Last night had been difficult. She had seen her worst fears come to pass. She had seen the boy she had fallen for slowly begin to fade away.

Miltia was never truly a morning person. More so than her sister for sure, but she did not care for early mornings. Waking up before nine in the morning was ridiculous and a waste of time to her. The fact that it was now nearly ten o'clock, and she was as miserable as if she had been woken up hours earlier, was a testament to how she was feeling. She wanted to sleep more. She didn't want to have to deal with reality. She longed for the warm comfort of her bed.

However there was business to take care of. The previous night had revealed how Jaune was handling the fallout of his actions. It revealed why Jaune was doing what he was. It revealed who had steered him on this path, even if it had been unintentional. That meant that Miltia had to do something about it before it became even worse.

Even the promise of donuts and lattes did not cheer the girl up as she made her way downstairs. She would enjoy them as she always did, but they simply did not give her that little extra kick in the morning that they so usually did. They were often a motivating factor for shoving herself out of bed in the morning. Now she wanted nothing more than to just curl up beneath her blanket and munch of the tasty treats in the comfort of her warm bed.

As she entered the club's main room, she was surprised to see Melanie already sitting at the bar. The usual bags were there on the counter next to her, one with the donuts and one that she was sure contained her own pumpkin spice latte. That meant that for the first time in forever that Melanie had woken up before her. Just how bad was Miltia feeling right now if that happened?

In an instant however those thoughts were interrupted briefly as she saw her twin bring a dark brown morsel of goodness to her mouth. Only a single word remained in her head as a chill passed through her body.

Chocolate!

No. No no no. She couldn't. She wouldn't.

Miltia moved quickly to the bar and opened up the box which still rested inside the bag. Her heart shattered as she saw its contents. Jelly. Sprinkles. Cream-filled. All of them with a light colored dough that was typical to most donuts. Sure, a few of them had chocolate icing on top of them, but none of the donuts were that rich, dark brown, double chocolate that she lived for each morning.

A murderous gaze shot over at her sister, who finished chewing her food before looking up at her sister. "Good morning, Mil," she greeted happily. "What's up?"

What's up? What was up? Melanie knew what she had done. That innocent smile wouldn't fool anyone. No. Not when they knew one another as well as they knew themselves.

It only made Miltia even more upset than she had been when she woke up. Her coffee may have been untouched, but the best of the donuts had been taken.

"Oh, did you want the last chocolate donut?" Melanie asked. The fact that she was playing dumb was infuriating. "Sorry. I guess I must have thought that there were more in the box."

Miltia let out a long breath. Don't let her see you angry. She wants you to get upset. If you get upset she wins.

"But like, here," the elder twin continue as she reached into the box to produce what appeared the be one of the jelly filled pastries. "See? It has red stuff inside. It totally matches you!"

She looked down to the dark red tank top she normally slept in. Breathe. Breathe.

Melanie playfully wiggled the donut in front of her. "Want it?"

Not really. However she was hungry. She did not want Melanie to win either.

Miltia snatched the offending donut from her sister's hand and took a large bite from it. Raspberry jelly oozed from the hole, and the sugar coating on the thing's surface was sweet on her tongue. It wasn't bad. It just wasn't chocolate. It wasn't the same.

Stewing in silent anger and frustration, Miltia worked to get her mind back on track. This wasn't about donuts. This was about Melanie. This was about Jaune. She could not let herself get distracted from such an important issue because of breakfast.

She was just thankful Jaune did not appear to be awake yet. Then again she probably should have expected as much. If he had been down here late last night drinking, then he would probably sleep it off much the same way Melanie often did. For as bad as that was, it was for the best that he wouldn't be down here now. Not when she was going to confront her sister about him and his actions.

Melanie was apparently finished with her fun and games, and had finally decided to comment on her sister's silence. It was an unusual level even for her. "So what crawled up your ass this morning?"

The easy answer would have been to point out that a certain bitch had eaten all of her favorite donuts. However she did indeed have business to attend to. "Have you talked to Jaune lately?"

Melanie took a sip from her tall cup. "I mean, not more than usual. Except..."

The trailing off of her sentence made Miltia's eyes narrow. "Except what?"

The small smirk on the older twin's face could have been from the taste of her latte. Or more likely it could have been from whatever she was purposefully holding back. "Oh, nothing. Just how me and him are totally drinking buddies now. I gotta say I never really did expect our little huntsman to get so into it. But lately he's been spending a lot of time down here having fun with me."

