Interlude - I'm Bad at Love, but You Can't Blame Me for Trying

It was with a strange combination of awkward flattery and humble pity that Ruby told her confessor, "You're sweet, but I have a boyfriend."

The boy gave an understanding nod, "Oh well. Figured I should try. Thanks for hearing me out though."

"Well wait!" Ruby said, "I mean, like we could be friends, though. We could hang out and stuff. Do you like anime? Jaune and I—"

The boy put on a syrupy smile. That one which was like an adult having to correct a very foolish child. "Er, yeah. I'll keep that in mind. See you"

As he trudged away, Ruby couldn't help but think he might not keep her suggestion in mind at all. And only then did she realize what she'd said. The guy had plucked up the courage to ask her out, putting his feelings out there with no guarantee of reciprocation, and Ruby had essentially offered a consolation prize. And a pretty insulting one, at that. Sorry I don't want to date you, but you're free to hang out with me and the guy I do want to date.

If that boy ever talked to her again, it wouldn't be for a good long while. Who could blame him? Ruby had felt the same back in seventh grade when she'd been turned down. She remembered that sour taste in her mouth whenever she saw her crush making out with any girl that wasn't her. No one is okay with being rejected, whatever brave face they put on. Ruby thought to catch up to the boy and apologize, but then supposed the kindest thing she could do was leave him alone.

With a sigh, Ruby opened her locker and began exchanging her books for homeroom. Funny, how that had been the second person to ask her out. The first guy had confessed just two days after Jaune and she had gotten together. She'd never been confessed to before then. Not once. She'd always considered herself too… well, ugly. Baby-faced, no hips or chest, not very funny or smart. Ruby never thought she had anything worth liking.

So the idea of being confessed to had always been a fantasy. Something to project about in self-insert fanfics, where the main character had tons of hot guys that were crazy in love with her. Ruby had imagined that being confessed to would be a massive boost to her confidence, but in reality, it was the exact opposite. It was awkward being asked. It felt bad to say no. Especially to someone who seemed so genuine. Even though she had no reason to feel guilty, logically, it still felt like she was being a villain.

The halls were busy this morning, as always. People went this way and that, both rushing and taking their sweet time before the morning bell. It was easy enough to drown out, usually. But lately the noise felt suffocating. Like she might drown in this sea of people. Ruby looked at the picture of Uncle Qrow and her mom, trying to reason herself into a better mood by thinking of better days.

It wasn't as if things were bad now. If anything they were pretty great! Uncle Qrow was working again. Just at a construction site for now until he could get his badge back. Dad was working less and spending more time at home. He visited Mom's grave weekly, was seeing a therapist, and it seemed to be helping him. Yang spent more time at home too, and they'd finally gotten to get through some more Pirate King. Heck, Yang and Jaune were often nerding out about it at lunch. That thought brought a smile to her face. Yes, family life was good.

So was Jaune too, honestly. She'd been over the moon that he finally agreed to go on the trip. Honestly, she had been prying at Jaune's shell with a freaking crowbar for a while and this was the first big chip out of the armor. Certainly a win, but sometimes it felt like the reward was not equal to the effort put in. Just sometimes.

Life couldn't be perfect, but this was the closest it has come in a while. So Ruby simply told herself to stay positive and focus on her blessings.

On the topic of blessings, she saw Jaune coming down the hallway and felt her chest warm. He never quite smiled, but his frown, normally set in so deep and tragic, would occasionally loosen, which was how she could tell he was in a good mood. If only he would smile more. Jaune really had no idea how handsome he was.

And she doubted this fact was lost on others, because before Ruby could run up and hug him, she saw who he was with.

Blake walked in stride alongside Jaune this morning. Just as she had done the morning before. And the morning before that. Unlike Jaune, Blake had no problem smiling, and seemed to say something that made Jaune give her a playful side eye. Still, his lips twitched, which Ruby knew well by now was the closest he ever came to laughter.

For some reason, Ruby always noticed how close they were. As in their literal shoulder-to-shoulder ratio. Ruby sucked at math, but even she knew that this equation didn't add up right. She almost shook her head to dispel any further thoughts, but managed to control herself so she didn't look stupid. Overthinking, obviously. These halls were tight so it only made sense they'd walk so close together. Yep, made sense. So Ruby put up a smile as Jaune broke away from Blake for a moment to take her embrace.

"Morning," he said.

