"All right then... Come and take it."

Jaune blinked and nearly missed it.

Her attack had been fast, almost too fast to track. Jaune wondered if she had used a glyph to move as Weiss did. But no, whatever she was doing, it was pure power and skill. He couldn't recall seeing one or hearing the distinct noise they make.

The drunkard wasn't easy prey though. He had dodged her first lunge with nothing more than a head tilt. It almost looked like sheer luck until he did it three more times in succession. He even showed off by giving a formal bow underneath her next blow.

She struck at his back, only to find it wasn't so exposed. A great sword was tucked away on his back which he then activated and drew.

It was easily a two-and-a-half-hander with a roughly five-foot blade length. The blade was almost a foot at its widest.

He wielded this large sword with one hand as if he was fencing with his opponent.

When he finally struck back, his slashes were just as fast as hers had been with her lightweight saber. A trail of red aura flowed behind the tip of his blade, a sign that he wasn't just strong, but skilled with aura too.

She blocked his strikes with her weapon. An impressive display of skill considering the weight difference in the weapons. She then proceeded to evade his following strikes with a series of acrobatic flips.

It wasn't long until both found their footing and traded blows back and forth. Sparks flew as their blades clashed again and again with enough force to take out any Grimm.

"What's going on?!" Jaune heard Ruby ask from elsewhere in the crowd.

"Some crazy guy is attacking my sister." He heard Weiss reply from the same direction.

Jaune started to make his way through the crowd to try and get more information. It sounded like Weiss was here when it started.

"Oh my god, who would do such a th-at's my uncle!"

Ruby no.

"Kick her butt uncle Qrow!" Ruby shouted.

Ruby no!

"Teach him some respect Winter!" Weiss shouted in response.

The fight was accelerating with every second that went by. Their footwork became increasingly complex. Soon they were moving so fast that he could only see them in the moments they clashed. With speed matching or even exceeding his father's they each fought to take each other's flank.

Weiss' sister landed a pommel strike across his jaw. Ruby's uncle absorbed the damage by twisting his neck with the blow. His only response was to smile.

Winter sensed something that Jaune couldn't and she used a glyph to throw herself backward. A fraction of a second after she left the ground, Qrow's sword shattered the courtyard.

Jaune could scarcely believe what he was seeing. He could understand Qrow's power. The man was easily in his thirties or forties and has had decades to become stronger. But Winter had to be in her twenties, younger than Sapphron at least. Yet not even Sapphron could launch herself dozens of meters into the air with a single leap.

Qrow chased her down, cutting through anything that happened to be in the path of his blade on its way to its target. He even carved through a foot of solid steel in a lamppost.

If it was Jaune in this fight, he would be doing anything he could to get away from those attacks. Winter, however, was dancing around them. She even had the gall to land on his sword. Not that Qrow seemed to care as he held up his sword and her body weight with one arm.

She kicked off his face, landing on an overhead railing. Qrow's great sword shifted, revealing a pair of barrels built into the weapon. It fired like a shotgun, forcing her to dodge once more. She landed on one of the stone columns that made up the colonnade that circles Beacon.

Then, as if it was as easy as breathing, she ran vertically up the side of it, just like he had been training to do.

Jaune finally managed to reposition to where Ruby and Weiss were. He wanted to ask them what was happening, but the fight just kept getting more and more intense. Jaune activated his aura sight to make sure he didn't miss anything that was going on. What other techniques like the aura step that Winter scaled the pillar with were being used?

A section of masonry was torn apart as Winter leaped at Qrow with enough force to drive his feet through the stone. If this fight kept going, he was worried about what would become of the surroundings.

Suddenly, Winter used a glyph that Jaune had never seen before.

It was larger than normal and a series of what looked like swords rotated inside of it. From it, dozens of shining white baby Nevermore poured out, all flying directly at Qrow.

It seemed like she had to stay completely still and focus on this glyph more than usual. This became clear when Qrow interrupted her ability by forcing her to dodge his aura slash.

Jaune was surprised to see so many of his aura techniques being used by. He had gotten the impression that aura techniques were only used by those who focus on them.

Winter summoned a glyph behind herself and took a stance with both of her blades. She was clearly preparing for a high-speed lunge. Her face no longer held the smug expression it had had for the majority of the fight. Instead, her lips were drawn into a thin line and her brow was furrowed.

Qrow however seemed just as light-hearted as ever, curious if anything. The inner machinery of his weapon began to whir and the blade itself began to separate. The segments began to rearrange themselves, forming a curved blade. Jaune couldn't help but notice the likeness between this new form and Ruby's scythe.

Jaune was eager to see if Ruby's uncle was as skilled with that weapon as she was. Unfortunately, before his weapon had even fully transformed, he halted the process. In a show of either extreme arrogance or absolute confidence, he placed his weapon on his back. Qrow then taunted his opponent by beckoning her to bring on her attack regardless.

