Chapter 3: Wall Market and beyond.

[Location: Scrapyard, Sector 5 Slums, Midgar.]

[Planet: Gaia.]

Jaune was currently in the middle of job, rummaging through junk while Mireille did the same.

The older woman that constantly needed their services, and today she requested him to dig up more junk that can actually be worth something.

Sometimes, the Arc didn't understand the woman next to him at all. At times, she will fix junk and sell it to anyone looking to buy, and other times, she'd just give away her findings for free.

In fact, there were several times Jaune spotted her in the Sector 5 Slums, just giving things to those in need and even handing Gil out for no reason.

The residents have nothing but praise for her donations and kind deeds. He guessed that she didn't mind spending money while earning some good reputation. Either that, or he now knows the kindest lady on the planet Gaia.

"There wouldn't be a point to having so much Gil if you don't bother to spend it on something. Not to mention she was a great talker."

Mireille can bring any topic, and it will become interesting. Truly, Mireille has a heart of gold, not like the usual people at her age and circumstance in life. Jaune could only recall that most people at her age and living on the streets were mostly the complete opposite of her and purposely chose to be pains in the ass.

The Arc was able to know more about her due the fact he and Ruby have done many jobs for her.

As he was deep in thought, he saw a gleaming shiny coming from within his junk pile.

"Oooh! Holy crap! I found something! HAHAHAHAH! It's the first thing I've found since we've started this odd-jobs mercenary gig!" Jaune announced as he pulled out a small golden statue of a fat man he had never seen before.

"Hey, Mireille? How much is this worth?" Jaune asked as he showed it off.

Mireille looked at the statue with a frown on her face before saying, "Well, the statue is useless, but you can melt it down for about 10,000 Gil."

"Yahoo!" Jaune threw his hands in the air before saying, "I think my luck is changing!"

"Heheh, don't jinx it boy," Mireille joked before pointing to her pile and following up with, "I'll get you the money when we get back. Now help me with the load I found."

Jaune looked over to see piles of car parts that were at least 50% Mithril, some dark gold and silverware, and a few gem-encrusted platinum rings.

Jaune whistled before he asked, "Dang, Mireille how do you do it?"

"What can I say, I got a knack for this stuff," Mireille replied with a soft chuckle.

Jaune got up and hauled the materials she gathered to the wagon. Luckily, they had a Chocobo to pull it.

Jaune had no idea that she owned one until recently. When they first met, she used Jaune as her mule to haul the cart around.

After stacking everything up, Jaune walked around to the Chocobo and said, "Aren't you just the cutest thing…yes you are! Yes you are!" while he pet the sweet spot under its glorious yellow feathers.

"KWIEEE!" Noka the Chocobo chirped happily as Jaune scratched her favorite spot.

Jaune could still remember Ruby going crazy because Mireille decided to show off her Chocobo. He chuckled as he recalled all her expression before Jaune realized that in his memories, his eyes were glued to her smile.

"What's wrong with me…I mean, sure, Ruby has some nice lips…" Jaune thought before slapping himself in the face.

After shaking off any impure thoughts, he went back to picking up the rest of the pile.

By the time the blond finished, he put everything on the wagon while Mireille went back as if she had missed something.

A few of Hedgehog Pie appeared from a small mountain of scrap, Jaune could tell it was looking for trouble, so the Arc unsheathed his weapon and fought them while the older woman finished with the gathering.

He took a deep breath and created a near solid form of Aura around his sword before rushing ahead and cleaving through the creatures' vitals with single strokes of his sword.

One of the Hedgehog Pies tried to jump at him with a fire imbued belly flop. However, Jaune raised his shield and slammed the creature into another of its allies before it detonated the fire skill it had.

It exploded and shook its allies before Jaune rushed up and stabbed them both in the heart with ease.

As they flopped to the ground, Jaune smirked and said, "Well, I got dinner. Good thing I learned how to make Leo's famous Hedgehog Pot Pie."

The blond was able to get rid of these kinds of monsters easily. Since they were among the weakest creatures in this area, he had gotten to the point that he could one shot them.

Now, if he was up against a Chronomogger or a Smogger, Jaune might have to push himself just a bit, and that was only if he didn't want to use his Materia.

With the Materia, they were even easier since he used the Lightning Magic. Mechanical Monsters were weak against that particular element, so Jaune could just sit back and take pot shots at the mecha-creatures, and still come out on top.

Once he was sure there were no more enemies around, Jaune sheathed Crocea Mors and nodded his head.

"I've gotten stronger…but it's not enough. I should experiment more with my Semblance, mainly the effects of long term and consistent use," Jaune mumbled to himself before his boss tapped him on the shoulder

"That will be all for today. I got everything I wanted to find for the night, so let's head back, Jaune."

The Arc nodded as the older woman, took a hold of her Chocobo by the reigns, and started leaving the scrapyard.

The blond was keeping an eye out for any monsters, protecting her as he walked alongside the cart.

During the walk back, Jaune noticed that she was stealing him glances at him. He had no idea what all that was about, but he paid her no mind.

Though, when he thought about it, the Arc had a pretty good idea of what she wanted to ask him.

Mireille went to the children's hideout and offer them a worn out clock she fixed up. Of course she made sure that it was safe before giving it to a bunch of kids.

Then, she went to the orphanage and gave Ms. Foila a radio.

Every time she pulled out something from the junkyard, it surprised Jaune that she managed to get those things working again.

If she saw something that could be repaired and used, the older woman would immediately fix them.

"Guess people will throw away anything if it's too old for their taste. Maybe that's why scavenging is such a good thing, you find useful stuff that someone else might want or need," The Huntsman pondered as he continued to follow his boss.

He kept up his guard until they were far away from the where the monsters usually prowl.

When they were in the clear, the dutiful scavenger began checking on the Chocobo before she started stocking up on useful items to continue on traveling towards another sector.

While she packed the carriage with some gysahl greens and human food, she snuck another glance at Jaune.

"Aren't you going to ask me why Ruby isn't with me?" Jaune finally broke the tension.

"It's not my business to ask. I love to small talk and gossip, but even I know there's a limit. Don't like sticking my nose where it doesn't belong."

The blond nodded his head. She made a good point. Guess the older woman isn't like that. Not the snitching type.

"Buut…I can tell you want me to ask you about her? Well, where is she?" Mierille said with a gentle and caring smile.

"She decided to stay back at our place," Jaune's blue eyes softened.

"Is she alright?"

"She's...I don't know…" Jaune sighed.

"Did you two have a lover's quarrel?"

This made Jaune gasped as his face turned red. The word just took him by surprise.

"Whoa, whaaa, no! It's nothing like that. We…kind of…had an argument…and she's...Not feeling well," Jaune slumped his shoulders over and sighed again.

"So, she got angry at you and doesn't want to talk to you? How is that not a lover's quarrel?"

"For one, we're not dating, and it's more like she needs time to think for herself."


"You want us to what?" Ruby shouted, worried about what the Arc just told her.

She stood seated on the small living room of their place. The blond was currently cooking breakfast before starting their day. The silver eyed girl was in thinking hard, going over his words time and time again inside her head, and for some reason, she didn't like it. No, it worried her.

"Jaune...I don't know….I'm getting bad Blake White Fang Flashbacks,"

[Author Note: Get it? White Fang Flashbacks in a flashback? Aww, you guys are no fun.]

