Whoo, lots of votes. First things first, I added Jaune x Pyrrha (Arkos) as an option, but at this point I think it's too late to tilt it, especially since Pyrrha hasn't even shown up yet.
So calculating all the votes on all places I posted, the total number comes down to:
Jaune x Survival = 57
Jaune x Ruby = 46
Jaune x Weiss = 33
Jaune x Yang = 31
Jaune x Penny = 25
Jaune x Blake = 19
Jaune x Mercury (lol) = 12
In terms of votes, fanfiction votes leaned heavily towards Ruby (26) with Weiss (18) coming in second place. Other places wanted no romance and just wanted to survive and stay sane :P
Poll's still up, but at this point I think it comes down to either No Romance or Lancaster. Somewhat surprising since I expected Yang would be more popular than Ruby given her personality and appearance. She even had the friendliest chat with Jaune last chapter aside from the pants on fire moment at the end.
Jaune screamed.
Ruby jumped back at the sudden yell while Penny just tilted her head, face plastered with a smile. He continued yelling till his throat was hoarse and he almost collapsed on his knees from the strain of it all. Blake was gone- no, it was worse than that. Blake ran away because Weiss knew she was a former terrorist! He wanted to scream again, but nothing came out expect a few tired squeaks.
He screamed for over half a minute straight, long enough for everyone in the park to leave for their own safety. In any other situation he would've been impressed, but right now he just wanted to cry. This was it. Vale was going to be destroyed cause Weiss Schnee and Blake Belladona hated each other. Any second now there was gonna be an apocalyptic lightning storm or an ice age or both. He didn't know. All he knew was that everything was over.
"Jaune! Jaune!" Ruby tugged on his shoulder, "We need to find Blake!"
"Just follow the screams, Ruby..."
"What?"
"Uh...nothing." He shook his head and slapped both cheeks hard. No, he couldn't give up, not yet. It wasn't the end till Vale was destroyed, "R-Right, we need to find Blake." He let out a deep breath, "D-Did Weiss say where she was? We could start from there."
"She said she'd meet us at a store close by. Come on!"
Ruby grabbed his hand and activated her Semblance, leaving Penny behind. Thankfully his stomach was empty so by the time they got there he was just dry heaving instead of puking all over Ruby again.
Jaune propped himself up on the wall and closed his eyes, desperately trying to make everything stop shaking. Weiss was coming and so far he didn't feel like he was dying from frostbite. He'd take that as a good sign, "Oh no, how could this happen...?" Ruby mumbled next to him. The red-cloaked girl was pacing back and forth, both hands gripping her hair so tight it was a miracle she didn't tear any off.
"We gotta wait for Weiss to tell us that..." He wiped his mouth despite the lack of vomit and wished he had a glass of water right now.
It didn't take long for her to arrive. Her eyes weren't flaring, which was a good sign, but the rest of her body language screamed tension. Her hands were balled into fists, her walking was rigid, and her face could best be described as someone who just swallowed a whole lemon. He flinched when her glare was leveled on him even though he knew it wasn't him she was mad at.
"Weiss! What happened?!" Ruby screamed.
"I'll tell you what happened." She grit her teeth, "I just found out that one of our teammates is a member of the White Fang!" He thanked the Gods the streets were empty right now. Ozpin would have his head for this, "She's a Faunus as well, if you haven't caught on! She was hiding her ears behind that...stupid bow!"
Ruby gasped. Jaune wanted to cry. They heard it already but having it confirmed was another nail in the coffin.
"Wh-Where is she now?" Ruby asked.
"How should I know?" Weiss threw up her hands, "When she told me about what she was she ran off! Good riddance, I say. The last thing we need on this team is a terrorist." Jaune flinched at the hate in Weiss' voice. She'd been in a bad mood before - hell, it seemed like her default mood was 'irritated' for the past couple of weeks. Still, this was the first time she'd ever sounded truly angry.
"Weiss..." Ruby looked down at the ground.
"What caused the fight?" Jaune asked after. Maybe it would give them some clues on where to go.
"We saw this monkey Faunus running away from a ship. Apparently he stowed away like a common criminal." She crossed her arms and scoffed, "Naturally I helped apprehend him and handed him over to the proper authorities." She looked proud of herself for that, "When I called him out on his behavior she decided to take offense. Our argument spiraled towards the actions of the White Fang and now here we are."
"The White Fang? Alright, what specifically about them did you argue about?"
"I called them monsters, that's what. Anyone sane would agree. Of course, given that she's a member it's no surprise she took offense." Former member, he wanted to stay, but he kept his mouth shut. As far as the two of them knew he was just as much in the dark as they were, "She took particular offense to the idea that I blamed them for the Dust robberies taking place recently."
"Why?" Ruby asked.
"Because she's quick to defend her group. What other reason could she need?" Weiss scoffed, "Either way it isn't our problem anymore. I'll be sure to tell headmaster Ozpin about this and she'll be expelled, simple as."
"No!" The loudness in Ruby's voice startled them both, "We have to find her!"
"Do we? As far as I'm concerned she's a criminal and a threat. The White Fang would love nothing more than to take out one of the Schnees, particularly the heiress to the SDC."
