Chapter 11: Respite and Reward
(Police station) (Interrogation room)
Jaune sighed lowly as he sat in the interrogation room late that night. No he wasn't sighing because he was stuck in this room. It wasn't the fact that he was in trouble… well… maybe a little bit but to be thoroughly honest, the boy was sighing to the fact that a pair of green eyes were staring at him from the front, a clear and irritated expression of the owner bearing down on him like a divine being preparing to judge the worth of his small existence.
Glynda Goodwitch rubbed the temple around her nose, trying to ease the blood pressure that was clearly going out of control. If she had come a few minutes earlier, she probably would've lashed out at him holding nothing back, tear him ear from ear and pinch his cheeks until the boy cried uncle. But thankfully, before she came to interrogate this young man, she was stopped by a certain heiress who claimed that the boy was roped into the incident that he didn't want to be a part of.
With her eyes rolling downward towards the young blonde knight, she began. "Mr. Arc…"
The boy visibly flinched at the mere mention of his last name. "Y… yes ma'am?"
"Trouble seems to have a knack of finding you… or should I say that you have a knack of getting yourself into trouble." Glynda continued drawing up the police report on her scroll which seems to contain all the acts committed by the boy and the others. "Disturbing the peace, engaging in combat in a populated area, grand theft… and destruction of properties!?"
"Aheh…" The boy could only smile back hoping that it would some lighten his sentence.
"I do hope you understand that your actions tonight will not be taken lightly, young man. You put yourself and many others in danger because of your heroic bravado. What do you have to say in your defense?"
"I… don't have anything to add… really." Like a deflated balloon, the boy spoke truth feeling like he was slowly getting closer to the gallows.
"You and Ms. Belladonna were given explicit instructions by Professor Ozpin not to involve yourselves any further in matters regarding the White Fang. Yet here I find you not only involved, but also engaged in battle against them!" She quickly played a small clip on her scroll, showing a familiar truck crashing onto a giant robot with the White Fang logo clearly displayed on screen. "Do you have any idea what kind of damaged you caused in that area alone?"
"Yes ma'am." The boy muttered, his head hanging even lower than before.
Glynda sighed, again, feeling the wrinkles starting to reappear on her face. "Were this just a battle Mr. Arc… I would've resolved this easily saying that it was an emergency. But seeing as how you deliberately stole a civilian truck and destroyed it on television… I have half a mind to see you expelled for misbehavior and recklessness!"
Jaune gulped his spit fearing that thought.
"Your tomfoolery endangered your lives, caused unnecessary damage and these acts alone made you look like a fool!" The boy sunk into his seat, each notion she remarked felt like rusty knives stabbing on his shriveling hopes.
"However… in light of… Ms. Schnee's testimony of you, I am willing to overlook several matters regarding that." What? The Snow Angel vouched for him? That's pretty cool. "But that doesn't mean you're out of hot water just yet, Mr. Arc. The other half of my mind is also planning to give you suspension for the rest of the week."
"Ugh…" The blonde knight again flattened as if the last shred of hope he had was lost.
"But… instead of that… we decided to settle a deal with you instead."
"A… deal?" The blonde witch then slid him a form which he quickly scanned noticing the large digits at the bottom. "A… term of agreement?" He blurted out with some confusion.
"A compensation note." Jaune barely noted the bitterness in the woman's tone as she clarified it. "You will be allowed to continue your education in Beacon but at the same time you will act as a probationary student working in conjunction with teachers. In other words, you'll be a lap dog for the professors to use in handling all sorts of tasks that won't require too much of your… intelligence."
The stings of her insults were painful enough to leave a mark but Jaune seemed to be in shock to actually feel it. Though it wasn't all bad. The good news is that he could still be a student and graduate with the rest of his team. The bad news was that he was going to work his butt off paying the debt of that one truck he mashed.
"What… kind of work will I be doing?" He asked out of curiosity's sake.
"Your assignments will be offloading menial chores. Helping with manual labor, signing papers… whatever it is, the teacher may ask. This will likely take away most of your free time so I hope you understand."
"Is this… really… the best option?"
"It's either that or expulsion, Mr. Arc." She answered so sternly that a statue would break before pushing a sign pen to his side of the table. "But… if it makes you feel any better, this wasn't my idea. Professor Ozpin recommended it to me. Believe me… I'm really hoping you'll have the nerve to turn down this offer." She clearly wasn't hiding her discontent anymore. It seems like Ren was right… she really doesn't like him.
