Knock Knock
A fully uniformized Pyrrha opened the door to her room, coming face-to-face with the blond member from their neighboring team.
"Yang? What is it?" She rubbed one of her eyes. "We were just about to leave for class."
"It's Ruby." Responded Yang straight away. "I had woken up earlier to be the first one to use the shower, and she wasn't in her bed. Have you guys seen her by any chance?"
"I don't think so?" Said Pyrrha. "Why, is something wrong?"
"Ugh, of course there's something wrong!" She exclaimed. "This isn't like her to disappear on a Monday just before classes. I have no idea where she could've gone to!"
That was odd, especially for RWBY's team leader. She was notorious for clinging to her bed until last minute according to her teammates. "Are you sure she didn't just go ahead to Oobleck's without you?"
"Not a chance." Yang gestured to her scroll. "We sent Weiss over to check and no sign of her there. She isn't nowhere to be seen, and classes are just about to start!"
"Alright, calm down." Pyrrha reassured. "Our schedule might be a bit tight, but we can help look around for Ruby."
Yang took deep breaths. "Yeah, thanks P-Money. Still, I'm having a serious talk with her about leaving unannounced. She owes me for making me lose the shower to Blake."
Pyrrha slightly grimaced at that response. Were they still using that nickname? "…I'm sure she'll turn up eventually."
"So, you guys leaving, or…"
"Hang on." Pyrrha turned back to her team. "How are we doing?"
"I'm ready!" Nora bounced off her bed fully dressed.
"So am I." Ren finished buttoning up his uniform. "Although, I cannot say same for…"
Everyone turned their attention to the farthest bed in the room, where Team JNPR's leader could be seen peacefully snoring under a heavy blanket from neck below.
That alone was also odd, considering how Jaune was often responsible for spearheading his team out of the room during mornings like these. But for whatever reason, he hasn't gotten up from his bed like the rest of them.
Nora took the initiative and brought forth a wooden spoon and a frying pan. She hopped right next to him and began to repeatedly slam those two things together.
"RISE AND SHINE, BUCKO! GET UP OR I'LL BE FORCED TO DRESS YOU UP TOO!"
Jaune's head shot up in an instant.
"I'm awake! I'm awake, I'm-!" He saw everyone already dressed, including Yang by the doorway. "Wait, what's going on?"
"I don't think we have much time to explain." Said Pyrrha as Nora tossed the spoon and pan away, causing a cat to screech offscreen. "Right now, we need you to get dressed before we all miss the first period."
"Oh! Got it!" Jaune made the effort to stand up from his bed, only to be pulled down by an unknown force. "What the…"
He tried once again, making no more progress than before. He felt as if there was some sort of weight tugging him down to his bed.
"Jaune, could you please hurry up?" Ren pleaded.
"I-I'm trying! It's just that I-!" He scoffed at another failed attempt. "Hold up."
Having grown inpatient, he grabbed on one end of his blanket and pulled it away to see what was weighing him down.
He immediately froze at his own discovery…
Clad in only her sleeveless PJs, Ruby cutely snored against Jaune's chest as drool dripped out of her mouth into the Pumpkin Pete stamp of his onesie. Her arms were tightly tied around his torso, binding the poor blonde to his bed.
Jaune's body had taken its sweet time registering her warmth upon waking up. And after he was done processing her presence in his own damn bed, he looked back to his friends. Namely to one older sister whose fiery red eyes spelled his funeral. The closed casket variety.
"Oh, look! We found Ruby!" Nora celebrated with raised arms. "Great team effort, everyone!"
Now you may be wondering what was that all about.
Before we get to that, we'll have to go back to the previous night, right when the spookiest season of the year was just on the horizon.
"Hey sis, what it'll be this year? I heard recyclables are the new fad." Yang snickered at her own joke, and surprisingly enough, so did her teammates.
Traitors. All of them.
Ruby stared at her Trash-Can costume stashed away at the back of their closet. That thing was a grim reminder of how her own sisters-at-arms screwed her over by picking the most embarrassing costume for Beacon's annual Halloween party last year.
And now that she looked at it, it wasn't even a costume. It was an actual trash-can hastily modified to serve as a costume, which only added more insult to injury.
Ruby proceeded to slam the closet shut before directing herself to the other girls in the room.
"Laugh all you want." She took a stand before their mutinous teammates. "Just so y'all know, I have been saving up for an actual costume this year. And unlike you lot, I won't be looking like trash this year… For my new costume shall blow any and all other costumes out of the water!"
"Uh, huh…" Yang didn't sound convinced. "And what exactly is this triumphant costume you speak of?"
"I…!" Their leader deflated. "Still haven't bought it."
The three girls for their turn simply exchanged looks.
"Ruby, listen." Spoke Blake. "If you are willing to behave yourself this time, we can all go shopping with you for a new costume."
"I agree." Concurred Weiss. "So long we don't have to put up with you making this year's Halloween all about yourself, we will be more than happy to accompany you."
"And what's even with the rush anyway?" Questioned Yang. "It's not even October yet."
"Not until tomorrow, it isn't it." Ruby corrected her. "Look, I appreciate you guys wanting to help, but I have to do this on my own. I want it to be a surprise for everyone."
"So be it then." Weiss finished putting on her sleeping gown. "For now, let's just focus on getting our studies up to date."
Yang huffed. "Oh c'mon Ice Queen, we're practically almost finished with our second year at Beacon. Your grades alone are so good you can fail all the finals and still pass with flying colors."
"Too bad the same can't be said for you." Blake quipped as she tied up her yukata. "Regardless of grades, we should make the most of our time in here. Now can we please get some rest? I rather not be late to Oobleck's class again because of another late hour discussion."
The whole team unanimously agreed with that notion and each went to their respective beds. Goodnights were bids and lights were off.
Up on her suspended bed, Ruby's mind continued to act up. She wanted next month to be special. Not only because it contained her favorite holiday of the year, but also because it so happened to be on the same day as her birthday.
Some would say that you would have to be extremely unlucky to have born on the same day as another holiday, as it would cause your own birthday to be overshadowed by a much more popular event. Not for Ruby Rose, alright. Halloween was her entire schtick, from how she dressed to how she fought.
And unlike last year, she would do her darndest to make the days towards her birthday count and have the most memorable Halloween of her entire life.
Her mind eventually turned into mush as she fell asleep. She happily snored as the minutes passed by on the digital clock on the small shelf below.
Everything went as normal until the clock registered midnight, October first. For it was around that time when her body began to jolt.
1st DAY.
Blake entered JNPR's room while nursing a small bump on her head. "Okay, which one of you jokers thought it was a good idea to hurl kitchen utensils at me- What the hell?"
The scene before her depicted one furious Yang Xiao Long shoving one helpless Jaune Arc against the wall, his teammates trying to pull the former away from their leader and one sleeping Ruby Rose on one of the beds, blissfully unaware of all the commotion going on.
"Finally shown your true colors, huh?!" Yang berated the boy in her hands, red eyes ablaze. "Dragging defenseless little girls to your bed in the middle of the night?! I'LL SHOW WHAT WE DO TO CREEPS LIKE YOU BACK HOME!"
Jaune squirmed as the wall behind him began to crack under her pressure. "I SWEAR, I WAS FRAMED! I'M VICTIM OF AN INSIDE JOB! GUYS, PLEASE HELP!"
"We're trying, but she won't budge!" Pyrrha shouted as they tried to pry her off of him. "Her Semblance is at full power!"
"I do not think it is even her Semblance at work here!" Ren mentioned.
