Ruby's eyes switched between Jaune who was walking in front of her, and the rest of the group that was trailing behind her, Ren and Nora keeping a close eye on Nirvana and his kitten since they were now allowed by Jaune to travel completely untied and free to move around.

Jaune had acted…strange, this morning to put it mildly. He had suggested Nirvana not be tied up anymore considering he had tried to stand up to them yesterday when they encountered Leana. While Ruby could agree that Nirvana hadn't betrayed them at that point, like everyone else she was still suspicious of him.

But Jaune, the one who was the obvious advocate for not trusting Nirvana, to the point of assaulting him multiple times in the few days he had traveled alongside them, was suddenly okay with giving the man as much freedom as he wanted.

Something smelled fishy. Or as Ruby had thought.

This reeks of blackmail.

It just had to be. Considering Nirvana was no stranger to holding information over someone's head. Ruby should know as he was doing it to her at this moment as well. As he made her keep Jaune in check in return for not telling him that his cat had witnessed her well….things she didn't want her secret crush Jaune Arc to find out. So he must also have something on him?

The question was what?

Ruby scooted closer to Jaune, despite him not really talking to her for a few days since she allowed Nirvana to travel with them, Jaune seemed to acknowledge her with a nod.

"Hi…" Ruby said awkwardly.

"Hi…" Jaune replied back, equally as awkward.

Ruby couldn't stand this, even though she managed to hide her crush quite well for a while, the situation was too awkward even for her.

"Jaune…I'm really sorry about…you know adding Nirvana to the group and…"

The young warrior interrupted her "it's alright Ruby I'm not angry at you. I know the situation isn't exactly…the best but keeping him close to the vest is better at the moment" he said.

Ruby breathed an internal sigh of relief.

"Thank you Jaune, really. It's just…you're suddenly so accommodating to him, did something happen?" Ruby asked.

Jaune sighed. His thoughts about what happened this morning where still mercilessly but silently driving him mad, and he couldn't tell Ruby. And what would he even tell her? That Nirvana told him that she had liked him from afar and that he as per usual couldn't see it? Or worse would he have to explain to her that he was blackmailing him or he would reveal to her and the entire group that Jaune had sex with Ruby's sister.

Jaune couldn't decide which was worse? Option one or option two. Both cases would result in an awkward conversation to be had, and the second he was sure would break Ruby's heart if what Nirvana claimed had been true.

The young warrior turned his head to look back at the rest of the party. Nirvana was walking in the middle as per usual, his pet kitten Milena on his shoulder and Nora and Ren right behind him. He was grinning at Jaune, knowing he had him metaphorically by the balls. Jaune turned his head back forward and grunted.

"Jaune…" Ruby started worried.

Jaune looked at the girl that had been his best friend for a long time. Looking into her beautiful silver eyes, which he had never noticed looked so bright. It made him truly wonder if Nirvana was telling the truth, was she really in love with him and did he not see it?

It truly made him wonder how he felt about her. Whether or not he should take a chance? To open his eyes and see or that he lose her just like Pyrrha.

"Ruby…I want to ask you…" he started as Ruby looked at him curiously, awaiting his question.

"So how are my two teammates doing?" they suddenly heard.

Jaune and Ruby looked back and saw Nirvana right behind them smiling as Milena snickered on his shoulder, which was basically her way of showing that she was laughing at them.

"Fine Alec, thank you for asking" Jaune said almost a bit forced.

"Ah so you refer to me by my shortened name only meant for friends, thank you kindly Mr. Arc…I mean Jaune, you're such a good pal" Nirvana said mockingly patting Jaune on the back, causing Jaune to angrily grunt.

Ruby could see the fire in Jaune's eyes as Nirvana spoke those words to him. She picked up on the clear sarcasm in his voice, clearly whatever he was using to blackmail Jaune was something major.

Nobody blackmails my man, Ruby thought as she smiled.

"So Alec, tell us since when did you like people using that as your name?" Ruby asked smiling at the man behind her.

"Ah yes funny story Miss Rose, as Beacon fell I was freed by a criminal you might be very familiar with? One Roman Torchwick."

Ruby nodded in agreement "yeah I know him."

"Well as it turns out I just happened to be imprisoned on the same ship as him and when he was freed by his ice cream hair accomplice I was also freed and well you can already guess that they tried to make me their errand boy as they hijacked Ironwood's ship. And that's how I got the name Alec, I know quite a tale for the ages."

