Welcome to another chapter! Hope you enjoy this chapter! This chapter seems longer than the ones I usually write. Oh well!
"Raaahh!" *Whiff*
Cardin was swinging his mace, trying to land a hit on his opponent, who was Jaune, and missing.
It had been two months since that meeting, and team RWBY and JNPR were adjusting well into their new lives at Beacon. Due to the fact that RWBY was all interested in Jaune, the two teams ended up bonding close together. They even managed to create moves where it involved different members of each team. They sparred with each other, trained, and ate together. Soon, most of Beacon were calling them the strongest 1st-year teams, as well as the team with the hottest girls and guys. Ren and Jaune were surprisingly popular, but any potential girls wanting to ask them were chased off by a Nora wielding her hammer. However, the crowd didn't know that all the girls with exception to Nora were all privately dating Jaune. The first to agree to be part of the harem after Pyrrha a month after was Ruby. She had never really been against it from the start. Yang followed suit a week later, saying that she really couldn't think of anyone that was as good as Jaune. Blake followed after a few days later after Yang. Weiss was the last one to join just a few days ago, although she was still very hesitant. Compared to the other girls, she stayed a bit further and more cautious. If the student population knew, jealousy would be rampant, calling Jaune 'that lucky bastard.' So to make sure he wasn't the target of all the student's jealousy, they hid their relationship from everyone.
"Stand still!" shouted Cardin, slamming his mace into the ground where Jaune once stood. Jaune had just taken two steps left, not even attacking.
Cardin was angry and jealous. He had it all planned out. He would be the strongest in Beacon, with the best team, and lead people to victory. Human girls would flock towards him. The Faunus he could care less. After he graduated, he would become the leader of the people, and even ascend to having a spot on the Vale council. However, with the appearance of team JNPR and RWBY, his team was relegated as third at best in all the freshmen teams. His name and his team were barely remembered by other students in Beacon! It was always JNPR or RWBY! This didn't suit him well, and he had to prove he was stronger and a better leader than Jaune or Ruby. Especially Jaune. Ruby was still young, and he didn't really want to hit a girl with a hot sister. So when the chance for an exhibition match came up with him fighting Jaune, he went all out.
However, to his frustration, none of his swings were hitting. Jaune himself was yawning as he merely dodged all his attacks. One of them Jaune jumped over him when he went for a horizontal swing. Cardin was surprised to see Jaune not land on the floor, but rather on his mace. Before he could react, Jaune decided to end this match and kicked him in the face, using the impact to do a backflip onto the ground. Stumbling, he swung his mace wildly to deter any attacks. Jaune took this chance to duck under the wild swing and land a devastating right straight into Cardin's face, on his nose. Feeling the pain, Cardin leaped back, using the impact to try to gain some distance so he could recover. He looked up to see the hilt of Jaune's sword flying right into his face again, right into the nose. Jaune had taken the chance after he landed the right hook to twist his body while his left hand was on his sheath and sent Crocea Mors flying, hilt first.
It rebounded on Cardin's face into the air, where Jaune had already jumped up and caught it with his right hand. Not even wasting a second, his left hand was on the hilt and with a two handed swing, Jaune swung his blade down into Cardin's collarbone. Cardin was too busy trying to soothe his pain to notice Jaune's strike. Even with the armor, Jaune's sword made a dent it.
"That's enough,"
Glynda Goodwitch stepped forward. Jaune jumped back, sheathing his sword while Cardin was busy putting to make sure his face wasn't dented inwards.
"Students, as you can see, Mr. Winchester's Aura has now dropped into the red. In a tournament-styled duel, this would indicate that Cardin is no longer fit for battle and that the official may call the match."
She turned around to the two fighters to advise them, "Mr. Winchester, you need to learn patience and discipline. You got angrier every time you missed, making yourself sloppy and leaving yourself open for Mr. Ryu-Long, who exposed it ruthlessly. Mr. Ryu-Long, no real complaints, just don't showboat too much. You could have ended this match much earlier. Your opponent could take advantage of that and surprise you."
Jaune nodded in respect while Cardin just huffed off with his pride damaged.
"Nice fight," said Pyrrha with a smile as Jaune rejoined his team.
"Remember, everyone, the Vytal Festival is only a few months away! It won't be long before students from the other kingdoms start arriving in Vale, so keep practicing! Those who choose to compete in the combat tournament will be representing all of Vale!" announced Glynda. RWY was shaking with excitement while Blake merely grinned. Nora was jumping on her seat with glee while JPR were also just grinning.
It was lunch time, and team RWBY and JNPR were enjoying a story that Nora was narrating, with Ren correcting her statements before explaining that it was a dream that she had been having for a month now. They all politely clapped at the end of her story, with Nora bowing in reply while Ren merely smiled and rubbed her head affectionately. They were finally together-together, thanks to Jaune. He had seen Nora give jealous looks, but they weren't direct towards him or the girls. Instead, they were directed on how they were on secret dates, and she would keep gazing at Ren, as if willing for something to happen. Jaune figured it out pretty easily and basically had to order Ren to tell him if he liked Nora. Ren said yes but replied that Nora had always been shy in admitting her feelings, while he had no qualms in admitting it. He didn't want to put Nora on the spot and make her uncomfortable. So the second order to Ren was to take Nora on a private date. Nora was so shocked when Ren asked her on a date that Ren had to boop her in the nose to wake her up. She went running into the Emerald Forest after that and decimating the Grimm population in celebration. Beowolves learned to fear the mighty hammer that day. There were no survivors when Nora saw them. Ren merely waited at the outskirts with her favorite food, pancakes, until she was done getting it out of her system before taking her out on a date. A few dates later, Ren decided being passive would be bad, so he initiated the kiss the first kiss. Nora was again in a daze after that but was happy to give a proper response. When she asked if they were together-together, his reply was, "Weren't we always?" with a smile and a small boop on her nose. Nora almost fainted after that smile.
