*Happy, up-tuned, jingly version of Justice League theme*
Hunters of Justice Chibi!
The Cupid Shuffle by trestwho
Valentine's Day. A holiday devoted entirely to love, where romance blossomed, and couples came together for that most glorious and powerful emotion. For many, it was their favorite time of year. Some unfortunates dreaded it, while others allowed themselves to reminisce about loves long since gone.
But for some, they lived for Valentine's Day. Or rather, what Valentine's Day represented.
"Ooh, it's today! It's today!" Aphrodite, the Goddess of Love, rejoiced as she pranced around her private room on Mount Olympus. The other Gods were nowhere to be seen, even her nominal husband Hephaestus. They had long since learned to leave her alone on Valentine's Day, lest they be roped into her schemes. Her son Eros, however, had no such luck. Not that he minded. He loved Valentine's Day almost as much as his mother.
"What shall we do today, Mother?" Eros asked, testing his bow and placing arrows into a quiver strapped to his back. Aphrodite turned to face her son with a wide smile on her face bright enough to shine like a star, and spread her arms wide.
"The same thing we do every day, Eros! Spread love throughout the world!" Aphrodite declared. Eros smiled proudly, standing up straighter as his wings began to twitch in excitement. Knowing his mother was on a roll, Eros stayed quiet and let her continue.
"But not just any love, though. The best kind of love!"
"And what love would that be?" Eros asked.
"The kind of love that should've sailed a long time ago, but whether due to ignorance, indecisiveness, fear, or simply not recognizing what was already there, it hadn't. Today, Eros, we will be letting those long-waiting ships sail."
Eros smiled and flapped his wings, allowing him to hover in place.
"Any specific targets?"
"As a matter of fact, there are."
Yang tiredly ate her breakfast, a plate of scrambled eggs, toast and bacon with a glass of milk to wash it down. The others were sitting around the kitchen table, eating their own food, reading on their scrolls, or chatting excitingly among themselves.
"Can you believe it's Valentine's Day!" Ruby exclaimed, fidgeting in her seat as she tried to talk to a clearly disinterested Weiss.
"Yes, Ruby. It is," Weiss stated, thumbing through the latest Daily Planet issue. To her distaste, it was merely a fluff piece containing mindless romantic drivel. She should've realized it would be the case when Lois' name wasn't featured on the author list. Ruby clearly didn't mind. In fact, in her hyperactive imagination, she was thrilled about the holiday. She always was a sucker for the idea of romance, despite having never been in one herself. Not that Weiss was any more successful on that front. Her lone relationship, if she could call it that, ended almost as soon as it began.
"So, Jaune," Pyrrha said as Jaune dug into his bowl of cereal. "Any plans for today?"
"Hmm?" Jaune mumbled, his mouth full. Seeing Pyrrha's expectant face, he swallowed and hummed in thought. After a few seconds, his eyes widened, and he nodded. "Oh, yes actually. Nora and I were gonna build a Lego Death Star with Ruby."
"You know it!" Nora declared, gently rubbing her hand on the large cardboard box containing thousands of pieces of multicolored plastic bricks.
"Oh…" Pyrrha murmured, slightly disappointed. Sensing this, Jaune looked at his partner with a worried gaze.
"You can join us, if you want?" he offered, oblivious to her true feelings. Pyrrha looked up at him with a small smile and softly nodded.
"I'd like that."
Yang, meanwhile, shook her head at her fellow blonde's obliviousness. It was clear to her that Pyrrha would've much rather preferred a more traditional Valentine's Day experience, not playing with Legos. Although, she had to admit there was a certain appeal with them. Ruby had gotten her to help build a couple, which was a nice sisterly bonding experience. Still, not the most romantic.
A flash of black crossed Yang's eye, and she turned her head to glance at Blake. She was reading some book about a whale, her feline ears twitching at the commotion around her. The sunlight trickled in through the window blinds, casting almost a perfect shadow and radiance around her. Yang thought it was stunning, but shook the thought out of her head.
"So, Blakey?" Yang began, her partner breaking her attention from her book to glance up at Yang. With a smile on her face, Yang said, "You wanna do something today?"
Blake remained silent for a moment, and at first Yang thought she might've stepped over her bounds. But, with a soft smile on her face, Blake lowered her book and looked straight into Yang's eyes.
"Actually, I was thinking that—"
Suddenly, a loud crash and gasp sounded through the kitchen. Everyone turned their heads, a soft grunt of surprise coming from Blake as they saw Jaune standing up, his shirt completely drenched with milk and pieces of cereal clinging to his hair. Yang couldn't help but chuckle, which caused Jaune to give her a half-lidded glare.
"Hah. Hah," Jaune groaned, Yang continuing to chuckle as the others, outside of a fussy Pyrrha and a silent Blake, joined her.
"What did you do, Vomit Boy?" Yang asked teasingly, and Jaune sighed and showed his soaking wet hands.
"I got distracted and turned my bowl into a catapult," Jaune admitted. The laughter grew, and Jaune groaned in forlorn acceptance. He then turned around, placing his bowl in the sink and rubbed his hands dry with a towel.
"Well, I'm done with breakfast. Gonna go change into something dry," he announced, then briskly walked out of the kitchen back towards his team's room. The others watched him go, and Yang shook her head and smiled softly.
"Only you, Jaune. Only you," she whispered to herself, then turned back towards Blake. "You were saying, Blakey?"
Blake didn't respond at first, instead her eyes continuing to track Jaune well after he disappeared behind a wall. Her cheeks were slightly red, and for whatever reason she appeared to have completely forgotten about the rest of the world surrounding her.
