ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ

To Survive and Prosper

CHAPTER 1

In retrospect, the first semester was quite peaceful. Apart from incidents caused by antics of stubborn cats and suicidal bullies, the only battles I took were nothing more than mere rushes to complete written assignments before their deadlines, if you could even count them as battles, that is. Everything that truly worried me about Huntsman training began here which meant that it was time for me to learn to take my lessons more seriously to survive. I wanted to make sure my team was prepared for the worse as well, and most importantly, keep me alive as usual.

Another noticeable difference between this semester from the previous one was that the exchange students from the other kingdom's top Huntsman academies had arrived on Beacon for the Vytal Festival and they will be sharing classes with us in the meantime. Atlas students were recognized with their simple but elegant white uniforms that had some sort of militaristic flair to them, while Haven students from Mistral wore black culturally distinct uniforms. Meanwhile, Shade students didn't seem to have uniforms probably because of Vacuo's heat which was understandable. The student body here in Beacon also became much more colorful than the first day when I remembered everyone mostly being a bunch of faceless nobodies.

Aside from the extra emphasis on combat training, missions, and the tournament, there will also be an upcoming dance this Sunday that would let freshmen have fun and socialize before facing their first assignment. All that was needed was formal attire and optionally—a partner, if you can get one, that is.

After the announcements for the activities for this semester where everyone gathered along with exchange students, we were told that classes would begin the following day and recess immediately began. The students at Beacon went to the cafeteria to get their lunch while the exchange students were given time to unpack and explore the academy.

One of the best things about going home was that I was able to drink tanna again. I brought a whole pack of tanna teabags with me so I can drink it anytime while I'm at Beacon. I even brought a teapot full of it to the cafeteria as I took my lunch.

I poured some of it into my cup. I was in bliss after taking a single sip. I never get tired of drinking this—its unique taste is what sets this off from other drinks that it cannot be emulated. I had to thank Uncle Jørgen[1] for introducing the drink to my Dad, if it weren't for him I would have never experienced drinking any of this, especially of how rare it is outside Morosco. Who knew that tea from caves of a freezing tundra would taste so good?

Ren noticed that I enjoyed my drink and noticed that it was not your average tea. His curious look said it all. "Jaune, would you mind if I take a sample of the tea you are having?"

I nodded. "Of course. Knock yourself out." He took the teapot and poured a fraction of it into an empty cup before taking a sip. It took a few seconds for him to process the taste, he made a hum after doing so. "So, what do you think?"

"I'm only able to describe it as 'peculiar' at the moment," his tone was neutral per the norm and he took another sip. "What type of tea is this even?"

"It's tanna. I don't blame you if you never heard of it," I answered as I took back the teapot.

"Oh, that. Being somewhat of a tea connoisseur myself, I've actually heard of it before—I just never got the chance of seeing it in the flesh, let alone taste it. I heard of how distinctive the flavor is, now I know why."

"That's what makes it interesting," I gave my cup another sip. "I can still remember my first time tasting it and not being sure about what to think." I also remember feeling puzzled about why my Dad even enjoyed it and now I was able to feel what it's like to be in his shoes.

"That sounds neat! Can I try one?" Nora asked after finishing her sixth pancake in under a minute.

"Sure." I handed her the teapot, allowing her to hold it for a moment. "You might not like it though, the taste sorta depends on the person."

"Oh please, it's just tea! How bad can it be?" She poured her cup and took a sip, after that she froze while her pupils contracted.

"Uhh, Nora. Are you alright?" I waved my hand in front of her, feeling a little worried that she might go on a manic episode over it. I was even prepared to throw water at her face in case that happens.

"I believed… I have discovered… the secrets of the universe," she said before I snapped at her face, waking her up as she shook her head. "I mean… it's a little bitter but it's okay, I guess."

"I'm curious about what makes this drink intriguing. Can I try too?" Pyrrha asked.

"Go ahead," I gave her a field cup. The tea definitely got everyone's attention, I thought. It was nice that everyone on the team got to taste it at least once. I gave her a filled cup.

She took a sip and took a few seconds to describe its taste. "Well, you're right about it being distinctive," she remarked before taking another sip. "It's certainly something."

"You'll get used to it. I won't force you if you can't though." While it's a drink that I cannot stop drinking myself, you could say it was literally not everyone's cup of tea and it takes time to appreciate it for what it is.

