Chapter 8 of this Drunk stuff. Too bad I am not drunk myself right now. It would've helped me with making things easier. Oh well, we can't all be lucky in life.
Alright, Jaune was feeling pretty confident of himself. Last night he went on a date with Cinder which ended on a VERY good note in his opinion. That kiss was something else entirely as well. He could still feel her warm lips on his own, even now, the feeling sticking to him like glue. She either had experience - which is most likely it - or she practiced a lot...What is the difference in the end? Granted, the only experience he might've had was during that night and he still doesn't recall a thing!
Oh well, time to return to the plan of attack. Ren had got the list, crossing off Cinder's name on it and sighing a breath of relief. Ash was here again as well, and even Roman decided to stick around to see this to the end. Apparently, the Master Thief of Vale was currently simply without a project. He could go steal random things, but he hurt Vale's economy so bad his income suffered as well. A side effect he failed to see, Salem's little ploy having blinded him well. It was the morning, 10 AM sharp on the clock, and the boys were all, this time, at Junior's club.
They needed a safe place to discuss and also help Jaune without the risk of information leaks. As Roman said ' The walls have ears'. So here they were, everyone gathered together to talk about the next course of action. Roman was ready to put his fashion advice to work again, and Ash was also ready to see if he could further help Jaune with any social advice and talk about what NOT to do. Ren was there since he was dealing with some other details. "Alright, Ren, who is next?" Jaune asked
"Blake" And in that moment, everyone felt crestfallen. "I...I can understand your reaction." The Mistralian boy replied, then watched as Ash lifted his head.
"How in the world are we supposed to woo her?" He asked, looking at Ren. "That girl is barely social, even with her teammates. She mostly sticks to her books!"
"Not to mention her selection of clothing is not what I'd call...fashionable. Then again, it might just be me being old and whatnot" Roman added, avoiding using a certain word to describe himself. He will kill anyone who dares say it. "Any ideas, Silent boy?"
"Well, as you guys said, Blake is not an easy person to approach. Not to mention the entire stuff at the docks that happened - no hard feelings, by the way."
"Water under the bridge." Roman replied.
"We do know some stuff about her, but I do not fully understand how it might all work. We know she is a Faunus, most likely the same kin as Ash here." Red said.
"Close. Her father and I are both panthers, but she is a cat." Ash corrected. "I did my homework. She mostly takes after a mother now I think about it…"
"Right. However, that doesn't give us much. We also know she used to be a member of the White Fang." He continued, laying down the facts. "Other than that? She is very secretive about anything related to her past. We know her family were the founders, the name Belladone carrying a lot of weight in the Faunus communities all across Remnant even after surrendering its leadership to Sienna Khan."
"So, basically a princess?" Ash asked. "I mean, her father's the head honjo of Menagerie, the one man no one dares cross!" He leaned forward, grabbing one of the drinks they ordered. "I can see why as well...That guy is a giant."
"So...advice?" Jaune asked, looking over them with a hopeful look. However, just as Ash was looking around, a certain blonde tail tapped his right shoulder, only to then vanish and him to wake up with his drink taken out of his hand.
"Hey!" Ash shouted, looking up at the thief. However, it worked out, even if he downed his drink in one go. "Well, just the monkey we needed. Finally decided to come down from the banana tree?"
Sun snorted at that one, the others looking among each other with questionable gazes. "If you weren't a Faunus as well I woulda called you a racist. Still a hate crime, though." He replied, not caring much. He then let himself collapse next to Jaune. "So, how is Beacon's blonde casanova doing? Looking for more girls?"
"What? No!" Jaune replied, then Sun sighed.
"I do not know if that is a shame or if I should be happy" Sun replied. "Anyway, I kinda overheard you all talking about Blake. What up?"
"Well, Jaune here is going to ask her on a date, so-"
"Dude, I thought you weren't going to add more!" Sun replied, snapping at Jaune.
"I am not! I am already married to her!" Jaune dropped, watching Sun back down and look at him with widened eyes. However, a grin spread across his face.