"Uh, Blake? Earth to Blake?" Yang called out, snapping her fingers in front of the Faunus. The movement seemed to work, and Blake shook her head as though exiting a trance.
"Huh, wha?" Blake said, turning her head towards Yang quickly. Seeing Yang's worried face, Blake took a deep breath and released it slowly. "Sorry, got a little distracted."
"I'll say," Yang replied, then shrugged it off. "Anyway, you were going to tell me something before Jaune turned himself into a cereal bowl?"
Blake narrowed her eyes in confusion, then they widened as she remembered what Yang was talking about. "Oh, right! You were asking me what I wanted to do today?"
"Yeah, that," Yang clarified. "'Cuz if you don't have any plans, I was going to see a movie and figured you might want to come with me."
Yang half-expected Blake to think for a moment then dryly agree, as was her norm, but instead the Faunus glanced quickly towards the direction Jaune had exited.
"Actually," Blake slowly began, "I think I'm going to help Jaune and the others build that Death Star."
"…Really?" Yang asked, caught completely off guard. She had expected a lot of various plans Blake might've had for the day. Reading a book, testing out her newest gear, or cooking up new tuna recipes to shove down everyone's throat. Hearing that she wanted to hang out with Jaune to build Legos was not one of them.
"Yeah. It seems like it could be fun," Blake continued. "You can go see that movie, though. Tell me how it goes."
"But—" Before Yang could continue, Blake stood up and fast-walked out of the room, heading in the direction of Team RWBY's room. Yang watched her go, clearly surprised at this unexpected development. Finally, after a moment of silence, Yang could only say, "Oh… Okay, then."
Sighing, Yang hung her head and looked forlornly at the ground. Then her eyes spotted something strange where Blake just sat.
"What the…?" Yang mumbled as she leaned down to pick it up. It was a small wooden shaft, about the size of her thumb. With tapered feathers on the back end and a heart-shaped point on the other, it looked oddly like an arrow.
"What's cha got there?" Nora asked, chewing loudly on her breakfast as Yang continued to study the strange object. The others, seeing the awkward exchange between Yang and Blake, had chosen to leave the room for the time being. Nora, being Nora, felt no such need to leave and hadn't finished eating, so she stayed.
"I…think it's an arrow."
"An arrow? That's weird. Where'd it come from?"
"I have no idea."
"Blake, thanks for joining us! We're going to have so much fun!" Ruby exclaimed as she escorted an oddly nervous Blake down the hall.
"Yeah," Blake said, the redness of her cheeks growing slightly larger as they got closer to JNPR's room. "Thanks for letting me play."
"Uh-uh-uh! We're not 'playing', we're building!" Ruby insisted, bringing her finger up in emphasis.
"…There's a difference?"
"A world of difference! I wouldn't expect a brick-building novice such as yourself to understand such fine vernacular, but don't worry! We'll get you there," Ruby declared, reaching up to pat Blake's shoulder encouragingly. The Faunus couldn't help but chuckle at her leader's antics, but soon they were upon their destination. JNPR's room, marked by an appropriately labeled sign. The blush on Blake's face returned in force, but she forced herself to keep it down as Ruby moved her hand to open it.
"Welcome, Blake, to our workshop," Ruby announced, opening the room to reveal Jaune and Pyrrha sitting on the ground, the box containing the Lego Death Star already opened as they organized its contents.
"Hey, Ruby. Blake," Jaune greeted both, now wearing a fresh t-shirt with the Pumpkin Pete logo proudly etched along the front. "Have to admit, Blake, I'm kinda surprised you wanted to join us."
"Oh, you know. Just wanted to try new things," Blake replied. Jaune pursed his lips for a moment, then nodded in simple acceptance.
"Okay, great! Go ahead and grab a seat. We're just organizing everything now." Jaune thrust his thumb towards Pyrrha. "Pyrrha insisted."
"All I said was that organizing everything would make it easier," Pyrrha insisted, puffing out her cheeks slightly. "You don't have to make it sound like I forced you."
"You kinda did," Ruby pointed out, having left the room just as it occurred. Pyrrha lightly glared at the cheeky young girl while Jaune bit back a laugh. Blake and Ruby then walked forward, closing the door behind them as they took a seat. Ruby sat next to Pyrrha, but Blake, much to Pyrrha's surprise, chose to sit conspicuously close to Jaune himself. The boy didn't seem to notice the rather odd choice of placement, instead continuing to organize the many pieces. Neither did Ruby, who instead hummed happily to herself while swaying in place, organizing her own pieces at the same time. For a moment, Pyrrha thought about drawing attention to it, but before she could, the door to their room opened again.
"I'm here! Sorry about that. Was helping Yang through a little crisis," Nora announced, taking stock of the situation almost immediately. "Aw, geez. Come on, Pyrrha? Why you gotta get all organized?"
"It's functional!" Pyrrha insisted, an embarrassed blush on her face as the others chuckled. Still laughing, Ruby looked at Pyrrha just as Jaune slightly lowered his head. Something rustled past his hair, then Ruby felt a small prick on the side of her arm.
"Ah!" Ruby lightly gasped, rubbing her arm and finding a heart-shaped arrow poking out of her shirt. She looked around for the source but found none, then shrugged and turned back to face Pyrrha as the laughter began to die down.
"Don't worry your pretty little face, Pyrrha. We don't mind," Ruby insisted. Pyrrha smiled warmly at Ruby, then turned her head to face the rest of the pieces just as the young girl whispered under her breath, "Really pretty, actually…"
"Huh, did you say something, Ruby?" Pyrrha asked, not sure if she heard Ruby right. Ruby's face flushed and she shook her head violently.