Of course he was. He was trying to cope. Melanie was looking at it like it was a good thing. Like it was a social thing for the two of them. Like they were actually having fun. Maybe that was in fact true on the outside. Miltia hadn't seen the two interact lately. However inside it was only hurting him. She had seen him the night before. She knew what his real thoughts and feelings about it were.

"You have to tell him to stop," Miltia said.

"What? Why?"

"Because he's not-" She stopped herself before she could say anything that would offend Melanie. As much as she wanted to, this was about helping Jaune. Not attacking her sister. "Because it's not him and you know it."

Melanie shrugged. "Yeah, well. Maybe it's who he's gonna be. Maybe he's changing. Maybe your little baby bird is all grown up now."

That was the problem. He was changing, and not for the better. Being encouraged to do what he was doing by Melanie would not help matters either.

"And ya know, I'm kinda liking the new Jaune too," she continued. "Fucking nervous pansy boy is gone. He grew some backbone. Enough to talk a little shit to me at least."

It surprised her that Melanie would like that little change in the boy. Typically the girl liked to be in control. She liked to have her way with those who were weaker than her. To assert her dominance. To have someone actually stand up to her was the antithesis of what she enjoyed in her relationships.

Then again maybe that was the point. Maybe she viewed Jaune's newly found defiance as something she could put down herself. Maybe it could make her feel even more control by doing so.

"He's going through some hard stuff right now," Miltia argued. "Now's totally not the time to think about your own fun."

Melanie shrugged again. "You say fun like it's a bad thing. Maybe he needs a little fun. And shit, if you're not going to make a move then I might as well."

That comment set off warnings in Miltia's mind. She knew that her sister wasn't exactly inexperienced when it came to physical relationships. Such instances were always purely physical, however. For her own benefit. Her own gain. She didn't know any of her partners on such a personal level as she did Jaune.

A twinge of jealousy formed in Miltia's heart. No. She would not let Melanie take Jaune to bed like she had others. She would not let her sister use him. Not when his emotional stability was resting on a razor's edge. Right now he needed to feel love. He needed to feel care. Empty sex would do him no favors.

"Melanie..." she said softly. Her voice was low. Threatening.

"What? You're not interested in him are you?" That same tone of false innocence was back in her voice, just as it had been with the donuts. "But Mil, I thought you totally weren't! I thought those feelings I was picking up on were wrong or whatever."

She had denied it all in the beginning. The fact that Melanie had started teasing her about them only made her deny them even harder. However the fact remained that she did in fact have a crush on Jaune.

It wasn't just that he was cute. It wasn't just physical like it might be for Melanie. No, Jaune was everything that she wasn't. She was everything that this world she had grown up in wasn't. Jaune was kind. Caring. Sweet. Funny. The boy was unashamedly dorky with his love for comic books. He was surprisingly adept in the kitchen, as she had found out firsthand when he had forced her to cook with him. It was an experience she had turned out to enjoy. One she wanted to do again.

But overall, he was innocent. His whole being represented life away from all of what she had ever known. He wasn't a drunk. He didn't have a hard and torturous past. He hadn't hurt others for the joy of it. He wasn't sullied with blood.

At least he didn't used to be.

Now that sweet, innocent boy was gone. He had been sucked in by this world and changed. He had spilt blood in the past few weeks. It didn't matter if those White Fang scumbags were deserving of it. The act itself spoke volumes. Worse still, he had killed. Even if he hadn't intended to kill, Jaune had taken a life. That innocence was gone now. Taken from the boy the moment that terrorist's life had been taken from him.

It broke her heart to see what he had become. How he hated himself for it. How she had been able to do nothing to stop it, because up until that moment when he drove his sword through the stomach of a terrorist, he had wanted it. He had wanted it all. It was out of some sense of justice, sure, but he had wanted that violence. He had wanted that blood. Only now did he understand that being a hero didn't mean that there would always be a happy ending.

"So?" Melanie pressed, drawing Miltia back to the real world.

She shook her head. "Now is so not the time for anything like that."

"Yeah? What the fuck time is it then?"

"To be there for him. To help him."

"By what?" Melanie's voice had raised slightly, and her tone was becoming more aggressive. "By coddling him? By telling him everything's gonna be okay? Newsflash, Miltia. It isn't gonna fucking be okay. You think I like what he did? I don't. But I'm not gonna sit here and pretend like he's gonna just go back to normal."