Rightfully infuriated by his provocation, Winter gave him exactly what he wanted. She shot forward over the distance like a white blur, ready to deal a finishing blow to her opponent.

"Schnee!" General Ironwood suddenly shouted. "What in the world do you think you're doing?"

Winter immediately lowered her weapons, standing at full attention. "General Ironwood! He started the altercation, Sir. I was-"

"That's actually not true." Qrow interrupted as he casually placed his hands behind his head. "She attacked first."

Qrow began to mime whistling as if to say he was innocent. As if he didn't completely trash the droids that lay in a heap a small distance away. The general looked over him, and the destruction around them.

"Is that right...?" He said.

Winter's reaction was not what Jaune had expected. Instead of fighting her case and pointing out what Qrow had done, she lowered her head and gritted her teeth.

The general approached Qrow. "And you..."

Qrow feigned surprise, pointing towards himself as if to say 'who, me?'

Jaune couldn't hear what they were discussing as they spoke in hushed tones. He and many others tried to inch closer to eavesdrop. Everybody collectively jumped when professor Ozpin spoke out to the crowd.

"Now now. There is a sanctioned fight just around the corner which has far better seats... and popcorn." He calmly stated.

"Break it up, everyone!" Ms. Goodwitch beside him ordered with not a fraction of the amount of calm. "We will take care of this mess."

She was clearly not in the mood for this.

The general gave both Qrow and Winter a final look as he adjusted his tie. "Let's go."

Winter immediately fell in line, heading toward the school itself.

Qrow however took his time to mess around and talk with Ruby, ignoring the way that Oz was staring at him.

"Qrow! A word please." Oz finally asked.

Jaune didn't particularly want to get involved with Ruby's uncle until he had to. He had a suspicion that since he knew Oz, there was a chance he'd be introduced eventually. So instead of asking Ruby or Weiss what that was all about, he instead left to do what he came here for in the first place.

Jaune returned to the forest so he could continue training his aura control. Now that he knew the next rounds would have such varied terrain his priorities shifted. The ability to move freely in any direction became an even more valuable asset.

Jaune relied on how it felt when he succeeded in the morning. It only took a few minutes of adjustments afterward before Jaune was able to get his feet planted. From there, it was all about maintaining the precise output that he needed.

Each step was the same process. First, deactivate the aura in his rear foot while placing the weight of his body on his lead. Then, he reactivates it and readjusts his weight onto both feet once more. Too much or too little aura and he wouldn't be stable when he went to move his next foot.

It was tedious and repetitive, requiring a lot of focus and time before he was confident to commit to the action. But with every repetition, he grew used to it and approached what could be called a regular walking speed.

"Quite the impressive technique!" Ren called out.

Jaune promptly fell out of the tree as he lost concentration.

"Though it seems you still need some work," Ren said as he offered him a hand to help himself up with.

"It's about as easy as I'm making it look, which suffice to say is not very. I figured you could get a lot of use out of it though. Not just the vertical stuff either, but the whole technique." Jaune replied, taking the offered hand.

"Is this the technique you used to move as fast as you did? If so, you can consider me intrigued."

"It's half of it."

Jaune dove into a quick explanation. He covered how the technique was composed of both aura and body control elements. With a quick demonstration, he showed off how to do it properly. He also pointed out potential mistakes Ren might make that he already had.

Within minutes, Ren was already about as good as Jaune was with the vertical movement.

"That is so not fair," Jaune complained.

"Sorry." Ren laughed. "But I have been training aura control for quite a few years longer than you."

"What level are you anyway? I can see that your control is at least in the top five in the tournament, but I couldn't put a number on it." Jaune asked.

"Level 11, as of a few months ago. What do you mean you can 'see' my control?" Ren asked in reply.

"Oh, yeah I suppose this would be a useful skill for you too. The way I unlocked it was a bit weird, but what I do now is I sort of channel my aura into my eyes. It's part of the aura awareness skill." Jaune answered.

He manipulated his aura to form a small ball at the tip of his finger. He pushed as much aura into the small space as possible so that it would be easy to see.

Jaune activated his aura sight after that and watched Ren attempt to emulate it. As he was with tree climbing, he was a fairly quick study and managed to get it working in a short time. Frankly, it made Jaune a little jealous. Not just because he picked it up as quickly as he did. But also because he got to do it without the beating that Oz put him through.

"So this is what Fox sees..." Ren muttered.

"Yeah, good luck to whoever wants to try and use an aura technique on him tomorrow. He can probably see aura techniques coming before they're even formed." Said Jaune.

"Gee thanks, that fills me with confidence." Ren dryly replied. When Jaune's face reflected his confusion, Ren explained. "You haven't seen the matches for tomorrow yet? Nora and I are up against Fox and Coco."

"No, I hadn't. My bad. Who am I up against?" Jaune asked.

"Cardin and Russel," Ren replied.

"Oh! Well, I guess he'll be happy then. He wanted to have a rematch with me after all."

