Okay, I'm pleased to announce that in the last seven days I have managed not to injure myself any further. Thank you, thank you, your applause is, of course, appreciated. With my "not injured" status updated, let's get on with things!

Beta: College Fool

Cover Art: Kegi Springfield

Chapter 44

Ruby sat in her room atop her bed and with the covers pulled up to cover her mouth and nose, leaving only her eyes visible over the top. It was a position she was used to, though only whenever Yang convinced her to watch a horror movie and not normally one she took to protect herself from wandering eyes.

Not that the subject of her nervousness was looking at that moment. In fact, the roles were quite hypocritically reversed.

"I was sure I washed my onesie yesterday. Did I leave it in the laundry room?"

Ruby didn't know; didn't care either, really. Her attention was too focused on the fact her teammate was naked but for his trousers and bending over into the wardrobe, his hair hanging loose and rough down his back. Jaune never really looked it with what he wore, his hoodie and armour being quite concealing, but he actually had a fairly muscled body… which should have been obvious considering how strong he was. Strong as in pure endurance and strength, as opposed to raw skill.

It wasn't an overly muscled thing like those pictures Yang had shown her from a body builder's convention. Neither of them had been too impressed with those, and Yang had groaned about people with more bulk than brains. Ruby hadn't really seen the appeal either way, and hadn't in any of the other men Yang drooled over, but if she did – and she wasn't saying she did – then she felt she'd like someone that looked like what she was staring at right now.

Not that she was saying she had anything for Jaune, obviously…

"Not at all," she whispered into her quilt, drawing it a little higher but – importantly – not enough to cover her eyes.

She liked the way his muscles showed when he flexed, kind of like they were there but hiding, revealing corded strength when he stood back up and placed both hands on his hips. His back formed a perfect V, with a crease on his spine that let down to his firm, round-

"Ruby."

What? No, not his Ruby. His-

"Ruby," Weiss repeated, this time accompanying the call with a pillow to the side of the head. "Stop staring."

"I'm not staring!" she hissed back, cheeks bright red.

"Oh, really? Ruby… when even I start to feel like I should be protecting my partner's honour, you know it's bad. Nora stares at Ren less than you do him."

"Who?" Jaune asked, and Ruby's face drained of all blood.

"No one," Weiss answered. "Why don't you just put a shirt on and sleep like that for tonight? You can look for your onsie in the morning." She lowered her voice and murmured, "If someone hasn't done the world a favour and set fire to it."

"I suppose I could just wear a shirt to bed…"

"Let's not be too hasty," Pyrrha called.

Weiss and Ruby stared at her.

She coughed and looked away.

With Jaune distracted once more, Ruby kept her voice low and slid over to the edge of her bed so she could whisper to Weiss. She still kept her blanket pulled up to cover her pyjama-clad form, even if she wasn't sure why. "I really wasn't staring, Weiss…"

Weiss raised an eyebrow.

"Well… not much… You were looking, too!"

"I may have indulged," she admitted, not quite as embarrassed as Ruby was. "Just because I don't care for it doesn't mean I am completely without interest. If something is good to look at, I'll look. Still, I'm not quite as blatant as you are… and you're not normally this weird, either. What's wrong?"

"Nothing." Ruby managed to hold for ten seconds while Weiss gave her a pointed look that said she'd have to be an idiot to believe that. "Okay, it's not nothing," she finally admitted. She glanced to Jaune, who had finally picked out a shirt and put it on. He went into the bathroom to brush his teeth, and Ruby took the opportunity to scoot a little closer. "Hey Weiss, have you ever… liked someone before?"

No one could accuse Weiss of being an idiot, and it didn't take her long to put one and one together, nor to figure where the conversation was going. Her eyes widened and she glanced between the bathroom door and Ruby.

"No," she said. "No, I haven't. So… why don't you ask Pyrrha for advice, instead? I bet she has."

Over on the other side of the room, Pyrrha waved her hands before her and mouthed "no" over and over, but there was no way Weiss was going to be the one to handle this, and she instead turned back to Ruby.

"She's also your partner too, so she'll have a much better answer. I'm just a cold-hearted ice-queen, right? What would I know about complicated issues of love and romance?"

"I thought you hated that name," Ruby said.

Weiss' brow prickled with sweat.

"Are you trying to push me away because you don't want to answer it?"

"O-Oh my, look at this." Weiss held up her scroll. "I have to check my stocks and shares and there's a message from my sister. Busy – busy. So very busy."