Suddenly, they heard mocking laughter in the background. They turned to see team CRDL teasing a Faunus with bunny ears. Jaune took a closer look and noticed it was Velvet Scarlatina, the 2nd year student that he had met before attending Beacon. She had been kind to help him and advise him every now and then about Beacon. She looked like she was in pain, and yet wasn't doing anything about the teasing.
Jaune sighed as he remembered when Cardin tried to pick on him. The first time was when he was carrying a rather heavy book from the library. Cardin swatted it out of his hand, but as it was falling to the ground, Jaune slightly hit it with his knee, causing it to fall onto Cardin's foot. Cardin had to crouch down to sooth his toe while Jaune merely picked up his book and walked away.
The second attempt was when Goodwitch was explaining the lockers and their abilities. Cardin tried to push Jaune into one, but Jaune merely leaned back and tripped Cardin, forcing him to land inside the locker. With another swift movement, Jaune stretched his arm as if he was merely stretching before swinging his hand into the locker door, shutting him inside. With a quick whistle, he pressed 6 random digits and sent Cardin flying away. All while Goodwitch had been distracted. The dragons complimented him on his stealth. After that incident, Cardin curbed his tendencies to mere gazes.
Jaune noticed that all his friends were giving Cardin a dark look. They hated racist people like Cardin. They were in a Huntsmen Academy, whose purpose was to defend all those from the Grimm! To protect humanity! And yet here was a Huntsman-in-Training picking on someone. Blake was still wearing her bow, uncomfortable in revealing her heritage to everyone. She promised she would take it off soon.
Soon, a yelp of pain could be heard. Cardin was now pulling on Velvet's bunny ears while he and his team were laughing.
"Ow! That hurts!" cried out Velvet. Cardin responded by pulling even harder. "Please, stop..." she begged.
Cardin merely continued to laugh while turning to his crew, "I told you it was real!"
Russel guffawed, "What a freak!" Dove and Sky continued to keep laughing.
Cardin would have originally let go, but he was still angry from his match earlier, and tightened his grip on Velvet's ear, causing her to start to cry. And yet, Velvet wouldn't do anything to stop him.
"Why doesn't she fight back? She's more than capable of dealing with these punks," growled Fafnir.
"It's because of how society views Faunus," explained Aryz, "If she responds back in kind, then it puts a bad view on her whole race. Meanwhile, Cardin can continue this and people won't judge the human race as a whole, just him. That, and apparently the Winchester name does carry some influence."
"Jaune. Remember the creed, though I don't think I need to prompt you on that," said Lung Wang with a toothy grin.
"Atrocious. I can't stand people like him," said Pyrrha darkly.
"He's not the only one..." replied Blake, staring daggers at all of Cardin's friends.
"We should break their legs!" said Nora.
"Nora," said Ren.
"Yes, Ren?" asked Nora.
"No leg breaking, but you can stop them if you want. If they resist... well then some persuasion may be needed," said Ren. Nora grinned and was about to do it when Yang piped up, "Where'd Jaune go?"
They looked to the right of Pyhrra, where he was sitting just moments ago, and were surprised to see him gone.
"Let her go," said a voice darkly.
They turned and saw Jaune now holding Cardin's offending arm.
When Jaune had seen the tears, he had enough. Not to mention he had a slight flashback about the bunny he used to take care of, and Velvet reminded him of his pet. He stood up, walking over to Cardin, debating on how he would diffuse this. Lung Wang was suggesting a full on assault, crushing Cardin's spirit. Jaune disregarded it as he was still a student and couldn't risk expulsion. Alaerth suggested a more non-violent route. Lifting his right hand, shaping it into the dragon's claw, he clamped his hand down onto Cardin's forearm that was covered in armor.
"Let her go," said Jaune darkly.
"What's it matter to you? You care about this freak?" asked Cardin.
"You lack the proper behavior as a Huntsman. We're in a school where we are taught to safeguard mankind's future, and yet you're picking on someone who could easily kick your butt. The only reason she chooses not to is because she's afraid her behavior could reflect badly on her people," replied Jaune.
Velvet looked up in surprise at this, hope slightly in her eyes. She hadn't expected anyone to help her except for her team, and they were at the library.
"Psh. She's not part of mankind. Look at her ears!" said Cardin.
Jaune tightened his grip on Cardin's arm, making it so he couldn't move at all. A look of discomfort could be seen growing on Cardin's face. Everyone in the cafeteria had noticed what was going on and was watching. It was all silent.
"Show some respect. She's still part of mankind and an older student. Just because she has a different trait doesn't mean she deserves to be treated like this," said Jaune.
"You're a freak lover aren't you!?" said Cardin, "Well, I bet one of your parents was a freak! Your mom probably opened her legs for anyone!"
Jaune twitched in anger before and tightening his grip even more at that insult.
"ARRGGHH!" shouted Cardin in pain as he released Velvet.