"Nothing, I said nothing about you or your pretty eyes and hair!" Ruby suspiciously denied, chuckling nervously. "Let's just play with Legos, alright?"
"I thought you said we were building with Legos?" Blake accused, having taken the opportunity to inch slightly closer to Jaune. Ruby's blush practically exploded, and with wide eyes Pyrrha recognized a sign she had long thought she'd left behind.
'Oh, Gods… Not again,' Pyrrha thought as a small flutter of wings flew out from behind a slightly ajar window.
"I mean, I just don't get it!" Yang wailed to Weiss and Ren inside the living room. She was laying her head face-down on a table while Weiss affectionately patted her head.
"There, there. Just let it out," Weiss soothed her teammate.
"Seriously? Just out of nowhere! She might not think I'm perceptive, but I am! I know what I saw, and what I saw confuses the heck outta me!"
"I must admit," Ren added as he sipped his tea gently, "Blake showing a sudden interest in Jaune does seem peculiar. I don't believe they've interacted very much."
"Exactly!" Yang exclaimed, raising her arm into the air while her face was still planted. "It makes no sense!"
"What worries me is the arrow you found," Weiss said, rubbing her chin. "I sent it over to the League in case it was dangerous, but from what I could see, it was just blunt wood and ordinary bird feathers. Nothing more."
Yang moved to speak, but couldn't find the words and instead sighed. She had been struggling to wrap her head around Blake's behavior for nearly an hour now, and it still made no sense. Yang might not have had the greatest and most extensive experience in romance in the world, on Earth or Remnant, but she recognized the look on Blake's face. That was a full-on crush blossoming out onto the world. Normally that wouldn't have been an issue for Yang. If Blake had a crush on someone, that was her prerogative. Blake could like or date whoever she wanted. But Yang would've preferred for the selection to at least make sense, and Jaune 'Vomit Boy' Arc made no sense whatsoever in Yang's mind. Even before they got to Earth, the two hardly ever interacted. Heck, for the longest time Yang thought they had never even spoken a word to each other, and once Blake even confused Jaune for Sun Wukong. Sun, a monkey Faunus with a tail who had a strange yet not at all unwelcome aversion to shirts.
So, it was a great surprise to the blonde brawler when Blake suddenly and inexplicitly appeared to develop a crush on Jaune from out of the blue. The question 'why' nagged at her mind and it was driving her insane. Both from how confusing it was as well as a small, barely noticeable hint of jealousy that just wouldn't leave no matter how much Yang tried to throttle it.
"You seem stressed, Yang," Weiss declared, rubbing Yang's shoulders affectionately.
"Gee, ya think?" Yang sarcastically quipped. If Weiss was upset by Yang's tone, she didn't show it. Instead, to Ren's slight confusion, she appeared to chuckle. Before he could focus on it further, Nora stepped into the room, a glass in her hand as she went to refill her drink.
"Sup, guys," Nora called out, opening the refrigerator door to grab a gallon of milk. As she poured, Nora announced without turning her head, "So, interesting development. Ruby has a crush on Pyrrha."
"WHAT?!" Yang shouted, bolting upright as both Ren and Weiss turned their heads towards the boisterous girl.
"Yep," Nora replied, popping the 'p.'
"When did that happen?" Yang demanded, and Nora shrugged.
"I dunno. Just kinda did as we were building the Death Star. Started mumbling about how pretty Pyrrha was and keeps blushing every time she looks at her. It's adorable, really."
Yang had to admit, the thought of Ruby blushing uncontrollably at the sight of her crush did sound adorable and cutesy, but the fact that it was her little sister showing an interest in Pyrrha, of all people, was what threw her for a loop. It was like Jaune and Blake, only this time it was with her little sister.
"How's Pyrrha handling it?" Ren asked.
"Like a champ, as usual," Nora answered as she placed the gallon of milk back into the refrigerator and closed the door. "Trying to let her down gently while not breaking her heart at the same time. When I left, that amounted to nice, mindless platitudes like 'That's great, Ruby,' or 'Thanks for the rose, Ruby. That's very sweet.' The rose was made out of Legos, by the way."
The other three former students looked at Nora incredulously. After a moment, Yang groaned, and Weiss sighed.
"Of course, that's exactly how'd she flirt," Weiss grumbled while Yang leaned her head back over her chair.
"Dare I ask about Blake?" Yang asked, not wanting to hear the answer. Nora thought for a moment, trying to determine how best to describe Blake's showings of newfound affection towards her fearless leader.
Jaune stared up at Blake with narrowed, suspicious eyes. Blake, meanwhile, looked back down into his seemingly without a care. The boy took note of the situation he found himself in, and without taking his eyes off the Faunus, began to speak.
"I feel like you're trying to tell me something. I don't know what it is, but it's something," Jaune said as Blake shuffled herself on his lap. Why, how and when she did that Jaune had long since stopped trying to ask, and Blake was in no mood to answer them.
Blake, meanwhile, gazed into Jaune's eyes, and finally answered, "Your lap is comfy, and I fit in it. Therefore, I sit."
"Right…"
Pyrrha could only stare in silent confusion at Jaune and Blake. She had figured out fairly quickly that Blake, for some unknown reason, had developed a crush on her partner. A crush that, unlike herself, Blake was more than willing to act upon. In her own way, at least. Jaune, however, had proven himself to be as dense as a neutron star and despite the fact that Blake was literally sitting on his lap, he still hadn't gotten the hint. A pang of jealousy struck through Pyrrha's heart, screaming that it should be her sitting on Jaune's lap, but the rest of her struck it aside. As much as she might've preferred it to have been her, if this strange course of events decided to continue and Jaune wanted it, she'd support it one hundred percent.
