Jaune II

'Think! Think! You studied for this, the test shouldn't be this hard!' I thought, furious at the paper in front of me. The academy expected us to be willing to risk our lives fighting grimm and although I still had some reservations about that I found fighting much easier than school work. The pen in my hand felt heavier than my sword and shield combined. I looked around the room and it felt as though no one else was having as much trouble as me. Granted, no one had finished yet so the room was still full, but the tell-tale look of distress that marked the faces of students who refused to study were suspiciously absent. Everyone seemed so confident.

Team RWBY was there as well. We all had the same session of Doctor Oobleck's history lecture so we all took our midterm exams at the same time. Ruby looked like she knew all the answers already and seemed bored as she jotted them down on her paper. Weiss's demeanor was similar, she too didn't seem to be having much trouble. The two of them were supremely focused. And although Blake looked like she was exerting an average amount of effort, there was little doubt that she would receive a passing score. That girl liked books more than people, if Yang's summary of her character was to be believed.

Speaking of, Yang looked like she was struggling as well. I know this sounds bad, but the fact that she was having a hard time with the exam as well made me feel a little bit better. It was her, myself, and maybe a couple of other students. So maybe about 5 people in total, that was it. Everyone else knew exactly what to do and how to do it.

I ended up being the first one to turn in my test because I didn't know anything. I just wrote down what sounded right without much thought, so the whole thing was over relatively quickly. To my surprise Ruby followed shortly after and was the second person to finish. We caught up with each other in the hallway outside of the lecture room and talked for a bit. It was… awkward seeing her, to say the least. I hadn't told anyone about what I had done with Yang, but talking with her sister still felt weird somehow. It felt like I was doing something wrong. People often said they bore no resemblance to one another, but those people were wrong. After getting to know Yang better I could easily make out all the subtle ways the two sisters were alike. Most of the resemblance could be found in their mannerism, but there were other points of overlap as well.

What bothered me though was the lips. Their lips looked practically identical, hell they even curved the same way when they smiled. The more I became acquainted with the contours of Yang's body, the more she began to resemble her sister. Or, rather, it would be more apt to say that her sister came to resemble her. It was definitely a strange feeling. I never used to think of Ruby this way and I desperately wanted to go back to the way things were. Whatever pleasure I got from looking at her as an object of my misplaced lust could never compare to the joy she brought me before, back when I hardly considered her a girl. Call me by a new name. Call me Pandora. Through curiosity and the folly of youth I have, with my own hands, unlocked something which can never again be sealed.

"Is something wrong?" She asked, "You seem out of sorts,"

"No, no, I'm fine. Things have been rough lately, what with exams and all, but I'm doing good. I'm hanging in there," I said, trying my best to hide my exhaustion. Truth be told, I was tired. By fraternizing with Yang that night I landed myself in a world of shit. It just complicated everything. Make no mistake, I enjoyed the time I spent with her and desperately wanted to be alone with her again, but our relationship was like a bomb on a short fuse and each new person who learned of our nightcap only made the fuse burn faster. I planned on enjoying it while the wick smoldered, but if I wasn't careful things would go bad very quickly.

"Is that so? Because you look tired," Ruby worried.

"I know, I know, but you have to understand I'm fine, the only problem is school, that's the only thing giving me a hard time right now. These tests are getting ridiculous. It's like Oobleck expects us to have studied every word anyone's ever written on the subject just to pass. God forbid you try to pass with high marks," I said, and she laughed.

"You really are struggling then?"

"Aye, I'm practically drowning in our books when I read them. Hey, I have an idea why don't you tutor me?"

"Oh, what folly-"

"Hear me out, please, I just-"

"What foolishness-"

"Ruby!" I pleaded, "Please. I just need a little extra help. I'm not asking you to spoon feed me the answers, but if you could lend me just a tenth of your wits I might be able to make it through this semester. If it ever gets to be too much or you feel like I'm being too needy or that I'm just plain helpless then you can drop the whole thing. We'll work around your schedule, set times that work for you, and whenever you need me out of your hair I'll be gone, I promise,"

"What's in it for me?"

"What?"

