DISCLAIMER: I own nothing related to RWBY
*** The day before the dance ***
Ruby hops in place while looking at the object in Jaune's hand.
"Give me a demonstration! Show me, show me, show me!" Ruby excitedly demands.
Jaune hefts his scabbard, checking its balance and finding it satisfactory.
With the press of a button, he expands it into its standard shield form.
"Sure, I'll give you a little demo."
When he twists the shield grip. The gears and mechanisms within the shield orientates it by 90 degrees, making the bottom of his shield parallel with his arm. The grip expands and wraps around Jaune's hand like a glove.
He points the shield at a nearby target and activates the Dust within the shield with his Aura. Glowing purple, the shield begins to hover above the back of his hand and splits into multiple segmented blades. With the flick of a finger, one of the segments launches out like a bullet, deeply embedding itself into the target.
'A little too much strength. Then what about this?'
He gesture with his fingers once again, this time, the remaining segments all fly out at simultaneously. Adjusting his control, he directs the storm of blades to shred the wooden target into neat pieces. With a final gesture, the blades fly back at Jaune and circle around him before reforming his shield.
Ruby watches with her mouth dropped.
"That is such a cool way to use gravity Dust! The amount of control you'd need to do what you did is amazing! I doubt any of the students in Beacon has that degree of control. Maybe Weiss or Blake, but I don't think they have enough Aura."
Her head tilts curiously.
"But... why use this over your Semblance?"
'My Semblance?' Jaune raises an eyebrow.
'Ah... she also believes that my Aura projectiles is my Semblance. Is this what everyone believes my Semblance to be? Then perhaps I should entertain them as such.'
"Take a guess," Jaune says.
Ruby crosses her arms and takes several moments to think, then claps her hands together.
"Even though Dust activation requires Aura, it shouldn't be as much as you use with your Semblance. So, if you'd rather be conservative and maintain a similar style of combat, this is a good alternative."
Jaune ruffles and pats her hair, much to her dismay.
"You got it. But don't go telling everyone what my shield can do. I'd prefer it to be a surprise for the Tournament."
Ruby slaps his hand away and pouts, "Can't make any promises about telling my team. I helped you design it after all."
"Fair enough," Jaune sighs. He glances down at his friend.
"Do you have a partner for the dance yet? You do realize that it is tomorrow?"
She looks down at her feet and shuffles them nervously.
"Er... no..."
She looks up and flashes a forced smile.
"It's okay though. I'm not used to social events anyways. Besides, no one would want to ask someone like me, who's two years younger."
Her voice grows quiet by the end.
Jaune consoles her by placing a hand on her shoulder.
"How about this? You're all aware that Pyrrha is my partner for the dance. I will ask her, and if she is okay with it, you are going to give me a dance tomorrow."
"Uh-" Ruby's face grows slightly red.
"Really? You'd do that? But, I don't know how to dance."
"The point is to have fun and enjoy yourself," Jaune chuckles. "You are the first friend I made at Beacon. There is no way I'm letting you stand alone in the corner while everyone else is enjoying themselves."
Her eyes widen.
"How did you know I was going to hide in a corner?"
"I'd bet 100 Lien that you were planning on lounging next to the beverage table," Jaune grins.
"How did you-"
Ruby slaps a hand over her mouth.
Jaune can not help but bark in laughter.
"You were truly planning on doing that?"
While her face burns red from embarrassment, Ruby dashes out from the training room.
Before she exits, she yells, "Fine! You're the one who said. You owe me a dance and don't you regret it!"
Jaune's smile slowly turns to a melancholic one as he watches Ruby speed away.
*** The night of the dance ***
Moonlight spills through the clouds while hundreds of excited students dressed in formal attire make their way towards the ballroom. Among those students is Pyrrha with her arm wrapped around Jaune's. Her long dress tightly fits against her figure, revealing her body's natural curves. A side slit on the right side displays her long model legs. Her hair, normally tied into a pony tail, has been set loose, spilling behind her like luscious silk of the finest quality. Without her armor and battle attire, Pyrrha Nikos is truly an exceptional beauty. Countless heads of both male and female students turn towards her and Jaune as they pass by.
