Hey everyone, how're things?
For anyone who's sent in a review recently that I probably should have responded to, if I haven't, it's because the reviews are taking an unusually long time to be posted - I'm not sure if it's just the site having problems in general, or if it's just me. I'm not going to answer anything here, but I haven't been ignoring you; I've just been unable to get back to you.
With that said, here's the next chapter. Enjoy!
"So... this is the room, right?" Jaune asked, looking up from his scroll to the sign above the door.
Yang nodded, checking her own scroll for reference. She wouldn't have put it past Jaune to somehow get them all lost on their first official day at Beacon. "Yeah, room two-four-three, Professor Port's Grimm Studies." The blonde then proceeded to check the time on her scroll as well. She frowned, turning to her white haired teammate. "We're like, thirty minutes early Weiss. I could have slept in longer."
The Schnee sighed, looking as irritable as ever. "What's rule number three again?"
"Be punctual." All three remaining members of team JWYN answered, with very little variance in their degrees of enthusiasm.
"Right, so let's head inside and make sure we get good seats." Weiss offered chipperly.
Jaune nodded hesitantly, before he pushed through the door. Shrugging, Yang followed close behind. The room had no one else inside, and the automatic lights flickered on once they detected someone enter.
Weiss, with more pep in her step than Yang had seen before, went straight for the front row, striding over with excitement.
Then, with a guttural growl, the cage that Weiss had been just about to pass by shook violently. The heiress' skin turned as white – if not whiter – than her dress, and she jumped as far away as she could, utilizing what Yang could only assume was her semblance.
While Weiss was busy getting as far away from the cage as possible, Jaune, Yang, and Nora settled into fighting stances reactively, placing themselves between the threat and their frightened teammate.
The cage continued to shake vigorously, shrouded in darkness, but it showed no signs of opening. After a moment, Jaune seemed to relax, lowering his fists with Yang and Nora following suit.
"Aha! Sorry about that my young students!" The same booming voice from the team assignments the other day seemed to roar louder than the rattling of the cage. "I'm not surprised you didn't notice it; it has been rather quiet for the past hour or so... I think getting too close might have spooked it a bit."
"Spooked it?" Weiss whispered, stepping forwards, sounding extremely peeved, "Spooked it?"
Yang placed a hand on the girl's shoulder. She seemed to calm at that, still shuddering within Yang's grip. Internally, the blonde cursed her luck; Weiss had seemed... less bitchy earlier – no doubt this just completely ruined her day.
The first thing Yang noticed as the professor walked forwards, was that he'd been wearing the same red, military-esque uniform as the other day. Words were scrawled on the chalkboard behind him, almost illegible written in the man's handwriting. Seeing the man's moustache curl slightly as he smiled, Yang shook her head.
There was no way that this man was Sherry's husband. She refused to accept it. He just looked so... old.
"Professor Port..." Jaune stated the man's name, as if tasting it. "Wait a minute..."
Please, Jaune, please... don't ruin this for me...
"You're Sherry's husband?"
The man seemed to perk up at that – more 'perked' than he already had been. "Why yes indeed!"
Noooooo.
"And you're Jaune Arc. My wife has told me plenty about you – good things, of course." The man's smile seemed to grow. He stepped forwards, taking Jaune's hand to shake. "Killing a fully matured Deathstalker on your own at such a young age... I must say, it's very impressive."
While Yang watched, slightly dazed as the older man and her partner shared words, Weiss leaned in a little closer – still a little shaken up by whatever was inside the cage. "What're they talking about?"
Weiss tone was a little more... hostile compared to earlier, but Yang smiled all the same. There was no reason to actively antagonize Weiss, or give her any more reason to be pissed; for now, she figured they could get along. Yang closed her eyes, and she felt like she was there again.
"Professor Port's wife, Sherry, accompanied Jaune and I on our graduation mission from Signal. We were assigned to hunt Grimm around a small village named Nyurse."
