Arwyn blinked a few times before shaking his head, "I-I'm sorry, can you repeat that?"

Jeanne's frown deepened, "I said, I challenge you to a duel!"

He stared at her for a few moments before stepping back and going to close the door, "That's cool, goodnight."

She yelped and placed her hands on the door to stop it from closing, "Hey! Don't ignore me, I'm trying to issue a challenge here!"

Arwyn saw Alex looking amused from their place sitting on the best, and he silently mouthed 'help me' to which they just shrugged. He sighed and opened the door again and saw Jeanne standing there with her arms crossed, a small pout on her face. He had to admit, she looked cute, but at the same time…

"Look, I'm pretty tired, and didn't you tell Pyrrha that you were fine on your own? You made her incredibly upset." He crossed his arms, "I spent the day with her to make her feel better, and it worked. You know you're part of the reason she was crying earlier, right?"

Jeanne seemed shocked as she shook her head, "N-No way…" For a moment that false bravado disappeared, but it was back before long, "I don't believe you! Pyrrha doesn't cry, she's strong! Look- I need to get stronger so I can show her that I'm competent and not a dead weight, and you're the guy she's been training with this whole time! So… If I beat you, then she'll see I was right, and we can go back to normal!"

'Great logic! That's sure to work.'

Arwyn rubbed his forehead and sighed, "You're not going to go away until I agree, are you?" Jeanne shook her head, he huffed, "And you're absolutely certain this is what you want to be doing on a Friday night?"

Jeanne nodded resolutely, "Yes!"

He rolled his eyes and looked back, "Alex! I'm going to go spar, wanna come?"

Alex snickered and hopped off the bed, "Sure, sure! I could use a good show." It was a good thing they were already in their human form, not that Arwyn ever expected Alex to get caught unaware like that.

Jeanne looked bewildered at Alex's presence, yet, the rails of her mind seemed to be on one track at that moment. Which meant she immediately looked at Arwyn again, "Alright, come on, I know where we can go."

Arwyn was glad he was still wearing his Huntsman outfit, he supposed if there was any time to 'break it in' it would be now. Jeanne led them down to the ground level, out of Beacon tower, and into one of the buildings that held sparring rooms. She chose one that was fairly open and not unlike a gym in size, but devoid of any workout equipment. Instead, its use was clear, given the changing rooms in the back, and the places to hang your weapons between fights.

Alex took a seat against the wall and declared, "Contestants! Take your places!" with all the aplomb of a show host, "It's a good day for a swell battle!"

Arwyn rolled his eyes, even though he couldn't keep himself from smiling. He took a position a few feet away from Jeanne and let her draw Crocea Mors. He called Excalibur and entered his fighting stance, "Last chance to call this off…"

Jeanne shook her head and readied herself. Her form was sloppy, and she was holding her sword wrong: Arwyn could see clearly that she was hardly any better than he was at the start. Her voice was filled with determination as she replied, "I have to do this."

He sighed, "Suit yourself."

Then, Alex yelled, "Fight!" prompting Arwyn to lunge forward and thrust Excalibur outwards, towards her center mass.

Time slowed down as Jeanne went to block it with her shield, and Arwyn hardly had time to wonder what made this worthy of this treatment before text appeared over the Arc family symbol.

Jeanne Arc

Huntress-in-Training

The Savior Peasant Girl

Time sped back up and Arwyn pulled away from Jeanne, readying himself for her to attempt to counter.

However, rather than attempting to close the gap and go on the offensive, she hid behind her shield and kept it raised. Arwyn furrowed his brow, having fully been expecting her to try and strike him. Instead, he was the one who took the offensive, stepping forward and slashing horizontally at her. His sword impacted her shield, and when it did she lowered her shield to try and strike back.

Her swing was easily deflected, and he taunted her to try and bait out more attacks by saying, "Come on, you've been here how long and that's all you've got?!"

It worked, she gritted her teeth and her eyes burned with determined anger as she charged him, raising her sword but lowering her shield as she tried to deliver a downward swing to his shoulder. He raised Excalibur and their swords clashed, before he pushed forward and kneed her in the stomach, causing her to double over before he smashed the pommel of his blade into the back of her head, causing her to stagger past him and fall onto the ground. He sighed, "Are we done?"

Jeanne groaned and shook her head as she stood back up, "Why should I give up? Once I'm strong enough, I'll be a far better friend to Pyrrha than you! Training with her, taking her to town…" She raised her shield, "I bet you don't even really care about her! What, are you just trying to get close to her because she's famous?"

'Oh hell no.'

He had no idea what had gotten into this girl's head, but he was about to knock it right out. Arwyn muttered, "Pyrrha." and summoned her Call, his strength growing as he started to walk towards Jeanne. She raised her sword to strike him, but when she did, he parried, and his augmented strength caused her sword to go flying out of her grasp.

Her eyes widened as he grabbed her by the arm and tossed her to the left. She collided with the wall and the air got knocked out of her lungs as he explained, "You know something? I have the ability to use powers that get stronger the closer I am to the person. That's Pyrrha's, and if you can't tell, she's a good friend." Possibly more, but he wasn't thinking about that at the moment.

He walked over to her, "And I don't appreciate you knocking on my door, accusing me of not being a good friend, and acting like you care so much all of the sudden when you were pushing her away not even a day ago." He stopped in front where she was sitting against the wall and sighed, "And look, I feel like a dick fighting you like this. So can we just end this here and start over? Hi, I'm Arwyn Cadeyrn, Oz's son, seventeen years old, and I promise I'm not that bad."

Jeanne stared at him for a few moments before sighing and looking down, "Fine… Look, I'm sorry, alright? I just- I'm-" She closed her eyes, "I'm not that good with people, or with anything, and I wanted to prove my dad wrong, and I just… I know I made Pyrrha upset, and I was getting picked on by Carina so much, I'm just…" She shrugged, "Stressed out."

Now that song was stuck in his head, 'Wish we could turn back time, to the good old days…'

He sat down next to her and dismissed Excalibur. He spotted Alex standing up and waving with a smile on their face before they left the room. He had to wonder if they knew something like this was going to happen, he wouldn't put it past them at all. Yet, he couldn't dwell on that, instead he just said, "So…"

Jeanne opened her eyes and looked at him, "Hi, I'm… Jeanne Arc." She scratched her cheek and looked away nervously, "Short, sweet, rolls off the tongue. Boys… love it?" Her uncertainty was clear.

