Dreams Do Come True

by DragonoftheEastblue

Do you believe in destiny? I certainly do, and so do two young Huntsmen-in-training who are about to have their lives changed forever. A retelling of events from the end of the Beacon Dance where Jaune realizes and accepts Pyrrha's feelings, and takes the first step on a journey he never knew was waiting for him. World-building/Canon-Restoration. Arkos, Boop, BlackSun, Iceberg, etc

20. Chapter XX: And Then Came the Knights

Rest in Peace, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Thank you for your service, your dedication to conservation, and your diligence to the empire. Dieu et mon droit.

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Chapter XX: And Then Came the Knights

The following morning was precisely the same as the previous one. Another beautiful sunrise, and another date on the calendar dedicated to wondering what was going on with the less than vocal members of the group. Weiss had remained mum on what had happened with her and Neptune for the time being, but thanks to her conversation with Jaune, she informed her friends that everything was alright, and she was handling things accordingly. Secretly the Xiao Long sisters tried to gain more information from Jaune, but he simply replied that he had no intention of sharing the personal conversations he had with any of their friends, in order to respect their privacy. Weiss would be treated the same way, and she would tell them the truth when she wanted to. As frustrating as this was for them, it was admittedly better than the current situation with Blake, where she had made no such attempt to break her silence. At the behest of Ruby's decision to wait, Yang did her best to treat the Faunus no differently than usual. The problem was that while on the surface Blake was acting more or less like normal, her eyes reflected what she was secretly dealing with, and it frustrated Yang more than she could put into words. She was genuinely fearful that Blake was regressing to what she was during the second half of the first semester, and what fueled that fear was that she had no idea what was the cause. The White Fang had been chased out of Vale, and the major plans that Blake had been afraid were being made behind the scenes, had completely failed. There was no reason for her to be this way, especially after their conversation regarding Adam Taurus, and yet, she was even worse than she had been.

These thoughts were constantly swirling in the minds of the remaining members of Team RWBY. Even Weiss had given it a great deal of thought, who indicated this with a single annoyed expression. This reassured the others than things were not so dire between herself and Neptune, that she couldn't also worry about Blake. This led them to speak privately about what they should do, as Weiss had not been part of their initial discussion. Much to Yang's annoyance, Weiss agreed with Ruby that they should wait for their stubborn Faunus friend to open up; even with the school year drawing to a close. Weiss trusted Blake enough that she wouldn't go down the same road as before the Dance, and would tell them when she was ready. Yang made it clear that she still thought it was the wrong way to go, as she pointed out just how bleak Blake was, but reluctantly conceded once again. She did however end the conversation that the moment they were proven wrong, she was power-driving Blake into the ground and grilling her until she broke.

They, in conjunction with Team JNPR, agreed to move forward as if things were normal, and would hope for the best. Messaging Sun and Neptune through Jaune, who had become chummier with each passing day, they decided to meet up on the edge of the Forest of Forever Fall right before the Commercial District. The two Vacuans agreed, but needed to take care of a few things with the rest of their team before joining up with them. This worked in the Beaconites' favour, as they all had some small errands to run, dividing them into smaller groups, but they all planned to meet at the same location. Team RWBY, dragging a reluctant Blake with them, left for the auto parts store where Yang had ordered her upgrade kit for Inferno. Jaune and Pyrrha had gone to buy some souvenirs for their families, with Ren off to buy some more cook books, and Nora to the forge to get all the correct measurements and pressure calculations for Magnhild. The not together-together couple were reluctant to be separated, much to Jaune and Pyrrha's amusement, but they decided it was better to cover more ground to save time. Ren wanted to have a greater pool of options for recipes while staying at Pyrrha's, truly intending to keep his promise to earn his keep by preparing meals. Nora on the other hand wished to take up Weiss' offer of designing new ammunition and overall upgrades for Magnhild. For any progress to be made however, Weiss needed to know the ins and outs of the weapon down to the millimetre and metallurgical properties. Nora didn't know any of this, therefore she needed to get the specific gauging of cylinder pressure, as well as the headspacing, and measurements of all of Magnhild's parts; which required custom blueprints to be commissioned. It was a lot of work, but the ginger was eager to further develop her weapon, which gave Ren plenty to mull over, as Stormflower was certainly in need of an upgrade. However, what could be done feasibly was greatly limited, leaving the amateur cook to dwell on that fact.

With their plans set, the young Huntsmen-in-training headed out, eager to enjoy their final week before the start of their summer vacation.

λΛλ

On the southeastern edge of the Forever Fall that connected to the normal forest, stood the two cloaked figures atop their horses, on the road that led to Beacon. It wasn't a well travelled road, usually used by Huntsmen traversing cross country, which was perfect for them as they were on horseback. Now in the sunlight, they could be seen clearly. They were both tall individuals with one, though on a horse, was considerably taller than the other. They wore white cloaks with gold trim, with the hoods obscuring their faces and fastened at their necks with golden lion head broaches. This matched their large white horses which had white coats with golden manes and tails, as well as their gauntleted hands that held the reigns of their steeds.

"So this is the road to Beacon Academy?" asked the taller horseman.

"Indeed" confirmed the other. "You can see the Beacon Tower on the horizon ahead. I recommend we use it as a rendezvous point whether we find him or no."

"Excellent. Shall we reconvene in, let's say, an hour?"

"Yes. Try to stay on task and not get distracted, please."

"Me? Never" the first replied with mock offense.

"I have been thoroughly convinced" said the shorter horseman, spurring the horse forward with their knees, heading westward with the path. The taller horsemen tilted its head, and chuckled, pleased with itself, and pulled the reigns of the horse, turning the animal southward into a trot.

λΛλ

At the northwestern corner of the Beacon campus that connected with the Forest of Forever Fall, stood Ren leaning up against a maple. He was genuinely surprised to find himself at their meeting spot first. He had even returned to the dormitories to drop off his books, and he was still the only one who arrived. Nora was naturally the first person he messaged, to which she quickly replied that she was finishing things up at the forge, and would be making her way shortly to meet up with him. Next were Jaune and Pyrrha, who like him, needed to drop things off before heading back. Ren decided to enjoy the beautiful scenery before him as he waited; secretly hoping that he would be alone with Nora for at least a little while. How strange that he found himself missing her terribly, even in short periods of separation. Throughout the entire time that he was shopping, she was constantly on his mind, causing him to notice every little thing that either reminded him of her, or something that she would find interesting. He had even purchased a gift for her, though he now found himself a bit nervous, wondering if she would like it, and how he was supposed to present it to her.

He sighed through his nose and leaned his head back against the smooth bark of the tree. He shut his eyes for a moment before opening them again, and stared deeply into the bright red canopy. This was what he worried would happen. He worried that things would become awkward between the two of them. Of course they had both easily avoided it thus far after sharing a bed twice, and had even gone dancing together outside of the Beacon Dance, so his fears were rather unfounded. Then again, he knew that they had yet to cross that ever-present line. That would be the moment of no return, where they would see just how awkward things would become. He never wanted that to happen. He wanted his relationship with Nora to remain as fun and wonderful as it was; a relationship that had only grown stronger since they had entered Beacon. Things were better than they had ever been for Nora and himself, and he wondered what the summer would hold, as they would be spending it with Pyrrha, who no doubt would be trying to get them together. He wouldn't admit it aloud, but he was grateful for that; not just Pyrrha and Jaune's effort, but Team RWBY's and Team SSSN's as well. Over the course of the year, the one question he had regarding his feelings for Nora was, were his feelings due to her being the only girl in his life, or that she was just that incredible? Given that not a single female student, either of Beacon or of the other three Kingdoms had caught his eye, it cemented that his heart was set on Nora and Nora alone. It offered him more comfort than he expected it would, and it helped him come to terms with the truth.

He stared into the leaves, and for a moment, thought he saw Nora's face form beneath a group of leaves where both their shape and tint resembled her beautiful ginger hair, with the clear blue sky piercing through to form her turquoise eyes. He shook his head, nearly laughing at the thought.

"What am I doing?" he asked himself, though fully knowing and its cause.

From the corner of his eye, Ren noticed something odd; well, something odd given the context. He turned his head to see a cloaked figure mounted on a horse halted in the middle of the road, standing in his stirrups, and slowly looking around him. The white horse he was riding was the largest Ren had ever seen, which made the rider look even more imposing as the hood of his cloak drowned his face in darkness, making it impossible for the Huntsman-in-training to tell who he was. Despite this, Ren was now very certain that the rider was looking right at him, and it made him slightly uneasy. It felt as if he was being pierced by his gaze, even if his eyes weren't visible beneath the hood. What partially defused the situation, was when the rider finally spoke.

"You there!" the rider called, which caused Ren to blink in surprise, as the voice was distinctly that of a woman. "Are you Lie Ren?"

This made Ren tilt his head in confusion, as this horsewoman was certainly not someone that he knew, so her knowing his name was peculiar.

"Yes I am" he answered, seeing no reason to pretend otherwise, while still being cautious.

The rider promptly dismounted from her horse, revealing a scutum shield attached to her back, emblazoned with a lion's head facing to the right and encircled by a double arc, and began to walk towards Ren with the white horse being guided by the reins. She reached to the brim of her hood with her free left hand and drew it back, revealing her long blond hair that curled at the ends. She was possibly a couple years older than Ren, had bright blue eyes like lapis lazuli stones set in her beautiful but stern face, which were laser focused on Ren as she marched towards him. As she walked, Ren now noticed that she was fully armoured, and in very familiar looking armour at that, though a white hoodless monastic scapular with golden trim draped over her cuirass and past her waist. He was unable to ask any questions however, for when she reached him, she began to speak first; where he also became aware that she was taller than him by at least two or three inches.

"I am looking for your Captain, Jaune Arc" she announced. "Where may I find him?"

He paused for a moment, not expecting the question, but again felt a strange compulsion to answer truthfully.