Miltia knew he was going to be a changed man. She knew he wouldn't be normal anymore. There was no going back to how he used to be. She just wanted to be there for him. To let him know that he wasn't alone in it all. Just as she hadn't been alone for her own past trauma.

"Getting him drunk isn't gonna help," she argued.

"Yeah? Well you're not helping him either!"

Miltia shook her head. "But I wasn't fucking there for him! I have to show that I am now!"

"We both weren't there, and nothing can fucking change that." Melanie sighed, her tone softening a little bit the next time she spoke. "Hovering around him twenty-four seven and treating him like some fragile little egg isn't gonna help. It will only make things worse."

"But-"

"No buts, little sister. He doesn't want fucking pity. I saw that on his face. I heard it in his voice. I don't know what to do to make it go away. Shit, it probably won't ever go away. But if he wants to drink with me, I'm not gonna stop him."

She knew Melanie was right. Treating him like he was made of glass would do him no favors. However, neither would getting wasted every night. She didn't know what to do. She didn't know how to make him feel any sort of happiness again. Any sort of self-worth.

That last one was really one of the keys to it all. Jaune hated himself. He had become everything he hated about the White Fang. She had to find a way to let him know that he was cared about without it being seen as pity.

Furthermore, she had to get him away from Melanie. Her sister meant well, but her methods were self-destructive. The more influence her twin had on Jaune, the further he would descend into a pit of despair.

"So what should we do then?" Miltia asked.

"I don't fucking know," Melanie whispered. "Keep an open mind about shit? And don't tell him it's gonna be okay when it's not. Hei didn't sugarcoat shit for us back then."

"I guess..."

"You can be there for him. Just don't smother him. And if he wants to do something, let him. He's gotta figure shit out himself."

They were surprising words of wisdom from her twin. Maybe it was because she herself had gone through her own fair share of stuff. They both had. They'd both had to figure out how to get over their past loss. To get over the trauma they'd suffered.

They weren't perfect, but they could function. Miltia's nightmares were the worst offender. Melanie's taste for alcohol her own. Hopefully Jaune's own coping mechanism would not be destructive.

For the second time in a matter of days Ruby felt like a prisoner. Glynda's office did not have the same interrogation feel as the other room did, complete with its flimsy metal table and overhanging light, but it still felt like she was a condemned woman nonetheless.

She wondered why her professor had asked to speak with her again. She had already told her side of the story. A story which Glynda already knew to be incomplete. Could it be that she was going to be punished for lying to a teacher? She had for the most part just omitted part of the truth. That wasn't technically a lie, was it? But then again she had said that she had nothing else to say when the older woman had asked if there was more information she was holding back.

It didn't matter. Ruby would live with the consequences. She wasn't a snitch. She wasn't about to betray a friend's confidence like that. Not Blake's. Not Jaune's. No one's. And if Glynda didn't like it, well, she could shove it right up her-

Her train of thought was interrupted as the door opened to reveal the tall blonde woman. Ruby's posture instantly stiffened. It wasn't that she was afraid of the woman, or being yelled at for slouching. No. Not at all. She simply wasn't used to being in these kinds of situations. Ruby wasn't usually the type to break the rules. Or at least she wasn't the type to get caught when she did. That was Yang's territory. Her sister would be able to sit here with a cool smirk on her face and take whatever their teacher could throw at her. Ruby on the other hand... she just hoped that she wouldn't crack under the pressure.

"Ms. Rose," Glynda said as she moved to take a seat behind her desk. "Thank you for agreeing to see me again."

Ruby shrugged uncomfortably. "Well I mean... you're my teacher. Can't really turn you down, right?" A nervous chuckle followed afterward.

Glynda hummed. "For official school matters, I suppose not," she agreed. "However this meeting does concern your more... extracurricular activities as of late."

Ruby gulped. So it was indeed about that again. The hammer was about to drop. She was about to face the music. Insert ominous metaphor here. Ruby wondered if there was one about a boomerang. A boomerang that was about to come and smack her right in her face.

Maybe Glynda noticed her nervousness with what she said next. "Please understand that you are not in any trouble," she said calmly. The words did make Ruby feel better. "While I may not agree or like your reasoning, know that I do understand why you did what you did. I understand why you wished to protect your friend. It is an admirable quality, but it is one that will only cause more trouble in the end."

The redhead wouldn't disagree there. Lying, no matter how noble it was, often came back to bite the liar in the rear end. Little white lies could be twisted into something far worse. The repercussions could compound and multiply.