"Well," Arwyn started, smiling gently, "I love it, I think it sounds really nice." He didn't miss how her face heated up, but he was just trying to lift her spirits, so he didn't think much of it, "You know there's nothing wrong with asking for help, right? None of us got where we are without it."

Jeanne frowned, "I don't know… I got here because other people helped me, and ever since initiation I've been nothing but a joke. Nobody takes me seriously, and I know they're right. You saw how I fight." She shook her head, "I've got no friends, I'm bad at fighting, and I'm pretty sure eventually I'll get kicked out for being a total failure, and I'm the only one to blame."

Arwyn leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes for a moment, "Hmm…" He had a feeling that he'd end up regretting this for some reason or another, but he couldn't help himself. He opened his eyes, "Well. I might be able to help you, if you'd like. And if you'd rather train on your own, well… I can still be your friend. We can go and do stuff tomorrow, it made Pyrrha feel better, maybe it'll make you feel better?"

She thought about it for a few moments before responding, "I dunno about training… I still want to do it on my own, but… I haven't gotten to really enjoy Vale that much since I got here. That'd be fun."

He nodded and stood up, stretching and yawning, "Then we can do that tomorrow. It's Saturday so we've got the whole day. Here, let's trade Scroll numbers." He took his scroll out of his pocket and Jeanne did the same, a simple tap of their devices allowed them to exchange, and then Arwyn began to leave, "Seeya tomorrow."

Jeanne didn't get up from the ground, instead she just said, "Thanks! I'll just… sit here for a bit longer."

With that, Arwyn headed back towards his room. He was ready to relax now that that unexpected detour was over with.

The trip back was uneventful, and he found Alex sitting right where they were before, playing games like they'd never left. He shut the door behind him, "Right. That's done." He sighed and took off his cape before starting to remove the armor, "I didn't need that…"

Alex looked back from their place sitting on his bed and smirked, "You're getting popular. Don't think I've ever seen any version of her that worked up before." They scratched their cheek, "Then again, I can never really tell who she is really, not at first. It doesn't help that she looks different this time."

Arwyn shook his head as he pulled off his chestpiece, "I'm not even going to pretend to understand what you're talking about." He set the armor down in his closet, "You know, I complimented her and all that, but I hope she doesn't get a crush on me because of this… It's happened twice now, and I can look past that, but if it happens again I'm going to start to wonder if this damn amulet is screwing with people's minds."

They hummed and set their scroll down, "Well, we don't know for sure if it's doing anything like that right now." Their smirk turned into a lopsided grin, "Besides, aren't you happy? You've got cute girls pining after you now, that's like… a dream come true for some people."

He sighed and walked over to sit on the edge of the bed, facing away from Alex, "Well, it's not like I'd be against the idea of dating any of them, but… I hate making people upset. Rejecting someone is a surefire way to make them upset." He laid back, resting his head on Alex's lap, which caused their eyes to widen as he asked with a heavy sigh, "What do I do, Fairy Blue?"

Alex's face heated up, "Wh-Why are you asking me? I mean, we don't even know if it's the Relic's doing. For all we know, it could just be your winning personality." They smirked, "Besides. Even if it is, you don't need to worry about me being influenced by it. I'm its spirit after all."

Arwyn closed his eyes, "Well, at least I can rely on you always telling it how it is, because I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing." He exhaled softly, "I'm just sort of rolling with the punches right now."

He was surprised to feel Alex's fingers gently combing through his hair, his heart fluttered and he could feel a dash of red on his face. Yet, he didn't dislike it, the opposite, in fact. Alex spoke softly, "Trust me, you're far from alone in that department."

At the very least, Arwyn felt comforted by that.

/-/

Arwyn was woken up the next day by the sound of knocking at his door.

Of course, it was Jeanne, "Uhm… Arwyn? Are you up?"

He groaned tiredly as he checked the time on his scroll, which had been resting on his nightstand. It was one PM, which surprised him somewhat, but he supposed he was incredibly tired from the day before.

"Waking up," he responded, throwing off his covers and standing up to stretch. He was only wearing a pair of dark green pajama bottoms, but he soon moved to rectify that by going to his closet. He grabbed his casual clothes and started to throw them on. Once he had his pants on, he said, "You can come in if you want."

He heard the door open while he was putting on his shirt, and as he finished pulling it over his eyes, he saw Jeanne watching him, and he hummed, "You know I'd have expected someone like you to be more hesitant to come in, even if I said it was okay."

Jeanne smiled, "Yeah, well. Growing up with six brothers and only one sister does that to you."

Arwyn had to choke back his shock, mostly brothers?! That was different… Maybe he shouldn't have been shocked at all, given how much else was different about this world. Still, it made him wonder about just who Jeanne's family was now. He moved to grab his black jacket, "Seven siblings? Sounds… noisy."

She giggled a dorky, warbling giggle, "Ooh yeeah. You have no idea." As he finished putting on his jacket, her smile grew nervous as she played with her side-braid, "So where are we going?"

'No, stop that. It's too cute.' He thought to himself as he reminded himself that he would very much like to have more friends, just friends. He cleared his throat, "Well, I was thinking we could start at the arcade and then see where the day takes us from there." It wasn't a flawless plan, but then again, he didn't have one when he went to cheer Pyrrha up just the day before, and that worked out just fine.

Jeanne grinned brightly, "Sounds great! Lead the way." She stepped out of the way and gestured towards the door while shifting in place awkwardly. Even as she grinned, she still had that characteristic unease to her. She wasn't used to going places with people, clearly.

He started to lead the way, and found that he already liked Jeanne a lot more than he thought he would. She was acting completely different from when he met her, and he could see now, without her trying to act tough, she wasn't too incredibly dissimilar to Jaune.

'Just… girlier and… cuter.'

He wondered if Jaune existed, she mentioned having brothers, so was this really the person who would have been Jaune, or was Jaune kicking around Domremy (at least, he assumed the town was named Domremy, that was Joan D'Arc's home town after all) somewhere? He would have to find out later, that was a question that was going to bug him for awhile, and he couldn't just ask Jeanne if one of her brothers was named Jaune, that'd be weird.

