Chapter Warning/ Graphic Description of Violence and Drug Use

It wasn't Jaune's plan to develop feelings for Neptune. He'd quite frankly never thought he'd be able to feel this way for someone after Pyrrha, but here he was. His mind, no matter how busy and strung up, always defaulted back to one thing; Neptune. His soft blue hair, his deep blue eyes, his sharp jaw, the way his smile was always so warm and comforting, and most of all, his razor sharp intellect. Everything about him drove Jaune crazy.

He and Ruby reached the apex of Shade Academy, as they approached the office of the headmaster, Jaune felt a strange feeling rising in his gut. His mind reproached him for it, thinking about Neptune so much. It's not that his thoughts about him were bad, but with all the chaos that was inevitable to befall them, could he really afford to have these feelings for Neptune? He thought about Blake and Yang, how they'd found comfort in each other and finally realized how deep their feelings truly went in The Ever After.

But it isn't the same, he thought. They've had these feelings for each other forever, how can I equate what I'm feeling for Neptune to that? But why couldn't he? If they could move past their trauma and find love amidst a seemingly unwinnable war, so could he. Right?

Ruby's soft knocking on the headmaster's door snatched him from his thoughts. "One moment!" A loud voice called from the other side. "I'll be with you in just a moment!"

She and Jaune exchanged a look and waited a few moments before the door made a low click, followed by Headmaster Theodore opening the door. "Ah, Miss Rose, Mister Arc, please, do come in."

He gestured them into his large office, swinging around his desk and ushering them to both take a seat across from him in the plush seats facing toward him. "Headmaster Theodore," Ruby began, flattening her skirt under her as she took her seat. "Is everything okay? It seemed like you had something urgent to talk to us about."

"Is it about Salem?" Jaune questioned. "Tyrian?"

Theodore sat back in his seat and swiped his hand across his desk, activating a large holoscreen between them that mirrored them with pictures of both Tyrian and Mercury. "Tyrian Callows and Mercury Black," he said, placing a hand on the screen and swiping again to pull up another page of information. "They're here alright. They're here, and they've already made the first move."

Ruby looked at Jaune and Jaune back at Ruby. "First move? What do you mean? What's happened?"

He sighed. "Just a warning, these photos are, to say the least, graphic…" He swiped his hand again, the screen flipped to a picture of two dead bodies, badly mutilated and covered with blood, their entrails spilling out onto the ground where they lay.

Ruby gasped, placing a hand over her mouth with a wide-eyed look, and Jaune grimaced, feeling sick to his stomach. They both felt the urge to look away, and Ruby did for a moment before turning her attention back to assess the situation.

"Who were these people?" She insisted, still not quite looking at the photos all the way.

"Students," Theodore said, his voice low, and Jaune could tell that he was angry. "They were some of my best and most precious students. Frederick Dagon and Lydril Mastyrs, both members of team FLAR." He stood up, turning around to face the window, Jaune could see his sad look in his reflection and felt a pang of sadness in his own chest.

"Sir?" He hesitated. "Are you okay?"

Theodore sighed again before running his hand down his face and turning toward them again. "Yes, thank you," he said, taking his seat again. "It's just… I never thought I'd see these two die. And like this, no less. Listen, both of your teams are going to be set up on patrol duties, you can pick and choose your shifts, but we'll need extra security along the borders and in the most remote parts of the city."

"What about the military? General Schnee?" Ruby inquired.

"The good general is far too busy mastering her power as the winter maiden, she's already got what troops she can keeping watch," He said, swiping the screen and pulling up a large overview of the city. "We have support from Mistral and Vale too, but Vacuo is a big place, it's not just the city we have to keep an eye out in, it's the whole damn desert."

"So you think they could be hiding somewhere outside the city?" Jaune asked.

"Hm, it's a possibility, could explain why no one has caught wind of them, these pictures are the only thing we have so far. Taken less than twenty-four hours ago, that means they were definitely inside the city," He swiveled around in his chair, tapping his fingers on his desk. "But are they still here, and where?"

"What do you need us to do?"

He swiped his hand across the map, a few red dots popped up, scattered across the layout of the city. "These dots are locations of interest, places not often visited, isolated. Over the next few days, I'll need you and your teams patrolling some of these areas. You'll have to coordinate how you split the groups, but since your teams respectively have extensive experience outside the classroom, I figured you guys would be a good bet."

