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To Survive and Prosper

CHAPTER 8

Leaving the hallway and into the school's campus, we were met with the friendly face of Neptune, behind him were two boys—who I correctly assumed to be his teammates.

"He-hey, look who's finally here!" Neptune said. "Jaune Arc and Pyrrha freakin' Nikos herself. The badasses of the week!"

"Good to see you again, Neptune," I greeted. "How have you been doing these past couple of days?"

"Pretty good. Community service's not that bad. Met some lovely chicks on the streets while I was at it."

"And his supervisor kept yelling at him to get back to work," his green-haired teammate said.

Well, that's one way of telling me of one of his weaknesses. Luckily, I already know how a perverted mind works.

"Yeah…" Neptune embarrassedly scratched the back of his head. "So anyway, these are my teammates; Scarlet and Sage," he said gesturing at the two, who look just as boyband-ish as their teammates.

Scarlet was the red-haired one with the Albionic accent who has some sort of markings on his left eye, and had his red coat draped around over his left shoulder, wearing it as if it was some cape, while somehow not slipping or falling off [1]; Sage was the dark-skinned, green-haired, shirtless, muscular man in an imposing stature clad in an unbuttoned longcoat while wearing no shirt underneath it, therefore, exposing his abs just like his leader. A bunch of show-offs I'd say.

"Together, we're Team SSSN (Sun)! Triple S's, and an N at the end, who by the way, is yours truly."

Look at that, another Team pronounced after their leader. It must be confusing to determine who's leading it if it weren't for one of their names. "Pretty weird being the only one whose name doesn't start with an 'S', don't you think?" I quipped. "Anyway, it's nice to meet you Scarlet, Sage. You already know me and my partner, this is Nora and Ren. We're Team JNPR."

"It's nice to finally meet you," Scarlet said. "I heard many great things about you. Is it true you stopped the bank robbery the same night you, Sun, and Neptune got in trouble?"

"Yeah, that was me," I confirmed with a hint of shame though I was becoming more used to it the more people kept bringing it up. "I still couldn't have done it without Pyrrha's help."

"Please. You don't need to mention it." Pyrrha humbly remarked as she immediately attracted the attention of the two.

"You're really THE Pyrrha Nikos?" Sage grinned. "It's an honor to meet a warrior like you. How are you liking Beacon so far?"

Pyrrha sported her celebrity smile once again. "Thank you. Beacon is great. The people here are very thoughtful, and my teammates are very supportive. Being just a mere member of a team is quite refreshing."

"That's good to hear. Even champions like you need to settle down, it's nice to know you're making yourself comfortable while trying to hold such a record."

"Indeed," she nodded, almost looking like she was about to shyly glance away.

"A world-renowned champion and a recent breakout hero. My-my, what a combination." Scarlet remarked. "I'm sure your two other teammates are no pushover either."

"Believe me. They're far from that," I crossed my arms as I looked at the duo in question.

"That's right! Anima's number one duo is behind Jaune and Pyrrha." Nora put an arm over Ren's shoulder. "With his bravery and her strength and our undying friendship, we are nigh-unstoppable."

"It's true. While we are already remarkable from the start, Jaune's leadership has made us a force to be reckoned with as a team," Ren added. I could only smile at his commendation. It's a shame that it's only because I was smart enough to be pragmatic. Having a bad team would obviously mean a bad fate for me.

"You made yourself a good team, Jaune. Not saying Sun is a bad leader, but he could certainly learn a thing or two from you," Sage remarked.

"I appreciate that. Thank you," I smiled.

"It was my pleasure."

A few moments passed, Sun walked in, reuniting himself with his team while looking pretty distraught.

"So how did it go?" Neptune queried him.

Sun groaned, one of his hands rested on his forehead for a second. "No luck. She's being much crankier than before. I thought she'd cheer up after that day but I think it made her worse. This is the first time we spoke since that night; I haven't seen her much since then."

Sigh, Blake still hadn't let go of Torchwick and the White Fang. I was really worried about her, if she keeps this up her restlessness would be the end of her. Someone really needed to get that cat to settle down.

