A Meandering Arc

by Denomen

Jaune Arc was bad with directions. Hell, before being trained, he was piss poor at most things. But, by some odd twist of fate, he somehow made himself into a huntsman. Not on paper though. No, now he wanders from town to town with a smile on his face. Who knew that turning right at the wrong crossroads would let him achieve his dream early? Now on Ao3

23. Love is in the Air

EDIT 1: I changed Darling's Scene, mostly cause I didn't really like the previous one.

Whoopeee! Most (Keyword, most, some elements I might pick back up) of this isn't canon to the story btw, my timeline is already six billion ways of screwed and it does not need this stuff added onto the contradictions.

WARNING! There is a litany of M rated jokes from May's section and some implications (though its non graphic), some references in Ozzy and crew's section, and some fairly intense stuff in Mercury's section. Just thought to let ya know.

---

Roses are red,

Violets are blue,

Today's the day,

To say I Love You

---

"Jaune." Talos and Jaune were visiting Argus. It was partially because they were in town, but it was also because Saphron needed someone to babysit Adrian while she and Terra were out on a date.

"Yea?" Jaune, currently without any armor, was playing with some blocks with Adrian. He noticed that the blocks had their edges sanded, then remembered when Saphron went through a bit of a safety-freak phase when the little guy was born. If it had been a year or so ago, then Jaune probably wouldn't have been allowed to enter her house without covering all of his armor with safety foam.

"Can we partake in this human tradition?" Talos awkwardly held a tablet, showing a scene in a romcom where the characters were making chocolate.

"Uh, Talos? I don't think it's a tradi-"

"Can we partake in this human tradition?" Talos stared Jaune in the eyes while Jaune stared Talos in the eye.

"Alright then!" Jaune shrugged and got up, spooking Adrian a bit, then making him laugh at the sudden movement.

Anyways, it was a good thing that the Cotta-Arc household was always well stocked with materials. The paranoid bit in Jaune's head said it made the place more appealing as a long term disaster shelter. Add the huntsmen grade furniture (Saphron wanted long lasting stuff) and it became a small fortress. Shaking those thoughts off, Jaune got to work making chocolates with Talos.

In specific, the characters were making heart shaped chocolate cookies.

"Jaune." Talos spoke impassively, but the knight could tell he was going to ask something. "What is this Valentine's day that is spoken of?"

"Well, it's a holiday, a sort of celebration that's had by people all over."

"Why?"

"I dunno." Jaune knew the tale of Giving Day, but Valentines? The origins were less important than the contemporary practices. "It's mostly about romance and stuff, but a lot of people just like celebrating relationships in general."

"What is that?" Ah, Talos was following the 'keep asking' principle, developed by the high intellectuals of preschool.

"Romantic relationships are a specific form of connection centered around mutual romantic love. It's hard to describe, but I guess it's the feeling of constantly wanting to be with someone?" Jaune took a sip of water.

"Ah, like I am to you?"

"PFFFFFT!" And then immediately spat it out. "Uhhhhhhhh-" Well, this was awkward! "-hhhhhhh, well, hmmmm." Jaune was stumped. "Maybe?" Jaune really didn't know how to answer that.

"Hmmm, curious." Talos got back to introducing the wet ingredients to the dry ones. "I sometimes wonder, what my life will be."

"Yea?" That was fairly standard.

"My lifespan, I mean. I am a Grimm, an ageless being that only knows growth. Yet, at the same time, I am distinctly human. Will I lose this light in me that is my life? Or will I grow eternal in mind and memory? Will I forget you?" Talos considered each word carefully, pausing and continuing every few words, his movements slowed.

"Hey, hey, look-" Jaune wrapped an arm around Talos, a somber smile on his face. "-I get those worries, really, it haunts me constantly. You want to know my fix?" Talos nodded. "I just enjoy life. If you don't want to forget me, Talos, then we're just going to have to spend a lot of time together, alright?"

"... Yes, I find that an acceptable outcome."

"Alright, man. We'll tackle the future as it comes. But right now? We got to make these cookies."

"Of course."

They ended up tasting pretty good, sweet with just enough bitterness to add complexity without completely ruining the taste.

---

"Hey Albus, know what I got?" Amber casually walked up to her horse, concealing something behind her back. The horse in question let out a curious noise, tilting her head forward to see what her rider was hiding. She smiled wide as she pulled out a heart shaped box of chocolates. "Yep! Got these, apparently horses can eat 'em!"

"Neigh."

"And well, you're that special lady in my life, so I thought I'd get some for you." A pause. "God I'm lonely."

"Neigh."

"Yea, I know it's cause of the Maiden powers and stuff, doesn't make it any less true." Amber sighed, massaging her temples as she did. "We-" She was interrupted by the sounds of Albus eating the chocolates. "Oh, do you like 'em?"

"Neigh." An appreciative one, this time.

"Awww, thanks Albus." She paused, looking around the small patch of forest around her. It was snowy still, which made the scene of the lonely woman with her horse sadder than it already was. "Man, I wish it was fall still." She reached out her hands, the tips of her fingers reaching out towards the ever distant trees.

She might've been imagining it, but she could feel them. All of them. All of their hearts beating as one as their blood-filled veins were hooked in her hands. Every pulse, every skipped beat, and every hastened step filled her ears.

She pulled on it, not with her hand, but with the power within her. And in an instant, the scene around her changed. The seasons themselves shifted. Snow melted, giving way for fresh grass covered in a morning dew. Leaves sprouted from branches, creating new shade on the ground. Plants of every shape and color sprouted from the ground, coloring her vision.

Albus jumped in shock, even he could sense something miraculous was happening here.

But, just as she made life sprout from a dead patch of land, she brought fall once more. The leaves turned into vibrant shades of orange and red before falling to the ground, leaving the branches barren. The flowers and small plants all died, and snow fell once more to blanket the entire area in a soft white sheet.

"Neigh."

"Yea, it was beautiful while it lasted."

---

"Heya Ice Queen, ready to head out?" Qrow Branwen was not a romance starved man. Ok, fine, he really was. The last time he remembered having a date was in senior year of Beacon. Since he graduated, he's been busy as a huntsman, Ozpin's agent, Taiyang's friend, and the brats' uncle. So, when he suddenly had free time on Valentine's (Glynda forced Ozpin to lessen Qrow's workload out of both genuine concern and also because she wanted a night off to have a date with a certain someone), he didn't really know what to do. So, he called up the one woman he definitely knew wouldn't want anything to do with him and asked her out on a date. Surprisingly, it worked.

"Do you really have to wear that?" Winter Schnee wasn't one for grand romantic gestures. It wasn't that she was cold all the time(Qrow begged to differ, but Qrow could eat himself for all she cared), it was just that she preferred more subtle nods. A loving touch, a warm smile, or a brief kiss were her love language. Among friends, she preferred to express her affection in ways like making sure they took care of themselves and expressing her concerns. This garnered her the reputation as a cruel taskmaster, though she had no idea why that was the case (the cadets who pissed themselves at the prospect of being under her command would beg to differ, if it weren't for the fact they had excused themselves to clean their soiled garments). Anyways, this left her alone on Valentine's day while the rest of her unit had their own dates. So, when Qrow asked her out, she saw no reason to say no.

Well, besides the fact that he was a weird, drunk, and very crass asshole with a propensity for pushing all of her buttons so hard that the wires underneath short circuited from all the grease that oozed from his fingers.

"Hey! It looks good." Qrow defended his choice of clothing, a simple white shirt that exposed his scarred and well built chest.

"In comparison to anything else you have in your closet, perhaps." Winter pulled out a handkerchief to wipe the doorbell that Qrow had rung, much to his slight irritation and her secret delight. He rolled his eyes and put on a tie and coat, which he took off just for the sake of looking 'rugged'.

Anyways, even if she was no longer the recipient of a single lien from Jacques, Winter was paid fairly well as a Specialist. And if she was going to be on a date, even with a perpetually drunk/hungover oaf, she was going to do it right.

"Woah, Ice Queen, this really isn't necessary." Qrow blanched as he looked up at the luxurious diner.

"Yes, it is." Winter wasn't one for dresses, so she wore a simple three piece suit. She also let her hair down, combed it straight, and put on some makeup.

She wasn't looking forward to having dinner alone as opposed to doing some of her work early (despite Ironwood insisting she take a break), she swore.

"Ah! Ms. Schnee, we have your seat over there." A waiter took their coats while another lead them to their seats, a simple table in the center. The chairs were well cushioned and the table itself didn't bear too many unnecessary pieces. It was an efficient, if a bit luxurious, presentation.

"Didn't think you'd pull out all the stops. What was that about me being a, how did you say it? Ah! A pig faced buffoon?" Qrow smirked as he sat casually in his chair, slightly irritating Winter with his horrible posture.

"Make no mistake, you are that. But, I am not a woman who deals in half measures. As a soldier, you do not leave things half-done. You go through all of your drills, you preform all necessary maintenance checks, and you put your all into your goals. To do otherwise would be an insult of the greatest measure." As the waiter appeared once more, Winter gave a brief look at the menu. She took half a second to decide on an appetizer, a quarter of a second to choose her main dish, and perhaps half a second to choose her drink of choice. She recited them all after a second of deliberation. She ended up ordering a bottle of wine. It wasn't like she was planning on drinking too much.

