Chapter edited by HelpingHand
Chapter 17.
REVIEWS:
Nerdy - KennyCaveman0: bruh, this man Jaune gonna need new nuts after his current ones get ripped off lol.
GeraltRex: A round of prayers for our blonde protag.
Dark Pheonix Paladin X: A lot man, a lot.
Beanis: Pretty sure Nerdy agrees with you.
Nerdy - Luckypickl3: SPOILER: Mama arc isn't gonna be the hardest mother to convince. She will be the second hardest though.
It was the following day after Jaune's date with Emerald and the duo was now trying to sneak back into Beacon, which surprisingly, proved easier than expected. They spent the night at Junior's, who informed them of a weekly transport of food to Beacon that was going to be leaving for the Academy. They could use that to sneak in, which they did. With Emerald's Semblance, boosted by Jaune's, they got on the transport and notified Ozpin from there. And while in the air they peeked outside, seeing a pretty worrying image.
Officers at the main Bullhead point meant for Beacon. Jaune's punching of a cop must have reached the council and they somehow figured out that Ozpin was pulling strings. It wasn't good, and the message received by Ozpin in which he sounded pretty angry was not making him feel better either.
"Oh boy... " He muttered, knowing full well he was about to face the music. Once they landed, both he and Emerald went straight to Ozpin's office, finding the man there with his head supported by one of his hands and a handkerchief in the other. Once the two arrived and walked a bit more inside the room they also noticed other people in there as well. General Ironwood, Salem, Glynda, and Ruby's father, Qrow.
"Umm. So...I fucked up, didn't I?" Jaune asked, cutting to the chase.
"Damn right you did, kiddo!" Qrow replied, but he sounded more amused than anything. "Punching a cop to protect your girl is noble though, and it is not every day the council's pants are set on fire like that!" He laughed a bit. "Man, this is precious."
"Qrow, this is no laughing matter!" Glynda said sternly, looking at the ex-drunk. Qrow has been dropping his drinking habits ever since Summer returned, which was good, everyone admitted that. He no longer smelled like a shitty bar for once. But back to the subject at hand, Glynda turned to the two of them. "What were you even thinking?!"
"The cop just walked up to me and tried to arrest me, we did nothing!" Emerald said, defending themselves. "Look, it was likely someone going off forged stuff anyway!"
"And did you need to give them REAL evidence and reasons to arrest you?" Ironwood said, pointing out the main issue here. "Look, even if the situation is different in context, the public is of another opinion. From their perspective, a cop was assaulted when trying to arrest a suspect person by someone they are likely assuming now is their associate."
"Ok, so maybe punching that cop was not the best solution-"
"AHAHAHAHAH!"
All eyes turned to Ozpin as he started to laugh, a reaction which, by all means, scared most of them. Jaune knew he was a sick man, not in the sense he was crazy, but literally, and that he doesn't have a long time left, but somehow this worried him more than that. Everyone looked at him with skepticism and confusion, even Salem didn't seem to know what was going on. "Forgive me." Ozpin said, his tone not showing anger or disappointment. "It's just that the distraction was refreshing for me to live my younger days in this body, and I even got the number of one of the councilwomen who wants a more...private session."
"Is that why you were laughing?" Salem asked, barely believing it.
"Oh, no, that is not it. I admit I was livid when I got the news from Junior, but then I looked outside at the statue up-front and remembered something." His gaze went to Jaune, the Headmaster having a very sly grin on his face. He was up to something, Jaune knew it! "Tell me, Jaune, how would you like to become King of Vale?"
The silence that fell upon the room was so...great, that one could hear the beating of their hearts and the drop of one of Ironwood's screws hearing those words. Salem looked confused for less, but then she seemed to catch on to something, giving Jaune a better look, then muttering. "How did I not realize sooner…" She muttered as she rubbed her face in self-disappointment.
"Ok, can someone explain?" Jaune asked. "Because it sounds like you are proposing I take over Vale to get out of this mess."
"Oh, but I am." Ozpin said again, causing an uproar from Ironwood.
"Ozpin, explain yourself! You have had many incredible ideas over the years, some of which had me question your sanity, but this one has to take the cake!" Ironwood ranted, then Qrow threw in his own two cents as well.