"It's fine, Sun. Maybe she's not in a good mood. You'll get her tomorrow," Neptune reaffirmed.

"Yeah, but she said she's not interested. I don't think she'll be coming to the dance."

His partner frowned. "Well, that sucks. Here's hoping she'll change her mind then."

"Yeah…" Sun uttered before turning to me. "Hey Jaune, how are you getting along with my team?"

"Pretty good. Quite the team you have here," I told him.

He smiled slightly. "Thanks. I appreciate having these dudes on my back. Been working my tail off to make ourselves a functional team."

"Burdens of being a leader," I replied.

"You got that right." Sun chuckled. "Hey, could you please try helping out Blake when you get the chance? She really looks like she needs help."

Trying to help a troubled Blake, part three. Here we go again. "Can't say no to that. I'm worried about Blake too."

"Good. Anyways, I think we should go now. It's our last day of community service and we'll be done sooner if we start now," Sun stated. "You still have yours to worry about, right?"

"Yeah. Speaking of which; what can you tell me about the work they put you up with?" I asked curiously. If I recall correctly, the two had the most clement penalty among us so they weren't as arduous compared to what Team RWBY and I had to do.

"Eh, we've been mostly sweeping the street, occasionally they would send us to help out with the freeway repairs. It's not that bad, we had some help so we didn't do it alone. It kinda felt more like we're in a relief effort." Sun answered, unsurprisingly not sounding too bothered with his tasks. "Cleaning the streets gave me an idea. Once we get our first mission, we'll no longer be cleaning the streets from grime, but we're gonna clean the streets from crime. Team SSSN, Police Squad!" he posed buoyantly, putting his fists on his waist.

If that happens, I hope he doesn't end up investigating his own thefts. Solving that case would be very awkward. "Cool. Well, Professor Peach needs me and Team RWBY to clean up the dust lab for today, so I'll be sure to check up on Blake while I'm at it."

"Great! Good luck with that, buddy. See ya' later," Sun and his teammates then turned around and walk away.

"You too! It was nice knowing your team!" I said to him as they were leaving. I then faced my comrades. "Yeah, I really need to go to the dust lab, they're expecting me after classes are done."

Pyrrha put a hand on my shoulder. "Well, good luck then. Just remember we have training later, so don't push yourself too hard, okay?"

"I won't forget," I reassured her before I left. "See you!"

As I separated myself from my teammates, I headed straight towards the Dust Lab which was in the other building. Upon arriving, Professor Peach was waiting for me and Team RWBY was already there. Ruby was sweeping off particles, Weiss was organizing the dust in the cabinets and tables, Yang was washing the vials, and Blake was wiping the tables clean.

"Ah, there you are, Mr. Arc. As you see, the dust lab has been a mess after the recent experiment by some of the teams. Suffice to say, that experiment was unsuccessful," Professor Peach said.

This is probably one of the reasons why Dust Studies is my weakest and least favorite, even though I learned to appreciate the use of dust this past week. I didn't want to play too much with dust while my equating skills were weak because otherwise, I might have ended up causing a disaster like this.

"Was anyone hurt?" I inquired more out of curiosity than concern as I looked around and saw a wall that has a huge black scorch mark with the middle being untouched in the shape of someone's body figure, which more or less answered my question.

"The students responsible are currently at the infirmary. Some are just there to be examined for possible infection, but as for the others…" she glanced back at the scorched wall to make her point. "I don't need to explain why experimenting on dust can be very dangerous without proper precaution."

"I see," I gulped for a second as I thought about it. "What am I supposed to do for now?"

"Here's a sponge and a bucket of water," she said, handing me those tools. "You know what to do with them."

"I'll get to it then, Professor." I nodded, taking the tools I needed to clean the wall.