"I'll have, eh, uh, shit." Qrow at least had the decency to swear under his breath. "These, uh, how is this pronounced?" Qrow tilted the menu over to Winter.

"Are you sure?" Winter eyed the price tag. Qrow nodded. "Eis Lobster Bisque?" It was a bisque made with a special type of lobster only found in Solitanian waters known for the ice-like formations on its shell. Well, that and for being obscenely rare due to decades of overfishing.

"Got that." The waiter's pencil scribbled onto the notepad.

"And this, what's this?"

"Foie gras." Winter didn't even bother asking. She caught onto his plan.

"And for your drink?"

"Black ivory."

"Of course, we will get to that right away." The waiter walked away, leaving Winter to stare Qrow in the eye, who tried not to burst out giggling.

"No alcohol?" Winter's words were not what Qrow expected.

"Uh, yea?"

"Hmmm, I would've expected you to get drunk here. It seems rather in character for you to make a mockery out of something like this." Winter actually found herself smiling a bit, good for him. Even if it did cost several hundred lien.

"Well, I want to be sober tonight." She could take a good guess as to why.

"Hmph, well, we have quite a bit of time on our hands. So, do you have anything to entertain us with? Or shall I get to doing some of my work early?" Winter's hand reached for her pocket.

"Oh, I got something." Qrow pulled out a checkered brick, which unfolded to reveal itself as a personalized portable chess set, made of wood instead of cheap plastic.

"Very well." And so, they set up the game. "Do you play often?" He was white, she was black. It was fitting, in a sense. At least, it was when one looked past the surface.

"Yea, plenty of times. I do it so often that I think my nieces are sick of it." He gave out a low chuckle as he instantly moved. Winter, meanwhile, took more time to think on her actions. Should she move the knight? The bishop? Develop a pawn? She would've internally mocked him for his hastiness, as him simply throwing the game, but she found that he was actually blocking her efforts at every turn while setting up schemes of his own.

"Hmmm, I didn't take you for the type."

"Yea, nobody does." He didn't seem at all offended. Perhaps it was because she had said far more hurtful things to him. Perhaps he had dealt with such an assumption a million times before. Regardless, he continued to move.

"You play a good game."

"Have to." Qrow fiddled with his king as her fingers danced between her potential moves. "I think I've gotten pretty good over the years."

"Why is that? I didn't think your position would allow you to partake in slower games like these." Winter's head was primarily occupied by her game. She wasn't lying when she said she put all of her effort into whatever she did. Still, she devoted some of her attention to her conversation with him.

"Heh, I play it far more often than you'd think." Qrow had a distant look in his eyes before he visibly returned to reality. "I'd have to say chess is my favorite game." Another attempt at a gambit crushed, a slight scowl formed on Winter's lips.

"Truly?"

"Yea, it's in the logic. There's very little luck. I can knock over a piece or accidentally sneeze on the board, but I can't screw up more than that. It's one of the few games I can't blame my semblance for ruining. I move a knight and lose my queen? That's my fault. I screw up my opportunity for checkmate in three? That's my fault. I accidentally screw myself into checkmate? My fault."

"That-"

"Doesn't sound very comforting? Well, it is. It means that my losses are my own. If I am just predisposed to losing, what point is there playing the game at all. But in this? If I lose, it's my fault, there's room to improve, a lesson to be learned. Losing a game of cards because my semblance screwed the shuffle for me doesn't tell me anything except to stop playing. But if I get checkmated cause I was too stupid to realize the board was perfectly arranged by my opponent, then I know what to look out for." Qrow moved more and more, her plays stopped dead in their tracks. Neither of them had actually lost many of their pieces. A pawn or two, perhaps a knight and bishop, but nothing much else. It was like they were testing the waters.

"Hmmm. There is an operative I know." The one that trained her when she was just starting out. "He often grappled with a question like that. He has a semblance that changes probability as well, though his is more beneficial than yours. He told me that, in his youth, he struggled to reconcile his success with his semblance. He felt cheated, unworthy." She traded rooks with Qrow. "He told me that, later on, he was told that even if it wasn't from his own effort, it didn't mean his own accomplishments were tarnished. He still had to make an effort, it was just that his luck sweetened the rewards."

"Heh, doesn't sound very applicable."

"It isn't." She was just reminded, after all.

A pause was created as Qrow was given pause by a certain move. "Hmmm, and what are your thoughts of chess, Ice Queen?"

"Well, I don't really prefer it. In my experience, chess has been nothing but a tool of pseudo-intellectuals to prop themselves up with the aesthetic of logic instead of actually developing a rigorous and flexible mind. Plenty of men have attempted to court me with a game of chess, rattling off flowery language in an attempt to impress me with their esoteric trivia." She sighed in exasperation, boy were those tiring days.

"Yeesh, passive aggressive much?" Qrow took a sharp breath.

"Oh." She was being quite rude. "I apologize, that was not aimed towards you. It's merely my experience with many who claim to appreciate the game." Their food and drinks had arrived by then. Between their eating, they moved their pieces turn by turn, occasionally rinsing it all down with a sip of their respective beverages. "In fact, I think your appreciation for the game is quite the admirable trait."

"Really?"

"Yes, your ability to find saving graces from what I'd consider a curse is admirable. A weaker man would've crumbled immediately, resigning themselves to a life of disappointment. You've actually managed to claw up to a fairly happy life."

"Constant hangovers, nagging bosses, and grey hairs at 40?"

"You've lived to forty, that's an achievement for a hunter. Especially one with such a semblance. Especially one constantly in the field." She was met with a surprisingly good meal. She chose dishes she hadn't tried based off of the pictures. She was already in unknown territory, why not go the full way? It turned out that her choices actually complimented each other very well. "Plus, you have loving relationships with your family."

"Ra-"

"No, your teammate and your nieces. That family."

"Ah." Qrow couldn't find it in himself to deny any of that. "Well, when you put it like that, I guess you're right?"

"Of course I am." She took a look at the board, examining it closely. "And I believe that is checkmate."

"Ah, it is." He looked vaguely disappointed.

"Do not fret, I only barely managed to eke out a victory." Winter wasn't lying. Qrow was an exceptional player, but he was merely playing to distract his mind, relying on well honed instincts to make his moves. Meanwhile, Winter formulated dozens of plans and took a stab at predicting his moves as she considered her next motion. If they were playing a timed game, he would've won by time-out. "Anyways, it seems that our dinner is over."

"Oh yea." Qrow looked at his finished meal. "You know, it all kinda tasted like shit." He whispered, trying to avoid any of the staff hearing.

"Of course, you only ordered luxury foods." Winter gave him a deadpan look. It took a special type to truly appreciate those foods. And even then, they often admitted that there were better alternatives that were far less taxing on the wallet. "Anyways, let me call for the bill."

"Alright." Qrow stretched in his seat, yawning. "Man, even if it was kinda crappy, it being free made it taste a hundred times better."

"Who said anything about it being free?"

Qrow almost fell off his seat. Before he could answer, the waiter spoke up, carrying a receipt.

"Who will be paying?"

And before Qrow could get a word in otherwise, Winter spoke up. "The fine gentleman here, of course." She had such a natural smile as she said it as well. It looked odd on the usually dour woman, but Winter pulled it off regardless.

"Ah, yea. Uh, ok, one second." His foot tapped, but the carpet muffled it. "Oh, was that my fork? One second!" He jumped under the table and Winter's eyes twitched as she hard the flapping of wings.

"Oh no you don't." She picked up a knife and began deftly taking stabs at the now flying bird that emerged from the table.

They ended up receiving telling off from Ozpin and Ironwood respectively for the fuss they made. Both maintained the stance that the other had started it. When both asked their subordinate of the quality of the date, neither denied enjoying themselves.

---

Two figures were curled up in a blanket while leaning against each other. It was Jaune and Darling, both of them in casual clothes under the heavy piece of cloth. Darling wore a nightgown while Jaune wore his pajamas.

"Hmm, you never cease to amaze." Darling gave another passing look towards Jaune's sleepwear, trying to hide her amused snort.

"Hmm?" Jaune was a bit distracted, the two of them were spending the night playing some games. The two visited the Arc household for Valentine's, mostly because they were around, only to find the house mostly empty for the night. Mom and dad were out on a date night, Sable had a night shift, Coral was in Vale for a convention, and the rest were busy with their normal lives. So, the two settled down in the house to have a nice day for themselves.

It ended up with them cuddling on the couch as they played video games, mostly as a compromise because Jaune had already bankrupted himself gambling with Darling and he wasn't about to lose his aura. Darling was the one who insisted on the cuddling, though Jaune really didn't mind. The luck goddess was as fickle as unstable fire dust and he was simply numbed to her whims.

Darling simply enjoyed the luxury of embracing someone she cared about while it lasted.

"Hey Darling?"

"Yes Dear?" Another moniker? At least she wasn't blatantly admitting his role in her eyes (a constant stream of entertainment).

"How do your domains work, exactly?" She was the goddess of luck and entertainment, among other things, but her own powers seemed rather nebulous. Was she a representation of the concepts? Or was she simply a spirit rooted in the concepts that grew powerful enough to be considered a deity?

"Hmm, well I've told you this already but I have no say over luck itself. I am simply the face of my nature. Unpredictable fates are woven into my very core. As for entertainment and gambling? You could say those are elective domains."

"Eh." What.