Ruby had looked up from the story and was now staring.

"Wait you were on the same ship as Torchwick?" she asked.

Nirvana's smirk said it all "ah yes at the same time as you Miss Rose, did you ever wonder who it was that warned you of the circumstances."

Ruby thought back to the day that Beacon fell, she had ended up on one of the Atlesian ships that unbeknownst to her had been taken over by a recently escaped Roman Torchwick. Unbeknownst at least until a voice over the intercom had told her:

"Miss Rose a heads up, this ship has been hijacked by Roman Torchwick, be on your guard."

"That was you?" Ruby blurted out, causing everyone to come to a stop and look at her.

"Of course I was? Are you that surprised" Nirvana clarified as he walked forward and took the lead, his hand clasped behind his back.

"But why would you help me?" Ruby asked curious. Nirvana turned to her with a smile "there was no reason for you to get hurt. Torchwick might have freed me but he surely wasn't my friend. So while he and that silent killer girl of him where going at it in the ships hallways I made my escape but not before informing you of their hostile takeover."

Nirvana proceeded forward after that explanation, leaving the group and in particular Ruby quite dumbfounded. As he moved forward with the group slowly following behind him Nirvana thought back to the day that he escaped his yearlong confinement, the day Beacon fell and he last saw her.

Petting the feline on his shoulder he whispered to her.

"I need to get back to her Milena, I just need to."

At Menagerie…

Kali couldn't help but feel for her daughter as she had broken down yesterday upon seeing the news. She didn't understand the situation or why it had made her daughter so upset, all she knew was that Blake needed her space.

She would tell her what's wrong eventually, at least she hoped this time. Blake was always the one to run away from her problems rather than face them.

Softly she entered her daughter's room. There she saw on her bed, her eyes glossing over her scroll, the news article about the escaped man was in front of her. From the looks of it she had been crying.

"Blake…" Kali softly spoke, her daughter looked at her as she quickly put the scroll away upon noticing her mother.

"Mom, it's nothing I promise" Blake said softly. Kali shook her head and made her way to her daughter "oh there's definitely something, you were staring at that news bulletin again and I can tell something is wrong. I know I cannot make you tell me but please Blake, don't run away from what's bothering you, I'm here for you, always."

Those words struck a chord with Blake as she tried her best to not burst out into tears again. Her mother was right, she had always run away, hoping to outrun her problems and emotions until they got so tired of chasing after her.

"It's…" she tried but her mother finished her sentence "complicated. Yes we already got that, we are no strangers to complicated situations Blake. So please just tell me, who is that man in that bulletin?"

Blake sighed solemnly, she gulped, trying to restrain her emotions from overwhelming her.

"The guy I told you about…the one I meant…that's him" she finally said grabbing her scroll and showing the news bulletin fully to her mother, along with a photo of the man in question, Alector Nirvana.

Before Kali could respond Blake told her "it's not what you think mom. When I met him I was…he was…he accepted me without question, no judgment, he didn't care what I was and…I just fell for him and…"

Kali hugged her daughter tightly "it's okay my dear. You did nothing wrong" Blake returned the embrace as she told her mother "I know. I just can't…I can't think badly of him, after all that happened I can't stop thinking of him."

Looking into her daughter's eyes, all Kali could see was a lot of regret and pain being restrained, as well as unmistakable amount of affection for the man she spoke off.

"What happened with him dear?" Kali asked concerned.

Looking down, Blake clutched her fists together and took in a long breath.

"He was a substitute professor, or at least he impersonated one. In reality he came to Beacon to search for someone important he had lost so he used the teaching position as a cover. But over time we started talking, he discovered what I was and for the first time I felt truly accepted by someone, regardless of who I was. He seemed….out of this world, too good to be true. But then it turned out that he had put students into a nightmare inducing coma in order to find who he was looking for."

"And did he find who he searched for?" Kali asked.

Blake nodded "yes, it was his cat" at hearing that Kali raised an eyebrow of curiosity "I know it sounds weird mom, but he really he loved that cat so much he crossed over to this world in order to find her."

Kali shook her head in confusion "I'm getting some tea, you're going to have to explain this thoroughly" she said laughing, a sentiment that Blake couldn't help but return.