He idly grasped the necklace around his neck, the Relic of Progress remained as it always was, it simply felt like a normal necklace. As they reached the elevator, he asked, "So, got any interesting stories about your family?"

Jeanne rubbed her chin and gained a look of contemplation, she pursed her lips and hummed, "Hmmm. Well, there was this one time when my sister hacked every machine in the arcade!" She placed her hand over her mouth as she giggled, "That was pretty funny! She got banned from there for life when they found out, but it was totally worth it."

"Your sister sounds talented." Arwyn noted with a smile, "So is she some kind of computer scientist?" He never learned that much about Jaune's family from the show, so he was really shooting in the dark with imagining what most of them were like.

"She is- Well…" she scratched her cheek and a small frown etched itself onto her, "She was. She went missing some time ago, and given her immunodeficiency…"

The rest of the sentence didn't need to be said. He patted her shoulder, "Ah, sorry. I didn't mean to bring up bad memories." Luckily, that was when the elevator reached the bottom and they were able to walk out, "Let's not get bogged down in stuff like that, huh?"

She nodded and a small smile returned to her face. It wasn't as vibrant as the ones she'd shown previously, but it was there and that was what mattered. They continued towards the Bullhead port, and reflexively he asked, "Do you have your motion sickness medicine?" before he could stop himself. His eyes widened for a moment before he covered his tracks, "I heard about your… airship incident."

Jeanne groaned, "Man… The one time I forget my medicine and it labels me as 'Vomit Girl'." Nevertheless, she nodded, "Yeah, I took my medicine… I knew we'd be taking the Bullhead so I had time to prepare."

Arwyn snickered, "Hey, better you than me." That earned him a smack on the arm, but he just grinned and lightly shoved her, just enough to make her stagger, which wasn't much, given how weak she seemed to be.

As they reached the Bullhead port, Jeanne huffed, "You know you're real mean when you wanna be." Arwyn led the way inside with a smile on his face while Jeanne followed closely behind, "So what's it like? Being Ozpin's son, I mean. It must be pretty cool having Beacon's headmaster as your dad."

Arwyn had to restrain himself from looking too taken aback by the question. Nobody had asked anything like that yet, and so he was utterly unprepared, "Uhh… Well…:" He tossed around a few things in his head before eventually coming up with something while boarding a Bullhead with her, "He treats his students basically the same as he treats me. He's a guiding hand, but I wouldn't ask him to play catch with me or something." He chuckled, "That's just not him."

The bullhead took off and started to take them to Vale while she nodded, "My dad was always super protective of me and my sister. We were his little girls, and so in a sea of boys, we got preferential treatment. It was nice, sometimes, but neither of us were really looking for special treatment. It also meant that my dad's distaste for Huntsman work went ten-fold for me." She shook her head, "After Sarcelle went missing, he got really overprotective. I felt like a bird in a cage!"

The doors to the Bullhead were open, due to the slow speed and short distance it was going, and she looked outside, as if imagining what it'd be like to fly, "So… I picked the lock, so to speak. Said enough was enough and uhm… earned… my place at Beacon. Oh, he was angry when he found out, but he let me go. He said they'd be there when I got back." She scoffed, "If a bird earns the right to fly, why would it ever go back to its cage? I'd stay in the air."

That… sort of reminded him of his old life. His family smothered him a lot prior to him leaving, and after that their relationship steadily deteriorated until they stopped talking, "Ah… I get it." He looked out at the city as well, "Hey, just… make sure you don't let that grow into hate, alright?" He looked at her as she gave him a curious look and he explained, "It's… easy to grow resentful when you're away like that, and yeah, smothering is bad, but… You know he only did it because he loved you. I'm sure next time you see him, you'll be able to talk about this like grown adults. Maybe he'll even be happy you're following your dream."

Jeanne pursed her lips and looked out again, "I… I get it, yeah. It's not like I don't miss him, or my family, I just need them to realize that I'm going to do what I want to do with my life. I mean, eventually he didn't have any problems with my brother going off to Haven, after he gave it some thought. It was just me and my sister that he didn't ever want to see do anything Huntsman related." She mimicked the speech pattern of a gruff older man, her dad, Arwyn assumed, "'I might not like it, but the boys are the boys, if they want to fight, they can. You shouldn't have to, Jeanne.'"

So she had a brother that was at Haven? Could that be Jaune? Or was it a different brother? Would Jaune even be named Jaune, in this place, even if he was him? There was no telling. All he could do was say, "Well, hey, you're here now. That's what matters."

The Bullhead touched down and after the two got out, he started to lead her towards the commercial district, "I remember seeing an arcade when I was walking around here before. I haven't been to one in ages, so don't expect me to win anything."

Jeanne grinned, "Don't worry, I'll win all the games!" She declared this with such resolve that he almost believed her. He didn't exactly have high hopes for her chances, though. If she was as clumsy as Jaune, then there was no doubt that she'd struggle.

Then again, maybe she was a hidden master of games.

They reached the arcade, a fairly sizable location named 'Kyros' Game Place'; apparently their Dustology professor had more than a few side businesses to his name. Arwyn wondered about that, but it ultimately didn't matter too much. As they headed inside, they found that it was somewhat busy. Perhaps unsurprisingly, there were more than a few people their age there, understandable for a Saturday.

Jeanne began to play with her braid again as she stepped closer to him, "So many people…" She took a deep breath, "I'm not used to crowds like this…" Then she put on her bravest smile, "Whatever, let's go!" Then she took him by the wrist and took the lead, striding towards one of the two player games that was available, an older version of a popular series titled 'Immortal Fight III'.

Arwyn couldn't focus on that, however, he was more focused on trying to not focus on Jeanne. She wasn't even trying to be cute, but she was managing it with such ease! Luckily, her actions didn't affect him much at all (or at least, he wanted to believe they didn't). He just turned his attention to the game as he scanned his Scroll to pay before they began to play.

He immediately regretted doubting Jeanne's skill at games. She beat him handily. Granted, he barely knew how to play that game, but still! Once they finished, she giggled, "Games are my domain, since I wasn't able to do a lot of other stuff with my life at home, I played a lot."