"What? I'm a spirit of luck first and foremost! When I was thrust into the world of humans, I was a being of chaos. After all, what is luck if not the spanner in everyone's works? Eventually I grew from being an agent of luck to being the face of it. I eventually settled on a human construct I deemed entertaining: Gambling. I have no control over gambling, it is simply that I've twisted my identity with gambling to the point where I am part game."

"..." Jaune tried to understand that, tried twice, tried rebooting the system and re-installing the software, and tried one more time before simply giving up. "Ok. Well, how is it being a god?"

"Sometimes it's quite dull. You know, most of us gods are actually simple at our core. We have a nature. I am chaos, luck made manifest. The dragons are creation and destruction. There are gods made of fire, of ice, of disease, of eyes. We are, at our core, very simple. But we're also born intelligent. And it's quite boring for intelligent beings to be a single thing. So, we add more. The dragons became gods of their worlds, becoming architects with endless ambition and time. The god of flames became infatuated with the concept of rage. And as I told you before, I changed from chaos to games." She gave a bittersweet smile. "You know, I truly am happy that I didn't become like the dragons, that I didn't distance myself from the ground."

"Why?"

"Because I met you." Darling's smile grew a bit wider when Jaune's character died, his controller dropped in shock. "Is it truly so surprising, Jaune? I am someone who appreciates struggle and risk. And you? Well you're a fountain for that." The knight quickly relaxed, it was just Darling being Darling. "But beyond that, I do truly love you. Though you are often quite exasperated with my whims, I can never fail to find a moment where you look at me with kindness. I know you take issue with my callous ways, but I hope you appreciate me regardless." Left unsaid was the melancholy Darling felt over the knowledge that Jaune was mortal. Soon, he would be in the Violet Drake's domain. "I know I rarely say this, but thank you, for wasting your limited time on a timeless being like me."

"..." Jaune held Darling a bit closer, she didn't mind at all.

---

"Chinga tu madre, pinche estupido." One teenage Maria Calavera sat across from one teenage Raiden. They were currently at a cafe.

"You can go shove your farming implements up your unwiped ass." Raiden wasn't any friendlier.

As for why the two of them, notorious for hating each other to the point of constant sparring, were having a drink together was fairly complicated. Actually, it wasn't. It was very simple. Maria's team dared her to give him chocolate while Raiden's dared him to invite her on a date. And it just so happened to be Valentine's. Anyways, after Raiden extended the invitation, he prepared to be rejected and to get the whole thing over with.

Except-

"Awww, guey here can't get a date. How pathetic, but I'm sorry, I'm just swamped with invites."

She hit his pride. And then things escalated.

"You? You couldn't woo your way out of a paper basket."

"Oh!? We-"

Yea, things didn't go very well.

Anyways, now they were together on a date. Both of their teams were subtly (from very far away with telescopes, they knew how hot-headed their teammates could get when nearby each other) watching the two of them as they traded barbs.

"Why are we even here? I should be having the time of my life while we're young!" Maria gripped her cup of coffee so hard that the barista was scared she'd shatter the cup. "And you should, well, this is probably the best you'll get."

"What time of your life? Last time I checked you were found wearing scraps of clothing in the woods and covered in Grimm dust."

"That was one time! One blasted time! And you never let it go!" It was months ago for the love of it! It was summer, it was hot, and she needed some practice.

"Yea, one time. That's enough. You're lucky I had the grace not to mention that happening."

"Yea, thanks for that by the way. Too bad those other putas on team GRDN couldn't keep their mouth shut when they saw us walking back together." He lent her his shirt when they did. Anyways, that was the starter of a thousand rumors and also a major factor as to why they increased their hostilities towards each other.

"It's too bad I can't turn my blade against them."

"Cause they're women?" Raiden seemed to be the type to hold outdated values like that. Century long wars had a habit of killing certain prejudices. They also had a habit of exacerbating others.

"No, cause my partner is betting on me cutting them apart. And I am not giving him the satisfaction of winning." Raiden gave a stubborn huff before opening up the small pudding cup and spooning out its sweet contents. "I still can't get used to these things." He looked down on the cheap sweet with a suspicious look.

"Alright ya geezer." Maria threw a fork that expertly slammed into Raiden's middle finger just as he raised it. "Hah! My semblance comes in handy yet again!"

"It's bullshit, I swear."

"Awwwwww. To make it up to you, I'll tell you the winning lottery numbers." That got Raiden's ears to perk up. "They're 56102." The swordsman immediately got up to try and buy a ticket, only to freeze as she turned up the volume on a nearby radio.

"And the winning numbers are 56102!"

"Witch." Raiden spoke the word with venom as he sat down with a scowl.

"Look, as much as I'd like to say I can see the future, I can really only see a general possibility, no telling what's correct." She finished her coffee, finding it servicable if a tad sweet. It was obviously nothing to her own blend, but that was also a pain to make "Plus, you should shake off your gambling addiction." She paused. "And also your nicotine addiction. And your rampant alcoholism. And your tendency to leer-"

"Oh shut it!" Raiden sighed as his fingers twitched for a cigarette with the reminder. He'd just burnt up his savings from some part time jobs and was currently in a compounded withdrawl.

"Sometimes I think you only got aura to avoid liver, lung, and wallet failure." She asked for the waitress to come over and ordered some more coffee.

He looked as she dipped some caramel chocolates into her hot beverage. "Why do you do that"

"It tastes good." She was given an odd look by Raiden. "Oh, shut it, you lush."

"Say that as you chug coffee with as much fervor as I do on a bender."

"Hey! Coffee makes the mind alert and the body ready. What do your drugs do? Huh? Make you sloppy?"

"And yet I still trounce you in spars." Raiden spoke offhandedly as Maria was just beginning to go on a rant about the pleasures of coffee. She stopped as soon as she heard the words.

"Those don't count! Your semblance is BULLSHIT!" Maria crossed her arms. For all of Raiden's faults (And there were so many, as she often reminded him), he was the undisputed top fighter in the year. That had less to do with his skill (though he'd argue with her over that endlessly) and more so with his power to simply turn into lightning and smack the opponent out of the ring in less than a second. Due to his relative inexperience and lack of a need to cultivate his talents, he couldn't do more than a rigid blitz forward in his electrical form, but he didn't need to steer if he could just turn back to flesh and blood before adjusting for aim.

Either that or paralyze with a touch.

"Says the omniscient." She was actually the only one in the year who could last longer than a minute against Raiden's 'Blue Bolt Blitz,' as he called it (she teased him a lot over the name). Her semblance, her tendency to enrage him enough to actually forgo his powers, and the relative inflexibility of his powers were the reasons why.

"Clairvoyant." Seriously, for wearing such dignified kabuto armor and wielding expensive blades, he was surprisingly bad with words. Everyone knew a soldier wearing shining armor more likely spent their days in schools instead of training for service.

"Yea, yea, whatever." Raiden sighed as his throat continued to cry for alcohol, his fingers twitched, and he felt the compulsive need to go to his favorite pachinko place. As he finished his pudding and she finished her second cup of coffee, the samurai spoke. "I hope you die first." It was a grim bet their year took, of who'd die in service. There were no illusions as to the deadly nature of their future careers.

"I hope you die in the most embarrassing way possible." After being raised in the war, their hesitance to discuss death was eradicated.

They left that 'date' mutually itching for their next spar so they could attempt to humiliate the other in front of their classmates.

(So many years later...)

An old man gets onto a boat, his bones and the wood creaking with age. His skin is wrinkled and worn, his eyes both dull and sharp, his body thin from starvation and scarred from battle. He wore simple clothes rife with stitches from repairs, some of them weren't even done by him. He smiled as he looked at the odd patch of pink cloth sewn into his rags, that kid really softened him up, didn't he?

The old woman in the boat stirs herself awake, prosthetic eyes slowly beginning to glow, light reaching out and sending signals into her head.

Two pairs of eyes meet after so long.

"Raiden." Maria spoke first, absolutely shocked. She had heard from the young knight that the old bastard was alive but she couldn't believe it. She didn't dare to believe it. They hadn't parted on the best terms, they never really were on the best terms, but to hear that someone still lived, someone who knew her, someone that proved that she still existed. It was a hope she never thought she'd feel.

And now he was in front of her, alive still.

"Maria." He spoke without the youthful and impulsive rage that lied beneath his voice decades before. Now, his voice was just tired. No more grandstanding, no more condescension, nothing but experience and nostalgia. He actually managed a smirk, something she never saw before unless he was beating the ever living hell out of someone in a fight. "I suppose neither of us won those bets." He chuckled lowly, his throat rumbling.

"You still remember those?" Maria gave a subdued smile. Seeing Raiden brought so many memories. Of her team, of her family, of her friends, of her adventures, of her youth, and also of Raiden himself. "Man, I wonder what they'd say, looking down at us from heaven."

"They'd probably laugh and insist we kiss already. Bastards never got the hint, I suppose." Raiden shrugged, his young profanity being rekindled as old instincts were shaken of their decades of dust. "And what have you been doing, Ms. Grimm Reaper?" Raiden barely managed to stifle a chuckle. "And you said my chosen name was bad."

"Oh shut it." Maria rolled her eyes (how she did that without pupils was a mystery to Raiden). "Still better than yours, Blue Bolt." She verbally jabbed with about as much ferocity as a defanged pup.

