A/N: (looks at last update on December 7, 2018) (Looks at current date of July 10, 2019)

Yeah uh… let's just say I was halfway done this chapter in March, but some things happened that made me have to strop writing altogether until recently. I promise it won't be this long of a wait again. I'm sorry.

But anyway, here's chapter 12. Enjoy!


"Zoysia," Arcee said.

"Hmm?" Jaune looked up from his notes to her.

"The answer to that is Zoysia."

"Are you sure about that?" Jaune asked and looked through his notes for a few more seconds. "Huh, so it is."

"Told you," she said as he wrote the answer on his worksheet.

"Wait, how did you know the scientific name for lawn grass?" he asked.

"I heard it from the window. I hear a lot from it," she explained.

"I just feel like that's a random thing to remember from the whole day," Jaune went back to his homework.

"I'll probably forget about it in a day or two, but still," she admitted.

"... why is the alien more interested in plants then I am?"

"A better question is 'Why is the alien better at paying attention at my own school?' Also, you're the alien."

"Umm, no, you're the alien."

"From my point of view, you're the alien."

"... but you came to my planet, that makes you the alien."

"I will neither confirm nor deny that claim."

"Well, thank you for being a friendly alien who doesn't want to eat my brain or something."

"... what?" Arcee was now generally confused.

"Oh sorry, that's just a reference to old movies."

"You humans thought aliens would eat your brains? And then made movies about it?"

"Yep."

"Are they any good?"

"Not really no… you want to watch them?"

"Only if we can make fun of them."

"Deal," Jaune chuckled before getting back to his homework.

Moments like this have become the norm for the human and cybertronian. Since Arcee understandably had much less freedom than Jaune did, things tended to get boring for her. Jaune tried to lighten it however he could. The main way he did so was showing her humanity's entertainment. Arcee had to admit, humans had some good movies, and even the bad ones were worth laughing over with Jaune about how bad they were.

She also absolutely loved rock music. Something about it just spoke to her. She loved the drums and electric guitars and how it all came together.

"Hey, just wanted to let you know that I checked the weather report and it's supposed to a little cloudy at worst, so we don't have to worry about getting rained out," Jaune said.

"Alright, that's good," Arcee said. "And I trust our cover is still up?"

"Yep, everyone now and still thinks I'm out dating some shy girl." His mind briefly flashed back to when he had to explain what dating was to her. As awkward as it was, it was short when Arcee grasped the concept almost right away and found it pretty hilarious. "My sisters are constantly teasing me, and Joan is mad that I 'waited until she was gone to get a girlfriend so she couldn't vet her.' It's a little ridiculous."

"She cares about you. I'm curious, would I pass her test?"

Jaune looked at her for a moment. "You're tall, a strong fighter, friendly, not afraid to tease me sometimes… yeah you'd pass," he reluctantly admitted. "Don't think my mom would approve of you though."

"She technically already does," Arcee said, chuckling when Jaune facepalmed, but she knew he was hiding a smile underneath.

"Jaune!" his mother called from the house. "Time for dinner!"

"Coming!" Jaune shouted back as he got his things together. "I'll be back in an hour."

"Ok- actually wait!" Arcee called out quickly, startling Jaune and almost making him drop his things. "Sorry, I just remembered something I wanted to ask you."

"Ok, what is it?" he asked.

Arcee was silent for a moment. "There's something I want to try tomorrow. Your family weapon, Crocea Mors, are you able to bring it?"

"Um, my dad has other swords, if that's what you're asking. Why? You want me to bring it?"

"If you can, yes. If not we'll-"

"I can ask tomorrow if I can borrow it," Jaune interrupted. "Can I know what this is for?"

"I'll tell you later."

"Ok, be back in a bit then," Jaune then took his absence.

Arcee released a sigh once he was out of earshot. "That's step one," she muttered to herself. Later that night after Jaune went to sleep, she made sure he 'misplaced' his scroll with her. She rewatched several parts of movies Jaune showed her, specifically parts involving sword and shield fighting.


The following afternoon, Jaune arrived home right after school and got his things ready to head out with Arcee. He just had to get one more thing, and he was sure he wasn't going to be able to get it.

"Hey dad," Jaune announced as he walked up to him. "Can I ask for a favor?"

"Sure son," his father greeted with a smile. "Anything for you."