"You heard me," The girl gave me a wide grin, looking ever like her sister. I suppose she was right. It wouldn't be fair for me to expect her to help me and get nothing in return, especially when most people would have just flatly denied my request.

"Alright, Alright, uh, what do you want?"

"I don't know. Does anyone know what they want?" When she spoke my heart began to sink. Did she know about what I did with her sister? Was she alluding to the conflicting desires of my confused heart?

"Ruby… Come on, I'm on my last legs over here. I'm like a fish out of water please don't make me squirm anymore," I said, begging her to be merciful with her next volley of words.

"Then you should make my job easier and tell me what you're willing to give,"

"I'll do anything."

"Anything? Well, then how about you stop playing games?"

"I-i-i have no idea what you mean…"

"Oh really? No idea, not even a clue?"

"No, I-i cannot say. Whatever you're alluding to escapes me, miss."

"Miss? That's rich. You've known me for a while now so don't go back to that 'miss' and 'm'lady' nonsense. You know me, Jaune and you know what I want. Do I really have to tell you?"

"I can't. I just can't. I know what you want me to do and I just can't do it. I've been through too much already and I just can't take anymore!"

"You're being dramatic! It's not that hard. I'm just asking you to do one simple thing. It'll be over quick so why are you complaining? Once it's over you'll be happy too, I promise."

"You don't know that! You don't know anything! What you're asking is too much, it's just too much, especially after what I did with Yang… Please you have to understand I just can't, not with you, you're-" I was emptying my heart, but Ruby interjected.

"HUH? EXCUSE ME?" She shrieked.

"I was just saying that what you're asking of me is completely out of line on account of what I did with your sister," I said. I was certain at the time that Ruby knew of my intimacy with Yang and that she desired a taste of the same fruit as her sister. I thought that she was soliciting me for some kind of sexual favor in exchange for tutoring, but based on her reaction that was clearly not the case.

"No, no, wait, stop. All I wanted was for you to confess your feelings to Pyrrha. If you did that then I would tutor you in any subject you wanted, but this… complicates things. What exactly did you do with my-" Ruby's eyes flashed like fire as she spoke. However, a stroke of luck managed to come my way as Yang came out of the lecture hall and joined our conversation right before things got ugly.

"Hellooooo! How are you two? That test was murder, right?" She asked, unaware of what was being discussed a moment prior. Yang placed a hand on the nape of my neck and slid it down to my back. It was quick, happened in under a second, but Ruby noticed. And when she did she understood everything that was going on. Her look of confusion quickly shifted to one of disgust.

"The test certainly wasn't easy." Ruby said, barely able to hide her disdain.

"Aye," I nodded in agreement.

"I know! It's like Oobleck expects us to be geniuses or something," Yang put her hand on her chin, thought for a second, and then continued, "Why don't the three of us form a study group? With all our heads put together there's no way we'll fail."

"Funny, I was just asking Ruby the same thing,"

"About studying together?"

"Aye,"

"Well it's a done deal then isn't it? Let's start tomorrow," Yang beamed. Her sister looked very, very displeased at the notion though. She seemed to have a pretty good grasp of the situation and didn't like the idea of studying with me and her sister in the same room. I had no idea that Ruby had been rooting for Pyrrha this whole time. It wasn't as though I didn't have feelings for Pyrrha. Quite the opposite in fact, I was still smitten with Pyrrha. The problem wasn't with her, it was with me. I was the issue. To be more specific, the problem was that I hadn't slept with a woman before Yang. Before I came to Beacon I knew nothing of women, nor did I possess any real knowledge of fighting. Sure, I had been trained in the martial art of the sword by my father, but none of his lessons ever stuck. Every useful bit of information that I knew about fighting came from Pyrrha. I came to her empty handed and she taught me how to defend myself, all while asking for nothing in return. That fact on its own is already pretty sad. I could never, in good conscience, ask her to teach me about love as well.

If I wished to court her I would have to kill the man I was. Bury him in a shallow grave or burn the body, I don't care. Whatever needs to be done will be done, and it will be done with my own two hands. Jaune Arc must die.

"Aren't you forgetting something? I never agreed to do that, I told Jaune no," Ruby protested, but before she could go on Yang began to speak.