"I'm currently waiting for him, since we made plans to spend time with our team."

"Then I will wait here" she said plainly, and stood beside Ren at attention, producing a Scroll and quickly typed a message.

An uncomfortable silence then rested upon them. Ren had no idea who this young woman was, and that in combination with him being not much of a talkative person, made the situation incredibly awkward. He didn't even have friends outside of the small circle of Teams RWBY, JNPR, and SSSN, so his lack of experience with strangers was now in play. He then remembered that he didn't even know her name, and was about to ask her for it, when he noticed in the corner of his eye, that she was once again looking at him. Turning his head, he realized that she was examining him, in a similar way that Ruby, Weiss, Jaune, and Pyrrha examined their weapons; and it was not making him more at ease.

"Can I help you?" he asked.

"No need" she replied.

"May I ask what you're doing?"

"Examining you."

"I can see that; but why?"

"To determine your standing as a warrior" she explained. "I saw how you performed during the tournament, and now that we are face to face, I can procure a better judgement of your repute and potential." Her eyes carefully scanned him, and she voiced her critique as she did so. "Good, if slim build; certainly requires more weight training, but there is a sturdy base to work off of. Weapons are unsatisfactory for serious combat against Grimm and trained warriors; I recommend a sword. A tad short, but you possess rather handsome features; though that dyed lock is a bit of a distraction. I hope that you are taking your Huntsman training seriously, for five years is hardly any time at all, and it will pass you by in a heartbeat. Take heed and ready yourself, for the battlefield is an unforgiving place, and you must be ready for anything and everything."

The unknown rider's words of advice were wise, and Ren couldn't deny that her critique was solid. What distracted him however, was the comment she had made regarding his looks; which she made so passively. Other than Nora, he had never had a girl complement his looks before, and given that she was a stranger, it only surprised him further. He was more taken aback than flattered, causing his cheeks to turn slightly pink as a result.

"Th-Thank you, I will" he replied, not quite sure what else to say.

"You are welcome. Tell me, Lie Ren, what do you think of Jaune Arc?"

Again, a little taken aback by the directness of her questions, Ren answered in kind.

"He's a good person and a good captain. I consider him one of my best friends, and I think I'm very lucky to be under his command."

The young woman nodded. "Yes, he has shown to have grown considerably, and his leadership during the first round of the Vytal Tournament was excellent…as a start" she remarked with almost a hint of tenderness. Ren glanced at her and wondered what she meant by that. He was going to ask her when she began to speak once again. "How would you say he has progressed as a Huntsman-in-training?"

"Greatly. He had a number of obstacles to overcome at the start of the school year, but he has cleared nearly all of them in such a short amount of time."

"Has he awakened his Semblance?"

"No, but I believe he is on the cusp of doing so."

"And his Aura manipulation and control?"

"Also improving."

As the two spoke, coming up behind them through the maples was Nora, gently humming to herself. Ever since their fieldtrip to the forest to collect sap, she had come to love the natural wonder, and thoroughly enjoyed walking through it. She had purposely headed north from the forge and into the Forever Fall, and was now walking westward through it, parallel to the boarder. Her thoughts were filled with ideas of what she and Ren would do together during the summer break, as well as what Mistral would be like. Secretly, or not so secretly, she wondered if things would progress between herself and Ren. Things had certainly been developing. Her attempts to get his attention were working, and their relationship had never been stronger. Yet there was still a ways to go. With the fear of living on the street removed, they had broken new ground, and perhaps that with them relaxing together without the stress of school and fighting terrorists, things would go even further. Such thoughts put a great amount of spring in her step, and she eagerly bounded towards their meeting spot, looking forward to sharing with her crush what she had learned from the Master-at-Arms.

Nora then saw the boy in question no more than fifty yards before her, and was about to call out to Ren, when she noticed the blonde woman standing beside him. The hammeress had no idea who she was, but even from where she was standing, could tell from her body language that she was getting far too close to him. A cold sensation passed through her despite the warmth of the early summer, and a queasy feeling was building in her stomach; the spark of jealousy igniting, which was a very new sensation for her.

Neither Ren nor this unknown rider noticed they were being watched, and continued to discuss about Jaune, when suddenly the blonde snapped into action. She placed herself between Ren and the murderous intent she sensed behind them, throwing her left arm behind herself to protect him, and grasped the hilt of the sword that hung from her waist. She leaned forward into a stance, ready to draw her weapon at the incoming attacker, but in surprise, found herself staring right into the eyes of a very sour looking ginger. Clearly this was the culprit of the killing intent she sensed, but she was baffled as to how quickly Nora had dropped on them without her noticing sooner.

"Who are you?" the displeased thunderess demanded, glaring unflinchingly into the taller woman's eyes.

"Oh, you are Nora Valkyrie" the blonde remarked, her tense posture relaxing, allowing herself to stand straight, and displaying just how much of a difference in height and build there was between them. This did nothing to affect Nora's glare, and she maintained eye contact, despite having to slightly lift her head to do so. "Forgive me. I thought you were an assassin."

"Who are you?" Nora repeated, not wavering in her defensive demands. She was incredibly protective of Ren, and a stranger, particularly a woman, coming up to him like this, put her on edge. Despite being unarmed, as Magnhild was currently being stripped at the forge, Nora was more than willing to get into a bare-knuckle brawl with this tall woman.

"My apologies" she said, bowing politely. "My name is Octavia, daughter of Otto. I have come to Beacon Academy in search of your captain, Jaune Arc."

"She's telling the truth, Nora" confirmed Ren, fully noticing her aggressive behaviour. "She seems to know Jaune, and we'll learn soon enough to what extend when he and Pyrrha show up."

Nora looked between Ren and Octavia, still a bit unsure of the swordswoman, but ultimately calmed down. Without saying another word, she walked past the blonde and stood firmly next to Ren with her arms folded.

"So how do you know my name?" she asked once again.

"I watched Team JNPR's progress through the tournament, and learned of your names that way" Octavia explained, resting her left hand on the pommel of her sword, and her right on her sword-belt. "Your match against Pierre d'Ocre of Haven was most impressive. You displayed a great deal of might against a far more skilled opponent, and despite your stature, you possess a most stunning amount of strength. I would suggest armouring yourself in future, so that you can be a force to be reckoned with once you graduate as a fully trained Huntress."

Nora hadn't expected her to give such glowing praise, but wasn't willing to become friendly right away, for she was certain that she had seen the blonde check out Ren. Nevertheless, she conceded and nodded.

"Thank you. I trained hard for the tournament" she replied. "So how do you know Jaune and why are you looking for him?"

"We grew up together near the town of Azincourt. As for why I am looking for him; I simply have not seen him in a long time, and given that I was in the area, I decided to visit."

Nora glanced over to Ren, who did the same. Without speaking, they were asking one another if they believed the woman's story; which seemed plausible, though there were a number of questions. It was clear to both of them that Octavia was related to Jaune; quite literally. Her blond hair and blue eyes were the most obvious indications, as well as her armour being painted in the same colours, along with her shield. Thanks to her moving about, that shield had been fully exposed, revealing the same double arc sigil that Jaune had on his shield. Both Ren and Nora knew that Jaune had seven sisters, and were certain that none bore the name "Octavia". Therefore, she must be a cousin. Anyone who had seen Jaune would come to the conclusion that she was related to him, which begged the major question as to why hadn't she come out the gate saying so? Ren had only learned of her name when Nora had demanded for it, and she didn't even give her family name; the quickest way of indicating her relationship with Jaune.

This brought forth another question that both members of Team JNPR were asking themselves: why was she not forthright about her connection with Jaune? Certainly she would have contacted him if she was coming to visit Beacon. His family had made no reservations bombarding him with texts after their first victory, so why hadn't Octavia called or texted to announce her arrival? Why search for him on foot when she clearly had a Scroll? It was this strange act of secrecy that made the pair suspicious, and knew that only with Jaune arriving, could the matter be sorted.

λΛλ

Jaune and Pyrrha were walking on a path heading north, as they had just come from the dormitories. They had returned from their shopping trip to deposit their haul, and were now making their way to their predetermined meeting point.

"Thanks again for the help, Pyrrha" Jaune said graciously, as he walked at her left side, arm in arm. "And sorry for taking so long. I had to get quite a bit."

"You're very welcome and think nothing of it" she replied, smiling sweetly. "It was a lot of fun buying those gifts for your family; especially the baby clothes for Jacob."

"Yeah, you were having a field day in the baby section."

"Those shoes were so cute!"

"You said everything was cute."

"They were!"

Jaune couldn't help but laugh. He had always found it amusing to see the women in his family cooing over babies, and it was especially humorous to see the usually serious Weiss do the same when she saw the photo of his nephew. But with Pyrrha, it was something more. Seeing her go through the aisles of baby clothing, picking which outfits would be the right ones to buy for now, and which Jacob would grow into, was honestly a beautiful sight to see. He began to ask himself why was it so different from Weiss and his sisters, but the answer came to him just as quickly: because it was her. He loved her deeply, and they had already discussed the future, leaving them both certain they would get married some time after graduating from Beacon. Thus, Gods willing, she would be the woman he would have children with, and seeing her pick and choose baby clothes, touched Jaune in a place he never had before.

'One bridge at a time' he told himself, knowing he had plenty on his plate as it was to begin thinking of starting a family.

It went without saying that he would get plenty of that when he returned home in a week's time, so it was best to enjoy himself with Pyrrha without being pestered by his family. Nonetheless, they had both spoken openly about wanting children, so it only spurred the blond onwards to self-improve and secure that beautiful future.

Suddenly, Jaune caught a glimpse of something that caused him to halt in his tracks.

"Light..." he breathed.

Pyrrha, who was still going over which outfits she liked best, stopped with him and looked up in confusion.

"What's wrong?" she asked, now seeing the wide-eyed expression on his face.

"What is he doing here?" he demanded.