"I know," she admitted. "But... I'm not sorry."

Glynda nodded. "Understandable. However you may soon be. Mr. Arc may soon be."

Alarms went off in Ruby's head. What did she mean by that? "What are you talking about, Ms. Goodwitch?"

"Your attempt to protect Mr. Arc may come from a place of loyalty, but in doing so you are allowing him to continue down the path that he has chosen for himself. It is a path of self-destruction. Crime. Pain. And an early grave."

Those alarms were blaring now, and had been accompanied by bright flashing red lights. "W-what do you mean?"

"Can I assume that since you visited that nightclub that he works at you met his coworkers? His employer?"

She had. Ruby had met the two girls she had spoken with on her scroll not long after Jaune had been kicked out of Beacon. Girls she once assumed were in fact his girlfriends. As it turned out that was not the case, but it was not entirely untrue either. One of them, and she wasn't sure which one it was, did have some vague connection to Jaune, according to the boy himself. Even if there wasn't a romantic interest shared between the two, Ruby could not deny that there was still a bond between them. He cared for those girls. It showed when he had argued with Yang on their way to the docks.

Ruby nodded in confirmation. "I, uh, yeah. I met them."

"They're criminals, Ms. Rose. All of them. From Hei Xiong down to the lowliest of his men, they are all criminals."

Criminals. Just as Yang had said they were. Ruby did not know the details and was not about to make assumptions. Making assumptions was what had nearly torn her team apart. Weiss making them about Blake. Blake making them about Weiss. Both of the girls were far more than what the other saw in them. Ruby would not fall into that same trap.

It was because of that that she desperately did want to know more. "All of them? Even those girls my age?"

Glynda nodded. "Melanie and Miltiades Malachite," she said. Glynda knew more about them than she let on. How and why exactly? "Children taken in and raised by Hei to be his special enforcers. Trained and brainwashed from a young age." There was a detectable hint of disgust and disdain in the woman's voice. "Almost as strong as first year students here at Beacon. It's understandable, being trained by a former huntsman."

Ruby couldn't believe it. Surely there had to be more to it than that. Maybe Glynda was wrong? Maybe she was biased in her opinion. Girls who were that bad couldn't have gotten close to a guy as nice and cool as Jaune. He was like her. A hero. Someone who wanted to help others. To do the right thing. Jaune wouldn't group himself up with a bunch of bad guys... would he?

The girl fidgeted uncomfortably in her seat, her gaze lowering from the woman. "Are you... sure about all this?"

"I am," Glynda said firmly. "Hei and I go back a ways, back when he was still a huntsman. He had always walked that thin grey line between serving the kingdoms and serving himself as all huntsmen struggle to do. Then one day he changed. He stopped taking on missions. He stopped answering to the councils and headmasters. Eventually he opened up that club you visited in downtown Vale. The criminal underworld was never the same after that."

It sounded like something out of a movie. Phrases like "the criminal underworld" like he was some sort of mafia boss. A guy who had "enforcers". Things like this painted a fairly obvious picture. However if all of this was true, there was something odd which stood out in Ruby's mind.

"But if he's so bad, then why are he and the White Fang fighting? Shouldn't they be... I don't know. Working together?"

"The world is not as black and white as that, Ms. Rose. Just because one side is bad does not make the other good. What you are witnessing is simply a struggle for power. The old guard versus the new. And believe me when I say that after what happened at the docks, things will only get worse going forward."

The words sent chills down Ruby's spine. Things would only get worse. What could get worse than a dead man? Two dead men? Ten? Or perhaps... just one more. One dead friend.

Glynda must have taken Ruby's stunned silence as a cue to continue. "I am not seeking the truth from Mr. Arc out of a desire to punish him. I have no authority over what he does or whom he associates with. However he is still only a child. A child who only recently was denied his dream in life. He is lost. Rudderless. Easily taken advantage of."

Ruby could only imagine the pain that her friend must have felt in losing out on his opportunity to attend Beacon Academy. Maybe it made sense that in such a vulnerable state that he had fallen in with the wrong crowd.

Still... he had told her and Yang that there was more to his friends than what they believed. Just like there was more to Blake than what Weiss believed. She had to trust Jaune on that. At least until anything that Glynda said could in fact be proven true.

"So... what is it you want me to do exactly?" Ruby asked.