No one could accuse Weiss of being stupid, but few did of Ruby either, and she internally rolled her eyes. Weiss was great when it came to helping with school work, but she could get really weird whenever it was outside of that. Maybe she was uncertain what to do, or maybe she just thought getting involved with anything related to her and Jaune was a bad idea.

Which, Ruby freely admitted, it probably was.

"Hey, Pyrrha," Ruby sighed, sitting down on her partner's bed.

"H-Hello, Ruby," the redhead winced, no doubt knowing the coming conversation was going to be a difficult one. "How can I help?"

"Have you ever liked someone?"

Her partner sighed. "Yes…"

"Did you ever wonder if you liked them or maybe question whether you actually liked them?"

"Yes, Ruby…" Pyrrha chuckled. "I question it all the time."

There was a little more emotion there than Ruby knew what to deal with, and she knew Pyrrha wouldn't expand any further on it. "How do you figure out if you like someone in that kind of way? How do you make sure you're not just getting it wrong or making a mistake?"

Maybe she didn't like Jaune that way. Maybe she was getting embarrassed – and for good reasons – but mistaking that as attraction. To believe those tacky movies, love was meeting someone and having a heavenly chorus appear out of nowhere – a moment of complete and instant realisation that this was love and nothing could ever beat it. Real life was going to be harder obviously, she knew that, but just how hard it could be was driving her insane.

"I don't think there's any guaranteed way to make sure," Pyrrha said, making herself more comfortable with Ruby beside her on the bed. "Everyone reacts in a different way, so maybe it's more obvious for some people than it is for others. For me, it's a matter of liking the way a person acts, who they are and what they believe in. Some people are more physical though, liking the way people look or their appearance."

Ruby's smile faded. "Is that bad?"

"No, no, no." She shook her head, and Ruby let out a sigh of relief. "I don't think it's shallow to like someone for how they look, even if other people might say it is. Everyone needs to do what they must to make themselves happy, after all. I think being shallow is saying looks are more important than personality, but what you probably feel is that you also like the way he – they – look." Pyrrha tried to deflect the idea of who it might be, but Ruby was fairly sure she knew.

"It's Jaune," she admitted.

Pyrrha smiled bitterly. "I already knew."

"Yeah… I guess I'm pretty obvious."

"Just a little." Pyrrha hugged her with one arm and Ruby smiled. "You're my partner, Ruby. I think after we've become such good friends, I'd be able to read you a little. Not that it's very hard when you've been staring at him since we left his sister's house."

"That's the magic word," Ruby groaned. "Sister. How am I supposed to know if I like Jaune when he's already dating Yang? Isn't it evil of me to like him?"

"Considering how much Yang is trying to push him onto you?" Pyrrha asked. "I doubt it. Besides, they've been on one date. I wouldn't exactly call that the two of them being together. It's not official and Jaune is even pretending to be Weiss' boyfriend, so I wouldn't say he and Yang are that close." Yet, she didn't add.

"What should I do?" Ruby asked.

"I can't answer that."

She rounded on her partner, eyes wide. "What!?"

"It's your choice to make, Ruby. I can't tell you what you should or shouldn't do… not if it might come between you and Yang."

That was fair, she supposed. Pyrrha didn't want to take the blame if it went badly, and Ruby didn't want to feel any enmity towards her friend in that case either. "What would you do if it was you?" she asked. "Not about Yang, but… just about not knowing if you like someone or not. Would you try to figure it out on your own?"

"At first, maybe, but eventually I'd have to make a decision. You could always ask him to the dance."

"B-But I don't know if I really like him yet…"

"And the dance is just a dance. It's not marriage, or even anything else like that. I think that's why people go on dates, Ruby. It's so they can find out whether their feelings are true or not. If you go to the dance with him, you can see if you like him as just a friend or maybe something more. The worst that can happen is that you realise he's just a friend and you have a fun time as friends." She shrugged. "Hardly a terrible outcome."

It didn't sound too bad, and Ruby nodded optimistically. It would be way easier than going on an actual romantic date, since if she didn't feel it at the dance she could just retire early or hide with Pyrrha and Weiss for the rest of the evening.

But that raised the terrifying prospect of having to ask someone to the school dance.

"I'd do something though, Ruby," Pyrrha said, catching her attention once more. "If I were in your shoes, I mean. I wouldn't do nothing and I wouldn't sit back and watch the person I liked move on to someone else because my cowardice prevented me from acting. I'd never do that. If you want to win, whether it's in battle or romance, you need to go on the offensive at some point."