"Nyurse?" Weiss questioned. "Like, 'The Nyurse Tragedy'? That Nyurse?"
Yang nodded, not surprised Weiss had heard of what occurred in Nyurse. While the newscasters had tried to 'dumb down' the impact of the events, the fact that an entire village practically sunk into the ground wasn't exactly something they could keep quiet. "Yeah. Even Nora was there, when everything went to hell. That's where we met her."
Humming, Weiss turned to her own partner – currently in a staring contest with what appeared to be a solid gold bust of Professor Port himself.
...Why the hell did the professor have that?
"And what was that about the Deathstalker?" Weiss asked.
"Oh, that." Yang had to try her hardest to keep her grin from splitting her face in two. "There was a Deathstalker that snuck up on us. Jaune killed it in two shots of his rifle."
Weiss blinked. "That's impressive. I'll have to-"
"Aha, that's a good one, my boy!" Jaune received a pat on the shoulder from the professor, the man's voice drowning everything else out. For a brief moment, Yang even thought she saw Jaune's Aura shimmer. "But I must say, this is quite the impressive team you have here... After all, to move with such coordination but a day after initiation... quite impressive indeed."
Yang quirked an eyebrow at that. "Sorry?"
"Why, Miss Schnee here did exactly what she should have done in her situation: She put distance between herself and her would-be assailant, while her teammates rushed to defend her. If this was a combat scenario, I'd have awarded full marks."
Even if Yang wanted to argue that Weiss had ran more out of shock than anything, she wouldn't have had room to as the professor continued speaking. "Mr. Arc took the head of the formation, Miss Valkyrie on his left, and you yourself, Miss Xiao Long on his right. Not only would you have been able to engage the enemy on your own terms, but Miss Schnee would have been given ample time to prepare herself for the fight as well. As I said... full marks. I can see why you all passed initiation."
Yang opened her mouth to comment, but decided against it.
Weiss wound up being the one to break the awkward silence that settled in after the professor finished speaking. "Well... We're all looking forward to learning from you, Professor Port!"
"And I'm looking forward to learning from you all as well! Please, have a seat. The other students should be arriving shortly." The portly professor turned back to the board, cursing after he snapped a stick of chalk. He pulled another one from his chest pocket, continuing to write whatever he had been before.
What an odd teacher... At least his classes won't be too boring.
Jaune winced as Nora's head collided with the desk. As gently as he could, he gave her a shake.
Nope, she was out cold.
Just another casualty.
Jaune looked around, confirming that, yet again, there were many other students who seemed to share Nora's fate: there were more than a couple 'empty' seats, their previous occupants likely having falling off their chairs when they passed out. Some students were on their scrolls, passing time as they waited for the end of class. Jaune could have sworn he'd even seen someone leave.
"Of course, the beast thought it had me cornered... but I wasn't trapped in the hole with it: it was trapped in there with me."
Not that the professor would notice them anyways.
The blond suppressed a sigh, turning to Yang. At least she was awake, though her eyes roamed all around the room – anywhere but the professor before them. It seemed like Weiss, seated on the other side of Yang, was rigorously taking notes. Jaune was impressed at her tenacity; he'd already long given up on trying write down anything the professor said.
He was still listening, at least... just selectively.
Something caught Jaune's eye: the movement of a pen from beside him, as Yang began writing herself. Once it seemed like she was finished, she slid the scrap of paper towards Jaune. The boy looked down at it, before looking back up to Yang curiously.
Passing notes?
Jaune reached over, pulling the note closer towards himself. He read it quickly.
'We haven't had any time alone. Is Weiss the one from Atlas?'
Jaune rubbed at his jaw. He was rather certain that Yang wasn't just asking for trivia; of course Weiss was from Atlas.
What Yang was really asking, was if Weiss was the same girl who'd been at the Schnee lab – the one who'd been at Jaune's side while he'd fought the White Fang. Jaune hadn't really said anything about her, but then again, he'd never really had a chance.