I went over the wall. I looked at it for a few seconds before I removed my gloves and began scrubbing the charred wall. The black stain was so strenuous to remove that it took a ridiculous amount of scouring to remove it. Keep in mind that this was one big mark that would have been a bigger pain if the unfortunate idiot didn't stand there and indirectly saved a good amount of my time and energy by blocking a portion of the wall.

It was only a few minutes in and my hands were already sore from the firm scrubbing. Ruby passed me by as she was sweeping the floor with a broom.

"Hey," I greeted her so I could give her a sense of company while she continued to work.

"Hey, Jaune," she responded, sounding a little dejected but not to the same extent as she was that night.

"You okay?" I could tell that every time she's doing labor, she's thinking about the civilians she couldn't save that night. She came to Beacon to make the world a better place, and it's no mystery why she's upset about those people.

"I'm fine. Thanks."

I could tell she actually wasn't but I didn't want to put her in a worse mood than she was by talking about it. "So, how's Blake?"

"Not good. She barely ate and slept, and has been shunning us away every time we tried to tell her to knock it off," she frowned.

Just what I expected, I thought frowning. "Torchwick and the White Fang still bothering her?"

"I think so. It's been driving her insane. I thought those feelings would go away after we agreed to help her, but it looks like she's gotten worse. Every time we finish work, she would often sneak out to continue her investigation with or without our help. Even though Professor Ozpin and the detective told us to lay low since the White Fang could be looking for us. I don't think she's going to give herself a break until all of this is done."

I sighed as I shook my head. "It's going to take a while for Torchwick and the White Fang to be put to justice. The police said they're doing their best to take them down. I take it Blake's not going to the dance?"

"Probably not. She refused to participate in anything aside from her shifts. The only thing that could cheer her up is her books and even they couldn't make her less cranky. I really want her to go to the dance; it's a chance for her to settle down and just enjoy life especially since I think we're getting close to finding out what the White Fang is up to anyway but I don't think she wants to stop. She barely even sleeps," she said before looking at Blake. "And speaking of which."

Blake was standing next to one of the workbenches, trying to scrub the grime with a cloth, or I thought she was. She looked quite frozen before I realized that her eyes were shut.

"I'll go talk to her," I put the soap down, deciding that it was as good a time as any to question her. Ruby went back to sweeping the floor as I went to approach her teammate. "Blake?"

Her sleep-deprived eyes immediately began blinking open as she turned to me. Though, they were noticeably struggling to stay open. "Oh, hey. Do you need something?"

"Nothing really. Just making sure you're alright," I said.

"I'm fine. Now just leave me alone," she answered while she barely made any effort to hide her fatigue.

"No, you're obviously not." I insisted, her face was barely even hiding it. "Just tell me what's wrong."

"Jaune, please. You have done enough for me as it is and I appreciate it. Now please, just go. I really need some space," she said, sounding too tired to exclaim.

"Come on, Blake, you've been pushing yourself for days now that you can barely keep yourself awake. Maybe you need rest for once," I said, trying to reason with her.

"The White Fang doesn't rest, Jaune," she raised her tone. "They won't stop until they get what they want. So if I were to stop them then, there's no reason for me to rest either."

Oh brothers, I always knew she was stubborn but this was getting ridiculous. "Blake, you're not the only one who can stop the White Fang. Just let the police take care of it, they're trying their best to—"

"That's not enough!" She suddenly received the energy to yell, making all three of her teammates in the room temporarily halt their task to put their attention on us. "At best, they'll only just slow them down for a small margin, and even that will take too much work for them!"

She huffed and glared at me while I remained aback at her sudden outrage. A few seconds passed, and she took a deep breath and calmed down. "I'm sorry. It's been a stressful week. I just can't afford to let the White Fang make bad names for us faunus every passing second."

"Blake..." I tried to go closer to her, only for her to stop me as she avoided my gaze.

"Please just leave me be."

Well, I tried. I decided to give up. At that point, she made it clear that the White Fang has affected her drastically and that there was no way to change her mind. If her own teammates couldn't convince her then I doubt that I would be any luckier. "If that's what you want," I told her before going back to cleaning the wall.