"Nhhhhgggg!" Nora gritted her teeth, doing the most work at separating the two.
Blake promptly acted accordingly and called out for her partner. "Yang, what in the world are you doing?!"
"Blake?!" Yang's distracted response had given enough time for the members of JNPR to free Jaune from her arms. "Oof!"
Jaune fell to his knees, trying to regain his breath. "My life just flashed before my eyes… It was awful! And mostly boring."
Just when Yang was about to get another word and/or punch in, their resident Faunus grabbed her wrist. "Before you do anything you might regret, please explain why you are trying to get yourself convicted of aggravated assault this early in the morning."
Yang shook off her head with a scoff, causing her eyes to turn back to lilac.
"I found out what happened to Ruby this morning." She pointed at Jaune. "It was Vomit Boy all along. He somehow took Ruby and went to sleep with her in his bed!"
"And I'm telling you I had no idea she was in my bed until five minutes ago." Protested Jaune. "Wait, is this one of those strange nightmares where people hate me for no reason? Do I still have my pants on?!"
"Yes, you do." Ren assured.
"Oh, thank gods."
"None of us knew nothing about it either." Added Pyrrha. "And even if Jaune had tried anything like that, we would have known Ruby was with him."
"This still doesn't change the fact she was cuddling with him." Stated Yang. "Unless anyone can explain that, I'm reporting this to Miss G."
"Not if we report you first for trying to kill Jauney!" Nora threatened.
"Augh… What's with all the noise…"
The six of them turned to Ruby as she blinked with tired eyes.
"Uhm… What time is it?" She sat upright on Jaune's bed, growing more confused as she looked around. "Wait, this isn't my r- Why is everyone looking at me like that?"
Blake walked up next to her in an attempt to gain a second opinion. "Ruby, I know this is sudden, but do you remember going to sleep with Jaune last night?"
"Uh? Uh?! Wha-?!" The redhead looked to Jaune who was sitting next to the wall. "N-NO! No, I would never- I mean, he probably wouldn't want to, we're still just friends and all, and…"
Everyone just stared at her as she grew beet red.
"You get what I mean! I know nothing!"
"Really? Nothing?" Pressed Blake. "What was the last thing you remember from last night?"
"S-Same as you guys! We were discussing our plans for Halloween before going to sleep."
Yang turned back to JNPR. "See? She doesn't have any recollections of- Wait… What did you say?"
Ruby stared confused at her own sister. "Uh… I said we were discussing our plans for Halloween? For the party at the end of this month?"
"At the end of this…" Everyone witnessed as any semblance of anger seemed to dissipate from Yang. "Oh… Ooooooohhhhhhh…"
"What is now?" Pyrrha asked.
"…I think I understand what's going on." Said Yang, turning sheepish by the second.
"You do?" Blake severely questioned that.
And just as she intended to explain, her scroll vibrated. The blond read the message that was sent to her, wincing out loud.
"Sooo… Can we talk about this later? Weiss just texted me we're all late to Oobleck's seminar… And he wants to have a talk with us after class."
Everyone groaned.
Lunch period was awkward as it could ever be.
Neither of the present teams at the table uttered a word, as tensions were still high after morning's incident. With Weiss being the only one still left in the dark.
Then Jaune, brilliant as ever, decided to speak his mind.
"So… That Laguna guy kinda screwed up his attack plan, huh?"
"That wasn't… That wasn't even today's subject." Weiss deadpanned. "Okay, what is it with you people? What happened this morning that almost warranted us a detention this time?"
Yang swallowed. "Well, you see…"
"Ruby woke up in Jaune's bed and Yang shoved him against the wall."
"NORA!"
"What? I'm still waiting for your explanation."
"We all are." Nodded Blake. "You told us you knew the reason Ruby was found in his bed."
Weiss blinked. "I… Seriously didn't know what I was expecting. Why can't we go one day without you dunces making me reconsider my career options?"
"Alright, Yang. Spill it." Demanded Pyrrha. "What is it that you wanted to tell us?"
"Yang…" Ruby seemingly pleaded against it, even resorting to her sad puppy-eyes.
"I'm sorry sis, but I think it's about time we tell them." The older sister cleared her throat. "Ruby suffers from Noctambulism."
The younger sister in question covered her face as she laid her head on the table. "Yaaang… You promised you wouldn't tell them." She said, embarrassed to no end.
"Noctamb- Wait, Ruby is a sleep-walker?" Blake inquired.
"Pretty much." Shrugged Yang. "Ever since she was little, in fact."
"Really now?" Doubted Weiss. "We have been living under the same roof for almost two years, and not once have I seen her sleep-walking."
"Yeah, the thing is… A couple of years back we took her to the doctor, and the only conclusion we could come up at the time was this: For whatever reason, Ruby's Noctambulism only seems to affect her around the month of October. And today's October first, so it checks out. Heck, it happened so often that dad and I began to refer as 'Noctoberlism'. Eh?"
"Ughhhh…" Ruby continued to groan under her arms.
Weiss, defiant as she was, wasn't buying it. "I refuse to believe a licensed medical professional diagnosed her like that."
"We lived in an island, Weiss. We didn't exactly have much of a choice when it came to professional help."
"What about last year?" Blake asked again. "I don't remember seeing her do anything in her sleep."
"Oh, but I saw her alright." Said Yang. "I caught her repairing my gauntlets around four in the morning in our room. I even thanked her for that the next morning, despite her not having a clue."
"Wait, Ruby repairs weapons in her sleep?" Nora placed both hands on the table. "What else can she do?!"
"Basically, anything she can do while awake." Shrugged Yang. "Drawing schematics, trying out capes, ransacking the fridge for candy, you name it. She'd even fend off a Beowulf on our front yard this one time, it was awesome."
"Uh…" Jaune raised a finger, already regretting the attention he was getting. "Not to interrupt this unbelievably fascinating story, but, uh… I feel like we're glossing over an important detail, so…" He gulped. "Why was she in my bed?"
Ruby groaned some more.
Yang on the other hand was surprisingly chill. "Yeah, funny story. Back then, noctambulous-Ruby here would sometimes forget her way back and often climbed on someone else's bed. Mine's, dad's, Zwei's doghouse on occasion…"
Ruby wanted the floor to swallow her whole. She wanted a terrorist attack to strike the cafeteria if it only meant they could change the subject.
"Wait." Spoke Ren. "You mean to tell us you knew about your sister's condition all along, and instead of putting two and two together, you decided to strangle the life out of Jaune for no good reason?"
For the first time, Yang seemed to shrink into her own seat. "…W-Well, when you put it like that, it makes me sound stupid."
"Oh, I sure wonder why that is." Weiss remarked sarcastically.
"Er… Actually." Jaune nervously spoke. "I guess it was my fault."
Everyone turned to him, including Yang who now was slightly less chill.
"Jaune, what are you saying?" Questioned Pyrrha. "You couldn't have let Ruby sneak into your bed on purpose."
"Looking back now… I sorta did?" He offered. "I think it was around three AM. I loosely remember Ruby climbing onto my bed. I was dozed off my mind when it happened, so I had chalked that up as a random dream and went back to sleep."
Ruby continued to hide her face from everyone, though that didn't stop the red bits of her skin to appear through the cracks.
Ren fondled with his food. "That would explain why you woke up later than usual today."
"Still, didn't you think it was weird for her to show up unannounced to your bed?" Questioned Weiss.
"Eh… Not really?" Shrugged Jaune. "I had this happen to me all the time back home with my sisters. It's mostly second nature to me at this point."