Jaune had completely crushed through his armor and was now starting to crush his flesh and bone.
"Thing is, Cardin, that while Velvet has to worry about the whole social stigma crap, I don't. And I really hate prejudiced people like you!" roared Jaune as he tightened his grip even more. Cardin was on his knees at this point, his other hand trying to pry Jaune's hand off without any success.
As Cardin was trying free his hands, his partners were all staring at Jaune in fear. Jaune was starting to fracture the bones in Cardin's arm when he heard a voice.
"Please stop."
He turned to see Velvet putting her hand on his shoulder. Jaune sighed and let Cardin go, but not before tossing him into the table.
"Don't ever let me see you doing that again, Cardin. Otherwise, it'll be more than just a bruise," growled Jaune. Carding nodded in fear before walking away with his teammates. That fear would later change to anger and vengeance when he was far away from Jaune.
"Thank you," said Velvet as soon as Cardin was gone.
"Don't mention it. But you could have taken care of him by yourself. Don't let the fear of being judged as a representative of Faunus stop you from taking care of yourself. We're in an academy. We need to show that we're willing to defend what is right," replied Jaune.
Velvet thought about it before bowing in thanks again and walking away.
As Jaune went back to his table, he was met with stares.
"What?" asked Jaune.
"Mmm that was feisty," said Yang with a sultry tone, "You certainly instilled fear into Cardin."
Jaune just shrugged and continued eating. Soon, everyone was back to doing what they were doing, though most people were now wary of Jaune. Some of the girls were starting to notice Jaune a little more, and perhaps were thinking of trying to get a date with him. Pyrrha saw this and frowned. Sometimes she just wanted their relationship to be public, so other girls wouldn't have the idea of trying to steal Jaune away.
They were in Doctor Oobleck's class, where he was lecturing about the Faunus War at his usual hyperspeed, zooming around the classroom and drinking his coffee. Usually, Jaune would have sat with his teammates, but in Oobleck's class, he assigned the seating, separating them all. It just so happened that Cardin was seated right behind him.
"Now! While this must feel like ancient history to many of you, it is imperative to remember that these are relatively recent events! Why, the repercussions of the uprising can still be seen to this day!" lectured Oobleck, zooming around again before sipping his coffee. "Now! Have any among you been subjugated or discriminated because of your Faunus heritage?"
A few students slowly raised their hands in response. Velvet raised hers hesitantly after a few people had done so.
"Dreadful, simply dreadful!" admonished Oobleck, "Remember, students, it is precisely this kind of ignorance that breeds violence! I mean, I mean, I mean just look at what happened to White Fang! Now, which one of you young scallions can tell me what many theorize to be the turning point in the third year of the War?"
Weiss raised her hand, and Oobleck acknowledged it.
"The battle at Fort Castle!" answered Weiss.
"Precisely!," said Oobleck, "And, who can tell me the advantage the Faunus had over General Lagune's forces?"
Cardin was getting bored, so he made a paper football and flicked it towards Jaune as petty revenge. Jaune tilted his head before flicking his hand into the paper football, causing it to shoot back and hit Cardin in the face. However, Oobleck misconstrued this action as a volunteer to answer.
"Mr. Ryu-Long! Good to see you volunteering the answer! Excellent! What is the answer?"
Jaune shrugged, asking Oobleck to repeat the question. Oobleck frowned but complied.
"The obvious answer would be the Faunus didn't have an incompetent general," smirked Jaune, causing his class to laugh at his answer. It seemed stupid. Oobleck, however, didn't laugh or admonish Jaune.
"Oh? And care to expand on why?" asked Oobleck, seemingly interested.
"General Lagune forgot about the advantages of some Faunus traits. Such as night vision. It was already well-known that they had this ability, and yet he tried to ambush them at night, where his forces couldn't see anything while the Faunus had the advantage of picking off his 'massive' forces. Not only that, some of his tactics seemed questionable as a general," replied Jaune.
"Correct, Mr. Ryu-Long. Mr Winchester, would you care to share your thoughts on the subject!?" said Oobleck.
"Well, I know it's a lot easier to train an animal than a soldier," sneered Cardin, rubbing the red mark on his forehead.
"You're not the most open-minded of individuals, are you, Cardin?" growled Pyrrha as Oobleck shook his head in disappointment. Blake decided to continue Jaune's thoughts.
"As Jaune said, general Lagune was inexperienced and made the mistake of trying to ambush the Faunus in their sleep. His massive army was outmatched, and the general was captured."
She turned around to Cardin, staring at him with distaste "Perhaps if he'd paid attention in class, he wouldn't have been remembered as such a failure."
Cardin stood up from his seat, fists clenched in anger. Oobleck, however, reprimanded him before telling him to see him after class for additional readings.
It was early in the night, and Jaune was sparring with Ren on the roof. Ren had learned CQC from his teachers at combat school as well as being self-taught, but he had never had a master before. Deciding because Ren wanted to be his retainer, Jaune was teaching him the Dragon Style fighting style as well as a few other. Ren was excited and learned even quicker than when Jaune had first been taught.
"Hey Jaune?" asked Ren as he deflected a fist and countered with a low kick, "Can I ask you something personal?"
"What is it?" replied Jaune as he lifted his leg to dodge the kick.
"Why weren't your parents the one to unseal your Aura?" asked Ren. "Why did she have to do it?" Ren was using the vaguest words on purpose.