Jaune and Ruby exchanged another look before nodding. "You can count on us." Ruby asserted.

Theodore smiled at her warmly. "Good."

Neptune arrived at he and Sun's rendezvous point just a little after seeing Jaune and Ruby off. Sun had asked him to meet atop a rooftop overlooking a large part of Vacuo city. He's always had a thing for heights, Neptune thought, rolling his eyes a little. A shuffling came from behind him, and he turned around to his blonde-haired friend climbing over the ledge.

"Sun!" He said excitedly, running over and throwing his arms around his neck, pulling him into a deep embrace. He always hated when Sun would run off and disappear, leaving him to worry himself to death.

"Hey, Neps," he greeted, returning the hug and wrapping his monkey tail around Neptune's waist. "Sorry, I know I've been a bit AWOL."

Neptune pulled away and shot him a look. "A bit!? Sun, it's been a week. I was starting to worry that you might be dead or something."

"I know," he said, his voice low and quiet. "I'm sorry, but I had to."

Neptune didn't buy it. "No, Sun. I'm sick of this, dude, you always run off and leave us all behind to do your own thing. You never think about how the rest of your team feels about it, it's like you don't care how it affects us! What am I supposed to do if my best friend runs off and gets himself killed!? Do you know how much that would ruin me?" He scolded, tears forming in his eyes.

Sun's face softens a bit as he takes a step toward Neptune. "Hey, hey," he cooed, placing a firm hand on Neptune's shoulder and another softly on his cheek as he spoke. "What did I tell you when we became Team SSNN?"

"Sun–"

"What did I tell you, Neps?"

Neptune sighed, lowering his head and relaxing a bit in Sun's hands. "That you'd always come back to me."

"That I'd always come back to you." He confirmed.

Neptune raised his head to level his eyes with Sun's. "Sun, I just… I worry about you, dude."

"I know, you do," he said, pulling Neptune into his arms. "And I love you for it."

Neptune wrapped his arms around Sun's neck, nuzzling his face into his hair to inhale his scent. He's always loved the way Sun smelled, sweet like lilac and vanilla. Ever since they were kids, Sun and Neptune had always had each other's backs, best friends some days, lovers on others. It was no secret to Neptune that Sun was in love with him, they'd had moments of closeness more times than they could recount, but Neptune couldn't return those feelings. Or rather, he didn't want to. Not anymore.

It's not that Neptune didn't love him back in that way. Sun had a habit of running off, disappearing without saying so much as a word. He'd left Neptune hanging time and again for his own selfish agendas. Neptune loved Sun deeply too, he couldn't bare to see him get hurt, or worse, killed because he didn't know how to sit still. It's not like Neptune didn't understand why he was like that, of course.

Sun was complicated, he was layered. But he cared, and that's what really mattered to Neptune.

"Listen," Sun whispered. "I'm sorry, okay? I know I have a habit of up and leaving abruptly and unannounced."

"You think?" Neptune muttered, rolling his eyes.

"But Neps, I promise you I do it with good reason. I'm the leader of this team, that means there are some things that I just have to do on my own."

"That's not how being a team works, Sun. I'm supposed to be your partner, we're supposed to protect each other, to have each other's backs." Neptune snapped.

Sun looked a little hurt at the sudden change in his tone, sending a pang of guilt through Neptune's stomach. "Why do you think I called you here? What do you think I've been doing, Neptune? I've been trying to find out anything I can on Salem's goons, and I may have found something out. Just, please, hear me out." He pleaded, putting his hand together in a begging motion.

Neptune sighed, turning away from Sun and crossing his arms. "Fine," he said, turning back. "What have you found?"

Jaune and Ruby found their way back to Neptune's place after about an hour of sitting outside and discussing what Theodore had told them. Blake and Yang were sitting on the couch next to Nora watching some sort of drama on the TV, and Oscar sat cross-legged on the floor in front of them with Ren and Emerald. "Hey guys," Yang greeted them. "How was your little chat with Theodore?"

"Funny you should mention that," Ruby said, taking a seat next to Nora, while Jaune stayed relatively close to the door. "Where's Weiss? She should be here for this."