"Morning!" Ruby chirped, then she passed Blake the same enthusiasm, hoping that she could convince herself she meant it. "Morning Blake!"

Blake blinked at her, just as if she hadn't noticed Ruby there until now. Probably because she'd been busy staring at someone else. "Oh, hey Ruby. You seem chipper this morning."

"Got a lot of things to be chipper about!" she said, about to take Jaune's hand, but thankfully he'd already gone ahead and done so. He always gave her exactly what she needed when she needed it, even if he had no clue why. That was why Ruby loved him. And so it only made sense that such a good trait would be something any girl would want. "And so do you! What's got you in such a good mood?"

Blake shrugged one shoulder. "No real reason."

If she said so. Ruby did not intend to linger on the subject for very long, if only because she was starting to feel like she was being antagonistic for no reason. Blake was Jaune's apprentice and mark, so it obviously made sense for them to build some rapport. And had she not encouraged Jaune to make more friends? He and Blake had similarities. Many similarities, now that she thought about it. It was good that Jaune made a friend on his own. Blake seemed like solid friend material. Yes, solid friend material.

And yet, there were times she'd catch Blake looking at Jaune. Staring at him with enchanted attention, as if enticed by his smell. She'd catch her biting her lower lip, as if there were a myriad of inappropriate ideas whirling in her head, centered quite plainly around Ruby's boyfriend.

But again, Ruby assumed she was overthinking and let those suspicions fester. "Club after school?" she asked Jaune.

"Sure," he said, "But the sparring match is at six, so we gotta leave a little early. You ready?"

Right, that. Miss Peach had the brilliant idea to arrange a team sparring match, pitting Jaune against Neptune, and Ruby against Blake. A way to test everyone's progress and gauge where they needed improvements. Was she ready for it? Ruby supposed she'd have to be. Did she want to do it? Not at all. But this was her mission, wasn't it? To save Jaune's heart and all. If she did well in this match, perhaps that meant they could get the job done easily.

Thankfully, Miss Peach was not yet insane enough to put Ruby against her own boyfriend. Ruby didn't much like the idea of hurting Jaune, and still less the idea of him hurting her. They'd fought plenty enough without it coming to actual blows. But this was all to save his heart, according to Miss Peach, and Ruby wanted Jaune to be better.

Perhaps once that was done, she'd be able to convince Jaune to leave the organization. Then he could live a normal, happy life. The both of them could, together.

"Shut up!"

"You shut up!"

Ruby tuned back in to find that Jaune and Blake were bickering. Again. Only there was this strange way they argued. Closer to poking fun, but far more brutal than friendly teasing. They were constantly coming up with new ways to insult and degrade each other. Sure, friends poked fun at one another, but this seemed a tad extreme. Ruby knew if a friend called her any of the things they called each other, she'd be very hurt. But Jaune and Blake seemed to revel in humiliating one another in whatever way, seemingly without restriction.

And of course, they seemed to entirely forget she was there. So she just stood there awkwardly, attempting to laugh at whatever insult one made, but unable to commit. She eventually resigned herself to silence, and just waited for Blake to leave.

"I'm going to class." Blake grinned, playfully smacking Jaune's shoulder. "See you in art."

"If I show up." Jaune countered.

"You'd better."

"Or what?"

Blake punched him in the side and Jaune clutched it with a growl. "Ow. You bitch!"

And she sauntered off, hips swinging, no doubt absolutely loving herself.

Jaune shook his head as he watched her go. "Every day I am more and more tempted to choke her."

While Ruby didn't exactly prefer that scenario, it was less immediately worrying than thinking about him doing something else with Blake. "How's it going? Searching for her key?"

"Huh?"

"You're searching for her key, aren't you?"

"Oh. Yeah I… no progress."

Ruby raised an eyebrow. "Then what have you and Blake been doing?"

"Training. I guess I got caught up in the routine."

Ruby had no retort for that. It was a perfectly logical explanation and Jaune wasn't the type to be dishonest. "You should probably get started on it. You know, get it over with. What's your plan?"

Jaune rubbed his head in thought. "I thought of talking to A—er, her boyfriend. I just don't know how I'd do it in a way that's not… well, suspicious. I don't know if Blake has any other friends. She hasn't mentioned any."