It was clear enough that Glynda was suspicious of him since day 1 but it seems like that suspicion had grown from anger to just plain hate at this point. If looks could kill, Jaune would've died nine times over and skinned alive to be used as a rug somewhere.
"I guess… I'll take it." The boy finally answered, taking the pen and signing his name on the contract, much to Glynda's annoyance.
"Very well then." She replied bitterly. "I'll have this delivered to Professor Ozpin. You… are free to go. But be warned… this is your second strike, Mr. Arc. I won't have any more of your erratic behaviors, understood?"
"Yes ma'am."
"And when you get back to school, report to the infirmary for a checkup. The last thing we need is an injured student on our roster."
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With that last exchange, Jaune walked out of the police station with his head hung low. Things couldn't get any worse for him. Not only was he under threat of expulsion, he was now under heavy suspicion… again. He thought that he left all that action and adventure back in the last semester but it seems like that troubling behavior of his certainly has a way of biting him back in the butt. This wasn't exactly what he thought when he wanted to start off the semester differently. Especially not with a bang.
So while Glynda cleared things up with the police chief, the boy was given the arduous task of returning back to his dorm in shame. Well at least there was some good. No one can bother him now.
"Hey there…" And once again the boy stood corrected when a certain red hooded figure appeared in the corner of his eyes waving cheerily at him with a forced smile on her face.
"Hey Ruby." The boy answered back dejectedly after a brief pause. The girl can already tell from the sound of his sigh that things didn't go so well. Out of all the people who were involved in this little fiasco, Jaune had the unfortunate luck of being interrogated by the very teacher who had it in for him. No one can really say why, but the whole class knew about Glynda's beef with Jaune. Every time he was around, the lady professor would sharpen her eyes like she was anticipating the boy to slip up somehow.
It became so evident and well known in the last semester that it created a number of gossip circles around school. Some say that the boy walked into Glynda's room when she was changing, or he was the first ever student to actually beat her in combat or something like that. Whatever the case, it was enough to get him on her permanent bad list.
"I guess things didn't go so well?" The little red riding hood asked though she already knew the answer.
"You can say that again…"
"Is it really that bad?"
He shook his head in reply. "No. Well if you consider the fact that I'll be having less free time, then yeah… it's pretty bad. I'll be paying back the truck that I blew up for the rest of my school life."
"Yikes. That does sound bad." Ruby returned sheepishly. "Well… at least you still get to go to school, right?"
"Yeah. I guess you can call that a silver lining." Jaune agreed as he noted that the girl was alone. "Where's the rest of your team? Aren't they with you?"
"I told them to go on ahead." She answered, twiddling her thumbs shyly. "I didn't want them to get in more trouble than they already are, especially with Sun." The boy gave an understanding nod before quirking a brow asking a silent question to why she was still here. "I… thought you might feel lonely if you went back home on your own so… uh… you need a walking buddy?"
The boy answered back with a smile. It was a small act of kindness. The kind of thing that could mend the most grievous of wounds.
"Yeah… I think I could use one."
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Vytal Plaza.
It was one of the most romantic and beautiful spots in all of Vale. It was here that the main parade of the Vytal was to be held in the next few months. On a regular day, this place would be jam packed with couples on dates from sunset to sunrise and Ruby could understand why.
The atmosphere here was serene and peaceful and with the choir of crickets chirping in the bushes, you can practically set the mood for a candlelight dinner fit for two. But after what happened in the highway earlier that night, it stands to reason why people would ditch this place once the first shots were fired.
As the two walked in silence back to school, Ruby noticed her walking buddy remaining silent as they went. She wanted to cheer the boy up after what happened but nothing came to mind. Jaune wasn't really at fault. He just seemed to have a knack of causing big damage with the best of intentions. Ramming that truck onto the giant robot was a stroke of genius that movie directors would say, was a masterpiece. But unfortunately for him, reality was not that forgiving. If by chance they were able to capture the criminal mastermind, Torchwick then perhaps this would've ended in a happy note.
But sadly, that fashionable mob boss was able to escape thanks to the aid of his henchmen who seemingly came out of nowhere and vanished in an airship afterwards. It was sad to say but Team RWBY was also at fault for causing massive damage and yielding little results at the same time. It seemed rather unfair that Jaune would be the one getting the most blame out of something they started.