Pyrrha frowned at the tone in his voice, and looked down the road to see who exactly he was referring to. This was actually an incredibly easy task to perform, as there was only one man in their line of sight. He was impressively tall at 6'6", with an equally impressive white stallion standing behind him. He wore a white cloak with gold trim with the hood drawn back, which rested on a large teardrop kite shield, painted in the same colours with a right facing lion head and familiar double arc to the top right. He was speaking to a pair of Beaconite girls, who were positively swooning over him, and despite him bending over, they still needed to look up. One of the girls then noticed the couple watching them, and pointed whilst speaking to the horseman. He gave Jaune and Pyrrha a quick look, and presumably said his thanks with a deep bow, before turning to walk towards his onlookers, pulling his horse along, and waving at them. He had curly blond locks, bright azure eyes, and an even brighter smile that stretched from ear to ear. He looked quite similar to Jaune in fact, especially with the armour he wore, appearing to be only a couple years older than him. The sunlight caught the hilt of the expertly crafted warsword on his left hip, as well as a beautiful white war blowing horn with golden bands hanging across his chest to his right side. Pyrrha was about to ask who he was, when the man announced himself first, as he had already crossed the distance between them with quick long strides.

"Cousin!" the man bellowed, dropping the reins and wrapping his arms around Jaune to hug him tightly, causing their cuirasses to clang audibly despite his monastic scapular. He laughed as he hoisted him into the air with ease, making it clear that he missed Jaune greatly.

"L-Lawrence!" Jaune gasped, not expecting him to embrace him so energetically. The taller blond appeared not to have heard him, as he was laughing with glee. He then finally put him down before turning to Pyrrha, his smile growing wider as their eyes met.

"Ah! Pyrrha Nikos!" he cheered, and before the redhead could react, Lawrence placed his hands on her shoulders and kissed her once on each cheek. "How wonderful it is to meet you at last! Your previous matches in Mistral have always been a spectacle to behold, but you outdid yourself this year at the Vytal Tournament! Congratulations!"

"Th-Thank you" she replied graciously, her cheeks flushed from being kissed without warning.

"I did miss one of your matches however, but I swear to rewatch the entire tournament when I have leave. Though more importantly, you're now dating my little cousin! You'll have to tell me in detail how he swept you off your feet" he continued with a wink. "And I don't mean the stunt he pulled after your final victory."

"Lawrence!" shouted Jaune, not at all enjoying being ignored, especially given the situation. The elder Arc turned to look at his cousin whilst maintaining his charming smile, and had an expression on his face as if to say, "Oh, I didn't notice you there".

"Yes?" Lawrence asked.

"What are you doing here?" Jaune demanded hotly. He had been taken completely off guard by his cousin turning up without warning, and now was on high alert, for he could only expect the worse. Things may have been getting better between himself and his family, mostly through Jaune having his eyes opened through discipline, but that didn't mean he shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth.

"What? Can't a man visit his favourite little cousin?"

"Not if it means having to travel over a hundred fifty leagues south and then pass through the mountains on horseback, when he could just wait a week and meet for Summer Solstice dinner" the shorter blond shot back. "That, or coming from one of the northern military bases. Therefore, there has to be another reason coming all the way down here."

Lawrence gave Jaune a sheepish smile, like a child getting caught taking cookies from the cookie jar, but not wholly sorry for doing so.

"Well...there was no guarantee that you were going to bring Pyrrha home with you this year, so I figured I would come by and catch you both before the end of the semester" he confessed.

"Are you the Lawrence Jaune has been telling me about?" Pyrrha asked. "You're father's name is Thomas, is it not?"

"Indeed! Jauney-boy, have you been bragging about your favourite cousin to your lady love?" Jaune's face turned into a displeased frown, causing Lawrence to laugh once again, and pull him into a headlock. "Come on, Jauney-boy! Puff out your chest in pride for charming such a gorgeous young woman!" he cheered, rubbing his knuckles on top of Jaune's head. "You weren't so shy carrying her out of the Coliseum! No need to be bashful now!"

"Gahh! Only Uncle Tommy can call me that! Let go!" Jaune protested wrenching his cousin's forearm from his neck and freeing himself. He looked up at the taller blond, who was smiling away like a proud brother, taking a great deal of pleasure out of teasing him. "So did you come alone? I can't imagine you would."

"You're right, cousin. I came with a friend of ours."

"Really? Who?"

"Oh you'll see. Though, we agreed to meet at the Beacon Tower whether we found you or not. That would be in about half an hour or so."

"Well, we're meeting up with some friends of ours" Jaune informed, eyeing him distrustfully. "So let's reach them first, and then go and see who you dragged along."

"Then lead the way" Lawrence smiled, before turning to Pyrrha. "May I offer you a ride on Julius?" The stallion snorted as if he understood, causing the redhead to giggle.

"Thank you, but I think I can manage" she replied politely.

"Alrighty then. Onwards!"

Lawrence kept pace with the couple as they made their way down the road, engaging in pleasant conversation. As they walked, they passed a number of other students, not just from Beacon, but from the other schools as well. It was a normal affair to draw the eyes of onlookers, as Pyrrha's fame, along with Jaune's rising stardom, had only grown since the festival. Now, it was increased even more, as the couple had a fully armoured Knight with a giant horse walking beside them. Lawrence didn't seem to be all that affected by the attention he was drawing, but did curtly acknowledge the people closest to him as he walked past. And every time he did so, he would return to the conversation he was having with Jaune and Pyrrha, without missing a beat.

Pyrrha listened intently to him as he spoke, not only to show respect to a member of Jaune's family, but because she was genuinely interested in his stories. Jaune noticed this, watching them from the corner of his eye, and began to feel a strange sense of pride. It was great to see Pyrrha getting along with a member of his family, especially one that he was so close to like Lawrence. Though now that he thought of it, it did make a great deal of sense that she would get along with his family, given their traditions of ancient combat and customs, and her love of such things. No doubt when she did come to visit, she would fit in perfectly with them, and he couldn't help but smile at the thought of her being surrounded by his sisters.

'Maybe it won't be so bad after all' Jaune thought, feeling a bit more confident at the idea of introducing Pyrrha to his family.

"Well, how lucky for us!" Lawrence said suddenly, looking down the road. "She's found her way to your teammates."

Jaune looked forward and indeed saw another white stallion next to Ren and Nora, with an armoured individual that was clearly an Arc.

'Wait...' he thought. 'She?'

Majesty wasn't a gender restricted Semblance, therefore the women in his family could train to awaken it if they wanted to. That was just it however; nearly all of them had no interest. He did have a few female cousins that did decide to train, three in fact, though there was only one that chose to carry a shield like that. Which meant it could only be her.

Lawrence whistled with just his tongue pressed against his bottom row of teeth, which rang so loudly that Ren and Nora jumped in surprise, but Octavia simply turned to face the whistler. In doing so, Jaune was able to see that it was indeed who he thought it was, and locked eyes with her. Without a moment of hesitation, she began to march towards her cousins, leaving her horse behind, and walked right up to the other half of Team JNPR. Jaune began to open his mouth to greet her, but was stopped before he could get a word out, as she struck him with a fast but heavy right punch to the face. Jaune reeled back and instantly clutched at his face, with Pyrrha, Ren, and Nora gasping, Lawrence smiling away, and Octavia maintaining a stony expression.

"Damn it, Octavia!" groaned Jaune, removing his hands and trying to blink away stars.

"No good" she said flatly. "You should have either blocked or evaded that." She then glanced up at Lawrence. "And why did you not reply to my text, or make me aware that you had found Jaune?"

"You did?" her cousin replied in genuine surprise, before reaching into a pouch and producing a Scroll. He opened it and raised his eyebrows, realizing that she had indeed been telling the truth. "Well fancy that. Sorry, Octavia, I must have been too engrossed with my questioning. I had to speak to a fair number of people before I found Jaune."

"I believe I warned you about not getting distracted."

"I was not! I was asking around for Jaune, and I succeeded. That was our goal, and I brought him here for you to punch."

"Why is punching always the first thing that comes to mind when seeing me?" Jaune moaned, looking at the blonde in dismay.

"To test your progress. Are you sure you have been training?"

"Of course I have!"

"I am not so sure."

"I-I can vouch that he has" cut in Pyrrha, feeling a natural need to defend Jaune, even if it was from his own family. This caused Octavia to look at her as if just noticing her existence, and without hesitation, kissed her cheeks in the same manner Lawrence had.

"Pyrrha Nikos, it is a great honour to meet you at last" she said, a small but honest smile forming on her face. "Congratulations on your splendid performance throughout the tournament. Your reputation as a swordswoman and a warrior precedes you perfectly, and it was entertaining to watch."

Pyrrha's cheeks turned pink from the praise, feeling once again the pleasant warmth from being complimented by Jaune's family.

"Thank you very much" she replied. "It's an honour to finally meet Jaune's family."

"This is only the tip of the lance" grinned Lawrence, before looking past his cousin's shoulder to see Ren doing his best to restrain Nora, who looked fighting mad.

"Nora, stop!" Ren hissed.

"NO!" she shouted, kicking her legs and causing Ren to lose his footing, allowing her to march towards Octavia whilst dragging her one true love. "She attacked Jaune, so I'm going to kick her ass!"

"It's fine" Jaune sighed, making the angry ginger instantly stop. "She's been like this ever since we were kids. Ren, Nora, these are my cousins. Lawrence Arc, third eldest son of my Uncle Thomas, and Octavia Arc, eldest daughter of my Uncle Otto."

"A pleasure and honour to meet you both" said Lawrence, bowing deeply in unison with Octavia. "I can see that you've made some good friends for them to be so ready to fight for you."

"I couldn't have asked for better" smirked Jaune, causing Ren to return the smirk, and Nora to exhale quickly through her nose in defiance with a quick nod.