"I'm here, Ruby," came Weiss' voice from the kitchen, she peeked her head in from the other side of the bar. "Just grabbing a drink."

They waited for her to join them before briefing them about everything they were told. Theodore had sent out a list of coordinates to the respective members of their teams and the best times for them to patrol. He'd said not to overwork themselves, that there were plenty of other people working around the clock just as hard to find any answers.

"So that's it then?" Nora asked, looking over the points marked on the map of her scroll. "When exactly do we start these patrols?"

"Well, Theodore said not to overexert ourselves and only take on what we know we can handle, so it's really up to us," Jaune said. "We can start tomorrow night, we'll all have to split up and use the buddy system with our respective partners. Oscar, you and Emerald will go together."

Nora frowned at him. "What about you? Are we not going as a unit? You can't just go patrolling for them alone."

"He won't be," Neptune's voice called from behind them as he stepped in, kicking the front door closed behind him. "I'll go with you, Jaune. You can just fill me in on all the details later."

Jaune smiled at him warmly. "Thank you, Neptune, I appreciate it. So, now that we've all been briefed, what are we watching?"

Ruby sat up excitedly in her spot between Nora and Blake. "Horror movie marathon!" She squealed excitedly.

"I can get down with that." Blake said.

"Horror movies? Really?" Weiss whined.

"Oh, come on, Weiss! You know you love a good scare, besides we're finally all back together again, it's the best time for a cuddle puddle!" Ruby exclaimed.

"A… cuddle puddle?" Emerald questioned, tilting her head.

Ruby beamed at her, as did Nora and Yang. "Everyone! Floor time!" Nora thundered, shifting from the couch to the floor and jamming herself up against Ren, who scooted into Emerald, pushing her into Oscar. The rest of the group sitting on the couch joined them.

Emerald still looked a bit confused, but Jaune could tell she didn't mind being in proximity with her friends. After all, being around someone like Cinder definitely wasn't helping her in the physical affection department of friendship. Jaune made a face before shrugging it off and turning back to Neptune, smiling.

"Care to join?" He asked, reaching out his hand. Neptune looked at his hand, then back at him and smiled warmly, taking his hand and letting Jaune guide him around the couch and plopping onto the floor next to Oscar.

Ruby took the remote and pulled up a streaming service to find a good series of horror movies, and before long everyone was huddled closely together in fear. They watched closely as the woman in the movie approached a sketchy looking closet door, slowly reaching out to turn the handle.

"Don't go in there!" Ruby squealed, her eyes and forehead peeking out from halfway under the covers.

"You know she's gonna go in there." Yang warned.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" she shrieked as she opened the door, to find her friend's body laid up against the wall, lifeless. Ruby pulled the covers over her eyes and squealed once more, Weiss right alongside her. Blake and Yang were cuddled up tightly, as were Ren and Nora, who had drifted off to sleep.

They could never stay awake past the first act of any film anyway, Jaune thought with a smile. Oscar had drifted off to sleep too, that left Emerald, Yang, Blake, Ruby, Weiss, Neptune, and himself. Neptune laid sprawled out on the floor, his head resting on a pillow next to Jaune, who he would occasionally look up at and comment about the movie to. Somewhere down the line, Neptune's head found its way onto Jaune's thigh while his back rested on the pillow, Jaune didn't mind.

As the movie came to an end, most of the second half of the group had fallen asleep too. Neptune, Ruby, Blake, Yang, and Jaune were the only ones who remained awake and Yang was barely hanging on by a thread.

"Alright," she said, pushing herself to stand up. "I'm gonna head to my own bed now."

"Right behind you," Blake said as she stood too. "Goodnight everyone."

"Goodnight guys," Yang yawned as they disappeared down the hall into their guest room.

"Well, I guess we should probably call it too, then?" Ruby supposed, checking her scroll. "Geez, it's two in the morning already? Well, I'm off to sleep."

She got up and looked at Weiss before shrugging and walking off to her room. Neptune was still laying on Jaune's thigh as he sat cross-legged on the floor next to their friends, his eyes just barely open. He rolled over a bit to look up at Jaune who was looking down at him a bit too longingly,

"Hey," he said, reaching up to boop Jaune's nose, causing him to giggle. He'd seen that before somewhere. "I'm not tired. You want to go hang out in my room?"