The way she was grinning and the light in her eyes reminded him of just how odd her initial behavior was. She must have been really stressed out if she was being that reckless and rude. He crossed his arms and huffed, declaring overdramatically, "You're clearly way more experienced in this art than I am!" Before he looked around and spotted another game, it was a two-player arcade shooter, where they had to use the fake guns to shoot Grimm, "Hey, what about this?"

Jeanne gasped, "I've always wanted to play that! The arcade back in Domremy didn't have it, though." Her grin somehow brightened further as she grabbed his hand and hurried over to it, "C'mon, let's go!"

He tried his best to ignore how weird it was to have her grab his hand like that. It wasn't dissimilar to what Ruby was like, he realized, but Jeanne seemed slightly more socially active, and it seemed she didn't see any problem with doing what she was doing, whereas Ruby would have gotten flustered.

Thankfully she let go once they reached the game, and he scanned his Scroll again before they both grabbed a 'pistol' and waited for the game to start. What followed was a standard on-rails shooter. They were faced with 2D versions of Grimm that ran towards them while they gunned them down.

Jeanne got really into it, shooting down Grimm and laughing while declaring things like, "Take that, stupid Beowolf!" or "And this bullet was juuustt right!" when she killed an Ursa.

Arwyn couldn't help but smile while listening to her boisterous declarations. Especially as they got to the final boss, a massive Deathstalker, and had to let loose, firing like madpeople while Jeanne grinned and boasted, "Not so tough now, are you?!" as the Deathstalker died and they beat the game.

He whistled and smirked before asking, "You get real immersed, don't you?" while putting away the pistol.

She blushed and started playing with her braid while looking away, "I do kinda get really into these things." She chuckled anxiously, "I-It's probably pretty embarrassing, huh? I can stop, if you want."

His eyes widened and he shook his head while waving his hands in front of him, "N-No no, no, I didn't mean you should stop! I-It's just, uhm-" He cleared his throat, "I-It's… nice? I like it." He lowered his hands, "Get it?"

Jeanne blushed a bit darker, "N-Nice, huh?" She cleared her throat, "I-I guess I can see why Pyrrha likes hanging out with you so much, if you'd really call something like that nice. She must feel like she can really be herself around you."

His own face heated up as he rubbed the back of his neck and thought, 'God almighty above grant me strength,' before smiling, "What can I say? I'm just trying to be a good friend." That is all he has ever tried to be, up to this point, aside from some flirtatious behavior with Pyrrha, "You pick what we do next, though we should probably make this the last one for now. There's some other places I think you'll like."

Jeanne nodded and then looked around before spotting a crane game, "Ah, perfect!" She hurried over, and not for the first time that day Arwyn wondered if this was really the same girl who challenged him to a duel over her friend's honor. Still, as he walked over to watch her try to get some plushies, he had to admit that he was glad that things turned out this way.

Arwyn had always considered crane games to be bullshit, something that was almost impossible to win, yet Jeanne ended up winning some plushies all the same, a Beowolf plushie, a teddy bear, and a Deathstalker plushie. She commented that she wished real Grimm were as cuddly as the plushies, and got a plastic bag to keep them in so she could carry them around easier while they walked around.

He wasn't sure where to go next, so for a time they just ended up walking around and enjoying the afternoon. It was a nice day: the breeze was just right, the sun wasn't bearing down on them too harshly, and it seemed the day had a general calm serenity to it.

They ended up wandering into a park, and as they walked down the trail, with the sound of birds singing and the river gently rushing its way across the middle of Vale not far away, he asked, "So… What is with the whole 'not wanting to accept help' thing?"

Jeanne frowned lightly, "Well… It's because Mom and Dad always helped me with everything. If it wasn't them, it was one of my brothers, and I always wanted to show them that I can do something on my own. I figured, if I come here and become a Huntsman with no help, then I'll prove them wrong."

That was more or less what Arwyn expected. He got wanting to prove a point, but…

He hummed and looked around, "Well, there's nothing wrong with having help. It doesn't necessarily mean you're weak or anything like that." He noticed something and pointed towards a tree, "Like that, see?"

In a nest was a small blue bird, with a larger one standing in the nest near it. The smaller one struggled to climb over the nest and Arwyn explained, "Birds are able to fly instinctively, but they aren't always able to get started on their own. Sometimes…" the larger one nudged the smaller one off the nest, it fell for a few moments before beginning to fly, taking off towards the sky, "...They need a little push."

He looked at her and smiled, "And we don't even instinctively do stuff, at least, not a lot of stuff. We need to be taught to walk and run. And…" He scratched his cheek and looked up at the sky, "Pyrrha didn't start the Invincible Girl, she had to train. Ruby didn't start the high-flying scythe swinger she is, she had her uncle. I've been helping train someone named Orion, he's not bad, but he still has a lot to learn. It's kinda like… knights. Nobody starts as a knight, they have to start a squire."

She seemed conflicted as he looked at her again. She looked down and bit her lip, prompting him to pat her shoulder with a smile, "Nobody's gonna call you weak for accepting help, and if they do, they can answer to Pyrrha or me. If you try it and don't like training with people, nobody will stop you from going back to training alone, but… you should really try. If not for yourself, then for Pyrrha, I'm sure she'd love nothing more than to help you train."

Jeanne took a deep breath before she sighed, "I-W-Well… I guess I can do that. I can try it." She smiled shyly as she glanced up at him, "As long as you're training with me. I'll feel super nervous if I train with Pyrrha alone."

Silently, he thanked the Relic of Progress for his increased charisma stat. There was no way he could have delivered any argument half as convincing without it, let alone have actually convinced someone to listen to him.

He grinned, "I train with her all the time anyway, I'm sure she'll love to have you join us." He jerked his thumb back the way they came, "How about we start heading back to Beacon? We can let her know, and smooth all of this over. We can come back down to Vale and find more stuff to do some other day."

She was okay with that, although she was incredibly nervous about seeing Pyrrha again. Together, they returned to Beacon, although her nerves remained on full display as they stopped in the courtyard and she asked, "Are you sure she'll forgive me?"