"And we couldn't ask for a better captain!" she added, glaring at the tallest blond.

"You are Nora Valkyrie, correct?" Lawrence asked, earning another nod. "You are damn strong for someone your size. Your Semblance allows you to absorb electricity, and it grants increased physical strength?"

"Yup. And I can create it" the thunderess added, holding up her right fist, showing pink electricity arcing between her fingers.

"Oh you will be a joy to face the enemy with" he grinned. "How would you like to be armoured by one of our master blacksmiths to make full use of that strength, and become an unstoppable force, shattering any who stand before you?"

The offer was certainly unexpected, but very much welcomed by Nora, and she began to grin excitedly.

"That sounds awesome" she replied, folding her arms. "If you can make me some super cool armour, then I'll fight with you just like I do with Jaune. Shattering my enemies is one of my favourite pastimes."

"Oh this one I really like" Lawrence commented, turning to his cousins as he pointed at Nora. This made the ginger grin even wider, quickly liking him more than Octavia, which didn't go unnoticed by Ren.

"Gee, I wonder why?" Jaune questioned sarcastically, Octavia joining in with a squint of annoyance.

"Oh, and forgive my lack of manners, Lie Ren" Lawrence added apologetically, holding his right hand out to the amateur cook. "It is a pleasure to meet you as well, and I hope to fight alongside you in future. Thank you for being such loyal friends with Jaune. It fills me with pride to see how quickly he's made strong bonds with his teammates, as it shows how much he's grown, earning your respect in the process. I thank you both deeply."

The tallest Arc's words were unexpectedly kind, and the wild and happy-go-lucky expression on his face, had softened into a calm and warm smile. He had meant every word, which Ren had felt as much as heard, and took his hand with a bow of his own.

"It is an honour to meet you, Lawrence Arc" he returned politely, his moment of jealousy cast away without another thought.

Jaune watched all of this quietly, and began to feel the same pride he had felt earlier. His entire team was getting along with his family swimmingly, all things considered, causing him to finally begin to relax, thinking that maybe his cousins had indeed simply come to see him. He was still anxious, as they could have let him know they were planning on visiting, and Lawrence's explanation left much to be desired. Could it be that he was just overthinking things once again?

"Hey, Team Love-birds!" came a voice from behind, causing them all to turn their heads. The person who spoke was Sun, accompanied by Neptune and Team RWBY, who were all looking at the blonds they didn't recognize with curiosity.

'Then again' he thought. "Here we go" he sighed, earning a playful nudge from Pyrrha.

"Good morn!" greeted Lawrence, returning to his normal self. "You are Sun Wukong, correct?"

"Yeah, who are you?"

"I am Lawrence Arc, son of Thomas Arc, and this is Octavia Arc, daughter of Otto Arc" he replied, gesturing to the shorter blonde, who bowed respectfully. "We are Jaune's cousins. That final match against Pyrrha was nail-biting! You're as tough as any Vacuan, if not more so."

"Thanks very much" Sun replied. "Next time, I plan on winning."

"I'll be waiting" Pyrrha added with a smile, always ready to compete.

"Geez, Jaune wasn't kidding about dressing up as Knights was a family thing" Yang remarked, gazing at the three armoured Arcs standing beside their white stallions.

"We do not 'dress up', young lady" Octavia retorted. "We Arcs uphold our ancestry of Knighthood with pride, and we will continue to fight with sword and shield to the end of days. It is more than simply tradition; it is the code of Chivalry that has been passed down from Knight to Page, and we will heed the code till our deaths."

The others drew back slightly, not expecting for her to give such a serious response, though Yang grimaced somewhat at being referred to as "young lady", for only her father had ever done so, and she had never been a fan of it. Lawrence nodded approvingly, showing he agreed with his cousin, before his eyes rested on Weiss, and they widened in delight.

"Lady Schnee" he said, bowing low and extending his right hand. "Forgive my impertinence for not noticing and greeting you sooner. It is a great honour to finally meet the heiress of House Schnee."

Weiss, recognizing the specific formality he was performing, held out her hand with her palm facing the ground.

"There is nothing to forgive, and you bring neither insult to my House nor besmirchment to yours" she replied in a stately manner. "It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Sir Lawrence."

The taller blond took her hand and kissed the top of it; an act that was both expected and unexpected to the others, and one that caused Neptune to frown greatly. Weiss then passed her hand to Octavia, who had bowed in the same manner as her cousin, and she too accepted and kissed it.

"He's not a Knight and neither is she" Jaune reminded, visibly uncomfortable as he noticed everyone's reaction, including Neptune's.

"As I said to you before, it is a heretical title, and it is clear that the rest of your family is taking it as seriously as I would expect" Weiss replied.

"Indeed, my lady" said Octavia. "Also, Jaune, we were knighted upon our graduation."

"That's an understatement, Weiss. Their armour is even more eye-catching than Jaune's, and they showed up with horses" Yang continued, pointing at the stallions. "I know it's your family's tradition, but it's modern day, and cars and airships exist."

Julius, the horse closest to Yang, gave her a look that made it seem as if he was insulted by the comment. Before the elder Xiao Long sister could react, the stallion took one step forward, and swung his giant head upward, hitting Yang in the chest. The blow knocked her clean off her feet, causing her to fall on her rear, but didn't land on her back as she was able to quickly throw her right hand behind her.

"Try telling him that" Lawrence grinned, "or rather, try telling him again, and be prepared to be trampled by a noble boy who doesn't care what year it is. Furthermore, you're Valian! You do know that there is a light horse unit that patrols the southern border, don't you? They are called the 'Ghost Riders' and are very effective, so don't go about thinking that all cavalry have become modern armour."

"Don't worry, we know who they are" Sun informed. "They meet pretty regularly with our mounted militia in Vacuo, and even take leave for the border towns."

Yang stared at the horse in complete and utter shock.

"He can't actually understand me, can he?" she asked in stupefaction. Julius promptly stamped his right hoof twice and snorted in defiance, shaking his large head.

"Oh he absolutely can" his master informed. "We Arcs are master horse trainers, and we've trained him, as well as Aemilius over there, ever since they were colts to fight and ride like no other horses in Remnant. We love our horses, and have bred them for generations. The bond between horse and Knight is beyond description, and can only be broken with one or both dying. We Arcs are proud, and so are our horses. Here is nobility without conceit, friendship without envy, and beauty without vanity, for they are willing servants, yet never slaves. And serve together we shall for Vale, for that is how we Arcs choose to go forth into the world; sword in one hand, shield in the other, endless sky above, and horseflesh below."

Lawrence patted Julius' right cheek, causing the stallion to turn his head and nuzzle his rider with affection, sighing comfortingly. The blond rubbed his forehead against the stallion's, causing him to nicker happily, and aided their onlookers to get a better idea of just how strong the bond between them truly was. It was certainly a bit alien to the city folk, but at the same time made sense, as it was very similar to that between a man and his dog.

"They are certainly beautiful animals" Pyrrha remarked smiling, patting Julius' neck, and causing him to switch attention to this new Human. He began to sniff her, flaring his giant nostrils, and taking a full five seconds to take it in. "And rather large. They must be over sixteen hands tall."

"Eighteen to be exact" Lawrence confirmed, grinning at her correct use of measurement. "We've bred them over the years to be the best heavy cavalry horses in history. This way they can wear their own armour, which we make ourselves of course, so that they won't be left to be riddled with bullets or torn apart by Grimm. From when they're colts, we train them to carry heavy loads, and do so whilst moving quickly, building that stamina required for battle and travel. We also joust for fun; to keep us both entertained."

"Which makes me ask, why did you come all this way on Julius?" Jaune cut in, his frown from earlier returning to his face as his cousins spoke.

"What? I can't ride my own horse?" his cousin shot back.

"Not when you want to get somewhere as fast as possible" he argued, taking a step closer. "Both you and Octavia chose to ride your Destriers instead of taking a couple of Palfreys. You said that you wanted to meet Pyrrha before the end of the semester. And since that's in several days, you would've wanted to cover as much ground as possible. Furthermore, you haven't spoken to me since the tournament. If you really wanted to see me and meet Pyrrha, you could've just called. So why did you come here fully armoured on warhorses?"

"That's not what she said" Ren informed, gesturing to Octavia. "She said that they were already in the area, and decided to visit on a whim."

This new piece of information changed Jaune's mood entirely, with all his earlier suspicions returning in full force.

"Answer me, cousin" he demanded in a low voice, turning his shoulders, as if in position to draw his sword.

Jaune's sudden hostility caught everyone off guard, safe for the other Arcs, who seemed to be entirely unaffected. They were his cousins, and yet he was glaring at them as if they were his enemies. Pyrrha was most concerned by this, as while she knew that things were a bit rocky between Jaune and his family, he had clearly told her that he loved them and was learning he had been overly stubborn in his upbringing. Furthermore, these were the cousins he said he was closest to. Why was he behaving this way?

Lawrence glanced to Octavia, who nodded quietly, leading them both to remove their shields and unclasp their cloaks, revealing their lion head pauldrons. They pulled their scapulars over their heads, and tossed them with their cloaks over the saddles of their horses. When they turned to face the Huntsmen-in-training, they unveiled that the same heraldic achievement was painted on their cuirasses.

"Pyrrha Nikos" the shortest Arc announced, drawing her sword and pointing it at the redhead. "I, Octavia of House Arc, challenge you to a duel."

This shocked everyone present, confused by how things had suddenly escalated.

"You can't be serious?" Jaune exclaimed, though knowing in his heart they were. 'I'm such a damn fool!' he thought bitterly. 'I should've known this was the reason they came from the start!'

"We absolutely are, cousin" Lawrence confirmed, drawing his own sword and pointing it at his younger relative. "I, Lawrence of House Arc, challenge you, Jaune of House Arc, to a duel."