"Aight, VB." Yang huffed. "Just this once, I'll give you a pass."
"I feel like I would've appreciated that a lot more a few hours ago, but thanks anyway."
"But why keep us in the dark?" Asked Pyrrha. "We have known one another for almost two years now. Why keep it a secret if it's something that can happen at any time?"
"Because it's embarrassing!" Ruby raised her head. "I don't want to be known as the girl who wanders the halls at night doing silly random things and creeping on others people's beds! This is supposed to be my favorite month of the year!"
She slammed her head back on the table, sobbing for all it was worth.
"So…" Spoke Blake. "Do we have to worry about Ruby showing up in our beds for the remaining of the month?"
"Nah, we're good." Responded Yang. "This usually only happens like, once or twice a year."
"So we only have to worry about restocking fridge in the communal area?" Weiss said.
"Hey!" Ruby shouted.
"Something like that." Affirmed Yang. "But rest assured, we're safe from now on."
2nd DAY.
The morning sun of Tuesday shined through JNPR's window.
With the help of the alarm clock in his scroll, Jaune was thankfully the first to be awake this time around.
Turning the intentionally annoying beeping sound off, the blonde was just about to reward himself with a nice and good stretch.
"Egh!" Soon enough, he found out one of his arms had been bound to the bed. He immediately checked it by removing the blanket, and lo and behold, Ruby was hugging his arm. "Ah- Again?"
Well, crud. Now what was he supposed to do here? The rest of RWBY would eventually realize they were short on a team leader and come knocking any minute now.
Jaune was very close to freaking out right there… If it wasn't for the girl snuggling on his arm. The sound of her cute snoring voice breathing into his sleeved arm, her disheveled dark hair with red tips, the ever-present scent of strawberry, the smooth pale skin of her admittedly adorable face, her shiny silver-colored eyes staring into him-
Wait, her eyes?
The two team leaders stared at each other with wide-open eyes, unable to move an inch out of shock.
"…Do you wanna talk about this?" He whispered.
Ruby took her time to respond. "…Do you?"
Then the door started knocking, waking the rest of JNPR.
""Uh, oh."" The two uttered.
Morning's breakfast today was mostly marked by Yang staring at her fellow blonde across the table.
Pyrrha on the other hand wasn't having it. "You said it wouldn't happen again."
"I said it usually happens once or twice." Yang huffed.
"And considering there's about 12,5% chance she would pick his bed between our two rooms, the odds of that happening twice in a row are significantly lower." Blake elaborated.
"That's correct." Agreed Weiss. "And your team assured us your room's door would be locked this time. There's no way Ruby could have unlocked it on her own, let alone while sleepwalking."
"Uhh…" Ruby twiddled with her fingers. "I may or may not have reversed engineered the lock system of our doors a couple of times. You know, for emergency purposes."
That left both teams scratching their heads.
Ren harumphed. "Whatever it is, this should be the last time this happens, right?"
"Oh, it better be." Said Yang. "For your sake, of course."
Jaune trembled. "Please stop staring at me like that, I get scared easily."
3rd DAY.
Fool me twice, shame on me.
Is what Jaune used to hear. Which is why he had prepared himself that day.
Even after what Yang said, he still had some doubts regarding Ruby and her dubious path-finding.
So the previous night, he came up with an idea with his team to switch out their beds for the night. That way, if Ruby did invade their room again while in her noctambulous state, she wouldn't end up climbing onto the same bed as his.
In the end, he had switched out beds with Nora, since she was the least likely to earn the wrath of the older sister.
Pyrrha even suggested that Jaune shared the bed with someone else to avoid Ruby climbing in as well, and even offered herself for the task. Now, Jaune did appreciate that she was willing to take one for the team, but he already had it covered.
So when morning arrived, he was definitely sure he'd be alone this time-
"Ehm… Did the window change places?" A feminine voice mumbled next to him. "Why is it so sunny here?"
Oh, c'mon!
"Ruby?"
"Kyaah!" She squirmed at the sound of his voice, falling from his (Nora's) bed.
"So-Sorry! I didn't mean to scary you, I-"
Sister instincts must've kicked in, as the door was kicked open by Yang herself, who took in the scene before her. Much to Jaune's misfortune.
Fool me three times, you're officially that guy.
Jaune's joints ached with pain as he sat down for lunch. Out of all days to have Ms. Goodwitch's class, it had to be this one.
"Did you really have to be so rough with Jaune during combat class?" Pyrrha lectured.
"He should've thought of that before being so rough with my sister to begin with." Yang responded.
"PH-PHRASING?!" Weiss blurted.
"Ughnnn…" Mumbled Ruby, mortified as ever.
"Well then." Ren sat down. "What should we do now?"
"Yeah, what happened to the 'once or twice' rule?" Nora inquired.
"Hell if I know." Yang threw her hands. "This is the first time I hear about Ruby going on a three-day streak sleepwalk. If anything, I'm fairly certain someone is pulling the strings here and somehow leading her into his own bed."
"I'm sorry, did you say anything?!" Exclaimed Jaune. "I think I got discombobulated from that roundhouse you did to my head!"
"Have any of you considered doing anything about it?" Pyrrha suggested to the other team. "You know, like preventing Ruby from wandering out of your room?"
"Yeah!" Said Nora. "Just grab her by the shoulders and shake her like a baby!"
"Oh, no. That's completely out of the question." Protested Yang. "One should never, ever disrupt someone who's sleepwalking."
"Not only can it be detrimental to her health, it can cause serious side-effects to her metabolism." Blake added.
"Maybe we are being a bit hasty with our assumptions here." Said Ren. "Let us give it some time before we act on anything."
Lunch continued as normal as always. They still had the whole month to figure that out.
5th DAY.
Ren treaded into the communal kitchen way past curfew.
After enough complaints from his friends about his deadly concoctions- er… Nutritional shakes, he started to store his creations in someplace where the smell wouldn't bother anyone with lungs as weak as his teammates.
Seriously, what was wrong with dilapidated moss mixed along with three different species of venomous fungi found in the Emerald Forest? Excuse him if nature didn't literally smell like flowers.
After he took a passionate sip from his cannister, he closed off the fridge only to came across Ruby behind the door.
"…Hello, Ruby." He barely flinched at her sudden apparition. Her eyes were half-closed, and the silver in them looked null and void, a far cry from how shiny they looked during the day.
The redhead did not greet back and instead walked past him. She moved around the counter as she headed for the supply cabinets.
'Noctambulism.' He concluded. 'This must be where she goes to every night.'
He made sure to stay clear from her, as it would be extremely unwise to disturb her in that state.
That was until Ren saw the girl hopping in place, with her arm extended trying to reach a sieve on top of the cabinets.
Blinking at the scene, the kimono-wearing boy carefully approached and reached out for the kitchen utensil and handed it to Ruby.
"Thank you…" She practically whispered, her voice sounding devoid of spirit.
The small leader walked with the sieve in hands towards the sink, where she then… Began to try filling it with water…
Slightly appalled by that fruitless action, Ren just decided to go back to his room. "See you in a few minutes." He whispered, knowing full well she was about to join them soon.
8th DAY.
More days passed as Ruby continued to show up on the same bed as Jaune no matter what, despite JNPR having reported switching beds every night to prevent that.
As such, it was up to RWBY to personally investigate these occurrences to determine what exactly was drawing the young reaper to the room across the hallway.
But since they had plenty of schoolwork that week, they drew straws to see who would accompany their leader tonight.
Incidentally, Blake cursed herself for having drawn the shortest one.