"... can I borrow Crocea Mors?"

Jonathan's smile dropped. "And what do you need the Arc family weapon for? Aren't you going on a date soon?"

"Yes," Jaune winced, "but uh…" he tried to think of an excuse. "I… may have told her about my family history… of being huntsmen and-"

"You want to impress her by showing off Crocea Mors?" Jonathan finished his sentence for him.

"... yeah?" Jaune wasn't sure if he hid the lie well, but he sighed in defeat. "Yeah, look-"

"Wait here," Jonathan said as he got up and left. He returned a minute later with some kind of long gloves and belt. "Put these on."

Jaune took them and put them on. They went all the way down his forearm and the belt slipped on easily. "What are these?"

"They're gloves you'll need to use the shield of Crocea Mors," Jonathan said as he grabbed the famed weapon and brought it forth, "and the belt to hold it when sheathed."

"Wait, what?" Jaune gasped. "You're letting me take it?"

"Of course, now hush and let me show you how it works." Jonathan then spent the next few minutes teaching Jaune how to properly sheath and draw his weapon and how to attach them to his gloves. "Alright, you're all good. Just don't stab yourself or Arcee."

"I won't. Thanks, Dad, I'll be back later," Jaune said as he quickly rushed out the door.

"Honey," Joanne came down the stairs, "did I just see Jaune run out with the Crocea Mors?"

"Yep."

Her eye twitched. "May I ask why my baby boy is leaving with a Grimm slaying weapon?"

"To impress his date."

"To… impress… his… date?!"

"It worked with you, didn't it?" Jonathan was sure he'd most likely be sleeping on the couch tonight, but the face she had made it worth it.


Jaune and Arcee made their way through the forest, taking the same path as last time and thankfully didn't run into any interruptions or delays. Most of the trip was quiet except for some small talk about random things. Currently, they were talking about the movie they watched last night, a sci-fi horror movie where a space crew was hunted down by an alien that burst out of one's chest.

"You definitely were scared," Jaune teased.

"I was not," Arcee asserted back.

"Yes, you were."

"I was definitely not."

"It's ok to admit it. I was scared when Joan first showed it to be a few years back. I slept with my head under my pillow for days."

"Probably for the best. And no I was not scared It's just… I mean… there's no way that… it's just too coincidental that someone just imagined something like the Pectus Ruptisunt."

"Wait, what?" Jaune did a double-take.

"The Pectus Ruptisunt. We found them on a barren world in a neighboring solar system. Poor guys who fell victim to them would spawn whole hives," Arcee said.

"Oh..." Jaune's eyes went wide and he stared ahead. He wasn't sure what to do or say with the information that the aliens were actually real.

"Hey, Jaune."

"...y-yes Arcee?"

"Have I ever told you how much I love how gullible you are?" She said in a lighter tone.

It took a few seconds for her to process what she said. "I hate you." She started laughing. "Hate you!" He lightly hit the top of her, not even trying to hide his smile. "You're the worst."

"Consider it payback for giving me a nightmare last night."

"So you were scared. Ha, I win," Jaune said triumphantly. Arcee just rolled her eyes.

They soon arrived at the ship and Arcee got to work while Jaune worked on his homework for a bit. Just like the past few times they've been here, progress was slow. Besides having schematics to the engines, parts and materials were scarce so Arcee worked ever so slowly and precisely. The smallest mistake could doom her to be stranded here on Remnant for the rest of her life.

After an hour had passed, Arcee figured she did all she could for now. She hopped back down to the floor. "Jaune," she called his attention.

"Yeah? You finished already?" He asked as he started putting his things away in his backpack. "That was fast."

"I got done most of what I needed to do, but there's one last thing I want to do. I'll need you for it," Arcee said.

"Really?" Jaune beamed as he stood up. "Gladly! What can I do?"

Arcee smiled at his enthusiasm. "Well, it involves your sword, and-"

"Awesome," Jaune said picked them up. "What is it for? Wait... is Crocea Mors actually made up of some super rare metal that you need for the ship's power couplings or something? Because if so, I don't think my dad would like that… since he needs it back and all."

"Where did you come up with that idea?" She asked in amusement.

"Read about in a comic once," Jaune admitted, now feeling a little silly for suggesting it. "Was a good one too."