All Yang knew was that she was a Schnee; and thus, one of two sisters.
'Yes, it was Weiss. She's a really good fighter.' Jaune wrote, sliding the note back to Yang.
It didn't take long for the blonde to write her response. 'Why the hostility?'
Jaune scratched out a quick 'I don't know', before sending the paper back Yang's way. The heiress had seemed more than friendly enough when Jaune was saving her life.
Maybe this was what she was really like? Rude, unapproachable, and cold? Jaune didn't want to believe it.
It took Yang a little longer before she wrote anything down this time – between having to hide what she was writing from both Professor Port in front of her and Weiss on her right, she likely needed to be extremely cautious.
Finally, 'Do you want me to talk to her? Tell her it was you?'
Jaune winced, re-reading the message. Approaching Weiss about what had happened in Atlas had been at the forefront of Jaune's mind ever since he'd seen the girl at the beginning of initiation. When he'd introduced himself to her at the temple, she hadn't recognized him – hell, she'd been outright hostile towards him.
If it would have been difficult to tell her then, it was probably worse now that they were teammates.
After all, what was he supposed to say? He couldn't just outright say he was at the lab that day - that he'd been the one fighting at her side.
...Or could he?
The blond grit his teeth, hastily writing out his intentions. 'I'll take care of it myself, don't worry.'
Yang nodded upon receiving the note, crumpling it up and stuffing it in her pocket. Watching Yang do just that, Jaune considered another little 'problem' he had to deal with.
The leader of JWYN tore a small piece of paper from his own notebook, writing quickly. 'I need to talk to you and Ruby about something important. Alone, if possible. Think you can arrange that?'
Jaune hesitated for a moment, before sliding the piece of paper over to Yang. The girl looked at the piece of paper, before picking it up, gently folding it, and then putting it in her pocket.
Alright, That settles that. Jaune turned his eyes back to Professor Port, intent on at least paying attention to what little of his lesson remained.
"… A true Huntsman must be dependable! A true Huntsman must be strategic, well-educated, and wise!" The professor's back seemed to straighten, standing taller with every spoken word. "Are there any among you who believe themselves the embodiment of these traits?
There was a brief moment of silence, before a girl's voice called from a couple rows behind Jaune. "I do, professor!"
Hold on...
"I figured you'd be the one to volunteer, Miss Rose. I've already seen your valor personally, but I suppose you'll set a good example for the others. Come on down here."
Both Jaune and Yang watched on, mouths agape as Ruby skipped down the steps. "Hi guys!" She waved as she went to stand next to Professor Port, grinning all the while.
"So... uhh..." Yang leaned a little closer to Jaune. "Did you know Ruby was in this class?"
"So, Yang... this Ruby is your sister?" Weiss asked, watching as the girl strode back into the room, dressed in her combat skirt with her weapon just barely hidden beneath her cloak. Professor Port had sent her to go get changed and to bring her weapon back with her, apologizing for the delay. The professor also mentioned that this would be the only time he'd send someone out to retrieve their gear – all their other lessons were meant to be theory, not practical. Since it was the first day, he claimed he wanted to do something 'fun' and 'inventive'.
Of course, Weiss' idea of fun and inventive was not bringing a live Grimm into the classroom.
The heiress glared hatefully at the cage, wishing upon it's occupant only the worst. Since her ...scare just before class started, she'd kept an eye on the cage whenever she could afford to: Weiss even considered volunteering as the 'embodiment of the traits of a Huntsman' that the Professor had gone on about, knowing she'd be facing off against whatever was contained. But in the end... Ruby had beaten her to it.
"Yeah, she's my little sister alright." Yang had a proud smile on her face, watching as Ruby's weapon took form – the vicious looking scythe Weiss had seen the day of initiation.
"Little sister?" Weiss inquired.