"He did? That's news to me."

Jaune gestured for them to both to try and get back to work while they talked. He slowly began making his way back up a nearby tree.

"It was after the incident at the docks. I wasn't in good enough shape to avoid him, but luckily he just wanted to talk. He had an apology of sorts, and he happened to mention he was looking forward to seeing if I would get stronger."

"An apology huh?" Ren started to climb another side of the same tree. "I can't say I expected that from him. But then again, I haven't seen him mistreat anyone since Forever Fall. His team performed well today too."

Jaune nearly lost his footing for a moment as he thought back to their match.

"How did team CFVY do?" Jaune asked.

"I only saw the key moments. Coco and Velvet didn't even use their weapons, but I got to see Yatsuhashi and Fox. They were in good form." Ren sighed suddenly. "Whether we win or lose is probably going to be up to Nora and how she does against Coco. I think Fox has me beat in every area that counts."

Jaune noted the fact that Ren had been doubting his performance even before today's match. Now faced with someone who had such a similar style and a year's worth of extra training, he seemed to have given up.

Ren was never the type to worry about winning or losing though. Which is why his reactions lately had seemed so out of character.

"Be honest with me for a minute here, but are you worried about this for your sake, or is it something else? You've never been one to care about class rankings. It was always more important that you learned something." Jaune asked.

"I thought this Semblance of mine was supposed to mask my emotions..." he said with a small smile. "It's Nora, obviously. She wants to do well, she loves to fight strong opponents and push herself. She's like you and Pyrrha in that way. I just don't want to hold her back. Frankly, if someone else could fight for me so that she could have a better chance, I wouldn't mind dropping out."

Jaune mulled over what he said for a while with only the sound of their training to fill the silence.

"I mean, you said it yourself. Sure she wants to do well, but she also enjoys a good fight. Maybe you should worry less about trying to force a win and focus on making sure you both have fun. If you both try your best, then there's nothing to worry about."

Ren hummed thoughtfully in response but didn't say much. So Jaune tried a different angle. He dropped down from the tree and began taking his armor off.

"My Dad always used to say that time spent thinking about a problem, is time you could spend trying to fix it. If you're so worried about winning, then let's come up with a plan." Jaune shouted, gesturing for Ren to come down and join him.

Jaune took all his equipment off. As Ren came down to join him, Jaune tried to remember how Fox fought.

He wouldn't be able to replicate the bladed tonfa, but he could try to mimic the fist oriented fighting style. There were lots of circular motions that incorporated the use of elbows. When combined with his weapons, he could slash through his enemies with ease. Both arms were used in equal measure too, making it a very balanced style.

"We've got time. I might not be able to substitute him perfectly, but I make a pretty good sandbag with all my aura. So come at me already, and let's see if you can't come up with a few plans." Said Jaune.

Ren shook his head, but he couldn't hide the smile. "I guess I can always rely on our fearless leader to serve as a meatshield when we need him."

For the next few hours, Ren and Jaune sparred with hand to hand and aura techniques. The training had been for Ren to create a strategy for Fox, but Jaune didn't exactly waste his time either.

One part of his training which he had been neglecting was the use of deception and intuition. He had been using them naturally as everyone did, but he hadn't ever devoted time to trying to improve them. This extended training with Ren was perfect for that.

Jaune focused on making a mental database of information about Ren as they fought. Early on it only served to distract him. But steadily the information started to come in handy. Little things like the way Ren over-focused on his arms when attempting a counter.

Additionally, while reading his opponent, he was trying to use feints to poke holes in Ren's defenses. It wasn't particularly high-level stuff though. He used his willpower to feint a different attack a moment before he committed to a real one. A skilled opponent would see through it easily, but it was good practice for learning to use feints at all.

In the end, Ren's natural skill in hand to hand won out. He landed over a hundred direct hits while Jaune only managed to get his own here and there.

"Well, you've certainly improved. I didn't realize it had been so long since we trained together." Ren said as they both slumped to the ground.

"And yet you still kicked my ass," Jaune replied.

"I don't suppose you brought any water with you?" Ren asked, ignoring Jaune's self-deprecation.

Jaune shook his head and slowly pushed himself back onto his feet.

"Let me get my things and we can go." Said Jaune.

"Sounds good," Ren said without bothering to start getting up.

It would take Jaune a few minutes to get his gear ready. He clearly planned on using that precious time to breathe.

"So what are you planning to do for your next match?" Ren eventually asked.

"I'm not sure. I don't have to put too much thought into it though. Pyrrha wiped their whole team solo after all." He replied.

"Cardin's weapon isn't going to be an issue?"

"It does a lot of damage I'm sure, but I think my defense can handle it."

"No, I meant the dust. He has a fire dust crystal slotted in his weapon which can create explosions." Ren explained.

Jaune tightened the last strap of his chest plate to secure his gear within it before pulling Ren onto his feet.