"I don't doubt that, but I don't need your weapon for anything like that," Arcee said.

"Then what did you need it for?" Jaune asked.

Arcee kept her smile up. "I want to train you."

Jaune didn't share her enthusiasm as his body shagged. "What?"

Arcee's smile faded slightly. She had a feeling Jaune wouldn't be up for his own reasons, but she hoped she could persuade him. "I would like to train you to fight."

Jaune looked at his weapon and back at Arcee. She was about to speak but Jaune beat her to it. "What's this about?"

"I overheard your conversation with your dad about what happened at Rorke's Drift," Arcee said.

"Oh," Jaune's eyes widened in realization and he looked away in shame. "You uh… yeah, I forgot you were there. Not sure how I did."

"It's ok Jaune," Arcee sat down cross-legged in front of him.

"No it's not!" He shouted. "What I-"

"You were scared and made a rash decision. I don't blame you," Arcee reached down and put a hand on his shoulder. It felt awkward because of their vast size difference, but the feelings conveyed were known and welcomed as Jaune put his hand on hers. "The important thing is that you didn't, the worst didn't happen and you'll still here."

Jaune's mouth opened and closed a few times, wanting to say something but unable to. He instead just looked into Arcee's optics, his expression said all.

"But, that unfortunately brings up an uncomfortable question: What would have happened if I didn't show up?"

"...I would be dead," Jaune's smile dropped. The answer was obvious, but there were much more unsaid consequences that wouldn't just affect him.

"Exactly," Arcee took her hand off his shoulder. "Remnant is a beautiful world, but it's plagued by the Grimm and they don't care who they kill." Arcee paused for a moment to let it sink in. "I understand if you don't want to be a soldier, a huntsman, or a warrior of any kind." She's been a soldier for most of her life after all, she could understand why many didn't want to be one, or retired after several cycles of service. "But your family, nor could I, be everywhere at once. And in the event you're on your own and are in danger, I would like to make sure you can at the very least defend yourself."

Jaune was quiet for a few moments, taking it all in. He then nodded and looked up at her. "So… how is this going to work?" Jaune asked. "I mean… you're like 3 times my height. Unless your training involves a game of 'don't get squashed like a bug,' this won't work well."

"Well, first off, thanks for the training idea," Arcee joked, and smiled when she got the desired effect from him. "Second, I realized that will be a problem, but I thought ahead. There are a few things we could do." She stood up and activated her trans-scanner. Jaune was frightened for a quick moment as small beams of blue light quickly shot out of her optics and traced all over his weapons for a few seconds.

Once the scanning was finished, Arcee looked at her arms as they shifted. Her left arm was a shield and her right a sword, exact replicas of Corcea Morsin all but color and in the same positions as Jaune was holding them.

"Wow," Jaune said in astonishment. "What was that?"

"Trans-scanner," she answered. "Allows me to take on and adapt do different forms with little trouble. It's how I gained the disguise of the motorcycle back in Rorke's Drift."

"That's pretty neat. So, could you potentially scan and turn into other vehicles, like a car?" Jaune asked in curiosity.

"I could, but at a cost. I can only have one vehicle mode set. If I were to scan and take on something else, I'd lose the current form I have. Besides, the motorcycle is similar to what I had originally and is easier for you to use and have. Your sword and shield are not a problem since they're simple in nature," Arcee explained.

"Ah ok, thank you," Jaune nodded. "So what are we going to do?"

"Simply, one on one duel to the death."

"Ha ha."

"Thank you for humoring me with at least a fake laugh. But for real, to start out I want to practice positioning, stances, and maybe a few strikes if we have the time for it." It was a good way to start. You had to become familiar with your tools before you could hope to use them properly

"That doesn't sound so bad," he said as he got in a stance with his shield upfront. "How does this look?"

Arcee looked it over a second. "Good start, but lift your shield up and spread your legs further apart."

Jaune looked down for a moment. "Are you sure, they are a fair distance apart."

"Yes, trust me," Arcee said as she tapped Jaune's shield with her sword, forcing him back a few steps. "One key part of taking a hit is good leg positioning. Spread them out further, spread those legs."

She didn't understand why Jaune's cheeks tinted slightly red, but he did as she asked. She quickly tapped him again. This time his upper body recoiled back just a bit but he soon snapped back to the original pose. "Better. Notice the difference?"