Besides, she had her own issue to worry about.
"So, Pyrrha," Ruby announced as she returned from her team's room, carrying a red and black rectangular box in her arms. "I was thinking. You're a girl with a rifle, I'm a girl with a rifle. Maybe we could swap ideas and compare?"
At Ruby's suggestion, she opened her box to reveal the collapsed and disassembled body of Crescent Rose Mk. II. She happy squirmed in place, holding her weapon up proudly.
"I showed you mine! What about yours?" Ruby asked. Pyrrha looked up at the young girl for a moment, then with the ease of several years of practice and experience, smiled.
"That sounds lovely, Ruby. I'd love to do that."
"Yay!"
Nora finally decided to tell Yang that Blake had proven to be quite forward with her affections, which only caused the blonde to groan and slam her head back onto the table. Weiss went back to rubbing Yang's shoulder, then seemed to come to a decision.
"You know what, Yang?" Weiss declared, prompting her teammate to look up at her with one eye. "This sullen, dejected look? It doesn't suit you. We need to cheer you up."
Yang stared at Weiss for a moment, then sighed and closed her eyes. "You have any ideas?"
"Actually, yes," Weiss replied, pulling out her scroll and tapping a few keystrokes. "There's a nice restaurant in Metropolis that caught my eye. I was thinking you and I could go there."
Silence fell between the group as Yang ruminated over Weiss' suggestion. Finally, she sat upright and looked at the platinum blonde with a small smile on her face.
"That sounds perfect, Weiss. Thank you," Yang said.
"You're welcome," Weiss replied with a smile of her own, then stood up and turned around to walk towards RWBY's room. "I'm going to get changed into something nice. You might want to do the same."
"Will do!" Yang declared as Weiss walked away, the blonde looking back towards Ren as he himself couldn't help but notice the small wooden arrow sticking out of Weiss' hair.
"She's a good friend, you know?" Yang said, smiling obliviously at Ren.
"…Yes, she certainly is," Ren replied, not wanting to add to Yang's stress any further. From the corner of his eyes, he looked at Nora just as Yang got up to change as well. When the blonde was gone, Nora shrugged.
"Valentine's Day, I guess," Nora suggested. She turned to walk back towards JNPR's room, but paused and pursed her lips. Then, quickly coming to a decision, she decided against it and instead walked over to cuddle next to Ren. He was surprised at first, but soon smiled softly as the two settled into each other peacefully.
Aphrodite smiled to herself as she gazed out into the beyond. An ocean of golden clouds surrounded Mount Olympus on all sides, the light casting an ethereal glow from the heavens above. It was a peaceful, tranquil scene that the Goddess of Love basked in as she felt the joy of love echo from the Earth below. She was alone in her quarters, standing between massive marble columns as red curtains billowed in the wind. Nothing could break her from this moment, and she felt at peace.
Then she heard the flutter of wings, and her smile widened as she turned around to face her returning son.
"Eros!" Aphrodite announced as Eros entered her room, parting a curtain that marked her doorway.
"Hello, Mother," Eros replied in a subdued tone. Aphrodite found it strange, but moved past it as she walked towards him.
"Well, don't just stand there. How did your mission go?" she gently asked. Eros looked up at her and gulped, awkwardly rubbing his arm and shifting his gaze everywhere except his mother's eyes. Aphrodite's expression began to harden in suspicion, and she prepared to raise her voice when Eros finally began to speak.
"You see, Mother…" Eros began, "I went to the Huntsmen and Huntresses as planned and hit them with arrows."
"Is that so? Then why do you look ashamed?" Aphrodite asked somewhat forcibly.
"Heh heh, well… Funny story, there. You see—"
"Eros, what did you do?" Aphrodite cut her son off, using her hand to force his eyes to lock with her own. He stared fearfully into her dark expression, and he gulped loudly.
"I missed," Eros finally announced. Aphrodite gasped and let go of her son, backing away and bringing her hand to her chest as though it had just touched a hot stove.
"What? What do you mean you missed?" she demanded to know. Seeing that there was no way out of this mess, Eros sighed and looked as his feet.
"I went to RWBY and JNPR to try and move them along, as we wanted. My focus was on the more problematic halves of the pairs. You know, the ones that were the primary cause of why they hadn't happened yet."
"Yes, of course. Go on," Aphrodite insisted, and Eros nodded.
"First, I focused on Blake. I tried hitting her with an arrow of love when she was looking at Yang. But, just as I hit her, she looked at Jaune instead…"
"Are you serious?" Aphrodite demanded, hoping that her son was playing a cruel joke on her. When he shook his head, she croaked, "How?"
"They were eating breakfast at the time and just as I released the arrow, Jaune accidentally spilled milk and cereal all over himself that caught everyone's attention, including Blake's," Eros explained, and Aphrodite groaned in slight annoyance.
"Okay, okay. Moving on, did you at least get Arkos going?" Aphrodite asked, rubbing the bridge of her brow.
"I tried," Eros shamefully admitted, an embarrassed look on his face. Aphrodite groaned and covered her face with her hands, allowing Eros to continue. "I tried hitting Jaune with an arrow as he was looking at Pyrrha, but he moved his head at the last second and the arrow hit Ruby instead."
"Olympus preserve us. Was Ruby at least looking at Jaune when it hit her?" she begged. Although she would've much rather preferred Arkos over Lancaster, at least the latter was a suitable alternative. Two young, inexperienced, socially awkward goofballs meeting on the first day of school, sharing similar interests and helping to build up and support the other during their times of need? The romance practically wrote itself. Even if it was a tad bit cliché, at least it was believable and adorable at the same time.