"Wow... who is that?"
"She's so pretty..."
"I'm jealous... Is she even wearing any makeup?"
"Isn't that Pyrrha Nikos?"
"Really? No way!"
"If I knew, then I wouldn't have chickened out!"
"Who's that guy next to her?!"
"Lucky dude... Screw him."
Jaune chuckles at the various whispers and comments.
"Perhaps you've gone a bit overboard, Pyrrha. Apparently, many of the male student population now want me dead."
Pyrrha giggles, "I'm sure it's just your imagination."
She looks over him in appreciation, taking in his handsome features while dressed in a standard tuxedo.
"Your simplistic approach in your attire selection is rather refreshing."
Her eyes glance at some of the flamboyantly dressed boys to demonstrate her point.
"Jaune! Pyrrha!"
The two turn around to see Ruby wobbling towards them in high heels. Her dress is an elegant, yet simple red dress with white accents. Tied around her waist is a large bow made of black silk, accentuating her dress's charm. Affixed above her ear is a piece of jewelry in the shape of a small red rose.
"Good evening Ruby," Pyrrha smiles. "You look wonderful."
"Y-you think so?" Ruby blushes, looking quite happy from the compliment. "You look beautiful too, Pyrrha."
Jaune nods.
"You've done a good job dressing up to highlight your charming points, rather than overcompensate with the outfit. Come on, we should get in before it gets too crowded."
Jaune and Pyrrha hold and match each other's footsteps to the waltz music. The two smoothly transition into various turns and steps, partly credited by their constant sparring matches. As the music concludes, Jaune spins Pyrrha in his arms and gracefully dips her backwards while supporting her back with a hand.
Deciding to take a small break, they head out onto an empty balcony. Pyrrha peacefully gazes up at the sky while breathing in the night air.
"The sky is beautiful tonight."
Pyrrha turns to face Jaune and gives him a genuine smile of joy.
"And tonight is one of the best of my life."
"So far," Jaune points out.
"No, you don't understand. This night is a memory I will treasure forever," Pyrrha smiles with some sadness.
"Ever since I could remember, I've been blessed with incredible talent and opportunity compared to others. I was constantly surrounded by love and praise, but after a while, it became an untouchable pedestal. Everyone... aside from my family, just assumes that I'm too good for them, it was impossible for genuine relationships to form. There was always a layer of formality that was not present when they spoke with their other friends."
Her eyes meet Jaune's.
"That changed when I came to Beacon, and met you."
Her voice slightly trembles.
"Do you remember when we'd first met? You didn't even know my name. You even brushed me off in the locker room. Do you have any idea how much that meant to me? To be treated as normal? It was so refreshing. And thanks to you, I've finally made friendships that can last a lifetime."
She closes her eyes and recites with a gentle smile.
"Nora, Ren, Ruby, Yang, Weiss, Blake,... and you."
"When you asked me out to the dance, I thought I was dreaming. All of my anxiety was washed away by such a simple thing. After all, you're the one I wished to be here with. Someone who saw me for who I am. Not Pyrrha Nikos the celebrity, or Mistral Champion."
Jaune can not help but feel touched by such a heartfelt confession. He is fully aware that opening up like this to him was not something done on a whim, but is an expression of absolute trust that took a lot of courage to do so.
'When I'd lost Ying'er, my life was nothing but constant torment. She was my everything. The path of cultivation was a coping method to numb the pain. I lied, killed, stole, and became utterly ruthless during my younger years. I'd mellowed out over the years, but still... even until when I embraced death, I'd always preferred to keep to myself.'
Some doubt creeps into Jaune's heart.
'I care for the safety of my friends at Beacon, but like in my previous life, I maintain a certain distance from them. Pyrrha has just poured her heart out to me. Am I deserving of such a thing?'
With some hesitation, Jaune reaches out and cups the side of Pyrrha's cheek with his palm.
"Thank you," he gently whispers.