The words made her nervous and she swallowed loudly. "Y-You're right. I know you're right, but it's just scary."

Pyrrha laughed and rubbed Ruby's head. "You'll be fine, Ruby. I believe in you."

"I'm glad someone does." She turned and threw her arms around Pyrrha, surprising her with a quick hug. "You're the best partner ever, Pyrrha. I was nervous being on this team at first but you've been awesome."

"Ahem?" Weiss coughed meaningfully. The two ignored her, and Pyrrha gently wrapped her arms about Ruby, as well.

"You too, Ruby. It's not the partnership I expected, but I wouldn't give it up for anything."

Neither would she, and they both laughed as they parted, their bond a little stronger for the words being spoken. In the bathroom, she could already hear the sink running, indicating the subject of their conversation would soon emerge, but there was still a little time – and one final thing she felt had to be asked.

"Who is it you like, anyway? You said you like someone, not liked. Maybe I could help you with the person. I want you to be happy, as well."

Pyrrha smiled and rubbed Ruby's head.

"It's a nice thought, but I think I've made my choice."

And Jaune emerged from the bathroom before Ruby could ask what she meant. With him climbing into bed, and Weiss snapping her scroll of, all she could do was return to her own and snuggle under the blankets as the lights went out.

Why did things have to be so confusing?

/-/

"And that's the purpose of the Vytal Festival," Doctor Oobleck said, finishing his lecture on the layout, organisation and aims of the upcoming festival and tournament. "Are there any questions? Mr Arc, you look fit to burst. Is there something you wished to ask?"

"Oh boy," Weiss groaned, cheek in hand.

Beside her, Jaune could barely contain his excitement. No, his glee – or something far stronger, euphoria, perhaps. His cheeks were red, his eyes sparkling. "Are you saying the entire festival is designed to promote peace and co-operation!?"

"Indeed it is, Mr Arc. After the last war, the Festival espouses diplomatic solutions. Why, even the manufacture of it involved the four major Kingdoms, and the rotational nature of its location every four years assures that citizens have a chance to visit and better understand the culture of each kingdom, making everyone far more understanding of the various quirks and differences between our fellow man."

That was it. His hands slammed down on the desk, coincidentally waking up several slumbering students with startled snorts. "That's incredible!" he gasped. "That's got to be the most amazing idea ever conceived!"

Doctor Oobleck removed his glasses and dabbed at one eye with a handkerchief. His smile was enough to have Weiss rolling her eyes. "It truly is, Mr Arc. I am pleased – no, enthused – to see a student realise just how monumental the event is. Truly, it is one of the many marvels of Remnant."

"But what about the tournament?" Yang whined from several seats down. She looked as bored as 99% of the classroom, and the bags around her eyes suggested she'd only just woken up. "Tell us about the good stuff, prof. How do the fights work?"

"That's Doctor, thank you, and I am telling you about the best part."

"You're talking about politics…"

"The politics of peace," Jaune interrupted, still smiling fit to burst. He wasn't sure why Yang looked vaguely disgusted with him, but not even that could dampen his cheer. This was proof that humans could band together in search of peace if they had to, and proof that even after long wars, co-operation could occur.

Sure, the war between Grimm and humans was probably a little more longstanding - and blood-thirsty, and emotional, and complicated - but hey, it was still a war. All he needed to do was come up with some kind of Vytal Festival-esque event for them, too.

"Will it involve an arena where we throw people to fight against Grimm?"

"Remy!"

"What!? That's what they do here. I'm only embracing my human side." When Jaune didn't respond, the parasite grumbled to himself. "I bet Penny would have liked my idea…"

"Well, I suppose we could talk about the fights," Oobleck said, sighing dramatically even as almost everyone in the classroom went from torpor to alert in an instant. Ruby was gripping the desk so hard it looked ready to break, and even Nora had stopped talking to Ren to listen.

For an academy designed to train and foster the development of Huntsman, the tournament itself was perhaps understandably of interest to the population, even if it was unlikely many first-year teams would get the chance to compete.

Oobleck walked to his blackboard, for the first time having the full attention of every single student in the class. In flowing, cursive script he wrote the word `tournament` on the black board, and then turned to the class and took a deep breath.

"Basically, it's a tournament. You win, you move on. You lose, you don't. That's it, really. It's not all that exciting."

Yang, Nora and Ruby's faces hit the desk.