Making the switch from tea to coffee hadn't been pleasant in the slightest, but it was the only way she would make past her sleeping schedule.
"On second thought, can't we just tie her to the bed instead?" Blake grumpily suggested.
"How would you even know how to tie someone to a bed?" Inquired Weiss. "You know what? Forget I asked."
Ruby was obviously against it. "Ew. No way! I don't wanna be part of your filthy fantasies!"
The Faunus rolled her eyes as she downed her thermos filled with warm coffee. Bitter, just like her mood.
"C'mon, Blake. It's very simple." Said Yang. "All you have to do is follow her around and take notes. Find out how VB's luring her in."
"And why are you so certain Jaune is even responsible for all this?" She asked back.
"Look, if he really isn't, then I'll get of his hair, okay? But if I find out he's taking advantage of her in that state, then I'll have to force my hand."
"Ugh! Can you stop trying to incriminate Jaune?" Ruby complained while getting on her bed. "It's not even that weird anymore. His entire team kinda already got used to it. There's nothing going on."
"We'll see about that." Yang retorted as she climbed on her equally unstable bed as well.
And while she appreciated JNPR for having accommodated to the new changes, such as having her sister's ironed uniform and other essentials ready by morning, there was still the main issue at hand.
Ruby's sleepwalking has lasted for over a week straight. If Yang couldn't figure it out what's causing this strange persistence, then who knows for how long it would last?
"Alright, Blake." Yang put her sheets on. "You're up."
The Faunus made a disgruntled sound for confirmation.
Blake squinted her eyes as she used her night vision to read the pages of her novel, which totally didn't contain people tied to beds, thank you very much.
That proved to give her a slight headache, as she was more used to a candlestick after all. The only source of light in the room was the digital clock that had just ticked past '2 AM'.
Looking to the top of her neighboring bunkbed, she saw as Ruby continued to snore with a sleeping mask over her eyes and a dangling arm hanging from the side.
She sighed. 'I guess it was only matter of time.'
Satisfied with her job, she was intending to call it a night when she overheard rustling to her right.
The zombie-form her leader graciously dropped from her bed. Blake watched as Ruby picked up her scroll from the desk next to the door and waltzed barefooted into the hallway.
Blake promptly picked her scroll on her way out too. Yang wanted this documented, so document she will.
2:11;
Rearranging all cleaning products in the janitor's closet in alphabetical order;
2:35;
Sharpening the tools from the forge;
2:49;
Collecting a bowl of chestnuts from the communal kitchen;
3:10;
Feeding the squirrels at the campus;
3:28;
Feeding the chickens at Beacon's farm;
3:40;
Feeding Port's caged Boarbatusk;
3:50;
Retrieving the bowl to the kitchen;
3:51;
Shoving a cookie down an empty cup of glass;
3:52;
Drinking the crumbles;
3:59;
Blake continued to trail after her leader while being really careful to not get in her way. She typed the exact hour in her scroll when they reached their final stop: The hallway in-between hers and JNPR's rooms.
Ruby, in all her unconscious consciousness, turned without hesitation to JNPR's room. With her scroll and a bobby-pin she pulled from her hair, she inserted the pin into the keyway while using her scroll to mess with the sensor in some way. After some raking on her part, the electronic lock let out a small beep as it granted the intruder free access to the room.
Her teammate witnessed as Ruby simply turned the handle and strolled right in, gently closing the door afterwards. Blake then looked down to the notes on her scroll. With the caffeine in her system long gone, so she opted to keep it brief.
Entered JNPR's;
10th DAY.
Having put their intel gathering operations on hold, both teams moved on to other business, like getting Ruby to stop going to Jaune's bed every night.
Yang theorized that maybe if they succeeded in doing so, it would break her sleepwalking cycle. The catch here was achieving that without direct intervention to her in that state. So for plan A, they collective settled for Jaune switching rooms entirely.
Convincing Goodwitch of lending a spare room due to 'health-related problems' had been hard to explain, but turns out professors do take bribes in the form of old books from Blake's stash.
So naturally, there Jaune was: Waking up in the only bed in a nearly empty room on the other side of the dorm wing.
He threw a heavy sigh, knowing full well he would have to trek all the way back to his dorm just to get his stuff for later classes. But hey, at least he could take a five-minute nap and no one was there to scold him about it!
"Uhmm… Five more minutes please." His blanket said.
…Well, someone clearly beat him to it.
"Hi, Ruby…" He said in his drowsy voice as he uncovered his friend.
She squirmed at the sudden light, looking up to him.
"O-Oh! Uhh…" She searched for the words. "…I must've wandered out again, huh?"
"You think?" He let out a small chuckle.
She then looked around the premises. "…Where's everyone else?"
"Oh, right. We haven't told you about that. Your team came on to us saying I should switch rooms for the night." He chuckled again. "Nothing must get past you, I see."
"Ughh." She groaned against his chest. "I'm sorry."
"Hm? What for?" Jaune asked.
"It's only because of me that you're going through this." She spoke to his onesie. "If only you didn't have to put up with my stupid somnambulism…"
"Actually, I have someone in the family with kind of the same issue as you."
"Really?" Ruby sniffed as she looked up to him. "Is it one of your sisters?"
"Coral." He responded. "Though she doesn't walk around the place like you do, she tends to say some weirds things in her sleep. I would know since she insisted on bunking with me a dozen times."
"Weird as in…?"
"Not as weird as Blake's choice of hobby, but pretty close. I swore as an Arc that I'd take most of what she said to the grave." He made a zipping-mouth gesture.
"You're a good brother." She stated with a comforting smile. "I can totally say that from experience."
"I- I try my best." Jaune looked bashful in response. "But like I was saying, you have nothing to sweat about it. We're all willing to support you to the best we can. And besides, it'll only last until Halloween, right?"
"Yeah, probably. Thanks, Jaune." She looked down to the bed. "Say, uh… I just realized something."
"What is it?"
"We're alone in a room… On the same bed."
"…Oh."
Neither of them said anything, afraid to acknowledge how physically close they were.
"So… Five more minutes?" He suggested.
Ruby laid her head on the corner of his pillow. "Don't mind if I do."
They both missed the first period.
12th DAY.
2:30;
Rearranging the DVD cabinet from the recreational room by color;
2:43;
Picking her weapon from the locker-room;
2:57;
Mowing the lawn with her scythe;
Wearing her nightgown, Weiss typed her latest annotation in her scroll while sitting on a bench in the middle of Beacon's campus, watching as her leader did her thing.
Why did she have to lose Rock-Paper-Scissors against Yang? Why couldn't they send Blake again? Wasn't she best suited for this?
Alas, the smell of cut grass permeated the air as her noctambulous leader danced around with Crescent Rose. Not nearly as gracious compared to when she was awake, but it was a scene to behold.
She recalled back when the gang found the two leaders after they missed out on Goodwitch's class. They were sleeping together in that room they had rented for the intended purpose of specifically avoiding that. The only thing Yang took out of that was just a bunch of pictures of them, later saying boisterous things to Ruby that made her red as her cloak. It was weird how Yang tended to switch from protective to teasing just like that. It was as annoying as it was inconsistent.
Nevertheless, all they needed was to find a pattern to Ruby's sleepwalking behavior and put a stop to it before it caused them further problems, like-
Weiss was spooked by the sound of slashing metal from where Ruby stood, where a small geyser of water spurred form the grass field. It looked as though she cut off a sprinkler with her scythe.
So much for avoiding getting in trouble. Weiss propped up her scroll and proceeded with the annotations. "Three and five in the morning…"
15th DAY.