"I guess I didn't think about it. I can try to prepare myself, but at the end of the day, I'll just have to deal with it." Jaune replied.

Ren nodded and said no more on the issue.

Together the two made their way back to the campus in comfortable silence. When they arrived, Ren made his way straight for the showers, while Jaune headed for the kitchens. He'd missed lunchtime by an hour or so and he was starving.

Jaune grabbed whatever he could find which would be quick and easy. In the end, he settled down at a table with a cold ham sandwich. Before he got to take his first bite though, he was interrupted.

"Would you mind if I sat here?" A sultry voice asked from behind.

Jaune answered before he looked, never being one to mind who sat with him. "Sure, I don't mind."

When he did eventually turn, he saw he was speaking with the leader of team CMSN.

She took a seat directly beside him. Just close enough for Jaune to make note of it as 'over-friendly'. She was still in her combat gear, an open leather jacket over a sarashi with tight gray pants. She crossed her legs under the table, brushing her foot along his leg for a brief second.

"Your performance today certainly didn't match what I'd heard about you Jaune." She casually stated.

Jaune put down his sandwich, to observe the woman beside him a little more closely. She had chosen to sit directly next to him instead of at any of the empty tables. The way she struck up a conversation meant she wasn't just here to eat.

"Not to sound rude, but I'm not as familiar with the names of other contestants as you seem to be." Jaune politely mentioned.

"My apologies." She offered Jaune a hand to shake which Jaune took. "My name is Cinder."

"Right, nice to meet you Cinder. As for what you've heard about me, it probably wasn't all wrong. I still struggle to compete with a lot of my friends. It feels like I'm just an ordinary guy surrounded by prodigies sometimes." He said, replying to her first statement.

"Oh? I thought your performance today was very impressive. I'd hardly call you ordinary." Cinder said, accentuating her point with a wink.

Jaune awkwardly looked away and tried to focus on his lunch.

"I think most women would agree with me too." She added, distracting him once more.

"'Most women'?" he asked.

"Most people, a slip of the tongue." She replied, before licking some yogurt off the back of her spoon. "You're quite famous thanks to that little interview of yours. 'The Vanguard of the Breach' wasn't it? And the apprentice of Beacon's headmaster too. What's that like, I simply must know."

"It's... normal, I guess? He's fairly busy most of the time."

"I imagine he would be, especially with incidents like this morning." She said, brushing a lock of hair behind her ear.

Jaune was used to hanging around with attractive girls. He was dating one of them and Yang was a constant factor. But he wasn't used to the attention he was receiving right now. She hung off his every word, listening intently and watching him closely. For a stranger, she was showing more interest than he considered normal.

"You saw that too huh?" Jaune asked.

He felt Cinder's foot brush along his leg once again, so gave her a little more space by shuffling over a few inches.

"A team member did. He told quite the captivating tale." She explained.

"I see." Jaune awkwardly replied, cutting the conversation short.

For a time they both ate in relative silence. Cinder fiddled with her scroll as she ate, while Jaune tried to keep his eyes off of the woman next to him. He wasn't even doing anything, but just by sitting next to him, she made him feel guilty of something. His friends were attractive, but rarely did they seem to weaponize it quite like she was.

"Tell me Jaune." She suddenly spoke after leaning closer to him. "I know we don't know each other that well, but I feel like you're the type to always help a girl in need. If I had a favor to ask, would you be willing to help me?"

"That depends on the favor, I think?" Jaune replied, nearly stumbling over his words.

"Nothing too strenuous I assure you. I was hoping for a simple spar."

"A spar? With me? Shouldn't you worry about your next match?"

"A Faunus girl by the name of Velvet and a large man with an even larger sword. I was hoping you might substitute the latter. I promise I could make it... worth your while."

"I guess I could do that..." Jaune answered.

He would be able to find time for one quick spar in the evening surely.

"Wonderful, would 6 o'clock suffice? Or would you prefer something later?" She asked with a smile.

"6 is fine." He instantly responded. For some reason the thought of meeting with her much later than that spelled trouble.

Jaune grabbed his half-eaten lunch and stood up. Cinder rose to match.

"Thank you Jaune, I do appreciate your help." She said, placing a hand on his shoulder.

Jaune merely nodded before leaving. He tossed his dishes in the sink and rushed away in the direction of the dorms.

He didn't know whether he was reading into things too much because he was inexperienced. Regardless, he began to feel almost guilty for giving in to it and agreeing to meet with her again later. Guilty enough that he decided it was something he had to tell Pyrrha about.

When he reached their dorm, she was already there, watching the match replays on her scroll.

"Oh, hello Jaune." She happily greeted as she noticed him come in.

"Hey, Pyrr. Can I ask you something?" He wasn't going to waste any time in broaching this subject.

"Is everything okay?" She asked in turn.

"I'm fine, it's just... Ok look, don't be upset okay?" She nodded. "I think a girl might have just been coming onto me."