"Now, back to the political aspects! The original founder of the Vytal Festival was-" The lecture, much to Jaune's dismay, was cut off by the bell sounding for lunch. "Hm well, it appears we have gone a little over schedule. We'll cover more of the founding in our next lesson, but for now remember that the Vytal Festival is designed for peace and prosperity, and with that in mind we should welcome our new guests from other kingdoms with open arms. Class dismissed."

As they all filed out, Jaune resisted the urge to stay behind and talk with the knowledgeable professor, instead meeting with his team and Team RYBN in the halls.

"Sheesh, how does he make the tournament sound boring?" Nora groaned. "Who cares about politics? I just want a chance to break some legs."

"I liked-"

"You don't count," she said, pointing to Jaune. "You're weird. Argh, I can't wait for it to arrive. Ren, we need to spar more to train for it if we're going to win."

"If you are going to attempt to win," Weiss corrected. "It will depend where in the tournament you're sorted and who you end up fighting. If it's us, we'll apologise in advance for knocking you out of it. You can always try again in four years."

"Not much muscle on those legs," Nora said, nodding down below Weiss' skirt. "Like matchsticks, really."

"And your over-large construction tool won't touch them."

"Oh, really?"

Seeing the oncoming disaster, Jaune stepped into the middle of it, coincidentally met by Ren as he did the same on his end, the two of them breaking up the argument before it could even begin. "Nice weather we're having, hey?" Jaune asked.

"Very warm for this time of year," Ren agreed. "It's pleasant."

"REN! Don't fraternise with the enemy!"

He sighed as he was dragged away. "Since when has Jaune been the enemy?"

"Since now," Nora argued. "Or maybe forever. What if he's been our true enemy all along, but only pretended to be our friends so that he could later betray us in a dramatic reveal?"

"And how likely is that supposed to be?" Blake asked sarcastically. "Or are you just quoting a novel."

"And then he'll bend Ren over and take him from behind," Nora finished. "Oh wait, maybe I was quoting one of your novels."

Blake's eyes flashed angrily. "My books aren't porn!"

"Then why get so defensive?"

"Because you're accusing me of reading smut!"

"Which, if you didn't, wouldn't offend you since I'd just be wrong." Nora nodded to the book in Blake's hand. "I read that one, by the way."

The faunus' face went white. "W-When? How?"

"The other day. You left it on the side. I don't think people can bend like that in a shower, Blake. Not while lifting one another up an-" The tale was cut off as Blake's hand slapped over her partner's mouth and she dragged her away, probably for a telling off. Ren followed with a sigh and a wave to Jaune and his team in farewell. Judging from the look on his face, he knew he'd be dragged into some kind of intense training regime whether he liked it or not.

"Hey Rubes, can I talk to you for a moment?" Yang asked, staying behind to grab her sister's arm. "In private?"

Ruby looked nervous. "Uh… sure…"

And that left just him, Weiss and Pyrrha – with everyone having abandoned them. "Well, what do you two want to… do…"

There was a curious lack of Weiss or Pyrrha in the spot he'd left them. In fact, there was no one at all. They must have slipped off when Nora and Blake started arguing, and had either not bothered to take him along or – more likely – he'd missed their subtle hints and they'd been forced to give up and leave him behind.

"Penny wouldn't have left you behind…"

"I told you, Remy. I'm not taking Penny to the dance no matter how many times you ask."

"I was just saying…"

Yeah, and he'd been `just saying` since he came up with the idea that morning, and he hadn't heard anything since. "Sometimes I think you'd rather be HER parasite than mine."

"Hmm…"

"That wasn't an offer!"

Sheesh, what would Mom say if she found out he'd somehow managed to turn Remy mutinous? Not that he thought the parasite really meant it. He was only teasing. Still, he could bet none of his sisters had to put up with anything like this. If Cinder found out…

Cinder…

"Ugh, just another thing I need to fix sooner or later." He'd tried to catch her eye during the lesson, but she was predictably – and understandably – not interested. She and her team had sped away afterwards and he'd never had the chance to reach her. Maybe I should go and see her now in her room. The worst she can do is refuse to answer the door… And leave him stood outside like an idiot, again.

It was worth a shot and he turned in that direction before he came to an abrupt halt, nearly running over the person stood in front of him.

"Sorry," he said, quickly catching himself before he tripped over and squashed the girl. "I wasn't watching where I was going. I- wait, I remember you. Velvet, right?"

The girl, Velvet, nodded nervously, her long brown ears twitching slightly as she found his full attention descending on her. She had one hand behind her back, the other held in a fist in front of her chest, and her eyes didn't quite meet his, but instead focused on his forehead, almost like she was trying to make eye contact without actually having to.