"I'd say it's time we fulfill our mission. Maybe it's a little too soon but we have to do something. We have to take the fight to Shinra. Aerith said the reactors are what allows Mako energy to power the city. There are eight Mako reactors in total, if we take them all out, we stop their plans for good."

"And leave thousands if not millions without power. Think what that will mean! Not just the people from topside but the people of the slums and all the sectors, how will they be able to survive? It will be our fault if they end up rioting or getting killed."

"You have a point, but surely there are other methods to make electricity besides stealing the life blood of the planet."

"So? Do you have a plan? Or is this another hair-brained idea!" Ruby yelled.

"Hey! What's with you? You know we have to stop the Shinra Company, you know that. You can't forget we're here to stop them from taking anymore Mako from the planet. If this keeps up, and Shinra keeps sucking up all the Mako, the planet will die Ruby. So, what do you think is worse? If this world runs out of the very source of energy it needs to produce life, it will all be over for everyone. At least this way, there will be survivors."

The red cloak girl stood silent, not giving him an answer as she lowered her head.

Jaune started to get worried as he finished with the breakfast, turned off the oven, and headed over to the petite to see the doubt in her silver eyes.

"This wasn't right, this wasn't her at all. Just what's could be bothering you, Ruby Rose?" Jaune thought to himself.

Jaune then put down her food in front of her and asked, "Ruby, you're with me on this right?"

"I don't know…I just don't know," Ruby's head drooped lower.

"Ruby, we have to do this. We need to save the planet. It's the whole reason we we're brought here. It's the reason why we're alive in the first place, and you're telling me you don't know? I thought you would be the first to jump in and say "let's do this"."

"Maybe the old me would…." she whispered.

"What?" Jaune's brows furrowed.

"I used to think everything would be fine. That it would all work out if we keep trying out best. I always looked at the positive side of things without thinking of the consequences. Well…Not anymore, not after…." Ruby gave him a dull scare that screamed she was out of hope.

"I'm sorry, Ruby, I'm so sorry. I know you're still trying to get over what happened, but-"

"But what?!" she suddenly snapped, slapping the table and shocking him as she shouted, "You want us to play the heroes again? So, what, we blow up some reactors, then as a byproduct of our actions, we end up killing hundreds, possibly thousands of innocent people? That's not what heroes do, Jaune!"

"It won't be easy for the citizen if they run out of power, I know that. But people are more resilient than you give them credit for, Ruby. Sure, they will have to find a way to adapt and get used to life without Mako energy. But we have to have faith that they can pull through."

That's not enough, Jaune!" Ruby shouted.

"Remember what Aerith's mother told us. If the planet runs out of Mako, it will be the end. The whole planet dies! The plants, the animals, the people, heck, even the monsters will die. Everyone will die, Ruby! Shinra is sucking up Mako without any signs of stopping. It will eventually kill the world. We need to do what's right, and you know just as well as I do, the best way to do that, is finishing our mission. To do what we were sent here for," Jaune explained with a bit of his own temperament to his tone.

"You think that's the right thing? I used to think not telling General Ironwood the truth about Salem was the right thing to do at the time. You saw what happened, what became of Atlas and Mantle? What became of everyone? What became of us?"

"You're still hurting. I get it, Ruby. I really do. It's not something easy to forget. Well, you know what? I'm hurting too, but I need to keep an open mind and believe our deaths weren't in vain. We were given this second chance for a reason. You and I are alive and working for the sole purpose we were sent to this world to accomplish was and is the right thing to do. Otherwise, we'll be making the same mistakes we made back on Remnant, and then you know what will happen? We will die again. Is that what you want?"

"We might die if we go to destroy those Mako reactors. What will be the point of this second chance if we'll end up losing our lives again?" Ruby shouted.

"Don't do this, please. I need you to stay positive because I can't do this without you. I need 'the' Ruby Rose, Huntress Extraordinaire. I need you to be one hundred percent on this. You're a Huntress, the leader of Team RWBY-"

"Team RWBY is dead! Just like your team, Jaune, and as for Ruby Rose, she died when she was on Remnant, losing everything she ever loved in the process. Her friends, her family, her home. So yeah, I prefer to live this life the right way without taking any risks. I don't even know how I was able to hold on up until now. Maybe be you and Aerith that are the only things keeping me sane."

"You won't be able to live this new life if the planet is dead. If you're not there to help me make a difference, then our chances of survival are even worse than I thought. The Ruby I know will suck it up and keep facing forward no matter the risks we have to take or danger we face. Because that's who she is." Jaune inched his face closer to her while staring her dead in the eye.

"Maybe she's not here anymore."

Those words destroyed Jaune. He felt like the whole world collapsing in on him.

"Just what became of that young girl who used to be so cheery, hyper, and always kept a positive attitude. The quirky girl he met at Beacon was gone. The petite lowered her gaze ready to shed tears.

"I'm not feeling hungry. I'll be in my room," Ruby said while leaving the table.

"What about the jobs we have for today?" Jaune asked with frustration in his voice.

"You can handle it on your own!" with that she opened the door and closed it shut with a loud slam.

"Ruby…."


"You had a falling out?" Mireille lifted a brow.

Jaune gave a nod of affirmation. Of course, he didn't give Mireille all of the details. There was no way he could tell her the truth without thinking he's crazy.

He told her just enough to give the older woman the general idea that they did have an argument about their future.

Jaune didn't know if Ruby was going to return to her usual self or remain as the person she is now. It really worried him because he cares so much for her. She was his closest and best friend, and most of all, Ruby was the only one from his world that he had left.

Ruby means everything to Jaune, and he couldn't see himself attempting to save am entire world of people if she wasn't by his side.

With her, there was nothing he couldn't accomplish, without her Jaune just felt lost. He had no shining light to guide him in these dark times.

Then his mind drifted to just how important the silver eyed girl is to him, he didn't want to imagine life without her by his side…Jaune then slapped himself again to ignore the last part and stop his cheeks from getting red.

The blond found himself thinking that he should have tried to better understand his partner's feelings. Dying at the hands of Cinder, failing everyone in Remnant, and loosing everyone she ever cared about took a big toll on her. It was getting to the point where Jaune was starting to make nightly visits to her room every time she woke up screaming from having nightmares of the Fall Maiden.

"Pretty much," Jaune replied, trying to shake the sight of seeing Ruby with hopeless eyes.

"That sort of thing is normal between friends. Don't worry about it too much. These things come and go. Before you know it, everything will be back to normal."

"I hope you're right Mireille," Jaune said as he sighed.

"Just give her time to think things through. She probably doesn't like fighting with you as much as you dislike fighting with her. Let her cool her head off and give her space, she will apologize sooner or later."

"You really are a good listener and speaker. Thanks for the advice."

"Just make sure not to screw up. That girl is one of a kind. You might never meet anyone else like her in your entire life. I sure wish my daughter was like Ruby, she could sure need a good influence like that Ruby in her life. That girl…always getting into trouble and giving me a headache. What am I going to do with her?"

Jaune nodded not knowing the scavenger had a daughter. But the first part got him thinking a lot. His face turned red again it's like Mireille was telling him not to lose a girl like Ruby in a romantic girlfriend/boyfriend kind of way.

"We aren't in a relationship! We're just close friends…okay…maybe a little too close. But neither of us have taken it beyond being anything more than really good friends. We don't see each other like that," Jaune thought to himself.

However, now that she brought up the topic, the Arc realized that he has never thought how he feels about the red cloak petite.

It never occurred to him that she was a possible romantic partner. With everything going on that moment, he just didn't have the time for a together-together relationship.