I finished my cup and poured another one, and that was when two girls suddenly approached me. They were noticeably from Shade, judging from their casual clothing. One of them had short purple hair and was wearing a denim vest, and the other had long dirty blonde hair and was wearing a light green sundress.

"Uh, hello there!" the purple-haired one said, while her companion just nervously waved as she was noticeably suppressing her blush.

"Why, hello. May I help you with something?" I greeted as gentlemanly as I could. Gotta put that Arc charisma to good use.

"Oh nothing, not at all!" she responded. "It's just great to finally meet you in the flesh. Jaune Arc, was it?"

More fangirls, I muttered. It appeared that I was still relevant and my reputation also extended to Vacuo. As much as I was embarrassed by it, I find its ability to attract some fine ladies to be favorable. Fame is a double-edged sword so I might as well enjoy its benefits while I could. "Yep. At your service."

"Oh man, this is awesome!" she audibly muttered to herself before squealing. "Sorry, my name is Nebula, and this is my partner, Dew. Dew, say hi."

"H-hi." The red-faced blonde shyly greeted me.

"Come on, you can do better than that. Aren't you supposed to be a tough gal?" Nebula urged her partner.

"I just wanted to say… you're pretty great... that's all," she muttered, she was still nervous but at least she was able to spit it out.

Nebula grinned. "That's a little better. Sorry, she wasn't always like this. I think it's because she's not used to being this close to cute boys."

The blonde girl's blushing intensified. "Nebula! You were gawking at him too, you know!"

Nebula's face started to rival her partner in terms of redness as she began to chuckle. "It's just that you were so amazing that you beat El Segador. You see we live in Vacuo and we have been hearing scary stories about that guy and heard how many people he killed and the lives he ruined. So when we heard that he was finally gone for good, we were amazed that you were able to defeat a monster like him. How did you do it?"

Oh boy, this is what I was worried about the most when conversing with someone from Vacuo. "I just did what I had to do. Who else was able to stop him then?" I said, technically speaking the truth. I never even knew who he was before it went viral, and if I did, I would have ran a lot harder then.

"Wow. You're so brave…" Nebula purred as she and Dew started to stare at me long enough to notice my partner that they slowly turned to her. "Hey, you're the four-time Mistrali champion—Pyrrha Nikos, am I right?"

"Yes, that's me," Pyrrha nodded as I noticed her shift to a composed expression for half a second.

"You're pretty cool too!" she complimented before glancing back at me "…and lucky even. You get to be famous and be partners with him. Man, we are so jealous."

"Why thank you," Pyrrha replied as she tried to sound friendly and flattered. I could tell that she was used to encounters like this more than I was, being a celebrity longer than I was and all.

"You're an inspiration for all of us," Dew added enthusiastically. "We're determined to do our best for the tournament because of you."

"You're participating in the tournament too?"

"Yeah, can't wait to see both of you fight and maybe even challenge you ourselves!" Nebula beamed before looking humbled all of a sudden. "But of course, we'll probably just lose if that happens. Because let's be honest, who could take on The Slayer of The Killer Mariachi and The Invisible Girl herself?"

This was the part where my Arc encouragements came in. "Don't worry. I think you'll do nicely. The tournament is about having fun and proving yourself at what you can do, it's just a friendly competition between the kingdoms at the end of the day." I gave them an invigorating smile. I get to look humble while earning more of their admiration because of it. It's a win-win if you ask me.

"I suppose you're right. We're not here to win anything anyway." She brightened up. "We should go. It was nice talking to you!"

I stared at the duo as they left while they were both audibly giggling. Taking advantage of the opportunity, my eyes fell toward their beautiful hinds; it was only fair that I admire them as well. After I was done, I turned to Pyrrha who was frowning at me. [2] "What?" I asked.

"I think she's jelly~" Nora sang while whispering to me. Suffice to say. She wasn't quiet enough for Pyrrha not to hear herm then again, Nora has always been a stranger to subtlety.

"Nora!" Pyrrha's sudden yell startled me so much that it almost triggered my instinct to grab my sword and swing it at the nearest person who possessed the slightest hint of threat while Ren just continued eating his salad without any care in the world. Of course, since I was in my uniform, I didn't bring any weapons with me so there was nothing to worry about, at least that's what I thought.