"I want you to convince Mr. Arc to come to Beacon. Not so that he may attend this school. Not so that he may confess his crimes and be punished accordingly. But simply so that he may be removed from that environment which will only lead to his destruction. So that we can take an evaluation of the situation and move forward from there in the best manner possible." Glynda's tone and expression were very quickly and surprisingly becoming soft. "As I said, he is still only a child. As an educator I feel it is my responsibility to look out for his well-being despite the fact that he is not my student. However I cannot do this alone. He has... no reason to think that I have his best interests in mind. Not after it was I who was responsible for his termination from Beacon Academy."

Ruby's eyes widened. That certainly made matters a lot more complicated. That also explained why Ruby was here right now. "You need me for that..."

Glynda nodded gravely. "He will not trust me. He will not believe me. You on the other hand, Ms. Rose, he will trust. You and he are friends, are you not?"

They were. Despite all that had happened, despite being separated from going to the same school together, they were friends. Nothing would ever change that.

She nodded. "Yup. Good friends."

"That is why you are the only one who I believe can pull him from this mess. Of course, you are under no obligation to get involved in this any further than you already are. You will not be punished if you refuse my request. However... that will not stop you from punishing yourself should anything terrible happen to your friend. You and I both know what likely happened down at the docks. What's to stop it from happening again?"

Another chill passed through Ruby's body. If both of their theories were correct, Jaune was the one who had killed that terrorist. A straight blade had been the culprit. It had not been Blake or Weiss' weapons. It made no sense for it to be one of the other White Fang member's weapons. It had to be Jaune's.

Even if it was in self-defense, she could not imagine taking a life like that. She could not imagine disemboweling a man with the blade of Crescent Rose and watching his life slip away before her very eyes. It had to be terrifying. Haunting.

The redhead swallowed hard. "I'll... I'll see what I can do."

"Thank you, Ms. Rose. That's all I ask for. It's all any of us as huntsmen and huntresses can do. To try our very best to protect others."

Ruby nodded absentmindedly. "Yeah."

"Thank you for seeing me. Unless there is anything else you wish to discuss, you are dismissed."

"Yeah," she repeated.

Ruby stood from her seat and left Glynda's office. She had a lot of thinking to do.

She had always been worried that Jaune had been caught up in some dangerous world of crime. She had those fears ever since he had started talking about the White Fang. About harming others. About potentially killing. It seemed as if all of those things he had discussed with her had come to pass. What more would happen? How much further would this go?

Despite not wanting to make snap judgments, Ruby was afraid for her friend. Even if those girls he was friends with weren't pure bad as Yang had once thought, as Ms. Goodwitch had once said, they still lived dangerous lives. Proof of that had reared its ugly head at the docks.

She would have to call Jaune. She would have to at least entertain the idea of getting him to come to Beacon to sit down and have a talk with Ms. Goodwitch. Maybe even with Professor Ozpin himself. He was a good man. He would help set Jaune's head straight.

All of this meant that she had to call him. She had to ask him about what had happened the night of the attempted dust robbery at the docks. It would be the first time speaking to him since the incident.

It was a conversation she was not looking forward to.

What was she even doing out here?

Miltia asked herself that question and so many more as she stood outside of Jaune's room. It completely went against what she and her sister had discussed earlier. She did not want to smother him with attention. She did not want to heap pity upon him. She just... she just wanted to talk. About something. About anything. It didn't even have to be about what had happened at the docks. It could be about Pumpkin Pete cereal for all she cared. She just wanted to talk like old times.

Would things even be like old times? She wanted to laugh at the thought. They weren't even that old. They'd only known each other for a few months. It wasn't like they were old friends or anything. It wasn't like they had years of history together. What would it really matter if they did wind up going their separate ways now? Would he even miss her? Would she miss him?

You can't like me like that anymore. How could you?

His words from a few nights ago were still fresh in her mind. He knew that she had feelings for him thanks to Melanie. Of course it was her fault. Things were usually her fault.

Jaune had been drunk when he had said that. She couldn't blame him. A lifetime of putting up with Melanie and her antics had made her grow numb to the stupid shit she said while intoxicated. So why was it that those words from Jaune stung the way they did?

The truth of the matter was... she did still like him like that. She didn't see him as the monster he claimed to be. She didn't see him as a murderer. Miltia meant every word of what she had told him the night it had happened, regardless of whether or not he believed it himself. It had been in self defense. It had been either Jaune or the terrorist. The world would not miss a terrorist. However, the world would miss him.

She would miss him.

That was why she would not lose him. Not to the White Fang. Not to Melanie. Not to himself.