"Ruby must be in the same boat too, she was going through a lot and romance is probably the last thing on her mind," Jaune nodded his head in denial.

Then again, he suddenly remembered seeing her talking to Oscar in a flirting way back at Weiss's manor.

"Great now I'm thinking too much about something that's completely unnecessary. But what if she liked farm boy and never realized it. Come on Jaune, get off that topic. None of that matters right now. Ruby's wellbeing is more important."

"Well time for me to head out. Got some stuff to take care of at Sector 7. Hope you two work it out. Here's your pay another good job."

"Sure you don't need me for anything else?" the blond took kindly the Gil from the older woman's hands.

"I'll be fine in Sector 7. They have many young lads armed and trained, and their borders are always on constant watch."

"Alright then, Goodbye Mireille," Jaune waved as she rode off on her wagon.


After Jaune left, Ruby cried for quite a while. Part of it was because she meant what she said, the other part was nothing but regret and disappointment in herself for lashing out at Jaune like that.

Ruby pulled out her scroll and turned it on. She went through the pictures of her team and all the shenanigans they pulled.

The batter sign blinked red as she powered the phone off and sighed.

Holding the scroll tightly in her hand, Ruby sniffled and said, "Yang…Blake…Weiss, what am I supposed to do?"

Ruby let her head crash against her pillow as she thought, "Yang would probably tell me to suck it up. We signed on for this stuff. Blake…she might offer me a good book to read…and Weiss, well she'd just complain as say I'm being lazy."

She could almost hear them chatting beside her.

"Get up, Ruby! You're better than this," Yang's voice called out from within her.

"We have work to do, leader. We can't stop now," Blake's voice came in like a cool whisper.

"The leader I know wouldn't let something like this get to her. Ozpin picked you for a reason, now live up to it!" Weiss' shrill voice made her wince.

"Hey, kiddo. I know it gets hard sometimes, but you have to keep on pushing through the crap if you want to get to the good stuff," Qrow's drunken tone.

"No matter what happens, you'll always be my little girl. No matter what choice you make, I'll be there to support you," Her father's voice rang loud and clear.

"My little rose bud, never change," The voice of Summer Rose snapped her out of it.

Ruby stood up and sighed before saying, "I…I can't just run away from my problems…Jaune was right…Oh crap baskets! Jaune!" Ruby rushed out of the house, feeling more than frightened and wondering if Jaune would forgive her for being so harsh.


After reading a book on Materia and Slot combinations, Jaune decided to head back to his place.

He was hoping that Ruby has had enough time to think, and that she was ready to talk now. Otherwise, he'll be making a big mistake, "Man, I hope Mireille's advice pans out."

Jaune didn't like the fact they had an argument, and he hated seeing Ruby so distraught. They've always gotten along just fine in the past, and he didn't want to ruin their friendship.

It scared him that their relationship might have taken some damage, and Jaune wanted nothing more than to continue being there for her. Of course he was still hurting about dying and leaving Remnant. The poor blond will never forget it.

The experience has scarred him for life, but he's been trying to be strong, to overcome this trail in life, and move on.

The only thing he can do is what's present before him, and that's fulfilling the mission they were given. Save the planet, stop Shinra and protect Aerith.

It was bad enough the company already knows she's an Ancient, but they are the most technological militant force on the planet made it thousands of times worse.

While passing through the slums, Jaune saw Ruby walking around looking for something. When the petite spotted him, she smiled widely.

Before he could wave at her, Ruby tackled him using her semblance. Not a very friendly experience considering how fast she is when she's moving like a comet comprised of rose petals.

The Arc was seeing stars for a while before gazing at her and he saw it. Pain was present in her silver eyes, but most of all, the regret was overflowing on her expression.

She got up and waited, giving him time to get up as the blond dusted himself off.

"I-" both said in unison.

"You first!" they replied again.

"Let me speak first, Jaune. I...I'm sorry, I'm really sorry for the way I acted. I should have never, never, NEVER, gotten so angry at you, Jaune. I didn't mean to snap at you like that."

"Ruby I understand how you feel. You were upset and hurt. I shouldn't have pushed you like I did. I know we have a mission, and it's all I've been thinking since coming here, I'm sorry for not paying more attention to how you were feeling. It's just that, thinking about it is my way of coping with everything we've been going through. There's no need to rush things, I understand that now. Since there's only two of us, we won't be able to do much by ourselves. But most of all, I don't want us arguing like that again. I'm sorry, Ruby, can you forgive me?."

"No, it's okay. You were right. We do have a mission. It's the reason we're here and why we're alive. These past weeks I've been running away from our duties. But because we got a second chance at life, I…I…I got scared that we might fail, again. However, I'm not going to let that fear get to me anymore. We've been here long enough I'd say we get started," she smiled.

The blond didn't say a word before pulling the petite reaper into a hug. She was back to normal, that angsty and emoish personality doesn't suit her. Ruby should always be a person full of life and joy, similar to Aerith.

Breaking off the embrace he gazed happily at Ruby as she smiled.

She gave him that same sweet smile that Jaune always loves to see. He would do anything to help her keep that smile on and never to see her sad again.

The Arc started blushing. Noticing how close she is to him, he pulled away gently.

The silver eyed petite just blinked not knowing why he stopped hugging her. She felt a little empty when he did, but she didn't mind too much. He wasn't angry with her anymore, so that made her feel a whole lot better.

"There's something else I have to tell you. I went to Aerith's house, and by the way, she's busy helping her mom planting some flowers. But anyway she told me something useful that might help us get stronger."

Jaune smiled. That was definitely useful information. He did promise her that they'd work on getting stronger together.

"That's great news to me. What's the info?"

"There's this place where you can train and exercise as much as you like. It's a place in the slums of Sector 6 Wall Market."

The blond stood in thought he has heard about Wall Market from the people and Mireille. It's supposed to be the most lively of all the slums in Midgar, but there are also some rumors about the place that made him question whether or not they should go there.

"Are you talking about a gym?"

"Yeah, there's also a weapon and armor shop among other things that didn't really catch my intrests. We can finally change our outfits to ones that can equip Materia, and let's not forget buying more of them too. Ooh, she also told me to be careful in Wall Market."

"I heard about that too. It's not so safe like the other sector, especially for cute…" Jaune paused, making Ruby tilt her head.

"Um, for girls, It's dangerous for girls at night at that place," Jaune said with a sweat drop running down his brow.

"What's wrong with me? Sure, Ruby is cute, but why is it so hard for me to tell her that," Jaune thought to himself with red cheeks.

"Yeah, Aerith told me to be careful and stay away from a place called the Honeybee Inn. She said not to set foot in there under any circumstances."

"I have a feeling I know what kind of place is that inn is," Jaune erased the thought.

"So it's official, we're going to Wall Market?" Ruby said while putting her arms behind her back and interlocking her fingers.

"Right, but let's take's Aerith's word for it and tread carefully," Jaune followed up.

Ruby giggled as she looked back over her shoulder and said, "It won't be a problem. Besides, I'll have you there looking out for me."

Jaune blushed again before shaking his head and thinking, "Seems like she's looking forward to visiting the armory and weapons shop."


The path to Wall Market was as expected a long one. Not without encountering a couple of monsters along the way.

However, it was nothing the two Hunters couldn't handle, especially with the equipped Materia in their weapons.

With the added ability of using magic, the Hunters from another world have definitely gotten stronger, they continue to get stronger still.