Jaune and Pyrrha looked at one another, each asking a different question with their respective gaze. For Pyrrha, it was confusion and a need of clarification for what was going on, while for Jaune, he knew very much what was happening, and he was beyond sorry for it.

"Gods damn it all" he cursed, and drew Crocea Mors, the scabbard turning into a shield as it attached itself to his left vambrace.

In tandem due to training and love, Pyrrha instantly drew Akoúo and Miló. The horses instinctively bolted past them, but then both turned round, showing their training to get out of the way, but never flee. Ren and Nora both readied themselves, though Nora had no weapon and simply raised her fists.

"This is a duel between me, Pyrrha, and my cousins, so don't intervene!" Jaune shouted, not taking his eyes off of Lawrence. "That's an order!"

This was the first time he had ever given a command in such a manner. The tone of his voice clearly indicating that he meant it, and he wouldn't tolerate his teammates getting in the way.

The elder Arcs simultaneously attacked the captain and lieutenant of Team JNPR, who parried the strikes, and quickly put themselves back to back, facing their respective opponents. This was their greatest strength, as they fought incredibly well together, which would be needed as Lawrence and Octavia also found strength in fighting as a pair. However, the older Arcs were not going to play by the rules of their opponents, and had already planned how to fight them. Octavia, facing Pyrrha, threw her sword between her opponent's legs, sinking it into the ground. The redhead looked at the sword in confusion, not understanding why she would discard her weapon in such a manner. She would quickly learn the reason, as Octavia, with shocking speed, closed the distance between them, grabbed the top of Pyrrha's plackart, and in a display of unexpected strength, threw Pyrrha into the forest.

"Pyrrha!" Jaune shouted, dropping his guard, and looking at his girlfriend vanish into the trees.

This gave Lawrence his opportunity to bash him with his kite shield with an equally staggering display of power, sending his cousin flying into the forest as well. The two challengers then bolted into the trees after their thrown opponents, with Octavia making sure to grab her sword as she gunned for Pyrrha, leaving the stunned Huntsmen-in-training to stare into the sea of maples in shock. All of that had occurred in the blink of an eye, and they were still confused as to why Jaune's family had come to pick a fight with Jaune and Pyrrha.

"What the fuck is going on?" demanded Yang, looking at Ren and Nora.

"I don't know" the frustrated ginger replied glancing at where her friends had gone, before looking at Ren. "You should have let me fight her."

"Without Magnhild?" he remarked calmly, though his eyes showed he was equally frustrated. Nora pursed her lips in annoyance, knowing he was right, but nevertheless wanted to protect their teammates; even if it was against their supposed allies. The others looked at one another anxiously, feeling incredibly lost and helpless by not being able to know what was going on.

It was Weiss who finally spoke, as a feeling in her gut made her believe she knew what was going on; at least in some part.

"Tradition" she said softly.

"What?" asked Neptune.

"Tradition" the heiress echoed. "I don't know for what specifically, but I have some suspicion that this has something to do with the traditions in Jaune's family. He told me they have certain rules regarding who can marry into it, so this might have something to do with that."

"What? Why?" Yang asked. "Yeah Jaune's family is super old school, like, really old school, but they aren't like some super famous family that only other famous people can date them and stuff."

Her comment caused Neptune to glance at Weiss, which Ruby noticed, but both remained quiet.

"Yes" the Atlassian agreed, folding her arms as she looked into the trees as if she could see the fight. "I wonder just how old his family truly is."

The group fell silent once more, knowing they could do nothing but wait and hope for the best.

λΛλ

When Pyrrha collided with the ground, she managed to make use of the momentum to roll backwards into a crouch, regaining her footing. She looked up to see Octavia rushing towards her, and she gritted her teeth in anxiety, feeling a great deal of hesitance. She didn't want to hurt a member of Jaune's family, but it was clear that Octavia was Hell-bent on fighting her, and fight her seriously. Pyrrha wasn't sure why they had been challenged to a duel, but with the female Knight so intent on fighting her, she decided to defend herself first and ask questions later. She needed to end the fight quickly, and luckily she was in good position to do so. Octavia was wearing a full suit of armour, which gave Pyrrha complete liberty to make use of her Semblance. She stabbed the ground with Miló to free her right hand, which she then raised, pointing her palm towards her charging opponent, and activated Polarity.

Octavia halted in her charge as if she went head on into a stone wall, as red Aura surrounded her armour, keeping her in place. Pyrrha began to flex her fingers as if she were gripping onto Octavia, preparing to throw her into one of the maples, hoping to knock her unconscious without hurting her too badly. However, just as she was about to toss the shorter swordswoman, she began to feel something she never had before whilst using Polarity: resistance. Not physical resistance; Auracal resistance. Pyrrha looked at Octavia who was bringing her arms slowly together, as if they were under a great strain. Then, just before the quillons of her sword touched her shield, Octavia began to glow golden, her Aura overwhelming Pyrrha's, and she threw her arms wide, shattering Polarity's hold.

The Mistral champion stared in astonishment, as never before had someone been able to crush her Semblance's grip. Octavia locked eyes with the stunned redhead, and pointed her longsword at her.

"I am very aware of your Semblance, Pyrrha Nikos. It will not save you here" she stated stonily.

Without hesitation, she performed a sword flourish as she strode forward, and then lifted her right leg to kick Pyrrha. Managing to recover just in time, and also successfully grabbing Miló, Pyrrha raised Akoúo to block the kick, and the edge nearly hit her in the face from the concussive force of the blow. She slid over ten feet across the ground, despite pressing the balls of her boots strongly against the grass, before finally coming to a halt. She rose to her feet to take a proper stance, just in time to see Octavia advancing. However, she was slowly walking forward instead of running, perhaps feeling as if they were far enough away from the others, and now they could have a proper fight.

It was then that the redhead nearly laughed, for despite being taller than Octavia, the blonde now seemed like a titan; intimidating and dangerous. If this was any other situation, Pyrrha would actually be excited for such a challenge. She was Mistralese after all, and she could never refuse a duel once challenged. Perhaps it served her better to think of the fight that way; nothing more than another tournament match against a serious opponent.

'If only she didn't have the same hair and eyes as him' she internally sighed, gazing at the Arc achievement on Octavia's cuirass, before looking into her azure eyes. Pyrrha was of course out of the loop, though part of her assumed that this was some form of test. Knowing she couldn't disappoint Jaune, she rose to her feet and struck her shield twice with the flat of her sword. "In hoc signo vinces."

Octavia halted at that, and struck her chest with her fist and hilt, face stern and eyes sharp.

"Not yet" she replied strongly, before presenting her shield and holding her sword just outside it in Middle Guard.

λΛλ

Jaune and Lawrence were now a fair distance away from the swordswomen, already deep in combat. They attacked one another as they moved at a quick pace, trading blows and blocking with their shields. It was like a dangerous dance, a stunning yet beautiful one, with the sunlight slipping through the bright red canopy, touching their armour, and causing their swords to flash as they swung them. After sending a riposte at Lawrence's head, the taller blond blocked the attack with the top of his shield, and responded with another shield bash, one that Jaune was ready for, and absorbed it before disengaging.

"Father's behind all of this, isn't he?" he stated more than asked.

"I cannot tell a lie" Lawrence replied, causing his cousin to grit his teeth.

"Why?!"

"You know why. You love her."

"But how does he know that? I only told mother that I might be."

"But you did tell my father that you love her."

This caused Jaune to swear, whilst Lawrence laughed in amusement.

"Damn it, Uncle Tommy! I'll get him for this when I get home."

"Why are you making this sound like it's a bad thing?" Lawrence asked genuinely, smiling. "You're in love with Pyrrha Nikos, and she loves you. You couldn't have asked for a better woman to have by your side."

"I know that!" Jaune shot back. "Just why did you have to charge all the way here without warning and challenge us to a duel?"

"Again cousin, you know why."

"But she doesn't!"

"And whose fault is that, I wonder?"

Jaune snarled, not willing to admit Lawrence was right, and instead retorted with a swing of his sword, which his cousin countered with ease with his long kite shield, and then sent a sword strike of his own, which Jaune blocked as well. This was not an easy fight for the younger Arc, for every disadvantage there could be, was in play. Lawrence was a much more talented swordsman, showing great prowess from a young age. He was also able to use Majesty perfectly, which he had displayed with his initial shield bash to separate Jaune from Pyrrha. He was also taller than Jaune, giving him increased reach, which was amplified by his hand-and-a-half warsword. Despite its length, Lawrence displayed he could swing it with the same ease and precision of an arming sword; the type Crocea Mors was. And then of course there was his massive kite shield, making the already tall young man an even more formidable obstacle. All of this frustrated Jaune greatly, but what ticked him off the most, was that Lawrence was smiling away without a care in the world.

"Stop smiling!" he shouted in annoyance. "Why can't you take things seriously?"

"But I am, cousin!" Lawrence replied. "I'm just enjoying myself whilst fulfilling my duty. Honestly, what a wonderful day! I'm learning just how much more we have in common: same taste in food, beer, music, and we're both mad for redheads, naturally so."

Jaune replied with another sword strike, trying to get past the taller blond's defenses, but finding it to be an insurmountable task. For not only did Jaune have to contend with that kite shield, but also Lawrence's heavy armour, which he knew all too well it's capabilities. Even if he could land a blow past his defenses, that armour would stop any and all of his attacks. The only conceivable way he would achieve an acceptable victory would be to disarm Lawrence, and do so definitively. Easier said than done, was the understatement of the century.

Lawrence's skill was not a joke, and Jaune had meant it that whilst the young man was happy-go-lucky and appeared undisciplined, the reality was that he was a devoted warrior with incredible talent. The sword he wielded was not a sword one could wield properly one-handed with a large shield in the other. And yet, Lawrence did so anyways, and did so gracefully, without resulting in exaggerated swings, telegraphed strikes, and not a bead of sweat on his brow. Unlike Jaune, he could afford to be goofy and aloof, because at the drop of a hat, he could stare down any foe with Hell's fury, and all who saw it, knew he would succeed in cutting them down.