She can't keep acting like this forever though. Blake will eventually have to give in and stop being adamant about this investigation. I don't think I'll be able to convince her now, so I'll just leave everything for nature to do its magic.

In our favor, hopefully.

=o=

1. He does remove it during combat, however.

Blake's current issues crossed her off as one of the candidates I've considered partnering with on the upcoming extracurricular which is a shame because I want to use this opportunity to get to know more about her since we had a lot to make up for last semester. I'm aware that she wouldn't make an ideal partner anyway considering how much trouble she caused for us but I knew that there was still hope for that stubborn little cat somewhere as I remember our last meeting following the docks incident. I'm still trying to decipher why she even kissed me on the cheek that night. I just wished she'd take a hint and realize that what she's doing isn't very healthy.

This left Pyrrha to be the only logical choice to be my date at the dance; she was the first person to come to my mind when looking for someone to be paired with anyway.

I've considered Cinder as my second choice, but I'm not comfortable dancing with someone who's into me because of my fraudulent reputation. Oh, who am I kidding? Anyone who's even interested in someone like me was because of my fraudulent reputation. Not to mention, a girl with the looks of her all but says that she is already taken.

Ruby would have been fine if it wasn't for the fact that I would feel like I'm taking advantage of the youngest and most naïve girl in school. Plus, she's probably married to her scythe—which could be why it has the same last name as her, and I'd hate to be a homewrecker. [1]

Yang's a ton of fun, I'm pretty sure half of the boys in my class have a crush on her and I can see why, she's very attractive both inside and out. But I don't think I want to date her; I doubt that anyone who did has lasted for more than a week. That, and she looked like she'd pass as one of my sisters which would only make dating her look awkward for me. It's pretty much why I don't usually date fellow blondes. Yeah, I know that three of my sisters are brunettes and that didn't stop me from dating some girls with similar hair but that's because they're a little different largely because they didn't have the same hair color as me and my mom.

Don't even get me started with Weiss. I don't think she has forgiven me for abandoning her last Tuesday. She's probably too busy being lovestruck on pretty boy Neptune anyway and I could sense that I would be a target for her army of white knights if I was dumb enough to ask her out. Spoiled rich girls only are only interested in shallow flings anyway. [2]

So it's pretty much decided that I'm going with Pyrrha. I want to use this as an opportunity for us to learn more about each other aside from being partners in a Huntsman student team, so this was my best chance. I decided that I would ask her out once I was finished training with her.

Sparring with Pyrrha has been informative as always, as we get to learn about each other's fighting styles which cannot be obtained the same way by just simply watching. Being the Invincible Goddess of Victory she was, I still was not able to beat her in a straight-up match even if she did hold back. Her attack patterns cannot be predicted and even if you somehow managed to do so, she still barely gives you the chance to land a hit on her.

So it was no surprise that I lost to her again.

"Splendid fighting, Jaune!" Pyrrha complimented as I helped myself up and wiped the dirt off my hind. "You're doing great as always. You definitely won't be having any trouble with your first mission."

"You never get tired, do you?" I playfully remarked, wiping away my sweat. "Thanks, but I could have done better."

"Oh, don't be like that. You're an amazing fighter; everyone can see that."

"I know, but I feel like I missed something."

"You're not missing anything, Jaune. In fact, I think you were getting close to beating me. That's not something I say every day."

She sounded too nice for her own good. "Well, you were holding back, so I could get the chance to beat you—but you didn't have to, I won't be able to beat you anyway."

"What are you talking about, Jaune? I wasn't holding back. Sure, we weren't allowed to use our guns and the match was purely melee only, but you still did well against me. Are you saying you're not good enough?"

"I…" I hesitated to answer, glancing away and looking for a way to change the subject in trepidation.

"Jaune…"

"No, it's not that Pyrrha. I think I just lost focus because there was something I've been aching to tell you." I answered. I didn't want her giving me any undeserved comfort, so I'll just get to the point.

"Well, what is it then? I'm listening," She curiously leaned closer.