"But she didn't! Blake's been with us for two weeks! If she wanted to hurt you she could've done it when you were sleeping and you didn't have your Aura up!" Ruby said firmly.
"That's..."
"Ruby's right. Heck, you were alone with her today. Even if she didn't want to attack you in our room she could've done it now when you weren't looking or after your fight instead of just just running away" Jaune added, "And if she was really an active member of the White Fang the headmaster would've know and he wouldn't let her in." Or maybe he would cause she had special magic.
"Are you seriously defending her?" Weiss asked back hotly, face flushed.
"I'm saying we're only hearing one side of the story." Jaune raised both hands. A flick of light blue energy sparked across Weiss' eyes, "We're her teammates, we owe it to at least listen to what she has to say."
"Jaune's right." Ruby nodded, "We should at least talk to her. If she's really a member of the White Fang then...yeah, you're right she should be in prison." She bit her lip. Even the thought of it seemed to hurt her, "But if there's any chance that there's a different explanation then we owe it to her to try."
"I don't owe her anything!" Weiss hissed, "She's not my partner and she's certainly made her feelings clear."
"Has she?" Jaune asked, "You were both arguing, Weiss. People...say things in the heat of the moment. You can't tell me you've never said something you didn't mean in a fight." She opened her mouth to protest before she stopped and chewed on her lower lip frustratedly, "You said you were arguing about Faunus. Maybe she got mad because of your comments and it just escalated from there. I've had fights like that with my sisters before."
"Even if that's true, what do you expect me to do?"
"Help us look for her." Ruby looked down at her scroll with a frown, "Yang's still stuck at Beacon because of the Bullhead repairs so there's only the three of us here. Right now we need every person we can searching."
"You expect me to go out alone looking for a White Fang member?"
"No, I'm telling you to go out and help find our teammate. Leader's orders." Weiss' eyes widened and she looked like she was going to argue when she saw Ruby's hardened stare. The edges of her eyes flared red and a harsh wind raged behind her, "Like it or not, Weiss, I'm the leader and Blake's still a part of our team. Right now she's alone out there and we don't know what she's doing. She might need our help."
"We'll talk to Headmaster Ozpin afterwards," Jaune said, trying to placate her mood. The last thing anyone needed was Weiss and Ruby getting into a fight, "I've spent some time with Blake. She didn't seem like she hated Humans like the White Fang do." He did his research ever since the headmaster told him about Blake's past affilitations. There were a lot of reasons for Blake to leave.
"...You're serious about this? Both of you?"
Ruby took a deep breath and nodded, "Yup." The red mask disappeared and the harsh winds went with it, "We need your help, Weiss. Please."
Weiss looked between them, her eyes slightly harsh when they landed on his own. Yang said that Weiss liked him the best among the team. Hopefully that counted for something, "...Fine, but if she attacks me I won't be held liable for what happens."
"She won't." Jaune let out a soft breath. He only realized just now how fast his heart was beating, "Alright, so we should split up, cover more ground." He opened up a map on his scroll, "I'll look on the south side. It's where I hung out with her last week so I know it best."
"I can take North and East. My Semblance will let me go faster," Ruby said.
"No flying, Ruby."
"But-"
"You promised to keep a low profile, remember?"
"He's right. Besides, if Blake ran from me what's to say she won't run from you too? A searing red comet in the sky is hardly subtle." Weiss sighed, "As for me, I'll take the West. We should hurry." She checked her scroll and frowned, "We have five hours till the last Bullhead for Beacon leaves and I don't plan to get stranded in Vale."
"Right. I'll see you two soon." They went their separate ways, Weiss walking away with obvious reluctance while Ruby ran so fast she practically tossed petals in their faces. Jaune made sure the two were far out of sight before he pulled up his contacts and called someone he was slowly regretting ever talking to, "Headmaster, its me. We've got-"
"Ms. Belladona, I've heard." A sigh, "Explain the situation in brief."
He did.
"This is not ideal, Jaune."
"Yeah, you're telling me! I'm half-expecting Vale to explode!" Jaune scowled. He asked for this, he knew that. He should've just walked away when the headmaster made his offer and made some other poor sucker deal with all this insanity, "Me, Ruby and Weiss are all looking now, but I'm gonna be honest, I don't like our chances."
"Indeed. Given Ms. Belladona's past I'm sure she's adept at being unseen."
"Can't you have people go out looking?"
"And tell them what? That I'm sending them out to search for a teenage girl because she and her teammate had an argument? Or that I let someone with former ties to the White Fang into the school?" Yes, he wanted to say. Anything was better than any of them losing their shit, "No, Jaune, this has to be subtle. Professor Branwen is arriving tomorrow so I'll have him help if you can't find her by today."
"Isn't there anything else you can do?" If Ozpin said what he thought he was gonna say then that was it. He was done.
"Not unless you want them on the front page of the Valean Times. Good luck, Jaune. I have the utmost faith in you." Ozpin cut the call.
Jaune wanted to cry.