"Gotta agree with Jimmy here, Oz! What are you hiding THIS TIME?!"
"Oh, nothing much, just something which I assume was more common knowledge." Ozpin smirked.
"Common knowledge?" Ironwood echoed. "Ozpin, stop it with the cryptic games and just say it! Glynda! Back us up on this!"
"I am actually aware of what Ozpin is hiding." She replied, further surprising the others. "Why, I was here when he realized it!"
"Ok, can someone just come out and say it already!" Emerald shouted, quite rudely so. "Seriously, this all sounds like you guys are planning a coup!"
"Oh, but we are." Ozpin said, and at that point, Ironwood and Qrow were so sick of his games that they pointed their guns in his face. "Ok, no more games, I will be frank and direct." The guns retreated, then he stood up, clearing his throat. "Jaune, how much do you know about your family's history?"
"Huh? What does that have to do with me apparently taking over Vale?" The boy asked.
"Everything." Ozpin replied, then he pulled out an old book and a newer one. "I remembered something from my older days and pulled out some books, connecting the dots." He handed the old one to Ironwood, who then opened it, reading through it and he held the new one next to him, holding it at a specific page. The General looked between the two books, then he noticed something that made his eyes widen, forcing him to look back and forth at the two to make sure he was right.
"This is unbelievable!" Ironwood said, holding both books in his hands.
"Oh, for fuck's sakes, just say it!" Jaune shouted in impatience, but then Ironwood went to him and showed him the books, Jaune recognizing the newer one. "My family's genealogical tree?" He muttered looking at it, the book stretching to the first Arc to live in Anima. However, he then looked at the older book, seeing the same Arc who first lived in Anima...and a lot of other names, but this was not his family's tree.
It was the family tree of the Royal House of Vale.
"Wait…"
"Well, that certainly fits a woman of my stature more." Salem commented, then she decided to reveal everything. "As you all know, after the Great War ended, the monarchy was abolished in Remnant around 80 years ago. What is less known is how the Royals had to hide away for protection and even records were altered."
"This old book is the unaltered version." Ozpin said, "Jaune Daedalus Arc, I am happy to inform you that by birthright the crown of Vale belongs to you!"
"..." Without even a warning, Jaune passed out. Luckily, Emerald managed to catch him, but struggled to hold him.
"Some help here! He is heavier than he looks!" She said, then Glynda began to use her Semblance to keep him up. "Thank you. And - WHAT?!" Emerald's tone of voice rose to the ceiling as she processed the news. "This blond dork is royalty?!"
"Ex-royalty." Ironwood pointed out. "However, if Vale was to return to a monarchy, then the Arc House could be reinstated into power, and as the only male heir, not taking his father into consideration due to him not having Valean citizenship, Jaune is the only eligible heir to the throne."
"Doesn't he also lack citizenship?" Emerald asked.
"Not really." Glynda replied. "All students of Beacon who come from other Kingdoms receive full citizenship upon joining."
"Oh, fuck me sideways…" Emerald muttered to herself. "Wait, so that means I am married to a King?"
"Same as me." Salem added.
"Wait a minute…" Qrow said, piecing it together in his mind. "THAT MEANS MY DAUGHTER AND NIECE ARE FUCKING PRINCESSES!"
"Royalty…" James pinched the bridge of his nose. "Out of all the other things this ordeal could uncover and throw at us, it had to be this."
"Quite the development, isn't it?" Ozpin replied. "I was quite shocked myself when I found out, but this is providing us a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, James!"
"How is this an opportunity, Ozpin?" ironwood looked at him. "This still doesn't answer the question of how we are going to clean up this mess!"
"As long as Jaune here doesn't leave the grounds of the Academy he will be fine." Ozpin said, knowing the implications of it. Whatever dating plans Jaune has now will need to happen on the campus of Beacon or at least be very well thought out. He doubted that shaking his ass to the council will fool them a second time. "What I mean is an opportunity to remove the council."
"A coup?!" Ironwood gasped in shock. "Ozpin, old friend, forgive me, but a coup is the last thing I will involve my Kingdom in!"
"There won't be any coup, James! Well, maybe a small one." Ozpin replied, once again starting to make no sense. "It will take a while, but I will try getting in contact with the monarch loyalists. They had been trying time and time again to gather enough support to make monarchy return, but they lacked several things, mainly a person to take the throne, support, and the acceptance of the population."