"No…" Eros slowly admitted. "She was looking at Pyrrha…"
Moving her hands away from her face, Aphrodite looked incredulously at her son, who offered an awkward smile as penance.
"On the bright side," Eros continued, "I got Freezerburn going. Kinda. Yang doesn't think it's a date, but it's going strong!"
Aphrodite said nothing, staring at her son in amazement before groaning and walking towards her large, spacious bed. She pulled out a jug of wine from underneath a cupboard, poured it into a golden chalice and began to drink.
"No, no, no. This is wrong, the pairings weren't supposed to be this way. It was supposed to be Bumblebee, Arkos, and White Rose, not Knightshade, Milk and Cereal, and Freezerburn. It doesn't make sense!"
Aphrodite paused to take another drink, looking at a shameful Eros from the corner of her eye. Then her eyes widened, and she stopped drinking. Slowly, she put her chalice down and turned towards a large, spacious wall next to her bed. Her mind raced, and her hand slowly drifted towards the wall in a gentle caress.
"Or…do they?" she wondered aloud.
"Mother?" Eros asked, slightly concerned. But before he could make his way over, Aphrodite sharply raised her hand and stopped him in his tracks.
"Leave me, Eros. I am having…revelations, and I do not wish to be disturbed."
Eros looked at his mother for a moment, then nodded and slightly bowed his head. "As you wish, Mother."
With that, Eros turned around and flew out of the room, not too quickly but not too slowly, either. He pretended not to hear the faint, maniacal laughter coming from his mother's room, and he tried not to think about what terrible force he had unwittingly unleashed.
The Sun had long since sunk beneath the horizon when Diana finally arrived on Mount Olympus. She had been spending the day stopping the Cheetah from committing some kind of themed crime spree, only to have to awkwardly console the furred woman after capturing her when she broke down and tearfully admitted it was all because she was without a mate, er, date, for the holiday. Only once that was finished at the tail end of the day did she finally return to the Watchtower. She had barely stepped five feet into the space station when she was presented by a small wooden arrow, and it wasn't hard for her to determine just who it came from. One check-in with RWBY and JNPR later, the Wonder Woman had flown as fast as she could towards Mount Olympus, where she was greeted by the perpetrator himself.
"Oh, thank Zeus, you're here!" Eros said gratefully, either not recognizing or not caring about the wrathful look on Diana's face.
"What is the meaning of this, Eros?" Diana demanded to know. "Why were your arrows—"
"We were trying to blossom romance, but I messed up!" Eros interrupted.
"You think?!" Diana shouted. "Eros, you need to reverse this, now."
"I tried, but Mother…she won't let me!" Eros explained, throwing his arms into the air then falling to his knees. "Please, make her see reason! I beg of you!"
Diana looked down at Eros then back up towards Aphrodite's home on Mount Olympus. Orange flickers of flame told her that the Goddess of Love was very much still active, and with her sword in one hand and shield in the other, Diana carefully stepped forwards. As she drew closer to Aphrodite's rooms, Diana began to hear cackling laughter, and when she parted the curtain to enter the Goddess' room, her eyes widened.
"Hera have mercy…" Diana gasped. Gone was the luxurious, pristine room adorned with fine jewelry, smooth silks, and copious amounts of mirrors and cosmetics that Diana had come to expect with Aphrodite. Instead, every inch of the room was covered in hastily written charts. Charts filled with names that connected to others through long, red strings. She couldn't even take a step without risking tangling herself in the web, and at the center of it all, madly poring herself over mountains of paper, was the Goddess of Love herself.
"Aphrodite?" Diana gently called out. Aphrodite's head shot upward, her eyes red and bloodshot as she looked upon Diana. At first her expression was the definition of insanity, and for a moment Diana worried she'd have to fight the Goddess. But, instead, Aphrodite's expression warped into jubilation, and before the Amazon knew it, she was held tightly by the Goddess' arms.
"Oh, Diana! This is wonderful! I'm so, so happy you're here!" Aphrodite exclaimed, swinging Diana around in a close circle. After several rotations, the Goddess let go of her unwitting captive and skipped back to her bed, not noticing the dizzy look on Diana's face.
"Come, come! Let me show you my masterpiece!" Aphrodite insisted, beckoning Diana over with quick waves of her hand. Getting her head straight, Diana looked over at Aphrodite worriedly, then decided to take a risk and gently sheathed her sword and shield along her back.
"Aphrodite, what is this?" Diana asked.
"This, Diana, is the greatest discovery in the history of shipping I have ever seen! Not since Helen of Troy have I been so enthused!" Aphrodite exclaimed, moving her arms towards the papers and silently begging Diana to look upon them. Despite her better judgement, and urged along with Aphrodite's quick, maddened nodding, Diana took one of the papers and held it up to her face. Her eyes scrunched as she tried to make out the Greek writing, but soon recognized the names being shown.
"This is RWBY and JNPR," Diana pointed out, and Aphrodite's smile exploded.
"Yes, it is!" Aphrodite exclaimed, bringing herself close to the Amazon. "You see, Diana, this morning I made a serendipitous discovery. Up until now, my entire thinking had been wrong! I had been focusing on the wrong pairings!"
"Okay…?" Diana honestly had no idea what Aphrodite meant by that, but something told her she was about to find out. If Aphrodite realized Diana's discomfort, she didn't show it as she continued along.
"Or, should I say, I was too constrained! It's not just Arkos, Bumblebee, or White Rose that can work! They all can work!"