Ruby imagined she might not. She didn't know all the details since she'd never asked out of respect for her sister's business, but she knew Blake, Sun, and Yang had been close. Blake and Yang had dates for a short time and the breakup had been devastating. Blake had always seemed the most distant of the group, but now she was absent from them all the time, and she imagined Yang and Sun getting together had something to do with it. She felt kind of bad now for not trying to get to know Blake earlier.

"She has a history with Yang and Sun." Ruby offered.

"I know, but I can't ask Yang. She's… well, she's gonna know what I'm up to."

Right. That. Ruby sighed, "Maybe we shouldn't bother Sun, either. Or any of our friends with this stuff. It never turns out good, you know?"

Jaune nodded somberly. "So, I guess the best avenue is Blake herself. But she's tough to open up. Seriously, she's stubborn as hell."

"I can think of someone else I know who is like that."

"Oh you're funny." Jaune resisted a smile, but it cracked through a little. "But I'll make progress soon. I promise."

Ruby gathered up her things and shut her locker. "Okay, see you at lunch, turn. Now where's my kiss?"

"Here." Jaune pulled into him by her waist and gave her a quick peck on the lips. Not enough for Ruby. She pulled him back and kissed him again, longer. It was only with the greatest reluctance that she eventually let him go.

Jaune blinked at her, but he did not look unhappy. "Whoa. What'd I do to earn that?"

"Just reminding you where those lips go." Ruby giggled.

Jaune gave an impressed nod. "That's a good line. You should use that in your fanfic."

"I should, shouldn't I?"

Betty slumped onto the bench, drenched in sweat. "What the hell, Ruby! Since when could you run for that long?"

Ruby preened a little as she changed out of her gym uniform. Her classmates looked plenty out of breath, leaning on the walls, gasping for breath and all. Ruby remembered feeling like that herself not long ago. Barely able to make a lap around the course before her legs started to give out. But exercise at school was nothing compared to Miss Peach's training. Even if said training could be harsh. Sometimes. But she understood why Peach was hard on her, so she could put up with it.

Ruby shrugged. "I just do a little exercise. Nothing crazy."

Betty shook her head like Ruby was crazy. "Seriously, though, you're in good shape. You could so play soccer. How about you try out?"

Ruby gave a weak chuckle. "I'm not really good at sports…"

"It's not that hard. You just kick a ball around! Not saying you won't have to practice and stuff, but as you are, you could be one of our best players. Come on, you've never once thought about being an athlete?"

Ruby had, a couple of times, but she was quick to give up on sports after realizing how much work goes into them. That was more Yang's thing. She was about tech, games, computers, geek stuff. And yet, her suggestion made Ruby think. Why not try it? What was the harm? At the very least she would have to see what it was like before turning it down. "Um, I'll think about it, okay?"

"Yeah, no problem. I think you'd be really good. I'll tell the coach you might show up!"

"But—"

And Betty was off, having already decided Ruby's fate. Now she'd look bad if she didn't show up. Ruby sighed and got back to getting dressed.

She hadn't realized the room had emptied until someone else showed up. Someone she didn't see very often. Pyrrha Nikos.

She went to her locker, started pulling out her gym clothes. Nothing abnormal. Probably just getting there early before her class began. Ruby had seen her plenty enough times over the years to recognize her, but that was the extent of their relationship. She was a friend of Weiss's, that much she knew. And apparently Weiss had invited her on the trip, but when it was brought up, she hadn't given an answer.

Of course, what came immediately to mind when looking at Pyrrha was her involvement in the Public Domain. And her recent strange behavior that Jaune had reported. Which made Ruby both curious and cautious.

Maybe she could take some of the work off Jaune. Try to figure her out. Whatever her involvement with the organization, she was a teenage girl at the end of the day. Perhaps there was a friend to make in the process.

Ruby swallowed her nerves and approached just as Pyrrha sat down to get dressed. Pyrrha looked up at her before Ruby could say anything, and so the lead question slipped out of her mind, leaving them staring awkwardly at each other. It was hard to read her face. Just seemed normal, if not a bit confused by Ruby's approach. A normal girl in a crowd. Hard to believe she'd gotten wrapped up in all this Heart World business. Ruby still found it hard to believe for herself.

Ruby cleared her throat. "Er, Pyrrha, right?"

"Yes." She answered with a weak smile, "And you're… Ruby Rose-Xiao Long."

"Yeah. You know me?"

"Weiss mentioned you a few times."

"Flatteringly?"

