Jaune smiled to himself as he watched Cuttress- Revy and Vanessa talking and laughing... It was just a typical night for them; cracking jokes over the silliest things, the latest news on Huntsmen tournaments, and the two of them talking whatever else suited their fancy. He tuned out and munched on his slice of pizza whenever the topic swayed over to boys. Then again, Vanessa didn't seem too interested in the topic either most of the time.

The moment Cuttress showed up with pizza boxes at the front door, Vanessa was already convinced it was going to be the best birthday ever. This would only be the start though. He'd have to ask his daughter is she wanted to spend the weekend with him alone or with Revy as well. If she was up for it of course. Then again, Revy was never the one to turn down some quality time with him and Vanessa.

It was almost natural when Revy eventually scooted over to him and rested her head on his shoulder. The scent of her light perfume tantalizing his senses along with the look she gave him. It was full of admiration. If there was a moment he'd want to remember as he took in his final breaths, it'd be this. Some time with his family. His past self surely wouldn't have imagined things turning out like this in the end. He had these two girls to thank for that. Another glance at them was only another reminder of his resolve after he left Beacon.

He snapped out of his reverie, his mind pondered on that bit for a moment, when his doorbell rang. He wasn't expecting any guests and Vanessa wouldn't have friends over. Not that she was anti-social. It was just that, from what he gathered from her teachers and peers at school, they found his daughter too much to handle. They weren't wrong, he'll admit.

Revy pulled his arm down as he tried to get up and sauntered over to the door, glancing back for a brief second, chuckling to herself as his face flushed. Vanessa gagged and muttered something about PDA. He turned back to Vanessa, ready to make a remark of his own when his attention snapped back towards Revy. He could've sworn he heard her curse. He soon realized why. He slowly rose and edged closer to the unexpected guests at the door. Should he have felt happy or dismayed? Both? Neither?

"Blake, Sun…" Jaune said. "I wasn't expecting you." Ever, he wanted to say.

Blake's ears, her Faunus ones, were on full display. They twitched for a brief moment, making his stomach tighten a bit. Blake looked a bit flustered, but caught her bearing by taking a deep breath. Sun offered his support by placing his hand on her shoulder. Blake placed her hand on his and glanced up at him, silently acknowledging his gesture.

"Apologies for the sudden visit, Jaune. We just happened to be in the area and I wanted to take the opportunity to drop by."

Just happened to visit, hm? And seemed convenient, or was it actually right in her mind? He smiled as he bit his tongue. He never held ill feelings toward Sun, he was a great guy. And he offered far more to Blake than he ever could.

"Where's Vanessa?" Blake asked.

Jaune felt Vanessa brush by. His daughter's expression was like Blake's; masked.

"Hi, Mom…" she said. She stroked her arm a bit, averting her gaze.

"Happy birthday, Vanessa." Blake said. A pause. "You're seventeen this year, right?"

"Yeah…"

"You've really grown. Nora and Pyrrha mentioned you're thinking about becoming a Huntress?"

"Yeah…" she said again.

Another pause.

"Why don't you two come in? Help yourselves to a slice, if you'd like." Revy offered. She gestured towards the boxes on the counter. "I can also fetch you some water if you'd like."

"That's fine, thank you." Blake gazed into his eyes. He offered her nothing. Nothing to go on at all. He didn't want her to get a read on his feelings. "We won't be long. We don't want to trouble you all."

Just come and go, then?"

"I am Reverie Cuttress," she said. "I'm a detective that works with Jaune at the local precinct. Jaune has told me much about you, Miss Belladonna." She turned towards Sun. "And you are Mr. Wukong, yes? A Huntsman as well?"

"Uh, yeah. Good to meet you."

Revy ushered the two inside. Jaune signaled his guests to follow him over to the dining room table. Blake didn't make eye contact with Vanessa as she stepped past her. His daughter only watched without uttering a word. He sat down and refrained from rubbing his temples. Blake sat across from him as Vanessa and Revy took the seats next to him. He wasn't sure if he wanted Blake to notice how Vanessa scooted a bit closer to him.

And he wasn't sure if his next words were the best ones.

"Your last message suggested you weren't going to visit Vanessa for her birthday."

A bit of a low blow. Shaking her confidence and being direct was the best way to go about this. Maybe it's his paranoia from the years as a detective kicking in, but he had the feeling something was up.

"Why are you here, Blake?"

She bit her lip.

"There's a few things I wanted to discuss with you, Jaune." She eyed Vanessa. "First, I wanted to offer Vanessa my tutelage. And second..."

Blake held out her hand. Jaune curled his fists beneath the table as he stared at the ring on her finger.


When I first began this story, I had either Blake or Velvet in mind for the mothers. I felt that the identity of the mother was not important, since I wanted to emphasize the struggles Jaune went through as a new father on his own. But I felt like I could make a more fulfilling story if I gave flashbacks to his struggles in the beginning. When he meets Reverie, raising Vanessa and other moments could amplify another story. That being Blake as the mother and the consequences of choosing herself over raising Vanessa. I wanted to delve into Jaune's relationship with his daughter as he makes more difficult choices as she continues to grow up. Yes, I could've started right after Jaune leaves Beacon, but I believe I can make the workload more efficient this way. That way I can get more chapters for this story and others out faster.

For those of you going on about how Yang should be Blake's partner, I must ask you this: Would Yang really spend her life with this version of Blake? The one that chose to "abandon" her daughter. No, I'm not going to get into the Yang vs. Sun debate. This isn't me getting into the politics of shipping, I simply believe this to be more realistic considering the circumstances.

And I must apologize for the delays in between chapter updates. Some of you may know I joined the military. And obviously my career takes up a lot of my time, especially since I'm an Air Traffic Control Specialist. No, I'm not one of the guys holding the orange cones, guiding aircraft to keep moving forward or to stop. That's a completely different job and a common misconception.

Regardless, I wish to keep up my hobby for myself and all my dear fans.

Until next time.

-Mute