Jaune paused at that, letting Ren get a punch through his defense into his chest. Seeing as he was distracted, Ren stopped the fight. Together, they leaned on the railing, catching their breath.
"My sperm donor," began Jaune, "was a heartless bastard. He saw me as someone unworthy of his last name, and so he sealed my Aura and banished me."
Ren paled at that, "He sealed it? Then how was she able to unseal it? Only he should be able to do so. And did your ex-father not know about, you know, them?"
Jaune shook his head, "No. They came after my father sealed me. When he did, he woke them up in the process. They're the reason why I'm alive today. However, I was still sealed, and couldn't reach all my abilities until that time."
Ren looked deep in thought, "Is that why you're afraid to tell the rest of the girls? That you were banished and looked as a disgrace?" Jaune nodded.
Below them, they didn't notice Cardin was eavesdropping with glee. Here was some quality blackmail material! He quickly hurried away to check some records about admissions. Using his family name, he'd be able to pull some strings and take a look at the records. However, in doing so, he missed the last parts of the conversation.
Ren put his hand onto Jaune's shoulder, "Jaune. I don't think they would care about that at all. Tell me, out of the weeks we've known them, would they judge you by your past?"
"Yea, but-," stammered Jaune.
"No. You know the truth as well. You're completely imagining it. I won't ask what your last name used to be, just know that they lost a very powerful man, and most importantly, I'll be on your side. Team RWBY, Nora, and Pyrrha will also be on your side," said Ren.
They stayed silent for a bit when Ren decided to talk about his own past. Jaune learned from Ren of how he used to live to with his family at Kuroyuri. How he was a bit of a coward until that dreadful day. Ren didn't want to explain it, but he just said it resulted in him being an orphan, along with Nora.
Jaune looked down for a bit before looking back up, a confident gleam in his eyes. He knew this had taken courage from Ren to be a bit more open about his own past, and decided to draw upon that courage.
"You're right. Let's get back down. I think I'll tell them a bit more about my past now. Pyrrha knows the most, but I'm willing to divulge more information about my ex-father and some of his family."
Back in team RWBY's dorm, team RWBY and Pyrrha were all talking about who the prospective sixth girl was as well as making a set schedule for date nights with Jaune.
"Think it might be Velvet?" asked Blake, interested in another Faunus joining the harem.
"No, I heard that she's interested in someone on her team," said Yang.
"I don't think I'm comfortable with Jaune getting another random girl we don't know," said Ruby.
"I would say my sister might be a prospect, but I would find it weird that my sister and I were dating the same man," said Weiss. She didn't need another pair of sisters in the harem, as Ruby and Yang was enough. That, and she was still uncomfortable about this situation.
Pyrrha then remembered talking to Jaune while he was at Vacuo, and about how he was staying with someone.
"Wait, I think I know who it is. Jaune once told me he was staying at a girl's house whose name was Dew Gayl. She might the last candidate," said Pyrrha.
Before they could wonder who she was, they heard a knock on their door. They opened it to reveal Jaune, Ren, and Nora. They entered into RWBY's room.
Jaune took a look at team RWBY's bunkbeds, his eyebrows raised. He was trying to figure out how it even worked or balanced out.
"Wouldn't it be easier to just buy bunk beds?" asked Jaune, "That seems incredibly unsafe."
"That's what I said," complained Weiss.
"Don't worry about it! It only seems unstable," said Ruby, waiving off the dangers of the bed.
"Ooh, we should just pile all the beds in one room and pile our desks and/items in another!" said Nora.
Ren raised his hand to deny it before actually thinking about it. So did the rest of them.
"That actually doesn't sound like a bad idea," admitted Weiss.
"And we get to be closer to Jaune," piped up Yang.
"Maybe we can just order some bunk beds. We could probably fit 4 bunk beds in a room, and leave some space for some stuff," said Jaune.
"Not to mention, we could all study together easily in one room that's not cluttered with beds," added Pyrrha.
"All right, new mission! Move the beds to team JNPR's room while moving the desk to our room!" yelled Ruby.
"Wait," said Jaune, causing Ruby to freeze just as she was about to dash out. "I have something I have to say. Something I want to tell you all."
As he was about to say it, there was a knock on the door. Annoyed, Yang opened to see Cardin waiting there with a grin.
"What?" said Yang irritability.
"Is Jauney boy there?" said Cardin, looking over Yang's shoulder, "Got something I wanna talk to him about. It's personal."
Shrugging, Jaune stood up, telling them he'd be back. As the door closed, they walked down the hall a bit.
"What is it Cardin?" asked Jaune with a bit of a growl. He was not pleased to be pulled away at such an important time. He was prepared for an ambush, but sensed that none of Cardin's team was there with him.
"Now, now, is that any way to talk to your best friend?" teased Cardin.
"You're anything but that," deadpanned Jaune.
"Who knows. You might change your mind once I reveal your secrets," said Cardin with a smirk.
"What are you talking about?" asked Jaune.
"Oh, who knows what those lovely girls your friends with will think of you when they learn that you were banished. A worthless child who has no family. They wouldn't treat you the same, and I'm sure their parents would forbid them from having any close contacts with a loser like you," said Cardin.
