Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY or Eyes of the Lord
"What?"
"You will be fighting Miss Velvet Scarlatina, a second-year student and the perhaps the only person in Beacon who can hold their own against you – if only for a little while." Ozpin said in front of Jaune Arc, who was looking annoyed at the prospect of actually having to fight in combat class again. But he wasn't the only one who felt that way.
Behind the Headmaster, stood Professor Goodwitch and team CFVY. The only faunus of the team gave a nervous smile and waved at Jaune when he looked over them.
Meanwhile, the rest of the first-year students were whispering to themselves about this new development. Especially team JPBY, they were wondering if whether or not Pyrrha would get the same treatment as their leader's and the rabbit faunus's strength. She must be insanely strong if their Headmaster said that she could hold her own against Jaune, maybe she's already on the same level as professional hunters?
"Think your also gonna get your own special sparring partner Pyrrha?" Yang asked, nudging the girl at her sides with her elbow.
She shook her head. "I doubt it, I haven't fought as much hunters as Jaune did in his tournaments. And the ones that I did fight, were all the strongest fighters I've faced."
"Damn, and our leader just goes through them like he does with chicken. What do you think Blake?"
The quiet girl flipped a page of the book she held before answering. "I don't think our headmaster will assign one for Pyrrha, even if she is Mistral's champion. My guess is that Velvet has some sort of semblance that either counters or can match our Leader's."
Pyrrha pondered on it. It made sense, at the end of the day, Velvet was still a student. And she didn't think that the headmaster would put her up against Jaune if she didn't have the ability to last long against him.
Now the only questions was-
"Yeah, no thanks." PBY let out simultaneous sighs, as expected of their leader.
-would he accept the offer?
"Well, I cannot say I didn't expect this, but is there a specific reason for your refusal Mr. Arc?" Ozpin asked as team CFVY comforted a downcast Velvet whilst Glynda was giving him an 'I told you so' look.
"I already fought the other day so, just get my partner to fight her or something." Jaune said as he picked at his right ear with his pinky, it was so damn itchy.
"I see, well how about this Mr. Arc. If you agree to have Miss Scarlatina as your sparring partner in combat class for the whole year and spar with her right now, I shall give you a reward."
Glynda immediately interjected. "Headmaster, surely that isn't necesar-"
"Oh? You got spicy pics of Miss Goodwitch or something?" Ozpin and team CFVY quickly had to restrain Glynda before she could leap towards the suicidal teen, not a single person dared laugh – aside from Nora and, fearing for her life while she did, Yang – as they watched their professor scream obscenities and death threats at the blonde boy who just let out a yawn in response.
"G-Glynda you must calm down." Ozpin begged as he did his best to ignore her chest pressing against his arm.
"Release me at once Ozpin! You wanted Arc to have a proper sparring partner, right? WELL, HERE I AM, I'M GOING TO PUT THAT LITTLE SHIT IN HIS PLACE!" Glynda shouted with a crazed look as she sent a telekinetic bolt towards Jaune with the aid of her crop, which he just casually slapped away with the back of his hand that glowed with aura. An innocent wall now had a crater on it as a result.
"Pl-please calm down Miss Goodwitch." Coco pleaded, her shades not fully able to hide the high amount of fear she held in her eyes when she heard the woman actually swear. She only came with Velvet because she wanted to watch two copycats fight each other, not end up risking her life just because one of the said copycats couldn't control their hormones!
"Team CFVY, you have five seconds to unhand me before I mark your grades as zero!"
"Do not listen to her students!" Ozpin finally shouted when he noticed that they almost released their hold on the mad woman. "And Mr. Arc, can you please just apologize already?"
"Sure." Was Jaune's instant reply.
"Dammi- wait what?" The gray-haired man whipped his head to his blonde student so fast that his neck should've snapped, but his reaction was not too dissimilar from literally everyone else in the room. Everyone was frozen as they stared at Jaune, the laziest and the most uncaring student in all of Beacon, was actually going to apologize!? In the one week he had spent in the school, everyone had already known just how lazy he was and how the boy only cared about those things that he watched and read.
It was because he had debated about the positive effects of anime and manga had on the general populace with professor Oobleck when he was caught reading something called 'Berserk' on his scroll during class. The blonde bastard somehow spoke in the same speed as the professor, and took up the remaining class time to settle the debate. Worst part was, he actually won it. Thanks to that, the history of anime was now going to be discussed as a part of their curriculum. Whether it was a blessing or a curse remained yet to be seen.
"M-Mister Arc." Glynda stuttered, she had actually stuttered. "Are you aware of what you just agreed to do?" Surely he wasn't, right? He must've had a severe lapse in his judgement to actually agree to apologize.
"I am completely aware Miss Goodwitch." Jaune said with a roll of his eyes, he did his best to not react to the shocked gasp that came from her and everyone else around him. Honestly, why were they all being so dramatic about this? Was he really that much of an asshole?
