like, the best person I know at Virtual Dead or Brawl Guilty Smash Fighter; Rage in a Cage! He's the best and Jaune fought him on equal footing."
"Ah, I see. Well, it certainly sounds like you all had a fun night." Pyrrha said. She could admit to herself, though she would never say it to anyone else, that she was a little relieved to hear Jaune hadn't stayed for his reward.
She then hated herself for feeling that relief.
"It was fun. You should have come, we could have had a RYBN vs WJRP competition." Nora paused to him to herself. "Then again, maybe that should wait until I train Blake up to be a true competitor. She had the worst stage fright!"
Pyrrha spared a glance for the girl, who grumbled something under her breath and buried her face behind a book. She didn't look shy. Then again, what do I know? Nora's probably had more real friendships than I have.
Before now, that was. Now that she was in Beacon, Pyrrha could proudly boast of more friends than she'd ever thought possible.
"We've got that trip tomorrow, haven't we?" Ruby asked, nudging her in the side and grinning around a mouth full of strawberries.
"Don't speak with your mouth full," Weiss rebuked. "Really, Ruby, if you like them so much, at least eat them first."
"Sowwy."
"It's fine, and yes, the trip is in a few days. From what I understand, we'll be gathering supplies in some forest a fair distance away from Beacon. It will be out first real mission in hostile territory."
"Apart from initiation," Pyrrha pointed out.
"Our first mission since officially becoming a team," Weiss allowed. "We'll need to stick together. That will allow us to better increase our chances of getting through without injury and also let us reac-"
"Weiss, I know why fighting in a group is good," Ruby whined.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to sugge-"
"I know, I know," Ruby smiled to show there was no harm. "You're just trying to be a better leader and make sure we understand your orders, right?"
Weiss nodded.
"Then it's all good. We'll be the best team out there!"
"Ahem!" Nora coughed pointedly.
"We'll be the best team out there!" Ruby repeated. "Sorry, Nora… there's always room for second place, though."
"Which you shall realise soon enough," Nora said imperiously, "After we push you into it."
"Can you really boast about that, though?" Ruby asked. "After all, we won the game tournament."
"We both won, or at least Jaune and Ren did." Yang corrected, flicking a seed of her sister's nose. "You, my dear sister, came last if I recall."
"I beat Blake!"
"Ruby, I could have dropped the controller and beaten Blake. Zwei could have beaten Blake."
"Didn't Zwei beat Qrow?"
"By latching onto his throat when the round started," Yang said with a roll of her eyes. "Anyway, you don't get to count Blake. She's going to demand a rematch anyway, right Nora?"
Blake's book hit the table, her eyes wide. "Yang, what the-"
"Yep!" Nora cheered. "She challenges you to a rematch next Saturday."
"I did no such-"
Ruby nodded. "Okay, Blake. You're on."
"Ugh…"
Pyrrha smothered her laughter as she watched the group bicker, content for once to be a spectator. Her entertainment was interrupted, however, as a loud clatter and a smash echoed through the cafeteria. As one, and with every other person there, she turned to look in the direction of it.
"Again?" Yang growled.
"He's not picking on a faunus this time," Blake said.
"No, he's picking on Jaune instead," Ruby glowered.
She was right, of course, for about fifteen to twenty metres away from them, near the queues that formed up before the lunch line, stood Jaune. He was surrounded by four figures, with the familiar one in the lead having just smashed Jaune's tray down onto the floor. Cereal, biscuits and orange juice stained the battlefield like blood.
"You want us to sit out of it again, I guess?" Yang asked her leader with a sigh.
"Well, Jaune did diffuse the last situation admirably. Honestly, after seeing how he took Winchester's mace in class, I'm not sure what he could honestly do here anyway."
That was a point, and one that had Pyrrha smiling a little. What was Cardin going to do? Hit Jaune over the head with a stick of bread? That smile soon faltered, however, when she saw the burly teen plant two hands on Jaune's chest and push him back.
Jaune staggered but didn't fall.
"You were in our way," Cardin said, loud enough to make it clear he wanted people to hear. "Maybe you shouldn't be so clumsy, Jaune."
"I was in your way? I just saw you walk across the entire room to reach me." Yet again, Jaune's rather frank honesty was enough to earn a few laughs from the crowd. It also tugged away at Cardin's control, leaving the bully red in the face.
"You act like such a smartass, Arc – and a kiss ass too. Always the teacher's favourite, especially with Oobleck."
"I am? I'm sorry if you wanted to be his favourite. If you want, I can tell him you admire him so. It's not a problem."
"Always with an answer!" Cardin pushed him again, and yet again Jaune staggered back but remained on his feet.
"You don't want to do this Cardin," Jaune warned. "Not here."