Almost five hours later and no Blake. He wanted to say he was surprised and sad, but honestly he was just happy that half of Vale's power hadn't gone out. That meant that wherever Blake was she was calm enough to think rationally.
Wished she had that much self-control when it came to her smut, but he'd take it.
"Alright, that's enough." Weiss pinched the bridge of her nose and tapped her right foot. They met up to share their findings and were all equally out of luck, "The last Bullhead is leaving in ten minutes. Unless you both want to be stuck in Vale we have to leave now."
"But-"
"Searching for her at nighttime won't help, Ruby. None of us have nightvision." Ruby winced at Weiss' blunt reminder. She took it personally that she didn't notice one of her teammates was hiding something so big. He promised he'd take his own secrets to his grave if only so she wouldn't hurt like that again, "Come on, we can't waste any more time. We can continue this search tomorrow."
"...You two go." Both Weiss and Ruby turned to stare at him, "I'll stay at a hotel. It's the weekend and it'll let me get a headstart on searching tomorrow." At least he had his weekly stipend again.
"Jaune..." Ruby bit her lip.
"You're that worried about her?" Weiss asked, shocked. Maybe she thought he'd be forced to it like she was or only did it out of a sense of team obligation.
"I am." Worried what she'd do if no one was there to stop her. He was quitting after this, he decided, but until then he had to make sure these four were still a team for whoever replaced him, "I'll be fine. We'll meet up again tomorrow."
"I'm staying with you!" Ruby said suddenly, surprising both of them, "Weiss can go back and come back with Yang tomorrow."
"Ruby-"
"If you're staying then so am I." She looked up at him, silver eyes determined. They always stuck out in the sea of black and red she was covered with, "I want Blake to come back just as much as you do."
"...Fine." He wasn't going to argue with her. She'd follow him even if he said no and that was another fight he didn't want to try, "Guess we'll see you tomorrow, Weiss."
"Right..." She looked between them before running to the docks.
Neither he and Ruby said a word as they looked for the closest hotel they could afford. It ended up being more motel than hotel, but they only needed something with two beds and a roof. Had a shower too, though he just washed his face instead of taking advantage. Ruby was high strung and kept her eyes focused on the television as if somehow Blake would pop up on the breaking news.
He gave it a 50/50 shot, actually.
"Ruby?"
"Hm?"
"Take a hot shower, you need to cool off."
"I can't-"
"Blake's not gonna pop up out of nowhere, alright? Come on, you need something to calm you down. We'll look for her tomorrow." She trudged to the bathroom while he got a pair of hot chocolate packets from the mini-fridge. It was overpriced like just about everything else in Vale, but right now he couldn't be picky.
He just about finished heating the cups when the door behind him opened. Instead of her pastel shirt and skirt she wore a fluffy pink bathrobe that looked five sizes too large for her, "Nice outfit." Her lips quirked up in a slight smile. He handed her the mug then sat down on the right bed, "I set the alarm for six tomorrow but the Bullheads only start taking students at nine. We'll have three hours with just the two of us searching."
Ruby nodded and sipped her hot chocolate. A heavy quiet hung in the air and he winced. Ruby was hurt, that much was clear.
"...Are you alright?" A dumb question but always the first one he asked his sisters. Always got them talking.
Instead of responding she walked, bare feet padding softly against the carpet, and sat down next to him. They sat in silence for a minute before she eventually asked, "...Is this my fault?"
"What? No, how could you even-"
"I'm the leader, Jaune. I'm supposed to make sure stuff like this doesn't happen." She shook her head, wet her flapping, "I didn't realize Blake was a Faunus o-or that she was hiding something so big. Now look at what's going on. Blake's gone and Weiss doesn't even want to find her. Maybe Weiss was right. She should've been-"
"No, Ruby. No. Look at me." She did, "M-Maybe I don't have the right to say anything. I came to this team late and I've been spending all the time just trying to catch up to the rest of you."
"That's not-"
"It is true, but just listen. That feeling of wanting to have everyone get along? I know it. Back home I was always the peacekeeper for all my sisters. I did my best, but I couldn't fix everything. Rebecca and Saprhon, two of my oldest sisters, practically hate each other. I spent years dealing with all their arguments but it was on them if they wanted to get along or not. Same with Weiss and Blake. You're their leader, not their parent."
"...But what about Weiss?"
"Weiss didn't even want to go out searching for Blake. If she was the leader she would've turned around without a look back." It felt wrong talking about her like this, but it was the truth, "But you did. This was as much a surprise to you as it was for her but you decided that we couldn't just abandon Blake without hearing her side of the story. I dunno about you, but that sounds like something a good leader would do."
She looked back down at the barely-drained mug between her pale hands, "...What's gonna happen after this? To our team, I mean."
"I don't know." None of them would get in trouble, at least. Ozpin made it clear he wanted them on a team working together. As for him...well, quitting was still the good bet right now. Ozpin would find someone else who could watch out for team RWBY and someone better could make sure the team didn't literally explode, "But you're the leader and I know you can get through this."
She'd just have to do it without him.