We immediately moved on and went back to enjoying our respective meals. I looked at Team RWBY who was sitting at the table in front of us and decided to eavesdrop for a bit. Nora was tossing grapes and berries at Yang as she caught them with her mouth. Blake was still wearing her bow which kind of irritated me to be honest. It's not like she had a reason to hide it anymore, I doubt that people would even care that much especially since they're already familiar with her enough that nobody would even notice that she's a faunus—aside from a few assholes, but that's just how they are and almost no one sympathizes with them. Besides, she already looked like a cat with that bow. It felt like she learned nothing that day.

Ruby was discussing her team's activities for this semester. I couldn't help but notice that she sounded a little different from when I last met her. She always had a high-pitched voice, but something tells me that she sounded squeakier when I last heard her.

"What are you talking about?" Blake inquired after hearing Ruby's plan for this semester.

"I'm talking about kicking off the semester with a bang!" she responded.

Her sister then spoke up. "I always kick my semesters off with a Yang!"

No, just no. Not even by her standards, and her standards are already lower than the lowest level of hell itself. That was such a very lowbrow joke that I didn't even think that she was that bad enough to say that.

Feeling repulsed by that excuse of a pun, I shifted my attention away from them and I noticed that there was suddenly a whole pie covered by a dinner plate on my team's table. "Surprise! I made this for all of us when we come back together!" Nora sang before taking out the dinner plate and revealing a homemade pie with red-filling underneath. "Well, what do you think?"

Although rough between the edges, the pie looked surprisingly well-made for something that Nora presumably baked herself with help from Ren, complemented by its fragrant smell. But there was something else that smelled suspicious about it. Judging by the scent, it had something to do with the red filling which resembled apple or maybe cherry but it doesn't smell like any of those flavors. It was something else, something eerily familiar.

"That actually looks nice, Nora," Pyrrha remarked with a faint hint of skepticism over it. "You baked that?"

"Yep. This is my signature Valkyrie pie, made with love and care." Nora proudly said. "You guys will love it!"

I was not sure about what to feel about the pie because of the mysterious smell that I was trying to determine. I decided that I was just overthinking it and I should give it a try to find out. I thought it won't be too different from tanna and that I might learn to appreciate it over time. Besides, I tried Nora's pancakes before and they were surprisingly decent if a little odd since it was based on her own personal flavor. What could go wrong with this one? I thought.

"Don't mind if I do then," I took a slice before putting a piece of it in my mouth and biting it into small pieces before swallowing. While it had a familiar smell, the taste was new to me and it was strange to the point of tasting somewhat disturbing, and I wasn't sure how to describe it. "Interesting. What flavor is this?"

Nora widely grinned. "Oh, it's made out of the sap from Forever Fall! That is what makes it unique, and nutritious too!" With that, my eyes promptly widened as the pie's eerily familiar smell and its suspicious taste started to make sense. I began to feel sick that I was tempted to spit the pieces out of my mouth, but I knew that doing that in front of her wouldn't be wise.

"Is this even edible?" Pyrrha asked curiously.

"It surprisingly is, though I wouldn't recommend it to everyone," Ren answered. I wouldn't know anything about that; I had a feeling that he only tasted it out of fear of his life partner's tantrums.

"Hey, it's just like your tea, right Dear Leader? You'll grow into it," Nora said. I doubt that, it probably requires an inane mind like Nora's for it to be digestible and I don't think I have gone to that level yet.

I was having the urge to vomit… again, and there was no helping it. "I think I need to go to the bathroom," I said, rushing out of my seat and covering my mouth as I quickly exited the cafeteria.

Thankfully, one of the public restrooms on the campus was very close to the cafeteria's building, allowing me to reach it within a span of a few seconds. I quickly went to the nearest stall and spewed out the pieces I swallowed to the toilet. My throat still felt a little sore from the sap, so I went to the nearest water fountain after leaving the restrooms and drank enough water to wash away the remaining substances in my mouth and throat.

I wiped my face with my arm after finishing, and the only thing that was remaining was a minor headache that would quickly fade as I returned to business.

Turning around to head back to the cafeteria, I heard a familiar voice pass by before seeing that it belonged to a familiar monkey faunus being accompanied by some pretty boy with blue hair and goggles on his forehead wearing a white shirt and tie underneath a scarlet coat. "Well, look who it is."

Here Comes The Sun, I suppose. I was wondering when I was going to see him again. "Oh, hey there," I replied, clearing my throat for the last time.