Jaune's face reddened a little at that thought. "Y-your room?"

"Yes, Jauneathan, my room."

"Jauneathan? Really?" Jaune raised an amused eyebrow.

"I said what I said. Anyway, yes? No? Maybe so?"

Jaune let out a small laugh and booped him back. "Yes, Neptune. Yes, I would like to hang out with you in your room."

Neptune smiled up at him, rolling over and pushing himself up off the floor. He reached out his hand for Jaune to grab, which he did, and led him down the long hallway and into his bedroom. Jaune had never been in Neptune's room, not once since they all got settled in, but it sure was a sight. The room was a large room, with pale blue walls that held a couple of posters scattered around them, Jaune could recognize the poster of a popular band he'd heard of that read Last Resort. A large desk sat next to Neptune's king-sized bed which held his laptop and a few other trinkets.

The room was clean and smelled like Neptune. Fresh like a sea breeze, sweet like coconuts.

Neptune smiled up at him, rolling over and pushing himself up off the floor. He reached out his hand for Jaune to grab, which he did, and led him down the long hallway and into his bedroom. Jaune had never been in Neptune's room, not once since they all got settled in, but it sure was a sight. The room was a large room, with blue painted walls that held a couple of posters scattered around them, Jaune could recognize a popular band he'd heard of that read Last Resort. A large desk sat next to Neptune's king-sized bed which held his laptop and a few other trinkets.

The room was clean and smelled like Neptune. Fresh like a sea breeze, sweet like coconuts.

"Any recommendations?" Neptune asked, flipping between the channels before pulling up a movie app. "Drama? More horror? Maybe even a bit of romance?"

"Honestly, I'm okay with whatever you want."

Neptune looked at him, pouting. "Gonna leave the difficult decisions up to me, eh?"

Jaune shrugged at him. "Yep."

"I hate you, Jaune Arc." They said with a sigh.

"Lying now, are we?"

Neptune rolled his eyes, shoving Jaune with his shoulder, causing him to chuckle. They decided on some shitty rom-com, something called Chasing Justice, and Jaune made a face at the peculiar name.

"So who's Justice and why are we chasing them?" Jaune asked.

"I don't know," Neptune commented. "I just thought it would be interesting considering you couldn't give me an option, I'm not too well versed on movies these days. I like to read comics instead."

"Well, if this title sequence indicates anything, it's that we're in for a chaotic plot," Jaune said, watching the opening of the movie. The title pushed into frame after a sequence of what sounded like arguing and car tires screeching.

"Hm," Neptune mused. "So, Jaune, I have a question. And don't judge me when I ask."

Jaune raised an eyebrow at him inquisitively. "Okay?" He trailed. "What is it?"

"You ever smoked canaflower before?"

"What– HUH!?" Jaune looked at him in shock, and Neptune burst into a fit of laughter.

"Why did I know that would be your reaction?"

"How else am I supposed to react to being asked if I've ever done drugs!?" Jaune insisted.

"I prefer the term 'medical herbs' but sure," he explained, reaching into the drawer of his desk and pulling out a bag of green, clumped together flowers that closely resembled broccoli. "Second question, do you want to try?"

Jaune looked at the bag, then at Neptune, then back at the bag again and gulped audibly.

Neptune rolled his eyes. "It's not that serious, trust me. You can say no, I just thought it might be fun. I hate smoking it by myself and Sun isn't around. Scarlet is too busy hanging out with Nolan all the time, and Sage, well, Sage is Sage."

Jaune studied the bag for a second, on one hand, this could be a great bonding experience with Neptune. On the other, Jaune had never smoked a day in his life– except that one time with The Herbalist, Alyx, and Lewis –and was sure to embarrass himself.

Fuck it, he thought. "You know what? I'm in."

Neptune gasped. "Really!?" He beamed.

They're so cute, Jaune thought. "Yes, you'll have to show me how, though, unless you want me to embarrass myself by puking all over your floor."

"Jaune, we're getting high, not going on an airship."

"I don't know how this stuff works, okay?" He put a hand on the back of his head, looking away shyly.

"We don't have to if you don't want to, Jaune," Neptune placed a tender hand on his shoulder as they spoke. "I want you to be comfortable."