"We have Jaune here…" Salem walked over to her husband and ran her fingers through his hair. Then used magic to keep him in the air and gave Glynda a nod to let him go. "We have someone to put on the throne."
"And if Beacon offers its support to them, that is two out of three." Glynda held a sly grin on her face. "With these, we really have a shot of taking the Council down."
"Easier said than done, we still need the people of Vale to start shouting 'LONG LIVE THE KING' and all that jazz." Qrow said, then he pointed at Jaune. "And his face is not the kind people would be willing to die for, he ain't no King material."
"Not prime material, but he is material." Ozpin somewhat defended Jaune. "We will need to teach him some things about etiquette, but I believe Salem here will be more than enough for that."
"It will be a pleasure." Salem replied, then she looked at Emerald. "Emerald, dear, please call the other girls. It is time to break it to them that they are royalty."
"One question!" Emerald put up a finger. "So, if he becomes the center of this scheme of yours, there'll be no more cops going after us?"
"No," Ozpin replied.
"And...will he be rich?"
"Miss Arc Sustrai, what kind of question is that?" Glynda asked, seeming quite displeased with Emerald's question about money. "The simple fact he will become Vale's monarch is-"
"Actually, Glynda, Jaune would become rich." James cut her off, pointing out the obvious. "As the King, Jaune would have access to the treasury of Vale, the Kingdom's money being his money, but he will need to spend it on the Kingdom's well being, not selfish needs." Glynda now understood what Ironwood was meaning, he was talking Emerald down a little bit. "If he chooses to spoil his Queens, then so be it, but he has to do it without leaving the people starving."
"I...I understand." Emerald said slowly, following Salem out into the hallway. "Mistress?"
"Yes, Emerald?"
"Be honest, how much money do you believe Ruby will spend on cookies if Jaune here does become a King?" Emerald asked, that being the reason why she asked in the first place.
"There is not enough flour in the world to make so many cookies." Salem replied calmly, Jaune floating next to them.
"HE'S A WHAT?!" Weiss shrieked out as an urgent meeting of the Eve Council was called out between the Arc Wives alone to discuss something of urgency, but no one could predict this news. "No! Impossible! There is no way that dork is royalty!"
"But it is!" Emerald said, arguing against Weiss. "Mistress saw it too!"
"Hold it!" Yang shouted, putting her arms up. "Salem, are you and Ozpin sure Jaune is a motherfucking royal?!"
"And the heir to Vale's throne." Salem added.
"Oh my…" Pyrrha said slowly, stunned by the revelation. She knew Jaune had a noble attitude that matched his knightly look, but to find out he was a king-to-be?! Her fantasies were changing, and not in a wholesome clean way.
"Jaune is a King?!" Ruby shouted out, a reaction shared among many of them. "Wait, does that mean we are royalty too now that we are married to him?!"
"That...is exactly what it means." Cinder said slowly, realization dawning on her. "As his wives, we are all now royalty."
"Preposterous!" Weiss said again, collapsing on her seat and rubbing her forehead. "It was one thing when he was just our husband, but a King as well?!"
"Shouldn't you be happier about this?" Amber asked, looking in Weiss's direction. "I mean, I heard how your father might have been a pain if he found out, so doesn't this fix stuff? Hard to say no to your daughter marrying royalty, it seems like good luck even."
"Good luck?" Weiss echoed, looking at Amber. "Good luck?! Why do you think it is good luck?! This is not about Jaune being my husband anymore, but about his position! My damn father won't waste any bit of time to capitalize on this and will use every dirty trick in the book to get his way!"
"You make it sound like he could take the crown of Vale." Blake remarked, to which Weiss scoffed. "Besides, Jaune becoming King might be a good thing. He is a good person." She was thinking of the good Jaune could do by passing anti-racism laws and the likes to make the lives of fellow Faunus better, she was dreaming of the day that happened.
"It's not that, Blake." Weiss continued. "My father, as much as he has tried in the past to run for councilman back in Atlas, would have no chance of obtaining the crown of Vale."
"That is true." Salem added. "He is of the house belonging to the wife, not directly linked to Jaune's family, so that means Jacques has no way of assuming power for himself. His only option would be swaying Jaune to do what he wants, and that is not probable with us around."