"Arkos? Bumble… What are those?" Diana asked, honestly lost.
"They're shipping names, Diana," Aphrodite scoffed, shaking her head in disappointment. "Arkos for Jaune and Pyrrha, Bumblebee for Blake and Yang, and White Rose for Ruby and Weiss! Seriously, it's super easy. Keep up with the times."
"Shipping names?" Diana asked. She looked back down at the paper, and saw that there were hundreds of these shipping names written down. "So, is this a…?"
"A shipping chart, yes!" Aphrodite announced, nodding wildly. "After RWBY and JNPR arrived on Earth, I had immediately noticed their potential and had begun observing them. Their personalities, quirks, histories and more! Prime relationship material, Diana! A few rose above the rest, of course, and in my folly I had convinced myself that those frontrunners were the only viable ships!"
"Okay…?"
"But then, nothing happened! It was frustrating beyond belief, so I had Eros try to speed things along. Spread some romance between them, only for my son, bless his heart, to hit the wrong targets."
"I take it that's why Blake was flirting with Jaune, Ruby awkwardly doing so with Pyrrha, and Weiss took Yang on a date?"
"Yes, although to be fair, Freezerburn was the backup plan in case Bumblebee didn't work out. Anyway," Aphrodite continued, ignoring the exasperated look on Diana's face, "my son's blunder got me thinking. Then I thought some more, then some more, and finally I realized: Knightshade, Milk and Cereal, ships I had so cruelly dismissed, worked. They worked so well together!"
"I see," Diana said half-mindedly as she read through the rest of the scrambled writings of a madwoman.
"Of course, I couldn't be blamed for not seeing the connection before. Neither party really interacted that much, so it didn't seem to click. But now I see the light! With Knightshade, we have an outgoing human boy breaking a reclusive Faunus girl out of her shell, teaching her that perhaps not all humans are bad while at the same time she builds up his own self-worth and confidence, teaching him that he isn't as worthless as he believes himself to be! With Milk and Cereal, a champion finds a connection with a young prodigy thrust into a world that she wasn't truly ready for, and together they brave it and all the dangers it throws at them! They're so cute!"
"Uh-huh," Diana replied as she held up a paper. "Then what's with the rest of this?"
"Oh, the others? You see, Diana, after I realized the truth, I began to think. If Knightshade and Milk and Cereal could work, what about others? Ships I had never truly considered to be viable suddenly could be, so I combed through their lives. Each person they've ever interacted with I charted and plotted, and found the same thing! They could work!"
Diana glanced down at a ship named 'Baked Alaska.' "Neopolitan and Yang Xiao Long? Didn't she try to kill Yang?"
"Some would, admittedly, require more effort than others. But, who doesn't love a good redemptive love story?"
"I'm fairly certain that wouldn't be the actual result," Diana mumbled, then continued reading. "Hold on, most of these people they haven't even met yet. Who's Kara?"
"Oh, as if such paltry concerns as time and space, or whether they've actually met each other, matter in the face of love!" Aphrodite insisted, ignoring Diana's question. Diana looked at the Goddess with narrow eyes, then sighed and placed the parchment down.
"If that is the case, how come you only 'shipped' Ren and Nora with each other?" Diana asked. To her slight surprise, Aphrodite shot her a scandalous expression.
"Renora is sacred, Diana," Aphrodite insisted. Diana looked at her plainly, then stood up and walked over to her.
"Look, Aphrodite. All of this is…" Diana struggled to find a word as the Goddess of Love looked upon her expectantly, then finally managed to say, "impressive. But don't you think you've gone too far?"
"What do you mean?" Aphrodite asked, not seeing the plain issue. Expecting this, Diana directed Aphrodite's attention towards her entire room, forcing her to take it all in.
"Look at this. You practically turned your room into a warzone. You're treating people's lives as though they are playthings, and that's not right."
"I'm trying to make them happy!" Aphrodite insisted, but Diana shook her head.
"And I understand that. But forcing people to get into a relationship just because you want them to or because you think they would look cute together is not the way to go. You're right, I think many of these ships could work and would look adorable together. But only if that is what they want to do. If Jaune and Pyrrha want to take their relationship to the next level, or decide to stay as friends, that's their decision to make. Same with Blake and Yang, Ruby and Weiss, or any of these combinations you've created. They aren't toys to play with and manipulate on a board. They are real people with their own tastes and desires. Besides, isn't love that blossoms naturally sweeter than love forced upon them by a divine hand?"
"I…" Aphrodite paused, looking over her room once again. A long, heavy silence filled the air, and finally it broke with a long, sullen and resigned sigh. "I guess you're right, Diana."
"I know I am, and so do you," Diana gently said, patting the despondent Goddess on the shoulder.
"Sorry," Aphrodite apologized, walking over to sit on her bed dejectedly. "I got so caught up in the moment that I lost myself again, didn't I?"
"Yeah, you did. But, at least you can make it right," Diana insisted, and Aphrodite nodded.
"Of course, of course." She snapped her fingers, a pulse of energy radiating from them. "There, the effects of Eros' arrows are reversed. They are no longer under their spell."
"Thank you, my Lady," Diana replied, standing up and giving a slight bow. She then took a look around the room and added, "Will you need any assistance?"
"No, don't trouble yourself. I can clean up my own messes. Run along now, I need to get started."
With that, Diana nodded and turned to walk out of the room, ducking underneath the web of strings to do so.
"Oh, since you're here!" Aphrodite called out. "Do you want me to help out with the Batman? Or maybe Superman!"
"Goodbye, Aphrodite!"