Ruby took a long gulp of her drink and set the mug down. When she looked up at him again she had the bright smile she always had. He smiled back when he saw it, "Thanks, Jaune." She stood up and pumped both fists up in the air, "You're right, we can totally deal with this! We'll find Blake, get her to explain then we'll make her and Weiss talk. We can do this!"
"Uh...you mean you can do this. You're the leader." And he was quitting.
"I'm not doing it alone! Come on, you're my guy bestie!"
"I think I'm your only guy friend, Ruby."
"That's not true! Ren and Mercury are on the other team and we eat lunch with them!"
"...Have you even talked to Ren or Mercury besides introducing yourself?"
"Well, no, but-"
"I rest my case." She put her hands on her hips and pouted down at him. He laughed and drank his hot choco. It was nice to see her back to normal, "Come on, we should get some sleep. Got a big day tomorrow."
"Right. And Jaune?"
"Hm?" He stood up and almost lost his balance when Ruby suddenly tackled him. It was gentler than before, more hesitant, but her arms wrapped around him all the same, "Ruby?"
"Thanks."
"...Anytime." Alright, maybe he could still take her calls after he left Beacon. Asking for advice was alright, he just didn't have to be at ground zero.
She went to sleep and was out like a light in five minutes. He wasn't surprised; she probably tanked her Aura zipping around all over town after her little flying stunt. Jaune tossed and turned for an hour before he decided he wasn't going to get to sleep any time soon. Counting sheep didn't help and the hot chocolate didn't work either. All he could think about was what happened.
A part of him still wanted to scream and cry and rage. Ozpin chose the wrong person for this. He needed a student he could put on team RWBY, but was he really the only choice he had from anyone else who failed Initiation?
Shaking his head, he grabbed Crocea Mors and put on his shoes. Maybe a walk could clear his head.
The cool night air made him shiver and he huddled deeper into his hoodie. Vale at night wasn't something he'd ever experienced. He knew the usual rules - keep a scroll close, avoid the alleys, don't trust candy from the friendly strangers in vans - but it was nothing compared to Domremy. Back home there wasn't any sense of danger. Lily could walk out by herself without worrying about someone coming to get her.
This was different. Even from the brightly lit street he felt weirdly isolated. Jaune walked aimlessly without a destination in mind. It was alright. If he got lost he'd just have to check the tracking software on Ruby's scroll. Blake disabled hers. Made sense, but he was disappointed all the same.
"Damn it..." He stuffed his hands to the hoodie's pockets and looked down at the ground. This was way too much. The past fourteen days dragged on and he was sure he was gonna die of a heart attack before the month was over. You asked for this, a voice at the back of his head whispered. He always wanted to be a Huntsman - a Hero - and Ozpin talked about how those four could help save the world.
But was it really worth this? Risking his life against Grimm? He got that. Risking his life every time one of his teammates had an argument? That wasn't-
The light behind him flickered. Jaune looked around him and blinked. He'd been thinking so long he lost track of where he was. A quick look at his scroll showed he went way farther than he intended. He was close to the docks now, actually.
"Man, I must've been really out of it."
He was about head back the way he came when the lights flickered again. Normally he would've ignored it - cities like Vale always had their chinks. Instead he looked up at the night sky and saw a flurry of storm clouds and lightning all congesting in one location.
His eyes widened. It couldn't be, right?
"Can't take any chances."
He ran towards where the clouds were thickest, ignoring every single voice in his head screaming at him to just turn around. He was halfway there when he finally remembered to call Ruby.
"Jaune? Where are you? You're not in be-"
"Think I found Blake." Lightning crackled across the sky and the unmistakable boom of an explosion clapped through the air. Either that was Blake or he was heading right into a warzone. Neither were good for him, "Just follow my scroll! I'm almost there!"
"Jaune, wait for-"
He cut the call and winced as a bolt of lightning shot down way too close for comfort. Jaune covered his eyes and shivered. It felt like he just walked right into the edge of a storm. The clouds swirled overhead and the lightning bolts came down like divine judgement from on high. By the time he made it to the docks proper there were screams in the air and the smell of fire being carried by the wind.
"H-Hey you! Help me!" A voice cried. Begged.
He'd seen Roman Torchwick on the news before. The criminal Kingpin of Vale and the quintessential gentlemen thief, much to the Vale Police Force's annoyance. He'd stolen millions of Lien in Dust and valuables from anyone and everyone and was, by all accounts, a career criminal through and through.
But of course he still had his fans. The guy was a looker and there was an undeniable sense of style in everything he did from his clothes to his weapons to even the way he threatened you. A video of the jewelry store cashier he was holding up practically swooning went viral pretty quick and he remembered Tulip once joking that if she was in her place she would've done the same thing. The guy oozed charisma.
All that crossed his mind because of the sight in front of him now. The guy in front of him was undeniably Roman Torchwick, but if he wasn't practically hugging his knees Jaune wouldn't have recognized him. Gone was the suave thief who always had a cocky grin even when being faced by trained Huntsmen. In his place was a guy who looked like he'd been through hell. His clothes were scorched, his hat was gone, the cane he carried was snapped in two pieces behind him, and what little skin was exposed was covered in soot stains and burn marks. Even his trademark hat was gone.