First, they wanted to train their bodies. The stronger their physiques were, the more Aura amplified their abilities. So a going to a gym was a really good idea on Ruby's part.

Their mission wasn't an easy one and it was better to be prepared, and having some extra muscle couldn't hurt.

When they were in the clear, and it seemed like no more monsters would be popping up, Ruby continued telling Jaune what she learned about Sector 6 from Aerith.

Since the conditions of the slums was so much worse than many of the others places in Midgar, many of the people that helped in the cities construction decided to create a place for the sole purpose of fun and entertainment.

It was a place with all kinds of things that humans would love. There were bars, casinos, strip joints, good food, music, and so much more.

Before they knew it, the business in Wall Market started booming, and a lot of people started earning a lot of money.

Unfortunately, the addition of money to the slums brought the attention of certain unsavory characters, ones that didn't care about the law.

Of course, the government didn't care about the problems of the lower sectors, so they solved it by building a large wall around it, and that's how Wall Market got the name.

Over time, Wall Market became known as the city under a giant iron veil, settled below a plate that was damaged in an incident that happened a long time ago.

The sad part about it all is that even thought the plate was salvageable; Shinra still hasn't lifted a finger to repair the damage.

They pretty much allow anyone in, no need for identification, and there free to roam if they don't upset any of the real owners of the nightly market. It was also the reason why there are more outlaws than regular fair people.

When the two Hunters finally saw the large wall in the distance, the looked a bit surprised. It took them a couple of minutes to walk to the front gate. The entire way they chatted about how much bigger it looked that the Sector 5 Slums, though most of that place was rubble.

Thanks to the person on watch at the top spotting them, they didn't have to wait that long before the large gates opened in front of them.

"Looks like anyone can get in just like that," Jaune commented.

"It's no wonder why bandits and crooks use this place to hang out," Ruby said before the both entered the Sector 6 Slums.

The first thing they noticed was the noise of all the people bustling around. There were so many, way more than what was in Sector 5.

Everywhere they looked there was something all kinds of places and shops. The nearest one was a rustic looking house with a Chocobo sign on the door frame. Next to it was a bundle of feathers strapped to a carriage.

The yellow bird creature had obviously gotten Ruby's attention as she ran to the cuddled it, "So cute, so cute, so cute, yes you are!"

The Chocobo obviously didn't mind the attention as it chirped joyfully.

The Arc couldn't help but smile. Ruby looked so cute when she was in her element, and from the way the Chocobo was behaving, it was obvious that owner had it trained very well.

Chocobos spook easily, and their usual reaction is to run away at the slightest disturbance, and boy can they run.

"They're pretty fast for their size," Jaune chuckled.

Seeing as Ruby wasn't stopping her Chocobo-Fluffing anytime soon, Jaune had to pull the poor girl away from the Chocobo by force, making her cry a bit as she said, "Just five more minutes! Please, there so cuddly!"

Jaune shook his head and replied by saying, "Nope! We came here for a reason, Ruby. Let's try to stay on track."

And so, they continued on their exploration of Wall Market. There were food stands, decent inns, and dozens of shops.

One shop in particular caught the blond knight's attention called, Super-Girls. He didn't even want to think what is that place was about.

Jaune shook his head and then suggested to go to the gym first before buying the outfits and the Materia.

"Relax, with so many signs and decorations, we'll find that place in no time," Ruby said while she tried to act cool.

"Man, this place must look like a carnival at night," Jaune commented as he followed after the red reaper.

As it turned out, Wall Market was bigger than they first thought. It wasn't as easy for them to find the gym without asking for directions. So, the two Hunters asked the people passing by until they got their answer.

Remembering the information, the reaper and the knight took the path that lead to a tent. However, the inside of the tent was completely constructed by wood and other materials you'd find in a sturdy house.

As they entered and looked around, they noticed a few men working out. Some looked scrawny others were buff. There were weights, exercise machines, and some trophies on the back definitely a gym they were in the right place.

Now all they needed to do is find the one in charge of the place. The customers were all doing their best, lifting weights, running on treadmills, doing pull ups, but there was only one that really caught their attention.

He was a young buff man with dark skin and dark brown short cut hair. He had a short beard, dark eyes, and a broad chin.

The dark-skinned man was wearing sleeveless white gym attire with the drawing of an arm showing its muscle. The logo on it read Otoko.

He was trying currently lifting a big dumbbell that must have weight a lot, at least judging from its appearance.

There were two men trying to encourage the man to lift the weight. One of them had even more muscle than the dark-skinned man and he had the same buzz cut, but his hair was blond. He had blue eyes, was wearing a sleeveless red with black stripes gym suit that an orange line at the bottom.

The second one had long black hair reaching to the back of his neck, dark eyes, and a black bandana keeping his hair bunched together in the back. He was wearing a gray shirt gray with white lines making a tribal-ish design on each side, black leather shorts with a belt and a silver buckle, black knee pads, and black boots reaching to his knees.

Just like the other guy, he was also cheering for the dark skinned man to lift the weight completely.

Ruby and Jaune thought it wouldn't hurt to try and ask them where they should start, at least one of the two not lifting the weight. The dark-skinned man seemed pretty busy trying to lift. The two teens slowly approached the three. Not wanting to break his concentration, they treaded lightly.

"Come on Ronnie just one more push!"

"You can do it!"

"Ugh...Almost there…."

With one final push the dark skinned buff man was able to lift the weight all the way to the rack and set it down.

Ruby and Jaune were impressed the weight he lifted looked very heavy. For a human without Aura to pull that off, it proved that Jaune and Ruby came to the right place.

Ronnie got off of the bench press and stood up before he was congratulated by both of the men at his side.

This place was no joke just looking around was enough to tell. There were so many people trying their hardest to get stronger and into shape.

"Good job Ronnie. You've come a long way."

"Thanks, I'm planning on getting stronger."

"Oh what do we have here?" the man in black and gray haired men noticed the two teenagers.

"Who might you be?" The long haired man asked.

"I'm Ruby and this is Jaune! We want to know who's in charge here," Ruby said with a smile on her face.

"That will be me. Name's Jules, I'm the head trainer and owner of this place. If you want to get in shape you've come to the right place."

"Yeah, we would like to get some exercise as part of our training. I hope we're not asking for too much," said the Arc.

"Not at all, I'm always happy to recruit more people. Working out is great for the body. You just don't get stronger and in shape but it also helps you stay healthy. In addition you get to have fun while burning calories," Jules informed like he was making a sales pitch.

"Please, look at these two. They're so skinny it's like they barely eat at all" said Ronnie.

"Hey, that's not nice," the silver eyed girl huffed as she frowned.

"Never judge a book by its cover. I can tell these two have potential. So, is it your first time doing a workout?"

"Well, we do have experience fighting monsters" replied the blond.

"That's a good start. Actual fighting is a real workout for the body. I guess you won't have a hard time doing the basics. Squats, pull ups, push ups, sit ups the works. Thirty of them, then we'll do fifty and if you still want more we can try a hundred."

"All right!" Ruby was hyped.

"But first I suggest a change of clothes. You can change in the locker room to the left. You have to wear the gear if you want to sweat. See you in five," Jules pointed them to a locker room.

It didn't take long for Jaune and Ruby to changed and return to Jules. The Arc was wearing a t-shirt with the words Square Enix with blue sweat pants and white sneakers. The reaper was wearing a black shirt with the words Rooster-Teeth in red, red sweat pants, and white sneakers.