Seeing how the dorms were off the table, they have decided that the next logical step should be roof of the building.
So for that, Jaune arranged a camping tent that was usually reserved for extended missions on the field. It was the only way he could afford to spend the night up there alone.
Fortunately, he wouldn't have to worry about the alone part.
"The roof? Really?" Ruby said as she held a mug of warm cocoa that had been kept on a thermos.
"Again, your team's idea." Jaune drank from his as well. Good thing he brought a spare mug. "We really got to stop meeting up like this."
"…You mean it?" She tilted her head at him.
"Uh- No, like." He coughed. "Not that I think there's anything inherently wrong in seeing you every morning. It's just that, well- you know. I don't wanna make you or your team feel uncomfortable because of me, like…"
"Dude, we've been over this." She shrugged. "I really don't mind. Honest. If anything, I feel a lot safer waking up with you than waking up at a stranger's room."
"Gee, thanks for saying you trust me more than a random stranger."
"That wasn't what I meant-!" She huffed. "Like, look at this tent. You chose the easiest one to slip in even for good ol' sleepy me."
"From what I've been told, I imagined you would know how to operate a zipper in your sleep."
"Then there's the extra mug, the spare sleeping bag-"
"Which you didn't even use."
"My point being that you genuinely care about my wellbeing."
"'If you fail to prepare, then you are prepared to fail.'" Jaune said matter-of-factly. "That's Basic Leadering 101."
"And I do care about you too. So much so I didn't even mention to Yang how you spooned me a couple of times."
"I did WHAT?!"
"Pfft! 'Jay-kay'. I'm pulling your leg here." It was actually her who spooned him. "Either way, I didn't expect to spend the month like this and have no qualms with it."
"Hear, hear…" Jaune stared at his empty mug. "Right, we should pack this all up and join our friends for breakfast. Better not repeat the incident from last time."
"Tell me about it. I think Yang sent that picture to dad as punishment for missing class." She winced at the thought. "He'll probably stop by Beacon when he gets the chance so he can personally meet you."
"Looking forward to it…" He quietly gulped. "Hopefully we'll figure out the reason you're following me to my bed soon enough."
"Heh, eh…" She averted her look. "By the way, are you free this Saturday?"
"I guess so? Why do you ask?"
18th DAY.
Pyrrha watched with restless eyes as Ruby yet again gently closed the door on her way in.
With nothing but the shattered moon in the night sky to light up the room, she observed as the sleepwalking girl walked precisely to where Jaune slept, whereas the boy just welcomed the intruder in his bed like aways.
Imagine pinning after a guy for so long, only for another person to unintentionally invite herself to his arms every night. To Pyrrha, it felt like some sort of divine retribution.
Be as it may, so long her leader was safe and happy, so was she. The fourth-time champion (Actually fifth-time since last Vytal) turned herself on her bed. They still had plenty ahead of them.
20th DAY.
Both leaders descended from the bullhead after arriving at the main city of Vale. They made sure to leave a note to their colleagues as they had left the Academy early in the morning (and the fact that they had awaked in the same room made it all easier for them to head out together, but that's beside the point).
They soon found themselves in the shopping district a few quarters from the landing zone, where all sorts of Halloween trinkets were on display.
…Along with other stores that for some reason were showcasing a bunch of non-descript Winter holiday stuff. That was an afront to everything Ruby stood for, but this was not the time to protest against corporate consumerism. She was out there on a mission!
"So, you needed my help picking a Halloween costume?" Asked the boy who accompanied her.
"Yup!" She affirmed. "I got so distracted with this whole sleepwalking business I had forgotten to buy one for my birthday party."
"Don't you mean for the school's Halloween party?"
"Semantics!" She retorted. "And since I plan on making a huge surprise for everyone, I have to pick the perfect costume."
"Preferably one where you can't be tipped over?"
"Ugh, do you all have to keep reminding of that?"
"Well, you were taking everyone's candy left and right, kept saying the whole thing was all about you, tried to extort the girls out of a free costume…" He listed on his fingers. "So yeah! You were kinda being a brat. Serves you right."
"Listen, in my defense, I was still young and immature."
"It was last year!"
"Which is why I'm planning to make a comeback." She said doing a determined pose. "What about you? What are you coming dressed as?"
"Me? I was thinking of reprising my role as the HuntsMan."
"Jaune, your HuntsMan costume is nothing but a mask and my cloak." She emphasized. "And before you ask, no! I'm not lending it to you after you took it without asking last time!"
"Not even if I say please…?" He pleaded.
"Nope!" Overruled. "It's settled! We're getting you a new costume as well."
Weeping all the way through, Jaune followed Ruby into Ms. Adel's clothing department.
"How about this one?" Jaune held a vampire costume by the hanger.
"Hmmmm, not feeling it." She shook her head. "Kinda overused."
"Uhmm…" He picked a werewolf one. "This one?"
"Too itchy."
"How about this ghost one?"
"Jaune, that's literally just a white sheet."
He then picked a little-red-riding-hood costume. "What do you think of this?"
"…Bro."
"Yeah, my bad." He put the costume back with the others. "Well, at least I already picked mine."
"Out of all things you could've picked, you chose the Great-War peasant." Ruby questioned his costume choice. "You know you could've been a knight, a squire or even a knave, right?"
"Eh, I think it's very charming. And it doesn't stand out too much." He snickered. "I would probably be wearing one of these had I stuck around at my parent's farm, living my days as a harmless farm boy."
"Take your mind out of the gutter, compost king. We still have my costume to look around for."
"Well, we've been here for nearly an hour. What exactly are you looking for?"
"Ehh… Hard to say now." Ruby scratched her cheek. "I want something scary, but not morbidly scary. Something funny, but nothing too ridiculous. Something provocative, but I don't want Yang to ground me 'til I'm thirty."
The blonde shoved both hands in his pockets. "Well, that's a tough nut to crack. Maybe we could try looking around a different store…" He stopped his line of thinking when something caught his eye.
"What? What is it now?"
"Say, Rubes… How do you feel about being a Witch?"
"Really? I already told you I'm not dressing as a generic pointy-hatted Witch."
He rubbed the back of his head. "Well… Not the kind of Witch I was talking about."
22th DAY.
"I cannot believe it has come to this." Weiss expressed her utter disbelief.
Their Plan C for Jaune switching rooms was the most blatant by far: Having Jaune sleeping in Ruby's bed without her knowledge.
"Hard to believe Ruby agreed to sleep alone at that room we rented from Goodwitch, but it's not like we have many options left." Blake added. "Still, don't you think this is a little on the nose? What's stopping her from checking out this room while searching for him at night?"
"That's the point!" Exclaimed Yang. "It's so obvious that she would never think about it."
Jaune coughed. "That's a nice plan and all, but, uh…" He pointed at the suspended bunk. "Have you done any maintenance on this bed?"
"Of course we have." The other blond responded. "Well, we mostly just changed the ropes from last year, but it should still work as intended, eh?"
"I guess so…?"
"And better yet." She swung her hips as she approached the guy in his onesie, putting a finger to his chest. "I'll finally get to know how you're drawing my dear little-sister right towards your bed every night."
"You're still on about that?" Said Jaune. "I already said I got nothing to do with her coming to me every time I go to sleep."
"Really? You're not using some strange perfume to draw her in? Not some… I don't know, hypnotic gesture you did on her? Something like that?"
"You're reaching at this point." Blake said.
"Definitely." Weiss concurred.
"Aight! fine." Yang threw her hands in defeat, climbing onto her bunk. "But if Ruby comes out of that door and I see you doing some voodoo dumbassery to lure her in, we're having a chat in the morning."