Jaune had asked her if she could give him something to live for. Maybe it was a selfish thought on her part, but maybe she could.

With that thought in mind Miltia knocked gently on his door. Her heart was racing as she waited for him to answer. Seconds felt like an eternity, but finally she heard him approach.

A second later his face appeared through the open door. "Oh. Hey, Miltia."

He wasn't upset. That was good. "Hey, Jaune."

Her gaze lowered to the floor, and silence filled space between them. She wasn't particularly talkative. He wasn't feeling particularly talkative lately either. It made for an awkward moment.

Finally, however, he was the one to move things along. "Can I- um. Do you want to come in?"

Miltia nodded.

Opening the door all the way, he motioned for her to enter. She did so quickly, not allowing herself time to think. Not allowing herself an opportunity to back out. She was in now. The hardest part was over.

Miltia's eyes wandered the room after she had stepped inside. A few nights before had been one of the few times she had ever even stepped foot in the room. She hadn't really had it on her mind to look around then, and she could not recall ever doing so in the past. Now, however, she decided to take in the sights.

It was simple, and it was clear that Jaune didn't use it for much of anything other than sleeping. The bed was clean and had fresh sheets on it. There was a small table next to it where he might put his scroll or set a drinking glass. Everything else, however, looked relatively untouched. A thin layer of dust was settled over most of the contents of the room. It made the girl wonder how he could stand to sleep there and not suffer from some sort of breathing issue.

No. She would not let herself lose focus here. She wasn't here to study the contents of Jaune's room. She was here for him.

Miltia sat down on one of the edges of his bed, her legs pressed close together. Her heart continued to drum loudly inside her chest, and the silence in the room only amplified the sound in her head.

Finally, mercifully, it was Jaune who spoke again. "So... what's up?" he asked.

Yes. It made sense that he would expect her to want something. She did after all show up unannounced to his room. She probably looked like a complete fool right now. She certainly felt like one.

This was stupid. This was a mistake. Why had she come? She knew how he felt about her. He was afraid of her. Ever since first seeing what she and Melanie were truly like outside of the club at Tukson's store, he had looked at her differently.

"I..." she began uneasily. "I wanted to say I'm sorry."

Jaune's face scrunched in confusion, and soon enough he had joined her sitting on his bed. "Sorry for what?"

Did he not remember? Or did he simply think it wasn't a big deal? "For... like, throwing your drink," she told him. "I got mad at you. Remember?"

He smiled. It looked surprisingly genuine. "Yeah. I remember."

Why was he smiling? He shouldn't have been. "So... you can be, you know." Miltia shrugged lightly as she sought to convey her thoughts. "Mad at me and stuff."

It was something that Miltia was genuinely confused about. Jaune should have been mad at her. She let him go to the docks alone, and look what had happened? She was angry with herself over what had happened, so why wasn't he? If anyone was to blame for what had happened, it was herself and Melanie. Her sister's protests of innocence may have been technically true, but in reality he was only here because they had brought him into their world. They were the reason he had gotten caught up in this life. Without them he would have likely gone back home long ago.

He would still be innocent. He would still be pure.

"I can't be mad at you," he told her. "How could I be? Why would I be?"

Obviously he wasn't seeing things from her point of view. He wasn't consumed with the kind of guilt that she was. The guilt of failing him. No, he had more than enough guilt in his heart from his own actions. He had no room for hers. She had no right to make him accept hers.

With a shake of her head Miltia dismissed what she was going to say before. "I dunno."

A quick peek at his face showed that Jaune was frowning now. "Are you sure?"

Great. He knew she was lying. She was caught red-handed. As red as her dress. "Maybe?"

His lips curled upward, and a tiny laugh slips through his lips. "Come on. Really. Tell me what I should be mad at you about. If it's for the drink, well... it's not like I paid for it or anything. If there's anyone you should be apologizing to, it's Junior."

True. However right now a glass of cheap liquor wasn't important. Junior would agree with that sentiment. He was concerned about Jaune too, even if he wouldn't admit it. Miltia knew that the man had taken Jaune aside to have a little one on one talk with him. She cold only hope that it had done the trick.

"If anything you should be mad at me," he continued. His smile had disappeared as quickly as it had come, and a frown once more played on his lips. "I said some stuff to you I shouldn't have. I was drunk, but I know that's not an excuse. I don't even know if what I said was true or not. And that was really shitty of me to do, Mil."