"Remember, Ruby, no Aura unless it's to heal the muscle fatigue," Jaune whispered.

"I know how to work out…" Ruby said with her eyes darting away. Truthfully, she was ready to shoot pass everyone and show off by working out with her Aura going full throttle.

The head trainer nodded while Ronnie and Jay were watching. The dark skinned man thought it will be amusing watching the two skinny kids fail. The three got to the middle of the ring.

"Hope you guys are ready."

"Bring it!" said the silver eyed girl.

The three started with squats. At first Jules thought of going easy with them, but boy he was wrong.

Jaune and Ruby were giving the head trainer a run for his Gil. Seeing them excel at his training program put a smile on Jules' face expecting such if they already have experience fighting monsters.

They immediately did thirty squats in no time. Years of fighting and training to be efficient Hunters gave them stronger bodies than most.

When they hit fifty, that's when their bodies started sweating, feeling the burn of the workout.

Still, it wasn't as much strain as one of Nora's or Yang's workouts. So, they powered through and finished the fifty squats.

Jules was impressed while Jay and Ronnie stared on in disbelief.

However, Ronnie quickly hid his expression of awe while thinking, "There was no way they keep this up and not burn themselves out, even if they are young and full of energy."

Well, Ronnie was wrong. Not only did they manage to do a hundred squats the same as the head trainer, after they finished them off, the two went the pull ups.

Jules put the bars on the roof of the ring so they can start the next part of the exercise, looking at the two with great appreciation. He had been a trainer for so long, Jules could see the real value of the muscles they built under their outfits.

It wasn't over the top, but fit for fast and hard hitting combat. Jules knew better than to underestimate these two.

The blond knight and the silver eyed petite jumped holding to the bar as the head trainer join them.

They went for thirty, then fifty and then a hundred. By now, their bodies covered in sweat and their clothes were drenched in it.

Ronnie and Jay were stood absolutely still, shocked and jaw dropped. Of course, they would expect Jules to manage this kind of workout, but these two kids were still going at it, and it looked like they didn't plan on stopping any time soon.

Next was the push ups, thirty, fifty and a hundred. They followed by starting the sit ups, thirty, fifty, and one hundred.

Then it happened, Jules couldn't take it anymore. His body has given up on him, collapsing to the ground in a pool of his own sweat.

Ronnie and Jay were speechless, it was the first time they have ever seen their trainer falling down from a workout.

Yet the petite and the blond were still going at it and eventually collapsed from exhaustion.

However, once they used their Aura to heal the damage, they got right back up and started the whole routine over again.

"They're not human!" Ronnie commented.

"What fun!" Jules said between his large gaps for air.

"Jules! You okay?!" Jay asked as he and Ronnie went to the ring to check up on the head trainer.

Jules started chuckling while he was barely able to get up.

The head training watched them go through five reps of his most intensive workout regimen before he shouted, "Holy Gaia, you two are the real deal. I have never been this tired before."

"We're tired too" Ruby was panting as she got seated on the ring.

"I feel like we fought a hundred battles" followed Jaune as he sat beside her.

"You two have earned a break, well done. There some free water in the vending machines. You can shower later to the right. That will be enough for today. Next time, we're hitting the weights. Good job Ruby and Jaune."

"Damn" muttered Ronnie" Guess I will have to do five hundred of everything!"

"For real?" Jay stood shocked.

"Watch me. I will show these two what it's like to be in top form!"

Jaune and Ruby gulped down their water bottle and took a breather before getting right back into it. With their Aura healing the micro damage to their muscles and healing away their soreness, they managed to complete 10 solid reps of Jules work outs.

The head trainer managed to judge their capabilities and the muscles they needed to work on, so he guided them through it while they sweated until they found themselves being pushed harder than they ever had.

Eventually, Jaune and Ruby ran out of Aura and collapsed on the ground. Jaune was even more winded because he had to constantly refuel Ruby's Aura when she ran dry.

"I can't move my body" said the blond.

"Me too" the silver eyed girl was exhausted but she manage to smiled.

"Take the rest of the day off, you two certainly earned it. If you're in pain I can help with that. You can go to Madam M's massage parlor. That woman works miracles, trust me, when she's done with you guys, both of you will feel good as new in no time."

"And I'm sure that it's free," Jaune said as his sweat continued to drop of the floor. He didn't want to spend Gil because they still had weapons, clothes, and Materia to purchase.

"You won't have to," Jules replied as he smiled and took out two pieces of paper from his pocket.

"Show this to Madam M, and she will give you a free massage."

Ruby and Jaune took the paper coupon that read, "Free Massage"

Both of them looked at each other and smiled.

"Thanks, this is great," Ruby said as she bowed her head a bit.

"Yeah, we could really use a massage. Our bodies are aching…but.." Jaune paused.

"Is there something wrong?"

"Well…hehe…could you tell us how to get there?" Jaune chuckled with an embarrassed expression.

"Hahahah! Of course, no problem," Jules replied before writing down the directions to reach the massage parlor on a piece of paper and handed it over.


It took an hour for the two to muster up enough Aura to heal some of their sore muscles and regain a bit of their stamina. When they could finally move, the Hunter took a shower and changed back to their regular battle attires.

The hot water helped sooth some of their body's aches and pain, but until their Aura's regenerated, they had to put up with it.

Still, it was a good workout, and the two appreciated what continuing it would bring.

Exhausted and tired, they walked the streets and through the alleyways until they reached the end.

There, was a tall building that shocked them because the structure of it reminded them to architecture from the kingdom of Mistral.

It was so familiar, that they found themselves being choked up by the ordeal.

They never thought that they might see anything that resembled something so closely to related to their world.

Okay, maybe that was an exaggeration. There were many things that resemble things from Remnant, but this building looks like it came straight out of Mistral building plans.

Opening the door, they were surprised to see that even the interior looks like the houses they would find in the kingdom on the Anima continent.

There was a woman standing on the reception desk wearing the same clothing style from the people Mistral, no surprise there seeing how everything else looked like they stepped back into Remnant.

The woman presumed to be Madam M was a young lady in her late twenties. She had short brown hair and lighter brown eyes. She was wearing golden hair pins, a black kimono with a red belt that had yellow designs on it, and was holding it and a collapsible paper hand fan.

Both Jaune and Ruby had to admit, she was quite the beauty.

"Hello and welcome," The hostess said as she gave a cordial smile.

"Are you Madam M?" asked Ruby.

"That's right and this is my massage parlor," Madam M replied with a gentle yet mature smile.

"We just finished a really hard workout session at Jules place and he gave us these coupons," Jaune said as he showed the slip of paper.

"Here's mine!" Ruby followed up.

The young woman took them from their hands, and not looking particularly happy when she said, "Just when I thought these damn coupons were gone for good. That Jules…I should've put an expiration date on these things. Sigh…Very well, let's get this over with but I will only give you the standard course. No ifs or buts."

"That's okay," Jaune waved his hands in front of his face. Something told him that this lady was fiercer than she looked. So, she got no arguments from the blond.

"So, which one of you would like to be first?" Madam M raised an eyebrow as she looked over the two Hunters.

"Me!" Ruby raised her hand.

"Go ahead, I'll wait," Jaune said before he looked for a place to sit down.

"Make your way to the room in the back and wait. And you…" Madam M pointed her finger at the blond before she continued speaking, "If you try to peek, I will tear out your eyes out with my fan."