"I'm sorry for saying such an inappropriate thing right in front of you, it was very uncouth of me and very disrespectful to you."
No one could breathe as they stared wide-eyed at Jaune, they were all too stunned to speak. He really did it, he actually apologized to professor Goodwitch. And it wasn't a casual and cheap apology either, it was a formal and very real apology. Did they perhaps judge him too harshly? It has been only a week since the school year started, so maybe there really was more to the blonde than they previously thought.
All the while, Glynda was choking on her own breath when she heard just how formal and genuine the boy sounded.
"I… am quite impressed Mister Arc, I didn't that you would-" Ozpin began, only to be interrupted by Jaune.
"I should've said it only when you weren't present in the room, and for that I apologize." Upon hearing this, many released simultaneous sighs of relief, their shoulders finally relaxing as they started to breathe again. Some even decided to cheer and high-five one another in celebration, Yang may or may not have been part of that group.
Ozpin quickly looked towards Glynda with his hand gripping The Long Memory tightly, only to relax as well when he saw that she too was sighing in relief with a hand over her heart.
The sight of it all made Jaune very tempted to leap in the crowd and start kicking all their asses. He had copied over a thousand techniques and semblances from all his tournaments, add in the element of surprise and his own semblance in to the mix, and it all resulted in him having a rather high chance of winning. Blake or Weiss might have said that there was something wrong with his math but it wouldn't matter to him, when it comes to a fight, he relied more on his instincts and gut feeling over his mind and logic.
"Well, now that Mr. Arc has apologized, we can now move back to our original topic," Ozpin turned towards Jaune, "your reward should you choose to accept my proposal shall be… improved wi-fi connection and speeds – only for your team of course."
That wasn't such a big deal, that is what many others instantly thought. Beacon's student wi-fi was pretty decent enough that no one could really complain, even Jaune's own team thought it wasn't much judging from their expressions. But one look at the boy's face would have them all think that they were so massively wrong, both subjectively and objectively.
The blonde's eyes were wide, sweat dripped down from all over his face, his breaths came out heavy, and his hands visibly shook as he brought up a finger towards the impassive headmaster.
"C-Cap, I call cap."
"I am afraid that I am not capping, Mr. Arc." Ozpin replied calmly.
That sealed the deal for Jaune, he immediately marched up to the stage with a fierce look of determination. Beacon's wi-fi might have been good enough for all the other students, but not for him. He could only watch 720p of quality on his 20-inch lapscroll, he wanted at least 1080p for anime dammit!
"It seems that Mr. Arc has accepted my proposal, Miss Scarlatina if you would?"
Velvet did not need to be told twice and quickly joined Vale's champion up on the stage. The thought of going up against Arc was a bit scary, but the headmaster and her team had faith in her. Sure, Ozpin said that she could only last for a little while against Arc, but he also said that she was the only one capable of doing so! She couldn't just let him and everyone down, she has to do her best!
"Before we start…" Everyone looked to Jaune, his face was unusually serious. "Normally I would go easy on you Velvet, since you're a pretty cute bunny girl."
The rabbit faunus could not hide the reddening of her cheeks as she bashfully looked away from the boy, her blush only grew when some of the other students whistled at them, especially when a few other girls squealed. Was he trying throw her off even before the match started? Well, it won't work! She can see right through his actions, even if the warmth on her face suggested otherwise!
"Wipe that look off your face Coco!" Velvet yelled when she saw the grin her leader was giving.
"However," everyone looked back to Jaune, "the stakes on this match are just too high for me to do that. So…" He leaned downward, bending his knees and taking a step forward with his left foot as he shifted all his weight down on the same foot, his eyes were zeroed in on his opponent's. "I'll be going out right from the start."
Velvet's flushed expression quickly vanished and was replaced with a serious look. The stance Jaune was only slightly similar to the one he used against Ruby a week prior, but this one was much more dangerous. It may have looked like a ridiculous stance to many since he was putting all his weight on one foot and had virtually no defense since both of his arms were at his sides. However, she was a martial artist like him, she could tell what would happen if she decided to go in on him right now. He would strike before she could even react or see it happen.
As such, Velvet opted to enter the best defensive stance she knew of. Turning her body sideways, she brought her right arm above and behind her head at around a forty-five-degree angle, her hand was open at the same angle and fingers partially clenched. Her knees were apart and bent as she aimed her left forearm downward in front, with her hand straight and open outwards.
The stance Velvet was using is not only the best defensive one she had, but also the best chance she had in countering Jaune's punch. At least, she thought it would be a punch that he would throw out. It was what he did most of the time in his matches and the only viable option he had because of the stance he was in, there was just too much weight down on his left foot for him to even try a kick with his right leg.
"Are the both of you ready?"
"Yes Professor." Velvet said, her eyes not leaving her opponent's even as she replied.
Jaune simply nodded, but all of his muscles were completely tense, ready to pounce on a moment's notice as his eight-starred eyes locked on to his opponent.