"Hardy har har. I still think Lightning Shogun is a stupid name." He rolled his eyes. "I'm a fighter, not a commander. nor am I a statesman. The man who entrusts me with the burden of command can go stick my blade up his own ass."

The two sat in silence after their brief exchange, simply soaking in the atmosphere.

"So, dead man, want to explain why I saw newspapers exclaim that the last of the Mistrali legends is dead oh so long ago?" She raised an eyebrow as she began to make her morning coffee after detaching the Shadeferry from the dock, letting it flow into the grander river stream.

"Shouldn't you start first, dying at 35?"

"Oh don't get me started on that." She grumbled a bit, still a tad angry over the fact that the newspapers decided to run with fabricated and exaggerated versions of her exploits. "I was ambushed, nothing serious. Whatabout you?" If Raiden was miffed she skimmed on all of the details, he didn't show it.

"Fine." Raiden rolled his eyes. "Someone's hunting the hunters."

"Like in the comics?" One of the few things they shared was a love of Valean comics, though it was rarely brought up.

"No, they're doing it for more malicious reasons. Years ago I was asked to go on a mission-"

"But I thought you answered to nobody?" Even in his older years, he kept quite a bit of his arrogance. He didn't take orders, nor did he really stay anywhere. He'd show up out of nowhere, beat whatever problems existed into submission, and leave swiftly after.

"I only answered because a dear friend was the requesting party." She raised an eyebrow. "Leonardo."

"Ah! Our junior!" She smiled at the memory. There was an attempt to get the 4th years to try and teach the new bloods at combat schools around Mistral. Due to some grave miscalculation, the two of them were placed together as they went to Argus to teach. Anyways, they met a promising fighter there by the name of Leonardo Lionheart. A brave and smart combatant who rose to the top under their careful teaching. "Wait, but what does this have to do with you-"

"I answered his call and went to the location the details held. Waiting there was an ambush of two men and a small horde of compliant Grimm." Maria gasped, old painful memories flashed through her mind. "I died.

"But-"

"I put up a good fight, managed to seriously injure them both, but there was just too many Grimm. I was overwhelmed. So, I died." Raiden wasn't joking.

"Then how did y-"

"A long time ago, I learned of a Mistrali art by the name of Sheep Gaze. It's practiced by a roving band of bandits by the name of the Branwens. On my journeys I had a small battle with them. My performance of slaughtering half their numbers convinced them of my strength and thus, my virtue. So, they welcomed me in and taught me some of their tricks." A scowl formed on Maria's lips. "Hush, I immediately began to fight once their guard was down. They barely got away."

"So you were behind the decimation." She wasn't a bloodthirsty woman, but she wished he finished the job.

"Yes, but that was a long time ago. Anyways, the concept of muffling my presence had since become quite the fascinating subject. The technique allowed me to not betray the fact I had spent the previous night drunk out of my mind." Maria sighed, of course Raiden used it for that. "Anyways, I thought of expanding it. Maybe I could go so far as to not only reduce my auric presence to that of a small flower, but to simply make it disappear entirely."

"W-wait-" Maria was shocked.

"Yes, I learned how to fake my own death. And that's why I was dead, so to speak. My mangled corpse was taken in, records were written, and I was slated to be burned." He shifted his clothes to reveal his torso, horribly scarred with burn marks. "I almost truly died that day. Except, as I was shipped away on a burning boat for my funeral, I awoke. My long since dormant aura made my heart beat and the rest came swiftly after."

"Wait, but how would the assassins know-"

"Where I was?" Maria pouted with the constant interruptions. "Sorry." He at least had the decency to look ashamed. But with that question came the immediate and obvious answer. "And yes, I believe Lionheart is a traitor. There is simply no other possibility. He gave me the details orally, it was in a secluded location, and they weren't shocked to see me." Maria looked stunned and pained. "Yes, Maria, I am quite disappointed as well." His tone and eyes were sorrowful, but vengeful determination overpowered disappointment. "At first, I left to Vale, seeking to escape my own failures and death. Too many recognized me here."

"And then you met the blonde idiota."

"Ah, I see you met him." Raiden actually bore a genuine smile at the reveal. "I'm not proud of a lot, but I am of him."

"Good, at least now you can die happy with a successor." Raiden actually laughed at the joke.

"Perhaps, I still want to do something, you know."

"Oh? What's next?"

"Killing Lionheart, his assassins, and whoever their master is."

"Raiden, are you sure?" Maria, contrary to what the ronin thought her reaction would be, didn't seem shocked or appalled at the idea. Instead, she looked mournful. "This path is one filled with nothing but pain." On her end, she knew that he was going down a dark road if he was to begin fighting her, even if it wasn't on purpose.

"Yes, I am. If there's one thing teaching that idiot reminded me, it's that there's still a future past us. We have a duty to our children, even if they aren't ours by our blood. We took that oath, didn't we? To plant seeds into the earth, to clear the skies, to tend to the fire-"

"-To fight the shadows, to prepare the banquet, to give our all, all of it-"

"For a bright future, no matter how far away it is, even if we cannot sit and bask in its radiant glow." The promises they made, they were the last to say them. The future generations skipped those in favor of one more focused on justice, something more uplifting. Raiden graciously accepted an extended cup of coffee from Maria, slightly enjoying the bitter flavor. "And I'll be damned if I let Lionheart lead one more child to their death."

Maria sighed as she stared into the resolute eyes of her old friend. His anger was honed now, less wild, but a thousand times more deadly. "I swear, if the next time we see each other you've somehow dragged yourself into more trouble than you can chew, I'll slap you."

"Heh, there's the witch I know." Maria lightly scowled at the derogatory nickname. "Anyways, I forgot to give you these so long ago." He rummaged through his cloak before pulling out a small box of chocolates, luxury brand. "Happy Valentine's Day, Maria."

She smiled, even in her old age she could appreciate sweets like those. As she opened it up to see it was filled entirely with caramel stuffed chocolates, she smiled. "Ah you remembered."

"Of course, easier to remember details when our year is down to two."

"Zero, according to everyone else."

"Well, as long as I don't bring up the fact that you look better without your eyes, I think that number will remain false." Maria paused in her action as she heard what he said. "I said that out loud, didn't I?" She nodded. "You're going to try and beat me up, aren't you?" She nodded. "And I'm going to beat you soundly, aren't I?"

"Ye-hey! What are you implying, old man?"

"Only that you haven't gotten better at age, Calavera."

"Oh it's on!" She gripped onto Life in preparation for an old person fight.

They ended up settling on a game of shogi instead.

---

"Hey, could you hand me that inscriber?" Oscar extended a hand and received not the smooth handle of his carving knife, but the sharp prick of its sharp point. "OUCH!" Truthfully, his aura prevented any bleeding, but it didn't prevent him from feeling pain. He shook his hand out of instinct while Jaune bashfully chuckled besides him.

It was Valentine's day and they were hanging out together, sitting on a stone table in a park. Jaune was around and Oscar was alone, so it was a perfect set up! Oscar definitely wasn't hoping that Jaune would stop by for Valentine's, no that would be silly. He was definitely just hanging out with a friend to make himself feel less lonely on such a romantic holiday. It was definitely just him coping with the fact he had gone every Valentine's day alone for the past three years in high school. He definitely didn't feel his heart burst when his friend of two years asked to hang out. (A part of him wondered why his excuses were sadder than the truth)

"Sorry!" Jaune's smile was brighter than all of the stars of the paladin constellation combined. His handsome face with the barest bit of stubble (Oscar always laughed when he complained about not being able to grow a beard) glowed under the afternoon sun. His-Oscar was offered the knife once more, Jaune properly holding it so he could take it by the handle.

"Thanks." Oscar muttered as he took the knife and began inscribing the clay. He'd found out that clay was the ideal conduit for magic. It was malleable, the clay he had wouldn't dry unless put in the oven, and it was able to hold extremely small details very well. On top of that, it was also very satisfying to carve into.

Currently, he had shaped the clay into a sphere (with a little help from his magic to make it just right) and was trying to make a projectile he could use for later. Ideally, it'd be something he could throw at high speeds like a baseball, which would transform in the air. To that end, he'd add a cushioning glyph, the magic provided going into a purposefully wasteful circuit to act as a minimum velocity of sorts. When the circuit was completed, it'd connect a large circuit loop containing his mana and the main function.

That last part was really the problem.

"Hey, Wiz?"

"Wiz?" Oscar tilted his head, that was a new one.

"Yea, Wiz! Your name is hard to make nicknames for, so I just chose something based on magic. Would you rather I say Magic Man?"

"Wiz it is."

"Alright! Well, what are you making?" Jaune wasn't exactly an expert in magic, that was more Oscar's thing. But, he understood it well enough if Oscar didn't replace every other word with a random spell name.

"Oh, a weapon." A pause. "I-It's not to kill someone!" Oscar sputtered as he realized the implications.

Jaune laughed at the notion of Oscar actually being driven to murder. Not because one of his best friends being backed into a corner like that was a sight he enjoyed, but because of the silly image of a cute chibi Oscar picking up a knife and shanking a guy. Oscar pouted at the laughter, to which Jaune explained in between his chuckles. "Sorry, sorry, it's nothing. You were saying?"

Oscar sighed. "Well, there's this story of a guy who fought the Grimm with rice. He threw it at them, where it'd then turn into weapons mid-air. I'm thinking of doing something like that with this ball." He pointed at it. "It'd be far easier to carry, easier to throw, and also rather unpredictable." He stared at the runes he inscribed so far. "I'm just thinking about the form it'll take midair."