"Yep, that's the Defender of Podunk right there, and the same guy I fought with during my first night in Vale, and we get to share classes with him, how cool is that?" Sun said to his friend.

"Pretty neat, man. It's not every day you get to meet a guy of his stature, let alone fight terrorists with him back to back." His friend said before turning to me. "I'm Neptune, it's nice to finally meet your acquaintance. So you're the one who's been making a lot of fuss as of late. No offense, but I pictured you to look more…alpha, I think?"

That was a little uncalled for. Though I don't blame him for thinking that way if I heard someone who had supposedly fought wanted criminals and bestial shadow monsters I would have imagined them to look like gruff bodybuilders you'd see in action films instead of some blond teenage dork with a subtle country accent and occasional geekiness. "Yeah, not exactly what you're expecting, I take it?"

"Oh, don't mind that. You know how it is sometimes," he chuckled. "I'm just impressed that someone like you managed to do all of that while you're in the same grade as mine. I've hardly been in any action myself last semester."

Well, I envy him on that. He should be glad that he was having an easier time sleeping at night than I do. I still wonder if the White Fang was still holding a grudge against me. Even when I was in Pucelle, I was expecting them to track me down and attempt to assassinate me which was why I kept my gun loaded at all times. I swear, if it weren't for the fact that I was at least familiar with almost every faunus in my home county, I would have looked faunophobic by being paranoid over them.

"So, where's Blake and the others?" Sun asked now that introductions were out of the way.

"They're having their lunch at the cafeteria," I said, glancing at its exterior for a brief moment, only to notice a Beacon student running outside covered in spaghetti while screaming. Not a usual sight, I thought.

The duo appeared oblivious to that strange sight. "Would it be fine if we just pay them a visit for a second?"

I shrugged off the thought of the fleeing student. I thought it wouldn't hurt, knowing how it wouldn't be too different from those Vacuan girls meeting me. "I think it'll be okay. Just don't steal anyone's fruit, okay." And especially don't take my teammate's homemade pie, I'd add.

"Hey, don't worry. I only did that because I forgot to bring my own lunch. From this day forward, I'm a law-abiding Huntsman cadet," Sun innocently grinned.

"Here, follow me," I led them to the cafeteria's entrance. I opened the door and immediately saw that the place was plunged into a chaotic free-for-all food fight. Snacks and drinks were flying everywhere and I saw that some people fought in groups while others fought for themselves, attacking even their own friends and teammates.

"So is this some sort of Valish initiation ceremony?" Neptune remarked, looking a little impressed, if surprised, at the scene happening before us.

"I guess so," I replied, returning the sarcasm. At that point, it wouldn't surprise me if it really was, in fact, given the cafeteria's resemblance to a warrior feast hall, I was more impressed that a brawl like this didn't break out sooner. A plate of casserole was falling in our direction so I quickly shut the door closed before it was able to land on us. "Okay, on second thought, maybe you should meet them later. The place looks very busy at the moment."

The two hesitated for a moment, listening to the sounds of screaming and plates breaking inside the cafeteria before deciding to leave at the moment. "Well, see you later, then. And good luck whatever you're doing." Sun waved as his teammate followed him.

I would have walked away too had I not just remembered that I left my tanna in there and it was in danger of being broken in the middle of the crossfire. I wasn't going to abandon a good tea even on a battlefield so I went back in, diving forward and hiding behind one of the flipped tables. I peeked out and watched the battle occur for a couple of seconds.

Tables were scattered and food was sticking out everywhere. I saw one student with a tray trying to leave the place only to be hit by an apple, making him fall to the floor, dropping his tray, he screamed in agony as his hot soup spilled on him. I was barely able to see anything else other than more indistinct uniformed figures throwing food at one another.

But as I kept scanning my surroundings, I was able to spot my cup and teapot which were luckily standing on my team's table that remained still even after hell broke loose. I kept my head down, crawling toward my team's table as I avoided the projectiles flying above me.

As I reached the table, I quickly grabbed my cup and teapot, pouring a small amount so I could take another sip before hooking their handles over my belt. Since my tanna was finally safe and secure, it was time for me to bail out of this madness.

My survival instincts suddenly tingled and I managed to narrowly dodge an incoming orange that was thrown at me from the side. I got up and saw the person responsible was holding more oranges as he attempted to hurl another one at me. After avoiding it, I grabbed the nearest tray and swung the next orange, and deflected it to his stomach, causing him to drop all of his oranges as he fell to the ground.