Still, it was nothing compared to what was behind the begging thief. Dozens of men and women in masks lay sprawled out across the ground, all of them still alive but probably wishing they weren't. Past that was a burning Bullhead that looked like a lightning bolt shot clear through it. The top and bottom had big holes through them and the burning wreckage cut off the rest of the docks.
At the center of it all, like a vision straight out of a nightmare, was Blake. She walked out slowly, the edges of her face covered by the telltale fiery mask. Roman Torchwick whimpered and clung closer to him. Jaune was tempted to kick him to the curb and run the other way when Blake caught sight of him and her stony expression slackened.
"Jaune...?" The ligntning disappeared and the clouds above began to dissipate, "What are you doing here?"
"I was-"
"Keep her away from me!" Roman screamed, pawing at his jeans like a desperate hobo, "What are you? Cop? Huntsman? Innocent civilian? Don't care! Arrest me! J-Just keep that monster away from me!"
"Excuse me?" Blake's gaze hardened again and the clouds above stirred. Oh, she could control the weather now? Perfect! Hope his replacement enjoyed that bit of news!
Roman cried.
He was still trying to understand just what the hell was happening when a flurry of rose petals shot past him, "Blake, Jaune! There you two are!" Ruby screamed, waving Crescent Rose. And she was still wearing that oversized bathrobe, "I came as soon as I heard! Who are these guys? What's going-" Her eyes locked onto Torchwick's. A pregnant moment passed before her eyes were covered in a fiery red Aura. Gods damn it! "Roman Torchwick! You're responsible for this!" The wind around them picked up speed.
"Eeeeeee!"
Yes, that was Roman Torchwick squealing. Jaune almost laughed at the absrudity of it. After all this she still thought Torchwick was the danger? "Ruby, uh...thanks for the support, but I think Blake, uh, handled it pretty well." He gestured to the sight of devastation all around them, "Torchwick actually surrended and said he'd let himself get arrested."
"...Really?" Ruby blinked and looked down at the whimpering thief, "Are you sure about that?"
"Wh-What the hell are you two...?" Ruby's eyes narrowed just an inch and he seized, "Y-Yup, totally! Old Johnny Law can have me! Just as long as he keeps me away from you two..." He said that last part in a whisper that only Jaune heard.
"Alright, you better not be lying. I'll be keeping an eye on the news to make sure you don't bust out again." The fiery aura faded and Ruby smiled. Roman cried into his jeans, "Oh, but that's not important now! Blake! We came to find you!"
"You...did?" She looked like she'd just been told she had a second head, "...Why?"
"Because we're your teammates!" Ruby said, cheerfully oblivious or outright ignoring the masked goons moaning all around her, "I know you had an argument with Weiss, but we're willing to listen! Jaune even suggested we stay over so we could look for you faster! Good thing we did, huh? We made it here right on time!"
Jaune looked around him again. Right on time. Absolutely.
"I...I can't go back." Blake shook her head, "I wanted to prove that the White Fang weren't responsible for the Dust robberies, but instead..." Oh, that explained the Grimm masks then, "Ruby, Jaune...you both know who I am. What I used to be."
"It doesn't matter now!" Ruby took both Blake's hands in hers and smiled, "Right now you're a member of team RWBY!"
"If nothing else I'm pretty sure catching Roman Torchwick and taking down the White Fang here kinda proves that you're on the right side." Jaune eyed Roman again. He let go of him now, which was good, and curled up a few feet away, rocking back and forth as he cried out for 'Neo'. He actually felt sorry for him. Criminal or not, he lived with the same fear for two weeks now.
"Come on, let's take Torchwick to the cops and then we can go back home!" Ruby's eyes lit up, "Oooh, there was a big reward for catching him! I know I only came in at the end, but could we share? Pleaasssee? I promise I'll do any upgrades you want for Gambol Shroud!"
"Um...of course, Ruby." Blake smiled.
"Heh. Guess all's well that ends well. Right, Jaune?" Ruby beamed.
He didn't answer and just looked at the burning docks, the moaning White Fang, and Vale's (former) criminal Kingpin going into catatonic shock.
Jaune wanted to cry.
"So explain the situation to me again."
It took them the rest of the night and most of the next day to actually explain everything to the cops and wait while they rounded everyone up. Most of that time was spent in a police waiting room while Ruby bounced in her seat about how Blake was a hero for catching Roman. He and Blake counted the hours till they could leave and he could finally get out of here. After last night he was convinced he wasn't cut out for this.
The official story was that they were a Huntsman and Huntresses in training who saw the commotion at the docks and intervened. The Maiden powers - their secondary Semblances - were officially kept off the record. As far as the cops were concerned the damage was cause of Roman and the White Fang fighting back with excessive force and it wasn't their fault. The Dust wasn't damaged anyhow, which was the most important part.
Roman looked like he wanted to complain but a single raised eyebrow from Blake kept his mouth shut. Scary.
By the time they got out of there it was half past seven the next evening. The station chief was all smiles and shaking their hands, talking about how they should be proud for arresting Torchwick and those 'White Fang scum'. He'd never seen someone so uncomfortable having a couple hundred thousand Lien being deposited in her bank account till he saw Blake's face that day.