"Hmmm, why not a sword?"

"Aerodynamics and balance. Plus, swords are for slashing. I was thinking a spear."

"But everyone can throw a spear! It's not everyday you see a flying sword!" Jaune said with a smile so confident Oscar was tempted to go along with it.

"Jaune, I can't just do things cause they're cool."

"But isn't this magic? Isn't the whole point to do cool stuff?" His childlike side was really showing. Yet, Oscar couldn't find it in himself to mind that much. "Weren't you starry eyed in the castle? When you saw all that stuff in there?"

"W-well, of course! It's just-It's just-" Oscar looked into Jaune's eyes, meeting his curious gaze. The farmhand sighed. "You know what, screw it. What about making it split up into a bunch of arrows?"

"Now we're talking!" Jaune's smile grew wider as Oscar got to work. It'd take a lot of prosthesis muscle glyphs in order to make the clay ball properly split up into a bunch of arrows.

As Oscar began carving, he decided to ask some questions. "Hey, Jaune?"

"Mhmm?" He hummed as he drank from his canteen.

"I have this friend." He didn't. He was still pretty lonely. "And he's kind of maybe sort of has a small little crush kind of on some other guy." Oscar was fumbling, what was he, a first year with a crush? "But he kind of sort of doesn't know if he actually like-likes him? You know what I mean?" He scratched the back of his head and thanked the Brothers that Jaune seemed to be extremely oblivious. He might've gotten the wrong idea otherwise (a part of him wondered how incorrect such an assumption would be).

"Hmmm, well I'm no expert on this stuff. How do they feel around him?"

"..." Despite a part of him insisting that he drop this line of questioning, he continued on. "Well, they feel comfortable. I've heard that love is like a tidal wave of attraction, but they simply feel good with them." Minus the moments when his heart began beating whenever his thoughts veered towards more risque areas, Jaune did make Oscar feel at ease. Though, that might've been because of the knight's friendly nature.

"... Ehhhh, I can't come up with anything." Jaune groaned as he set him head on his arms. "I'm not really the best when it comes to this stuff, you know? Love's just beyond me."

"Really? I thought someone like you would be experienced."

"You're not the first." Jaune sighed, turning around to let the table be his back support. "Why're you asking?"

"C-cause my frie-"

"I know you were talking about yourself, I'm not stupid." Jaune chuckled, muttering under his breath about his hair color before returning to the point. "Does Oscar have a crush~?" He leaned in with a teasing smile, causing the farmhand to blush at the sudden closeness.

"Y-yes." He admitted it with a voice barely louder than his own breathing, which had turned ragged and hastened. Jaune noticed and backed up, though a part of Oscar was disappointed at the fact.

"Well, don't feel pressured to tell me. And I'm pretty sure a good looking guy like you doesn't need help on charming others." Jaune leaned back and let his spine groan. Weeks of walking in the wild had left him tired, but not drained. "Oh yea, you're in your final year, right? Have you considered what you'll take as a job? Maybe archaeology?

The sudden shift in topic gave Oscar pause. "Uhhhh, Jaune?" A thought he considered so long ago was brought to the forefront. It was well thought out, the only thing left was to ask Jaune about it.

"Yea?"

"I-I do have an idea. I love auntie and farm work is fine, b-but I do want to do something else."

"Yea? That's great!" Jaune offered an encouraging thumbs up.

"I want to be with you." A pause, Jaune's arm didn't waver, but his face went still. "I want to travel with you. You come back every so often and bring me all sorts of things-" In his room, Oscar had a small collection of artifacts that Jaune happened to pick up. Stuff Oscar usually wouldn't be able to decipher (given that the inscriptions were too small and often fractured), but treasured because they were gifts. "-I want to come along. I want to help people. I want to learn more about the world. In those texts and from what you've told me, there's so much to learn and my arm! It's calling me, it's begging me to learn more and more and more!" Two minds, one beyond death and one far from it were in sync.

Jaune stared Oscar in the eye, silently admiring the stars present in one. In his passion, his eye patch had fallen, revealing that cosmic and beautiful eye. He sighed in defeat. "How could I say no? Well, it's been getting lonely. Plus, I need some help to wrangle Darling every once in a while. Just make sure your aunt knows where you're going, alright? Don't wanna make the same mistake I did."

"Alright!" Oscar pumped his fist, genuinely excited.

Jaune's instincts as a friend yelled at him for exposing someone he deeply cared about to such danger, but Jaune knew Oscar. He knew Oscar wasn't as good with a sword nor was the best with firearms, but he was cunning. He had a tool that essentially amounted to an infinitely versatile Semblance and he made the most of it. The only way he'd die on their journey was if Jaune fell first.

"You will need weapons, though, so let's see how well you're doing with those arrows!" Jaune picked up the clay ball, much to Oscar's surprise. They already had a hint of magic that activated the circuits, all that was left was to throw it.

"Ah, it's not-"

Jaune threw it.

The wind impacting its form fed into the cushioning glyph and as it expanded with excess energy, it connected the self consuming circuit filled with mana with the unpowered prosthesis muscle glyph. It took a lot of fine carving, but Oscar managed to find a way to separate the clay hunk into several arrows.

And it worked. The clay ball separated into several thin needle-like arrows that flew through the air and impacted the ground. A small volley of them hit, though they bent and flattened with the impact. They were still soft, after all. Perhaps a tele igni glyph to fast bake them mid-air? Or perhaps trust that the prosthesis glyphs would keep the baked clay from breaking upon transformation.

Anyways, they landed on the grass and created a heart shape, with some uncompleted words inside of it. Totally not a confession at all.

"Oh shit, was this the thing for your crush? Ah, crap, sorry." Oscar facepalmed. "Well, at least it works?"

"Yea, it does." Well, at least he'd have more opportunities to confirm his own feelings and express them in the times to come.

---

Saphron was utterly terrified.

She was not a hunter, she was not in some life or death scenario (though she'd dispute that), and she wasn't doing something incredibly risky. Still, she was mind-numbingly scared. Why? She was on a date with Terra Cotta.

Her first date with Terra Cotta. After months of preparation, Saphron had finally worked up the guts to ask out her crush, and despite her doubts saying otherwise, Terra said yes.

"Thank you again for the chocolates!" Saphron couldn't help but appreciate how good Terra looked. She was wearing those cute glasses of hers and that sweater and jeans that- "See something you like?" She spoke with an innocent tone but couldn't help but lean forward to look Saphron in the eye teasingly, causing the college student to recoil, her arms flailing in shock. Terra looked vaguely hurt by the motion, but didn't comment.

"Y-y-y-y-yea! It's no problem!" Saphron, eldest sister of 7, commonly called a second mother, the confident and cheery light of her friend group, was also a complete and utter nervous wreck when it came to romance. Who knew!? Apparently, giving a girl so much responsibility throughout her life lead to some other experiences being sacrificed. Experiences like dating! It wasn't that nobody liked her (she knew secondhand that quite a few found her attractive), it was just that she didn't have the time to go on dates. Between cleaning up the various messes the twins made, playing with Amber and Lavendar, or making sure Jaune didn't trip over a pebble and break his nose (Her little bro was so prone to misfortune that it was a joke Coral would never let him touch her phone, lest he taint her screen and ruin her gacha games) she just didn't have much time.

That is, until she moved for college.

"How are you acclimating to Argus? It's a bit old fashioned-" That was an understatement, the place looked positively ancient! Well, most of it. There was a noticable dissonance between the old Mistrali stonework that defined Argus' streets and buildings and the glowing and cleanly cut rigidness of Atlesian tech and buildings. Still, it was quite different from Ansel's well established foundation and aesthetic. "-but it's home!"

"It's nice! The coffee here is way better than home as well." Though, she only got a taste for coffee after having to continuously do all-nighters for iminently due papers. She chuckled guiltily at the thought and from the look Terra was giving her, she knew why Saphron brought up coffee. "Anyways, where do you want to go?"

"I thought you had a plan?

"..." Saphron wanted to jump off a bridge. A short bridge, one above a river, mostly to feel the rough and cool waters batter her side in order to numb her to the excruciating pain of that exchange. "W-well, yea I do!" Thankfully, she wasn't going into this without a plan. In fact, she had been planning this date for a long time. "I got some tickets to a game you were interested in!" She held out some tickets to some gaming tournament Jaune assured her Terra was looking forward to.

Argus was a hub for many things. Entertainment, hunter tournaments, and in this case, gaming.

"Huh?" Terra was certainly knocked off kilter. In a second, Saphron's hands met Terra's as her wide eyes scanned the tickets in the former's hands. "Ohmygodsthank you! They were all sold out and I was so sad I couldn't see it live!" She hugged Saphron so hard that she heard her back ache.

"No problem, now let's go!" Summoning some of her giddy enthusiasm (she was on a date with the most beautiful girl she knew!), Saphron and Terra took a tram to the tournament arena. Coincidentally, it was set in the local arena which usually was occupied by hunter training groups, small tournaments, or sports events. At the moment, it was where a large tournament was being held. There was a surprising amount of people coming to watch. Many seemed to be new to Argus, their general demeanor made them seem out of place.