Since my attacker was finally out of the way, I threw the tray away and bolted toward the exit before noticing an angry female student charging at me with a carrot. I simply stepped back, making her miss me and then slipping into a puddle of spilled mustard and then crashing into a group of people covering behind a table as they fell like a pack of bowling pins.

I was in the clear once more and this was finally the opportunity for me to make my escape with my tanna teapot fully intact. Unfortunately, my teammates were able to notice me before I was able to bail out of the scene.

"Over here, Jaune!" Nora called over, making me turn near the edge of the mess hall, and saw a fortress made out of tables and vending machines by my team. I was rather impressed that they can make something like this within less than a minute. I feel stripped of my choices and I can't exactly leave after getting caught and after Nora just called me a fearless leader since this was just a childish food fight that poses no real danger to individuals with aura even at its most hectic, and being seen cowering out of it wouldn't be good for my reputation.

I guess a few more minutes shouldn't hurt, I sighed to myself. So I made my way toward my team's makeshift bastion, using another tray as a shield to protect me from raining projectiles of food and drinks while my teammates provided covering fire. I managed to make my way there and stood on one of the vending machines at the fort.

"Good to finally have you with us, Fearless Leader!" Nora saluted on the top.

"Likewise." I returned the compliment, quietly groaning that I was letting myself get mixed up in this just to make sure I wouldn't lose my team's faith in me. I looked around and saw that many students were now retreating toward the exit, while some others continued to fight. "Keep going! You guys are doing great." I ordered as we continued to throw our food from the mini-fort.

While watching the mayhem transpire, I spotted a girl throw a can of grape soda at someone before it splats open. At that moment, I looked down at the vending machine I was standing on as I felt the coin drop. "Pyrrha, get as many soda cans as you can," I commanded.

"I'm on it," she used her semblance to attract as many soda cans within our fortress' vicinity, including the ones inside the vending machines.

"Hey, Arc!" I turned around and quickly leaned away from a slice of pizza (with those godsforsaken pineapples) coming from Dove Bronzewing. "Team CRDL would like to send their regards!"

I rolled my eyes at this. I almost forgot about those idiots since they rarely messed with me for the past couple of months. Either that old habits die hard or they never learned anything at all, but it's probably because they're using the food fight as a safe way to get back at me. Regardless, I picked up one of the cans, shook it, and sprayed it all on Dove before throwing it at his face and knocking him to the floor. "Return to sender!"

And that was when I realized that I was enjoying this. It might have been good that I didn't leave the cafeteria so soon after all.

Nora gave out an evil laugh before singing her signature song. "I'm queen of the castle~! I'm queen of the castle~!" At that point, we successfully managed to drive everyone out of the mess hall—except for Team RWBY, who was of course still standing strong.

"Justice will be swift! Justice will be painful!" Ruby crushed a small box of milk with her hand. "It will be delicious!" She cried out with her teammates joining her.

"We'll see, we'll see, the winner gets tea, that's for sure," I responded. This was going to be one frantic battle, seeing as both of our energetic redheads were getting too into their respective roles. I never thought we'd have a team battle with RWBY in a food fight of all things but it was at least having dumb fun was an interesting way of testing our skills against each other. And speaking of team battles… "Hey Nora, do you realize what's going on right now?"

"What?" She turned to me and asked.

"Team Deathmatch," I answered.

"Team Deathmatch?"

"Team Deathmatch!" Ruby echoed after hearing us, good just what I've wanted her to say. Who would have known that I would be able to weaponize a dumb inside joke that is usually said every time I tried playing first-person shooters with her and her sister?

It continued as her ice-queen of a partner gave a puzzled look. "Team Deathmatch?"

Yang pumped her fist. "Team Deathmatch!"

"Team… Deathmatch?" Pyrrha turned to me confusedly.

"Team Deathmatch," I repeated nonchalantly to her.

"Team Deathmatch…" Ren half-heartedly joined in.

Nora's face brightened up as she bounced after realizing what we were referring to. "Team Deathmatch!"

"Team Deathmatch!" Ruby shouted again.

Blake groaned but decided to play along. "Team Deathmatch."

"Team Deathmatch~!" Yang sang, leaning toward her partner.

Distract the opposition. Check. Now it was time to make the cafeteria colorful. I nodded to Pyrrha, signaling her to use her polarity to shake the soda cans near us before sending them to the top center of the mess hall.