Pyrrha's poor attempt at a smile rose by a small margin. "Well, as flattering in a manner as Weiss can."

Ruby chuckled a little. It wasn't very funny, but at least there was some commonality there. "She says she invited you on the Mistral trip. Are you going to go?"

"I'm not sure yet. Maybe I will." She paused. "Did you need something, Ruby?"

"No, just…" Ruby took a moment to figure out the proper way to come at it. "You know, I just didn't know about you until recently. I thought we should, like, get to know each other. For the trip and all."

Pyrrha's expression was blank as she said, "I'm sorry. You're very nice, but I'm not looking for friends."

She sounded exactly like Jaune. Ruby was beginning to wonder how many sad sacks there were in this depressing school. "Well, give me a shot. I might surprise you. Let's just hang out. Go to a movie or something. What's the harm?"

Pyrrha pursed her lips to the side like she was giving it serious consideration. "Did Jaune put you up to this?"

Ruby flinched, then fumbled to respond so she didn't look suspicious. "No. Why would he? Do you know Jaune?"

"We go to the same community center. He tried being friendly too, but I don't think we get along."

Ruby wasn't too surprised. Sad people generally do not like the company of other sad people, which you would think would encourage them to be more positive, but she'd have better luck convincing a wall to cheer up than her own boyfriend.

"He's kind of rough, but he's super nice. You should try getting along with him, I think he'd want to be friends with you. Maybe I want to be friends with you too."

Another pause. "How can you be so kind?"

"What?"

"I never did anything for you. I've never even talked to you. Why do you want to be my friend?"

Was it really that weird to be nice to people? Couldn't she just want to try to make friends? Ironically, she did have an ulterior motive this time, but she was hoping that it never came to that. She felt guilty enough already. "Maybe I don't have enough friends. Maybe I'm just filling a quota. Does it matter?"

"I suppose not."

"Then when are you free next?"

"I'm not busy next Sunday. Except for church."

"Oh, you're religious? My grandma is all about that stuff. She's always nagging at my Dad to make us all go."

"Have you ever been?"

"No. My Dad and Mom weren't really into it."

"How about a trade, then? You come to church with me, then I'll do whatever you want for the rest of the day."

Ruby wasn't keen on the idea of church, but she liked the other end of the deal. "Deal. You watch anime?"

Pyrrha curled an eyebrow. "What's anime?"

Ruby was practically cheesing with anticipation now. "Girl, do I have a whole new world to show you. Just wait till next Sunday. You're gonna be blown away!"

Pyrrha grinned a little. "Er, okay."

They exchanged numbers just like that, and Ruby had to admit to feeling quite accomplished. "Well, I won't keep you. Guess I'll call you on Sunday?"

Pyrrha nodded. "I can get my Dad to pick you up."

"Sounds good. Well, I'll see you then!"

Ruby found herself kind of excited as she headed off. Pyrrha seemed normal and pretty nice all things considered. Perhaps there was nothing Jaune or Aunt Peach needed to worry about. That'd be nice for once.

That's when she heard Pyrrha call out to her. "You're a very sweet person, Ruby."

Ruby turned back with a smile. "Oh it's nothing. I try to—"

"You should get out while you can."

Ruby paused. "Huh?"

Pyrrha stared at her, but her expression was different now. Cold, empty, the eyes of someone who'd seen much and was haunted by it.

Ruby tried putting up a smile to ward the feeling of. "What, you mean the locker room? I was on my—"

"You know exactly what I mean."

The room felt darker all of sudden, and Ruby was very suddenly aware of how she was alone in the locker room with this girl she did not know. There was no one around to see what could happen. To hear her screams if they happened. But she had no idea why she felt that way. Pyrrha didn't look dangerous.

Ruby swallowed. "Pyrrha, what are you talking about?"

"You don't belong in that world," Pyrrha said, "Get out. It's not too late."

Ruby tried not to reveal how her heart was starting to speed up. "What do you know?"

Pyrrha's hard face did not change a bit. "Well, it's your choice in the end. I just thought I'd give you fair warning. See you Sunday."

Ruby didn't even have time to say anything, because at that very instant, she blinked.

And Pyrrha was gone.

Ruby wanted nothing more than to absolutely destroy Blake. Just a little.