Jaune tried to land a blow on Lawrence's left elbow. He knew that he couldn't hurt him, nor did he really want to, but he did want to create an opening in order to properly disarm him. If he could strike with enough force so that Lawrence couldn't hold up his shield, for just a moment, it could do the trick. His opponent was not so easily duped however, as he swung his shield at Crocea Mors with gusto, knocking Jaune's entire arm wide, and giving him a perfect shot at his now exposed core. Lawrence thrust his sword at Jaune's chest, and knowing that it was too late to raise his heater shield, the shorter blond managed to duck just in time. He then saw an opportunity to knock away Lawrence's sword, and swung the top of his shield at his wrist, causing Lawrence's sword arm to reel backwards, but still maintained his grip. Jaune swung his sword to try and properly knock it free, but instantly realized that this was a mistake. Lawrence began to glow gold, and his sword was glowing brighter still, which made Jaune's eyes widen, as he knew what that meant. He jumped to the left, just as Lawrence swung his blade in an underhand swing, unleashing a massive cut of golden Aura at least ten feet tall, which cut into the earth and split the ground. It continued for over thirty yards, cutting through trees and rock before finally dissipating, leaving a deep trench in the ground. Jaune stood just beside it wide-eyed, having dodged the attack by the skin of his teeth.

He stared at the torn up earth, and then to the split trees that were cleanly cut in two, before finally looking back to his cousin. If that attack had landed, he wasn't even sure if he would have survived.

"Still can't, huh?" Lawrence stated more than asked.

Jaune cursed himself for being so foolish. He desperately needed a plan, but there was nothing he could think of that had a reasonable chance of success. Unless he magically managed to awaken Majesty, he stood no chance against his cousin. His only option would be to hang on until Pyrrha could rejoin him. But that wasn't an option, was it? These were meant to be one-on-one duels; therefore even if Pyrrha could join him in time, she could not fight with him. Win or lose, Jaune knew that he had to face Lawrence alone. His mind then turned to Pyrrha and her duel with Octavia. He knew both their strengths and weaknesses, and he felt anxiety rise in his stomach at the thought of whether she would be able to defeat his cousin.

'Pyrrha can't lose' he told himself. 'Even if she's fighting Octavia, I know she'll win.'

Of course, that begged the question if the heart was coming before the mind. Nevertheless, Jaune prayed that he was right as he retook his usual Tail Guard. He knew she would never give up, so neither would he.

λΛλ

Pyrrha and Octavia had been engaged in heavy combat whilst the Arc boys fought, and it was a fierce battle to behold. The blonde Knight was relentless against the redhead, clearly taking the fight very seriously, which was both nerve-wracking and exhilarating for Pyrrha. While the battle with Sun had been the best of her first-year at Beacon, there was something all together different fighting an opponent wielding a sword and shield. It brought her back to her HMMA days, which was only amplified against a Knight with direct lineage to the last King's Guard of Vale. Not a reenactor, but a true Knight. If only this Knight wasn't a member of the family of the boy she loved.

While she was having her reservations, to Octavia's credit, she fought Pyrrha if this were a serious battle. Every strike was aimed for the gaps in her defenses, either her shoulders or her head, and as far as the Mistralese champion could tell, she possessed none of the same hesitations. That notion was comforting in a way, though the question as to why Octavia had challenged her, still gnawed at the redhead.

"I am never one to back away from a fight" she said at last, causing Octavia to halt her assault. "However, I do like to know why I am being challenged. The fact that it bothered Jaune so much means that the reason is important, so please tell me."

Octavia squinted at her for a moment. "Has Jaune not explained the situation?" she asked.

"He spoke of his Semblance, some of your family's traditions, and feeling like an outcast due to his shortcomings. Nothing we spoke of indicated any of this."

The blonde swordswoman sighed.

"Excerebrose (Brainless). Jaune is heir to our House. Therefore, he must marry someone who is worthy and meets our specific criteria. While others in our family can be with someone good and honourable without being a warrior, learning of you demanded the bar to be raised higher than usual; especially for our heir. We are a clan of warriors, thus we value prowess in battle highly, and we have very high standards. Yes you are a celebrity athlete with a lengthy record, but only by testing you ourselves will we be able to judge you properly. In short, this is a test of your worth to be with Jaune."

"And what if I fail this test?"

"You will be told to stop courting Jaune immediately, and keep your relationship with him completely professional. If you continue to pursue him in secret, Jaune will terminate his attendance at Beacon Academy, and will be escorted home."

Pyrrha remained silent for several moments before performing a sword flourish, and taking her usual High Guard, staring her opponent down with renewed focus.

"Thank you for clarifying, Octavia Arc" she replied honestly, a fire igniting in her eyes that caused her emerald orbs to stand out against the sea of red. "I will no longer hold back against you. Please forgive the inconvenience."

This caused Octavia to smirk as she retook her stance.

'Brainless as you may be at times, Jaune' she thought, 'choosing her was the wisest decision you have ever made.'

The pair eyed each other for a moment, before Octavia charged forward and chopped with her sword, aiming for Pyrrha's shoulder. Pyrrha parried the strike and pushed past her to the left, before bringing Miló down onto her opponent's back, just below the neck. Still bowing forward, Octavia brought her scutum horizontally above her head and blocked the blow. Without pause, she spun clockwise, pushing Pyrrha's sword away, and slashed from left to right. Pyrrha ducked, and struck at the blonde, but her opponent had expected it, and slammed the bottom of her scutum to the ground to block the attack. Octavia then thrust her sword at Pyrrha, who managed to block it with Akoúo, and then threw it at her for good measure. The Knight pulled up her scutum and held it before her as she ran towards her opponent, tilting it backward. She made sure that Pyrrha's dipylon struck her umbo shield boss so that it deflected over her back, before swinging her sword in a diagonal cut. Pyrrha dodged to the left and avoided the attack, pivoting to keep her eyes on her as she retreated, and saw the blonde slice through the tree as if it were made of paper. The maple fell to the ground with a mighty crash as Octavia slowly turned to face Pyrrha, who had already retaken her stance.

"Very good, Pyrrha Nikos" she said calmly, resting her shield on the ground. "Your form is excellent, as is your footwork, and I have yet to see you flinch. You've been trained well."

"Thank you. My late father trained me from when I was young, to which his friend carried on my training at their guild" Pyrrha replied, allowing a small smirk to form. "Both stressed that flinching in battle equates to death, so they subjected me to many drills to conquer that reflex. I owe them and my mentors everything for getting me this far."

"Your reputation precedes you, though I have a great deal of trouble swallowing the title of 'Invincible Girl'. The world is too vast, and you have been in it for too short a time to make such an outrageous claim."

"In my defense, I never gave myself that nickname. No one is perfect, no one is infallible, and no one is invincible."

"Wise words" Octavia nodded. "I hope you are not too shy of the mark in regards to that nickname, however."

"Close enough to defeat you" Pyrrha replied.

The blonde eyed her vigilantly, before smirking in amusement.

"You are feistier than I expected" she remarked.

"I'm sorry, it's a force of habit after competing in tournaments for so long. I don't mean to speak so discourteously" Pyrrha apologize sincerely, not wanting to insult Jaune's family, especially during their test of her worthiness.

"Don't apologize. That spirit is what we look for in my family. Just don't put the cart before the horse until you satisfy our desideratum."

Pyrrha nodded, and gave her opponent a small smirk.

"Defeating you will do the trick then?"

Octavia performed a sword flourish and pointed her blade at the redhead.

"You can try."

The pair stared each other down in silence, with only the rustling of leaves above them. A solitary maple leaf broke free from a branch above, and gently floated down to earth. It landed between them, and the moment that it did, the swordswomen launched themselves at one another, the rustling of leaves being overtaken by the ringing of steel. They became a blur of thrusts, parries, lunges, ripostes, slashes, counters, and shield bashes, both displaying impeccable skill. Pyrrha could feel the power of Octavia's attacks, proving once again she wasn't holding back, and further igniting her own fighting spirit. Thankfully her head remained cool, and she began to think of how exactly she was going to defeat the lady Knight. She was clearly a fearsome opponent, and after displaying that Majesty could break Polarity's grip, Pyrrha knew that only by the sword could she be defeated. The only question was how was she to best her, given her own reservations, and the blonde's proficiency.

Octavia sent a thrust at Pyrrha, which the Mistralese blocked by swiping her longsword away with Akoúo, and then brought Miló down from above. The blonde pulled her scutum upward to cover her head, and was going to attack again, when Pyrrha sent an explosive kick at the back of Octavia's left knee. The Knight's armour and shield granted her a great deal of defense, and Pyrrha knew that she needed to open her up in some capacity. However, to her shock, her foot bounced off Octavia's leg like a ball off a wall, and the Knight appeared completely unfazed. Pyrrha looked down and saw the blonde's leg glow gold, indicating that Majesty had been activated once again, and Jaune's explanation that their Semblance enhanced their fortitude snapped into her mind. Octavia didn't hesitate and tried to hit Pyrrha with the bottom edge of her shield, which Pyrrha dodged by ducking, allowing the scutum to imbed itself into the tree behind her. Acting before her opponent, she transformed Miló into javelin form, thrust into her cuirass and knocked her backwards. Pyrrha continued to capitalize on the change of momentum and dashed from under the jammed shield to strike with her own.