"By two years. Oh, don't tell her I told you that." Yang chuckled. "She thinks it's embarrassing."
Weiss hummed, watching as the scythe wielder prepared for her fight against the Grimm in the cage. "Well, it explains how immature she was acting."
"Excuse me?"
Weiss turned, matching Yang's glare for a few seconds, before sighing. "Sorry, that's not what I meant. Your sister and I had a little disagreement before initiation." The heiress didn't mention that said disagreement was about Yang and Jaune's actions prior – something Weiss had addressed when they'd gone over the rules she wrote up in the morning. "I said a few things, she took offense to them and... We both handled it poorly."
Yang slowly turned her head forwards, watching Weiss out of the corner of her eye. The blonde crossed her arms as a show of defiance – and as a sign that she still wasn't pleased.
Rule number two, Weiss: Any arguments will be handled in the dorm room – never in the halls, never in class.
Weiss definitely wasn't looking forward to the afternoon. And she figured they were getting along so well.
...she just had to open her mouth, didn't she?
"Are you ready, Miss Rose?"
"I was born ready, Professor!"
Professor Port's head reared back with a great laugh. "Such spirit! Such valor!" The man raised his... axe, gun- whatever it was... and brought it down on the cage's lock.
The door swung open slowly, the hinges creaking. Out strode a beast that Weiss most certainly wasn't familiar with.
"What is that?" The heiress wondered aloud, under her breath.
"I..." Yang made to respond. "I actually don't know. Jaune?"
Both Weiss and Yang turned to their leader, the boy watching the beast with scrutiny. "It's a Boarbatusk."
"Boarba-who?"
"Boarbatusk, Yang. I mean, come on: it says it right there on the chalkboard. We've even fought them before!"
Weiss looked to said chalkboard, comparing the diagram drawn beneath the word 'Boarbatusk' to the real thing mere meters away. "… Indeed it does."
She wished she could read the notes written beneath the diagram – no doubt there was some crucial information there.
"So, how's Ruby going to kill it?"
Weiss tilted her head quizzically at Yang's question. "She's your sister, shouldn't you know?"
"Well, you've been paying attention to the professor, haven't you? Shouldn't you know?"
The heiress grimaced. "He didn't say anything about a Boarbatusk!"
The Grimm, with a great roar, dashed towards Ruby. Weiss watched on, as the girl rolled to the side quickly, moving out of it's path.
"A Boarbatusk..." The two girl's turned towards their leader, the boy speaking as if he was lecturing, leaning back in his chair while watching the fight before them. "Is rather heavily armored. It's eyes, mouth, and stomach are all vulnerable, but difficult to get to. The hide on the rear end is weaker than the rest, but still tough enough that it'd be easier to go for one of the less protected areas. Boarbatusks are generally rather predictable, but they're still very dangerous - especially in numbers."
The heiress continued to watch on, the Boarbatusk charging Ruby once more. This time the girl waited longer before she moved, dodging at the last second, scythe moving as she attempted to score a hit on the beast - though there was contact, there was no damage. As Jaune said, it's armor was strong. "How's she going to kill it?" Weiss asked, repeating Yang's question.
"Ruby knows," Jaune stated, "and that's what matters. We'll see shortly."
Weiss frowned, having expected an actual answer from the blond. She turned back to the fight. The boarbatusk charged Ruby again – Weiss beginning to see exactly how predictable the beast could be.
"I'm surprised it hasn't done any rolling yet." Nora commented, yawning.
Weiss looked past the two blondes in the middle to see her partner stretching, arms high in the air. "What do you mean, 'rolling'?"
"Oh! Sometimes, a Boarbatusk will tuck itself into a ball, then it'll start rolling." Nora nodded proudly. "I hit one with Magnhild once – when it was rolling. Totally killed it, but my arms were sore for hours afterwards."
"So... it's weaker when it's rolling?" Weiss asked, assuming Magnhild was the massive hammer her partner wielded.