"I have to tell everyone, especially my team! Neptune has a cousin in Menagerie, so the news can even reach Blake's parents-"
"NO!" Everyone shouted at once, not wanting a repeat of the incident with Tai and Qrow to happen. Roman and Ash heard the details from Jaune, and shouted because the giant would know they were involved in helping the blonde woo his daughter - again.
"Sun, please, be a bro!" Jaune pleaded, watching Sun snicker. "You were shitting with us, weren't you?"
"Of course I was!" Sun replied. "I take it you guys are stomped?" He asked, watching them all nod. "Damn. Well, I can't say I cannot see why. I mean, she is not very social. However, since I used to look up to the White Fang, and she told me a bit more, I know some stuff. First off, Roman, did Cinder ever mention where the White Fang helpers were from?"
"Yes, they were part of the Vale branch, why?" The thief asked, however, Sun made a hissing sound, as if this was bad. "Is something the matter boy?"
"Yeah...it wouldn't happen to be led by a certain Adam Taurus, right?" Sun asked, but Roman nodded. "Ok, then, Jaune it was nice meeting you." Everyone stared confused at Sun, then the monkey boy realized they do not really know the full story. "You see...I asked around and it seems like the reason Blake remained with the Fang after her parents stepped down was because she was being faithful...to her boyfriend...who is one of the biggest wanted terrorists in Remnant" Everyone widened their eyes at that piece of information.
"Wait, so you are saying Blake and Adam used to date?" Jaune asked.
"Yup! Dunno the details, but it was apparently a rocky relationship. He was first her mentor, but stuff escalated from there." Sun said. "Dunno what she saw in him back then, but the flame must be gone if she had the guts to dump him"
"Oh boy, this has just gotten a lot messier" Roman said, holding the bridge of his nose. "Can you tell us where he is? I might be able to take him out and get some reward money."
"Actually, if he finds out Jaune here married Blake, he is certainly going to come to you" Sun said, then everyone raised an eyebrow at the monkey boy.
"He is the stalker/crazy boyfriend type, isn't he?" Ash asked, to which Sun hesitated a bit to reply, playing with his tail a bit.
"That is...One way to put it." He replied. "All that I know, I know from some friends back in Vacuo who are in the branch there. But rumor has it he is actively looking for her."
Jaune groaned into his hands. First crazy dads, now crazy ex-boyfriends? What is next? Crazy sisters? "What do I do then?" He asked, looking up with eyes that searched for hope. A hope brightened by Sun's smile.
"Yes!" He replied. "If Adam wants your head, then we should give it to him!"
Silence was heard among them, with them all looking at Sun as if he grew a second head. However, he was swiftly grabbed by the tail by Ash. "Ow!" He shouted, then he felt sharp claws slowly dig into his fur.
"Got any other bright ideas?" Ash asked, rhetorically, of course.
"Wait, let me explain! Please do not rip off my tail! I need it to dance!" Sun said in a hurry, Ash letting go of his tail. "Thank you. You see, Adam is dangerous, but this means we CAN PREPARE to take him out! We will know where he is going to show up if we just leak the intel about Jaune and Blake, then we can drop on him and BAM! Roasted Bull"
Roman sighed. "And how do you propose we do that? We know zero squat about how he fights and his semblance, information that is tightly kept among the Fang members. Does your buddy also know that?"
"N-no…" Sun replied with a bit of shame. "But Blake knows!" He added quickly. "She dated the guy, so she must know what his mojo is, right?"
"And what makes you think she'll tell us? In fact, how do we know she is not going to react badly?" Ren asked.
"That I didn't figure out" Sun replied. "One thing is certain; she is scared out of her mind of him! I saw it in her eyes! He is like a beast chasing her and she is helpless to fight back! That is where Jaune comes in!" He pointed at him. "You can be her knight in shining armor! You just have to slay the beast!"
"Easy for you to say!" Jaune snapped. "I can't just face off against someone like that!"