And now they were here at the headmaster's office sitting across Ozpina and Professor Goodwitch. Him and all of team RWBY. Yang and Weiss tried to head over to Vale that morning but were detained once news reached the headmaster about the incident at the docks. Incident, that was a word for it. He preferred the term mini-apocalypse. Blake had the decency to at least look guilty, but he still remembered how she appeared last night. It wasn't an easy image to forget.
His head throbbed as they explained everything with a bit more truth. Ozpin and Goodwitch knew about the 'secondary Semblances' so they were at least willing to admit that it was Blake that did most of the damage.
"So let me get this straight," Professor Goodwitch started. Blake cringed in her seat, "You three tracked down the White Fang and Roman Torchwick to docks but instead of calling the police you decided to take it upon yourselves to play vigilante? Especially you, Ms. Rose, who already had experience with such a stunt?"
"But..."
"The police wouldn't have been able to stop them. You all know how slippery Torchwick is," Yang said, quick to defend her sister.
"Be that as it may, Ms. Xiao Long, it is no-"
"Glynda, please," Ozpin cut in, "I'm sure they were only exercising their rights as Huntsmen and Hunstresses in training. We are teaching the next generation of Mankind's Protectors. Unlike Ms. Rose's prior incident there were also no civilians at the docks."
"Be that as it may, there must be repurcussions for this." Blake shut her eyes, "Ms. Belladonna caused thousands of Lien in damage to the docks, damages that Beacon is liable for as she is our student."
"We got bounty money. You can use that to-"
"That isn't the point, Ms. Belladona. The fact of the matter is that things worked out this time. Being rewarded and praised for your frankly reckless and danger-seeking behavior sets a bad precedent and-"
"It was my fault." All eyes turned to Jaune. The blonde stubbornly faced forward even as Ruby gasped and Blake hissed under her breath, asking what he was doing, "I saw what was happening at the docks and I rushed in. The only blame Ruby and Blake have is that they rushed in to keep me safe when I got caught."
Blake shook her head desperately, "That's not-"
"I'm sorry. If you have to punish anyone, then it should be me." He bowed his head. Ozpin hummed, like he was honestly thinking about it. Yeah right. He couldn't afford to expel or really punish Blake. She was the one with the really scary magic powers and he needed her. It was better this way. Looked neater for everyone and getting expelled didn't matter since he was quitting anyway.
"Are you certain of this, Mr. Arc?" Ozpin asked.
"Headmaster, this isn't-"
"Yes."
Ruby looked like she'd been slapped, her lips warbling. Yang rubbed her shoulders and looked at him worriedly. Blake looked down with wide, guilty eyes while Weiss glared at the hidden Faunus.
"I see." He took a sip of his mug, "Jaune Arc, please stay. The rest of team RWBY is free to go."
"But sir-"
"Now, Ms. Rose."
Ruby closed her eyes and let Yang lead her out with Weiss and Blake following after. Weiss looked back and gave him a look of concern just before the door closed. Jaune ignored the bubbling guilt and breathed softly. It was better this way, he thought again. Ozpin had to expel him for this and both he and Professor Goodwitch knew the real story. Everyone won.
And then Ozpin started clapping.
"Bravo, Jaune." The headmaster smiled, "I had a plan in motion, but your sudden intervention was very helpful."
"...What?"
"Glynda's correct in that we couldn't let Ms. Belladona go unpunished. They would've been suspicious if they caused an incident-" There was that word again "-and there were no repurcussions. I'd originally intended to assign her to community service."
What?
"A light punishment, all things considered, but considering their circumstances..." Professor Goodwitch sighed. It was obvious she didn't like team RWBY getting special treatment, "Community service is too light a punishment and I doubt it would've discouraged Ms. Belladona's behavior. By offering yourself as a sacrificial lamb you plant the idea that every other member of team RWBY will not be safe if another incident occurs."
"So...am I getting expelled?" He tried not to sound too hopeful.
"Expelled? Why would I do that, Jaune?" Of course not, "While the damage to the docks will cost us a pretty penny, Roman Torchwick's capture more than compensates for it. He's been evading the law for almost a decade now and from what I've heard he's been extremely cooperative with the authorities, returning many of his stolen goods. Whatever Ms. Belladona did it has made him very pliable."
"Sure..." He took a deep breath, "So...what's gonna happen to me? You said I had to set a precedent."
"Indeed." Professor Goodwitch nodded. "For the next three months you will have detention with Professor Port. This includes weekends where you are to report to his office between ten am to noon." Jaune blinked at her sympathetic look. That was it? Sure the guy made him fight a Grimm on the first day and his stories dragged on too long, but he liked Professor Port. This didn't really feel like much of a punishment outside of not being able to sleep in anymore.
"I...see?"
"Apologies, Mr. Arc. At least this way you won't have to explain your training sessions with him." Ozpin laughed, just as sympathetic.
"Right. Uh, sir, there's actually something I wanted to talk about." He gulped, "If I say I wanted to quit..."