She knew he was referring to the fact that she liked him. He knew, but he didn't know if he was right or not. It made sense, after all. Information from Melanie, especially drunk Melanie, could hardly be considered reliable. He had probably known about it for a while now, but the conditions of the previous night had been a perfect storm. It made things easier to come out, and come out they had.

"I'm not mad," she admitted. "You were drunk."

"I just said that wasn't an excuse."

"Yeah? Well it is. Take it from me. I've had to live with Melanie."

The boy shrugged. Clearly he wasn't going to win any arguments that involved being drunk and Melanie in the same sentence. He may have had his little misadventures with the girl from time to time since he had shown up. Miltia had endured them since she had been old enough to have her first drink.

"I... I shouldn't have gotten mad at you, Jaune," she continued. She shook her head in disappointment. Not with anything he had done, but rather herself. "I was too hard on you. I don't have a right to tell you how to cope. We all have our ways."

Junior drank. Melanie drank. Even she drank from time to time. What right did she have to tell Jaune not to do the same? While it was destructive if it got out of control, it wasn't the worst thing he could be doing. He wasn't becoming addicted to hardcore drugs. He wasn't out there trying to unleash his anger through more fighting. More potential killing. If anything this was actually tame. Controlled. In a safe environment with people who were more knowledgeable and experienced than himself.

Still... there were better ways to cope.

"It's okay," he told her. "You were looking out for me. And I know that you were just trying to protect me."

Jaune could not have realized in that moment he made Miltia's heart shatter.

She turned her head so that he could not see the tears which had built up in her eyes. Apparently her reaction and lack of a response had caused him some concern. "Mil?" he asked.

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

"What?"

Like a dam releasing a reservoir of water, her emotion's began to spill forth. Her entire plan to hold back her own guilt was forgotten. "I should have been there..."

"Miltia, what are you-"

"I should have fucking been there!" she repeated as she turned back to him. Her face burned as tears ran down her cheeks, undoubtedly ruining the mascara and eye shadow that she wore. "If we had gone with..."

She couldn't finish her sentence before a choking sob interrupted her. Before with Melanie she had displayed anger. Anger at both herself and the situation in general. It was easy to be angry. It was a powerful emotion. A motivating one.

Now however that anger had been replaced by sorrow. She was a girl filled with remorse. Regret. Wishing that she could have done things differently.

"Miltia..."

She shook her head again. "If we had been there then this wouldn't have happened," she told him. "I fucking abandoned you because I was pissed off. I didn't wanna go with Ruby. And then... you... you..."

Miltia again didn't finish her thought, as this time Jaune pulled her into a hug. She felt selfish. So selfish. Here Jaune was hurting over what he had done. He had killed a man. He was filled with guilt and remorse of his own. And now he was being forced to comfort her because she felt guilty about her part in what had happened to him.

She was scum. She was the real monster. Not him.

Her face was buried in his chest when she spoke, muffling her words. "Why are you being so nice? I thought you were afraid of me..."

"What?" he asked, sounding genuinely confused. "What are you talking about?"

She sniffed, still feeling the effects from spilling tears earlier. "I've seen how you look at me. I know you're afraid of me. After seeing what me and Melanie did at Tukson's place... the shit that me and my sister have done... we don't do it for the same reasons you do. You used to be normal. So fucking normal. And now thanks to us... you're..."

To Jaune's credit, he did not seem to see things that way. At least not if his actions reflected how he felt as he hugged her. "It's okay, Mil," he said soothingly. "I'm not afraid of you. I don't hate you for what you've done. I don't blame you for what I've done either."

He didn't fear her. He didn't hate her. The words should have filled her with happiness. They should have filled her with relief. They were everything that she had wanted to hear. However her own happiness was not what she cared about right now. She could not stand to be so selfish while he was still hurting.

"You should!" she yelled. "Blame us! Blame me!" Perhaps it would make him feel better if he could place the blame anywhere else but himself.

"But I don't. I made that decision." Being this close to him she could hear his breathing. She could feel the pulse in his chest. She could hear him swallow loudly before he spoke next. "Only I have to live with what I did. Not you."

"And you're gonna fucking drink yourself to death."

"Maybe it's what I deserve," he said softly. The words filled her body with chills despite being close to him. "Looks like I'm not gonna get punished for killing a man. Maybe having to live with that is punishment enough. I never did get punished for trying to sneak into Beacon either." She felt him shudder before he spoke next. "I wish I had never even tried getting in."