Arwyn could only smile reassuringly and say, "Trust me, Pyrrha doesn't hold grudges. She'll be happy to have her teammate back." He patted her back, "You'll make her day, I'm sure of it."

Jeanne smiled nervously before she nodded, "R-Right. Thanks, Arwyn." She reached out and hugged him quickly before letting go and hurrying off. Not dissimilar to his earlier exchange with Pyrrha, he watched her until she disappeared into the dorms.

That was when he got some notifications.

New Relationship Level Reached!

Jeanne Arc

Close Friend - 40/100 (Tier 2)

Intrigued - 90/100 (Tier 0)

New Call Unlocked!

Jeanne!

Call upon the power of the savior peasant girl to aid you. When activated, this Call will resonate with your soul and make it shine even brighter than it normally does. This will result in your aura restoring itself somewhat, and for your semblance (once you discover it) to be stronger, however, this only lasts for a minute.

NEW "FAIRYTALE" UNLOCKED

JOAN OF ARC

Far from a fairytale, this person lived and breathed, etching herself into history as the savior peasant girl of France. In spite of being very real, her connection to Jeanne means that she has heard your call, and will answer all the same.

NEW "FAIRYTALE" CHARACTER UNLOCKED

JOAN OF ARC

"We are not so different, you and I. The Brother Gods have given you a mission, just as God gave me mine. Now we face the darkness encroaching upon this world together. Embrace me, and stand ever taller against evil."

In your journey, you will fight alongside many allies. They may waver, but you will not let them break. Upon calling this power, your allies in a fifty feet radius are rejuvenated, healed, and ready to fight again. This can only be used once a day.

Arwyn dismissed the notifications and couldn't even bring himself to be shocked at Jeanne's relationship stats. Well, other than maybe her being a close friend already. He could be happy about that, but… another crush? He was convinced now that the Relic of Progress had to be doing something, but what?

He knew that if he didn't have it, there's no way this would be happening. He'd have been lucky to have one of the people who have crushes on him now actually feel that way without it. He grasped the necklace in his hands, and if he concentrated hard enough, he could almost feel it pulsing.

That was different, but he didn't know what to make of it, and it ceased once he let go of the relic, so he just decided to move past it.

Out of the blue, he got a text from Ozpin, asking him to come to his office. He shrugged and started walking to the tower. His mind wandered to different places as he tried to guess what Ozpin wanted to talk about. His performance? Did he discover the relic? It could have been anything.

And he could have never guessed what the actual answer was.

"...Excuse me, care to repeat that?" He asked, standing in front of Ozpin's desk as he was.

Ozpin sighed, it seemed this topic unsettled him as much as it did Arwyn, "You need to prepare yourself. As we draw closer to the time of the Vytal Festival, it is inevitable that she will appear."

Arwyn blinked a few times, "Who is 'she'?" Was he talking about Salem?! Why would he be talking about her with him! Oz didn't know that he knew! Did he? If not her, then who-

"Your… 'sister'."

Silence reigned for several moments, and then…

"WHAT?!"

Ozpin grimaced before nodding, "Yes. I have a daughter. She's a student at Shade Academy, she didn't want to come to Beacon because she felt that people would judge her and assume all of her achievements were due to nepotism. She… never much liked titles and pretenses, you see."

Arwyn sighed, "Okay…" He rubbed his forehead, "So… why exactly do I need to 'prepare myself' for this?"

Ozpin chuckled, "Vesta is her mother's daughter. Assertive, strong willed, with a fire burning in her heart…" He smiled, "I have no doubt she'll have words with you, and with me."

Arwyn remained silent for a few moments before taking a deep breath and nodding, "Alright. Then I'll try to… 'prepare myself'. I've still got a couple months, right? So it'll be okay."

The Headmaster nodded, "Indeed. That's all I had to say. Have a good weekend, Mr. Cadeyrn."

Numbly, Arwyn left, adding that piece of information to the back of his head.

'I'm just gonna go hide in my room and play games for a little while.'

/-/

"Ruby, you want to what?"

"Fight you, duh!"

Arwyn rubbed his eyes in disbelief. It was the next day, and just like the day before, he had been woken up by a knock at his door, except this time it was Ruby, looking excitedly at him as if she'd come up with the best idea ever, "It's so obvious! We haven't been hanging out that often lately because Weiss has been keeping the team busy with studying, and I want to fix that! She can't say anything if we're sparring, because then even if she finds out we can just say we were training."

"Uhm… One problem." He held up his right index finger, "I'm nowhere near your skill level. You could probably beat me with a hand tied behind your back." His one advantage was the Calls and the Fairytales, but none of the Fairytales were combat oriented, at least not directly, and his Calls could only carry him so far if he wasn't good enough.

Ruby groaned, "But that's why fighting me is a good idea! You can get better!" She reached out and took hold of his shirt, bunching it up in her hands while pouting up at him with her big ol' silver eyes, "Please~?"

'Damn it…' He crumbled beneath her pleading, "Alright, okay." He huffed, "Let me change into my Huntsman outfit then I'll be with you."

She let out a little squeal of excitement that melted Arwyn's heart more than it already was. He shut the door and then went to change, donning his Huntsman apparel, armor, cape, and all, before summoning Excalibur and looking it over, "I need to get a shield…" He muttered, then he dismissed it and returned to the door.

No sooner than when he opened it did Ruby start to move towards the elevator, she grinned excitedly, "Come on, we'll spar and then find something else to do!"

He hurried after her, "You're really hyped up about this, aren't you?" Of course she was, she's Ruby Rose, but still, it was very easy to tell she was excited. He figured he might as well mention it and see what reaction he gets.

Ruby skidded to a stop near the elevator, her face turning slightly red as she called the elevator, "W-Well, y-you know, you're… my friend! …And I've gotten to spar with the rest of my team so much, I need to fight more types of people!" He didn't mention that Team JNPR existed, because he had a feeling that he knew what the real reason was.

After stopping next to her, he reached his hand out and ruffled her hair, causing her to squeak. He grinned a lopsided grin, and he couldn't help but tease her, "Are you sure it's not because it's me? You know, I'm sure you could find someone better." He meant the last part in more ways than one.