Weiss sighed. "I guess, but I am not looking forward to my father finding out about everything! It was bad enough when Jaune's family was only heavily influential, but finding out they were also royalty will likely make him see red."
"Serves him right." Blake said, not hiding her distaste for the man.
"Wait, can we return to the main subject here?" Yang asked, still shocked by the news. "If Jaune is royalty, how come he never mentioned it?"
"He just learned today as well." Emerald said. "He is back in his room, sleeping through the shock. I am certain he will gather his own council later to discuss this as well."
"Together with Pyrrha's date." Nora, who was there because no Eve Council can be held without her, smiled. Only the Auburn wives were not there. "It is your turn now, Pyr!" Pyrrha blushed, hiding her face behind her hands as the attention was now on her.
"Unfortunately, due to the fiasco at Emerald's date, your date will be more limited, Pyrrha." Salem dropped the bad news. "If Jaune leaves Beacon he is risking being arrested and likely placed on fake charges to get the maximum punishment in order for the Council to blackmail Ozpin into giving us up."
"Sorry about that, Pyrrha." Emerald said.
"It's alright." Pyrrha replied, not feeling upset about the newly placed limitations. "For me, it is enough if I get to spend some quality time with Jaune."
"There might be a place you can go to, maybe for a picnic?" Glynda suggested. "The Forever Fall Forest. With Salem here, we can make sure no Grimm is in the area so you can enjoy yourselves fully without worry."
"Do bring your weapons, however." Salem warned. "My control over the Grimm has never been absolute, so one or two Beowolves might slip past my power."
"Understandable." Pyrrha replied. "I have been waiting for this for a long time now, and believe me, I am more than ready."
"Yup! And after your plans are finished, we are going to be looking at Weiss's date!" Nora said, looking at the Ice Queen of the group, but Weiss simply looked away, not facing them. "Still acting cold?"
"Please, royalty or not, Jaune is barely a man worth my attention." Weiss replied.
"Hmm. I didn't hear any deniability there." Cinder pointed out the word usage of the heiress. "If anything, I think she is warming up to the entire idea."
"I most certainly am not!" Weiss replied back, a slight blush on her face. "Anyway, with the main point of this session finished, how about we call off this meeting of the Council?"
Nora pouted a bit. "Party pooper." She said, then she smacked her hammer down. "Let's do this ladies!"
Later that evening, Jaune did indeed summon his council, the people in it first being informed about his new status before anything else which got him a plethora of reactions.
"You are a fucking King?!" Roman shouted in shock.
"Since when?!" Ash did the same.
"And how in the name of Dust did we not know about this until now?!" Junior said, looking at Ozpin.
"Wait, guys!" Sun, and Neptune by his side, jumped up. "You don't see the main point here! If Jaune here is King, that means he can do all kinds of kingly stuff to have fun!"
"Sun, I do not think that is how-"
"Now that you mention it." Roman said, interested in the idea. "A royal pardon would be very, very nice. It would allow me to retire in peace."
"Can we not use Mister Arc's newfound privilege for our own goals?" Ozpin said, trying to control the hounds. "Besides, that is his decision."
James snorted. "That is rich coming from you, Ozpin. Are you not the one wishing to use him to get rid of the council?"
"No comment."
"Ok! How about we all forget about me being a King-to-be for a few moments and focus on the next order of business? Ren, please present the plan." Jaune said, giving the stage to his teammate.
Ren cleared his throat as he took the attention of the Adam Council. "As you all know, due to recent events, all possible dates in the city are no longer possible."
"No shit! He punched a cop!" Ash said, pointing out the obvious. "That was a stupid mistake."
"If the outlaw is saying it, then it sure sounds bad." Qrow, who decided to join for this one, said from the sidelines. "Still, respect increased, kiddo."
"Ren, please." Jaune said, allowing him to continue.
"As I was saying, due to this, an alternative plan was created. I managed to talk with Nora before coming here and she told me about the girl's idea of holding the date in the Forever Fall Forest, where the fear of Grimm should make the Council hesitate. As far as we are aware, most law enforcement units have no Aura to their name, and even if they start awakening their Aura just to assault the forest, they would still be lacking training. As a result, and thanks to Salem's own help, the forest is a safe place for the date to proceed."