"Oh I'm afraid that's not even close to being an option anymore, Jaune." Ozpin smiled. It was an option before, he wanted to ask, "Team RWBY have clearly come to consider you one of their own, especially after your actions these past two days." He was just trying to survive! "And even if they didn't, I could hardly put another team member with the same excuse."
"But..."
"I'll admit that I had my doubts at first. A task like this always had risks, but you've gone above and beyond my expectations, Jaune. Please continue to watch out for team RWBY. Right now you're irreplacable." He steepled his hands together, "But I can see you're worried. If you need help, then please consult Mr. Black. He's in similar circumstances to your own."
"Wait, you mean Mercury? He's working for you?"
"In a manner of speaking." He nodded. Jaune screamed internally. Was there anything Ozpin didn't plan for? "Keep in mind that he can't help you too much: there's a reason I couldn't give him this task. Still, I'm certain you can keep up your performance for the upcoming year."
The whole year...?
"...Sir."
"Yes?"
"Can I please quit?"
"No, Jaune."
Jaune wanted to cry.
They were all waiting for him. He stood outside the door for minutes before he opened it with his scroll, "Jaune!" Ruby's high pitched scream was followed by a flying hug that he was barely able to catch, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I should've done more! I'm the leader and I just let you take all the blame!" She choked. Now Jaune felt even more guilty. How was he supposed to tell her that he was trying to get expelled?
"That took a lot of guts there, Grimm Slayer." Yang smiled, both sympathetic and proud.
"It's all my fault..." Blake shook her head, her exposed cat ears flopping down. Damn it, stop making him feel guilty! Ruby was already doing that!
"Yes, it is." Weiss crossed her arms and glared at the prodigal teammate, "Given your antics you could've been expelled." Nope, "But instead Jaune decided to take the blame and saved you. I've half a mind to march back there and tell the headmaster about your background."
"Weiss, it really wasn't-"
"So what's the damage? What did the headmaster slap you with?" Yang asked, cutting him off.
"Three months of detention with Professor Port, weekends included."
All of them, even Weiss, gasped like he'd just told them he had terminal cancer. Ruby stepped back, both hands covering her mouth as she looked up at him with wide, disbelieving eyes. Yang hissed sympathetically and rubbed the back of her head. Blake whimpered under her breath and covered her face with both hands like she was crying. Even Weiss, paragon of reason (except when it came to being team leader), turned away from him and choked back a sob.
Come on, Profossor Port wasn't that bad!
"J-Jaune, I'm so sorry!" Ruby cried.
"Ruby, it's not-"
"Damn. Tell you what, next weekend I'll take you out to Vale. I know some really good clubs. You look like you need a good drink."
"Yang that really isn't-"
"It's all my fault. I just wanted to make things right and now you have to suffer."
"Suffer? Blake, he's not that-"
"This is absurd! Jaune, we'll go back to the headmaster's office and plead your case! I'm sure if we leverage my family name we can-"
"Alright, enough!" Gods, what the hell was this? They were acting like he actually did get expelled, "Its happened already, and honestly it could be a whole lot worse." He wished it was, "If a little extra time spent in class is all I'm getting I consider that lucky."
"Jaune..." Please stop looking at him like that, Blake. The downturned ears were gonna give him a heart attack, "Thank you."
"Just...uh, just tell me what happened while I was in there. Weiss said something about keeping Blake's you-know-what a secret?"
"Yeah, we got to talking." Yang sighed and sat on the closest bed, "She told us about how she left the White Fang because she didn't like the way they were going. There's more to it at than that, but we can talk about it tomorrow. Anyway, we decided-" Weiss scoffed "-we decided that we'd keep it a secret for now. Blake just wants to make things right and I say she deserves a chance."
"How did you even know about the docks?" Jaune asked.
"Remember Tuskon? That bookstore owner?" Blake asked. Jaune nodded, "He was former White Fang. Like me he decided to leave when he saw where the group was going. He still had some contacts on the inside, contacts who weren't happy with the White Fang working for someone like Torchwick. I heard about their plans from him and I decided to follow up on it."
"Another defector." Weiss scoffed again.
"Without him and Blake, Torchwick would've gotten away with everything," Ruby said.
"And that means they can walk away just like that? If Torchwick decided to stop stealing would we all decide it's fine for him to go unpunished?"
"That's not-"
"I know I've done a lot of things, Weiss. Most of them I regret, some of them I don't." Weiss' gaze hardened, "The White Fang...it used to stand for something. We wanted equality, to save the Faunus who were being exploited."
"By attacking the SDC."
"Yes." Weiss grit her teeth at Blake's blunt reply, "You know what caused me to turn away? My partner - my mentor - and I attacked an SDC cargo train. We were just supposed to steal the dust, but he decided to blow up the train and all the people inside. They weren't soldiers or combatants, but to him it didn't matter. To them they were just human." She took a deep breath, "I cut the train lines and ran away after that."
"What about the things you don't regret?" Weiss asked, less harsh than before.
"I don't regret freeing the Faunus your company enslaved." Blake's hands balled into tight fists, "I don't regret killing the SDC mercenaries who kept them in literal chains and beat them when they were too weak to continue working. I saw a ten year old with an SDC brand on his cheek. He was so broken that he didn't even have it in him to run when we cut his chains."