Here we go. This shouldn't be much of a problem, given that I have asked girls out before and Pyrrha wasn't any different despite her social status. I've been with her long enough to know that things will be fine. "Will you accompany me to the dance?"

Her eyes widened and her face flushed while she glanced at the ground, facing away from me for a moment before coming up with an answer. "I'd be glad to."

"Oh, so great. I think we can get back to business now." I said, shrugging off all of the potential awkwardness seeing as I finally had the answer I needed.

"Yeah, but… that was a bit sudden. Not saying that I'm embarrassed by it or anything. I just… didn't expect you'd ask me out. I mean, nobody has asked me out before."

While I knew she hadn't been taken yet and that she would have told me if she was or I could have at least found out, I was rather bewildered upon hearing that. A girl as popular and talented as her should have been asked out at least once. "Why is that? You're Pyrrha Nikos. Guys would kill to have a shot with you."

"It's because…" she stuttered before she exhaled and shook her head. "Never mind. It's nothing important. I think we've practiced enough. We already know that we're ready for our first mission."

I just stood there and stared at her, processing what she was implying earlier. "So… we good?"

She happily nodded. "We have done everything we need. Keep up the good work and maybe we might finally unlock your semblance one day."

I chuckled. I kept forgetting about that until someone mentioned it. I've been here for months now, and I still don't have a semblance. Oh well, maybe I'll get it soon enough. Thankfully, I could live without it, seeing as I'm able to be prepared for just about anything.

"Are you coming with me?" she asked.

"No, I'll catch up," I replied.

"Okay then." She turned back and headed to the exit. "Later, Jaune!"

I took a deep breath as I watched her leave the rooftop. After she was gone, I continued to space out, just enjoying my time alone and mumbling that I was able to ask Pyrrha out that easily. Even if I managed to successfully ask girls out previously, I still can't help but feel anxious. Thankfully, the dance itself won't be much of a problem for me; I already attended enough social events to know what to expect.

I decided to call Viola out for some advice. So I pulled out my scroll and contacted her for a video call. "Ah, Jaune. You finally called." She greeted me as soon as I saw her face on my screen.

"Evening, Vi. Looking fine and dandy as usual. I could smell your perfume by just looking at you." I snarked, my nose picking the memory of her fragrant scent.

She made a snide chuckle. "Yeah, that's how fabulous I am. How are you doing there? Did you finally find someone to dance with?"

"Yep." I popped.

"Oh. So, who is the girl in question?" she asked with blatant curiosity.

"I think you already guessed who.

She paused for a moment before realizing who it was and started squealing. "I knew it! Our baby brother is finally becoming a man!" she cried out before turning to her left. "Hey Rouge, Jaune finally asked Pyrrha Nikos out!"

"He did? Ho-lee shit!" Rouge said in Viola's background before she appeared on my screen shortly after our elder sister called her.

Dammit, Vi. You really had to tell her, didn't you? I thought.

"You fucking did it, lil' bro! You're still a huge dork to me and will always be—but man, you're finally getting in on with the freaking cereal girl."

"Rouge, please calm down. I only asked her out for the dance as partners. I'm not dating my 'cereal waifu' or anything." I told her.

"That's still a score for you! Might want to start showing your sword skills and I'm not talking about the Crocea Mors." she perversely suggested.

"Rouge!" I yelled. You think after enduring almost my whole life with Rouge that I would have gotten used to her juvenile humor, but she always finds a way to be annoying and succeed.

"C'mon, Jaune-Jaune. There's nothing to be ashamed of here. You're living the dream of every horny boy—and maybe some girls—who watched the amazing Pyrrha Nikos; you should consider yourself lucky."

"Except it's nothing like that," I told her tensely. "This is only for the dance, which is only this Sunday. I just want to use this event to know my own partner a little better since I'm stuck with her for my entire stay here."

"So you're saying that you consider dating her after you're done with that?" She continued to grin.

I gave up and slapped my increasingly red face with my free hand. No point in trying to sway Rouge's thoughts given it's too full of chaotic mischief.