Yet, she just shook her head as her face heated up a darker red, "P-Please, don't talk down to yourself." As the doors opened, she walked inside and he followed, "You're great, and there's nobody I'd rather be with than you right now!"

Then, she caught herself, and if it were possible, Arwyn was sure she'd have gotten redder. She stammered, "A-Ah, th- I-I mean, uh! Uhm- You're a… really great friend! And it's fun to hang out with you!" She nodded resolutely, "And there's nothing wrong with wanting a-alone time with my friend."

He smiled, "Don't worry, I get it." He liked spending time with her as well, and it had been a little while, Beacon had kept them busy. Pyrrha was the person he spent the most time with so far.

After the elevator came to a stop on the ground floor, they both left and headed to one of the many training rooms, one not dissimilar to the one he'd fought Jeanne in, although he felt this one would get much more use than the other one did.

They took positions across from one another as Ruby took Crescent Rose off her back. Her cape billowed behind her as she flourished, spinning as she unfolded her scythe and then came to a stop, the back of the blade crashed onto the ground and caused a small dent to appear. She smirked, "Ready?"

'No, not in the slightest.' He wanted to say, but instead he called Excalibur and gave it a couple swings in the air before nodding, "Ready. As I'll ever be, at least."

Ruby's smirk turned into a full blown grin, "Great!" She turned into petals and raced forward. Arwyn barely had enough time to think, 'Ruby!' and activate her Call before he had to dodge as she swung her scythe at him. Time slowed down and a rose symbol appeared over his vision before text appeared on top of it.

RUBY ROSE

Huntress-in-Training

A Simple Soul

The text disappeared and time sped back up as he pitched forward and placed one hand on the ground, performing a front handspring as he lifted into the air before pushing off the ground and ending up in the air.

While he was still there, Ruby appeared in front of him, still wearing that grin, as she moved to swing her scythe again. This time, there was no blocking it, before he even had time to react he was caught and sent flying off towards a wall. He twisted in the air so his back was facing the wall, it was all he could do to soften the impact. He grunted as he hit the wall, but managed to land on his feet and stagger forward.

Now, he realized, he needed to use another Call, luckily he could have two going at the same time, 'Pyrrha,' he thought before his strength increased greatly. Just in time, as Ruby rushed to press the attack he was able to dismiss Excalibur and grab Crescent Rose with both hands by the shaft, taking advantage of her swinging the blade itself behind him.

He grinned as he saw her shock. She tried to pull back Crescent Rose, but his grip was iron. He stepped forward into her guard, then he yanked Crescent Rose backward, causing her to stagger forward before impacting with his chest. Her eyes widened, but he didn't let her stay very long as he removed one hand from the scythe and punched her in the stomach, the force of the blow sending her flying backward and leaving him with the scythe.

He walked forward a few paces as Ruby slammed into the ground and rolled a few feet before coming to a stop. He looked over Crescent Rose, "You know, I've always really liked the design of this weapon. Scythes aren't super practical against people, but they can kill Grimm like nothing else."

Ruby popped back up and frowned, "Give it back! I need that to fight!" She promptly turned into petals and raced towards him. He took the scythe in both hands and held tightly onto it as she rematerialized and tried to take hold of it. She let out a high-pitched groan of exertion as she tried to pull the scythe out of his hands,"Come ooonnn!"

He lifted the scythe higher into the air, taking Ruby with it as she hung off the ground and kicked her feet a few times. She growled a growl that was, frankly, far more adorable than it was intimidating as she huffed and pouted. However, that growl died once she came face to face with Arwyn, who just smiled at her. She swallowed a lump in her throat before she muttered, "U-Uhm…"

Arwyn's eyes widened and he stared at her for a moment before shaking his head and kicking outward, connecting his boot with her stomach and sending her flying away again. He felt Pyrrha's Call starting to fade, while Ruby's still had more time. He used the strength while he still had it to slam the Scythe into the ground blade first, letting it get stuck while he summoned Excalibur again and stood in front of it.

Ruby had landed against the wall on the opposite side of the room, and groaned as she moved to stand, "That semblance of yours is really something…" She grinned, "But you're still nowhere near as fast as I am!" She turned into petals and began racing towards him again.

Except, this time, as Arwyn prepared for her to try and race directed at him, he was surprised as she diverted to the right. Her sheer speed during all of this caused Arwyn to stagger backward, only stopped by Crescent Rose, stuck into the ground as it was. He stayed against it for a moment and only pushed off once the wind had died down.

That was precisely when Pyrrha's call ended, and he felt the heavy strain on his muscles. He was so distracted by it that he almost didn't have time to speed forward and avoid Ruby's attempt to tackle him. As she returned to her physical form, he threw Excalibur at her, managing to catch her in the arm before he called it back and prepared to move.

As he anticipated, Ruby went for her scythe, and he charged at her to try and take advantage of however long it took for her to remove her scythe from the ground. However, to his surprise, it only took one solid yank from her to lift Crescent Rose out of the ground. He barely had time to think 'Just how strong is she?!' before she switched Crescent Rose into its war scythe form and swept outward towards him.

He was ill-prepared for this sudden change, and his leg was caught by the blade, sweeping him off the ground. Ruby then raised her war scythe and swung it downwards at his armored chest, sending him crashing to the ground with a grunt of pain. Ruby moved a bit closer and pointed Crescent Rose at his face, "Do you surrender?"

'Well, I lasted a lot longer than I thought I would.' He dismissed Excalibur and raised his hands, "Alright, I surrender. What'd I tell you was going to happen?" He smiled.

Ruby huffed and folded up Crescent Rose, "You had me for a minute! You were just… playing around too much!" She held her hand out to him, which he accepted as she helped him stand. She then pouted, "And since you were playing around so much, you owe me strawberries."

In spite of his sore muscles, he snickered, "You were going to have me get those anyway, weren't you?" Her silence was telling as he turned towards the exit, "Well, we can just go to the dining hall for this. They have plenty of strawberries."

As he started to leave, she hurried to his side, "W-Wait! Uhm, I was thinking… We could get them and then go eat somewhere else. Maybe that spot we met at, looking out at the Emerald Forest?" Her face was flushed a light red as she looked away, "That'd be fun, I think. Really cool."