"Team Deathmatch!" Ruby shouted for the last time.

"Enough! We get it already!" Weiss shouted. "Now why don't we just get this over with before—?" She then noticed a large shadow hovering over them before looking up as they saw a mass of soda cans floating in the middle of the mess hall.

"Quick, get under the tables!" Ruby ordered her team before doing so.

"Now!" I signaled. Pyrrha released the cans. They fell almost simultaneously as they smashed open with their substance, summoning a colorful haze around the cafeteria.

"What's our next step?" Ren inquired.

"We charge." I then rallied my team to the offensive as we got off our fortress, using the colored vapor as a substitute for a smokescreen.

"Hey, this smells so good!" Nora remarked as she passed through the haze of soda.

"Focus, Nora!" I told her, snapping her back to the task that was at hand.

"Right!" she said before leaping and grabbing a rod and using it as a handle for an improvised hammer and sticking it into a watermelon.

Ren rolled into a table and took two celeries as his choice of weapons. Pyrrha grabbed two baguettes and tossed one to me while I went and picked up a bottle of ketchup on the way.

"Attack!" Ruby commanded after they crawled out from the tables. They were having a little trouble seeing through the haze, not to mention getting distracted by the smell. They were still able to eventually spot us and we engaged in 'combat'. I faced off against Yang; Pyrrha was against Weiss; while Ren and Nora double-teamed on Blake, who was doing her best to hold them both back. Ruby was nowhere to be seen and I was too occupied to even bother looking for her, the haze that I just caused did not help, proving that this tactic turned out to be a double-edged sword in hindsight.

Yang rolled out and shoved two turkeys in her hands. "Ya' want me, Vomit-Boy? Bring it on!"

She proceeded to lunge at me. I tried to dodge every punch coming from her to the best of my ability. I had a few strategies prepared against Yang, along with the rest of her team—in case we were to face them. Her specialty in close-quarters combat makes her vulnerable to a smart use of hit-and-run tactics. The problem was her semblance, it was best not to invoke it yet as the best course of strategy at the moment was to take advantage of her aggression until she tires out and makes herself more pregnable.

She was getting irritated by this so she attempted to taunt me out of it. "What's the matter, afraid to hit a pretty girl?"

Maybe, but shooting at one might be a different story, I thought. After I continued to avoid a few more punches, I sprung back and fired a blast of ketchup onto her face, knowing it was too soft to count as a hit to trigger her semblance.

"Hey! You sprayed some ketchup on my hair!" she yelled after wiping her face.

"All is fair in love and war, Vomit Shoes!" I playfully responded with a grin.

"Why you little…" She ran back toward me and tried to punch me again. She was getting so fast that it got increasingly difficult to dodge her punches. Alas, I eventually got hit by her last two jabs, knocking me back to the ground. "Hope you're hungry for some knuckle chicken sandwich…"

She was about to give me a beating with her turkey fists. I was still recovering but I wasn't having any of that, so I did my best to loudly mimic the sound of a sloth before she could attack. "Qraa! Qraa!"

Yang paused in bewilderment. "What are you doi—?" Nora then came in after hearing my signal and swung her away mid-sentence, sending her flying away until she crashed into a wall.

"Thanks, Nora!"

"Anytime, Fearless Leader!" she saluted before deflecting some fruits being thrown at her. She dashed back to Weiss who fought her with a swordfish as a substitute for a rapier.

I looked at Yang resting on a crater. I saw her eyes turn red and her hair began to glow as she angrily stared at me back. "You're going to fucking regret that!"

Oh Brothers, I knew I should have made Nora hit her with something softer now I'm being threatened with actual pain. Every time I tried to prepare myself against Yang, I feared that this would happen. She only swore when her semblance was active as if her eyes and furious tone didn't make that obvious enough. I was in for a world of pain.

I took a tray on the ground and prepared to brace myself for the worst as she started running toward me. She was suddenly pushed away by a wave of soda cans. Pyrrha jumped in and threw a baguette at her as if it was some sort of javelin before quickly turning toward me.

"I'll handle her. You go help Ren and Nora!" She then picked up another baguette and went to do battle with Yang.