Jaune gulped before saying, "I would never!"

"Jaune isn't like that, he wouldn't do something like those characters in Blake's books!" Ruby came to his rescue knowing her friend.

"You never know darling. Men can be quite the treacherous snakes who only know how to look after themselves," The kimono wearing woman said with venom laced in her voice.

"I said he isn't like that!" The silver eyed petite continued to defend him.

Jaune smiled and felt happy that Ruby believed in him that much. Of course she was right, he would never peep, at least not on purpose. There was that one time where Nora hammered him through into the girls' shower room.

Shaking his head to brush of the memories, Jaune just waved at Ruby with a smile on his face and said, "Go head and enjoy the massage, I'll wait out here."

Ruby left the room and followed the woman who was pointing at where she should go.

Jaune breathed a sigh of relief and sat down on the leather couch. Nearby was a small table covered in a stack of magazines and newspapers that managed to catch his eye.

Grabbing the paper, Jaune's eyes widened upon reading the headline.

"Murder attempt on Shinra's President. Wutai and Avalanche forces suspected of being involved!"

The blond teen started reading the article. There was no actual evidence on the ones they claimed were responsible for the attempt on the Shinra President's life, the subtle mention of Wutai went unnoticed but most of the article focused on calling out the anti-Shinra group called Avalanche.

For months now, they have been causing a ruckus. Destroying Mako fuel stations, interfering with Shinra's militaristic operations, and trying to take down the Power Company in any way they could because of their 'delusional' beliefs that it's saving the planet.

Suddenly he was hearing groaning voices coming from the room in the back. It was Ruby, and she sounded like she was in pain. Jaune felt a sweat drop from his brow as he thought, "Was it really a massage parlor or was this torture house.

He felt sorry for the poor girl. However, a few seconds later, Ruby's groans turned into something more…erotic.

Jaune blushed profusely before crossing his legs and repeated, "Grandma, ice baths, and family…phew…"

The moment Jaune got ahold of himself, the parlor door opened, and a young woman walked in.

She looked to be in her early thirties with long brown hair, hazel eyes, and a pair of nice reading glasses. She was wearing a gray business suit with a skirt that stopped below the knees, black high heels, and grey stockings.

Everything from her expression, to her messy hair and rings under her eyes said that this woman was stressed out.

As she got seated next to the Arc, she gave out a long and disappointed sigh. Jaune looked over and saw that her eyes were zeroing in on to the paper was holding.

"You want it? I don't mind giving it up, I'm just finished reading it," Jaune asked as he held out the newspaper.

"No thank you. I don't want to read that garbage…Stupid Shinra lap dogs," The woman nearly growled.

The blond didn't know what to say, other than that she has quite the temper.

"Forgive me, I didn't mean to act so rude. My name is Emma. I USED to be a journalist for the Midgar paper, the Planet Star."

Jaune gazed at the newspaper, and low and behold, it had the same logo and title of her previous place of employment.

"Okay, I guess that makes sense, and it certainly explains why she sound so upset. I'm sure seeing, would set off any one who USED to work for them," Jaune thought as he held out his hand.

"Nice to meet you Emma, I'm Jaune. You must've really hated your work place…oops…sorry about that, was that insensitive of me?"

"Relax blondie. It's my Former work place. I quit. I was so sick and tired of their biased bullshit," Emma responded with a stern expression.

"That sure explains a lot but not her temper and attitude. It will be understandable if she got fired, but according to her, she quit. Usually that makes a person happier than angry. I wonder what was this of biased B.S. she mentioned is," Jaune thought to himself.

"Journalists are supposed to seek the truth and be the voice of reason for the people. Not the opposite. You read the head line, right?" Emma asked.

"Uh…yeah. You're talking about the attempted murder of the Shinra Company's President, right?" Jaune replied as he sat back in the couch cushions, letting some of that muscle fatigue he was felling lessen.

"It's all lies made up by the paper to stir the people into a state of fear and vulnerability. They always have to make Shinra out to be the good guys, and of course, any chance they can get, they'll point fingers at the only threat available, Avalanche."

The Arc gave a nod while thinking, "At least that explains why she quit."

The Shinra Power Company basically founded Midgar. It wasn't exactly rocket science, Shinra obviously hold more power than the Mayor, or any news outlet for that matter.

The people will take their side in a heartbeat since Shinra has lulled the public to sleep with comfortable living conditions, electricity, and modern appliances.

So in the end, any information the news outlets publish on subject concerning Shinra will end up in support of the company.

"Guess it is biased information or B.S," Jaune smirked.

"Don't get me wrong I don't support Avalanche. I just want to hear the other side of the story and not the same spiel my publisher tells me to write. It's repetitive, dishonest, and annoying. Being on Shinra's leash will never bring the truth, and so I left. The funny part is, they didn't feel sorry for me because they've already had a replacement lined up; just another brainwashed fool that will continue kissing their asses."

"If you want to hear the other side of the story, maybe you should make your own paper outlet."

Emma stood staring at him in shock before she chuckled and said, "You know what? That doesn't sound like such a bad idea. However, it's nearly impossible. First thing I will need a is huge amount of income, and since I don't see that happening any time soon, it won't do me much to start thinking of my own paper…especially since I'm now unemployed. Even if I did have the start up money my own paper, it will fail on the first day. Shinra's influence on the people, it's just too strong. They'll believe anything they say and the media will back them up on it. Though, I am curious to know more about Avalanche."

"What would you like to know?" Jaune asked, full of curiosity.

"Well…for starters, what's their objective? The paper, Shinra, and the people claim that they're nothing but terrorists that want to harm our city by any means necessary."

"Really? That doesn't really line up with what I've heard about the group. Didn't they claim that their Eco Terrorist or something?" Jaune lifted a brow.

"I know what you mean, even I've heard those same words in rumors. Some say they're eco heroes who want to save the planet, because according to them Shinra is destroying it. But then again, they're just rumors, possibly theories nothing more. I need solid evidence if I want to get to the truth."

Jaune gave another nod while thinking, "Looks like she had a lot on her mind."

"But anyway I'm still upset about quitting my job. I thought maybe a massage will help me relax and get better, that's why I came here."

"You know what? I think you need this more than me," the blond said as he gave her the coupon.

Jaune then stood up and cracked his neck and limbs before he said, "It's a free massage coupon, Madam M the owner of the parlor says she will only give the standard treatment."

"A coupon for a free massage, here? I'll take it! But are you sure you should be giving me this?" Emma asked with a worried expression.

"I'll be fine," Jaune waved his hand. Clearly his kind nature got the better of him again, because as much as he doesn't want to admit it, he does need a massage.

The poor teenager's body was still aching from pushing his Aura and body to the limits during that workout at Jules gym.

Jaune then mulled it over and smiled, "Here, take this too."

Emma's eyes nearly popped out when she saw the 10,000Gil, "Huh? What?"

"You said you needed seed money to start up a news outlet. Well…I'm investing," Jaune continued to smile gently at the news reporter.

"I can't accept that!" Emma wanted to refute.

"Emma, please. I'll have you know, reading the newspapers is one of my biggest hobbies. It'd be a real shame if I couldn't read the truth instead of the biased B.S the other outlets are printing. Besides, grassroots movements are important, especially when it comes to the truth. You may think no one would read or buy, but I promise you, I'll be one of them, and if that won't make you take my money, just know that I'm supporting a cause I believe in."

Tears filled the journalist's eyes as she gave Jaune a hug before wiping away the waterworks.