Arwyn wasn't dumb, he knew what she was trying to do. However, he also didn't really see any problem with it, even though he knew well what the end result would be. What was he supposed to do, anyway? Tell her that he couldn't hang out because he knew it would only deepen her feelings for him, and possibly those he felt for her? Yeah, that'd be smart. Besides, that would make Ruby sad, and he was nothing if not a people pleaser.

"Hmm… Alright, let's get going."

She clearly restrained how happy she was that he accepted, but she couldn't hide the pep in her step very well. She hummed and asked as they walked, "What're you going to do for summer break? We've only got a couple months left before that. Yang and I are going back to Patch."

He rubbed the back of his neck, and his mind turned towards the docks, and specifically, Blake. He hadn't talked to her much, which checked out, since she was still very much at the point where she didn't even really talk to her team. He wondered if there was something he could do about the docks, maybe if he headed there after Blake ran off he could help with Torchwick?

"Uhm, Arwyn? You there?"

Arwyn blinked a few times and chuckled nervously, "A-Ah, sorry, I got kinda lost in thought. I'm not sure what I'm gonna do for summer, that's two months, right?" She nodded and he hummed, "I might just stay on campus with Orion and Alex, they're not my team, but they're still my friends, and I don't know if Orion would appreciate being ditched."

Ruby nodded along before rubbing her chin and thinking while they entered the dining hall. Both of them got food to go, and Arwyn made sure to get an extra bag that he filled with strawberries. After that, they left, and while they were walking to the spot where they met, Ruby gasped, "Oh! You can come to Patch with us, and bring Orion and Alex! We've got enough space in the house for all three of you, although one of you will have to sleep in a sleeping bag, our guest room only has a bed big enough for two."

He didn't see a problem with that, "That's a great idea. Don't worry about the bed situation, we'll sort it out. Alex won't mind sleeping on the ground." More like Alex just would evaporate and reappear in the morning, unless they were feeling like roleplaying as a mortal. Arwyn also didn't see any problem with sharing a bed with Orion, they were both guys, and they were friends.

She was absolutely overjoyed, even pumping her first in the air with a cheer as they finally reached their destination. Arwyn was about to sit down when Ruby sat, "W-Wait!" before taking off her cloak and draping it across the ground, "We can sit on my cloak, since I didn't bring a blanket." She smiled nervously as she sat down.

Arwyn wanted to tell her that she really didn't have to do that, but she also was already sitting down and looking at him expectantly. So, he sat down and together they opened the containers with their food, Arwyn having gotten a simple bacon cheeseburger with fries while Ruby got… a bunch of sweets with some actual food mixed in. Arwyn also had his bag of strawberries, and he raised an eyebrow at her food choices, "You know you need to eat healthier than that. I know I'm one to talk, but at least the burger gives more nutrients than… chocolate."

Ruby huffed, "I eat perfectly fine most of the time, Weiss and Yang make sure of that. I don't mind, but sometimes I just want to eat sweets." She looked at him, "Anyway! Uhm… you owe me strawberries!"

Arwyn took one into his hand and was about to hand it to her, but then she opened her mouth and closed her eyes while leaning forward. His face burned red as he reached his hand out and placed it into her mouth. She closed it and opened her eyes, her own face a bright red as she smiled brightly, "I think they taste better this way… If you're the one giving them to me."

'What is happening?' He wondered in partial disbelief before swallowing a lump in his throat and fishing out another strawberry, "W-Well, I'm glad you like it." He held out another, and once again Ruby closed her eyes as he fed it to her.

This pattern continued for several more strawberries. He would feed her one, she'd eat it and let out a soft noise of pleasure (Arwyn refused to call it a moan), and then the process would repeat. It was only interrupted when the two of them heard the footsteps of someone drawing closer. Both of their eyes widened, and Arwyn just about had a heart attack when he heard, "Hello again~!"

He hoped dearly that she didn't notice what they were doing, otherwise he anticipated it wouldn't go well. Pyrrha would see it, assume he and Ruby were together, then she'd get sad and leave while hiding how she felt, and-

"Ruby, you're having him feed you strawberries?"

She answered, "Yup!" with a poppin' P.

"Wonderful, mind if I join? Arwyn can feed me some of his french fries, so I don't take any of your strawberries."

"No problem!"

'Oh, okay, well that worked itself out. It's a good thing they don't mind because otherwise-'

"Wait what?!"

Both of the girls looked at him as if he was the one being weird. Pyrrha sat on her knees and asked with some concern, "Are you okay, Arwyn? That was rather out of nowhere."

Arwyn blinked a few times, "W-Wait, so, you guys don't mind? Like, this is kinda… intimate, isn't it? Getting hand-fed like that." His brain was short-circuiting, and he was having a hard time trying to chain together the words he needed to describe his qualms, because how do you describe it? 'You two should be jealous of each other!' maybe, but given the context that sounded odd.

Ruby tilted her head, "Why would we mind? As long as it's with you, it's fine." She smiled shyly and looked away, "I don't think I could handle that with someone else, but with you, it's fine." Pyrrha nodded in agreement, and, if it hadn't been confirmed before, Arwyn now knew for certain that the relic was fucking with people's minds. Unless he was mistaken and this was really something totally innocent, but what were the odds of that? It had to be doing something to them.

But what could he do about it?

Nothing.

Maybe this was for the best? If people got crushes on him that easily, then he could try and make them all happy. He could give them all the time they deserved, and hopefully still have time for other stuff!

His mind was reeling and he had no way of sorting all of this out at that moment. Instead he just swallowed a lump in his throat and nodded before fishing out a fry, "Well… okay." He fed Pyrrha a fry, and his heart felt like stopping from, just, everything.

Luckily, it didn't. Instead, they were all able to enjoy their meals, although Arwyn's mind was far away from the food. He couldn't excuse himself fast enough afterward, claiming he had promised he'd do something with Alex before starting for the tower.

He reached the third floor, and was about to enter his room, when he heard Orion's voice, "Hey, Arwyn?" He looked and saw the other boy, his door open. He was wearing a dark blue jacket, jeans, sneakers, and a purple shirt, "I wanted to ask if maybe you'd like to train later today, but you seem… distracted. Is everything okay?"

