Beta Read by: Crescent Sunrise

Recommended Story: "Roseborne" by Remnant Novella

~MZ~

If ever there was one thing that could be considered a downside when it came to spending time with her girlfriend. May would say that it was her tendency to forget about other things. Things like the conversations she was supposed to have had with Pyrrha and Nebula. Instead she ended up massaging Ruby, playing video games, and using her scroll to watch the tournament matches using her girlfriend's lap for a pillow.

Fortunately for May, she knew where to find at least one of her targets the next morning before the doubles rounds were due to start. After all, Pyrrha was still training in the mornings with Jaune so they would hopefully be hitting the gym again today. Since not very many students frequented the gym so early and the changing rooms were separated by gender it meant that May would have a pretty good chance to catch Pyrrha if she just waited a bit longer after her workout.

She wasn't going to meet up with Ruby until the doubles started since Velvet invited them to watch team CFVY's match with her.

And so it was that after her own workout alongside Yang, May took some time and lingered under the hot spray of the gym showers. Letting the heat soak into her skin as a few scattered trainees pass through and into the gym paying her no mind at all.

It wasn't until after she turned off the water and started drying off that Pyrrha entered and fortunately for them both May was mostly dressed by then. After tugging on her top she called out to Pyrrha who had just finished stashing a change of clothes in one of the lockers. There's a moment where the amazon pauses and May wonders if she's going to be ignored before with a sigh Pyrrha turns around with narrowed eyes.

"What?"

'Okay, immediately hostile. Something is definitely going on here.' May blinks back her surprise before clearing her throat. "You got a minute? I feel like we need to talk."

"Is this about you flirting with me when you're in a relationship? I'm not interested in being the 'other woman'." Pyrrha states abruptly with her eyes narrowed. "Ruby's a good friend of mine and I won't do that to her."

May immediately bites her tongue to avoid making the situation any more annoying by spouting the first thing that came to mind. She seriously doubted saying 'So you would be my other woman if I was with someone else?' would help her at all. This situation was not one where her normal flirtatious attitude would be appreciated. Instead she sighs and sits herself down on one of the benches. "Look, there are a few things I could say about how irritating hearing you say that is but really we've only been around each other a handful of times. Or I could talk about my relationship with Ruby and explain a few things but that's not what this is about and I'm not interested in sharing details of our relationship with outsiders. Instead I'm just going to say I'm sorry."

She watched Pyrrha's expression as she spoke and if asked would freely admit that she found it rather humorous when the increasingly agitated look on Pyrrha's face switched to surprise. And as much as she would like to chuckle at the sight, there was a time and place. This wasn't either of them.

Without waiting for Pyrrha to respond May began to explain. "I know you like me, your partner out there wasn't too subtle asking how I felt about you. He's a decent guy but about as subtle as a brick through a window." She admitted with a shrug. "And I know it's a little unkind to flirt with you despite that knowledge, but it's just how I am, I flirt with people. I will try to keep myself from doing it in the future."

May left the fact that she did it just before their match to throw off Pyrrha's game unsaid, not that it had worked anyway since it just made sure the redhead focused on her first. Nor did she mention that part of the reason behind her flirting was to get a feel for Pyrrha as she and Ruby worked out whether to offer her a place in their relationship. They were better left unsaid and it might only hurt the invincible girl more to hear how close she was to getting a chance with the two of them.

'They do say ignorance is bliss.'

"You… you knew? But you never said, does Ruby know?" Pyrrha asked seeming rather nervous.

"Yeah, she noticed you looking while we were at the shooting range." May replied before deciding to throw the redhead a bone. "Look, I don't mind you looking, and really I'm flattered if you look at me that way. I can't and won't tell you not to be attracted to me because feelings don't work that way. Look, if you're worried about Ruby being upset about it, don't be. She's a smart girl, she knows I flirt just like she knows nothing will come of it and you know she won't hold your feelings against you."

Sure, Ruby admitted to feeling a little jealous but that was normal. She trusted May not to take anything to far and that was something May had no plans on ever abusing.

"So… what now?" The redhead asks dejectedly and May felt sympathy tug at her heartstrings.

"Do you remember what I told you back when we first talked? Just keep looking Pyrrha, I know you'll find someone if you just keep proactive about it. In the meantime, are we good?" May asks standing from her bench to smile at the redhead.

Pyrrha pauses before offering a weak smile in return and nodding offering a hand only to let out a yelp of surprise when May pulls her into a hug. "Don't give up Pyrrha, we're both rooting for you. Now I have to try and hunt down my ex and then meet up with Ruby and Velvet. I'm sure your partner is starting to get worried for you in there."