Without delay, I went to Ren and Nora, who were fighting Blake and Weiss respectively. Ren and Blake were fighting acrobatically, with Ren at one point throwing some carrots at Blake while in midair as if they were throwing knives, which she deflected with her two baguettes. Nora was meanwhile whirling her 'hammer' as she parried Weiss's attacks. Suddenly, Ruby came in, surfing on a tray, she then leaped to Nora and swung said tray at her, staggering her for a moment before Weiss gave one last thrust of her swordfish with a black glyph behind Nora, making her fly away to the wall.

"Nora!" Ren exclaimed, allowing Blake to strike him down.

After finally putting the dynamic duo out of commission, Weiss and Blake both turned their attention toward me.

"Checkmate!" [3] Ruby shouted while pointing at me as she stood on a table.

"Oh nuts," I muttered to myself. Fighting with a member of Team RWBY was one thing, but fighting two or more of them at the same time was another and the thought alone haunts me.

Blake went toward me first. I blasted a bottle of ketchup towards her only for it to fly past through her, identifying it as a shadow clone. I quickly swung my baguette at my back, deflecting a strike coming from the real Blake who attempted to flank me. After locking blad—I mean breads for a second, I pushed her back before clashing our trading blows with our baguettes. In the middle of it—I noticed Weiss charging while pointing her blade at me. I turned around and pointed my bottle at Blake and sprayed at her as she blocked them with both of her baguettes while I swung mine at Weiss's swordfish.

I went to parry all of Weiss's attacks until she was able to slice my loafy weapon in half. Should have known that wasn't exactly the best food to use against a swordfish, but there weren't many options for swords substitutes then and Weiss was lucky enough to get a hold of something sharp that it could almost be used as an actual weapon. No matter, I threw the half I was holding at her face then spun around while squeezing my bottle, spraying the last batch of it around my surroundings, and hitting both of the girls with it.

Then, I threw the ketchup bottle at Blake's face and swiped one of her baguettes while she was off-balance. I swung a flurry of quick slashes at Weiss, overwhelming her and giving me the chance to strike her down with her defenses going kaput. I turned back and did the same to Blake, which was much easier since her defenses were much weaker in a one-handed melee.

"Checkmate indeed," I smugly smiled at the monochrome duo after defeating them by some merciful miracle. [4]

I panted for a brief moment and looked back towards Pyrrha and Yang, who both were still in the middle of the duel between the powerhouses. Yang was growing exhausted from the fight, but after a quick glance at her fallen partners, she was visibly enraged that she gave a punch powerful enough to knock Pyrrha back to the tables.

That was when I heard another voice furiously calling out my name. "Jaauuuneee!" As I was about her, Yang dashed toward me. I hastily picked up the nearest tray and barely blocked her strike as she was able to push me to the floor.

She picked up the metal tray and tore it in half with her bare hands. I quickly scrambled backward as I threw every projectile I came across toward her—which she simply shoved off. She was panting hard as she walked slowly towards me before suddenly a pie flew in and hit her face. "Good pie and good riddance," I said, relieved.

I turned around and saw Pyrrha puffing, mostly out of fatigue from the fight and the amount of usage of her semblance. "It's all up to you now." She said before buckling down to the floor.

Well, there goes my backup. It's kind of funny that the closest thing she had to a defeat was in a food fight, she's so lucky this wasn't a serious fight otherwise it would have affected her status as The Invincible Girl. While Pyrrha was not the type to give in—she used all of her remaining willpower so I could go forward that she needed to rest; I wasn't going to let that go in vain.

"I guess it's just me and you now then!" Ruby said, making me turn around and see my last opponent standing on the top of the fortress that my team built. "I'm impressed that you managed to defeat my sisters-in-arms, Jaune. But can you handle the wind?"

I was about to fight Red Riding Hood and her basket of weaponized food. I've seen her fight and even prepared some tactics against her just like I had with everyone but I was not anticipating what I was about to witness.

She used her semblance to dash off the tower and created a slipstream that blew a hailstorm of food and projectiles at me. I took one of the flying soda cans from the air and drank it as I stood dramatically[5] before grabbing a ham by its drumstick and infusing my aura with it. I deflected the incoming projectiles coming toward me by swinging at them. I stomped at the nearest tray and then grabbed it to use it as a shield to block off the fruits.