"Hell no." Jaune shook his head vehemently. "If anything, it should be even harder to kill."
Weiss stared at Nora.
The girl shrugged, smiling all the while. "Yeah, I'm awesome."
Weiss squeezed her eyes shut, rubbing at her temples. I'm surrounded by idiots...
The crack of a shot being fired brought the heiress' eyes back open – there was no visible wound, no grunt of pain or any sign of distress from the boar-like Grimm. Ruby, however, was on the complete other end of the room than she was before, cloak billowing behind her.
"Don't blink guys... you'll want to see this." Yang informed, a vicious grin on her face.
Ruby pulled back on the bolt of her sniper-scythe, the spent casing skipping across the ground. The Boarbatusk snorted, looking left to right. It turned fully, letting out a louder snort when it spotted Ruby again. Dragging a paw across the floor, the boar growled deeply.
"Oh, it's gonna roll!"
Weiss ignored Nora's cheer, instead glancing between Ruby and her 'prey'. The boar leapt – higher than the heiress thought was possible – curling up before beginning to roll. Within seconds the Boarbatusk closed the distance between where it had been and Ruby.
Another rifle shot, and Ruby, who'd been square in the path of the Boarbatusk, simply disappeared. The Boarbatusk slammed into the wall behind where Ruby was standing. Hard.
Weiss looked, left, then right. No sign of the girl.
"Look up!" someone called from the back. Weiss did so.
Ruby fired, although this time Weiss was able to follow the younger girl's movement. She descended quickly, landing atop the dazed Boarbatusk's back in a crouch. Before the boar could react, the cloaked girl swung her scythe around, bringing the segmented blades to rest beneath the beast's neck.
With the loud crack of another round being fired, the Boarbatusk was decapitated cleanly, the head making a dull thud as it impacted the ground. Ruby landed softly a couple feet back, turning towards the rest of the class.
There was no posturing, no cheering... there wasn't even a smile on the girl's face: just silent resolve, standing there as her scythe whirred, folding up.
If Weiss was being honest, it was actually a little intimidating.
"Oho, well done Miss Rose! I'm sure that with four more years under your belt, you'll make a fine Huntress indeed!"
Ruby grinned. "Thank you, professor."
Professor Port turned, regarding the class as a whole once more. "That's all the time we have today. Hone your skills as students here at Beacon, and you will all be exceptional Huntsmen and Huntresses in no time. Class dismissed."
There was a brief moment of inaction, before students began filing out of class. Weiss glanced around. Ruby was chatting amicably with Professor Port… It sounded like Jaune was explaining the physics of what just happened to Yang and Nora…
Maybe… just maybe... she'd been wrong about them. About Beacon.
"Yang, you can't argue with me on this." Jaune stated firmly. "No matter what you might think is right, your heart knows different."
"That's where you're wrong, Jaune. You've been blinded; you're only trusting what you see with your own two eyes… you're not thinking - not reading between the lines."
Jaune shook his head in denial. There was no way he was wrong – it was inconceivable.
"I wasn't wrong." Jaune heard from his right. Both him and Yang turned to see Weiss staring at them in disbelief, getting their attention despite not being involved in his and Yang's debate. "The one time I wish I was wrong, but I wasn't."
"What?" Jaune asked, not sure what the Schnee heiress was going on about.
"Nothing." Weiss dismissed with a huff. The girl glanced towards their dorm room's window, and then down to her scroll. "It's starting to get late, we should probably go get something to eat."
Jaune nodded. That sounded reasonable.
"You and Nora can go ahead, actually." Yang recommended. "I actually need to talk to Jaune about something important, so we'll catch up."
Weiss looked doubtful for a second. "Are you seriously going to stay behind to talk about... literature?" She spoke the word as if it left a bad taste in her mouth. "So long as you guys remember rule number one."