Jaune blinked. "I'm sensing some distrust in here, do you feel like sharing something or…?"
"Good night!" She turned on her bed.
23th DAY.
Yang forced herself on her elbows as her room brightened up from the sun outside.
She had stayed awake until five AM, and not once had the door been touched upon. And as precaution for when Ruby slipped in their room after she already slept, Yang had placed one of Zwei's forgotten chew toys against the door to signify when someone would enter.
And as suspected, that piece of squeaking rubber remained untouched against the closed door. That could only mean one of two things: Either Ruby hasn't found Jaune while wandering the Academy at night, or… Jaune couldn't have done anything to get her to come to his bed under Yang's watch.
Either way, she hopped off her bed and marched towards the other bunk to proclaim her victory over the other blonde.
"Hey, would you look at that!" She poked the covers on that bed. "It seems someone hasn't got lucky last night. Care to explain that, lady-killer?"
"Uhgg, Yang… Can't we do this later?" That familiar high-pitched voice made her freeze.
"Eh-! Ruby?!"
"Uhh?" Jaune was awaken too. "What is- Oh, hey Ruby."
Ruby's eyes snapped open as she sat up, looking around the room.
"You guys for real?" She sounded indignant. "You let him sleep in my bed? Doesn't privacy mean anything to you people?!"
"You're one to talk." He yawned. "Huh, so this is what you must feel like waking up in my room."
"Shut up! Everyone just shut up for a second here." Yang scoffed. "How is this possible? I've been watching the door the whole night. There's no way this could've happened."
"Oh my gosh, do you have to do this now?!" Weiss complained from the lower bed, putting a pillow over her head.
Blake woke up shortly after. "See, this is why we were against this idea to begin… Why is the window open?"
Yang finally noticed the gust of wind coming through the wide-open window next to her. The five of them collective stared at it.
"…We're in the fifth floor." She said flatly.
25th DAY.
"Hey girls!" Saluted one Taiyang Xiao-Long by the entrance of the dorm building.
""Dad!"" The two half-sisters jumped on him with hugs-a-plenty.
"How's my favorite daughters in the whole world doing?"
"Aren't we your only daughters though?" Ruby asked.
"Semantics." He shrugged.
"By the way, how did you get the day off at Signal?" Asked Yang. "Everything alright in Patch?"
"All fine and dandy over there. I just got in contact with Oz a week ago. Figured I could use a break to spend the week celebrating my little girl's seventeenth birthday."
"Aw, thanks dad." She looked around him. "You didn't bring Zwei?"
"Well, I would've, but I had to leave someone behind to take care of uncle Qrow."
""Fair.""
"Now." He cleared his throat, directing himself to his youngest daughter. "Before we get to greeting your colleagues, I've been meaning to ask. Who is this Jaune-fellow I've heard you were sleeping around with?"
"D-Dad!" She exclaimed. "I don't know what Yang's been telling you, but it's nothing like-"
"Yeah, yeah. Relax I get it." He waved his hand. "Your 'Noctoberlism' is acting up again, I see."
"Pretty much, yeah." She rubbed her arm. "It's been causing us some trouble, but nothing we couldn't handle."
"Oh, I'm happy to see you're still in one piece, alright. But if you don't mind, I'd still like to have a little chat with this friend of yours. See if he's been treating you nice and all."
"Well, though luck for you!" Ruby crossed her arms. "'Cause him and his team volunteered to help out with the decoration for the Halloween party this year, and there's no way you'll be able to speak to him until then."
An explosion sounded off from inside the building. The fire-alarm beeped as a puff of smoke manifested itself across the ceiling.
From there, one apron-wearing Jaune Arc came running right at them. "Hey guys! Eh, fair warning, maybe don't go in the kitchen right now? Nora thought it was a good idea to pour a fistful of thermite to carve the pumpkins, and…"
His repertoire was interrupted the moment he sighted the much taller blond in cargo shorts.
"Oh, hello there! Just the guy I was looking for." Tai enveloped the boy's shoulders with his arm. "Come on now, son! I know just the perfect place to carry out a murder!"
"Don't you mean a conversation?"
"Potato potahto, kid." He led him away into the campus. "I'll just ask you a few questions and see how things go from there."
The girls watched as their dad took away Jaune, his pleads for help going unanswered.
"Say, sis. If he's going where I think he is, I don't think you'll be able to visit him tonight."
"YANG!"
27th DAY.
Nora sneaked into the communal-kitchen at late hours for some left-overs from her latest incident. She wasn't supposed to be here, mind you, not after she was banned for what she did. But if she wasn't going to eat all that pumpkin mush that she herself helped fabricate, no one else would.
And won't you know it, Ruby was already there. Sitting by the counter while eating a piece of Nora's patented pumpkin mush with her hands. Her mouth and pajamas were equally a mess of orange and green.
"Oh hey! Fancy seeing you here, girl." Nora said.
The noctambulous Ruby didn't respond.
"You know…" Nora pulled a chair and sat in front of her. "For all this talk about you sleepwalking all over the place, I never actually got to see you in action. Do tell, how is it like? Huh?"
"…" Ruby munched on the pumpkin remains rhythmically, not paying attention to Nora.
"I mean, I get it's all involuntary, but like, is there any thought process behind it all?"
"…"
"Or do you just seek to do silly little things for the sake of it?"
"…"
"Like, I get it might be fun to do it, but I mean... Is there an end goal to it?"
"…"
"…Do you enjoy the attention? Like, you enjoy seeing everyone's responses to it?"
"…"
"Like, is that all the motivation you need?"
"…"
"And you're afraid if you don't do it, they're not going to talk as much about you?"
"…"
"As in, if you're not responsible for something dumb happening every so often, they're just going to pretend you're not even there?"
"…"
"And everyone will simply shrug it off and forget about you…"
"…"
"So you just keep doing those things because you wanna be part of something…"
"…"
"Even if at the end of the day, they'll be like 'Oh look at that girl! She's at it again!' Or something of the genre…"
"…"
"So it all devolves into you being stuck in this cumbersome loop where your friends are the ones cleaning up your messes all the time…"
"…"
"And then you're afraid they'll get tired of your shenanigans and move on from you..."
"…"
"And when that happens, you'll be left all alone because you were too late to flesh yourself out…"
"…"
"…"
"…"
"…You're right. I most certainly can do better than this. For sure."
"…"
"No, really. I don't have to be afraid to burst out of my shell. I have you, the girls, Jaune, Pyrrha and Renny to back me up."
"…"
"Yeah, I can totally pick after myself! I can speak my mind about important things instead of just being the wise-cracking, fourth-wall breaking looney of the party."
"…"
"Wow… We should really have more talks like these. Thanks, partner."
"…"
"'Kay, I'll just leave you to your thing." She stood up. "I'll head back to my room. Be meeting you there? Trick question! I know you will. Bye~"
With the ginger happily leaving the stage, Ruby continued with her business and took another bite of her pumpkin mush.
"Nhom."
29th DAY.
2:47;
Organizing the boardgames at the library by size;
3:00;
Finish welding a sniper-scope to a sledgehammer at the forge;
3:26;
Update the CCTos at the main tower;
3:49;
It had been Yang's turn to watch over her sister's night-out.
So far, there wasn't anything out of the ordinary when it came to her nightly endeavors. But then there was this.
Yang observed as her younger sister put her muscle memory to good use as she picked the door to JNPR's. Her heart sunk lower and lower, seeing how Ruby was so intent in going in there.