"Both of you are correct." Roman stated, lighting his cigar. "However, I have the perfect idea to act as a back-up. Neo!" Roman shouted, then the mute girl appeared on the table, Ash jumping behind the sofa seeing her. Neo saw that and gave a soundless giggle, Ash peering over the edge just a bit before crashing down again as she winked at him. "Can you do us a favor?" He asked, watching her raise an eyebrow. Roman then searched for an image of Taurus from the news and showed it to her. "See this edgy looking animal?" Both Sun and Ash shouted at that statement. "Can you turn into him? Weapon and all?"
Neo looked at the picture for a bit before jumping off the table and putting her semblance to good use, everyone watching her body change from the short mute psycho into an even bigger, more dangerous, psycho. "Good job, Neo" She/Adam nodded.
"Woah!" Sun awed himself at Neo's semblance, he even poked her/him. "It feels so real!"
"Indeed! Also, Ash, why are you hiding back there for?" Roman asked, looking in his direction. He had no idea of the stuff Neo does to him…
"Just...Reasons" Were his only words.
"Anyway, the plan in simple; we scare her into telling us his semblance-"
"No!" Jaune interjected. "Look, Roman, I appreciate this, and you as well, Neo, but we cannot trick Blake into this! It is not right!" He replied, earning the thoughtful looks of both Sun and Ren.
"He does have a point" Sun said.
"Forcing her is a bit...immoral" Ren replied, then Neo turned back with a pout on her face, Roman giving it a sigh.
"You kids are killing me here!" He dramatically exclaimed. "So, what is your plan then? Just talk to her and try bonding over a book?"
"Actually…"
"Oh, for fuck's sake…"
In the wild zones around Vale, in a camp, the REAL Adam Taurus was currently on his last nerve. He has not received word from Cinder in a lot of time, nor did Roman send any Dust over. How is he meant to fuel his revolution if his troops were poorly equipped? He was in his tent, looking over the map of Vale. They still had the Mt. Glenn plans. They could use those.
"Sir!" A soldier came rushing into the tent, Adam setting his gaze onto him.
"What?" He asked, irritated.
"We just got wind of a rumor about the traitor!" The soldier replied, earning Adam's attention. The soldier then brought up a piece of paper. "I checked it myself, but…" He held the paper in hand, looking for the nearest escape. Adam walked close to him, his Aura intimidating the soldier. 'Look at this…" He said, handing Adam the paper then running away. Adam looked at the paper in his hand, seeing it was a Wedding certificate.
He didn't know why the soldier thought it'd interest him...Until he saw one of them names there; Blake Arc Belladonna. He set the paper down, then he placed his hands on the table, drawing a deep breath. He had the name of the husband as well…"JAUNE ARC!" He shouted and flipped the table. "MOBILIZE THE TROOPS! WE ARE ATTACKING BEACON!"
When Blake got a text from Jaune asking to meet him in the library she didn't imagine it was a date proposal. She kept her ring on, the black ring with the amethyst that resembled a cat eye. She liked it, so she kept it on as an accessory. This was frankly one of the nicest gifts she ever received, the symbolism and reason for it aside. Being married to Jaune, in her opinion, is not the worst thing that could've happened. She was not the type to overreact on things, even if this is a serious issue, and she simply kept her calm.
Besides, she cannot deny she felt herself quite...hot, lately. Adam was nice and all, but he, and she knows what she is saying, not meaning that type of nice, is inferior to Jaune. Not to mention he never got to properly take care of her needs because of the work and duty he had as the leader of the Vale Branch of the White Fang. Sure, his extremists served a big factor in their break-up, but it was also, in the tiniest part, because of his ignorance of her.
And as far as personality goes? Jaune was denser than Adam, no doubt about that, but he was likely not the type to flat out ignore her if she gave strong enough hints. Or denied it when she flat out requested it. He was also nicer, with a dorkish, yet friendly personality. She is aware he has been busting his ass lately as well, trying to catch up to everyone. He was a fast learner, she even heard something about him standing up to Cinder and using his semblance to counter hers. Then she dug deeper and found the details from, and she did do a little blackmailing on a certain panther Faunus she and Jaune both knew.