"That's..." Weiss looked away.
"It's not your fault, Weiss. That's why I never took it out on you before our fight. Like I said: many things I regret, some I don't."
Ruby, Yang and Blake went to sleep after that. Weiss stayed up and studied like she always did and for once she didn't ask him to join her. After the day he had he just wanted to crash.
"...Mind if I join you?"
Weiss nodded without a word. The two of them just sat there poring through her notes for an hour, the only sound being the occasional scratches of pens as she underlined or corrected the words.
"Am I wrong?" she asked eventually.
"About what?"
"About all of this. Hating Blake because of her past, wanting to be the leader."
"Those aren't the same thing." She waited for him to continue. He sighed, "You're wrong to want to be leader, at least the way you did. You didn't even give Ruby a chance. You thought you were better than her and nothing she could do would change that. You could've helped her instead since helping her helped you and the entire team, but you weren't happy till everyone followed your lead."
She winced but nodded all the same, "And Blake?"
"I'm not like you or her. I grew up in a small village where the worst thing we had to worry about was making sure we had enough grapes for harvest. You're going to take over the biggest company in Remant and Blake...well, I read up on some of the things the Faunus had to deal with. I don't think she was lying when she talked about the things she's seen. If you walked into a camp and saw a ten year old kid branded by Faunus how would you feel?"
"I'd hate them."
"Probably how she felt too, but she still left it all behind and tried to find a different way." Was that what she meant when she said she understood wanting to be a hero? "I don't think you're completely wrong for not liking Blake's past, but I think it's better if you both understood where the other was coming from. Like she said, she didn't blame you for the things the SDC did."
"...Perhaps." She shut the noteback with a loud snap, "You know I first received my secondary Semblance when I was fighting to prove myself to my father? My grandfather Nicholas started the SDC from the ground up. He led the charge to the mines and personally fought the Grimm to ensure the workers were safe. My father couldn't care less about that. He considers fighting and Huntsmen 'barbaric' because he's safe from the Grimm in Mantle."
"Sounds like you want to change things too." He smiled slightly.
"Hmm. When I used these abilities for the first time it was when a sword was poised to cut my eye." She scratched at her left eye again, "I thought...maybe it was stupid, but I thought it was some kind of sign. A sign that I was on the right path and meant to be the leader when I arrived. Imagine my surprise when I ended up on a team with people who shared the same gift." She laughed under her breath.
"Your dad didn't say anything?"
"He didn't care. Fighting is barbaric to him, like I said. If he had his way I would've stayed in Atlas and become his perfect little plaything. To him this gift was just another tool of my 'petty teenage rebellion'." She scowled, "This is more than that. My father didn't start the Schnee legacy and I refuse for him to be the end of it. A legacy where children are branded and enslaved."
"Sounds like you and Blake really need to talk."
"I'll...try." She took a deep breath and shuddered, "I'm under no illusions that it'll be easy, though. I was raised by Atlas for seventeen years."
"I don't think we're asking for overnight change, Weiss. Just...just try."
"I will." She rubbed her eyes, "...We should get to sleep. Are you sure you don't want to try talking to the headmaster so we can lighten your punishment? I'm certain we can do something."
"No, that's okay." He really felt sorry for Professor Port.
"Alright. Goodnight, Jaune."
"Goodnight, Weiss."
Jaune felt happy.
He practically collapsed on top of his head. The last thing he heard before he went to sleep was Blake muttering something under her breath.
"Amber..."
Looks like Torchwick got Torchwrecked. At least Neo's still out there, though something tells me her vs Yang won't go her way this time. Jaune also continues to suffer from success and has become a treasured member of team RWBY for how selfless and caring he is to his teammates. He even took three months detention with Professor Port, gasp horror!
And yeah, this is the first glimpse of how team RWBY kinda derails any canon events they take part of. That's what happens when you have a team of walking WMD's and no one else is scaled to their level. Later villains have to plan around them, not through them.
Not a lot of Yang this chapter. I'll try to put more focus on her next chapter along with showing Jaune training with Port and Qrow. Gotta up them Survival skill tree if he wants to keep living. Oh, and an info update:
Weiss - Winter Maiden. Awakened during the Arma Gigas fight.
We still don't know how any of the four inherited, however, apart from Yang possibly getting hers from Raven.
Review Responses:
Silence of Mind - Docks went nuclear, though he did arguably stop Blake from murderizing Torchwick.
ReadYesYes - It's not just Penny. Practically everyone Jaune makes friends with are absurdly strong and/or have wacky backstories. There's a reason he actually likes Port.
Calcetin Sock - Sadly Mercury's bromance has the last amount of votes :(
MrRayney - Jaune has become too invaluable to replace. Poor him.
Dan114200 - No Neo yet, but Torchwick gets wrecked.
SentinalSlice - Yeah, Jaune needs them shields. As for Amber, there's a hint at the end of the chapter.
Maidens4 - You mentioned fics where Yang (or another RWBY member) becomes a Maiden? Besides Beast of Beacon and A Man of No Tribe, are there any other ones?