"Then… begin!"
Glynda flicked her crop down, one second later, Velvet's head violently snapped backwards.
The rabbit faunus fell down harshly as her head smacked on the hard floor of the stage with repeated thuds, she blinked as her eyes stared right up at the ceiling lights of the amphitheater. Then the pain began to set in, tears welled up at the corner of her eyes as she did her best to not cry out. Her mouth painfully ached as a gasp escaped her throat, darkness crept up from the edges of her vision, tempting her with an escape from her current and further pain by simply blacking out.
She refused. Velvet gritted her teeth and turned over, desperately trying to push herself up with her arms and legs. She could faintly hear Miss Goodwitch's voice, but she didn't care about what her professor was saying, all she cared about was getting up from the floor and facing Jaune Arc once more. It couldn't end like this, their fight ending in only mere seconds after it started, she would not let it. The disappointment the headmaster and her team would have if she gave up now…
Jaune watched from over his shoulder as Velvet slowly got up from her previous position on the ground, she stumbled for a bit – nearly falling down once – but she stilled and began to go back into her stance even as blood dribbled down to her lips. Her glazed eyes, started to become focused and clear as they locked on to him.
"I… can still fight!" She panted.
The four words Velvet uttered, they might give others hope that she really could continue fighting and still have a chance of winning, basically a motivational phrase. But for Jaune, it was an ordinary monday. He heard all kinds of motivational words and phrases many times in his tournaments, from huntsmen, huntresses, and even from young fighters who had just started training, everyone who thought that they would be the one – the legendary protagonist – who would finally take him down and claim the title of 'Invincible'. All it did was make him roll his eyes.
Jaune looked over to Glynda, checking to see if she was to going to allow the spar to continue. When the professor nodded, he couldn't but let out a sigh. Goddammit.
It was going to be hard to take Velvet down if she was going to be stubborn, especially since all of his finishing strikes were aimed for the head, and he didn't want to risk giving her permanent damage. Even if the girl still has some aura, he was not going to take any risks. So, he was just going to have to bring her aura down to the red while also avoiding hitting her head. How fun. He could use grappling techniques to make her give up, but he really didn't like the lack of space when using them.
Turning around, Jaune began to walk over to his opponent with his semblance active and equipped his knuckleduster on his right hand. But he completely froze when Velvet leaned downwards and took one step forward with her left foot, isn't that- He quickly bent backwards at a ninety-degree angle, his eyes went wide as he looked up at the fist that just barely missed him. There was no doubt about it, that was the technique he used!
The faunus took advantage of the boy's shock and swept his leg, she carried on the momentum by circling the same leg high up and bringing it down upon him. Jaune quicky rolled up into a handstand and propelled both his legs upwards, meeting Velvet's stomp with a double legged kick. But the blonde wasn't done yet, with his opponent out of balance, he swung his feet towards the brunette. She was able to raise her arms up in time, but was still knocked back by the blow.
As soon as she regained her balanced and stood up, Velvet had expected Jaune to be upon her already, but instead was met with a rain of jabs. She quickly began to deflect them as best as she could with her arms, a few did slip by and hit her, causing her to be slowly pushed back. After a while however, she was starting to notice something suspicious. None of the jabs went for her head, actually he wasn't even aiming for it at all. He was holding back on her!
Jaune didn't think much of it when Velvet dashed backwards, he thought it was just an attempt to escape the onslaught of jabs, even when she did it again. But when he finally caught up to her and saw she was doing, he was surprised once more. She was gripping her right hand by the wrist, the veins on both arms bulged as she pulled her fist back. That's a technique from a huntsman in one of his previous tournaments!
"Don't," her fist sailed through the air, "underestimate me!"
The bottom of his left foot caught it mid-way.
"I'm-" Jaune spun in the air, powered by the force of the punch, before striking Velvet at her abdomen with his left leg "-not!"
The rabbit faunus was sent flying out of the stage, plowing straight through the air before crashing into a wall.
Glynda declared him winner by ring out before instructing the other members of CFVY to bring Velvet to the infirmary.
"Oi Ozpin." Jaune called out before letting out a yawn.
The man looked towards the blonde teen, who looked as bored as he usually did. But the headmaster could see that there was a glint of something that wasn't there before, it was-
"You better keep your promise about the increased wi-fi speed for my team, and as for Velvet…" A small smile slowly grew on Jaune's face as he realizes that he actually, genuinely, enjoyed the little fight they had. "…I think she'll be a perfect sparring partner."
Yep, I'm back from the dead bois!
I would've added 'and girls' there, but that's just wishful thinking on my part. Because I'm pretty sure that none of them would read a male power fantasy fanfic.
And also, the moves Jaune and Velvet used… ehe~
Edit: Fixed a typo where I put in 'gay-haired' instead of 'gray-haired, thanks for pointing it out to me Onyx Gabriel. Though I can't help but admit that it got a laugh out of me when I checked it lol.