"I did actually, thank you," Jaune smiled.

"Good, but for this pose to be good you need to raise your shield up a little higher."

"Higher?" Jaune raised his shield up a bit but then put it back down. "Feels a little uncomfortable. Are you sure it's necessary?"

Arcee couldn't help but roll her eyes with a small curve to her lips. He sounded just like herself and other recruits during basic training. Those small differences didn't look like much, but could heavily tip the odds in your favor.

"Yes it is," she said as she snapped into the exact position Jaune was in. "It provides good protection, but part of your thorax and neck are still exposed. And if I remember correctly, that's where major organs of yours are."

Getting an outside perspective of how it looks, Jaune couldn't help but agree. "Alright, you got a good point there," he said as he assumed the new position. "Still feels odd but-"

"You'll get used to it in time," Arcee finished for him. "Alright, let's practice a little bit more of positioning and stances."

"No problem, but uh... would this be better to do in the forest instead of in the ship?" Jaune asked.

Arcee took a moment to look around. "Excellent point."


The sun was just setting when Jaune and Arcee returned home.

"Today wasn't that bad of a day," Jaune remarked.

"It was. How do you feel?" She asked.

"Sore, little tired… but also like I can soon conquer the world," Jaune said.

"I don't think you're at that level juuuuust yet."

"I'll just use you for the heavy lifting. I predict we could conquer the kingdoms in a week."

"And then I turn on you and claim Remnant for myself."

"Traitor. And to think I was going to give you the moon too." Jaune gave up hiding his smile.

Arcee chuckled. "You can keep it. Seriously though, what did you think of the training?"

"... well, we need to find a way to sort out the size difference between the two of us. But with what we did… yeah, it was kinda cool," Jaune answered truthfully. "Thank you."

"You're welcome. You know, since we don't have to travel to the ship to do that, we could just go deep in the woods and do it so we're not restricted on the days we can do it."

"That sounds like a good idea, I-... wait… where's my backpack?" The two looked around the shed, but it was nowhere to be seen. "I left it back at the ship, didn't I?"

"I'm afraid you did," Arcee said. "Not sure how I missed it either."

"Ah crap," Jaune cupped his face in his hands.

"I could try and sneak out back to the ship and get it," Arcee suggested.

"You sure? It is a long way."

"You need your stuff, besides I could get more energon for the stash."

"Alright, thank you. And I promise not to forget next time," Jaune said before taking his leave.

Arcee waited until the dead of night before leaving, taking her time in the rural area before taking off full speed once she was clear. She got his backpack and her energon without too much trouble. She did run into a single Ursa on the way back, but it was easily dispatched with a single headshot. All and all, it was a boring errand run

But little did Arcee know that when she shot the Ursa, a certain Cybertronian probe was within audible distance. Upon investigating the noise, it saw Arcee standing over the disintegrating beast before transforming and leaving the area.

It followed her all the way back home.


The Cybertronian awoke to an alert. The probe had found something. He quickly rushed to the terminal to see the data that was sent.

He watched footage from the drone's optics as it searched the forest when he heard the unmistakable sound of an energon blast. the footage of another Cybertronian was shown standing over a deceased Grimm before she transformed and left. Upon transforming, her Autobot symbol became visible.

The next set of footage consisted of the drone following the Autobot She first went to what appeared to be a random spot in the wilderness, before she took energon from internal storage compartments and buried them with other cubes and rations. The probe made sure to send map data on that location.

Then she arrived at a human settlement and moved into a shed with familiarity, as if she had several times before. The final piece of footage was then shown. It was of a young human boy going into the shed, getting the Autobot, and driving off. But there was one crucial detail there: the Autobot and the human can he heard conversing with one another. He knew her true nature.

"Very curious," the Cybertronian cupped his chin in thought. After a short time, he then left and headed into a stasis chamber and awoken several of his sleeping comrades. He made sure they were fully awake before addressing them. "Rise Decepticons, we have an… interesting development."


A/N: And there we go. Jaune and Arcee's relationship has grown, she's now training him, and there's sinister forces now in motion.

Once again I'm sorry for the 7 month gap, but writing fanfiction, no matter how enjoyable and fun, is a hobby. I will put it aside, no matter the time duration, if I need to focus on more important stuff.

Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed it! Have a good day :)