Yay, another silly chapter where nothing happens. This scene was planned to be way shorter, but it just went on...and on...and on...
I blame Jaune for not being able to keep his mouth shut.
Cover Image - Jo3mm (DeviantArt)
Chapter 13
Music - RWBY - Wings
"Wrong door, Jaune."
Jaune blinked...and halted his hand that was reaching out with his scroll to unlock the door—Team Blackthorn's, originally Team Juniper's, door; not Team Sunray's door.
"Oh." He chuckled awkwardly, turning on his crutches to face his partner with a smile—which must have been unconvincing, considering that he wasn't used to being dishonest after not holding a single secret for decades.
Weiss was peering at him in suspicion, although there was still the hint of a self-satisfied smile on her face. She had, of course, bested Sky without breaking a sweat, and so, as Combat Training had been their last class for the day, they had made their way to their dorms. They, being he and Weiss. The rest of their team and Team Blackthorn had either stayed behind to schedule their detention—Yang, Pyrrha, and Nora—or were waiting for their teammates—Ruby, Blake, and Ren. Naturally, Weiss wasn't concerned with waiting for their teammates, stating that they'd already embarrassed Team Sunray enough and didn't deserve to be waited for. Jaune, simply glad to escape Yang and Pyrrha's clutches, hadn't objected. He'd need a serious word with them...
"This one." The door clicked open, and Weiss waited for him to hobble inside before following and closing the door. "That's your bed," she said when, same as how he'd chosen the wrong door on instinct, he'd made his way toward the wrong bed. It was really strange and nostalgic to be back again, and even though it had been so long since he'd last walked these halls, the routine was coming back to him almost effortlessly.
"Thanks." He deposited his stuff, which consisted of a traveling bag of clothes and a rucksack with some personal belongings, on his bed, leaned his crutches against the bedside table, and situated himself on the blanket alongside his stuff.
Weiss had made herself comfortable—meaning sitting with a straight back—at their side's table. Apparently, they'd split the room by partners, with Jaune and Yang—judging by the posters covering every bit of space around the bed—taking the beds on the walls, and Pyrrha and Weiss—whose space was immaculate without any apparent personal belongs or touch—taking the beds in the middle.
He'd half-suspected that he'd be bombarded with a plethora of questions the moment the door closed beside them, but instead, Weiss was seemingly engrossed in homework, her back facing him. Typical, he supposed from the little he actually knew about her.
Shrugging, he shifted his focus toward his task for the evening before dinner: Unpacking, taking stock, and planning. He unzipped his traveling bag and began to unpack, spreading his clothes on the blanket beside him, organizing it by type. He then proceeded to pick up individual pieces, and after a brief evaluation, either put them back in the traveling bag—to be properly put away later—or discarded them onto the floor.
When the first Pumpkin Pete hoodie hit the floor, Weiss looked up and turned around briefly before resuming her work with a minute shake of her head. When there was a little heap of cloth on the floor, which his Pumpkin Pete pyjamas just joined, Weiss glared and snapped, "What, in the name of Oum, are you doing?"
"Discarding."
"Can't you do that a little more quietly? And anyway... discarding what?"
"My clothes," he said unhelpfully as he threw away horrid polka-dotted briefs. He snorted. "Throwing away some old stuff."
The scraping of her chair against the floor sounded, and before he could object, Weiss had already made her way over, swung herself on top of his bed—a good distance between them—staring expectantly at him with her arms crossed. "Well?"
"Well what?"
She huffed and eyed the mountain of clothes on the floor. There was barely anything he'd deemed acceptable for future wear. "Why?"
Jaune shrugged. "I just... I simply feel—"
"I mean, why are you sorting out your clothes... clothes that you have packed only a few days prior." She aimed a piercing stare at him. "Or haven't you?"
His heart was suddenly hammering in his chest. Does she know? How? He shook his head. Of course, she doesn't know—can't possibly know. Idiot. Whatever it was that she thought, it couldn't possibly be the truth. And the truth was that he'd just traveled back in time and hadn't even considered that it may look weird if you weeded out clothes on the second day of school.
"Aehm," he said unintelligently, deliberating what to say before simply settling on the truth—or, at least, the partial truth. "I just...after yesterday, I don't feel the same anymore. And this"—he gestured toward his clothes—"this is not me. I'm not the child that got his clothing on family shopping trips, chosen by his sisters, or that sent in a bunch of box tops to get some ridiculous hoodie or pyjamas. I'm not the same naive and weak guy I once was, that refused help because of some stupid pride that got his friends killed in the end. I..." Swallowing thickly and blinking back tears that had started to gather in his eyes, he realized that he'd drifted off a little, and when he looked up, Weiss's stare had shifted from icy irritation to warm compassion.