Pyrrha reaches up and holds Jaune's hand against her face.
'It's warm...'
After about a minute, Pyrrha finally seems to realize the position they are in and her face instantly flushes red.
"I-I'm going to go inside for some refreshments," she stammers and turns on her heels to briskly walk back inside.
Jaune continues to smile at her back as she clumsily rushes away. He turns his head towards the curtains next to the balcony exit.
"Can I help you with something? Neptune, I believe is your name?"
Neptune awkwardly steps out while rubbing the back of his neck.
"Uh, hello. Name's Jaune, right?"
Jaune quickly scans the ballroom, finding Weiss sitting alone at a table.
"What brings you out here all alone? Didn't you come to the dance with Weiss? If I recall, she went out of her way to ask you."
"It uh... it just didn't work out, you know?" Neptune tries to play it off.
Jaune gives him a cold, calculating stare.
"I would strongly suggest you try again."
Neptune feels a wave of cold sweat wash down his back.
"I... I can't dance!" He looks down at his feet in shame.
'This boy is an idiot...' Jaune mentally sighs to himself.
"Is your brain just an accessory?" Jaune asks.
The blue-haired teen looks up in surprise that someone he'd just met would hit him with such a brutal comment.
"You'd deny someone's advances in such crude way because you can not dance? Here is my suggestion to you, and I highly recommend you take it to heart. Weiss Schnee absolutely despises when someone is not being true to themselves. Go and talk to her without your usual act. I can guarantee you that she will appreciate the gesture. You are interested in her, are you not?"
"Well, yeah. I guess she'd pretty cool," Neptune mumbles.
"Then go. You'll find her on the Eastern side of the ballroom."
Neptune thinks for a moment, then looks back at Jaune appreciatively.
"Thanks Jaune. You're actually a pretty cool guy."
Jaune waves a hand dismissively before looking Neptune coldly in the eyes.
"By the way. Whatever you saw or heard between Pyrrha and I never happened. You will not say a word of it to another soul. Ignore my singular warning, and I will personally cut out your tongue."
Jaune gives Neptune a small smile.
"Do you understand?"
Officially scared for his life, Neptune manages to stutter out, "Y-yeah man! Loud and clear! I mean, I don't know what you're talking about!"
He nervously laughs, "Nothing happened here. Nope!"
Then he sprints back into the ballroom.
When Jaune re-enters the ballroom, he notices that Pyrrha is conversing with Yang and Blake. Whatever the subject is causes Pyrrha to blush and cover her face with her hands, while Blake and Yang pat her back with teasing smiles.
'I'll leave that to them...'
He scans the room, and locates Ruby with Ren and Nora at a food table. When Ren notices Jaune approaching, he grabs Nora's arm and drags her towards the dancing area. As they pass each other, Ren gives Jaune a silent nod.
'What a reliable guy.'
Jaune strolls up to Ruby and grins.
"Are you ready to dance?"
Ruby nearly drops her plate of food, starting to regret her declaration from the day before.
"O-of course I'm ready! Ready as I'll ever be! Yeah..." She nervously laughs.
Despite being thoroughly amused by her reaction, Jaune extends an olive branch.
"How about grabbing some fresh air first?"
"That sounds great!" Ruby's head perks up and hastily walks towards the exit before Jaune could change his mind.
Ruby takes a few deep breaths.
"Feeling better now?" Jaune asks with an amused smile.
"Actually, yeah-"
Ruby's eyes suddenly narrow and she points behind Jaune.
"Who's that?"
Even before Ruby said anything, Jaune had already noticed. A shadowed figure silently jumps across the rooftops towards Beacon Tower.
"Ruby, we're going," Jaune's says in a low voice.
Nodding, she says, "We need to check it out."
The two of them begin to sprint towards the tower. As they run, Jaune remembers.
'My weapon is in my room. If we end up engaging in combat, I'll have to improvise.'