When she finally got the door open, Yang instinctively reached out and held her by the shoulder.
The sleepwalking girl tried to shuffle away into the room, unaware of Yang's grip on her.
"Ruby…" Yang muttered. She was aware she was actively going against her own advice. If she kept that up, she would be risking her own sister's health. However, her own stubbornness was getting the better of her. "Please. Let's get you back to bed. Your bed. For real this time."
Ruby tried again and again to free herself, as if her own sister was nothing but a road bump to her final destination.
"Sis, I know you are obviously not thinking straight right now." She didn't back down. "I don't know what Jaune's been doing to you, so-"
"Jaune…"
The husky sound of her voice frightened Yang to the point of letting go of her.
Then as if nothing happened, Ruby walked inside JNPR's room and closed the door.
Whilst relieved to not have disturbed her as Yang was afraid to, she grew angry at herself for having let her own sister freely walk into the arms of Vomit Boy. Again.
"Don't go getting yourself all worked up now." Came the voice of her own dad behind her. "It's past your bedtime too, you know?"
She turned to Taiyang as he stood before her in the middle of the hallway. "How long you've been watching?"
"Oh, way longer than you think. Just like last year, I asked Ozpin to keep tabs on your sister during this time of year."
"Ozpin was in it too?"
"He was just doing me a favor." He explained. "And after receiving all these reports from him, I just thought I'd come and check with my own eyes."
She pointed at the door Ruby just went in. "And are you okay with this?"
"Admittedly I agree it's a bit strange. But c'mon, it's Ruby." He shrugged. "So long she isn't getting hurt, I don't see why not."
"No, yeah, I get it. It's just…" She mumbled something.
"What was that now?"
"Why him?"
"Yang?"
"I've always been there for her." She tsked. "And she almost always came to me during episodes like this. So why is she going after him all of the sudden? Am I not good enough anymore?"
"I believe we already know the answer to that." Taiyang said. "As much as I hate to admit it… She isn't a little girl anymore."
Yang sighed. "Look, I'm not jealous if it's what you're thinking. I'm just worried about her."
"And that's completely fine." He agreed. "Just don't let it cloud your judgement. I taught you better than that."
"Like you did with my anger, alright. Though, I'm surprised you didn't give Jaune the shovel-talk like you said you would."
"Eh, I'll save that for when they actually start dating. That, and because I left my trusty shovel back in Patch. Only have one shot at this and I'm not gonna waste it." He harrumphed. "Now to bed with you, we still have to work on your sister's surprise, remember?"
"No need to remind me." She strode to her room. They still had a few more preparations for the main event. "'Night, dad."
31th DAY.
And thus…The long-awaited night of Halloween finally arrived at Beacon.
To say the Academy was on an all-time high Halloween spirit would be an understatement. Jack-o-lanterns (courtesy of JNPR) were spread out along the pavement of the campus, and scarecrows wielding mecha-shifting weaponry were placed around the buildings to ward-off the Grimm, with relative success at that.
All the while, the ballroom sought itself taken over by the student body, the decoration ranging from silly paper bats to scary Apathy masks hanging from the ceiling.
Huntsmen-in-training from all ages danced at the sound of techno retro-esque slasher music, each of them wearing different costumes of their choice.
"Can you believe this?!" Exclaimed Yang by the drinks' table. "Goodwitch put me in charge of watching over the punch bowl to make sure no one spikes it."
"Sounds… Like a really awful idea on her part." Blake said.
"Yeah, but if she gets a sniff of anyone even slightly tipsy tonight, she's gonna deduct points from my curricular grade! Like, seriously?! Does she actually think I control how alcohol moves around these bands or something?"
"…Don't you?"
"Eh." She shrugged. "Semantics."
"What does that have anything to do with semantics?"
"So…! What you think of my getup?" Yang quickly changed the subject.
Blake eyed her partner from top to bottom. Yang wore a ragged blueish-gray cape covering her entire body. Her face was entirely painted white with dark paint around her eyes and a pair of white beetle mandibles on top of her hair.
"It is nice. Although, I was under the impression you would be showing off a little more than that."
"Variety is the sauce of life, or so I heard." She responded. "And what are you supposed to be? A government agent?"
Yang gestured to the black suit Blake sported. Skirt, tie and everything.
"Of a sort."
"Really? What kinda sort?"
"If I told you, then I would have to kill you."
"Ooh, mysterious. I dig that." Yang commended.
"Hey guys!" Came in the high-pitched voice of Nora. High-pitcheder than usual. "Looking great, you two! Oh! Guess what I am!"
Blake inspected Nora's costume, from the high-tech headset she wore to the very bulbous ginger beard that dangled from her chin.
"Are you a spacewoman… A dwarf…?"
"She's a space dwarf." Ren responded, arriving along with Nora.
"FOR ROCK AND STONE!" She accentuated by raising Magnhild.
"Oh, hey dude!" Yang saluted Ren. "Looking dope. Yellow really suits you."
Ren stood there wearing a large yellow coat, with blue neon highlights at the collar. His face had been painted with geometric lines that mimicked cybernetic implants.
"Getting caught." He said. "Nora told me to say that." He turned to her. "I still don't comprehend, what is this referencing again?"
"I'll tell you all about it later!" Nora winked at him.
"Oh, there you all are." High boots marched towards the bunch by the table. From there, everyone saw Weiss as she was dressed as...
Everyone gave her blank stares.
"…What?" The Heiress asked.
"Really?" Blake gesticulated to the 'dictatress' uniform she wore.
"What is wrong with it?" She genuinely asked. "I told you people I was interested in seeing how I looked in this."
"Yeah, but I didn't think you would actually come dressed as that." Snarled Yang. "After everything we've been through inside your head trying to knock some sense into you, I didn't think you would go out of your way to dress exactly like your Negative-self."
"Hmph! What can I say?" She adjusted her cap whilst posing with Myrtenaster. "I can be imposing and look good while doing it."
"You know what? I'm just gonna let you have that one." Yang shrugged off. "Where's everyone else?"
"I'm hereee~" Pyrrha came into frame. "Hello again."
Everyone turned to the ever-gentle voice of Pyrrha, only for their expressions to turn into shock at her costume, for Pyrrha Nikos herself came clad in a full knight armor, along with an intimidating looking helm with a grey veil sticking out of.
She raised her visor. "Is everyone having fun?"
Yang was the first to recomposed herself. "Wow, P-Money. Your costume is… Eh…"
"I-I know, I know." She sounded bashful. "It's a bit tarnished, but I really like how it looks on me. Especially this flurry red cape around my belt." She played with it like a skirt.
"Lookin' hot!" Exclaimed Nora.
""FREEZE!""
They all shifted their attention to the shiny badges of an all-too-known duo of Junior Detectives.
"Wassup, everyone!" Shouted Sun. "Missed us?"
"Check out or new 'Staches!" Neptune pointed to his face. "Pretty cool, huh?"
Yang whistled. "Well, I see you boys have cheapen out on the costumes, ain't that right?"
"Yeah, the whole fake-mustache thing is so last year." Nora rolled her eyes.
"That's where you're wrong, ladies!" Neptune announced, pointing at Sun's blond mustache
"For these mustaches…" Sun tried to rip his friend's blue mustache, which caused him to wince in pain. "Are totally real!"
"…So, neither of you brought any actual costumes?" Ren questioned.
Neptune slowly faced his Faunus partner. "See?! I told you we should've gone as mummies!"
"And how exactly were we supposed to pull that off?! All you do is buy black toilet paper of all things!"
"It's more stylish!"