Still, the line moved fairly quickly and they were soon allowed into the bleachers, where upon they took their seats. The actual battleground itself wasn't the center of attention, that would be the giant screens hanging from the roof of the arena. At the moment, they were just cycling through some clips of gameplay and team names, none of which Saphron could understand.

Look, she never had to learn about games other than the party ones the family would occasionally play (and collectively rage at). The internet provided more than enough people to play games with.

"Ooooh, this looks like a tough match. The Crete Bulls haven't had a good history on Twisters and the Mambas' sniper can do really good shots, even if the Bulls' support can fly. Well-" Terra continued to ramble on and on about the game, none of which Saphron understood. It seemed Terra noticed. "Don't know the teams?"

"Uhhh, more like I don't know the game at all." She awkwardly chuckled, way to break the ice! At least she didn't mention she didn't even know the name of the game being played.

"Oh, well that's no problem! The game's called Breachpoint, it started as a simulation for Atlesian special ops that turned into its own thing with characters with Semblances and all that sorta thing! It's set in the fictional kingdom of Core, which is the setting of a large war between two factions using hunter mercenaries as proxies." Saphron looked at Terra, wondering if she described a game or a thriller. "Of course, nobody cares about the story. It's a fun team shooter with unique characters and tactical gameplay. Competitive mode in particular focuses on teamwork and stuff and it's really cool!"

Saphron understood just enough to get that it was a team game, kind of like football.

"Well, let's see who wins." A vendor selling concessions came by, to which Saphron gave in to Terra's longing eyes and bought her some novelty treats that were wildly overpriced. Inbetween licks on the comically oversized lolipop, Terra asked a question.

"Why did you invite me here?" Saphron could only answer with a perplexed look. "I mean, here. You don't know about the game and you've never asked about this stuff before. So uh, how did you know? I'm really glad you got a ticket, don't get me wrong, it's just kinda weird, you know?"

"Oh!" It hit Saphron that she hadn't told Terra how she knew anything about her. "Well, uhh, I have a brother and he-well he actually thought up of what to say this time. I think it was, I'm playing support this time, Claymore, from ShieldGuy."

"Eh?" And then the dots connected. ShieldGuy was a person Terra played World of Imagis (a popular MMO) with, someone who in the recent weeks had been acting really weirdly. He asked stuff like her hobbies, interests, and for some reason her thoughts on girls (and was weirdly happy that she was a lesbian). And now it all made sense.

"Yea, he told me you wanted to see this but couldn't find any tickets, so I managed to find some." More like bleed her wallet dry to afford the scalped pieces of paper.

"Huh." For the sake of preserving Saphron's dignity, Terra didn't ask if she forced her brother to interrogate her on her interests. "Well, that makes a lot of sense." She chuckled a bit. "You know what, that's fine." Saphron seemed curious as to why Terra's mood had turned upside down. "It just means that I can act really cool when explaining all the stuff you don't know."

"Well, teach away, sensei!" And so she did. They spent the entire tournament talking to each other over the hype of the crowds, watching as the game progressed. Saphron slowly got a grip on the basic concepts of the game, though some things simply eluded her. At the end, they walked out of the arena satisfied and more than a bit exhausted. Saphron noticed that they had started holding hands somewhere along the way, eliciting a blush from her, which caused Terra to chuckle at the usually confident woman's shyness.

"You know, on our next date, maybe you can show me something you like? I love expositing as much as anyone, but it's not fun if my girlfriend doesn't drag me into things I don't know in turn."

"N-next date?" Saphron froze upon hearing those words. "G-girlfriend?"

"Huh? Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to-" Terra was interrupted by an excited squeal from Saphron, which elicited bemused stares from the other watchers as they left.

"Yes, yes, yes!" She paused, noticed that people were staring, and blushed so hard Terra was worried she'd catch a fever from the heat. "Sorry."

"It's alright." Terra smiled and pat her on the back as they walked off to get some dinner. Tonight, they'd forgo their usual instant noodles in favor of something more appropriate for the occasion.

---

"May, I'm pretty sur-"

"Shut up Jaune! I'm doing this!" Jaune was in Vacuo and decided to get May some Valentine's chocolates. Why did he do this? Well, it was mostly cause he was in town and the chocolates were on sale. Anyways, he went to Shade, actually got through it with minimal questioning, and found out where team BRNZ's dorm was. Then May told him she was allergic to chocolate.

Whoops!

Anyways, before he could eat them and get her a replacement, she took it for her own purposes.

AKA: She put them in the sand several miles away and decided to try shooting it as a test of her marksman skills.

Needless to say, they were going to be out there for a while. May was good at sniping, hell she was arguably one of the best shots Jaune ever knew. But even he had to admit that a tiny target miles away would be more than a challenge for her. She'd already wasted several clips and half an hour.

"You're scaring the sand critters." Jaune flicked at the back of the sniper's head, earning a scowl as she swatted away his hand.

"Be quiet, I'm trying to focus." She grumbled as another clip was emptied. She scrounged through her bag before pulling out a magazine with charred metal. "Alright, let's see what these can do!" Even if May was lying on the ground, using it to help stabilize Headhunter, the new ammo was just too powerful. The gun jumped back, making her aura flare as the shot flew out. Jaune could even see some small fragments break off as sparks, though the trajectory wasn't altered by the fact.

"What's with all the custom ammo?" Jaune decided to take a look through her bag, finding a variety of marked clips. He recognized her gravity dust ones and some others marked with explosion stickers, but couldn't make heads or tails on the others. These bullets seemed reloaded, already used once before.

"Eh, got bored. We have a ton of hollowpoint shells here, so when I had some free time I tried stuffing it with some fire dust. Turns out, I found a cheaper way to make dust rounds."

"Huh, sounds-"

"Really convenient? Yea, it is. They also misfire a bunch. Sometimes they detonate prematurely. It's a good thing my aura protects her internals." She smirked as she tapped on the sturdy hull of her firearm. Unfortuntely for her, the knock caused the bullet in the chamber to go off, making it veer off course and create a small cloud of sand in the distance. Jaune jumped at the noise, causing May to laugh. "Hah! Scaredy cat."

"Hey! I just can't get used to gunfire, alright? I'm not a trigger happy maniac that gets off to the sound of explosions."

"No kink shaming!" May flicked Jaune in the forehead, earning a splash of sand from him. "Blah!" Sand which she accidentally got in her mouth, which caused her to choke and accidentally fire once more.

"Oh shi-"

"Gah!" After a few more wheezes and some water provided by Jaune, she managed to clear her throat. "Screw you." She flipped the bird to Jaune, who raised his hands in defeat. "Look, Jaune, if you're ashamed about being a loser who uses swords instead of guns in order to feel like a real man, you could've just said so." She patronizingly pat him on the back, earning a playful scowl.

"Yea? Says the girl clearly compensating for something with a gun like that! I bet you're using it to make yourself feel better in more than one way." He stuck out his tongue, earning an aggressive growl from May.

"Oh look who's talkin', didn't you say you get real lonely out there in the wild? I can imagine you taking your precious family sword and experimenting a little." At this point, she wasn't even firing anymore, focusing entirely on bickering with Jaune.

"Yea? And why do I remember waking up when we were travelling together to hear you cry out 'More! More!' like a pure maiden!?" Jaune poked at a blushing May, who barked back.

"Oh? Did you enjoy the show? Closest you'll get to losing that V-Card." Now it was Jaune's turn to blush. "Maybe I'll take pity on you and let you touch mama's milkers." She pointed at her chest proudly, though her confidence chipped to reveal rage when Jaune merely scoffed.

"Calling me a virgin? Didn't you complain that you were 'drier than the desert in summer' and that team NDGO got all the action!?" They had forgone their prone positions in favor of getting up to yell in each others' face. "You probably wouldn't last a second against me!" He crossed his arms and smiled smugly, only infuriating her more.

"HUH!? I bet you'll be a one pump chump whose only saving grace is the savings from not having to buy rubbers cause your load's too small to do shit!"

Their faces were really close and the two of them were breathing heavily from their last declarations. Under the hot Vacuan sun, they stared into each other, neither making a move in fear that they'd lose their impromptu duel. A silent war of gazes, fidgets, and breaths was waged for all of two seconds. It ended when the both of them engaged in a passionate makeout session, partially powered by petulant peeves and part by pent up passion.

What happened next neither would say, but it ended with the both of them laying on top of that dune, sweating heavily. The sun was beginning to set and somehow, no Grimm had come by. Though, that was likely because of the positivity the both of them radiated.

"I still won," Jaune groaned weakly, hand over face as the sand below him soaked up his sweat.

"Fuck you." May wasn't much better, having expended most of her stamina in their 'fight.'

"You just did that." Even while fatigued, she managed to muster up enough energy to flip him off.

---

Ozpin often found himself in odd company. In his millions of years of living, he had found plenty of people he called friends. People he wanted to spend his life with. People he wanted to have drinks with. People he stuck with through thick and thin. People he wanted to die with, so he may embrace them in the afterlife. But the gods were cruel and that last wish could not be had. He had grown distant as of the past few dozen incarnations, never truly going out to make new friends, stewing in isolation. But in this body, Ozpin, he had found some a circle of friends he dare say he truly loved.

"So, Ozzy, gonna explain to us why we're here?" Qrow spoke first, fidgeting in the chair he had spent so much time as a student in, listening to Ozpin rant on and on about whatever interested him (it was preferable to being interrogated about whatever trouble he had caused recently).