He should be trying harder to hide where his stash of catnip is. It affects all feline Faunus, after all, and it is really potent. Especially if he takes more than he can handle, and she was willing to bet he didn't want a certain short, ice-cream-crazed girl to know. Apparently, Jaune is going to take everyone on dates. She already alerted the girls and told them not to let Jaune know, giving them time to take the bull by the horns instead and actually prepare. He was not revealing the order, stating he didn't know it, which was true, but did say it was Ren who did it. She had nothing on him, so she hit a dead end.
Jaune didn't know either. So she was left to simply go to the library and do this. It also provided her with a chance to actually get to know him better. While not that social, she wasn't anti-social. She could hold a conversation. Not to mention the concept of him and her as husband and wife does entice her a little, but more of curiosity. He is not a bad person to Faunus, even standing up for Velvet that one time, so she doesn't need to worry about anything bad from him.
She walked into the library, looking around and spotting him sitting at a table. She walked to him, then she waved her hand a bit, catching his attention. He looked to his side, seeing her. "Hello, Blake" He greeted her.
"Hello, Jaune. I see you are already reading." She said, pointing at the book in his hand.
"Oh, this? Just something I picked up from the shelves." He replied. "Please, take a seat." Blake took a seat next to him, then she brought out her own book. It may or not be her Ninja's of Love book, but can you blame her? However, she first asked.
"What is your book about?" She asked, looking at him curiously.
"It's a story about an interesting kind of man; split between two worlds. He tries to live an honest life, but fate always seems to throw him in the dark side of things. Deals, debts, even committing acts of crime. He regrets those actions at first, but after a while it's like he is slipping away" He replied. "I am still reading it, trying to see if he ultimately redeems himself."
"That's...surprisingly interesting." She replied, not expecting such a complex answer. In all due fairness, she expected Jaune to be readying some childish story or a comic book. Did something change? Is he faking it? No, she could see it in his eyes and hear it in his voice; his fascination regarding the book is genuine.
But to say the truth? Jaune planned to originally go for those two options. However, since Ren and Ash are both currently being his wing men, they didn't allow him and Ash just forced this particular book in his hands. But who knew reading could be so entertaining? The story in his book was just so...dark and fascinating, captivating his full attention, making him read to the end to find out what happens in the end. Does the main character manage to pull himself back together before it is too late? Or will they give in to the temptations? Will they make the right choice? Or will they keep repeating the same mistake? Those questions he was eager to answer, and so he kept reading the book. But now that Blake was here he had to share his attention.
"What is it you are readying?" Jaune asked this time, making her tense up a bit, her bow twitching. Wait, her bow? "Why are you wearing your bow?" He asked softly. "There are no people here aside from us" And Ash and Ren. "So why not take it down?"
"I...can't." She replied. "I am still not too comfortable with having people know I am a Faunus and I guess keeping the bow on helps?"
"Why hide though? I don't care if you are a Faunus - why would I? You are yourself, not your race." He replied, getting a stunned look from her. Blake couldn't process the words that came out of his mouth well, but she never heard anyone say this before. In the Fang, it was all about the race, and even before that! People always made divides because of the race, using it as means to define someone. She saw it many times. But Jaune? He just said her race didn't matter!
"I...I honestly do not know how to reply." She said.
"Oh, sorry if I offended you or anything like that, I was just trying to be-"
Blake put her hand up, effectively silencing him. "No, it's...It's not that. Quite the opposite, actually." She looked at him, closing her book and placing it down. "Jaune, be honest with me; this whole...marriage situation. Are you really trying to make it work?"
"What?" He replied. Ash, who was close enough to hear, tensed up.
"I've done fucked up…" Ash muttered under his breath, burying his head in his own book.
"I know about your dating plans, Jaune." She said again, making Jaune tense up. "And honestly? I find it really nice that you are trying to make things work. But how can you be confident everything will work out? I mean, you saw and suffered when Yang tried to skip town."