"Oh, man! This food is delicious!" Yang exclaimed as she chowed down on perhaps the nicest food she had ever eaten. The most expensive, at the very least, but it had quickly proven to be worth it. The food practically melted into her mouth into a mélange of pure, savory flavor, and she couldn't get enough of it.
"I'm glad you're enjoying it," Weiss said as she daintily ate her food, gazing longingly at Yang. The blonde didn't notice Weiss' expression, continuing to eat her food as the quartet of violinists played beside their table. Weiss had gone all out in her efforts, and she hoped they would prove to be fruitful by the time the night was done.
"Seriously, you didn't have to go this far just to cheer me up," Yang insisted as she drank some sparkling water from her glass. Weiss, her expression not changing, gently took hold of Yang's hand and clasped it with both of hers.
"Trust me, Yang, when I say this. You deserve this, you are worth it, and don't ever think otherwise."
"…Thank you," Yang replied, a heartfelt smile growing on her face. "Wow, Weiss. Honestly, didn't expect this from you. You really know how to cheer a girl up, don't ya?"
Weiss leaned back into her chair and smiled proudly. "I'm full of surprises, Yang. Stick around and I might show you."
At her declaration, Yang laughed and closed her eyes. It was music to Weiss' ears, and she couldn't help but smile warmly in turn. Then, as though a switch was flipped, she shot up in confusion, looking around at her surroundings as though she just woke up from a trance.
"What am I doing?" she asked herself aloud.
Yang finished laughing and wiped her eyes. "Being a good friend, Weiss. I mean, what else would you call treating me to the nicest restaurant in town, complete with a private booth and professional violinists to create a nice atmosphere, just to cheer me up when I'm feeling down? If that's not friendship, I don't know what is."
"…Yes, that's exactly what it is," Weiss slowly agreed, trying and failing to force herself not to blush as hours of memories and unnatural(?) emotions swarmed her mind. Desires that she had never once considered, and ones that she vowed Yang would never, ever learn of. If the blonde did, Weiss knew she would never hear the end of it.
"So, Jaune," Blake dryly began in front of JNPR's room. Ruby and Pyrrha were inside, leaving the two all to themselves, which the Faunus intended to take advantage of.
"Yeah, Blake?" Jaune asked, slightly suspicious.
"I was wondering. Would you like to go get some coffee with me sometime?" Blake asked with practiced casualness, a slight blush crossing her face.
Jaune looked at her for a moment, struggling to find the reason why she would want to do that. Why she was acting the way this way for the past few hours. None of it made much sense to the boy, but at the same time, who was he to give up a chance at a nice cup of coffee?
"Sure, I don't… Wait a minute," Jaune paused, everything clicking into place. "Like, you mean…?"
"A date, yes," Blake finished while studiously examining her fingernails. Jaune's eyes widened, and at once everything made sense.
"Oh, uh. Wow, I didn't… I didn't think you wanted to do that kind of thing with me," he admitted. Blake nodded, her detached air belied by the blush growing slightly larger as Jaune began to ramble. "I mean, I have to be honest, I never really saw you in that way before. Not that I don't think you're pretty! Gods, you're beautiful, but I never really felt you saw me that way. Always thought you were into Sun, or maybe Yang? Although, come to think of it, both of them are blonde like me, so maybe that's why? Yang definitely isn't a Faunus, not that that's a problem or anything! I honestly think your cat ears are cute, especially when they twitch! Oh Gods, I'm rambling. Uh, sorry."
Jaune stopped himself, closed his eyes, and recomposed. "So, uh. Yeah, Blake. If that's what you want to do, I'm all for it. We can give it a shot, see if it—"
"Actually," Blake cut in, her eyes wide and darting around with her face flush with embarrassment, "I, uh, changed my mind. We wouldn't work."
"…What?"
"I'm sorry. It's not you, it's me."
"…Then what was-?" Before Jaune could finish, a loud, shrill scream came from inside his team's room. A moment later, a red blur burst through the door, forming a nice clean hole as red rose petals drifted everywhere.
"DON'T LOOK AT ME!" Ruby shouted in embarrassment. Jaune looked at the disappearing cloud in shock as Pyrrha leaned over the hole while radiating confused concern, then he looked back to where Blake was only to see her dissipate into a shadow. Jaune silently stared at the now empty spot, his mind struggling to find some way to rationalize everything.
"Jaune?" Pyrrha asked in concern, then her partner looked at her with sullen, dejected eyes.
"Pyrrha, what are these games of emotions we play?"
[~]
A Lovely Dream by Jesse K
After a long, hard day training, Jaune was laying back and relaxing without a care in the world. Today was a good day, and he felt content with himself. So much so that when Pyrrha suddenly sat next to him and leaned into his shoulder to snuggle close, Jaune didn't even bat an eye. He even leaned his head towards her, to which Pyrrha wiggled happily.
"Oh Jaune, this is just comfy as could be," Pyrrha cooed, snuggling in closer. "Thanks for training with me today. You're getting so good with your sword. I'm very proud of you."
Jaune's smile widened, and he nodded slowly. "Yeah, I'm proud of me, too."
Another body plopped down on his other side, and yet again Jaune didn't react other than simply turn his head. He was greeted by a mess of blonde hair splayed over most of his left as Yang essentially lay across him. A toothy grin was flashed towards him, and he didn't think anything was weird about why Yang was choosing to do this perfectly normal behavior.
"Ah, you're not just good at working a girl, you're nice to lay on, too," she said. Jaune moved to reply, only for him to be interrupted.
"Make room," a voice demanded as white joined yellow. Weiss nuzzled up against Jaune's chest as she found a place parallel to Yang. "Mm, yes. This is nice."