"Okay, that's enough, I think you've embarrassed him a little too much," Viola said. "So, you still have the suit I sent you?"

"Yeah. It still fits me like a glove. Still brings some disturbing memories, then again that was a satisfying night." I winked at Rouge, who responded with a smirk. "Hopefully, this upcoming night will be much more sincere than that." [3]

"Don't worry; I'm sure she's far better than that," Viola assured.

"Good point," I said. Pyrrha was just too much of a saint to be compared to that conceited bitch.

She then gave me a teasing grin. "Now, you also have the other thing that came out with it?"

Right, that. "Yeah. I don't think it was necessary on your part. I'm pretty sure Pyrrha won't have any trouble finding something to wear. Hell, I think she already has one right now."

"Oh, it's not that. You know who that is for," she said playfully, giving me the same grin she sports when she gave me a gender-inappropriate makeover.

Oh for crissake. This again, I thought. "I see. It's a shame that I have no reason to humiliate myself in public with it." I quipped. "Would have worn it for a lost bet, but I'm not a gambling man."

"I didn't say you have to embarrass yourself. I'm just giving it to you for old times sake. Be sure to send us a picture of you wearing it."

"I'd rather eat my own head, thank you very much." Sorry folks, but the graceful beauty of Jane Arc will not make a comeback any time soon, probably never.

"What a shame. You're becoming less fun since you've attended. What's Beacon doing to you?" Viola remarked, somewhat disappointed.

I shrugged. "Frankly, I don't know. My thoughts are giving me mixed messages about this school."

'Well, if you're not dressing yourself up. I'm bringing your album and I'm showing it to your friends—when I finally find it, at least," Rouge said.

"If you do, just be sure to burn the last two pages. You can keep the rest and embarrass me if you want. I have been through worse, you know."

They both lost their smiles and all semblance of joy suddenly disappeared after my last statement. "You didn't have to think about that, Jaune," Viola said.

"I wish I didn't," I did my best to preserve my composure. "Let's forget about that, shall we? After all, it's the last thing we want to bring up. So, any advice for the dance?" I asked just in case. Viola was engaged recently, and if anyone knows a thing or two about romance aside from Dad and Bleu, it's her.

"Just be on your best behavior. Aside from that, just be yourself. I think you got it all figured out; it's not as bad as dating, it'll be a walk in the park for you.

That's it? I should have thought that, and I wouldn't have to make this call in the first place. The last time I had a formal dance was at Bleu's wedding, so it's been a while that I almost forgot it wasn't actually that hard. Oh well, it was nice talking to my sisters again. It helped me alleviate my homesickness.

"Don't listen to her. Go nuts and make some fireworks on that joint; huntresses love that shit." Rouge childishly proposed, making Viola roll her eyes from her.

"I think I already have everything I need to know," I said.

"Very well. Just make sure to take good care of her okay? Celebrities like her tend to be tired of the weight they're carrying" Viola said with a warm smile.

Well, that makes two of us. "I will. Thanks, Vi."

"Best of luck out there."

"Ey, you know who to talk to when you're feeling down, okay, baby brother?" Rouge she cut in, this time, lacking her typically smug tone in favor of affirming sincerity.

I smiled at her closing statement. "I won't forget that." I nodded as they smiled back and ended the feed.

I puffed as I put my scroll back in my pocket and headed back to my dorm. It's reassuring that my sisters still have my back in times like these. They may enjoy tormenting me because I'm their only little brother, but they're still my sisters first and foremost.

When I opened the door, the first thing I saw was Nora standing in the way, grinning, just as I predicted.

"Yeah, Nora. I get it. We're going to the dance together as a team." I said. It's not even an intuitive guess that Nora would be partnering with Ren this Sunday; anyone who possesses a single brain cell was already aware of that.

"Does that mean Arkos is happening?" she asked excitedly.

I wasn't able to answer since I was dumbfounded at the anomalous term. "Arkos?"

"It's your last name put together with Pyrrha's! Isn't it clever?"