Pyrrha looked almost amused. "Why would I be upset about that. It wouldn't be the first time another girl has seen what I see. There was that time on our date if you recall?"

He didn't.

"Ok well, the thing is that I may have agreed to spar with her this evening too." He added, pre-emptively steadying himself for Pyrrha to turn on him.

"Okay?" she replied.

"'Okay'?" he parroted.

"Jaune are you going there for anything other than sparring?" She asked.

"No! No it's just sparring, she asked for a favor and I just answered before thinking. Please don't be mad!" He panicked.

"Then it's fine."

"It is?"

"Jaune, contrary to what you may believe, not all girls will be driven to madness if you spend time with other girls. You said nothing is going on and you're way too worked up over this to be lying. I trust you." She calmly explained.

"Even though-"

"Yes, even though you seem to think she might be interested. It's not like there aren't plenty of men out there who would fancy trying their luck with me you know?"

Jaune frowned. "There are?"

"Yes, there are." She said, flicking him in the forehead. "Did that never occur to you before now?"

Jaune shook his head and she sighed. "Well, look. You have to trust me not to race off and jump into the arms of the first boy who calls me pretty. I think it's fair that I can trust you not to make out with the first girl to laugh at your jokes or whatever she did."

Jaune nodded, letting the knowledge sink in.

"You're really smart, you know that Pyrrha?" he finally responded.

"Unfortunately, I think this might be one of those times where you're just being stupid." She countered.

"You still love me anyway though, right?" Jaune cheekily asked, stepping closer to his partner.

Her eyebrows rose ever so slightly in response to his movement. Her lips curved at the ends from a smile that she was trying to conceal.

"You certainly have your moments that make it worthwhile." She teased, placing a hand on his chest that weakly kept him at bay.

Jaune placed both of his hands just below her corset where the skin of her waist was just barely visible. He pulled himself closer to her and she allowed him to with a laugh. She brought both hands over his shoulders, giving up on her false defense entirely.

"Is this one of them?" He asked before planting a short kiss on her lips.

She trusted him so completely and managed to dissolve his worries so easily. It was just another reminder of how great his partner was. This deeper appreciation of his partner drove him to act more boldly than he usually would.

"I'm not sure. It's a little too early to tell." She coyly replied.

Jaune could barely wait for her to finish her response before taking her lips once more. He could feel the vibration through her lips as she hummed appreciatively. After several more seconds, she broke away once more.

"Are you sure you wouldn't prefer to be training? You're wasting precious time before the tournament you know?" she asked.

"I'd hardly call it wasted." He replied, causing her to lightly snort.

She kissed him once more before giving him a gentle push away.

"Me neither. Still, as nice as this is, it's the middle of the day. I'd rather not have people interrupt us in the middle of something like this." She explained when he put on an expression like that of a kicked puppy.

Jaune had to admit that was a good reason, even if he wished it wasn't.

"Then how about we go on a date? I've missed you if I haven't made that obvious." Jaune asked.

"Are you just asking me on a date in the hopes that you can take me somewhere more private?" She asked, catching him completely.

"Yes?" He honestly responded.

She smirked. "Very well then. Tonight, at seven o'clock. You can meet me at the cliff over the docks and we can have ourselves a date. One with absolute privacy so we can finish what we've started."

"Wait, really?" Jaune asked.

She nodded. "Mhm. And all you have to do is be there on time. Aren't you lucky?"

"The luckiest man on Remnant." He honestly answered once more.

Pyrrha laughed, loudly too.

She planted a final kiss on his cheek then pushed him completely out of her way as she went to exit the dorm.

"I doubt you would, but don't forget. Seven o'clock by the docks. I'm going to run a few errands, so I'll see you then." Said Pyrrha.

"Right, I'm looking forward to it!"

/-/

Several hours later when his aura and body were recovered, Jaune made his way to the training grounds. Despite turning up early, he wasn't the first person there. Cinder and two of her teammates were there already warming up. As he walked in, Cinder must have heard or seen him, as she was quick to react.

"Jaune, I'm glad to see you made it. I was worried that you might have gotten nervous." She said with a hint of a laugh. "These are my team members, Mercury and Emerald. I hope you don't mind if they watch."

"That shouldn't be an issue. How do you want to do this? I could try to emulate the style of your opponent if you want, or I could just spar normally." Jaune asked.

"If you could, that would be quite helpful."

Jaune nodded.

Yatsu fought with a sword much larger than his own, but he could still try to use a two-handed style. Jaune wore more armor than Yatsu did, but it wasn't much more, plus he could call it a trade-off for his missing reach.

Jaune placed his shield and scroll down on a bench near Cinder's team and made his way onto the field.

"Ready when you are I suppose," Jaune stated as he quickly stretched out his arms.

Cinder merely nodded with a smile before she began to calmly close the distance between them. Just like in her previous match, she didn't seem to be in any rush.