"I…" Jaune put his own book down, a sigh escaping his lips. "I know things are going to be difficult, but I am willing to try in order to to at least not have you girls hate me and, well, each other! I mean, what if Weiss starts to hate you all because you are the reason she cannot divorce me? What if any of you start thinking like that? Not to mention the thought of all of you being forced to be with me like this."
Blake nodded hearing him, looking at him. "Yet you are trying to make it work. To remove that issue in a way that favors you. Why?"
"It's not like that!" He quickly replied. "I am just trying to make everyone feel good, you know? To try and...prevent the storm before the calm passes."
"And if you fail?" Blake asked again, further pressing the issue. "What would you do? Would you run or keep fighting?"
"I will keep fighting, of course!" He replied strongly. "I won't run away! An Arc never runs away, especially from things they also promised!"
"Jaune, I am not asking you as an Arc, but as your own person." Blake said. "Now, answer me again, would you run away?"
"I stand by my initial answer, Blake; No. No matter what, I won't run away" He stated again, his ring getting a subtle glow, same with Blake's. Something was seeping through. "I desire to be a Hero, a defender, so why would I run instead of standing my ground to defend - to fight for those I care about and wish to protect?" Blake was listening to his words, every word somewhat resonating with her and making her think about one thing; she doesn't deserve this.
She was his opposite, she ran away from her problems instead of facing them. Granted, he ran away from his parents to attend Beacon, but she? Blake ABANDONED her parents to keep fighting in the Fang, but her fight turned from the righteous cause she believed in, into a terrorist organization. She tried to fight to defend the Faunus, but she ran away...Even if she was at beacon to train and become a Huntress for that reason, that doesn't change what she already did.
She ran away.
She abandoned her parents.
She wasn't strong enough to face her problems. She lied to everyone about her own race, her past. Again, Jaune also lied about his transcript, but he at least had the courage to admit to it. Everyone found out only because she had a slip of the tongue. She never wanted to say the truth because of the fear of judgement. She was afraid how the others would judge her for being both a Faunus hiding their animal parts and an Ex-member of the White Fang.
Jaune was stronger than her. But that only in spirit. She was still afraid because of him...Because of Adam. She was afraid that, if he ever found her, he'd take everything from her. Her Team, her friends, everyting. And she knew that Jaune was not strong enough to face Adam...So for now? She had to keep lying in hopes to avoid ever meeting Adam again.
But she was also unaware of one thing. How Jaune's eyes were open wide and his hand was shaking. He actually had to use his other hand to stop it. She saw it, then she looked at the rings on their hands. The glow...He felt her fear. "Blake…" He spoke softly, his voice holding a small shake. "Why...Are you afraid?" This fear was different from Cinder...Cinder was mostly afraid people would betray her again and mistreat her, but that was a fear born of problems long gone. With time, it had grown weaker, but Blake's? Hers was stronger. She wasn't afraid of being abandoned, being betrayed, or anything like that. She was afraid of losing everything to someone. ONE person made her react like that and he could feel that fear.
Blake looked at him, her bow twitching and bending down a bit as she heard his questions. She widened her eyes as the realization fully downed on her. If they were emotionally connected, then that was like a lie detector! "I have to go" She said quickly, getting up.
"Wait!" Jaune called out to her, but then the door flew open, and Blake stopped in her tracks as she saw the outline of a certain person.
"No…" She took a few steps back in fear seeing him reveal himself from the smoke and dust.
"Hello, Blake." Adam greeted, a hand on his sword.
Ash and Ren both reacted to this, but then they both got text messages. The Fang was attacking Beacon...That was bad…
But Jaune?" What. The. Fuck. Neo?!" He shouts, getting up from his seat. "I told you we are not doing this! And since when could you copy voices?" He shouted, getting up from his chair and walking straight to - although thinking it was Neo in disguise - Adam Taurus.