"Y-You remembered my name!?"

"Should I not have…?"

"N-No!"

"No, I shouldn't?" He winced. "I'm sorry, then."

"N-No!" she repeated, this time with a shake of the head. "Not that. I… I um, well, it's great, actually. I'm r-really happy you remember who I am." She smiled, but it came off a little plastic – even to him. "I remember you, as well," she added. "I… um… couldn't forget you, if you know what I mean. Maybe…"

It didn't sound like she was pleased with it, not from how much she was stuttering. He wasn't sure if he was really that scary, but the fact he was so close was maybe making it worse on her. He took a step back to give her space, but even that wasn't enough to make her able to look him in the eye.

"Am I in your way?" he asked, trying to sound as nice and kind as possible. "I'm really sorry if I am, and I'm sorry again for bumping into you – and for remembering your name."

"What? N-No, no, I said that was fine." She waved both hands before her. "And actually, I… uh… you're not in my way. I wanted to ask you something. If that's okay, I mean. If it's not, that's fine. You're probably really busy."

"Not that busy," he said, thinking of his impending apology and wincing at the thought of it. Cowardly or not, he'd take a distraction if it were available. "You said you wanted to ask me something? Shoot. I'll listen."

In fact, it was maybe a sign of her getting over her fear of him – and that was a thought nearly as pleasing as Oobleck's lecture about the peaceful protests and movements that led to the Vytal Festival. Making friends with Velvet would be his first step on the journey to uniting Grimm and humankind.

Velvet looked terrified. "Y-You will?"

"Sure. Ask whatever you want. I'll answer."

"R-Right now?"

"Is there a better time?"

"No." Velvet shook her head and took a deep breath. "Okay, here I go. Will you… will you…"

"Will I…?" Jaune tried.

"Will you… Will you… t-t…" Her eyes clenched shut. "WILL YOU TELL ME THE TIME!?"

/-/

Mercury stood against the wall, arms crossed and one foot balanced on it as he watched Velvet approach and Jaune walk away, shaking his head in confusion. He didn't pay much attention to that, however, and instead focused on the red-faced, brown-haired bunny-girl in front of him. She came to a stop not three feet away from him and he sighed.

"Well…?"

Velvet looked down and shuffled her feet.

"It's ten minutes past twelve," she whispered.

Mercury stared at her.

Velvet stared back.

"ARGH!" she suddenly howled, running into him and pressing her face into his chest. She didn't cry, and instead slammed the flat of one fist into his shoulder even as she brought her face back and smacked it into his chest over and over. "Stupid, stupid, stupid. Why am I so stupid!?"

"I'm taking it things didn't go to plan…"

"I want to kill myself," Velvet groaned, her voice muffled in his shirt. "I want to travel back in time, catch me before I can talk to him – and punch me in the face. Why can't I talk when I see him? Why am I so pathetic!?" She started to bang her face on him again, and he let her do it with a low sigh.

If Emerald could see him now she'd have laughed her ass off, but she wasn't here and he didn't care about the prospect as much as he'd thought he would. Mercury placed his hands on Velvet's shoulders instead, pushing her back before she could give herself brain damage.

"It was your first try," he said, not unkindly.

"If I can even call that a try," Velvet mumbled. "I looked like an idiot."

True, and he didn't even bother to refute that since she'd call him a liar. Velvet was surprisingly quick when it was just the two of them and certainly wasn't afraid to speak her mind. It was just when she was around other people that she fell back into stammering and awkward silences, much like she had with him when they'd first met.

"You'll just have to try again next time," he said. "We've still got time until the dance."

"I know…" Velvet growled and pushed away from him. She looked up, her chocolate-coloured eyes meeting his with an intensity he hadn't seen in them before. "Mercury, I really like you. I think I have feelings for you. Please, please, take me to the dance!"

W-What…? His mouth ran dry and his brain died, and if it wasn't for the wall supporting him, he might have collapsed. "M-Me?" he asked, pointing at himself to be sure. "I… we-well, I guess…"

"Great!" Velvet cheered, and then turned away to rub her hands. "Now I just need to say that to Jaune and I'll be fine."

Oh… oh, right. She'd meant that as practice.

He knew that!

"Yeah, you'll do fine," he laughed. "You're pretty hot, so he'd have to be an idiot to turn you down."

"Mercury!" she shrieked, giggling despite her tone. "I'm not hot. Don't talk like that!"