"I...I understand." It was her turn to look to the ground, lost in thought as she spoke in a quiet, shaky voice. "I've been thinking about it constantly, reliving it, the pain of the claws scraping across and digging into my skin...the howls and growl as I lay there, helpless and eyes clutched shut in pain, my heart thudding while panic and fear coursed through me in the darkness that seemed to never end." She sniffed, and there were a few tears running down her cheeks. "I was so scared," she whispered, "I thought that it was going to be the end, that I was going to die—"
"I'm sorry," Jaune choked. He felt like he should hug her or something, but she probably wouldn't appreciate that. "If I'd been faster—"
"Don't you dare blame yourself," Weiss snapped, glaring at him through tears. "It wasn't your fault. You saved me..." She looked at her lap with a small blush, her arms no longer crossed but lying there, hands clasped. "It's been my fault. I've been so confident, a-arrogant even, that I've not even considered the possible danger. 'Heiress to the SCD goes on a foolish pursuit of childish dreams and dies during Initiation, mauled by a bunch of Beowolfves.' Pathetic." She laughed humorously, sniveling. "I can already see the headlines, people laughing when they think no one is looking. And the worst part? They would be right to do so. It has been foolish and it has been entirely my fault. I've entered the situation thinking I'd naturally come out on top, because of what? Because that's simply how things go for a Schnee."
She shook her head. "But the real world isn't like that. The Grimm don't care about my fancy name, and they certainly don't care about 'attacking in turn' or any such nonsense my tutors have taught me. And I'm not the heiress of the SDC...but simply another human defending innocents from evil. Simply Weiss, and any expectations I've had previously had been delusional and are only holding me back." She looked at him sternly. "And you shouldn't blame yourself for yesterday, or whatever has happened in your past. It'll only hold you back and prevent you from doing your best in the future. I...I won't ask, but if you want to talk about it..."
Jaune simply stared at her, open-mouthed and astonished before he finally managed a smile. "I... Thanks, I'll...I'll think about it."
"And now you tell me the real reason why you're throwing away all your clothes!"
The sudden change of tone was so abrupt that Jaune didn't have any other option than to burst out laughing.
"I'm serious. As your partner and Team Leader, I'm ordering you to—Stop laughing!"
It had the opposite effect, and he doubled over in laughter, his head against the blanked, wheezing for air.
"And if you ever tell anyone what I've just said, I'll kill you."
He managed to nod while he laughed even harder. Weiss joined in after a while. This seemed to be theme—tears, followed by laughter. He only hoped that it'd stay like that, in that order.
Suddenly, the door burst open, and when Jaune looked up, wiping tears out of his eyes, he saw Yang and Pyrrha stumbling into the room, the first dragging the latter by a hand. They were, both, laughing as well, holding their bellies as they barely managed to remain on their feet.
"...and then I said..." Yang was boasting in-between laughs when her gaze landed on Jaune as Weiss, who'd both sobered up quite abruptly. "Uhm, guys?"
Pyrrha closed the door.
"I know I'm funny," Yang said, "but I'm not that funny. What's going on?"
"What? N-nothings going on," Weiss said, trying to angle her face away without making it obvious.
"Oh, I see," Yang declared. "It's all so clear now, I can't believe I've missed it. You only didn't wait for us because you used this opportunity to get alone with your... with Jaune...and ravish him!" She laughed. "Sorry, cap, we'll leave you to it."
"What? That's not it, at all!" Weiss protested, getting more red in her already flushed face. "And what did you just call me?"
"Cap, you know, short for Captain. I couldn't very well say 'Team Leader'," Yang explained matter-of-factly with a roll of her eyes.
Weiss crossed her arms and scowled. "Whatever ridiculous thing you're thinking, forget about it. And stop calling me like that, or Ice Queen, or whatever. Just Weiss!"
"Sure thing, cap."
Weiss gritted her teeth, then closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths. When she opened them again, there was a smile on her face. "If you must know, I've been...helping Jaune to sort through his stuff."
"Oh?" Yang made her way over and flopped down on Weiss's bed without a care in the world.
Pyrrha followed somewhat apprehensively and took a spot leaning against the table Weiss had previously vacated, smiling awkwardly.