Trying to hunt down someone in the hallways in Beacon proved to be far more difficult than May expected and in the end she gave up and instead went to meet up with Velvet and Ruby for the match perhaps Nebula would be watching as well or one of her teammates May could corner.

In the end Nebula's play didn't change anything since May hadn't gotten the chance to really utilize her team's plan with Pyrrha singling her out early on and with NDGO already knocked out of the running reporting it wouldn't really do anything but ensure the team would be barred from the next tournament in two years.

Since as far as May knew only Nebula had a hand in the sabotage, she wasn't really interested in getting the whole team punished.

That however, did not mean she wouldn't use the knowledge to get Nebula to back off.

The act served to open May's eyes to a lot of the conversations she'd had with her ex since Nebula approached her in the medical wing and she did not like the pattern she saw in just how often her relationship with Ruby was brought into question. The little comments sowing doubt and unease little bit by little bit.

Thankfully for her, when she stepped off the transport at the Colosseum the one person guaranteed to lift her mood was waiting for her and watching the match was interesting. At least, that was one word for it.

After she got over her initial joy when she realized Ruby would have to share a seat with her as Velvet and Fox had only managed to save one for them. She turned her attention to where the fight had gone on.

Seeing Coco open up with that gatling gun of hers was enough to raise May's eyebrows, ammo for that thing couldn't be cheap and she used it like a big lawn mower to cut down the grass in the section the duo of Emerald and Mercury stepped back into.

The two in the grass hadn't been idle though and May watched Mercury launch himself upwards over their heads while Emerald took cover behind the lone tree in that section of the field. And May had to lift an eyebrow as the mint haired girl dipped low and ran at an impressive speed towards the woods while her partner distracted the pair of Yatsuhashi and Coco.

And what a distraction it was, he had clearly been holding back quite a bit against Pyrrha when they sparred before as he handled the two of them impressively even mixing wind dust with ice to make projectiles that exploded into mist when they hit the ground.

Once separated May had to cringe and bit her tongue to keep the inevitable events to follow from leaving them. She didn't know the two on the field at all only really spending any time with the rabbit faunus next to her but clearly Ruby was close and she didn't want to be the one to dash the hope she could see on their faces that somehow Yatsuhashi and Coco would pull through.

The only part that really stood out to her was when she looked at the camera feed showing Coco turn slightly and May narrowed her eyes as the fashionista's mouth moved as if talking to someone else only to react in surprise as Yatsuhashi was eliminated.

Something shook her and she was hesitating as she scanned her surroundings.

She didn't seem to notice at all when Emerald snuck up on her and May winced as Velvet shouted from next to her to no effect. One voice over that distance mixed in with the crowd would no doubt be indecipherable even if it could clear that much distance.

'I wonder what that was.' May later wondered as her and Ruby rode the transport back to the academy after giving what comfort they could to the dejected bunny girl. At least Fox seemed to take it well enough. Than again, it was hard for May to tell as he seemed rather stoic thus far. Friendly and polite, but overall rather stoic and quiet.

It wasn't until they were nearing the landing pad that she noticed a familiar head of violet hair and turned her gaze to lock eyes with the owner. With a short apology to Ruby she made her way through the crowded transport hoping to catch the girl before they landed, but Nebula dipped out of sight and by the time May made it to where she had been the doors were open and people were departing, leaving May to exit with them and scan the crowd with narrowed eyes.

She didn't spot Nebula again but did catch sight of a girl with Black hair done in ringlets walking away. So with a jog she moved towards her.

If Nebula was going to dodge her she would give her message indirectly.

"Gwen! Hold up a sec." May shouted as she approached and smirked a little as Gwen pauses and everything about her stance screamed exasperation.

"What do you want Zedong? If you want me to talk to Nebula for you, again, you're out of luck. I told you before despite the whole rebound thing you two had she's not into girls. I even tried to warn you when it all started. Besides, aren't you seeing that girl with the hood now? You were at the dance with her after all." Gwen starts before May can even get a word in and with her arms crossed she seemed rather defensive.

"I am, with Ruby that is, and this isn't about that. Look, I'm done with Nebula, it was a bad idea and yeah, I should have listened. You were right and looking out for me even if you were a huge jerk about it." May starts, ignoring the scoff that she gets for adding the last part. "I would say it to Nebula myself but since she's apparently avoiding me I'll say it to you. She needs to stay away from Ruby, I can deal with her but I won't have her poisoning what I've got with Little Red. And if she doesn't, I'm sure the tournament officials would love to hear about her tampering with my rifle before the match. The only reason I haven't gone to them already is because in the end it didn't matter and I'd rather not see the rest of you punished for it."

"Can you prove that?" Gwen asks her head raised as she tried to stare down May an intimidating look for sure if May were actually worried the girl might start something.