Jaune didn't know much about Yatsuhashi's temperament in battle. He assumed that with a weapon like that, he wouldn't be the type to play passively.

Thus, Jaune crossed the remaining distance himself with a strong overhead blow. He had seen Yatsu use this technique to destabilize the terrain once before. With pure strength alone he wouldn't be able to pull off a feat like that, so he bridged the gap with his aura.

He hadn't tried to use his aura emission for anything other than a slash before, so the visualization was a bit weak. Nevertheless, he managed to cause much of the training grounds sand to fly up. A small shockwave reverberated from where he struck.

Cinder had side-stepped the overhead blow easily enough. The shockwave however must have come as a surprise, because she lost her footing for an instant. Just enough time for Jaune to transition into a full 360-degree spinning slash.

Cinder absorbed the impact of his blow by jumping up and kicking off his sword. The force of his swing sent her flying, but she twisted in mid-air like a cat and landed on her feet. Jaune quickly checked the aura display to see that the damage taken was minimal.

"Well, you certainly don't disappoint. It's one surprise after another with you Jaune. I don't think anyone knows that you are capable of aura techniques like that." Cinder said, sounding genuinely impressed.

"You too, your timing had to be perfect to pull that off. Not to mention the confidence you need to even attempt it in the first place. I have to ask though, why choose to create distance when you're fast enough to duck and enter my reach? I would have thought getting into my range would be your plan." Jaune asked.

Cinder slowly walked back towards Jaune. "Because of my class, you mean? Fighters like me indeed thrive in close-quarters, especially since I'm fighting unarmed. But there's nothing wrong with playing it safe, is there? Now I know a little bit more about you, so I can plan to deal with you."

That sounded like a threat if he ever heard one. He hadn't expected Cinder to be the type for mid-combat trash talking.

"It'll take a bit more than some fancy acrobatics to deal with me."

"Oh, I know." She confidently replied.

This time, Cinder was the one to engage.

Jaune brought his sword across her chest, only for her to grab a hand that held his sword and force his blade off course. Before he could respond, she landed a palm strike to the very tip of his chin.

Jaune's brain was rattled, though his aura was largely untouched. In his confusion, she managed to disarm him and bring Crocea Mors down on the back of his knees. She finished up by planting her knee directly into his nose. Even with aura, the force of the strike was enough to cause a small nosebleed and knock him flat on his back.

"This sword of yours is deceptively heavy Jaune. Is that your Semblance perhaps? Control over density? Or maybe something more like localized gravity changes?" Cinder asked with a predatory smile.

She tossed his sword onto the ground near him and waited for him to get back up.

"It's a family secret," Jaune answered as he stood back up.

He corrected his nose back into alignment so that his aura could heal it properly.

"Always the man of mystery, aren't you Jaune?"

Fighting just like Yatsu with only my sword isn't going to work. I need to mix in a few more things.

Jaune gestured to continue with their spar and Cinder responded by moving in once more.

When she entered his reach, Jaune repeated the same attack, but this time, he only used one hand. As she had last time, she easily dodged his slash. Having expected her to do exactly that, Jaune was ready with his free hand.

Jaune slammed his palm into her throat, grabbing her around the neck and he tried to lift her off the ground. She cooperated instantly and lifted her legs. Like a snake, coiling around its prey she wrapped around Jaune's arm and neck, causing him to fall forward.

With both her hands on his wrist and her legs holding both his neck and elbow, Jaune was utterly locked in place.

So Jaune for the first time this fight began to activate his muscle augmentation. It was clear that Cinder was physically strong and fast enough to warrant it.

With his new strength, Jaune slowly straightened his back and lifted her off the ground once more. Furthermore, he lifted her entire body above his head with a single arm. Then in one swift motion, he threw her down onto the ground.

She rolled through the impact, though it was clear she hadn't gotten out unscathed.

Jaune chased after her, ready to follow up with a string of attacks. Rather than retreat, she instead caught him in the stomach with the heel of her boots. Her kick stopped Jaune in his place, while gave her the push she needed to create some more distance.

She was good, easily as good as Pyrrha in hand-to-hand. Which was what had Jaune so curious.

"Why don't you use a weapon? You're not a monk, you're a fighter. Surely you must have a few weapon skills." Jaune asked.

"I do indeed have a few." She replied.

"Then, why? Even if we forget about the tournament, fighting Grimm must be a nightmare without a weapon."

Cinder slowly approached, entering his range once more. Jaune held back on the urge to lash out, suspecting that she wasn't approaching to attack. Fortunately, it turned out he was right.

"Are you curious about me Jaune? Or is this the famous Jaune Arc concern that my teammates have heard about?" she teased.

In her heels she stood a few inches shorter than Jaune, but yet she somehow still appeared to be looking down on him. Her golden orbs sparkled, inviting him to try something.

Instead, he stepped back. "Just curious. Even my teammate, a monk, has a weapon."