"It's okay," Jaune urged. "If I'm being honest, I've always kinda wanted to try it."

He was blushing profusely now at the way Neptune was looking at him, all wide-eyed, excited, and observant. "Wow, I never would've thought you'd be one for doing something so… deviant."

Jaune rolled his eyes at them. "Yeah, yeah, whatever. And what about you, huh? You don't seem like the type to, either."

"Uh, have you met Sun? When you have a guy like that as your childhood best friend, you tend to dabble in a few things you never thought you would've."

"Fair point."

Neptune reached under his bed, pulling out some sort of large tube with what looked like a pipe sticking out of the side and sitting it on his lap, causing Jaune to tilt his head in wonder. "This," Neptune said, pulling the strange looking tube onto his lap. "Is a bong."

"A what now?"

"A bong, Jaune. It's used for smoking things, more specifically, it's used for smoking canaflower."

"Am I gonna regret this? Be honest." Jaune said with uncertainty.

"Don't worry, my brave knight," Neptune comforted, placing another gentle hand on Jaune's shoulder. "I won't let anything bad happen to you."

Jaune looked at him, stunned. He'd never heard those words before. That someone would protect him the way he tries so desperately to protect others. He was sure that Neptune didn't mean it that way, but it certainly was nice to hear. Not to mention, being called Neptune's "brave knight" was for sure a plus in Jaune's book.

Jaune watched Neptune closely as he reached for a water bottle on his desk, pouring it out into the "bong" and grinding up some of his canaflower. He packed it into a small bowl and placed it into the empty tube before reaching into his pocket and pulling out a lighter. Smirking at Jaune, he placed his mouth to the top of the bong and the lighter to the tube.

Jaune watched in sheer curiosity as Neptune inhaled a deep breath of the canaflower smoke, pulling the bowl from the tube and clearing it entirely. He exhaled it all after about two seconds of holding it in, coughing a little and looking at Jaune to gage his reaction.

Jaune looked at him with worry. "Are you alright?" He asked.

"I'm fine," Neptune assured, packing another bowl and handing the bong to Jaune. "Inhale slowly, okay?"

"O–okay," Jaune stammered, taking the bong in his hands, letting Neptune light it for him. He inhaled deeply, slowly, letting the smoke fill his lungs with every second he held.

"Don't hold it in for more than two seconds," Neptune insisted. Jaune followed his direction, exhaling a long breath of smoke that filled the room before bursting into a fit of coughs. Smoke was swirling in the air all around them now, Neptune smiled warmly as he rubbed and patted Jaune's back.

"Wow, that was… not exactly pleasant," Jaune contemplated, causing Neptune to chuckle.

"Just give it a few more minutes."

"If you say so," Jaune said with a raised brow. "What exactly am I supposed to be feeling in a few minutes?"

"You'll see," Neptune lilted. "No spoilers."

"You know, if rolling your eyes could cause blindness, I'm sure I'd be down both eyes by now because of you."

"Don't act like you don't love it," Neptune mused, turning his head back to the movie that Jaune had forgotten they'd even had playing in the background.

That's what being around Neptune did to Jaune, it brought him to a place where it was only them. It couldn't be helped, Jaune found everything about his blue-haired friend enticing, captivating, and comforting. Like the moon, Neptune could hold Jaune's attention the whole night if he wanted to.

It didn't take Jaune long to realize what Neptune meant when he'd told him to wait. After a few minutes, Jaune was in what felt like an entirely new world. He found himself enveloped in a strange sense of ease, his tense muscles had let themselves relax, and he slumped back against the wall next to Neptune.

"Feeling okay?" Neptune asked after a long moment of comfortable silence, causing Jaune to jump slightly in his spot. "Whoa, easy there, tiger. Don't have a heart attack."

"Sorry, sorry," Jaune said, smiling apologetically. "It was just so quiet when you spoke."

Neptune shifted his position to lay his head on Jaune's thigh again, looking up at him with a soft expression. "You apologize too much."

"Oh, I do? I'm sorry."

"You just did it again," Neptune mused, reaching up and placing a tender hand onto Jaune's cheek. "You don't need to be sorry."

"I– Right, you're right, heh," Jaune leaned into Neptune's warm hand, grabbing it gently with his own. "Hey, Neptune?"