To her surprise, Octavia caught Akoúo with her now freed left hand, and not allowing the shock go to waste, pulled Pyrrha towards her and kneed her in the gut. Pyrrha gasped as the wind was knocked out of her, but managed to land on her feet after being pushed back a full meter. Slightly doubled over, she forced herself to look up and maintain eye contact with her opponent, but instead managed to catch Octavia flipping her sword, then grasping it by the blade with both hands. Without hesitation, the Knight struck Pyrrha in the face with the broadside of the crossguard. The redhead fell to one knee, shocked from the blow, but was still able to tell from Octavia's stance that she was preparing to strike her again. She then noticed Akoúo through the blonde's armoured legs, and she quickly pulled onto the shield with Polarity. It struck the base of Octavia's legs with enough force to knock them out from under her, causing her to fall onto her back. It wasn't enough to stop her however, as Octavia instantly activated Majesty, causing the fallen leaves and uprooted grass to be blasted away, revealing that she, like Jaune, possessed large Aura reserves. She quickly rose to her feet into Wrath stance, holding her sword with both hands on the hilt by her right ear, the blade pointed back over her shoulder, ready to defend herself.

To her consternation and surprise, Pyrrha had vanished. Her eyes darted around her, trying to spot the Mistralese, who admittedly could blend in quite easily with the surroundings. Seeing nothing, she paused to try and hear the sound of her running, as Pyrrha's leg armour would make enough distinctive noise to separate it from the zephyrs in the maples. Hearing nothing, she slowly scanned the terrain around her, for if she could not hear her, then it meant she had not gone far. She then looked into the canopy above, looking for any unnatural shape amongst the foliage. Seeing nothing, she relaxed her stance and walked to the tree where her scutum was still imbedded, and she pulled it free with one yank.

'Where have you gone, Nikos?' she thought. She hadn't assumed her to be the kind of person to run, and given that she couldn't hear her running, left Octavia to assume Pyrrha was trying to collect herself. While she would have done the same in her position, Octavia would not let her hide for long.

The blonde's assumption was correct, as Pyrrha was not far away, hiding in a hollow beneath a large maple, breathing heavily. She hadn't expected for Octavia to be such a hard counter to herself, due to not having a clear enough idea of what exactly Majesty was. Jaune had described the Semblance vaguely, and without displaying its functionality himself, she hadn't a grasp on its scope. It was her own fault for not pressing him further, as she had been too engrossed with listening to his familial struggles, and enjoying their date as a whole. She scolded herself for not being more focused, given that she was the one who self-appointed herself as his Aura instructor in the first place. With how armoured Octavia was, her skill with the sword, and how much of a problem Majesty was, the redhead found herself in a rather tight corner.

Pyrrha brought her hand to the right side of her face, as she felt it pulse in pain. Once again she heard her HMMA master lambasting her over not wearing a helm, which drove it home that as soon as she returned to Argus, she would pay him a visit. This then caused Pyrrha to realize something. Octavia wasn't wearing a helm either; in fact, it was the only part of her that wasn't armoured. She was instantly reminded that Jaune had mentioned that his family usually didn't wear helms safe for specially made ones. Clearly neither of his cousins had come with them, leaving them with one small gap in their defenses. She wasn't fond of having to attack such a sensitive part of the body, but given that Octavia had shown she didn't share those hesitations, gave Pyrrha card blanch. It wasn't as if she had any other option, as she knew that in the long run, Octavia would eventually wear her out and defeat her.

'How am I to land a blow strong enough to either knock her unconscious or fully disarm her?' she asked herself, knowing that while having a better idea of the goal, didn't necessarily grant her an easier path to achieve it.

Taking quick inventory, she slowly stretched her legs, feeling they had recovered from their damage. She would need them now more than ever, as her mobility was her best weapon against the blonde Knight. Furthermore, while Polarity could not be used to control Octavia, she could still use it to open up Octavia's defenses by controlling Akoúo. Pyrrha took several deep breaths to steady herself. She would need to set the pace of the fight from here on out, as the Knight had shown she could be merciless if given the chance to punish any and all errors. The redhead then winced from the breath she took, and she touched her abdomen. Despite wearing a plackart, the knee strike had still done damage. Thankfully it had not been enough for it to be serious, but she could tell by the pain that there would be a bruise.

The truth was that she should have kept her Aura Armour up from the beginning. That Aura Armour was meant to fill the gaps in her metal armour, as well as defend herself from the deadly bites and blows of Grimm. More than once had a Huntsman saved himself or a limb by his Aura Armour, giving him enough time to counter attack. Of course, the power of the individual Grimm and the abilities of the Huntsman needed to be considered, as a Grimm's jaws could still crush and pierce through. Pyrrha was well aware of this, with Polarity requiring her to train greatly upon her Aura manipulation, resulting in having impressive reserves of her own. And yet, she rarely used it in the way people expected; throwing opponents about or immediately disarming them. The answer of course was obvious. Pyrrha had been trained to fight with sword and shield, along with all the romantic love for combat. It was far more natural for her to fight as she had always trained; the Mistralese combat circuits reinforcing that. However, it was the romanticism and honour that was the core cause. Here she had a chance to fight a true Knight, and while it did bother her Octavia was a member of Jaune's family, she wanted to fight her on her own terms.

This didn't mean that Pyrrha wasn't aware of the stupidity of not keeping her Aura Armour active. Given that Polarity was almost useless against Majesty, it allowed her Aura to be fully used towards armouring herself. Polarity was also next to useless against Grimm without having metal at her disposal, hence why she trained in manipulating Akoúo and Miló, developing her unique fighting style around them beyond regular combat. And since Aura Armour also helped in healing injuries, now would be as good a time as any to use it.

"If this is how you wish to gain our approval, Pyrrha Nikos" came Octavia's voice out of the silence, "then I regret to inform you that it will result in failure."

'I'm well aware of that' Pyrrha thought, arming herself, as she knew her break was over.

She slowly looked over the hollow, trying to spot the Knight, and just managed to catch the top of her head, her blonde hair ensnaring the sunlight through the trees. Pausing for only a second more, she leapt into the air, and spotting her pray below, spun into a heavy axe kick, aiming for Octavia's head. The Knight had heard her approach, and spun round in time to see her, blocking the attack with her scutum. Pyrrha continued her flip to land on her feet, but felt the edge of the blonde's sword cut the very end of her ponytail, and she twisted in midair, taking a fighting stance the moment she landed, fully expecting a follow up.

"Attacking an enemy by their flank is a strong tactical move, though in this context, a rather dishonourable one" Octavia commented.

"If that was all it took to defeat you, then you deserve nothing more" Pyrrha replied calmly, knowing this was the Knight's attempt to instigate her.

Octavia smirked at the comment, and retook her Middle Guard, ready to recommence the fight.

This time, Pyrrha was the one to strike first, forcing Octavia to parry and riposte, which the redhead blocked with Akoúo, before dashing to the right to try to create an opening via her mobility. Frustratingly, Octavia was able to keep pace with Pyrrha, forcing her to engage in swordplay. Nonetheless, the redhead maintained her battle plan, knowing that her opponent would make a mistake sooner or later, or rather fail to keep pace, as Octavia's level of discipline kept her from falling for tricks or taunts. In fact, that discipline aided the Knight to figure out what the Mistralese champion was doing, at least to a certain extent, and was now doing everything in her power to not give Pyrrha what she wanted. They clashed again and again, swords ringing and shields thumping, both keeping pace with one another. Pyrrha knew that if she didn't find that gap she was looking for, or find a way to create one, the fight was lost.

The pair disengaged and Pyrrha leaned backwards on her right foot. She then felt something touch her heel, and she quickly glanced to the ground to see her boot was pressing against the felled maple Octavia had cut previously. How sharp of a blade did she possess for it to slice through a two foot thick tree like a hot knife through butter? Then again, Jaune had mentioned that part of his family's training with Aura manipulation was focused on sharpening their weapons for maximum cutting. At that moment, an idea struck Pyrrha's mind. Could that be the ticket to winning the fight? The idea was a tad brutal, but if Octavia was as tough as she believed, then she would succumb to the blow without sustaining permanent damage.

'I hope' she thought.

Going forward with this plan, Pyrrha thrust Miló at Octavia's head, who slipped to the left to avoid it, before returning with a counter thrust. The redhead deflected the strike by swiping at the sword with Akoúo in a rightward hook, and continued the spin clockwise to unleash a spinning heel kick. It landed where Pyrrha was aiming, the very centre of her cuirass, but the blonde barely recoiled from the blow. Octavia replied with bringing down her scutum, trying to hit Pyrrha's extended leg and semi-exposed knee. Instead of moving out of the way or trying to block, as she had not the proper footing to do so, Pyrrha turned her right leg so that her armour could absorb the blow, and used the momentum once again to spin and throw Akoúo at the Knight. Aided by Polarity, the dipylon shield spun like a buzz saw, which to the credit of Octavia, was quick enough to lean backward and avoid it. Akoúo cut through the maple Pyrrha was aiming at with ease, and embedded itself into another behind it. She was about to move into her second phase of her plan, when she noticed to her dismay that only part of the tree had been cut. Now without a shield, her opponent took advantage and began to unleash a flurry of blows, forcing Pyrrha to defend herself with Miló and her left vambrace.

Realizing how badly things could become, Pyrrha pulled onto Akoúo, for she knew that a vambrace was a poor substitute for a shield, especially against a longsword. Even with her Aura Armour aiding in her defenses, she could feel the tremendous power in Octavia's strikes. It wouldn't take her long to break through, forcing Pyrrha to attack as fast as she could. Akoúo was wrenched from the maple and flew back towards its wielder, when without looking, Octavia swatted the shield away with her sword.

"That will not work on me a second time" the blonde Knight stated coolly.

She swung her sword at the redhead, who ducked and threw herself into a forward roll, while pulling on Akoúo once again. Rising to a crouch, Pyrrha caught her shield, just as Octavia spun about and brought her longsword down onto her opponent. Pyrrha blocked the attack just in the nick of time, and she quickly rose to retake her High Guard, now placing her back to the damaged maple. The board was now set, and all Pyrrha could do was execute it to the best of her abilities, and pray that Octavia didn't see the trap she was setting.