"Well, James was in town." Ozpin pointed to the general, who simply raised his eyebrow in response.

"Yes, I was. But that doesn't explain anything." James was dressed up quite nicely. He had forsaken his usual military attire in favor of a formal suit, one that complimented his figure and made him look rather dashing.

"Indeed, sir, is something troubling you?" Glynda was also there. She was dressed up in a modest, but still beautiful dress. If she looked like she was in her early 30s despite actually being in her late 40s, then the dress made her appear even younger. He was tempted to tell Glynda that, just to make her a bit flustered, but decided not to, given how James was liable to flay him if he tried doing anything remotely flirtatious.

"No, I just wanted a night with my dear companions." Ozpin brought out three glasses and a bottle of well aged whiskey, a drink all three of them could appreciate. Though, he instead chose the path of coffee, pulling out a canteen of the brown ambrosia and sipping on it while the other three looked on with varying levels of disgust, amusement, and befuddlement. "Can I not have that?"

"Ozzy, it's Valentine's. I was going to have a nice date tonight!"

"Really, Qrow?" Glynda, despite considering herself the peacekeeper and most responsible of the four, couldn't pass up the cheap shot.

"Yea! I was all set and ready to watch my niece at her dance to make sure that fuckin' shitweasel didn't try anything!" Qrow cracked his knuckles and kicked back the glass he poured himself. "Ah, whatever. She could probably do it herself, may be in Signal, but she packs a mean right hook. Plus, I think she'd beat me up if I continued watching her like a hawk."

"I thought you were a crow." Ozpin merely smiled as Qrow flipped the Headmaster off.

"Ozpin, I consider you a close friend, but I do have a date tonight I really would like to get to." James went to get up, preparing to leave.

"What a coincidence, so do I." Glynda spoke with an even tone, even though Ozpin, Qrow, and the entire staff at Beacon knew she was giddy with joy at the prospect of finally having a date with Ironwood. It was just that none of them wanted to comment on it and cause her to revert to her disciplinarian ways.

"Sit down, sit down, I just thought it was a good time for me to tell a story." Ozpin calmly smiled, he noticed he never really let it fall recently. It was an easy expression, one that he rather liked.

"We're not 5 year olds." Qrow looked unimpressed with the reasoning.

"Not this again. What next, ask us what our favorite fairy tale is?" James wasn't either.

"Come now, do I really overuse that line so much?"

"Yes." All three of them spoke in unison.

"Hmph, well then perhaps none of you would like to hear about how I created Valentine's day?" That got them to pause. James and Glynda promptly sat down. While they could have a date any day, an opportunity like this was rare. Ozpin didn't like to dwell on his past. Often times, he simply couldn't remember, which was fair given that his memory encompassed millions of years. But something like this? Well, it'd be an interesting story at any rate. "Good, now let us begin with our tale. It all started so many years ago, it was yet another one of my incarnations. I was a woman this time. My host was a lovely one, young, beautiful, and determined. She was always looking for pleasure, in sweet foods, in pleasant smelling flowers, and indeed in people."

"Hoo, that girl sounds like she knows how to have fun!" Qrow chuckled, earning a roll of the eyes from Glynda and a disapproving look from James. Ozpin merely continued on, not minding the interruption.

"Well, this woman was one of the few to welcome me. She told me that if I were to consume her, that just meant she had more reason to seek pleasure in whatever place she could. So, as the day in which she'd die approached, she found herself perplexed. Above all else, she wanted to feel love. In her small village, all of her age and plenty below and above it looked at her with longing gazes, all of them wanted to be with her. The problem lied in choice, she couldn't choose. She loved each and every one of them as they loved her, but she didn't know who to choose to spend her final moments with.

"Thus, she concieved of a plan, with my guidance. A test. Each suitor would get her a small treat. The one she found the most pleasure in would be the one to accompany her. So, in the following days, people would come up to her and present all sorts of treats. Honeyed bread, caramel, candy rocks, one man even tried to make a whole cake for her! But none tickled that sweet tooth of hers. At least, until someone came up to her with a new treat. They were a sailor, who had learned an intricate process in order to make a somewhat brittle, but deliciously sweet treat: Chocolate. And so, my host and the sailor-"

"Had wild sex?" Qrow added the appropriate gesture, earning fiercer condemnation from Glynda and James for doing so. Ozpin merely rolled his eyes, clearly amused.

"Yes, Qrow. The sounds of pleasure they made kept the entire village up for the night and inspired many a suitor to try and replicate the miracle using the same recipe."

"... While this was indeed quite enlightening, I wonder why exactly you told us this."

"Oh, it was actually for your sake, Glynda. Well, for you and James. Qrow might find this useful as well, because what nobody but I realized was that the chocolate actually bore a secret ingredient, one that I fear the sailor accidentally put in. It increased their vigor in bed and let them last the entire night. It also drove my previous host to the peaks of esctasy." Glynda and James were blushing madly at the implication. "So, if you two would like to make the following night one to remember, please acquire some tiger genitals and consume them however you see fit."

He said it in such a plain and unconcerned manner that left all three occupants absolutely mortified. Qrow left first, jumping out a window to avoid the incoming disaster. Ozpin soon followed after Glynda accidentally tossed him out with a telekinesis enhanced slap of embarrassment.

James and Glynda would later find out that Ozpin was, in following with his usual behavior, pulling a practical joke on them. The only thing consuming tiger genitals did was leave a bad aftertaste in their mouths.

---

"What sort of dad teaches their son to seduce people?"

"The sort of dad that teaches their kid to be an assassin."

That was where a conversation between Jaune and Mercury went. It was Valentine's and they bumped into each other. So, they seized the moment and decided to hang out for the day. In observance to the day's holidays, their conversation veered towards a rather peculiar topic.

"Yea? I can't see it." Jaune gave Mercury a skeptical look, to which the former assassin scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Sorry! It's just that the whole abrasiveness and lack of social skills is really killing the charm."

"Hey! Look, my old man may've been a lot, but he was a damn good charmer. Seriously, when the hits were women, he'd just bring 'em to bed and then smother them in their sleep." Jaune looked mildly disturbed. "Yea, the murder's a bit of a mood killer, the point still stands!"

"Yea, whatever." Jaune rolled his eyes. "So, why don't we see your acting chops?"

"Eh?" Mercury paused and smoothly pivoted on his heel to face Jaune, only slightly cringing as his metal plated soles grinded against the pavement. "Really? Now?"

"Do you have a better idea? We've been walking around aimlessly for a while now."

"... Yea, why not?" Mercury shrugged, turned around to subtly steal a box of chocolates from a random pedestrian, and then hooked his foot behind Jaune's before pulling to make the knight trip. Wearing his heavy armor, he was unable to prevent his fall until Mercury caught him. "Hey there hot stuff, want to go somewhere private and have some fun with Merc?" And up close with an elevated heartbeat, Jaune saw what Mercury meant by seduction. He was even holding the chocolates tantalizingly close, though he kept it in Jaune's periphery in order to maintain his face as the center of attention.

"Woah," was all Jaune had to say as Mercury actually pulled Jaune back up. The swordsman found himself quite flustered, stammering over his next words before taking a few breaths and letting the blush dissipate. "Wow, that was something."

"Yea, taught charm. Hadn't had much of a chance to use it lately. It was liable to get my face shot to shreds."

"Anyways, are you going to return that chocolate?" Jaune gave Mercury a disapproving look as he was about to dig into his stolen goods.

Mercury rolled his eyes. "Alright, ya straight razor." He tossed the chocolate back to the pedestrian, actually managing to land it in their bag without making too much noise.

"Straight razor?" Jaune raised an eyebrow.

"Shut up! I don't know many sayings, alright?" Jaune threw his hands up in defeat, though Mercury didn't know what the hell he was doing (for the sake of his shreds of dignity, he decided to not ask). "Anyways, what did you think of my super charm?"

"Super? Ok, you were good, but not that good." Jaune was lying out of his ass. He had been very affected by Mercury's charms, but the assassin wasn't the only one with a problem admitting things.

Mercury huffed in frustration, his pride taking a hit from the insult. "Alright then! In that case, lets see how you fare against this!" And in a flash, Merc pulled Jaune into an alleyway and pinned the knight against the wall with a slam. They were roughly equal height, but Mercury managed to make himself look taller as he amplified his aura. "I didn't want to do this in public, can't be hanging around a guy huffing and puffing like the big bad wolf~" Mercury leaned forward and began whispering into Jaune's ear, his breath bending with the grooves of his ears and causing the knight to shiver.

"Merc, c'mon-" Jaune put up a feeble protest, which was completely shut down.

"Nah~" Mercury teasingly whispered, leaning in to let more breath tickle Jaune's skin. "I think I'm fine right here and I think you're fine with it too." Mercury was feeling Jaune up, lightly grazing wherever skin was shown with his hands while his knee lightly jerked against Jaune's lower body. "Isn't the weather nice?"

"Oh my-Merc, please! at least get some better dirty talk!" Jaune suddenly whimpered as Merc pressed a bit harder against Jaune.

"Oh?" And now Merc was a bit irritated. Jaune read enough Mistralian comics to know where this was going! "Don't like what you're hearing? Well why don't I say what I'm going to do with you when we get some time alone, how about it, Jaune? Don't you want to hear how daddy's-"

"Kinda weird how the guy with the horrible dad has a da-" Jaune was quickly shut up as Mercury's knee began pressing against his vials.