"What?" Adam asked in mild confusion, Blake looking back stunned as well, even as Jaune walked past her and ended up standing face to face with Neo/Adam. "Tch. What are you doing, human?" Adam asked, slowly trying to draw his blade as he looked into Jaune's eyes. "Do you have a death-" However, his words were cut off as a fist connected with his jaw, the white glow revealing the semblance of Jaune Arc, amplifying the strength behind it to ungodly limits. Adam flew to the side, crashing into the library shelves. His Aura broke upon contact, making the follow-up of books falling on actually painful, especially when a dictionary landed on his head, the thick book really placing the bumps on his skull.
"Ouch!" Jaune whined holding his fist, just in time for Ren and Ash to show up, both looking alarmed. "Ash, what the fuck?! Since when could Neo make her illusions so strong and copy voices?"
"She can't!" Ash shouted in reply, looking panicked. Not to mention how he was grabbing his hair and pulling at it, watching with disbelief the state Adam was brought in. "That was THE Adam Taurus! The real fucking deal!"
Slowly, Jaune's mind processed that, then he looked at him, seeing the terrorist out of commision and buried under multiple books. Then he remembered the briefing about him, and Sun's statements on the man's level of danger. The color drained from his face, realization setting itself in. "OH FUCK! I JUST KO-ED ADAM TAURUS!" He shouted aloud, grabbing his own head in panic. "Oh no, oh no, oh no…"
"Hey boss, are you- WHAT THE FUCK?!" Perry walked in, seeing Adam put out of commission, then he saw Ash, Ren, Jaune and Blake. He saw the looks on the eyes, and how Blake was staring at Jaune. "Fuck! That blonde took out the boss!" He thought, then he began running back. "RETREAT! ADAM WAS KNOCKED OUT! RETREAT!"
Safe to say the rest of the day was chaotic. First of all, the staff of Beacon had to fight off some of the Fang members along with the students, at least those who stayed, then they called the police to pick everyone out. Adam was cuffed, Blake revealing that he needs his weapon for his resemblance to use it, resulting in Ash taking it and using it to cut Adam horns.
He said it was a gift for Roman in order to negotiate...Adam Taurus screamed as loud as his lungs could allow him when he recovered consciousness only to see his weapon gone, his entire White Fang arrested, and above all, HIS HORNS CUT! He declared, loudly, that he will one day get revenge on Jaune, the blonde feeling his anxiety settled in along with fear of that day when Adam comes to collect on that promise.
Later that evening, when everyone was already in their rooms, Jaune was in the yard, trying to calm his nerves. His hands were shaking, sweat was running down his face like crazy, and he looked like a mess all together. He tried to calm himself, but he wasn't even afraid to begin with! It was more like the adrenaline fading away and leaving place for the consequences of his actions. He used his semblance - pumping as much Aura as he could into his fist - then used it to knock out Adam thinking it was Neo, hence why he aimed high to miss her actual body while the illusion broke away.
He was aiming at a spot he thought Neo was not going to get hurt and only will her illusion, resulting in it breaking apart and ending her little plan early. Yet, he ended up punching the real deal. After that other Faunus went back shouting, the battle broke down and the Fang was easy picking. Did that help his nerves, however? No. More so because he hasn't heard anything about Blake since! He felt through the ring how terrified she was of Adam when he showed up, and having him come at Beacon like that must have had her scared within an inch of her life!
His scroll buzzed, then he picked it up, looking at it to see a message from the girl he was just thinking about; Blake. It was kinda vague, however, asking him to go back to the library. He only hoped she was not calling him over to say she was skipping town...he couldn't take claws to the eyes.
And with that, this chapter is done...We have done Adam dirty...Well, this story was never meant to have a lot of serious plot, so...yeah. Please don't hate on us too much for what we did to Adam.
Nerdy: BRUH WTF LOL. YOU DID THE MAN DIRTY.
I already said it! I am not apologizing for what we did to him! Plus, we already stated Jaune thought it was Neo because of her stunt back at Junior's club, and he never got the full briefing on her semblance either. Anyway, be on the lookout for the next chapter...I know you will enjoy it, Nerdy, because it is what you have been waiting for.
Nerdy: also everyone, something BIG is coming soon that I think everyone is a fan of rwby will like. Please look forward to it!