Jaune remained silent at this. Cardin, thinking he had the upper hand, continued, "I also dug up some of the admission records. Turns out, you never sent any transcripts, and you didn't show up at any testing sites for those that didn't send their transcripts in. Not bad, Jauney boy, managing to hack into the system to enroll you. How would it feel, to be expelled from Beacon? All your friends would see you as just a failure. Of course, I'm willing to keep your secret safe with me, as long as your willing to be there when I need you as a friend. I can see us being friends for a long time."
Having finished, Cardin turned and left, "I'll give you some time to think about it."
In Jaune's mind, he was starting to panic. If this information got out, it could drive any chances of friends away! Admission wasn't a problem, but he couldn't bear to see his friends and potential mates look.
"Jaune. Calm down," rumbled Ryo-Wo, "Remember, you were already planning to tell them. Think back to Ren's words. They would accept you regardless of your past."
"The more important thing is this punk is trying to control you," growled Lung Wang, "We are dragons! WE DO NOT BOW TO OTHERS!"
"Hey Cardin, I thought about it," replied Jaune.
Cardin turned around grinning, thinking he had a slave now. One that would obey him. Who knows, maybe he could use him to grab pictures of the hot girls, and maybe more blackmail material on them. Then, they would have no choice but to obey him, and he could have a nice variety to girls to choose from to kiss or lay in bed with. That was until he saw a foot coming right into his smiling face. Jaune smashed his foot right into his face, sending him flying out of the dorms.
"Asshole," muttered Jaune. He wondered how Cardin managed to get into the records, but he shrugged. Ozpin had been the one to put him in, As for the secret, half of them already knew it, and he was going to tell them the rest anyways. Still, he was pissed that Cardin had tried to blackmail him. He stormed back into the dorms where all his friends were waiting.
"What's wrong?" demanded Blake as she looked up from her book. She could sense anger rolling off Jaune.
"Cardin tried to blackmail me," replied Jaune.
"What!?" shouted Ruby.
"I"ll break his legs!" shouted Nora, lifting her weapon.
"Nora," said Ren calmly. Nora looked at him, "Break his arms while you're at it."
"You got it!" stated Nora, about to rush out.
"No need," replied Jaune, "I sent him out the expressway."
"The expressway?" inquired Yang.
"VIA my foot," deadpanned Jaune.
"Jaune, did you want to tell us something before Cardin came here?" asked Pyrrha in concern.
"Sorry, not today. Not after what Cardin tried to do. I'm heading off to bed," grumbled Jaune, heading back to his team's room. They would do the moving another day.
Cardin was flying through the air and landed in front of the fountain, face first.
"That jerk. I'll show him!" grumbled Cardin, dusting himself of the dirt. He picked up his Scroll, ready to tell his father, who happened to be a booster of the school, to tell him to expel Jaune when he received a message from Jaune himself. He looked at the message displayed.
Sorry to burst your bubble, but they already know. And they're still friends with me. As for the entrance, Ozpin himself was the one who accepted me. That means whoever you go to expel me won't work. Stay away from me and my friends, or face my wrath! And trust me, you do not want to do that.
Cardin almost crushed his Scroll at that message. There went his blackmail material. Still, he swore he'd find some way to get vengeance. He started his trek back to the dorms.
Jaune was still pissed off when he went to bed until Pyrrha boldly snuck in to snuggle with him. He couldn't stay mad with her hugging him, and went to sleep with Pyrrha in his arms. Of course, Othim was telling him to go further, but it was swiftly rejected. Needless to say, the other girls were jealous when Pyrrha admitted in sleeping in his bed, and soon enough, with Ozpin's permission, converted Team JNPR's room to be their sleeping quarters while team RWBY's room was their study/relaxing room.
Trying to convince Ozpin to allow them to do so was probably one of the hardest tasks they undertook. When he asked why they couldn't really be forthcoming about their true reasons. After all, they didn't want to just flat out tell their Headmaster that they wanted the chance to snuggle with Jaune at night. In the end, Ozpin allowed them after they promised they wouldn't be nosy, have illegal activities. and pay for their own modifications of beds.
Of course, team RWBY still took their showers at their room. There were also comfortable bean bags and futons just in case. In JNPR's room, there was two bunk beds, a full-size bed, and two Queen sized bed. Nora and Ren would be sleeping with each other, taking one of the Queen sized bed. Pyrrha claimed the solo full-size bed. Then, the girls set a schedule where they would sleep in Jaune's bed once a week, just to cuddle. Of course, if the said girl wasn't feeling comfortable, then they were allowed to skip. Pyrrha told them that she wasn't going to skip. The other girls were skeptical at first. As the days passed, the girls found themselves a little more comfortable in snuggling with Jaune at bed. The first to do it was Blake, followed by Ruby, then Yang. Weiss would sometimes do it, but more often skipped her turn. Pyrrha wasn't complaining, as she sometimes went ahead and took Weiss's turn. Just meant more cuddling time for her.
About two weeks passed since that incident, and Jaune had finally decided it was time for them to find out about his past than from others. He called them all to team RWBY room, as there was more space to just sit. Jaune took a deep breath before beginning his tale.
"What do you guys know about the Arc family?"
Yang and Ruby shrugged at this, not knowing anything about it. Weiss, however, filled them in.
"The Arc family is a family of warriors. It is said that with their will, they helped Vacuo push back Atlas and Mistral from taking their lands before allying with Vale in the Great War. Their techniques and drive were so famous, that a statue is actually built in front of Beacon. The man in front was John Arc, and the woman beside him was thought to be his wife or partner. It was said that they were always willing to help, showing mercy and kindness. Though recent times seemed to have changed them. My father usually says Vlad Arc is a man full of hot air."