"Myself? No, but she was the only one in the locker room when I got there before my match and I'm sure if they check the records on when my locker was accessed they'll be able to put two and two together. Won't even have to look long since I rarely use the thing. Combine that with the cameras in the halls and it looks incredibly damning, doesn't it?" May replied and Gwen paused closing her eyes as she breathed for a few long moments before opening them again and gazing back at the single one May had exposed. They both knew what she would say, because if she didn't warn of Neb and May was forced to make good on her word then they would be reported to Shade and there was a chance they would be barred from the next tournament altogether.

"Fine, We'll put a stop to it. We did warn her that we would put a stop to it if it stopped being a personal thing for her and started to affect the team." Gwen capitulated and turned to walk away after having ignored the affronted look on May's face and the irritated twitching of her brow.

'They knew the whole time and just let Nebula mess with us… of course they knew, they're her team. I guess Gwen took me ignoring her advice before personally.'

May grumbles before starting to look around for her little reaper only to spot Ruby standing nearby shifting as her eyes move from May to the retreating Gwen.

"So... Nebula messed with Myrtles Bloom before your match?" The cloaked girl asked and May could see her shifting uncomfortably with the thought. A heavy sigh escaped the older sniper as she moved closer to her girlfriend.

'Should have guessed she'd get worried and listen in.'

"You weren't supposed to hear that Little Red. But yeah, she did. Don't confront her about it or anything, Gwen will take care of it on her end, just remember to take anything she says with a grain of salt from now on." May comments. She knew her ex had spoken to Ruby before and couldn't help but worry a little over what Nebula might have said if she was feeling vindictive for whatever reason.

Still that was a problem solved for the moment. May would likely have to enact some kind of revenge on principle in a way no one could ever prove it was her but that could wait until they were back at Shade. There was no way she was going to let what little time she had left with Ruby be ruined by her ex.

"But why? I mean, I just don't get why she would do all of this." Ruby asks with evident frustration and honestly it was something that bothered May a little as well.

"I don't know, some imagined slight? Left over feelings from our break-up? I have no idea Little Red. It just goes to show her that even after we were together I don't know her nearly as well as I thought I did." May relents letting a little of her own frustration show.

"Enough about her though. What do you want to do with the rest of the day? Your team's double match is tomorrow so you should have the rest of the day relatively free." May asks blatantly changing the subject with no regards to how obvious she is in doing so and ignoring the look Ruby gives her that informs the older sniper she was exactly as transparent as she believed.

Still she couldn't help but smirk when Ruby rolled her eyes and opened her mouth to reply only to be interrupted by the scroll in her pocket.

What she wasn't expecting was the sudden excited squeal from the the red cloaked girl nor to suddenly find herself alone and surrounded by rose petals. She wondered for a moment if she should be upset by Ruby's sudden departure before shrugging and turning towards the woods.

She made it all of three steps though before there was a whoosh of air and yet more petals as Ruby returned chuckling sheepishly and blushing as May gives her a much amused look. "Sorry May, it's just that my uncle is here and in my dorm and just sent me a message to let me know and I don't get to see him much anymore since he's always away on missions and I got really excited so I mmmph."

It had been awhile since Ruby experienced a case of her rambling in front of May so she decided to try something she'd only read about before and tried to kiss the younger girl quiet. For a moment she wanted to laugh at Ruby's lips continued to move against hers before squeaking with realization and sinking into the kiss.

Pulling back May could not contain the self satisfied smirk on her lips. "Alright Little Red, let's try that again. What's got you so excited?"

She watched as Ruby shuffled for a moment before taking a long breath and letting it out in a huff. "My Uncle Qrow is here and I want you to come with me to meet him in my dorm room." The red cloaked girl gets out with such a forced level of calm it looks almost painful.

"Alright Little Red, let's go do that. If you want though you can go on ahead, I'll catch u-" May breaks off as for a third time she finds herself surrounded by petals and lacking her girlfriend. An event that makes laughter begin to bubble up in her chest. With a wry smile she glances towards the woods before starting after the vanishing trail of petals.

'Bit too cold to spend to long out here anyway. And I've already met her dad, how bad can her uncle be?'


'So, he's the 'cool' uncle then. I can see why Ruby idolizes him.'

May ponders as she enters the team RWBY dorm room to find Yang watching as Ruby plays an old fighting game with an older man. Both acting up to ridiculous levels as they play. Suddenly Ruby's competitive spirit at the arcade made a large amount of sense if she had this man as a role model when it came to electronic entertainment.

When it seemed like no one but Yang noticed her entering she gave a wave to the blonde and moved to sit behind the pair playing their game watching as the older man seemed to effortlessly trounce Ruby while continuing to trash talk and even momentarily turning his head slightly to eye the older sniper.