"Since you're so curious, I'd be more than happy to answer a few questions. Why don't we return to my dorm and we can... chat for a while?"

"What about the spar? That was little more than a few seconds of actual fighting." Jaune asked, deflecting her invitation.

She looked almost annoyed. "Yes, well, despite the length, I got what I needed from it. You were quite helpful."

"I see..." Jaune lied. He couldn't even begin to understand what she could have gained from that. "Well then, I'm glad I could help."

"Mhm. The offer still stands though Jaune. Any time is fine. You'll find I can be quite... flexible." She said with a wink.

Jaune coughed once, looking away.

It's probably best to make things clear.

"I'll keep that in mind. For now, though, I've got a date with my girlfriend. Thank you for the spar." He said to Cinder before walking to collect his gear. "Nice to meet you both as well Emerald, Mercury."

Jaune wasted no time in getting out of there before she could make him feel any more awkward than he already did.

/-/

After his post-training shower, Jaune threw on a simple pair of jeans and a white t-shirt. He couldn't imagine this was going to be a formal-wear event if they were meeting outside at night time. Though there was the small voice in his head that worried otherwise.

Just as they had on every date prior, he packed his sword. He doubted he would need it this close to Beacon, but the stray Grimm wasn't impossible. He was certain Pyrrha would do the same.

Making some excuses for where he was going, Jaune left Ren and Nora to have the room to themselves. He doubted either of them believed him. But it was always worth the effort of trying when it came to mitigating any potential mockery.

He would be early if he left now, but he didn't imagine Pyrrha would mind too much. If anything, it just gave them more time before they would inevitably have to return.

As he walked, he began to notice a faint glow in the distance, right where he was expecting to meet Pyrrha.

The closer he got, and the more that glow grew. It wasn't some far-away spotlight of some fishing boat, but the small flame of a campfire.

Is this her idea of a date? It has to be on purpose, she wouldn't just forget, but it doesn't make sense.

A large tent was set up nearby and within it, he could see the silhouette of his partner moving.

"Hey Pyrr, I'm here!" He announced.

"Oh! Jaune, you're a bit early." She replied, reversing herself out of the tent.

Casual clothes had been a good choice. She had chosen to wear a black cotton crop-top and her usual skirt minus the red sash. Jaune couldn't help but admire the way she looked. The simple outfit let her body do all the work.

"You're using that nickname quite a lot, I've noticed." She added, simultaneously reminding him not to stare.

"You don't mind, do you? I just... I don't know, it felt like a thing to do." He tried to explain.

"No, I don't mind, though I must admit that it makes things a little uneven. I don't have one for you. Nora owns the rights to 'fearless leader'. 'Loverboy', 'Vomitboy', and 'Jauney' are similarly taken by Yang, Ruby, and Cardin." Jaune physically cringed. She laughed. "It is nice to have a nickname that doesn't allude to my class or track record for a change though."

Jaune nodded and looked around again. Pyrrha had put a lot of work into this.

A log had been dragged from who knows where to form a makeshift bench for them to sit at. A small basket of supplies was sitting just inside the entrance of the tent.

"So, what's all this about anyway?" He asked, half wondering about the fire, and half about the entire setup.

"Well..." she interlaced her fingers behind her back as she made her way over to Jaune. "We were supposed to go on a mission to an outskirt town. I was quite looking to spending a few nights camping out with you, Nora, and Ren. But then the Breach happened, and you went away for a few weeks, so we missed out. I thought maybe we could make up for the lost time and have ourselves a campout with just the two of us."

Wait, a campout... As in...

Jaune leaned to get a better look within the tent. Sure enough, there was a bedroll in there, waiting to be unrolled.

"That explains the fire I suppose. Not much of a camp without a campfire." Jaune replied.

"You don't mind do you?" She looked genuinely worried. "If it's an issue I can put it out. Dinner is already ready, so we don't need it. It might get cold though."

"It's fine." He half lied. "You wanted it to be authentic. You've done a good job. It looks like something from a camping magazine."

She suppressed an awkward laugh with a cough. "That would be because it was from a magazine. My class came in 'super handy' like always and I had quite a rough time setting things up even with the guide. Fortunately, the pages made for decent tinder, so that helped."

Jaune laughed. He knew it wasn't the class, but it certainly was unnatural. He still vividly remembered the absolute mess she made in the kitchen the morning of the Breach.

If something could go wrong, it seemed to. Which only made it more impressive to see how well she had done in setting all this up. Chances were; she had started on this as soon as she left.

"Are you hungry?" she asked after silencing his laughter with a light slap on the arm.

"I could eat, sure. What does Chef Nikos have prepared for tonight?" Jaune mockingly asked.

She grabbed the basket from nearby the tent and pulled him to sit down next to her using the log as a backrest.