"Ok ok I admit. Maybe going off on our own like that wasn't exactly the best idea." Ruby complained as she and Jaune discussed about the latest happening. "But you can't deny that we made some progress."
"Yeah right. But instead you got chased through the streets and had to fight a giant robot."
"Hey! That was Torchwick's fault!" She blamed.
"Well the next time you guys try fighting a big bad robot… try to take it away from populated areas." Jaune added sighing. "Or… you know… somewhere out of the city. Anyway, it doesn't really matter now. At least you guys are ok. I'm glad none of you got hurt. Well… most of you at least." The little girl smiled childishly at his worried expression. "So did Goodwitch punish you guys too?"
"She gave us a good scolding. Kinda like the first time we met." Ruby answered recalling her first encounter with the blonde haired sorceress whom she quickly came to fear afterwards. "But I think she was just worried about us too."
A scolding. How unfair… Jaune thought. But then again, none of them stole a truck from a civilian only to have it blown to bits in battle.
"What about you?" She asked back to which he shrugged. "Did she give you a hard time?"
"Well, I wouldn't say it's all that bad. I mean… I still get to go to school but I won't much time to hang out with you guys from now on."
"Yeesh… that doesn't sound good."
He agreed but Jaune wanted to look on the bright side. "It's not as bad as it sounds. I mean, this might actually work for me. Maybe hanging around with teachers will actually keep me out of trouble."
"Sorry."
"Hey, don't be." Jaune stopped the girl from apologizing. "You would've done the same thing if you were in my position… well… except stealing a truck and crashing it."
"Well for what it's worth. I think you were pretty cool back there." Ruby praised him recalling how heroically Jaune came to their rescue. "How you came in with that truck was pretty swanky. You could've put in a one-liner and said something really cool when you crashed it on that Torchwick guy."
"I'll be sure to brush up on it, the next time I go crashing cars onto giant robots." He returned, smiling pleasingly. At least someone saw his actions to be heroic and not vandalism. "So what did you guys find out? I hope your little investigation wasn't a total loss."
"Weiss said she found something in her records." Ruby answered. "And Blake said that she got some other leads she wants to delve into. Yang didn't really out much but again… neither did I."
"You're still going after Torchwick, aren't you?"
"Probably. If we get the chance. Why?" She asked back only earning a laugh on his end.
"Well I just want to be prepared, the next time I help you guys out."
Ruby's eyes widened a bit at his statement. "You're still gonna help us even after what happened?"
"Meh. Why not?" He shrugged. "It's what friends do. Besides, it's not like I can stop you guys from going off into danger. My great-great grandfather would turn in his grave if he knew that I let cute young girls go off into danger alone. He'd haunt me!"
A shade of red appeared on Ruby's cheeks. The quote he made was probably the lamest she's ever heard but the way he said it so naturally made her heart skip a beat.
(Highway)
A number of police cars could be seen that night surrounding a cordoned area where a battle of awesome proportion took place. A number of detectives, local law enforcers and even a group of legitimate Hunters were on scene, garnering whatever clues they could find. And at the center of that mess, stood Headmaster Ozpin, frowning down on the scene of the crime.
He could tell that a fight of great magnitude took place here and if the many craters and Dust residue doesn't convince the onlookers then the sight of a blown up truck and the destroyed wreckage of the Atleasian Paladin would set minds straight. The damage that was done here was beyond normal levels and it was enough that the authorities had to call upon the Hunters to deal with it… roughly too late obviously.
Skimming through the testimonies of the Huntresses that took part in that battle, the Headmaster was able to summarize everything that took place here. He understood that the girls of Team RWBY would disobey his orders and he understood why they went through the trouble of helping their friend. What baffled him however was how a terrorist organization like the White Fang could get their hands on such a highly advance technological piece of military hardware before the Atleasian Army even had their own?
Ozpin could tell that this kind of thing would make Ironwood very antsy and whenever he's antsy usually means that he will act irrationally and probably use this as an excuse to begin a military campaign against an unseen enemy. That alone would spark unrest amongst the four kingdoms planting the first steps to an act of war.
"Anything, officers?" Ozpin inquired to the detectives who were digging through the wreck of the robot.