Jaune nodded, "Yea. The Arc family used to be that. Now, it's a cruel family. Vlad is just living off the good name. My old family name."
"What!?" they all exclaimed.
"Before I became Jaune Ryu-Long, I was Jaune Arc. Then, my father sealed my aura and banished me from the family, all because I seemed 'weak' and unable to use the Arc sword style. Of course, it didn't help that Vlad apparently had mistresses and had other 'sons' to choose from. Most recent is Aurelian Arc," sighed Jaune.
"Sealed?" asked Ruby, unfamiliar with this. She looked to Yang, who didn't seem to know. Yang looked at Weiss, who looked at Blake for an answer. None of them seemed to know. Pyrrha, however, knew exactly what it was thanks to her father, as well as being the one to unseal Jaune's aura. Her hands were gripping tightly that her knuckles were turning white.
Ren then explained, "Usually, when we unseal someone's Aura, we give them a form of protection as well as allowing them to use their own Aura. Sealing it, however, can be said to be the worst punishment, given to criminals of the highest order. It forcibly cuts off the person's own Aura from their own body, and usually the only way to unseal it is to have the same person who sealed you reverse it."
Ruby's hands went up to her mouth, gasping, "That means!"
"Vlad Arc wanted me dead," finished Jaune, "Luckily, when he sealed me, he touched the dragons sealed within me. They couldn't stop the whole process, but they managed to make it that somebody else could unseal my Aura. Though it was picky, as not anyone could do it."
At this, he put his hand over Pyrrha's, grasping it, "Then, I met Pyrrha during my travels around Remnant. She was the one who unsealed it. I owe her my life."
Pyrrha smiled before putting her head on his shoulder, relishing the warmth before replying, "I merely did what any kind person is supposed to do."
The girls were a bit silent after this big reveal. Ren merely stated that it didn't matter what family he was from, that he would continue serving as his retainer. One by one, the girls all came close to Jaune and gave him a hug, stating that they also didn't care about his past. That they wouldn't abandon him just because of what Vlad Arc did. Weiss was even prepared to call her sister to have Atlas prep a ship for priority bombing, but Jaune managed to convince her to stand down, as it didn't matter anymore.
They went back to JNPR, falling asleep in their new dorms. It was Blake's turn to cuddle. As she took off her ribbon and hugged Jaune, she whispered, "Will I be brave enough to tell them about my past?"
Jaune merely stroked her hair, whispering back, "Take your time. It takes a lot of courage to get it out. Ren helped me, and so I'll help you. But only if you're ready."
Blake purred softly before falling asleep. As they were all falling asleep, Jaune thought about Dew. She still didn't know any of the things he had told JNPR and RWBY. Still, he could not deny that living with Dew had been very fun, and they had been getting close. Jaune had promised her over the Scroll to tell her when she came for the Vytal Festival. He had to stem a nosebleed when he called her, though, because of what she had been wearing when she answered it.
Flashback
Jaune was sitting in a private room in the library, waiting for his call to go through. Soon enough, Dew picked up.
"Hey Jaune," said Dew.
"Hey D-" Jaune paused there as he took in what Dew was wearing. It looked like she had just gotten out of the showers with just a towel on. The towel only barely covered her breasts and was barely long enough to cover her other private parts, although she crossed her legs, giving him a good view of her toned legs. Her hair was wet, and Jaune could see the towel clinging on to her wet skin.
"Sorry, I caught you out of the shower didn't I?" asked Jaune as he held up his nose to stop the bleeding.
'Yes! It worked! He definitely noticed!' shouted Dew mentally while she said, "No worries."
After stopping the nosebleed, they talked a bit more until it was time to go. Jaune promised to tell her more about himself but didn't want to risk it over the phone.
As Dew hung up, Octavia piped up, "Sooo. Seducing him over the phone I see. Glad you took my advice."
Dew ended up being teased mercilessly by her teammates.
Flashback ends
The semester continued, with Cardin becoming more and more angry and jealous at team JNPR and RWBY, primarily at Jaune and Pyrrha. Jaune for humiliating him, and Pyrrha for her reputation as well as showing him up in class.
Soon, they were at Forever Falls for an assignment for Professor Peach, traveling there by Bullhead transport. Glynda had volunteered to be the chaperon for the day. Since the trip took up a whole day, the 1st year students were to go in groups on separate days. Today, team RWBY, JNPR, and CRDL were the ones going. Some of the other 1st years had already gone.
"Yes, students, the forest of Forever Fall is indeed beautiful. But we are not here to sight-see. Professor Peach has asked all of you to collect samples from the trees deep inside this forest, and I'm here to make sure none of you die while doing so," warned Glynda, "Each of you is to gather one jar's worth of red sap. However, this forest is full of the creatures of Grimm, so be sure to stay by your teammates. We will rendezvous back here by 4 o'clock. Have fun!"
They all separated into their teams. As they were gathering the red sap, Ren had to find more as Nora kept drinking it. Frustrated, Ren booped her on the nose, telling her that if she continued this, there would be no pancakes for a week. That stopped her from trying to drink more.
Jaune, however, was not having fun.
"I think I'm allergic to dis stuff," sniffled Jaune.