"Nah, you are. Not as hot as me, of course." He paused to grin roguishly and wriggle his eyebrows, winning more laughter from her. "But still pretty hot in your own right. I'd rank you second behind yours truly."

"I'm so honoured," Velvet said, smiling as she poked him in the ribs. "Gods, you're so vain."

"I'd like to say I'm just honest."

"Uh-huh, well come on, hot stuff," she said, grabbing his arm. "I need to forget I just made a fool of myself and you said you're hiding from your team leader since she's in a bad mood. Let's go grab some food and chat."

Mercury grinned, pleased to see he'd distracted her from her faux-pas in front of Jaune and her resultant misery from it. It was getting to the point where he wasn't sure if he should speak to the guy himself, if only to save her the pain. Jaune better not break her heart. Well, not that he particularly cared or anything.

"Lead on, Velvet. I'm starved."

/-/

Yang dragged her little sister to a secluded classroom she'd spotted earlier. It was a room they were allowed to use and one set aside for people who wanted to do their homework in peace and quiet, which predictably meant it was abandoned and probably only saw use for the fevered weeks before major exams. She checked anyway, and once she was sure they were alone sat down on a desk and motioned for Ruby to do the same.

Ruby looked nervous, which was fair since Yang felt pretty nervous, too. Still, her sister managed a smile. "You wanted to talk, Yang?" she asked. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing wrong, per se. Just more of a sister-to-sister chat, you know?"

"One you felt the need to pull me into a private room for…?"

Yang winced. "In a manner of speaking…"

"Oh God, this is one of those chats," Ruby groaned, face in hands. "Did something happen? Are you quitting Beacon? Oh my… you're pregnant, aren't you?"

"W-What!? No!" Yang panicked and started to wave her hands before she noticed the tiny smile half-hidden under Ruby's. She sighed explosively and poked her sister in the head. "Very funny. You're a real riot."

"It's revenge for all the times you've embarrassed me."

"I haven't embarrassed you," Yang denied. When Ruby stared at her, she quickly added, "At least not recently, I think…"

Her sister didn't look impressed.

"Anyway, we're not here to talk about me embarrassing you. We're here to talk about something bigger. Something…" she paused to swallow. "Something important…"

She'd been thinking long and hard about this, practically staying awake most of the night running the meeting over in her head, even going so far as to imagine what Ruby would say in return and having numerous different responses in store for each one. Anyone who knew her would say planning ahead wasn't normally her speciality, but this was different. When it came to her sister, she didn't take risks… not since the last one had almost cost her said sister. The two of them had always been close, even after that, and she'd personally promised nothing would ever come between them.

Which was why this was so complicated.

"I want to talk about the dance," she finally said.

Ruby's face blanched instantly.

Yeah, that's about the right response, Yang thought with a sigh. No matter how she went about it someone was going to have their feelings hurt today. Normally, she'd rather that be the other person, but when it was her sister that got involved, the rules changed.

"I think you should ask Jaune to the dance," she said.

Ruby's face fell and her mouth opened, and Yang knew all sorts of things would be spilling out – things like how she couldn't do that, or how Yang and he deserved to be together. Before any of those things could come forth, and before she could even begin to be tempted by them, she continued.

"It was you he first showered interest in, Ruby. Out of everyone in Beacon he only had eyes for you, and time and time again he tried to talk to you only for me to butt in." At the time it had made sense; a desire to protect her sister from what she saw as unknown and unwarranted attention, but now, with the benefit of hindsight, she regretted it. "You didn't have a chance to figure out if you felt the same and I practically robbed you of that. What's worse, I somehow ended up making him think I was interested in return. I didn't literally mean it as a date when I said `it's a date`. I just meant that we were having a get-together."

"I know…" Ruby nodded and bit her lip. "Jaune misunderstood. He's better now, sort of, but he was pretty bad back then. Still, he likes you."

"Guys like girls who show them attention, Ruby. That's the big secret and it works in reverse, too. You can come to like anyone if they spend time around you, chat and hang out enough. It's how friendship works and it's how romance works." With a few other caveats, of course, but it was close enough. "Jaune had no interest in me until he thought I had interest in him, and then it just sort of developed from there."

"Are you saying you don't like him?" Ruby asked.

That was a complicated question, and not one she really wanted to answer – least of all because she still wasn't sure what the answer was in the first place. Of course she liked Jaune; he was a great guy. But she wasn't sure if she liked Jaune, and the distinction was importance. One was a friend and the other was potentially something more.