The Knight unleashed a powerful thrust at the redhead, who ducked, before rising again while twisting her wrists inwards. One of the scooped indentations of Akoúo caught itself between the chappe and the quillons of Octavia's longsword, while Pyrrha struck the base of the scutum with Miló. Using Polarity to aid her, she forced Octavia's arms apart and opened up her centre. Before the Knight could react, Pyrrha used Polarity once again, this time onto her leg armour, and performed a jumping knee strike, hitting the blonde in the chin. The blow clearly did damage, as Octavia let go of her sword and shield, and Pyrrha was about to follow up with another attack, when to her amazement, the Knight brought her head forward, and glared at the redhead. Octavia managed to catch Pyrrha while she was still airborne, and without hesitation, charged forward and pinned her to the tree behind her. Pyrrha cried out in pain, her Aura Armour shattering on impact, though it did nothing to dissuade Octavia, who maintained a fierce grip on her biceps, and then struck her again with a knee strike of her own. Pyrrha quickly brought her legs up to her chest, doing her best to ignore the pain, and pressed her boots against the Knight's cuirass. With all her might, she pushed onto Octavia, trying to break her hold of her, which while she was slowly succeeding as the blonde's hands slid down her arms, the strain was tremendous. The Knight's impressive strength was something Pyrrha expected, but it was much greater than she assumed. Furthermore, if she chose to activate Majesty once again, then Pyrrha knew she would lose this contest of strength.

As she opened her eyes, Pyrrha noticed Octavia's shield on the ground, and she instantly saw her opportunity. Gathering what strength she had left, she brought back her left leg, which her opponent took as an attempt to kick her in the face. Octavia began to channel her Aura to defend herself, when she suddenly felt something large strike her back and thighs, which she would later learn was her own shield. Capitalizing on Octavia's flinch, Pyrrha followed through with her initial attack, and while apologizing in her mind, kicked the Knight on the nose. That had done the trick, as Octavia let go of her, and without wasting any time, she used her Semblance to spin in place and cut the remaining part of the maple. She dashed to the right the instance she touched down while the tree behind her groaned and began to fall forward. In a flash, she threw Miló at the three, not bothering to change its form, and used Polarity to push the maple to fall faster than it would with gravity alone. Octavia opened her eyes, knowing she needed to defend herself, but what took her by surprise, was when she saw the dark grey coloured bark of the tree take up her field of view. She threw her arms up to protect her head, but was too late. The maple struck her across the back of the head as well as her back, forcing her to the ground with a loud crash.

Quickly attaching Akoúo to her plackart, Pyrrha dashed to Octavia's side and pushed the tree off of her. She immediately began to check the blonde for injuries, and to her immense relief, saw that she was simply unconscious, her head not even bleeding from the blow. Shaking her head and thanking the Gods, she took a deep breath to steady herself and rose to her feet, pulling Miló free and securing it beneath her shield. She took Octavia's sword and returned it to its scabbard, before attaching her scutum to her back. Pyrrha then took the blonde by the wrist, gently pulling her to her feet, and then lifted her into the soldier's carry. Taking care that she had a good grip on the blonde, Pyrrha slowly made her way back towards the road, allowing herself to feel happy with her victory against the lady Knight. Now passing their test, she was free to court Jaune, and win his family's approval.

"I just hope she won't hold a grudge" she said to herself, feeling a tad guilty for having to resort to trickery to defeat her.

While their interaction was rather intense right out the gate, Pyrrha would hate to be on the bad side of any of Jaune's family. Octavia was a rather odd young woman, a mixture of dutiful traditionalism and extreme bluntness, but it was hardly malicious. She had been rather gracious when they first met, and Pyrrha knew that she was being genuine despite having a secret mission. It was in that moment that she recalled Jaune being unable to properly explain his relationship with his cousin. Greeting him with a punch instead of a hug like Lawrence was the first indication, and then her informing it was her way of testing his progress as a warrior, showed it was coming from a good place. "Why is punching always the first thing that comes to mind when seeing me?" he had said, which meant it was a common occurrence between them. She knew she would have to ask Jaune about why he hadn't informed her of this test of worthiness, though she felt she understood the reason why. His reluctance to engage with his family had been constantly in play, even after their date. He was still coming to terms with his destiny, and had been just was distracted as she had. Furthermore, given that she had her own secrets left to share, she couldn't hold it against him...at least not too much.

Despite the situation, Pyrrha giggled.

"A wonderful family indeed."

---

Author's Note:

Well, the plot thickens, eh? Before I go through the motions, I want to apologize for the delay of this chapter. There were a great number of things beyond my control that took away my free time: change of work hours, massive technical issues, power outages, spring cleaning, and more. And then there is the chapter itself. The more I read it, the more I realized I needed to fix the flow. As with all fight scenes, they can very quickly become an unclear mess, and I couldn't stop myself from over analyzing everything. I hope it was all worth it. Another issue was that I thought I made a massive mistake in regards to directions. To make Beacon Academy and Albion more grounded, I wanted to be precise about locations. In order to assure that, I went looking for maps, and while I did find several, most were fan made as there is nothing official (outside of a screen capture of the City of Vale map, which I had to clean up in Photoshop). What I then noticed about this chapter, as well as my maps, is that most were missing a compass rose. I immediately panicked thinking that I'd been using the wrong directions, and while I only found one mistake, I have a bad feeling I've made more overall. That is both annoying and embarrassing, and I'll have to fix that as soon as possible. My deepest apologies. I've also been working on a custom map of Remnant, by the way; because I'm just that insane 0_0. Ya have to keep track of this shit somehow.

Finally! The Arcs make their entrance! While I originally put time into fleshing out Jaune's father and sisters first, I then turned my attention to the rest of the family. Years ago, I stumbled across a reddit post regarding Crocea Mors, where someone had noticed that the Arc charge could indicate that it belonged to the "Second son". He or she found similar heraldry that might indicate it, and provided her research for it. While like most things regarding RWBY, things such as these are nothing more than coincidences; which as we now know, was the case. What it did do was spark an idea in my mind. The explanation as to why Jaune has such a poor relationship with his family, was that he had an older brother who was the favoured son. That older brother then died (protecting Jaune), forcing Jaune to take on the responsibilities of being the only son, and trying to live up to his brother's memory.

Obviously, I didn't settle on that, but it nevertheless stuck with me...and that was how Lawrence was born. He came together very quickly in my mind, and I was very glad that I found a way to introduce him in this story. Octavia came immediately after, along with her personality. It then led me to work on the entire Arc family. More on that later.

Fun fact: the warhorses that the Arc family breed are based off the French warhorse breed, Percheron.

Also, I would like it stated for the record that Aura Armour is a real pain in the ass; narratively speaking. It would have been much simpler that training with Aura and one's Semblance just naturally increases a person's fortitude. Dust is FAR worse of course, but we'll talk about that at a later date. I tried addressing it over the course of the story, but I knew I had to be more direct here. And given that CRWBY keeps retconning how Aura works, as well as Aura Armour, we're in similar company. How about wearing armour to save on Aura, and then use it for your Semblance? Light...

And then there's the V8 finale. I was right about James dying. I was right about Jacques dying. I expected Watts to die, but didn't care either way. I JOKED about Penny dying with my editors, but I didn't honestly expect it (which is why I laughed and shouted, "You killed the wrong Maiden, ya dumb bastard!"). Ren lived, though his character, as well as Nora's, is completely destroyed. Oscar is alive, but the show confirms he is truly dying. Winter is now the Winter Maiden, which was my original prediction, as the most logical candidates were Winter, Weiss, and Nora. And the Kingdom of Atlas was destroyed. What a HOPEFUL show.

While I'm still in the black, I was shocked to find that Yang and Blake didn't kiss. It was fully set up, so I totally expected it. While I was wrong, it's still in play. V9 (if it gets made), can still open with Blake finding Yang alive, and kiss her in relief. This would then turn out like my original prediction years ago that Yang and Blake will keep their relationship secret, and then kiss in front of Sun. We'll see how well that prediction holds up. My only other prediction is that Mercury will try to hurt Emerald, earning him death. Raven will have to change sides, though it makes no sense as to why, other than it being somewhat advantageous (even though there is still no way to kill Salem other than the power of friendship). I'm expecting Theodore to betray them as well, as well as Oscar's death, but who knows The sky is the limit when it comes to RWBY's suckage. And Cinder is still our main villain...ha.

Other than that, I really can't make any more predictions. I can assume more character assassinations for Sun and Neptune (maybe make them hate gays despite being friends with Scarlet), and the rest of the characters not having any questions regarding Yang and Blake turning gay. Remember to send CRWBY on Twitter that clip from V6C1 when it happens:

Blake: (smiling) Sun... I don't think I'll ever be able to thank you enough. I'm still-

Sun: You're still working a lot of things out, I know. But you can do it with them. And in the future, who knows? (turns to the right) I've got a feeling you haven't seen the last of me.

Sun smiles as he proudly balls his fist in front of him. He lowers his fist down as Blake smiles.

Blake: I certainly hope not.

Suddenly, Blake goes up to Sun and kisses him on the cheek.

How much do you want to bet they've retconned this? Like everything else...

Oh, and one last thing, Eddy Rivas, now head-writer of RWBY, finally confirmed that they were working on V8 up until the release of Chapter 14; confirming that V8 wasn't finished on time, and they aren't already working on V9. Even after two hiatus periods it wasn't ready, meaning things are going to get a lot worse going forward. Doesn't mean I can get Project JADA out before V9, but hey. Thanks for finally being honest, Rivas. Will you, Luna, and Shawcross now apologize to everyone you attacked and blocked on Twitter? Probably not.

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed it, for there is much more to come about the Arcs. Not sure when chapter XXI will come out given that we're back in lockdown, and my hours are changing again. Furthermore, my mind is slowly shifting to Project JADA, making me really want to get back to it. Don't put the cart before the horse, and keep calm and bugger on, as they say. Cheers, Happy Easter, and see you all next time.