Yang eyed the heap of clothes inquisitively, then waggled her eyebrows at Jaune. "Getting rid of the old stuff to impress your girlfriend, heh?"
"Something like that," Jaune said because he didn't know what else to say, and it was kind of the truth, if you replaced girlfriend with past-future and hopefully future wife.
"Hey!"
Yang laughed. "Not that I don't approve of getting rid of those pyjamas." She shuddered theatrically, and Jaune cringed at the memory of his altercation with Glynda in the infirmary. "And I certainly won't object to you wearing fewer clothes." She winked. "But there's hardly anything left. What are you going to wear?"
"I—"
"I know. We're going to go shopping!" Yang proclaimed cheerfully, as if Jaune wasn't just about to say that. "Don't worry, I'll get you all sorted out in no time." She snickered.
This wasn't really what he had in mind. If he let Yang take charge of that, he'd only end up looking...like whatever it was she had in mind. Certainly not how he wanted to present himself to Glynda—mature, responsible, and competent. This sudden, unwanted attention was really getting a bit annoying, but the happiness of having his friends back outweighed it by a longshot.
"Thanks, Yang, but I'm not sure that would be such a good idea." The minute expression of hurt flickering over Yang's face before she covered it up with a smile made his heart ache, so he immediately explained, "It's not that I wouldn't love to, or that I don't appreciate it... I do. But, I don't think you'd be the right person for the sort of stuff I'm looking for." He grimaced.
Yang crossed her arms. "Oh? And who would be?"
"Weiss, I guess. B-but I was planning on doing it on my own..." Even Weiss looked a little hurt at that. He groaned and put his head in his hands. "Sorry, I'll just shut up now." This...this was getting worse and worse. It occurred to him that he had no clue how to handle three girls at once. He'd been alone for so long with only one person—and she had been a woman from the start—that he had no clue how to handle his teammates... or people in general, judging by the mess he'd made with the Cardin situation.
Should he simply tell them the truth? That he was trying to woo Glynda? Then they'd understand and all this drama would end, right? It was tempting... but then again, Yang wasn't exactly the best at keeping a secret, and if word about his intentions got through to Glynda, he could forget any chances of ever getting through to her. So, looking up, he settled for a half-truth.
"I'm... there's someone I'm trying to impress. But it's not what you think. She's...older, so I want to present myself as such."
Weiss and Yang shared a glance, then the blonde said, "Awww, he's trying to impress his mom, showing her that he's all grown up now that he's been accepted into Beacon."
"What? No!" He'd spoken without thinking. "Oh, my mom, yes, that's, yeah that's right." He laughed awkwardly.
They all stared at him. He groaned.
"So, not his mom?" Pyrrha asked, confused.
"Oh, I know!" Yang said suddenly. "It's Miss Goodwitch! I've been watching you two very closely during Combat training; could practically feel the sexual tension up in the stands." She nodded. "Hmm-hm."
What?! Jaune gaped at her. No, this couldn't be happening! This was bad!
Yang stared for a few more seconds before she burst out laughing, shortly followed by the other two girls. "Oh, you should have...seen your...face!" she said through laughter as she rolled around on Weiss's bed, hitting the blanked with her hands and kicking her legs.
Jaune managed to laugh awkwardly, though it felt more like grimacing to him. "Yeah, hehe, me and Glynda, totally."
When they calmed down, Yang sat up, leaned forward conspiratorily, and asked, "So who is it? Come on, you can tell us? We won't tell, right girls?"
Pyrrha nodded, and while Weiss glowered at Yang, she didn't contradict her either.
"I know you find it hard to believe," Jaune began, "but I actually have a girlfriend. And as I've said, she's...older."
"Yes," Weiss said, arms crossed. "I do find that hard to believe. Considering how you've been trying to flirt with me the moment you've laid eyes on me."
Groaning, Jaune put his head in his hands again. Phrased like that, he sounded like the biggest scumbag. Technically, it hadn't been him—the older him—but no one knew that.
"Can we just pretend this conversation never happened?" he asked weakly.
"No way."
"Nope."
"Sure."
Two gasps sounded.
"Pyrrha!"
"I'm sorry!"
"You've been acting weird ever since Initiation," Weiss explained. "What's going on Jaune? You can talk to us."
"Yes," Pyrrha said. "We're your team. We got your back." He heard Weiss's bed creak; she must have joined her partner there.
This conversation was eerily familiar to the countless ones he'd had with Pyrrha...where he'd refused to tell her the truth and accept her help. All because of his stupid pride and his faked transcripts. My faked transcripts! Brilliant! That could work.