She was the newest trainee just after Ruby herself, and so they'd been paired since their skills were most likely to be equal. Miss Peach, however, was not fond of that result, and so she unknowingly encouraged Ruby's unusual bloodlust by instructing everyone not to hold back. A very welcome rule. Ruby would prove that Peach's training had not gone to waste. Maybe she'd never be as strong as monsters like Neptune and Jaune, but she could damn well be better than Blake.

I will win, she told herself, I will win.

The boys were out of sight, on the other side of a row of buildings that separated the two fields. Each more than big enough to permit reckless destruction. Ruby's powers weren't very bombastic like Neptune's, but that suited her just fine. She wasn't keen on being a walking safety hazard.

Blake at the other end of the wide road in her… admittedly super cool outfit that made Ruby feel like she'd been cheated somehow. Why the heck did Blake get to be a freaking sexy, badass ninja while Ruby looked like a mildly scanty red riding hood in stockings? Maybe it wasn't worth being salty about, but by now, everything Blake did seemed to get under her skin.

Peach stood in the middle, looked at both Ruby and Blake as she spoke. "I want a full measure of your capabilities, so hold nothing back. If I see that someone might get seriously hurt, I'll intervene. Understand?"

Blake nodded.

Ruby nodded harder.

Peach passed Ruby a hard, but imploring look. That look of a trainer expecting her dog to take first place at the dog show. "Then begin!" and she jumped toward the rooftops.

Heck if she was playing a game of chicken. Ruby called upon the wind, raised her scythe above her head and—

And the air was ripped apart by a violent explosion.

It wrestled away control of the air, forced it back so harshly that it tore Ruby off her feet as the booming crash echoed in her ears, vibrating in her skull. On the other side of the buildings, looming high over the rooftop, a giant water wave had risen up, towering over all things beneath it like a beast about to enjoy a meal. Neptune's work, quite obviously Ruby, had seen that wave crash wash away swarms of Grimm like they were roaches dashed with a broomstick. Neptune was going all out from the gate, and that would be difficult from Jaune to contest.

And it was only seconds after this assumption that the air seemed to freeze over in an instant, the air swimming with white mist. Then, another rocking explosion like a thousand glass windows shattering. A massive wave of ice rose over the water wave by almost a third of its height, crashed wholly into it, ripping a building apart in the process. So extremely cold, in fact, that the water froze instantly, leaving one giant crystal spire twisting up toward the dark sky. Ruby's jaw dropped, for she knew where she'd seen such power before. Jaune's crazy laughter reached her ears a moment later.

Since when could he—

But there was no time for questions. Ruby looked up in a panic to see Blake and her clones coming at her from the air, apparently not one to waste an opening. Everyone had been given a basic explanation of each other's abilities and typings, but the details were left for them to figure out to keep things fair. So in turn, Ruby got to her feet and began to whirl her scythe over her head in wide, strong sweeps like she was churning a vat of cement.

It used to take her some time to build up, but she managed it pretty quickly this time. The wind gathered around her in a like a great wall, barring the entry of any too weak to break through. It never worked on Peach or Neptune's lightning, who had such incredible attack power that Ruby's defenses just weren't enough.

But Ruby was glad to see that it worked on Blake.

They were caught in the wind wall like it was a great flytrap, then flung away in showers of black ink. The real Blake was, thankfully and unfortunately, was merely blown back, righting herself midair to at least land on her feet. In every interaction, you have to take what you've learned and make an assumption. Oftentimes, you're fighting an enemy whose powers you don't understand, so you had to make safe guesses about their powers and combat style and play cautiously until you could find something certain to take advantage of. That was a lesson Peach had drilled over and over until Ruby remembered every word. Now it was time to put it to work.

If Blake couldn't break her defenses, then Ruby was safest turtling and wearing down Blake's patience. Once she made a mistake, Ruby would punish her for it. Rinse, repeat. A solid strategy.

This time Blake hurled her chain scythe at Ruby. It was fast, but Neptune's lightning spear was four times as fast. It was a simple matter to step out of the way, sensibly expecting it to hit the ground or for Blake to pull it back. Instead, it flew right past her. Into the arms of one of Blake's clones which had been positioned at Ruby's blind left. Had she positioned that one while herself and the others did that jump attack? That was very clever. Ruby did not like that.

She had to dodge again when the clone hurled the sickle at her, and this time Ruby made sure to get some distance. Once again, it flew past her, but the clone had yanked the chain and pulled the real Blake off the ground, flinging her like a slingshot straight toward Ruby. A smart maneuver, but Ruby was more than ready.