"Hm?"

"I'm high," Jaune stated innocently, causing Neptune to erupt into a fit of giggles on his lap, "Hey! This is not funny, everything is all fuzzy and I feel like I'm in the movie."

"Ha! Well, that's the brilliance of canaflower. You can be right here with me, but also somewhere else entirely," Neptune explained, sitting up to face Jaune with his smile still wide. "So how did your meeting with Theo go?"

"It was…" Jaune trailed, recalling the image of the two corpses fresh in his mind and shuddering. "Something alright. I sent out a briefing to everyone, but fair warning before you check your scroll, it's not a pretty sight."

Neptune frowned at him. "Oh," he said, studying Jaune's face closely. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, yeah," he assured. "I'm fine, it was just not a very pretty sight, is all."

A chill ran down Jaune's spine as the images flashed through his mind once more, badly mutilated bodies of huntsmen his age– his friend's ages. His thoughts ran a bit wild as he shook the images from his mind, looking back at Neptune, who sat there still studying his face observantly. Jaune could tell he was concerned about him.

Reaching out, Jaune place's a hand on top of Neptune's, looking into his eyes of deep blue and falling for them evermore. "I'm okay," he alleged. He wasn't. Those images brought up a memory Jaune had all but put to rest. "I just don't really like the sight of blood all that much."

Neptune held Jaune's hand tightly in his own now, not daring to avert his eyes from Jaune's. "I understand," he empathized. "We don't have to talk about it anymore."

"No, it's okay. There's just this memory I'd rather not remember." Jaune explained, averting his eyes from Neptune's despite his better judgement telling him not to. The group hadn't told Neptune about Penny, it wasn't something any of them really liked to talk about, especially Jaune and Ruby.

He had told Ruby about what really happened on that bridge, once they returned, and she was ready to listen. He'd told her of Penny's sacrifice, how it happened by his hand, not without tears of course. But Ruby was understanding, she was compassionate, and exuded empathy.

"It's okay, Jaune," she'd said with tears in her eyes as they hugged. "I know you did what you had to do. What Penny asked you to do, what she wanted."

Asked. Wanted. Jaune had to remind himself of those words time and time again, it was Penny's choice. It was something that she felt as though she needed to do, it was never a question of whether she was willing to sacrifice herself for the greater good. It's who she was. The Protector of Mantle. A true maiden.

He would tell Neptune of her story one day, but not today. He'd already told the two people it was most important to, and boy did he feel horrible for Pietro. Penny's father had been informed of her fate when Winter became the maiden, and he and Maria had finally made it to Vacuo. He'd asked Ruby how she died, and they told him, and though he didn't say it, Jaune could tell he didn't want to be around them anytime soon.

Jaune felt the full brunt of Neptune's canaflower now, he was dazed and letting his mind wander to places he didn't want it to. His mind strayed, but Neptune wasn't going to let him sink into despair on his watch. Cupping both sides of Jaune's face, Neptune turned him gently to face him.

"Hey," he said softly. "I'm right here with you, Jaune. Do you want to sleep here tonight? With me?"

Jaune hadn't even realized he'd been crying until Neptune swept his thumb across his cheek, wiping the single tear that had fallen away gently. It was silent for a moment, neither of them daring to say a word. He looked back up at Neptune, meeting his earnest gaze before giving a hesitant nod. There, at that moment when the whole world itself seemingly ceased rotating on its axis all together, that Jaune realized.

He was in love with Neptune.

Deeply, undeniably, and pleasantly in love. And what a glorious feeling it was, it was exciting, yet terrifying. Neptune placed the bong onto his desk, leading Jaune up into position at the pillows of the large bed and letting him lay down first. Jaune faced toward the TV as the end credits of the movie that he'd, once again, forgotten they even put on rolled.

He felt Neptune lay down behind him and jumped a little when he felt his strong arms wrap around his torso. It wasn't long before Jaune sank into Neptune's warm embrace, feeling his face nuzzled against his hair and being overtaken with a sense of what could only be described as solace. Neptune planted a gentle kiss on the back of Jaune's head, causing him to smile like a mad man that he knew Neptune couldn't see.

"Goodnight, Jaune," he whispered softly. "My brave knight."

And just like that, Jaune was happy.