The first one shook his head in reply much to the Headmaster's foul mood. "Sorry Mr. Ozpin but we got nothing. We're no expert with this kind of technology. It's all brand new. All we can tell that this thing was built and manufactured in Atlas. We'll try to salvage what we can but right now… we're hitting bricks here."
"I see… very well then. Have all of this gathered as evidence and send it to Beacon Academy. I'll have a look at it myself."
"Yes sir. Will do."
The Headmaster quickly turned around, avoiding the sights of the public, rubbing the migraine that was now slowly growing from this incident, only to find his moment of peace interrupted by Goodwitch who appeared out of the crowd.
"Anything?" She asked which he answered shaking his head. "James… is not going to like this one bit."
"That would be an understatement." Ozpin replied looking back as the tow truck arrived, lifting large pieces of the broken robot to the evidence bus. "He'll be having a field day the moment he hears about this. What of the girls? You weren't too hard on them, I hope."
The lady scoffed at his words not taking her eyes off the wreck. "I gave them a good scolding if that's what you're asking. They disobeyed orders and endangered themselves to matters that doesn't concern them. I had a good long talk with each of those girls and our exchange students from Haven and sent them on their way. And as for your 'protégé' Mr. Arc… he accepts your offer. Though why you continue to keep him around still baffles me."
The irritated tone of her voice did not escape the Headmaster's notice giving him reason to show a smirk. "I'm beginning to get the feeling that you don't seem to like Mr. Arc very much. Is something the matter, Glynda?"
"Oh don't be ridiculous." She snapped back. "I treat all my students fairly. But that boy certainly has ways to cause more damage than necessary. If I had my way I could've put a collar on him long ago."
"Then perhaps it would be in his best interest if it did not go your way."
Glynda sighed. She's been doing that a lot lately. She can't really understand Ozpin's strange fascination of the boy. As much as she desires to see him off or exposed for something he may or may not be… the Headmaster continues to bar her from getting to the truth.
Looking to change the topic, the woman returned her gaze back to the battlefield. "So… did they find anything?"
"Not yet. But I'm hoping otherwise."
(Beacon) (Dorm)
The trip back to the dorm was uneventful at best for Jaune and Ruby. After walking for hours getting back to Beacon Academy felt like the end of a long journey. Jaune agreed that he could really use a break from all the explosions.
"Well, here we are." Ruby pointed out as they entered the hall leading to their respective rooms. She could already hear her teammates in her room probably discussing what they've uncovered. "Home sweet home. Will you be alright, Jaune?"
"I'll be fine." He waved her worries off. "I think it's safe to say that I've been through worse. Besides, I got to walk a girl home so something good came out of it."
Ruby smiled, again feeling a blush come over her face. "Ah… you don't have to say it like that. Oh… that reminds me!" She searched through her pockets pulling out a small bag of cookies. "I was saving this for the gang when we got back from our mission but I thought you deserved one. Take it as a reward for helping us today."
"A… cookie?" The boy darted his eyes between her and the said treat.
"Yup!" She answered proudly. "They're my mom's special recipe. I baked them myself. It's my way of saying thanks."
"I don't know what I did to help." Jaune chuckled back as he accepted a piece. "I feel like I did more harm than good."
"Not at all." She argued. "Jaune. You were brave. Not a lot of people would ever have the courage to charge into a battle like that. And I think you're even braver the moment you crashed that car on that Torchwick guy. You showed true heroic stuff and no one here can ever deny it. Well maybe Professor Goodwitch but that's a different story but anyway! You did something not many would ever do."
"You're starting to sound like Pyrrha."
"And I think she'd say the same thing if she saw you." She said back turning away to hide that feint hint of red on her cheeks. "What you did back there… that takes a lot of courage and you pulled through. Some people might see it otherwise but to me… that was really REALLY cool."
"Well I'm glad to see one person appreciates what I do around here." And just as the boy brushed off, Ruby leaned up to him, giving the blonde knight a sweet childish peck on the cheek.
"Teehee. The world could really use more people like you, Jaune. People who don't need a reason to help others." She bore a wide eyed smile returning one last remark before darting to her room. "Good night."
Jaune stood there, frozen in place, his free hand reaching for his cheek. This day might've easily gone down as one of the worst days of his life and he may be close to expulsion than ever before but despite everything that had happened, all the trouble he now faced… he could only muster the words to say…
It was worth it…