Jaune looked down in embarrassment, shading his eyes while Yang protested loudly. "Come on, seriously? We told you that was not what you think it was!"
"Then there should be no problems." Weiss stated matter-of-factly, stepping out the door, Nora on her heels.
"You're damn right there's going to be no problems..." Yang muttered just after the door closed.
"Yang..." Jaune grumbled. "Just let it go. It's our fault anyways..."
Yang looked affronted, holding her arms out wide in protest. "What do you mean 'just let it go'? She has got to be the bitchiest, most inconsiderate person I've ever met! It doesn't help that she's completely fine one moment, and snarky the next!"
"Look, just give her time, okay?" Jaune suggested, encouraging harmony. Even if he wasn't leader of his team – where it was pretty much his job to make sure everyone cooperated – he'd still have wanted them to get along. Hell, he didn't know why they were fighting in the first place. "If it becomes too much of an issue, I'll deal with it."
"I want your word on that, Jaune." Yang's eyes narrowed.
"You aren't going to need it." Jaune retorted, glaring back in return. The blond had no clue what Yang's problem wa- oh... "This is because Riko is better than Mei, right?"
Her glare seemed to only intensify. "You're still wrong. Riko has absolutely no actual character development." Yang stated falsely.
"Yeah whatever." Jaune redirected. Their earlier debate had him tired out – he wasn't ready for round two yet. "You wanted to talk about something?"
The brawler took out her scroll, tapping away at it for a couple of seconds. She sat on the floor in the middle of the room, leaning back so she rested against Jaune's mattress. "Well, you're the one who wanted to talk about something."
Jaune tilted his head in confusion. There was a rapid knock at the door.
...Oh.
Jaune swallowed. He... he wasn't ready. "I guess I'll get it."
Yang hummed, even as Jaune walked towards the door. With a deep breath, Jaune pulled it open.
Before Jaune could even greet her, Ruby came running in, practically hopping on top of Yang. The blonde's little sister started screaming something along the lines of "Don't you dare tell him!" while simultaneously attempting to smother Yang with a pillow. Jaune closed the door quietly.
Of course, Ruby's efforts seemed to be in vain – in stark contrast to the girl's rather one-sided fight with the Boarbatusk earlier, a headlock and a noogie were enough to get the young Rose to surrender.
Rose... shit, how do I tell them?
Jaune had never really considered how; all the blond had really thought was that they needed to know they were related. When he'd learned that Ruby was indeed both his cousin and in possession of 'silver-eyes', a million thoughts ran through his head – and not one of them involved how to tell her, or even what to tell her.
And Yang. What the hell was he supposed to tell them both?
The boy took a seat on Weiss' bed – careful not to disturb the sheets – and waited. Ruby was struggling to break Yang's grip, while Yang herself was grinning all the while, intensely focused on grinding her knuckles into the top of Ruby's head.
He hoped he wasn't just about to ruin everything.
Perhaps Jaune didn't quite have his priorities straight, but that was what he was worried about most: he wasn't worried about some 'great evil' targeting Ruby because of her powers... he was more worried about what they thought of him; what Ruby and Yang would think of him. Though he hadn't known the truth for long, what if they thought he had? What if they started asking questions?
What if they didn't trust him, didn't believe him?
Jaune actually was beginning to think that talking to Weiss about Atlas first would have been a good idea. It may have been a little uncouth for him to think that way, but Jaune didn't care about Weiss nearly as much as the two sisters before him.
They were like family. And they were.
"So!" Jaune started a little uncertainly, clapping once to get the sisters' attention. Yang, noticing, ceased to mess with Ruby – though Ruby herself gave Yang one more shove before turning towards him. Idly, Jaune wondered if Yang had been buying him time.
The two sets of eyes stared him down... he'd felt more comfortable getting his ass kicked by Yang in front of thousands at graduation. "I..." Jaune clenched a fist – he really should have thought this through. "I don't know where to start."