"You're a lifesaver Jaune, I…thank you, I'll do my best to make sure only the truth gets published," the journalists smiled.

Around the same time, Ruby arrived with a smile on her face too. Madam M was behind her with a confident smirk on her face.

"You okay?" Jaune asked.

"Heck yeah, I'm in tip top shape now. In fact, I feel like I can take on an army of monsters."

"Then I guess it's time to go," Jaune said as he stretched again.

"Wait, aren't you going to get a massage?" Ruby asked with a puzzled expression.

"Nah, I gave the coupon to someone who deserves it more," Jaune smiled while gazing at Emma who was currently leaving alongside the woman in the kimono.

"You gave it up? But isn't your body in pain?" the silver eyed petite took on a worried expression.

"Nah, my Aura's already recovering. I've been boosting myself the entire time we waited. Another half hour or so, I'll be fit as a fiddle. Now, let's head out to our next destination, the armor shop. We're buying those clothes that can equip Materia. After that we'll drop by the item shop to buy more Materia."

"Yeah! And then the Weapon Shop, right?" the petite was really hyped.

"And then the weapons shop," Jaune nodded his head as Ruby gave him a hug and squealed.

"Ow…ow…ow, still sore, Rubes," Jaune cried out as Ruby let go.

"Sorry,"

As they were about to leave Jaune has suddenly tripped.

The pain in his body is worse than he thought, so it was perfectly natural that he'd lose his balance at some point. However, he never got the chance to hit the ground since Ruby caught him just in nick of time.

The red cloak girl smiled at him before he suddenly blushed and looked away.

"Damn, I must look like a complete idiot right now," Jaune thought to himself, but for some reason, he didn't seem to mind being in this situation.

"Let's walk there together. You know something, Jaune? I'm glad you gave that lady your coupon. It was very sweet of you. I think I love that part of your best."

Her compliment only made him blushed even more.


The teenagers were closer to the item shop than they were the armory, so they decided to buy the Materia first.

They had enough Gil saved up to buy a couple new useful Materia for setting on their new outfits.

Jaune bought the following Materia for himself, barrier, revival, parry, steadfast block, and cleansing.

For Ruby, she picked enemy skill, luck up, deadly dodge, binding, and steal. They will also be adding their dormant summon Materia to their weaponry.

Just to be extra prepared, the Arc decided to buy some extras items like potions and hi-potions. They made their payment and left the building before they walked to their next destination.

Once they arrived at the armor shop, both teenagers checked their wallets to make sure they had enough Gil to buy the outfits.

They both gave a satisfied nod and entered the shop. The Hunters started looking around until they found the perfect set of clothing to purchase.

After buying them, they went to the changing room and removed their old attires from Remnant, giving a final goodbye as they folded them neatly.

They will miss them, but new world means new clothes, and they also needed them for the Materia.

Jaune was wearing a fitting, sleeveless, split-tailed, hooded trench coat that flowed down to the back of his knees. The coat was pale white on the outside and ruby red on this inside. Under the trench coat, he wore a blue long sleeve tight and flexible turtleneck shirt that fit like a second skin.

He kept the chest piece, pauldrons, and arm pieces but now had long black pants, a Viking-style heavy wide belt with two belt loops on them and Pyrrha's sash underneath it.

The belt had small rectangular buttoned bags stitched into the sides that were big enough to fit potions and a few other items in.

Lastly, he put on a nice pair long black boots that had a buckle with a Materia Slot in it and stepped outside.

There were secret areas in the clothes to equip the Materia. Jaune's were along the belt, boots, and wrists of the trench coat.

Now he was ready to kick some monster butt. Although he still bore some resemblance to a knight from the fairy tales his mother used to tell him, Jaune looked a bit more like a professional that belonged in this world.

Ruby wasn't done yet so he chose to wait for her outside. While he stood next to the changing room stall, a few other people in the store gave Jaune some funny looks, and although he felt like he was imagining it, he saw few ladies ogling his body.

It didn't take her too long. When the silver eyed petite emerged from the changing rooms, stepping forward to meet the blond, she smiled and gave a little twirl.

Blue eyes widened at her new attire. She was still wearing her red cloak and hood because she's Ruby Rose and the Arc knows how much it means to her. Other than that, she wore a black choker, black short sleeve leather vest with also a zipper all the way up, but unlike the blond, she was showing her belly. After that, he saw that she wore some red shorts that stopped about half a foot or so above her knees, black boots, black fishnet stockings, and elbow long red leather gloves.

A Materia was equipped on each of the gloves, belt buckle, and choker.

Jaune stood dumbfounded. First, he has never seen the petite's belly and stomach. Second, he has never seen her wearing shorts. It was always skirts, or 'combat skirts' as she calls them. Third, he was realizing that she has a nice figure, nice legs, and those thighs.

The black vest she was wearing made her bust noticeable. They weren't that big or small just the perfect balance size.

It the occurred to him that the blond that the reaper has a curvy body, and seeing her like this made him blush like red lamp lighting up.

The knight's heart started beating faster and faster. He knew Ruby was pretty, but this new outfit, it truly shows off her sexy side.

A part of him felt the intense desire to check out her her butt. Jaune wondered if it was a nice size, not too big and bubbly, but just enough to hold on to.

The blond knight's face only got redder as he thought, "Why the hell am I thinking such things?"

He couldn't help if the petite has a hot body. Puberty has been good to her. She's strong, beautiful, quirky, caring, and clever to boot. What else could he ask for?"

"Get a grip Jaune! AND GET YOUR MIND OUT OF THE GUTTER!" Jaune shouted mentally.

"So, what do you think?" the eagerly girl turned around so he can take a better look.

Jaune's eyes definitely looked at her perky ass before he shook his head and gave a thumb's up while saying, "It's great. You look ready for action,"

"What kind of action? Argh! Shut up pervert side!" Jaune ran his hands through his hair.

"Jaune you okay?" the girl got closer noticing he has spaced out.

"Yeah, better than okay! You look hoaaa…really good," he gasped at what he was going to say before blushing again and thinking, "You almost called Ruby hot! You idiot!"

"Thanks Jaune, you're outfit looks nice too. I see you kept the armor pieces," Ruby eyed him up and down while feeling something fluttering inside her stomach.

"Yeah, I figured that since the metals came from Remnant, they might have unique properties in this world. I plan on asking a metallurgist to take a look at it. I'll add some slots to it later."

"Well then, I'd say we look ready to save the world. And I'm already feeling stronger thanks to the extra Materia we bought."

"That's the idea. I guess that means we're done here, let's head back to Sector 5" the Arc was so glad he got rid of those impure thoughts.

"Wait, we have to check out the weapon shop first!" Ruby gushed as she grabbed him by the hand and dragged him out of the shop.

As they rushed across Wall Market, Jaune noticed her hips swaying with her jaunt and blushed before thinking, "And the impure thoughts are back."


As they made on their way back to Sector 5, they were able to test out their new Materia. They encountered a couple of monsters and defeated them with ease.

With Jaune's Aura pushing his body, he managed to cleave a Venomantis in half.

Ruby was even faster than before. Her body turned into rose petals before she reappeared next to several wererats and cleaved through them like a grim reaper collecting a debt.

Looks like the short training at Jules' place also did the trick. They were planning to come back every day and train their bodies in order to get stronger.

They couldn't just rely only on the Materia and Aura. They needed a stronger foundation to build off of.