As distracting and nerve-frying as the fire was, he couldn't deny that its warmth was welcome. The night air was cold, and neither of them had dressed particularly warmly. Pyrrha was clearly feeling the cold too. She sat as close to him as she could, leaning into his chest with her shoulder. Jaune wrapped his arm around her to offer her that slightest extra bit of comfort, and she accepted it with a smile.

"As you know, I'm an expert in cooking. So I picked one of the more intricate dishes on Remnant." She sarcastically replied. "Sandwiches."

She pulled a small container out of the basket in which sat four rectangle-shaped sandwiches.

"All jokes aside, tell me what you think? I'm almost certain I got it right this time." She said, offering him one.

This time, as in she tried to make these more than once?

He took the offered slice and looked it over. It was an egg salad sandwich if he had to guess. How much could go wrong with that?

He took a bite, not wanting to spend too much time doubting her ability lest he hurt her feelings. The bread was fresh and the eggs were well cooked. Based on the sweetness, he had a sinking suspicion she might have mistaken the salt for the sugar. It was weird, but not inedible, so he took another bite. A small crunch revealed the presence of an eggshell.

"How is it?" She asked with her emotions written all over her face.

"It's perfect." He lied. "Whoever said Pyrrha Nikos can't make a sandwich is a rotten liar."

Jaune took another bite to further his point. The smile she gave him in response was worth the slightly bizarre flavor. Of course, when she took out one for herself and took a bite, he knew he'd been caught out.

"Oh wow. This is..." she paused as Jaune took another bite and swallowed it down. "How are you eating that with a straight face. These are bad."

He shrugged. "My Mom made some pretty weird foods when she was pregnant with my younger sisters. Cravings or something. Dad always said that when it comes to eating food from the girl you like, you always say it's perfect and clean the plate."

"Even when it isn't?" She asked.

"Especially when it isn't!"

Pyrrha snorted and put the food away. Clearly, she didn't want to torture him with it any further, even if he seemed willing. Jaune still decided to finish the piece he had been given, if only because he was stubborn.

They sat in comfortable silence for a while, enjoying the comfort and the warmth of each other's bodies.

"So you never did end up telling us anything about your Semblance." Pyrrha finally said.

"There's a good reason for that. I don't understand it myself." He replied. Pyrrha waited for him to elaborate. "It's like a weird combination of my parents that only works occasionally. I've tried drawing on it since the last time, but nothing happens."

"What are your parent's Semblances then?" she asked.

"My father's aura is denser than normal, which makes all his aura techniques more potent. Meanwhile, my mother has way more aura than normal and she can charge up others like a battery."

"Hmmm, so then your Semblance is having a lot of strong aura?" she asked.

"Something like that. I'd say I only have access to 30% of my aura at any given time though. Without the rest, I can't make my aura stronger than normal. But I can only seem to use the rest of my aura when I'm desperate." He explained.

"Simple but effective, it suits you. You just need to learn to control it now."

"Wait, who are you calling simple." He joked.

Suddenly, a piece of firewood cracked, sending sparks into the air. Jaune's good mood was instantly soured as he was forced to try and refocus and slow his breathing.

"You know, I had planned for us to use our time away on our mission to help you with that," Pyrrha stated.

"Well, we're here." He said, dragging his eyes away from the flames to look at his partner. "Why not give it a go?"

He had forgotten what her plan for helping him was. The conversation they'd had about it had been a while ago now. So when she shrugged and said 'Okay' he wasn't fully prepared for what came next.

Pyrrha changed positions to straddle his legs.

"Pyrrha?!" Jaune suddenly asked in shock.

"It's like I told you. We just have to overwrite your memories of what happened with new ones."

"Yeah, but I thought we agreed that-" Jaune said, slowly trying to hide his face from his partner.

"Technically I didn't agree to anything. And besides, I told you last time. I wouldn't do these sorts of things if I didn't want to. Aren't you interested as well?" she interrupted, pulling him by the chin to make him look at her.

"Pyrrha..."

"It wasn't easy you know? We started dating, then the Breach happened, and then you went away for two whole weeks. I've missed you. We used to spar every day, now I'm lucky if I get to talk to you before bed. Can you blame me for wanting to make the most of any time we have together?" She said with no small amount of desperation in her voice.

Truth be told, Jaune wasn't as immune to his hormones as he might have liked to be. He had been raised not to rush into things by his parents. To not treat women with disrespect or only appreciate them for their bodies.

But was this the same thing?

Pyrrha and he had known each other for a year now. They were friends first and lovers second. They've held hands, hugged, kissed. They've even shared things about themselves that they wouldn't share with anyone else. Was it so farfetched to imagine that this was the next step?

Jaune didn't know. But he did know that it was what Pyrrha seemed to want, and he wasn't the type of man to disappoint.

/-/

Due to the site's rules on explicit content, I have cross-posted this chapter to AO3 with an additional scene that continues from this point. If that's not your cup of tea that's fine, it's not integral to the story, but I do recommend checking it out. You can find the link in my profile.