"The beginning." Yang suggested, Ruby chuckling lightly despite the seriousness with which her sister spoke.
Jaune nodded, "Yeah, that's probably a good idea..." He sighed. "So, Yang, we've known each other for a while, yeah?"
"Four years, or something." Yang confirmed. "Though we weren't really friends for a lot of that. We didn't talk, or anything."
Another nod. "Yeah. We've become good friends in the past... what, eight months?"
Yang shrugged. "Yeah, sure, let's go with that."
"So, that means I've known you, Ruby, for just as long." The girl's red and black hair moved up and down as she nodded in response. "And in that time, I've come to think of you two as my closest friends. When I was living on Patch, though my family was just a ferry ride away, they always felt so... distant, you know? Of course, I called home often, we talked, but they weren't really there. Ruby... you came and visited me when I was 'on leave' after Yang and I were in Atlas. Yang... we've been in a couple situations already that could have cost us our lives. You both have always been there for me."
"You got that right." Yang quipped.
Jaune rubbed at the back of his head. "I suppose, what I'm trying to say is that I think of you guys as family – just as much as my own... and... well, I learned something recently that I feel I need to share with you both."
The two girls sitting across from Jaune waited patiently.
"I- we... we are family."
There was no reaction initially; but perhaps, silence in itself was a reaction.
"Okay. I don't quite get what you're trying to say here." Yang broke the silence first. "Explain."
"I… back before we became friends, I'd learned that I had an aunt – one I hadn't known about… no one ever mentioned her; at least, not until my mother told me she was a huntress. She said my aunt was one of the best. She told me about how, one day, her sister vanished…
"My mother-" Jaune looked down at his hands, as if he could find an the explanation within them. For the most part, he just didn't want to meet their eyes. "She never told me my aunt's name… not until recently, when I thought to ask."
The blond bit his lip; he was telling them something like this, but he was still hiding; still lying to them. His mother didn't tell him anything. "My mother told me my aunt's name was Summer. Summer Rose."
"I see... And you didn't think to tell either of us until today?" Yang quizzed. Ruby looked… Jaune didn't know: Jaune wasn't sure what the girl could be thinking.
"I didn't make the connection until yesterday, when Ozpin called Ruby to the stage. I'd have said something earlier, but I wanted to wait until we were alone… until we could discuss it."
Yang nodded acceptingly, but there was something in her eyes Jaune couldn't quite read. The blonde turned to her sister, waiting patiently for her to speak; and so did Jaune.
The shorter girl looked conflicted – there was no reason she shouldn't have been. She opened her mouth, before closing it. It seemed like she was at a loss for words.
Finally, Ruby spoke. "Jaune, you said you think of us as family?"
The boy nodded.
"Then, nothing really changes, does it?" Ruby's eyes were as steely as they were after she fought the Boarbatusk earlier. "I consider you my friend. That you're also my cousin is just sort of… a bonus I guess. Besides…" there was a long pause as Ruby and Yang shared a glance. Yang nodded.
"Besides what?" Jaune prompted.
"For some reason, I always had a feeling there was something about you. Ever since I first saw you."
What was that supposed to mean? "Like, when we first met at Signal?"
"No, I was… coming back from a trip to my mom's grave one day." Jaune didn't comment on that – Summer was only presumed dead... but after however many years, they'd likely all moved on. "I saw you then, outside your apartment, and I watched you. For some reason, I felt a connection. I think that was even before you and Yang even became friends."
"Yeah." Jaune's partner confirmed, to the boy's surprise. "Ruby actually asked me about you. I thought my little sister had her first real crush, but…"
"Yang…" Ruby whined.
"But that wasn't the case... Which is why you're still in one piece."
"I see." Jaune rubbed at his chin, ignoring Yang's 'threat'. He turned to his partner, meeting her eyes. "What do you think of this, Yang?"