May only responded with a small smile and was treated to a shrug as he went back to the game and finished Ruby off. There was a pause as Ruby pouted and her uncle chastised her for calling him old before Yang shoved her sister back roughly and May let out a soft 'off' as her girlfriend collided with her.

"Hello there Little Red." May comments wrapping her arms around the shorter girls waist as Qrow and Yang start up the next round. It's during their match that Qrow begins describing his last mission and neither of his nieces seem to realize how during it Yang is getting progressively trounced while distracted by his story.

May would be the first to admit that the man is a talented orator, certainly. His cadence and tone gave no clue at all about the way he was planning on ending it. Leaving May smirking as Yang yelled at him. Something which only caused the three of them to laugh harder.

There was a pause as he set up the game for a rematch against Yang and Ruby shifted to sit more comfortably in May's lap before speaking up again. "So why are you back so soon anyway? Dad said you would be away on a mission for a lot longer than this."

Qrow chuckled for a moment before skillfully evading the question with his usual smooth drawl. "Well, you know us professional huntsmen are expected to get results as quickly as we can."

"I imagine if you didn't people wouldn't be able to pay so much for our services." May responds drawing a look from Qrow at her mercenary attitude.

"Oh yeah! Uncle Qrow this is May, my uh… girlfriend. She's kind of a big hero and stuff. You know, cause she saved Vale and captured Roman Torchwick." Ruby comments getting a blush from the sniper behind her.

"Yeah I heard about that. I also heard about how she got herself injured badly enough that she might have bled out afterwards if another team hadn't gone out looking for them." Qrow wastes no time once more beating down Yang in the game before turning back to face Ruby and May. "Be honest, how likely were you to have made it back if they hadn't come along?"

May feels Ruby stiffen in her lap as the sniper fails to immediately respond. She briefly considers lying if for no other reason than to comfort the girl in her lap but knew it would be in vain. There's no way Qrow didn't already have the right answer. "Honestly? Not very, I lost a lot of blood before we managed to even give it a basic dressing. Then the grimm caught up to us before we could try and do anything better. I was barely conscious when I was pulled into the bullhead and completely out by the time we made it back. We were really lucky they showed up."

He lets out a sound that might have been approval. "At least you're aware of it."

May felt a hand grabbing hers and squeezing tightly and knew without needing to look it was Ruby. "Hard not to be. I think the only reason I gave up fighting the 'hero' title the public gave us was something Ozpin said after I woke up. About how the people sometimes need something to lift their spirits. If that means putting my team and I on a pedestal then I guess it's a small price to pay, even if they're wrong. Heroes don't get bonus checks; mercenaries do."

"Would you do it again without the money involved?" Qrow asks in reply his eyes narrowing slightly with the question.

"Of course I would, I didn't sign up for the money. Nolan did and that's just because he has family back home that need it. But just because I didn't do it for the money won't stop me from taking it." May replies using the hand that wasn't gripped by a slowly calming Ruby to wave away the question.

That response earns her an amused huff. "I think I like you kid, you have a good head on your shoulders. Just don't forget, there's a long road ahead for all of you before you can really be considered huntresses. A lot of tough lessons you'll need to learn. And even when you get there, you'll find there's always more left to learn."

With that he gets up and slowly stretches out before standing up. "Anyway, I need to get going. Can't spend all day hanging around a bunch of kids after all. I've got things to do and you'll cramp my style. Just don't forget, just because Torchwick is gone that doesn't mean the danger has passed. It got way too quiet in the city far too fast."

The mood he left behind was somber and contemplative.

For now all they could do was keep training like they were and be ready for something to happen. Tomorrow though RWBY had their doubles match and May was actually a bit surprised Ruby wasn't putting herself in the fight. As much as having a battle fanatic like Yang in the mix Ruby was nearly as bad as her sister when it came to how eager she was to fight.

Perhaps it meant Ruby was learning.

AN: This chapter is entirely May centric. I know you're probably used to it swapping perspectives at least once by this point but I didn't really have any ideas on writing Ruby's side of things for this chapter. That and I really needed to tie up a few of May's loose ends.

That said the pace of the story is going to pick up in future chapters as I really want to get to the fall. I've been excited about writing that bit since chapter three so I'm getting a little impatient myself.

As always a special thanks for my reviewers TigerCritic, BlitzkriegHOSS, MrFox7189, hunter81095, stevent349, Phantomwa1ker, and steelbone532 I don't require reviews for my work but it always makes me happy to recieve them and I read every single one.

Thank you all for taking the time to read this story. Thanks again to those who favorite or follow. I love you all, and I'll see you next time.