"Well, sure, I bet you did, but this is different now. Now it's not just him asking you but your beloved sister as well! You have to make some kind of exception for me because we're related, those are the rules," said Yang. Her attempts to lighten Ruby's mood did not work as intended and so she kept the same sour face on throughout the conversation.

Yang continued to try and convince Ruby to study with us, but she stayed firm in her stance on the issue. They argued in circles for a bit, but eventually Ruby said something that sort of tipped the scales.

"How about this… I'll study with you two if Jaune is willing to help me out with something tomorrow morning. It would only take about an hour of your time, maybe two."

"What would I be doing though?"

"It's complicated. I'll tell you when we meet. Here are the directions to a mortician, meet me at his clinic at dawn," Ruby looked to be in a rush all of the sudden and dashed down the hall.

"Hey! Wait! I didn't agree to this!" I shouted.

"Doesn't feel so good, does it?" She shouted back. Whatever had her in such a hurry was beyond me.

"Why is she always running off somewhere?" Yang asked, posing the question to no one in particular and not really expecting an answer.

"I'm glad to see things with team RWBY are beginning to look normal again,"

"That's hardly the case, but I appreciate your concern, Sir. By the way, what do you have going on right now? Are you busy?" She said, wryly using the title of 'Sir' to refer to me.

"No, I don't believe I am," I stammered.

"Then would you like to come back to my dorm with me? The others won't be back for hours, and I get terribly lonely when they're all gone,"

"Oh, I don't know. How can you be sure they won't be back?"

"Trust me, I know. They've all been acting so distant lately. Blake spends most of her time in the library and you already know about the problem with Weiss," Yang sighed, "Here I was, hoping that I could at least spend the rest of the semester with my sister, but I guess even that was too much to ask for."

"I see,"

"Sorry, I'm rambling again. Look, all I'm saying is you should come back with me. It could be nice, y'know; take a break from all the bullshit," She twirled her hair as she spoke. For all my posturing about using her to learn about sex, I was no different from the lock of hair around her finger.

"You know what? That sounds perfect, lead the way,"

"I knew it wouldn't take too much convincing," She laughed. I couldn't be too mad at her for saying that. I mean, she was right. She basically led me back to her room by the balls and all I did was follow her with a dumb grin on my face.

As we walked and chatted I noticed one of the attendants changing the flowers from a vase that sat in a windowsill. There were flowers around all the windows at Beacon. In addition to those which rimmed the window's edge suspended from hanging baskets, some also had more modest vases and pots sitting in the sil. The air which flew through the windows of the school caught the scent of the flowers and wafted gently through the halls. As such, Beacon always had a fairly pleasant scent that was subtle enough to never offend the senses or become overbearing. I couldn't quite catch the type of flowers she was putting in the vase because Yang and I were in a bit of a hurry, but I think they were spider lilies.

Once we made it back to Yang's dorm I was almost a little surprised to see that she was right. We were the only ones there. On top of that, it seemed as though the place hadn't really been lived in. A place that people actually live in will always have a bit of a mess. Even castles will be a bit dingy in places, it's just what happens when people live in a place. However, team RWBY's dorm was spotless.

"You weren't kidding," I told her, rummaging through the teacups in the cabinet.

"About what?" She said "And, hey, stop messing with our cups!"

"About nobody coming home anymore. This place is so empty it almost looks haunted."

"Scared of ghosts?" She asked, poking me in the sides from behind in an attempt to startle me.

"Ghosts with tits aren't that scary,"

"Oh, so I'm a ghost now? Well let me stop bothering you Sir-lives-a-lot," She said, slipping away.

"No you don't," I grabbed her by the waist to pull her in close. We stayed like that for a bit, just holding each other. I broke the silence with a kiss.

"It's awfully rich of you to be calling me a ghost. It feels like we hardly ever see each other. I know that things are busy, especially with school, and that we may have picked a bad time to start doing this, but I don't care. I want to try to make more time for just the two of us. What do you think?"

"That sounds great to me, but the others might have something to say about it."

"Others? What others?"

"Ruby, Weiss, and Blake. If I start taking up too much of your time then they might begin to think that I'm trying to steal you away from team RWBY."