Ruby landed and picked up the food around her and hurled it all at me. I jumped out of the way and picked up a bottle of ketchup and mustard and fired them both at Ruby, who blocked both of them with two plates before throwing them away. She used her semblance to create a wind strong enough to send me flying toward a wall. She then flung an assortment of fruits toward me. I rolled out and got back on the floor before throwing some of the fruits on the ground at her. She started using her semblance yet again. As I avoided the food coming from the storm, I picked up my 'weapons' and threw one last apple at her while she was dashing with her speed, breaking her momentum. She was knocked to her side after getting hit but she recovered quickly as she slid down the floor.

I stormed towards her, she tried to stop me by flinging more food toward me, which I just deflected as I made my way through. When I got next to her, there was barely a fight. As much of a remarkable fighter Ruby is—she was inept at fighting without her scythe, so it was pretty much over after that. After knocking her to the floor, I pointed my ketchup bottle at her. "So, what does justice taste like?" I smirked. "Was it painful, or was it delicious?"

"Do what you must." She over-dramatically played along, closing her eyes as she accepted defeat.

I looked at her in pity before squeezing my bottle and sending the final blast that'll end this war… by deliberately missing and shooting at the floor near the side of her face.

She opened her eyes and was puzzled at my decision to not finish her off. I dropped both of my 'weapons' and offered my hand. Kinda reminded me of the first day when I found her lying down in the courtyard after that explosion she caused.

Ruby gladly accepted my offer as I helped her pull her up. The others were getting up as well, dusting themselves off while still covered in food particles. No one was seriously injured thanks to the miracle and convenience of aura.

"So, I guess we've kicked this semester with a bang, am I right?" I grinned, pretending that I never heard Yang's forced pun. I don't know what's got into me but it was actually gratifying to test my team in a unique way while seeing if we could take on our sister team. Team RWBY was frightening enough fighting against food alone, I should be thankful that I'm on their side in serious situations, and I still couldn't believe I just won.

"You bet. Wow, that was intense. You even beat all of us with just our own snacks." Ruby said, wiping out some of the small pieces of food sticking in her uniform.

"Just defending the queen's honor," I nodded as I continued to humor Nora's playfulness. "Isn't that right, Nora?"

"Correct, my trusty subject—or should I say, Fearless Leader," she gave a thumbs up while covered in food.

"Man, that was exhilarating. We should do this again sometime, only with less food and collateral damage…" I said, looking around.

"Yeah, we might have made such a mess," Ruby said before making a suspicious grin with both of her hands on her back. "Oh, and one more thing."

"What is it?" I leaned in.

She bashed a pie at my face before I was able to notice it. "I finally got you!" Ruby laughed as I removed the pie from my face. I was initially annoyed before laughing it off with her, pleasantly enjoying the time we just had. "Thanks, Jaune, for helping set up this day to be the best day ever."

"You're welcome," I said, wiping the mess off my face, it was thankfully not Nora's pie.

She smiled at me before she started to look fearful after looking at the figure behind my back. I turned around and almost made a feminine screech after seeing the face of an unamused Miss Goodwitch.

She growled angrily at me, and I was only able to respond with a whimper. She turned her attention toward the room and used her telekinesis to arrange the tables and chairs back to their original position within seconds. The mess hall was far from clean though, there was still plenty of food and trash scattered across the floor and on the walls, not to mention, a few craters.

Miss Goodwitch then turned to us all. "Children, do not play with your food. You're supposed to be the defenders of the world, so I insist you all act like it!" She scolded us while keeping her professional tone. She levitated a few brooms, buckets, and mops and handed them all to us. "'This mess hall is an absolute disgrace! And no one is leaving until it's been tidied up. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, Professor Goodwitch." We all ashamedly responded together.

We proceeded to begin cleaning our mess. It was a rather huge mess hall so it took a while. On the bright side, we didn't have to pay for any of the damages, like the broken plates and the wasted food. Beacon's treasury was thankfully vast enough to compensate for it without much trouble.

Kids in Vacuo could have eaten these.

=o=

1. Jørgen Gustavsen is a close friend and accomplice of Caiaphas Arc. While not biologically related to the Arcs in any way, he had received the title of an honorary uncle to the Arc children because of his loyalty to their father.

2. A recurring feeling I also possess when reading through certain interactions in Jaune's writings.

3. Team-combos in Team RWBY are based on the colors worn by each member. Red with Ruby, Black with Blake, Yellow with Yang, and white with myself. In this case. The combo with Blake and I refer to the respective colors of a chessboard, black and white, hence the name.

4. Boo.

5. No such thing happened. I do recall him getting hit by a can on the face while trying to look suave, however.