Arriving at their home they spotted Aerith standing on the front porch, and boy she didn't look happy in the least. Both the petite reaper and the blond knight were shocked. It was the first time that they have seen the green eyed woman upset.

But why would she be angry? It's not like they have done something wrong. Or maybe she had a bad day with her business ventures. After all, selling flowers is no easy job according to Jaune.

She has always been such a sweet and caring person, so to see her like this was something quite unexpected.

"There you two are! Do you have any idea how late it is?!"

They stood speechless, seeing her upset was enough to send chills down their spine.

"Where were you?!"

"Wall Market, I told you before leaving" spoke Ruby.

"But you never said you were planning in spending the entire day there! That place is dangerous! You guys could have been hurt or worse. Well young lady care to explain yourself?"

"I..I..I….What's happening right now?" The red cloak girl didn't know what to say.

So here was Aerith acting like an over protective mother over her children. Since when, well she was their dear friend and she clearly sees them as their best friends.

"Well, you're planning on saying something?" Aerith's eyes drifted to the shaking Arc.

"I don't think this is necessary, really" replied the Arc while waving his hands out in front of him with a pale expression.

"You're not even going to stand up for her?!" Aerith huffed before a smile appeared around the corner of her lips.

Both Ruby and Jaune stood speechless when Aerith suddenly started laughing out loud, unable to contain her laughter any longer as she clenched her stomach.

Both Hunters felt sweat dropping from their brows.

"I'm sorry, I was kidding. You should have seen the look in your faces."

"That wasn't funny!" The petite reaper pouted at the florist.

"It was funny for me. Anyway I like your new clothes. I can see that you're equipping Materia on them."

Jaune nodded while sighing. They should be used to the brunette's teasing by now.

"So, what are you doing here, mom," Ruby shot back.

Aerith snorted before she said, "The reason I was here is because I was waiting for you guys. You have to come to my house with me."

"What for?" asked the blond.

"It's a surprise" Aerith smiled.


They followed Aerith to her house, and once they arrived, they realized that they would never get tired of the view.

It was even more beautiful at night than during the day. The florist was smiling the whole way to her porch.

She then looked back than giggled before she opened the front door to let them in.

Ruby and Jaune got quite the surprise when they entered. The moment they stepped through the threshold, their noses were invaded by a delicious scent.

The table had large portions of piping hot food on it. Elmyra stood waiting for them with a smile as she waved them over.

Looks like the prepared a surprise dinner for them. And it was a good thing because both teens were really hungry.

It wasn't until the moment they smelled the food that the realization of how hungry they were hit them.

They got seated before chowing down while talking to the mother and daughter of their adventure at Wall Market. It was a great moment for the Hunters of Gaia. They were having such a good time because it looked like they were a big happy family.

Afterwards the Arc and the reaper volunteered to pick all the plates and wash them. It was the least they can do to thank them.

They even helped with cleaning the kitchen, and they did a good job too. The table was so clean you could see your reflection in it.

Ruby and Jaune noticed shortly that Aerith was missing before Elmyra told them she wanted them to meet her outside.

Leaving the house, they didn't spot her right away. They started looking around and eventually saw her standing on the flower field near the beautiful wooden house.

It was really pretty this place at night. Ignoring all the scrap that was around, and the giant plate above them, it was still a wonder to look at.

Aerith was knelling by the amount of flowers, and looking ever so peaceful as she seemed to be chatting to the flowers.

It was definitely good for this place to be so far away from the rest of the slums. It was one of the only two places that has real green life in it. The old church was second.

"Were you talking to the flowers?" asked the red cloak girl.

"It's a habit I made up. Sometimes, I like to imagine they're listening to me."

"Are they?" followed the blond.

"No, but I wish it was true," Aerith chuckled.

"Elmyra said you wanted to talk to us" resumed the Arc.

"It's something that's been on my mind for a while. Ruby, when we first met you said something about ghost thingies, right?"

The petite along with the blond looked at each other. If Aerith believes their crazy story of being from another world, then why not tell her about those spirits as well.

"I think they're ghosts. They're wearing hoods, our attacks pass right through them, and they fly around in a really creepy way. They appeared when we were at the church and one time in my room when I woke up from a bad dream."

"They were also in our apartment," Jaune followed up.

"Twice, that's not a coincidence" the florist shook her head.

"Do you know what they are?" asked the silver eyed reaper.

"Whispers. They're like the arbiters of fate. They appear to those that are trying to alter destiny's course. They are connected to all the threads of time and space the planet's fate. Not many can see them unless they're part of fate's plan. It shouldn't be a surprise they will show up around you two."

"Have you seen them too?" asked the Arc.

"Yes, so many times I lost count," Aerith said with a sigh.

"Is it because you're an Ancient?" Ruby questioned.

"I think it's more than that. Everyone has a plan. Fate and destiny are connected, and everyone has a role in it, whether it's big or small."

The teens stood silent in deep thought. Hearing the word destiny Jaune remembers Pyrrha. She once asked him if he believes in destiny, and she died trying to protect them. Fate, it was a word he was beginning to hate.

Was it fate and destiny that he and Ruby died at the hands of Cinder; the same person that responsible for the death of the red head champion.

"So our deaths are part of this plan?" the blond didn't sound happy at all.

"I'm afraid so. No one can escape fate, you can try but you're only evading the inevitable. It's bound to catch up to you sooner or later."

Ruby remained silent not knowing what to say about the whole topic at hand.

However, she knew her blond friend was upset, and it was beginning to worry her. This whole thing about destiny and fate is a touchy subject for him. Since he lost Pyrrha because she thought that it was her destiny to die while protecting the world and her friends, it tore in to Jaune every time he heard that word.

"Well, you know what I think about destiny? I think it's all bullshit. I don't care if it was fate or destiny that Ruby and I are here. I just want to do what's right. Protect you and save this world, that's what we care about the most. It doesn't matter how long it will take us. I make my own destiny with MY choices," Jaune said as he crossed his arms and fumed.

Ruby nodded head before saying, "We have a debt to pay to your mom and the planet. If we were sent her because they believe we can make a difference, then let's not disappoint them. I'm with Jaune we'll do it together. Screw destiny!"

[Yang: That's what HE said!]

[Author: Yang? When'd you get her? Get back to your own story!]

Aerith stared at them with a serious expression before she smiled and giggled all of the sudden.

"What?"

"I just can't help it you two look so cute together."

"….…."

"You guys make such a cute couple!" she smiled.

Those words were ringing in Jaune's head as his face turned beet red.

Ruby's reaction was slower. At first, she didn't know what Aerith was suggesting but then it hit her. Her brain ticked away as she was able to connect the dots.

Suddenly, her cheeks turned red and she stared at Jaune before looking back at Aerith.

The brunette didn't sound like she was kidding.

"Do we make a cute couple?" Ruby questioned herself.

She never thought about it before. She has known the Arc for a bit over two years, and he is her closest friend ever.

"Sure, we get along pretty well, and were always together, but not together-together, and we also live together…" Ruby's face got even redder as she attempted to hide it behind her hood.

Aerith kept staring at the two with a smile on her features, things were sure getting embarrassing seeing their face turned red. She got up walking away from them.

"You guys should be heading back. It is getting late" Aerith walked back to the house, snickering under her breath.

Jaune and Ruby stood rooted to the ground for a minute before realizing they were alone. Without so much as saying a word or looking at each other, they went back to their apartment.

"Wow, this has got awkward, real fast," Jaune thought to himself.


To be continued