"Not when is going down the crapper, it isn't!"
"Uh…" Another newcomer showed up. "Is this a bad time?"
The eight Huntsmen-in-training all turned over to Jaune Arc this time. His costume was originally meant to make him look like a mere Great-War peasant, but with all the extra time he had, he made a few tweaks.
The final results were a buttoned up brown vest over a light-gray hoodie, double belts and a pair of assless-chaps over his raggedy jeans. It was very resembling of his usual appearance.
"Looking sharp there, fearless leader!" Nora announced.
"Simple, yet effective." Ren commended him.
"I couldn't have said it better myself." Pyrrha affirmed.
"It certainly suits you." Said Weiss, earning a few looks. "What? I'm complementing him."
"Oh c'mon, you're all just saying that." He tried to dismiss all those compliments. "You all look amazing right now. Me on the other hand…"
"Nah man." Spoke Yang. "Take it from me, you're the only guy I know who looks good in assless-chaps. By the way, any chances we'll see you in a dress later?"
"Oh, what? Do I look like someone who has a dress ready to go at all times?" He snarled sarcastically. "Don't answer that."
They collective shared a round of laughter.
"Alright, is that everyone?" Asked Sun.
Blake shook her head. "No, not yet."
"Yeah, we're still missing the birthday girl." Stated Yang. "Which reminds me… Jaune, what is Ruby up to?"
"Huh?" Jaune frowned at the accusation. "So what? Just because of what been happening this month, you think we're in cahoots? Is that it?"
They all stared at him.
"…Welp. Guilty as charged." He cleared his throat. "Just a little heads-up, she's coming right about… Now."
At his cue, they overheard murmurs from the other students.
The sea of people in the ballroom had split in two, forming a catwalk of sorts for a single person to waltz by.
Although Ruby had prefaced earlier that she refused to attend Halloween as a Witch, that hadn't stopped her from making an exception. One that not only met all of her standards, but excelled at making an entrance.
Swinging her hips just like she learned from her sister, Ruby paraded across the ballroom dressed as an Umbra Witch.
Her hair had been tied in a beehive-like hairdo with red ribbons while the seemingly skin-tight fabric of her costume hugged her body. She also carried around a medallion with a symbol of the crescent moon, which she thought it was very fitting.
And top it all off, she brought guns. Mora specifically, four different pistols. Two for her hands, and two others serving as stilts for her high-heels.
""Zamn…"" The Junior Detectives uttered in unison, which led Yang to shut them both up with a glare.
With all that show done for, the birthday-girl soon joined everyone else.
"H-Heya!" She saluted while clumsy adjusting a tiny pair of glasses on her face. "How's everyone doing?"
The landing hadn't been as elegant as the jump, but they rolled with it.
"Damn girl, you're nailing that look." Nora skidded right beside the other redhead, inspecting the costume up close. "Wow, you look like, like-!"
"You look like someone who kills angels for a living instead of Grimm." Ren completed.
"Was just about to say that!" Nora scoffed at the boy, who grinned smugly in response.
Pyrrha giggled. "I guess this is one way to make an entrance. Right, everyone?"
Yang was stunned at her sister's choice of costume. She wasn't sure if she should congratulate her for pulling that off, our ground her until she was thirty.
But before that, she wanted to clear something out. "How were you able to walk like that? With heels, no less?"
"Uhm, technically these're not heels." She pointed at the pistols holding her in place. "I actually tried actual heels earlier, and I had a much easier time walking with these instead."
Weiss finished processing that. "I don't see how using pistols as opposed to normal heels would make it easier for you to walk on them, but more power to you, I guess."
"Bold choice, but solid nonetheless." Said Blake.
"Thanks!" Responded Ruby. "Oh, actually, Jaune helped me out with it. He's the one who chose it, so there's that."
"Oh…" Yang slowly whirled her head at the boy in question. "…Did he?"
Jaune sweated a bit. "I, ah- I was only lending her a hand. That's all!"
The other blond crossed her arms under her cape. "You had a hand in it too, huh? Do tell…"
"Yang, please…" Ruby pleaded.
"Relax, I'm just playing around." She let out a laugh. "I don't plan on ruining your favorite teddy bear. Not on your birthday, at least."
"Teddy bear?" Neptune asked
"Long story." Ren offered.
"So yeah!" Ruby posed smugly at them. "I finally got to one-up all of you for what you did to me last year! Whaddya think of that?"
Yang for her turn just clapped slowly at her.
"Bravo, sis… I suppose now you want your prize in the form of sweets, right?"
"Well…" She rubbed her neck. "I actually used the rest of the money I had saved for this costume to buy a jar's worth of candy. You know, save you all the trouble."
"You? Buying your own sweets?" Weiss questioned her.
"Who are you and what you did to our leader?" So did Blake.
"Oh, what shame." Said Yang. "Since it's your birthday and all. But if you don't feel like getting your present, that's fine."
Ruby changed her mind on the spot.
"Present?! What present?!" She jumped with joy. "What is it?! Is it more candy?! Please tell me it is!"
"Even better!" Yang propped up her scroll under the mantle to signal in someone. "What better way to celebrate this humble occasion other than with…"
A wheeled cart slammed through a set of double doors to the staff area.
Ruby's eyes gawked as the cart carried a three-layered strawberry cake themed after today's event with enough icing to put a wedding cake to shame.
The ghost that pushed it (which was obviously Taiyang under a white sheet) strolled with the cake right to its rightful addressee.
"Happy BirthdayWeen, sis." Yang put a hand on the younger leader's shoulder. "Dad and I put a lot of work into making this beauty."
"Whooooaaa… Man, if I knew you had this in store, I would've never put this much effort into making a comeback." Ruby stared at the two red pistols she held. "Now I'm feeling kinda silly. But… Thanks Yang. Thank you too, dad."
Taiyang removed his sheet costume. "Happy birthday, squirt! Say, why don't we skip the song and… Hold on, what is that costume young lady?"
She gulped. "Oh, uh…"
After some momentary awkwardness, everyone enjoyed the BirthdayWeen cake until the very last piece.
The party more-or-less continued past midnight outside of the ballroom, with the students moving things off to the campus, to the recreational room or back at their dorms.
As for Jaune, he decided that he had enough party for one night and went straight to bed. He wanted as much energy he could get the morning after.
He had already made himself comfortable in his bed, waiting for his slumber to kick in. However, it hadn't even been twenty minutes before he felt someone sneaking under the blanket.
"Hm?" He raised the covers to face the trespasser, only for her to face him right back.
"…Hey." Ruby said meekly.
"Hey…" Was all he could say.
"…What a night, right?"
"Yeah, uh, I thought it was pretty cool too."
"Uh-hum. I can't thank you guys enough for helping make tonight special."
"No problem, uhm…" He hummed. "So… How's your noctambulous thing going, by the way?"
"I mean… It's probably gone for now." She responded. "At least until next year."
"I see…" Jaune looked up and down at her in his bed. "So why…"
"I kinda grew used to waking up with you every morning, so…" Ruby tried to search for the right words.
"…Do you wanna talk about this?"
"…Do you?"
Jaune did a half-hearted attempt at a shrug and let go off the blanket as he laid back in.
He even made sure to move away a bit to give Ruby some space in his bed and pillow. Not that it was needed, seeing how a few minutes later they were hugging each other to sleep.
They surely would have plenty of time discuss this in the morning.
Happy Halloween.
Now if you excuse me, I have to fend off against those blasted Weeb-Slayin' Skeletons at my front door. Stay safe out there, everyone.