"Oh, don't I? What are you going to do, Arc?"
"It's not going to end the way you want it to, Cardin. I'm trying to be kind here."
"What?" Cardin scoffed. "You going to hurt my feelings?"
"I don't want to, but I will if you keep trying like this. Why don't we sort this out in private? It might be easier for you to handle."
"So you can avoid the humiliation you rightly deserve? No chance! You've been a thorn in my side, constantly needling me and I'm sick of it, Arc. You and I, we're settling things here and now."
Chairs scraped across the floor as people turned around to see what would happen. Staff behind the counters moved as well, though likely to call for help if a fight erupted. Pyrrha hoped it wouldn't, if only because her teammate would get in trouble for it.
"This is how it has to be?" Jaune asked, looking at Cardin and his three teammates. "I didn't want to cause you trouble, Cardin. I still don't, and if I've caused you that much pain, I'm sorry. I never wanted to be the asshole, but I can't help but think letting this go on is only going to make it worse." Jaune sighed and shook his head. "I just want you to know in advance, we can still be friends afterwards.
What? Pyrrha looked to Yang for answers, but the blonde looked just as confused as she.
"Cardin… I can't return your feelings."
All sound in the grand room was annihilated. Had someone so much as blinked, they would have heard it.
"I know you've been trying to get my attention, Cardin. I know you've been constantly trying to make me notice you and talk to you, and just like now, you walked across the whole room, then made a story about how I'd gotten in your way. I get it, Cardin, I really do." Jaune looked at the burly teen with a distraught expression. "It's just… I don't feel the same."
"W-What?"
"It's not you," Jaune said, quickly placing his hands on the other man's arms. "It's not you and there's nothing wrong with you. I'm sure you're a great guy and all and I mean, you have nice…" Jaune paused, clearly fighting for something to say, "hair…"
Someone snickered.
"It's me, is what I'm trying to say. I put a lot of thought into it, I tried to see if I could make it work. I thought to myself, maybe if I gave it a go, I'd come to feel the same way in time but… well, I just don't see it happening." Jaune stepped back, face cut from stone. "I'm sorry, Cardin Winchester… I don't think it would work out. I can't return your feelings."
"You… you…" Cardin made grasping motions towards Jaune's throat, but the blond simply shook his head and stepped back. He honestly looked distressed.
Pyrrha… not quite so.
"What should I do? If I think someone has a crush on me and I don't agree?"
"Could you not… is it not possible to return those feelings?"
"I just don't feel that way."
He'd meant… out of all her fears, that he meant her feelings – or god forbid – Ruby's, but instead he thought… he honestly believed that Cardin was crushing on him? It was too much. Too much relief, too much insanity, perhaps even too much Jaune.
She broke down laughing.
She might have been the first, but she wasn't the last. More came from their table, but it was nothing compared to the great gouts of laughter all around them. The cafeteria erupted, as Cardin became the butt of Jaune's joke.
"He turned it around," Yang howled. "He actually made a fool out of Cardin!"
"Impressive, indeed," Weiss smiled.
That just made Pyrrha laugh even more. He hadn't turned it around at all… Jaune actually believed what he was saying, which was what somehow made it all the better to her. That naïve, loveable idiot actually thought Cardin would be heartbroken.
Well, he was certainly something. Cardin opened his mouth to speak, but his cheeks flushed as he looked at all the people who laughed at him. It wasn't love, nor was it lust, but rather white-hot rage that he aimed towards Jaune. "This isn't the end!" he yelled. "I'll show you!"
"I don't think that's wise," Jaune said. "I know it hurts now, but I'm sure you'll find someone in time. There are plenty more Nevermore in the sky."
"SHUT UP!" he shouted. He then turned to those laughing. "All of you shut up!"
They didn't of course. Much like Pyrrha, the people around them found the scene only too hilarious. With a huff and a scowl, Cardin stormed from the hall, knocking people aside as he went. Even those he collided with didn't seem to care, too lost in the moment.
"I don't get why everyone is laughing," Jaune whispered when he sat back down beside her. "Is laughing over something like this really okay?"
"It's… it's…" She tried to explain, she really did, but unfortunately for her control, Jaune spoke before she could finish.
"It's just… I'm not sure he's really over me. Did I do it wrong?"
"No Jaune," she gasped, unable to stop smiling. "I think you did it perfectly."
Cardin-chan… yours was a ship which never sailed… I'm so sorry. Well, there we have it folks, the OTP has been crushed already, and now we're left only to sail into the most crackiest of waters. I mean, if this isn't Cardin x Jaune, then what even is it?
Madness…
Also, yes, you can feel free to hang me over the chapter title. It was pretty baaaah-d.
Next Chapter: 22nd March
P a treon . com (slash) Coeur