"It doesn't really matter," Yang said, "I'm not ready for that kind of thing anyway, and didn't even expect to be in this situation in the first place."

"And I did!?"

"No, but I'm not telling you to bear his children." She poked her sister's cheek to make that clear. "I'm saying that as your big sister I can ready you well enough to know you feel something for him. No lies now. Look me in the eye and say you don't."

Ruby didn't look her in the eye, but then she didn't deny it either. Her rosy cheeks turned rosier and she focused her eyes down between her legs to where her feet kicked off the edge of the desk. To anyone else it might have seemed reluctant, but to her it was as good as a signed confession.

"That's why I'm not going to ask Jaune to the dance," she said.

"Yang, no!" Ruby cried, head shooting up in abject horror. "You can't do that! You can't give this up for me. That's crazy!"

"I'm not giving anything up, sis. You can't give up what isn't real. I'm just saying I'll end the charade and step aside to give you a real chance." She grinned at the alarmed girl. "That's not a bad thing, sis. Do you think it's fair to him to be confused like this? It's not just you that gets the short end of the stick."

"I… I guess… that's if that you say is true." Ruby looked up at her suspiciously. "And you're not just doing this because you think you have to, or because it's what I want."

"Even if you do," Yang pointed out.

"I didn't say that!"

No, but that didn't make it any less true. Yang grinned at her sister, even as she felt a pit open up in her stomach. She'd told no word of a lie. What she and Jaune had was faker than him and Weiss. It was born on the crazy misconception she'd asked him out early into term, and he'd just sort of barrelled along with it so fast she'd never had the chance to correct him.

It wasn't real.

But it could be…

I'll give Ruby one last chance to take him, she thought, the plan the same as it had been when she'd come up with it last night. There'd been a lot of soul-searching, and even a little heart-searching too, and while her words weren't wrong – Jaune being her boyfriend was fake, and she did want Ruby to be happy – that didn't mean the concept didn't hold some promise.

She'd enjoyed the date… and the attention. If it wasn't real, why not make it real? She was fairly sure Jaune wouldn't mind, and hey, they'd had fun.

But Ruby had first claim, so it was only fair to throw her one last chance. She'd said no to it every time before, so she probably would again here. At that point she could wash her hands clean and consider her conscience assuaged. She'd done all she could. If Ruby still hadn't felt confident enough to ask him, he was fair game. Now all she needed to do was wait for Ruby to deny the chance like she always did, and then everything would be nice and easy.

Ruby gulped and looked up into her eyes.

"O-Okay…" she said nervously. "I'll give it a try. I'll ask him to the dance."

It was... not what she'd expected to hear.

/-/

"I'm just saying I'm not okay with this," Coco said, stood in the centre of her room like a Queen casting judgment on her subjects. Said subjects – or subject as it were – was Yatsuhashi, Fox being off trying to ask that girl he liked out to the dance, and looking fine, might she add, in the custom outfit she'd acquired for him. If the girl didn't say yes, she was blind!

"Not okay with what?" Yats asked, not at all intimidated by her tall stature and hands on her hips. That might have had something to do with the fact that even sat cross-legged on the floor, he was almost the same height as her.

"Velvet!" Coco said.

"What has our beloved teammate done?"

"Not what, Yats. Who!"

The book in his hand was suddenly torn in two.

"Or not who," Coco amended, earning a relieved sigh from the man. "I said that wrong. I meant who she's trying to do, or at least ask to the dance."

"You have a way with words, my friend, and that is not necessarily a compliment." The large man sighed and laid his now-ruined book to one side. "You refer to Velvet's wish to invite the first year, Jaune Arc, to the dance?"

"I do refer, yes. I don't like him…"

"You don't know him."

"Neither do you, but you still narrow your eyes whenever his name comes up. See, you're doing it now!"

Yatsuhashi sighed and tried to moderate his expression but the secret was out. "I did not say I was perfect," he admitted, "but yes, I also feel some… apprehension as to Velvet's paramour. While I am not normally one to believe rumours, there seem to be too many involving his relationship status to ignore."

Coco clapped her hands and nodded, a little freaked out – but also secretly pleased – that Yatsuhashi of all people had been listening to gossip. "I know, right? I thought he was dating the Schnee chick, but I heard he took the blonde bombshell out to dinner, and there are people who say he's also with the younger girl, and we've all seen the way Pyrrha Nikos stares at him."

"That we have," Yats agreed sagely. "And you of course have mine and Fox's report on how we followed him to that transfer student's room."