"Well, it's more creative than 'Renora', if you ask me," Ren commented, who was busy reading something with the Yin & Yang symbol on the cover. Pyrrha meanwhile, was just sitting on her bed, eavesdropping while she shyly smiled.

I already knew what that was all about. I would have remained stupefied and oblivious had I not familiarized myself with portmanteau couple names through Viola's terrible taste in literature.

"Oh, hush now, my dear Ren," Nora said to her partner before turning back to me. "You made a great decision by choosing your own partner instead of any of those role-playin' weirdos from Team RWBY. Now, Team Awesome will be together forever!"

As much as I hate to ruin her fun, I don't want her getting her hopes up for this. "Slow down, Nora. I'm only asking her out for the dance, but I'll promise that I'll keep this team together as long we're here, you understand?"

"Okay then! Just make sure you give her what she deserves, Fearless Leader!" she exclaimed, talking as if Pyrrha wasn't in the same room as us. This prompted me to shrug at Pyrrha in her bed as she replied with a silent chuckle. Nora then skipped back to her bed and began conversing with Ren.

I began to go to my desk and went to study my notes and update this journal while glancing at Pyrrha from time to time. Every time we made eye contact with each other—we couldn't help but blush, as we still could not believe that we partnered with each other.

I overheard Ren and Nora talking about the animal code words for their team attacks since the portmanteau naming gave them an idea to theme their dynamic to something. For some reason, Ren suggested a bee's buzz as their signal, but Nora didn't seem to like that.

"Ugh, Ren, I don't like bees!" Nora groaned, pulling both of her lower eyelids down as she rolled her eyes upward. "They're disgusting, annoying and they sting! I wish they could just all buzz off, they deserve to have their honey taken away from them."

"Okay then. How about bears? You like bears, don't you? Plus, they're a hive's worst nightmare."

"That's more like it!" Nora chirped up. "Make it like a panda—it suits us both well!" Looking back, I saw her clutching one of her teddy bears on her chest, putting a smile on my face.

They continued to talk about a few until Nora asked him a question. "Hey, Ren. I'm not suggesting anything, but do you think that Headmaster Ozpin uses the partnering system as a tool for matchmaking couples? Not saying that it means we should be together-together or anything but do you ever get the feeling?"

Ren made a chuckle, which got my attention and Pyrrha's because it's not often you hear the calm and stoic Lie Ren laugh. "Of course not, Nora, that would be unprofessional and just downright nonsensical. But I'm still glad that we ended up together."

"Yeah, you're right," Nora muttered. "It was silly for me to think that."

"You think of silly things all the time."

"That's true," she giggled.

"And honestly, that's what I like about you. Without you, I would have forgotten what happiness feels like. So I should thank you for staying with me for all these years."

"Aww. C'mere you." She began putting Ren in a tight embrace, which was considered very friendly if you ignore Nora spooning him.

I couldn't help but smile at the sweet sight. Maybe a little too sweet that it's becoming suggestive. So I cleared my throat, putting the two back to their senses.

Nora quickly let go of Ren and flushed. "We're still not together-together!"

Sure you're not.

I shook my head and smirked at Pyrrha who smiled back and shrugged before I went back to my business. I really need to work on my relationship with Pyrrha—there's so much potential between the two of us outside just being partners that I would need to start getting to know her more personally this dance.

Because otherwise, we'll just continue being glorified sparring partners that share a team, and if I am to spend a few more years in this crazy academy with her, I want us to be more than that. Besides, she could use a good friend while she continues to live with her celebrity status. The same goes for me.

=o=

1. While Ruby does have a passion for weapons, Jaune was clearly joking here. Though, I wouldn't be surprised if she did marry the Crescent Rose.

2. If all I wanted were shallow flings I would have already had several boyfriends by that time.

3. He was referring to his former date with Selene Raine, who turned out to be using him for a bet. He eventually found out her true motives and then humiliated her with the help of Rouge. There is a fuller account of this incident but it's not available at the moment.