The blonde gestured to herself. "Me? Well, I'm surprised, but this isn't really life changing-" It would be, if he had told them everything. "But I'm with Ruby. Even though you and I aren't technically related, I feel the same: We're friends, and this changes nothing."
Jaune sighed, thankful that all his worrying had been for naught. He still felt awful about withholding everything else from them, but there was nothing he could do about that – not until he asked Ozpin. "That's good... In that case, there's something I want to share with you guys – Ruby in particular."
Pushing off Weiss' bed, Jaune strolled over to his nightstand, Yang moving over a little so that he could open the drawer underneath. The boy reached in, pulling out the worn, leather bound journal of Summer Rose.
"Here, Ruby." Jaune kneeled lightly, offering his cousin the journal. The young girl took it gingerly, as if the notebook would disintegrate at her touch. "It's... something you might want to read."
The girl cracked the book open, Yang leaning over her shoulder to read as well. Yang's eyes widened, scanning the pages. "This... the handwriting is a little crude compared to her cookbooks but..." She licked her lips as if they were suddenly dry. "This is Summer's, isn't it?"
Jaune didn't even have to answer, Ruby nodding even as her eyes began to tear up. Yang noticed immediately, wrapping an arm gently around her sister's shoulders.
They flipped a few pages, both absorbed in the words written by their mother. Jaune remained silent, still crouched before the two girls.
Ruby stood, closing the book softly, though Jaune could see her grip on it's spine was anything but soft. The girl stepped forwards, tears in her eyes, before she fell back down to her knees and wrapped her arms around him, burying her face in his shoulder.
"Jaune..." Ruby sobbed. "Can I borrow this for a while?"
"Of course you can." Jaune assured, feeling Ruby's tears soak through to his skin. Not sure what he should be doing with his arms, he left them hanging at his sides.
The girl pulled back, red faced, and gave Jaune a peck on the cheek. "Thank you."
Dazed, Jaune reached up, touching where the girl's lips had just rested for but a moment. Before he even realized it, Ruby was gone, the door to their dorm closing loudly behind her.
What?
"Hey." Yang's words brought Jaune back down to Remnant. When did she get so close? "Don't get any ideas... you guys are cousins, after all."
Jaune shook his head, before nodding dumbly. Ruby... had caught him completely off guard. "Yeah, of course. I wouldn't think anythin-"
The boy's eyes widened, as Yang grabbed him by the collar, pulling him closer before planting a kiss on his lips.
Like with Ruby, the contact lasted only a second, but when Yang pulled away, she didn't go far; she stayed close enough that he could still feel her breath.
"I don't think you know what you just did for her..." Yang spoke, though Jaune found it hard to hear her words through the blood pumping through his ears. "Thank you, Jaune."
The blond nodded, not trusting his mouth to do words. Yang released his collar. Jaune had to suppress the growing urge to lick his lips, the girl's eyes staring into his as she stood to full height.
Holy shit, she just kissed him.
There was a slight tinge of red to Yang's cheeks as she offered him her hand. Jaune took it, Yang pulling him up with the strength he'd expected of her. "Come on," Yang said plainly, "We need to go eat, I'm sure Nora and Weiss are waiting for us."
Jaune took a deep breath, letting it out in an "Okay", nodding.
"...Right after I get my hand back." Yang mentioned.
The boy flinched lightly, releasing his grip on the girl's appendage. "Right, sorry. Let's go."
Yang stepped forward, Jaune following close behind, nothing but questions and the faint taste of cranberries on his mind.
Well, can't say there haven't been people waiting for something like this; hell, we're twenty-five chapters in, and this is the first sign of anything really romantic.
... Not to say that kiss was romantic or anything; whether that was a display of affection or just a token of thanks, that's for you guys to interpret.
So, Jaune told Ruby and Yang. What does this change? Not all that much... or maybe it did? We'll see in the following chapters.
As always, thank you all for reading. Let me know what you think in a review or PM.
Until next time.
Updated: August 10/16