"That's on them. If someone could steal me away then they weren't trying hard enough to keep me. Besides, it's not like I'd ever leave them for good. This isn't about grimm or hunting or any of that stupid crap. It's just about us, you know?"

"So you don't want to think about them anymore?"

"Yes, but that's beside the point. I didn't ask you to come here just to talk about the other girls. Would you rather one of them be here instead of me?"

"Of course not."

"So then what's the problem?"

"The problem is that what we have is good for us and only us. The second we make things obvious you'll see that there are a lot of people who don't like the idea of us being together. Ruby found out earlier this morning, she didn't take it well."

"You told her!?"

"I didn't have to! You make it obvious! You rubbed your hands down my neck, how could she not know?"

"Eh, whatever. Ruby doesn't know shit."

"I hope so," I said. With one hand on her waist I grabbed a generous handful of her rear with the other.

"Jaune! Stop," She laughed.

"What? This is what we came to do, right?" I said. I gave her a quick spank once or twice. I savored the sharp sound my hand made against her rear and, after hearing her giggle, I tightened my grip. From there, things escalated rather quickly. I couldn't say for certain whether or not what I was doing was right, but even if it made me feel confused I had to do it. I could never justify to Pyrrha why I pursued another woman while I was in love with her. It was a man's issue and she wouldn't understand it, not the shame, not the loathing, none of it. For her sake, I needed to be stronger, but I wasn't sure of whether or not this was the way to do it. One thing was for certain though, I had to keep my relationship with Yang a secret for as long as possible. I'd have to talk with Ruby about that and ask her to keep quiet.

Later that same day, after the sun had set, Yang and I started playing with a ball of toadstone. They were little metal balls that were highly sensitive to people's thoughts, one could make them roll and spin just by thinking about it, another neat trinket given to us courtesy of mage's metal. And because the ball could be moved by thoughts it was also responsive to a hunter's aura as well, given that the two stemmed from the same source, the mind.

We decided to play a game with it, just to pass the time. The objective was to hold the ball in the air between our palms without having it touch anything. The loser was whoever the ball happened to land closest to once it fell. Think of it like tug-o-war, but with pushing instead of pulling. Oddly enough, I actually went on a bit of a winning streak. Perhaps she was letting me win for one reason or another. Stranger still, aside from any of that, was that it was nearly nightfall, but none of her teammates had come home yet,

"Are they always this late getting back?"

"Yes, lately they've all been coming home later and later. I wasn't kidding when I told you I'm usually the only one here."

"Huh, that's weird. By the way, why does Ruby want me to meet her at a mortuary tomorrow?" I asked and Yang shrugged.

"Your guess is as good as mine. I told you, she doesn't talk to me anymore. You have to be more careful about what you agree to in the future, alright?"

"Are you worried?"

"Of course I'm worried. She's been acting very weird lately and now she's hanging around with corpse-keepers. The whole thing reeks of something awful if you ask me. Maybe I should come with you, if she's gotten herself into trouble then three of us would be better than two," She said, as the toad stone was pushed into the palm of her hand.

"Another point for me,"

"Be serious,"

"I am, don't worry. I know you're concerned and it would certainly be better if we had you there with us, but if both of us show up we might scare her off. Then we'll never know what any of this was about in the first place. I have to go alone, that's the only way."

"Are you sure you can do it? You're a kind soul, but I know you're not much of a fighter," She said, as the stone fell onto my lap. I lost focus and her aura won out over mine. I picked up the ball and said this as we prepared for another round:

"I know, I know, I'm not the best fighter, but I've been getting better. I'm not the same young man I was when I first came to this school. Every day for the past few months all I've done is dodge death, but now I'm ready to face it head on. I know I am! This time it's gonna be different!" I huffed, as Yang winced in pain. The toadstone flew back and hit her wrist.

"Geez, calm down, I get it you're stronger now. You didn't have to send the ball at me so hard!" She chided. Yang went to fetch some ice for her wrist, I felt bad.

"Sorry, I didn't know I could do that. This whole time I thought you were letting me win," I said.

"Well, I wasn't; I was pushing as hard as I could," She shouted from the kitchen. For the first time in a while I felt hope, though I wish it hadn't come at the cost of her wrist. Perhaps my words weren't all bluster and, for the first time in my life, I would finally be okay.