"-It's rude to interrupt. And daddy here is going to punish you later for that, got that? I'm going to leave you begging and crying for me to stop. And then we'll see how smart you are after I break you." Mercury's voice actually convinced Jaune that Mercury would do as he said.

"A-alright, Merc-" His leg pressed harder. "D-daddy! Please, daddy, I've learned my lesson." Jaune actually found himself enjoying this, it was rather thrilling. For the man who found himself wanting to run for the hills as often as he faced threats with a confident smirk, being dominated like this wasn't too bad. Wait, was he discovering a new kink?

Oh god, Darling now had a lot more ammunition against him, didn't she?

"Cool!" Merc immediately dropped the husky tone and threatening, but charming glare in favor of a casual smarmy smirk as he stepped back and let Jaune take a breath of fresh air. After basking in the satisfaction of proving himself right, he noticed Jaune seemed vaguely disappointed. "Huh? What's wrong?"

"Uhhh, well, I kinda thought we were going to, you know, continue." Jaune fiddled with his fingers, a bit nervous. He was clearly unexperienced.

Mercury saw a chance to further mess with Jaune and smirked. "Well, if you want to, then daddy's going to take care of you tonight. It's Valentine's, after all." Ignoring the fact that Mercury was as much of a virgin as Jaune. Marcus Black was a monster, but he wasn't exactly enough of a monster to let his underage son have sex, even for a mission. Instead, he had the targets murdered before Merc got close to doing anything.

Oh well, he'd figure it out as he went.

---

"You know, when you told me about Haven being stuffy, I didn't think it'd be this bad." Jaune Arc chafed in his ridiculously tight five piece suit. Seriously, this thing was ridiculous! It made him look like a retired idol that decided to go into the business as a bureaucrat.

"Well, you know the saying." Evident from Jaune's face, he didn't. "Whatever Beacon does, Haven tries to outdo with money, Atlas tries to outdo with discipline, and Shade doesn't bother. In the end, only Shade wins." Neptune picked up a flute glass of champagne and sipped from it. "Ah, now that's some good stuff."

Jaune also took a glass and decided to try it. "Bleh, kinda too sweet for me." He still drank it, of course.

"Doesn't your family own a winery?"

"Yea. We don't make champagne. Who drinks that stuff, anyways?"

"Pfft, alright you snob." Neptune rolled his eyes. "Just so you know, champagne is a wonderful drink for celebration. It's a sweet bubbly wine, the flavor of which covers up the taste of alcohol for those who don't want it while providing a light buzz for the ones who appreciate inebriation." He swirled his glass, which didn't really do much given how thin it was. "Plus, its presentation gets an A+, popping a champagne bottle is-" Neptune was interrupted by Jaune's snickering. "Hey!" The seaman's eye twitched in faux-irritation, which caused Jaune to burst out laughing even harder.

"S-s-s-sorry, but it's hard to take you seriously when you call me a snob and then go on a tangent like that!" Jaune chuckled some more, forcing down the rest of the champagne before putting exchanging it for a more pleasant glass of fruit punch. "Also, I thought Haven didn't allow alcohol?"

"Eh, it's circumstance. For stuff like these formal events, its expected. Plus, its civilian grade champagne, no hunter is going to get smashed with this unless they inject it into their veins. And even then, it won't do much except make their next visit to the blood bank very weird." Jaune nodded sagely, he knew better than most how differently alcohol worked for hunters. Before, having even a sip of wine was enough to get him slightly tipsy for a few hours. But now? The stuff at the winery was processed in seconds. Even if he got drunk, he wouldn't stay that way for very long, as his aura would kick his body into high gear to deal with the booze and reverse whatever damage it caused.

"Ah." They stood at the edge of the ballroom, staring into the center where students danced with each other. Besides students, Jaune saw several civilians. "Hmmm, who are those?" He pointed to them, curious.

"Just reps from the various hunter corps." Evident from his puzzled expression, Jaune had absolutely no clue what that meant. "Oh, yea, Valean. In Mistral, hunters join a corps. Every two or so years, contracts for protection of provinces are auctioned off to these corps, with the lowest bidder getting the job. Anyways, the corps then assign hunters to these contracted areas. They also auction off smaller scale contracts like scouting, bounties, horde clearing, and other stuff."

"Huh." Jaune found himself somewhat confused, why bother with all that anyways? "That sounds needlessly complicated. Plus, what about high risk areas? Hell, what about the bandit clans?" Jaune found himself thinking about the various raids he'd experienced as he visited towns.

"Yea. Those areas are almost never bought. Hunters are in high demand and no matter how high the pay, throwing them into bandit country is suicide. That's why those places are left alone." Neptune nonchalantly sipped his champagne. "Add onto that the recent shortage of Hunters and, well, the corps are making the least risky move."

"You know, I feel the sudden urge to smash this glass and leave." The stars in Jaune's eyes died out as the implications stacked on top of each other.

"Eh, you learn to live with it."

"..." Jaune turned to Neptune with a rather disgusted look. "Neptune, have you seen what's outside the walls?"

"Hmm?"

"Nep, this is fucked." Jaune lived an easy life, but even he could see the problems. Problems that someone as stubborn as he wouldn't let go of. "Like, seriously, it's screwed."

"... Yea?" Neptune seemed indifferent, but then he noticed the mortified look in Jaune's eye, to which the barrier broke. "Jaune, most of us aren't stupid, we know how bad it is. But what are the alternatives? The Kingdom's Emergency Corps? Where the pay is barely enough to afford repairs? And the council doesn't sell contracts to anyone but the corps. Most of us have high costs that simply can't be covered by generous donations. The only path forward is the corps. They pay well, they have free repairs, and all it costs is to ignore the outer ring." And below that indifference was a bitter knowledge that he had little choice.

"I-I-" Jaune sighed, he knew that he was being rather unfair to the hunters involved.

"Sun's from Vacuo, he knows how bad this stuff can be. Out there, its worse. If a town's having Grimm troubles and can't afford a hunter, or if a generous one doesn't show up, then it's gone." And context was given to how greatful people were when Jaune simply showed up and dealt with Grimm, never expecting more than a meal and bed. "Scarlet grew up on a boat that escaped a swarm that swallowed up an island on the south. Sage had to flee the east to avoid the great swarms lurking behind the curtains of sand."

"..." Jaune put down his drink to avoid breaking it with his grip.

"Jaune." No reply was given. "Jaune, Jaune I know enough about you to know what you're thinking. You will die if you try fixing this on your own. It's fucked, but it's not your sole responsibility to fix it. There are lots of people trying to fix it, there are independent corps that take the contracts in the outlands, there are groups trying to take down the corps as a whole. I know you want to help, but rushing into a suicidal blaze to protect the outlands is not going to help."

"..." The knight calmed down and let his muscles untense. A few people who noticed how worked up the stranger was getting calmed down, sensing his aura calm down. "I'm doing whatever I can." A new mission burned in Jaune; It was a cause, a reason to fight, an extension of his desire to help.

"Good, that sort of attitude makes you real stubborn, but sometimes that's what's needed. We just gotta keep on hacking and hacking away until finally, we change the world for the better. All of us, we just gotta do it." Neptune took a breath in relief as the situation calmed down. "Let's worry about that later, alright? For now, why don't we enjoy ourselves?"

Jaune rolled his eyes, that conversation was a bit of a mood killer.

"C'mon, follow me!" Neptune took Jaune's hand and suddenly dragged him to the dance floor. Currently, the music was rather loud party music for the students. As they were engulfed in the neon lights, Neptune began to dance while Jaune simply bobbed up and down a bit. "C'mon, you know you want to do it!" Jaune rolled his eyes, he was tapping his feet to the beat, and finally gave in to the momentum of the mood. He began to dance, immersing himself in the sea of wildly flailing limbs, wading gracefully in his own little bubble, garnering admiring looks from a few students for his moves.

Neptune shot Jaune a jealous look for the attention before stepping it up a notch, making the crowd part for the two to begin an impromptu dance-off.

The duel was a blur of motion and laughter, ending up with the both of them slammed against each other right as the music switched from blood pumpingly exciting to a classical waltz. Already in the position, Jaune and Neptune held each other hand in hand and began to dance as one.

"Never took a country bumpkin like you for the type to know ballroom dancing." Both Jaune and Neptune's feet moved smoothly across the floor where other stumbled and tripped, no movement wasted.

"Didn't think a rich kid would know how to dance like you did earlier."

"Eh, you learn things."

And so, they danced the night away. For Neptune, it was a brief respite from the mundanities of school, which itself was a period of preparation for the harsh world outside. For Jaune, it was but a small dip into calm waters before he had to brave the world with renewed vigor. When all was said and done, he'd march out with a sword in one hand and shield in another to protect the loved ones the holiday was about.

---

Happy Valentine's Day!

Man, I got way too into Merc's section. And I almost dove head first into outright smut. And for the last one? I, like, honestly I don't know how I turned a romantic thing into another fucking soapbox.

Also, for the next chapter, it'll either be that Neon one I promised or the voted one. Problem: The voting (Hand counted) went to about a 3 way tie for Penny, the Siege, and Mechs. So I'll just choose one of them and get them out as I can, then in the final one I'll put voting once more. As for a solid prediction, I'm probably going to do Penny first.