For a brief moment, Jaune wondered why the composed and elegant Weiss had chosen to turn him into a human bed, but he pushed those thoughts to the side. Everything was just too perfect to suddenly question why Weiss was acting somewhat out of character. Then Blake suddenly trundled in and dropped a freshly baked fish in Jaune's lap. Without even grunting, Jaune tilted his head to look at the steaming hot dish then back up to see Blake's expectant and proud face.
"I hope you like it," she said before curling up at his feet. Now Jaune was confused, but those questions quickly subsided after some more thought. It was perfectly natural for Blake to bring Jaune a fish. He certainly didn't know how to catch and cook one, and the cat Faunus clearly picked up on that. Hence the gift. If anything, he figured he should be thankful, and began thinking of ways to pay her back.
"Hey, there's nowhere left for me!" Ruby protested before moving the fish over to the table and then plopping herself in his lap, wrapping her arms around him before snuggling. Seeing Ruby's petulant behavior, Jaune laughed.
"There's enough of me to go around," he said confidently as the girls all held on tighter. Suddenly Nora pushed her head in from behind next to his, which finally caused him to jump slightly in surprise.
"Hey, we're okay with sharing," Nora declared. Reality began to reassert itself, and Jaune suddenly realized just how strange and off his current situation was. Then, before he could even ask what was going on, Ren came in from the other side.
"In each direction," he filled in before taking out a bottle and spritzing it into his mouth a few times.
"GAGH!" Jaune yelped as he suddenly woke up from his dream, rubbing his head as he looked around in the dark. He was alone in his bed, his teammates sleeping soundly in their own. Nora was snoring softly, her arm hanging off the side of the bed along with her leg on the opposite side. Ren was quiet, Jaune only able to hear his soft breathing. Pyrrha, on the other hand, was snoring like a train, something he again vowed to never let her know she did.
"What was that?!" he asked himself. "I'm not even into most of them. {Removed extra period.} And why were they acting so weird? Why was I so confident? I'm not that suave."
Jaune took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and finally groaned as he laid back down. "Uh, that's the last time I eat Blake's baked fish and drink one of Ren's shakes at the same time so close to bed."
[~][~]
Happy Valentine's Day, everyone! Here's some Chibi goodness to spread the love! We put a lot of work into these, and we hope you guys enjoy it half as much as we loved writing it.
Now, onto the Q&A:
Dragon lord Syed 101: Glad to have you with us, and thank you! We have a lot more in store and we hope you continue to enjoy it.
Praxus84: Yep, Lucius Fox is a great person for Weiss and Ruby, by extension, to be around. As for Lucius and Jacques, yeah I don't think the two of them would get along very well. And that's ignoring what Weiss has told Lucius about her father.
Hey It's That Guy: I wouldn't say my dialogue is better than canon. After all, if it weren't for canon and the love I have for these characters, I wouldn't be writing this story. Personally, I find that the RWBY v Ace-Ops fight was actually extremely well done on both a thematic and objective level. Ruby saying 'Then you trained us' wasn't an example of bad writing. It was Ruby purposefully riling Harriet up in order to split the Ace-Ops, allowing for the most opportune match-ups to ensue. I found it spectacular. Regardless, I am happy that you enjoy our story so much to be invested in the characters and story, and I hope you continue to enjoy it in the future.
Guest (1): If I can find a role for him, maybe.
cyberas: I can understand that, and thanks for the criticism. I'm always trying to better my pacing, and I like to think I'm getting better.
Knight of Fate: Yep, next chapter's going to be fun!
RandomName3064: That's what I was trying to say. The helicopters landed hard but in such a way that the occupants weren't killed. Ruby only shot them when they were in a position to do so.
Jackalope89: Unfortunately for them, Lady Shiva is in the same city as they are. Given her status as the greatest martial artist in the world, she's going to give them a bad time.
MadTitan9: Yep. There's no reason not to include it and it fleshes out the world of Remnant just a tad more. On a side note, I find it hilarious that, in that game, Jaune is extremely overpowered when, at that point in the canon timeline, he was anything but.
the mysterious Mr.E: Yep, even if they're villains, no one deserves to have bombs implanted in their necks. It's cruel, and I intend to emphasize that.
Dracus6: You'll find out next chapter.
mastergamer14: I can't say anything right now on the Legion of Superheroes, for obvious reasons.
Saramus92: You'll have to wait and see.
MadTitan9 (2): Yep, this was a deliberate reference to Boldores and Boomsticks. I got permission from Darwin Candidate to do this, and he enthusiastically agreed.
edinosaur25: I intend to be as accurate to DC as possible while also giving my own spin. As for Grace Choi, this applies to her. Whether or not she appears, you'll have to see.
Steelrain66: I grew up with the DCAU, so I"m partial to the Legion of Doom.
Hotshot6: That answer will be revealed in due time.
Chaldea: That will be revealed in the story proper.
meeyaaargh3412: Yeah, Weiss' theory is very interesting and, given the information she knows, sound. She just doesn't know the full story. Then again, why would she? That was the entire point behind that discussion. I won't say how accurate or not Weiss is at this time, that answer will be revealed eventually.
D. : The Justice League see the Grimm as a threat that they are concerned with. Mostly because of the effect the Grimm had on Remnant. They know that, right now, the Grimm are mostly a nuisance. But they fear that, if it gets out of hand, a lot of people could die. So, they take them seriously.
Jacob9594: It was something we wanted to do, as landing strategies are an integral part of RWBY. Having DC characters do one felt like a natural extension.
That's it for this chapter. See you guys next time! Let us know what you all think!