"I'll take care of your share, Jaune," smiled Pyrrha, "Just take a seat and relax. Try to clear your sniffles and sinuses. Ren and Nora will be on the lookout for Grimm."
Back to where team CRDL was, they had finished gathering 6 jars of red sap.
"Russel, did you get the Rapier Wasps?" asked Cardin.
"Right here," smirked Russel as he held out a box with a W drawn on it. Inside the box, there was a constant buzzing noise that could be heard.
"Good. According to the stupid essay I had to do for Professor Peach, these things loovvee sweets. I think it's time we taught them a lesson,"
"Umm, are you sure we should be doing this?" asked Sky.
"Of course. Those guys piss me off. Especially Jauney boy and that know-it-all Pyrrha," growled Cardin. He tossed a jar to Dove and said, "I'll aim at Jaune, you throw it at Pyrrha."
On the count of three, they both threw it right towards their unsuspecting targets.
Jaune had sat down leaning on a tree, trying to get rid of his allergies. He had his eyes closed, trying to get rid of a minor headache.
Ren had finished filling up another bottle of the Red Sap and had turned around when he saw team CRDL already throwing the jars at Jaune and Pyrrha. He cursed as he knew he didn't have enough time to drop the jar, grab his weapons Stormflower, and shoot the jars.
"Pyrrha! Jaune! Watch out!" warned Ren, hoping it would be enough.
Jaune opened his eyes to see a jar coming at him. He quickly responded by grabbing his sword and slicing at the offending object, unable to grab his shield in time. He didn't want to grab it either, as he had no idea what was coming. The jar split in half, releasing its contents on Jaune. Jaune quickly put his left arm up to block most of it from his face, but it splattered over his hair and the front of his hoodie. Pyrrha, however, wasn't so lucky. She had been busy collecting sap that when she heard it, she turned around just as the jar hit her on the head, releasing its content all over her hair and into her eyes.
"Ahhh! My eyes! It burns!" cried out Pyrrha. Shards of glass were also stuck in her promptly dropped her jar, trying to get rid of the sap on her eyes. It wasn't working.
Jaune quickly ran towards Pyrrha, worried about her safety.
"Shh, Pyrrha, id's okay. Just close your eyes for now. I got hid by some dis stuff. It's playing hell on my allergies," said Jaune, trying to cease his sniffles, "Let'z get you to somewhere safe so we can wash dis sap off."
Suddenly, he heard a buzzing noise. He looked back, his eyes widening as he saw a group of Rapier Wasps flying right towards them, with their long deadly stingers coming for them. One of the dangerous things about Rapier Wasps was that their stingers could bypass Aura shields, piercing flesh instead of allowing Aura to block it.
"SHIT!" shouted Jaune as he picked up Pyrrha bridal style and ran. Pyrrha had heard them and hugged Jaune tightly.
"Nora! Go help them, but be careful. I don't want you to get stung," said Ren, glaring at Cardin and his cronies, "I have something I need to do."
He activated his Semblance and sneaked close to them. The team had tested his Semblance and found out he was also hard to detect for humans when he was sneaking up on them. His Semblance was Hidden Presence, able to hide from anyone he chose to. The only downside was he could only choose which race to hide. If he chose to hide from Grimm, then anybody else that wasn't a Grimm could see him. Same with other choices, except Faunus and Humans were grouped together. Even his teammates couldn't see or sense him if he chose humans in general. Luckily, Ren managed to make it work so at least Jaune could see him when he activated it, though Jaune had to rely on his Aura sense to detect him, and even then, it only worked if Ren was nearby, and he couldn't get a lock on his semblance stopped working whenever he would attack, but it was perfect as a ninja. Ren took out a Scroll and started to record what they were saying. They were laughing and saying what a brilliant idea it was, or just plain insulting them, unknowingly revealing that they had done to Ren. He was tempted to break their legs, but he figured Jaune would want to have that right. He would just deal with any leftovers.
Jaune was running with Pyrrha hanging on to his body. He would have dealt with the wasps himself, but he didn't want any of them to escape and sting Pyrrha. Especially when she was blinded, and the fact that since the Rapier Wasps loved sweets, it would sting her face, which was much deadlier than being stung on the body. It might even decide to sting her eyes and permanently blind her. Unfortunately, due to the red sap, his sense of smell was completely shot, his nose stuffy, and he had no idea where Professor Goodwitch was. Luckily he saw team RWBY up in the clearing just as it was getting harder for him to breath.
"Weizz! HELP!" shouted Jaune.
Team RWBY looked and saw the rapier wasps coming for them. Weiss immediately pulled our a red Dust crystal, passing it to Yang, who had the strongest throwing arm.
"Ruby, shoot when Yang tosses!" said Weiss.
"Heads up!" shouted Yang as she tossed it right into the middle of the Wasps. Ruby immediately sniped it perfectly, causing an explosion that caught almost all of the Wasps. The remaining few were quickly disposed of by Blake, Weiss, and Nora, who had finally caught up.
"Well, they got all fired up," said Yang with a pun. Everyone groaned at that. Jaune gently set Pyrrha down, carefully taking the glass out of her hair.
"What's going on!?"
Glynda had come to investigate the noise and noticed scorched earth, a pile of dead Rapier Wasps, and Jaune gently grabbing the glass out of Pyrrha's hair while the both of them were coated with red sap.