"Hmm. The girl's from Argus, right? The place's a mix of Atlas and Mistral, so ima see about asking some guys I know about traditional food from there." Junior said, already pulling out his phone.
"Well, I also doubt any fashion would be required for this date considering everything at hand, so I will only make sure the council is not doing anything by giving them too much to work on to notice." Roman said, then he looked over at Cardin. "Hey, wouldn't you want to earn a bit of Lien?"
Cardin recoiled back a bit from the question, looking somewhat nervous to be approached by the thief with such a request. "Umm. No, thank you, sir." He replied politely, not wanting to wake up with no cash left to his name. "I will try to keep the people in Beacon in check and everything together with my Team. I managed to get them on board as well, and even though they won't be attending our little council, they are with you, Arc!"
"Good to know." Jaune said, feeling a bit nervous about having the school bullies on his side. Good Gods, Emerald was right, he was building a little mafia in Beacon by this point. "Anyway, so, the Forever Fall Forest. It will likely be a picnic."
"No shit, it cannot be anything else." Neptune said. "Still, I think it is a nice place. The leaves are like her hair, a beautiful crimson."
"Neptune, buddy, careful there, you are talking about Jaune's girl here." Sun jokingly warned.
"You got what I meant!" Neptune said.
"Still, the Forever Fall Forest, as perfect as it may be, is not outside the council's reach." Ironwood pointed out.
"Indeed." Ozpin said as well. "They could still send people, so we need to keep things on the quiet side. And before anyone asks, because I KNOW Sun sent you the video, I AM NOT dancing again to distract them!"
"But Oz, you were great!" Qrow said, pulling out his scroll and played the video with Ozpin dancing like there was no tomorrow. "Hell, I am even willing to say you enjoyed yourself quite well."
"That is beside the point-"
"And he was given the phone number of that one lady from the council." Sun pointed out, earning a glare from Ozpin. "Speak no evil, got it."
"Regardless of this dying old man's leftover steam, I think this concludes our little meeting, yes?" Roman said, getting up. "If you'd excuse me and Ash, we have a lot of work to do. Now that Salem's whole ordeal is no longer an issue I can rebuild my empire!"
"And hand it over to me!" Ash added. "Since Neo and the Twins are not options, Roman only has me, so I am the best choice."
"That isn't to say I won't personally take care of your training, Ashie!" Roman added, pulling the Faunus boy with the hook of his cane. "And I will be especially throughout regarding the fidelity rules. Wouldn't want you to have other eyes except for Neo, after all."
Ash gulped. "Noted, sir." Looks like Roman had this panther on a leash.
"Well, with that being said, I bid you all adieu. Good luck on your date, Jaune, and make sure to remember old Roman when you become king! Who knows? I might even be willing to guard your treasury."
"Out of the question."
"No one here is dumb enough to do that."
"No thanks."
Those were the replies from Ozpin, Ren, and Jaune respectively.
"Damn it!" Roman swore lightly. "Oh well, worth a chance."
And with that the outlaws, including Junior, left the building, leaving the other members of the Adam council to go over the last details. A bullhead was going to be taking Pyrrha and Jaune from Beacon to Forever Fall Forest, a private one that Ozpin will get them and bribe the pilot. After that, the two of them can do whatever they wish. Roman already confirmed he was going to be causing a lot of work for the council's goons, so there was no issue on that front. Everyone went to sleep that night with peace, except for Ozpin.
Before he even had the chance to get to bed he received a message from Jaune's parents, notifying him of their arrival in Vale...Tomorrow evening. Things have just taken an interesting turn, and Ozpin foresaw very large amounts of damage done to Beacon's property, a lot of yelling, an angry Glynda for having to use her semblance to fix everything, and more.
Ozpin hoped he would be spared, but he had little hope considering he was the one to officiate the wedding and marry their son to not one, but eight different women. He just wondered what they knew, what he should consider hiding, and how he was going to keep in check the coming storm. Safe to say, he would need all the help he could get, same with Jaune.
"This...This will be a problem."
NERDY, DO NOT GIVE OUT SPOILERS SO WILLY NILLY!
Nerdy: It's to make them look forward to who the hardest mother will be. Trust me, they won't see it coming.