Arwyn blinked a few times before nodding, "Yeah, I'll be alright, just got a bit of a headache, you know?" He smiled awkwardly.

Orion stepped out of his room, "Well, if you need some help, I can get you an ice pack, maybe?" He smiled warmly, "Or something to eat from the cafeteria?"

Arwyn knew Orion was trying his best to be nice, to repay him for helping him. Yet, he didn't feel it wholly necessary, "Nah, that's alright. I'll let you know once my head's clear, okay? Then we can spar."

Orion still looked concerned, but he didn't pry. Instead, Arwyn finally returned to his room, where he found Alex waiting for him, sitting on the bed, this time in their spirit form. They tilted their head, "Is something up? I don't think I've ever seen you that wound up before."

"It's all fucked, Alex." He groaned as he sat next to them and laid back across the bed, "The relic is doing something to people. It's making them think that… 'sharing' me is okay. I think it's making them fall for me too… No way I'd be able to attract that many people normally. Hell, I probably couldn't attract one." He sighed and stated not for the first time, "I dunno what to do, Fairy Blue."

Alex crawled over, closer to him, and then sat down again, "I mean, it could be worse. It could be making these people fall for you without making them okay with sharing." They scratched their cheek and looked away, "That'd be messy."

He closed his eyes, "I mean, yeah. I'm not going to pretend like this is some horrible thing. I mean, who would complain about this? It's like something out of an anime, but…" He reached into the air and opened his eyes, staring at his hand, "These girls are still, you know, people. They're not characters in a visual novel or video game, I don't want to hurt them, I want to give them the attention they deserve." Then, a question came to mind. He lowered his hand and sat up, "Uhm… does it affect guys, too?"

They furrowed their brow and scratched the back of their head, "Well, are you into guys?"

Arwyn shrugged, "I mean, I guess if they look… girly enough? That sounds bad, but it's true."

Alex snickered, "You're into femboys, got it. Well, if you're into them, I don't see why it wouldn't affect guys, too, provided they're into guys as well. Not like there's many of them around, though, just Orion and Ren, and you haven't even talked to Ren yet." They shook their head, "Anyway, look," they scooted closer and placed a hand on his arm, "If people can fall for you that easily, and they don't mind sharing, the only thing you can really do to make them upset is to say no. So…"

They smirked and leaned close to his ear, "Why not just do it? Let them date you, what's the worst that could happen?" Then they leaned the rest of the way in and whispered, "You might get lucky."

Arwyn shuddered and blushed a dark red before pushing them away lightly, "You're not being affected too, are you? Geez…"

They just giggled, "No, of course not. I'd be able to tell if I was, and if I was, I'm pretty sure we'd both know by now."

In response, Arwyn pulled them back in and hugged them, in spite of their light protests. They didn't try to push him away, though, instead they hugged him back and rested their head on his chest while saying, "Look, I know it's gonna be rough, but I'll be right there with you. Maybe I can lighten the load, somehow. I dunno how, but there has to be something…"

He sighed softly, "Alex, all I need you to do is stick with me. You're the only person who I know isn't being affected while also knowing… everything about me. If I can come back here and vent to you, talk to you, play games with you, and… hug you like this, then… That's all I need from you."

Arwyn didn't notice how their face darkened from blushing. Alex closed their eyes and spoke in a voice softer than their normal somewhat brash tone, "...I can do that." They hesitated for a moment, but seemed to find the courage they needed, "You know… You really remind me of someone I used to know."

"Really?" He asked, "Who?"

Alex thought for a moment before trying to explain, "He was… a very stalwart person. Always cared more about other people than himself. He'd give up everything if it meant making others happy, and he rarely ever thought of his own happiness…" They laughed a soft, mournful laugh, "He was very straightforward. He… mostly stayed that way, but… something changed within him, and he was never the same."

They continued, "My point is, don't ever lose that, okay?" They pulled away enough to look into his eyes, and as he stared into theirs, he found it difficult to not get lost in them. They spoke with great resolve, "And… if something were to happen…" They thought before they shook their head, "No. I won't let him."

This just raised more questions for Arwyn, but before he could ask, Alex changed the subject, "Anyway, get some sleep, killer. I get the feeling that you're going to need as much rest as you can get in these coming months. I'll see you later."

They vanished, as they had an annoying habit of doing, and Arwyn sighed. It was true that he needed rest, the sun was starting to set outside, and soon night would fall. He got up and prepared for bed, before finally getting into it.

When he fell asleep, he was pulled into a very unusual dream.

/-/

He found himself within a dark forest, and though it was hard to see, his body moved on its own, as if he was being drawn to something.

The warm orange glow of a campfire caught his eye, he knew then that that was where he was headed.

He could hear the rustle of leaves, feel the wind caressing his skin, and if he didn't know better, he might have said that this was real. In the back of his mind, he knew it wasn't, but he knew it was no dream, either. Whatever this place was, whatever, or whoever, brought him there, wanted something from him.

He reached the campfire and saw a lone figure sitting at it. She, and he knew it was a she, wore a dark green cloak that concealed her. Her hood kept her facial features hidden, and she tossed a twig into the fire before remarking softly, "You're finally here. I've been trying to reach you for months now."

Arwyn looked around, "Where is… here, exactly?" He walked over and sat near the fire, looking across it at her, "I know I'm sleeping."

"We are nowhere. At least, nowhere real. This place is a construction, where our minds meet, so that we can communicate. You're the only person I've been able to talk to in several months now. I had given up hope on ever holding a conversation again, but then… I felt it. Your soul."

She threw another piece of wood into the fire, it burned brighter in response to the offering, "It's like this campfire. It burns brighter than every other soul on Remnant, so brightly that those adrift between life and death like me can see it. It has proven to be an… anchor. Something to focus on."

He stared at the fire for a few moments, taking in everything she said. He asked softly, "Adrift between life and death? So you're dying?"

"I am," she began, "I won't hide myself from you, you deserve to know who you're talking to…" She reached her hands up and pulled back her hood.

She had a light brown complexion and shoulder-length brown hair. Her light brown eyes were accentuated by the beauty mark she had beneath her left eye. Arwyn's eyes widened, even as she began to speak…

"My name is Amber, and… I'm afraid you might be the last person I ever speak to."