When they arrive near the entrance of Beacon Tower, they find the guards knocked out cold and bleeding. Alarmed, Ruby dials in her code on her Scroll for her weapon locker. Within seconds, a rocket powered locker crashes into the courtyard and opens up to reveal Crescent Rose.
"Why aren't you calling your locker?"
"Unfortunately, Crocea Mors is in my room," Jaune replies as they run through the courtyard. "I will be fine. My close combat skills are nothing to scoff at."
Though slightly worried, Ruby nods, as there is little time to waste. Jaune leads the charge, constantly scanning their surroundings with his divine sense as they enter Beacon Tower. Ruby casts a concerned look at all the injured guards.
The elevator door opens and the two quickly jump in. As it rapidly rises through the levels, Jaune instructs Ruby.
"I know you are worried about the guards, but you must focus on the task at hand. You understand, right?"
Ruby takes a deep breath, and nods.
"Whoever incapacitated those guards is skilled and did it with great precision and no hesitation. Currently, we hold the element of surprise. Follow my lead and provide backup when I engage. Our goal is to capture whoever is up there on the communications floor, and hand him or her over to Ozpin for interrogation."
She nods in affirmation, but notes the implications of Jaune's words.
'To even mention that capturing is the goal implies that not capturing was a possibility. But that would've meant...'
She gulps and shakes her head to dispel such thoughts.
As the elevators slows to a stop, Jaune scans the entire floor, locating a figure crouched behind one of the many service desks. When the doors slide open, Jaune blurs into motion and converges directly onto the intruder's location.
Cinder gasps in surprise and rolls to the side, dodging Jaune's foot stomp. Ruby follows up with a swing of her scythe. Narrowing her eyes, Cinder reaches into a hidden pocket and disperses a vial of ice Dust powder, then fires several icicles at Ruby.
Ruby kicks off the ground and twirls her weapon, blocking the projectiles.
In the meantime, Jaune closes his distance on Cinder and strikes her on the shoulder with his fist. She grunts and kicks at him, trying to create some distance. Jaune sidesteps and grabs her extended leg with a hand, then yanks Cinder towards him.
With his other hand, he fiercely strikes her abdomen with a palm, sending her flying through the air and into one of the support columns.
Cinder's back slams into the concrete pillar and collapses onto the floor. She swallows the mouthful of blood threatening to erupt from her throat. Her eyes are wide with disbelief. She swerves her head to the side, narrowly dodging a Dust round from Ruby's sniper rifle. The force of the round cracks the side of her mask, revealing one of her eyes. She conjures Aura into her clothing and materializes a black glass bow in her hand.
With practiced precision, she knocks back several glass arrows and fires them all at Jaune, who is currently sprinting towards her.
Without slowing down a single step, Jaune cuts the arrows away with a finger.
'Just because I do not have a sword does not mean I can not utilize sword techniques.'
Jaune leaps into the air and conjures a large amount of Aura into his sword finger, intent on finishing the fight with the next blow. As he's in midair, the elevator doors begin to slide open. With a gleam in her eye, Cinder quickly fires several glass arrows at the elevator door.
'Ruby won't react in time.'
Mentally cursing, he twists himself in midair and fires off Aura blades from his finger to intercept and destroy the arrows. When he twists back around, the intruder is nowhere to be found.
He lands on the ground and turns to face Ironwood.
Cinder stumbles through a hallway with a clear limp in her steps. She quickly discards two bracelets and the remains of her mask, switching from her stealth suit into an elegant black dress. She quickly locates Mercury in the ballroom.
"How did it go?" Mercury asks. His eyebrow raises when Cinder does not respond immediately, and her breathing is quite heavy.
After several minutes, she glares into Mercury's eyes.
"It would seem that the information you and Emerald provided on Jaune Arc was grossly inaccurate. If it were not due to luck, I would have been forced to use the Maiden powers in order to escape, which would have jeopardized our mission," she hisses.
Mercury gulps in trepidation.
"Will... we need to change our plans?"
"No..." Cinder narrows her eyes. "I was able to complete tonight's task. Once I finally get what rightfully belongs to me, no one in Beacon will be able to stop me."