"Mr. Ryu-Long, take Miss Nikos to the Bullhead. There is water over there for her to rinse the sap out of her face. I'll ask why she had it in her hair and face later," said Glynda sternly. "The same with you, young man.
After being directed towards it, Jaune quickly carried Pyrrha to it. Nora went with them. On the side of the Bullhead was a hose that was connected to the water supply inside the Bullhead. Together, they gently rinsed the sap from Pyrrha's face and hair before moving to Jaune's hair.
"Can you open your eyes?" asked Jaune.
Pyrrha gently opened them before closing them again, "Just a little to see. It still stings."
Lung Wang grunted inside Jaune's mind, "You realize this was a deliberate attack on you and your mate?"
Jaune nodded, 'Yea. Someone threw a jar full of red sap on us. There's no way it dropped from the sky. And Rapier Wasps aren't naturally found here. I'm suspecting team CRDL. But I can't do anything without proof.'
"Maybe not. I noticed Ren isn't here. Perhaps he went to gather evidence?" said Ryo-Wo.
Soon, all teams had returned to the Bullhead. Cardin and his team were sneering at Pyrrha, who could barely open her eyes still after flushing it with water. She would need to be taken to the nurse's office for a better rinse.
"Where is your teammate, Mr. Ren?" Glynda asked Jaune, noticing they were missing someone.
"Right here," said a voice behind team CRDL.
Team CRDL jumped in surprise as Ren seemingly appeared behind them. Without breaking a stride, he walked towards his teammates.
"I have proof team CRDL was behind the attack. We'll bring this up with Professor Goodwitch and Professor Ozpin after we get to Beacon safely," whispered Ren to Jaune only.
Jaune clenched his fist in anger. He wanted to extinguish them now! However, he decided to keep his anger in check only until they reached Beacon. Then he would show team CRDL what it meant to provoke a dragon. If Ozpin didn't punish, he would personally dig them a grave, using their own bodies.
When they landed back in Beacon, Cardin decided to push it a bit further, "So sorry that you were hit by a stray jar. I wonder who could have done such a thing? You were so unlucky that there were Rapier Wasps there." In his voice was smugness, basically telling them that he did it, but they had no proof, and so they couldn't do anything.
Pyrrha frowned at that. She knew it was his fault somehow, but she had no proof. Jaune, however, had no reservations in keeping his anger hidden anymore. Cardin had broken past his tolerance level. His left hand shot out, grabbing Cardin by the throat before throwing him into the concrete floor. Linking up with Fafnir and hardening his right hand, he smashed his right fist into Cardin's face, causing the ground to crack behind Cardin's body. The ground now had a deep imprint of his body from the throw, and his face looked like it had caved in. Jaune didn't care as he winded up for another hit.
"Mr. Ryu-Long!" shouted Glynda, flicking her crop and sending Jaune off Cardin, "What is the meaning of this unprovoked attack!?"
"I warned him that if he should ever do anything to my friends, he would feel my wrath," growled Jaune.
"Do you have proof that CRDL was the one who attacked you?" asked Glynda, cooly. She did not want students attacking others based on gut feelings.
Jaune flicked his head at Ren. Ren nodded before handing his scroll and clicking play on the recording.
Glynda's face grew stone cold when she heard team CRDL laughing and talking about their plans. Cardin and his team, who were trying to lift Cardin off the ground, didn't hear the recording.
With another flick, Cardin was popped out of the ground from Glynda, although his face was still bleeding heavily. Even with full Aura, Jaune's punch had basically bypassed his defense through brute force and made contact.
"Team JNPR and team CRDL, you will both report to the headmaster's office tomorrow morning," said Glynda, "Team CRDL, take your team leader to the medical wing. He's going to need some Aura and blood transfusion if he wants his face to look remotely normal. I can't promise it will."
While team RDL was carrying Cardin, they were giving Jaune death glares, which wasn't very effective as their legs were still shaking from what Jaune had just done earlier.
"Jaune, you shouldn't have done that!" reprimanded Pyrrha, although she was happy to see Cardin pulverized.
"You might get expelled," said Weiss in a worrying tone.
"Man, and I thought I was explosive when I get angry," said Yang, trying to ease the tension, but her voice betrayed her thoughts. She was just as worried.
"Don't worry about it," replied Jaune.
"But-" started Ruby, but Ren interrupted her, "I caught their conversation on my Scroll. Apparently, they had been planning this attack just to show up Jaune and Pyrrha. I would had dealt with them, but I figured Jaune wanted to go first."
"That means!" started Blake.
"I was completely justified in my actions. Cardin's 'prank' could have left Pyrrha badly wounded, blinded, and even dead. And I will not have one of my potential mates die on my watch," growled Jaune fiercely, his eyes unintentionally becoming slits.
"Still, you do need to be careful," said Weiss, "The Winchester name does carry some influence. Most likely they'll try to portray you as some sort of violent maniac."
"Better to be one than to be unable to protect the ones I love," replied Jaune.
Pyrrha blushed before giving Jaune a light peck on his lips. The other girls thought it was quite romantic. They quickly hurried to their dorms, where Jaune took a shower first at JNPR dorm while Pyrrha took hers at RWBY dorm. Needless to say, Pyrrha was tempted to just join Jaune in the shower, but not with so many girls gazing at her. They quickly went to bed, and it was luck that it was Pyrrha's turn to snuggle with Jaune for the day.
What will happen the next day!? Read and Review! Also, next chapter will be released later than usual, due to tests incoming.