Chapter 30: Passed

They were walking through the forest with Loki at Serena's side, going to the clearing that they had used the first time to see if Grimm would accept Adam. The night before they had gone to bed without saying another word, but both knew that they now understood each other better than before and each trusted the other completely now. Serena stopped when they were, once again, in the middle of the clearing, Adam stopping shortly behind her. Turning around, she measured him up once again before laying her left hand on Loki's head.

"It's time to see if he's ready to accept you this time. I have watched you train and I think you're ready for this but it's their decision to take. Remember to stay calm and composed. That's about the only advice I can give you," she instructed before stepping away, leaving only the two there to face each other.

Adam gulped nervously before telling himself to calm down and focus. I can do this. She has taught me all she can and if she thinks I'm ready then I am, he told himself before taking the first step towards the Beowolf. It did nothing but perk its ears, nose raising slightly and sniffing the air, waiting for him to make the next move. Adam took another cautious step, keeping his breathing in check and after the final step, he looked up, directly into the Grimm's eyes.

The animal seemed to study him, eyes not leaving his face before it suddenly leant forward, Adam getting ready for dodging an oncoming attack only to feel a rough and wet tongue glide over his cheek. He stood there, dumbfounded, for a few minutes before a smile broke out on his face and he laughed out loud. He had actually done it! The Grimm, Loki, licked him again before trudging away, leaving the now chuckling male behind with the girl.

Serena smiled in satisfaction and the obvious delight that oozed from the male before walking up to him. He was still chuckling and she found that she liked the sound, a deep bass that seemed to resonate through his chest, before telling herself to focus. Clapping him on his shoulder, the male turned to look at her, red eyes bright with the happiness he felt. She lost herself in those eyes for a moment, the red such a brilliant color that it made her breath catch in her throat. Getting reminded by her body that she needed air, she sucked in a breath before giving him a gentle smile.

"Well done. I knew you were ready for this."

She wanted to say more but was caught off-guard when the tall male suddenly hugged her, arms wrapping around the small of her back and pressing her flush against his chest. Her breath once again caught in her throat and she momentarily asked herself if she was dreaming because she would never expect him to do that. But nonetheless, she wouldn't complain about the position they were in.

He suddenly seemed to realize just what he was doing and quickly drew away, coughing once in slight embarrassment at this sudden display of affection. If there was one thing that everyone knew, then it was that Adam Taurus didn't do affectionate. It just wasn't him. Yet, he had still hugged the girl out of the blue, not even thinking about what he was doing.

"Uh… Thanks, I couldn't have done it without you," he mumbled, scratching the back of his head, still a little flustered about the action. But it was the truth; he could never have learned something like this if it hadn't been for her, nor let go of his past the way he had.

"It's okay, I'm happy they accept you now." Serena noticed the slightly higher tone that her voice had and could still feel the blood that had rushed to her cheeks. She was, after all, a girl. "I got a little surprise for you by the way."

At this he looked at her with an expectant look on his face, curious just what this surprise might be. The only answer he got, though, was her suddenly whistling and then silence. He stared at her for a moment, wondering what the whistling had been for before hearing the shrill sound of a bird cawing.

To be more exact, the caw came from a Nevermore. The large black bird landed softly in the clearing, shaking its head once and then looking down at the two humans who were staring at it. Adam's eyes widened.

She can control that! he mentally screamed.

He was shocked; not only could she control smaller Grimm but even a Nevermore which were pretty strong Grimm. Serena walked up to it, motioning for him to follow her when she saw that he was still looking with his mouth agape at the animal, grabbing his hand and lightly dragging him with her.

"Adam, this is Aeolus, a good friend of mine. Aeolus, this is Adam, my new friend. I hope you two get along well," she introduced them as if they were both human and the bird could actually understand her. Aeolus gave a loud caw in return before lowering his head, waiting for the two to get on.

"Come on, we're gonna make a little trip," she said with a kind of mischievous smirk that he hadn't seen on her yet. Following her, he climbed up after her, taking his position behind the girl on top of the head. "Hold on tight," she told him and he barely had time to warp his arms around her waist before the Nevermore gave a powerful swing of his wings and they were up in the air. His grip immediately tightened when he looked down and saw that they were already several hundred feet above ground.

"This is safe, right?!" he shouted over the wind, looking down concernedly. It wasn't that he was afraid of heights, he just wasn't so keen on falling off a Grimm. Though he was sure that the girl he was momentarily clinging to would try everything to catch him if that should happen.

"Sure!" The slightly afraid tone made Serena laugh, her voice getting carried away by the wind as Aeolus upped their speed. "I hope you like loopings!" she said and the Grimm promptly made one, her clinging to the feather she was holding on to and him tightening his grip around her waist even more. They did a few more and soon both of them were laughing, enjoying the moment to their heart's content.

When they landed, they both got up and Serena laughed when she looked at Adam; his hair was even messier than before and now standing out in all direction while he still had a grin plastered on his face.

"What?" he asked and she laughed even harder at the confused but endearing look that he gave her.

"Your hair… it's all… messed up," she managed to choke out between laughs and he self-consciously ran a hand through his red and brown hair, trying to bring some order into it. "It's okay, it looks good." She immediately blushed at the comment and turned around, heading off to home. "Ah, it's late. We should get back."

Adam chuckled once at her behavior before following the girl, striding beside her until they got back to the cave. They had been away longer than they had thought and the sun was almost down when they got back. Serena quickly prepared dinner, Adam helping her and when they ate together, it was not in the usual silence. Instead, they were having animated talks about Grimm and whatnot. Going to bed, they both said their good night to the other and went to sleep, all the while smiling slightly at the memory that none of them would forget.

A/N: I do not own RWBY or its characters. I do, however, own my OC Serena and any other OCs that appear in this story.

An a little more fun chapter this time since they can't always be serious. I hope that Adam hugging Serena wasn't too OOC for you guys, but it's time to bring some romance into this story. It would be bad if I suddenly mixed all of it into the last few chapters and you guys would be like TF? Now you bring in romance? It would just be too much for a too short span of chapters.

On another note, I can't believe this is already the 30th chapter! This is the first story that I have written that has had so many chapters. Anyway, I'm happy that you guys are still reading this even though it may be a little slow. It means a lot to me!

You guys are awesome! See you on Sunday then! :)