The words made her shiver once more. They were accompanied by a thought. It was a selfish thought for sure, but she could not deny that it was there. If Jaune had never attempted to sneak into Beacon Academy then she never would have met him. She did not want to imagine that.

It was obvious he was still in a great deal of pain. He had been trying to mask it for her benefit. He had smiled a fake smile. He had tried to get her to talk about her own problems so that he might help her. He had even put the blame of their earlier conversation on himself to make her feel better. What a stupid, selfless huntsman he was.

And in a way that realization was comforting. There was a silver lining in the dark storm cloud. She had been wrong about him being different now. Despite the fact that he had killed a man, Jaune had not changed as a person. The fact that he was hurting from his actions, and not dead on the inside, meant that this world he had been introduced to had not consumed him. Hate had not consumed him. Taking a man's life had not corrupted him. Jaune was still the kind-hearted young man she had first met that one awful night. A night that in retrospect was not so awful anymore.

He was still able to see the good in people. Even in Miltia herself.

The thought filled her with warmth as she looked up into his own teary blue eyes. "You're still in there," she whispered. "You're still my innocent little huntsman."

Miltia didn't care if that was Melanie's nickname for him. It was the truth. At his core he was still a huntsman. He was still a good man. He was the model of what all those worthless dogs of the kingdom should aspire to be.

"I'm not a huntsman," he disagreed. "Maybe I once wanted to be, but..." He shrugged. "I don't know anymore. Junior was right. Being a hero isn't all it's cracked up to be. Not if it means having to feel like this."

Those words made her angry. He shouldn't hate himself the way he did. Jaune deserved happiness. He deserved to feel some sort of self-worth again. He deserved to see himself as a hero. Not a monster.

He deserved to feel loved.

She looked up at him, and separated from his touch. Coldness replaced where his hands had once been. "Jaune."

"Yeah?"

"I wouldn't do this with someone who's a monster," she said as she tilted her head up to meet his.

Her warm lips pressed softly against his own. It was awkward, with Miltia having no experience in this kind of activity. By the way Jaune's own lips failed to move or part much at all, he likely did not either. However it was the gesture that mattered the most, not how good or skilled they were. At least that was what she told herself in the moment.

A few moments later Miltia pulled back to gauge his reaction. It was about what she had expected.

Finally his lips parted, only in shock rather than being receptive to her kiss. Blue eyes were wide, and tears which had once built up in them had vanished. A breath he had likely been forced to hold in at last came out before he sucked more air into his lungs.

"Miltia..." he said breathlessly. "What-"

"Shh," she said, cutting him off. "You're not a monster, Jaune. You're a good person. The best one I know." She gently placed a hand on his chest, and she could feel the rapid beating of his heart. Her heart was pounding as well. Her own breathing was becoming difficult in anticipation of what she was about to say. "And... I know how to make you forget about what you're going through right now. At least for tonight."

"You just said I shouldn't get drunk..."

His mind had gone back to Melanie's words. Words about how drinking the night away could make you forget the problems in your life. No, his mind would not be on Melanie tonight. Melanie would not get her chance to try and take the boy for herself.

Tonight his thoughts would be of her, and her alone.

"I'm not talking about drinking," she whispered as she brought herself in close again.

"Then what?"

He couldn't be that dense. Perhaps he was only asking just to make absolutely certain it was what she wanted. It was so like him. So kind. So considerate. The very qualities which had made her fall for him in the first place.

Miltia kissed him once more, this time softly pushing against his chest until he was lying atop his bed. She moved with him, her legs straddling his waist and her chest pressed up against his as their second kiss became hungrier. With the first one out of the way she had become braver. She did not hold back any passion this time. Pent up want and desire that had been growing for months now could now flow freely knowing that he neither hated nor feared her.

It was longer, but eventually she broke free from his lips once more to look into his eyes.

"Oh..." he said knowingly.

"But... but only if you want to."

His answer was loud and clear when his hand came up to cup her cheek, bringing her back down to continue where they had left off... and to move forward from there.

Author's Note: Well, that happened. A big step taken to firmly solidify this as Jaune x Miltia. "Curved Claws", according to the shipping chart. Cool enough name I suppose.

I know a lot of people were looking forward to the relationship progressing. Was this enjoyable? Let me know! I'm always curious about what people think.

As always I want to thank everyone for reading and reviewing. I hope you enjoyed the chapter.

And for those who are interested, I recently released a White Knight one-shot. Go give it a read! If you're into White Knight, that is.