"Alright," he said, looking at each teammate in turn. "You're right. There's something that you don't know about me, that I've been hiding from you." He swallowed. "I...I've not gone to any Combat School before coming here, and I didn't enter through the test exam either. I've...I've cheated my way in, got me some transcripts from some shady nightclub owner, and you know the rest."
"What?"
"Junior?"
"..."
"You know him?" Jaune asked Yang.
"Eh, not really." She shrugged. "Might have trashed his bar or something..." When Weiss and Pyrrha gaped at her, she added, "A-anyway, we were talking about you," shifting the attention back on him.
"Yes," Weiss said, looking completely unconvinced. "If you'd told me this two days ago, I'd have totally believed you. But after seeing you fight, both during Initiation and against Cardin today, how you played with him... Pardon my language, but that's bull shit."
Yang snickered and Pyrrha nodded.
"I, I swear, it's the truth!"
Weiss huffed. "If you can fight light that, why would you go through all the trouble to fake some transcripts and not take the entrance exam? And don't even think about telling me that you suck at the theory. We've all seen how you answered Doctor Oobleck's questions, despite not paying attention."
Pyrrha and Yang nodded along.
Why did I ever open my stupid mouth? The universe was playing tricks on him, he was sure. "I... it was stupid, okay?" he told them. "It's always been my dream to become a Huntsman, but I wasn't good enough to get into a combat school, and my father refused to train me, so... I ran away and trained on my own." He chuckled as the answer occurred to him. "As to why I didn't take the exam? Well, I just was too afraid I'd fail. I couldn't take any risks, so I got me some fake transcripts instead. And if I act the part, no one would notice, right?"
He grinned, and they looked at him like he was the biggest idiot.
"You really are a moron," Weiss said. "But however idiotic that may be, it at least makes some sense."
Jaune breathed a sigh of relief.
"But that still doesn't explain why you suddenly want new clothes."
Kill me now.
"Come now, cap. He just said it. He needs to act the part. And that includes clothing. Right, Lady Killer?"
Thank you, Yang! I take back whatever I've thought and said before, and you can call me whatever you want! You're an angel, my savior, and if I wasn't in love with Glynda I'd devote my life to you! "Yes!"
"All right, you heard him. That means we're all going shopping together! Team Sunray Shopping Trip! Yay!"
"We are?" Pyrrha asked. "I-I mean, yes, of course we are!"
The girls shared a look, then fixated him with predatory glances that promised endless hours of running from store to store, trying on new clothes and posing for them. Whyyyy?! He closed his eyes in dismay and simply focused on his breathing. At least they'd bought his excuse with the transcripts... speaking of buying, he hadn't actually thought it through so far, and it just so occurred to him that he was broke. That could work to get him out of this predicament...
"Uhm, guys," Jaune said. "I'd hate to ruin your plans, but I've just realized I don't have any money... I-I mean, that all went into the transcripts, you see."
"You really are a moron," Weiss repeated. "I suppose it wouldn't hurt my wallet too much if I'd cover your costs."
"What? No, I couldn't possibly—"
"Nonsense!" Weiss interrupted.
"Yes," Pyrrha said, "I'd be glad to off—borrow you some money as well. It's nothing, really. I'm a celebrity, you know, I'd hardly notice the absence of a few hundred Lien."
"Yep," Yang said. "I'm not rich as those two or anything, but my dad isn't bad off either, not to mention my uncle Qrow." She laughed deviously. "You're not getting out of this so easily, Lady Killer."
"And besides," Weiss continued. "As both your partner and Team Leader, it is my duty to make sure you present yourself appropriately. Your actions and appearance reflect back on me...on all of us. So let me take care or that. Weren't you the one that said we'd be the greatest team to ever grace Beacon's halls?"
Jaune groaned and held his hands up in surrender. There was nothing he could say to that. Again, his own impulsive words were coming back to bite him. "I give up, I give up. You win." He chuckled. "I never stood a chance, did I?"
Weiss had a satisfied smirk on her face.
"I'm sorry."
"Ha! Nope. Team Sunray Group Hug!" Yang called, and before he could react, she'd already tackled him, laughing all the while.
"Ouch..." As he lay there on his bed with Yang on top of him, her breasts smothering his face, he could only sigh tiredly and think, Why couldn't this happen the first time around?
Well, this scene was supposed to only be about 1k words with only Jaune and Weiss going shopping and Pyrrha tagging along later. Uhm...oops?