"I have," Coco growled. "I also heard he was locked out of there the other day, so it looks like someone caught onto his ways. Hell, I've no idea how more people haven't considering that orange-haired girl from Atlas basically blurted out that she, him and the caped girl have been having secret threesomes."

"Yes, and that was quite the eye-opener."

"Tell me about it…" Coco shook her head, determined not to be distracted even if she was kind of morbidly interested in how one unremarkable guy could have so much attention on him. "My point is, I don't think he's a suitable catch for Velvet. She's so loving and he's a player at least. I don't want her heart broken because he took her for granted."

"And we don't want to be expelled because you murdered a first year," Yatsuhashi agreed. The two scenarios were one and the same, after all. No one messed with the bunny. Not in her eyesight, anyway.

"She needs someone nicer," she said. "Someone who'll take care of her and not abuse her feelings…"

"Someone who will respect her as a woman," Yatsuhashi agreed. "And preferably someone she already feels comfortable with."

"And he should be sexy, too."

"Coco…"

"What? I'm just saying… Velvet deserves a hunk, okay?" She looked him up and down. "Say…"

"I do not feel that way and neither does Velvet," Yats quickly said. It wasn't the first time the words had been spoken and he doubted it would be the last. Coco's early attempts to match-make someone (anyone) on their team had been legendary and very much for the wrong reasons.

"I wasn't going to say you. I actually already have someone in mind…"

"Oh dear. Why does that not fill me with confidence?"

"Because you're a pessimist," Coco said, waving one hand. "While I am ever the optimist, and also team leader because of my boundless intellect and strategic thinking."

"Yes… those things…"

"Anyway," she went on, ignoring him. "What about Mercury?"

"Mercury Black? Hmm…" Yats held one hand to his chin, rolling the idea about in his mind. Coco waited, knowing his silence was just a sign he was taking it seriously. "He does get on well with her and is, as far as I can tell, quite the nice fellow."

"I know, right? He's not trying to be some kind of `bad boy` or `player` like the Arc kid is. Plus, Merc already gets on well with us, so bonus!"

"He gets on well with you," Yats pointed out. "The two of you can be quite flirtatious with your attempts to one-up one another."

"But he never takes it seriously or ignores Velvet," Coco said, smiling victoriously.

"That's true… even in the fact of what a younger man might assume is sexual interest from yourself, he remains focused on Velvet and being her friend. From what I've heard he's also helping her gather the courage to ask her paramour to the dance." He nodded. "He seems a forthright and honest man. I cannot say I disapprove."

"Very honest," Coco agreed. "I'm a good judge of character, so I know these things. The two of them would be perfect together."

"If you could get them together, that is. Our teammate has her heart set on another man. I'm not sure she will be swayed. Can you even be sure she has an interest in Mercury beyond a platonic one?"

Coco grinned and brought her hands from behind her back, revealing a stitched-together book that was not her own. It was a photo diary of sorts, filled with images taken by Velvet and stuck onto the pages with little signs and one-line descriptions. The front section of it was filled with pictures of them, back from when they'd first been made a team and even later on into their years. She flicked towards the end, to what was being worked on now, and found candid shots of a blonde boy running around a field while a man lazily watched, guzzling from a hip flask.

Mingled among them, however, were scattered images of a different boy… one of silver hair and pale skin, who was often not looking at the camera, and rarely seemed to realise he was being photographed. They were sneaky, surreptitious shots.

"I don't think we have to worry there," Coco cheered.

She looked to the final picture, the only one where Mercury seemed aware of what was going on. He was sat next to Velvet, who had one arm outstretched towards the camera she was holding backwards. She was smiling brightly, her ears poking up as she sat shoulder-to-shoulder with her companion, whose cheek was pressed against hers and who was echoing her smile with one that seemed more vaguely bemused than anything.

It wasn't an unhappy expression, however, and the amused spark in his eyes was clear.

"I don't think we'll have any problems at all, Yats."

"Except for the problem of match-making them…"

"Don't worry, I'm on it."

Her teammate sighed. "That, I'm afraid, is the problem…"

"I don't know what you mean," she lied. "I'm a great match-maker."

Yatsuhashi sighed again but knew better than to argue.

"Enough whining. Operation `Black Velvet` is a go!"

Well, we certainly know who Coco ships, and she probably isn't alone on that. Good to see she has such a good sense of character though. You wouldn't want Velvet to be paired with a "bad boy", would you? Good job Mercury definitely isn't that.

And everyone else getting confused, as well.

Next Chapter: 30th November

P a treon . com (slash) Coeur