She swung her scythe just as Blake closed in and made contact, using the back end so she didn't hurt her too much. Turns out it didn't matter.

Ruby only thought quickly enough to raise her arms before her face, as Blake burst in a spray of ink. She felt it eat at her sleeves the moment it made contact, and the skin wouldn't be far off. How badly would it hurt? How long would it burn?

No time to find out. Ruby felt a blow in her back that sent her skittering across the dark street, sky and land turning over and over. She scraped herself up to find Blake standing in her spot, lowering the leg she'd kicked with, smirking as she twirled a dagger in her hand.

Ruby knew she couldn't work up a smile, but tried giving Blake an impressed nod. "That was really good. You and Jaune train hard, huh?"

"We work up a sweat."

The smirk, the tone, the attitude, all of it got on Ruby's nerves immediately. The suggestion, be it intentional or not, that there might be more going on. Ruby settled herself. Okay, so obviously Blake was good. And smart. Being trained by Jaune, it simply made sense. But it was only the first hit. She was still in this.

This time, Ruby made the first move, forcing the air beneath her feet to propel her toward Blake at great speed. Blake seemed about to meet her attack, but Ruby had planned for that.

She stabbed her scythe blade into the ground, let the momentum cart her over like she was pole vaulting, and felt a rush of satisfaction as she kicked Blake full in the face, and sent her flopping down the block like an unwanted ragdoll.

She watched Blake crawl to her feet, holding her nose and looking all the sillier for it. Ruby wanted very badly to say something witty, but couldn't think of anything, and so settled on a smile and a shrug. Blake rewarded her with a particularly nasty scowl.

After that, it was a brawl.

Strangely, Peach found herself far more invested in Ruby's fight than Jaune's. The boys were more destructive, as the violent crashing of waves, lightning, and ice could attest, but the girls were more vicious by far.

It was like watching two feral cats claw and paw at each other, and with full murderous intent. Ruby was normally very patient and methodical, only swinging when certain she'd get a hit, but now she was a whirlwind. A far weaker version of her uncle, but that was hardly an insult. Every swing put her weight and strength behind it, tearing through Blake's onslaught of doppelgangers, tearing out chunks of building or street where she missed. Wind walls discouraged Blake's projectiles, while wind bursts were hurled back to maintain pressure.

Blake harries Ruby with a multitude of attacks that even Peach found tricky to keep up with. She seemed to be a ranged fighter, but was not shy about getting close. She was too weak to parry Ruby's cuts, but was slippery enough to avoid them and get in hits of her own. A chain of throwing stars, a web of chain sickle swings, knife strikes fast and precise as a professional chef. She slipped into Ruby's guard and stabbed at her, but Ruby jumped back, sprang back toward her and aimed her next cut at Blake's head. Blake weaver back, smooth as a snake, and biting back with greater venom. Ruby kneed Blake in the jaw, sending her tumbling away. That might have been cause for celebration, but a clone kicked Ruby in the jaw and flipped her over, demonstrating the frustrating nature of this scramble. Dead even.

With a sigh, Peach glanced over at Jaune and Neptune, and found that the duel did not alleviate her frustration either.

She knew Jaune's powers would develop further. And the one positive she could pull from the events in Qrow's heart was that she knew, to some extent, what his abilities would be. At least based on the Wolf. But once again, she'd underestimated how powerful he actually was. So how powerful was he, exactly?

Neptune hurled a bolt of lightning twice his own height straight as advanced, the very sound of it burning the air as it flew at blinding speed. But instead of dodging it like a sane person, Jaune snatched the bolt with his bare hand and turned it to ice in an instant. Lightning. To ice!

Jaune landed on a rooftop, boots skidding, then hurled the frozen bolt right back, faster even than Neptune had. Neptune just barely jumped out of the way as the ice bolt exploded on contact with the ground, shards of ice and trails of plasma foaming from the hole.

Jaune followed up by closing the distance and coming down with an ax, Neptune barely managing to get up his trident to catch the blade in-between the prongs. But there was no guessing in a contest of strength. Jaune bore down on him, ready to crush his guard at any moment, so Neptune conjured a jet of water from beneath his feet and launched Jaune back. Both boys thirsted for the advantage, so they launched at once another, one a flash of white lightning, the other a streak of white frost. Their clash sounded like glass exploding in one's ear, blades ringing like bells upon the clash, air twisting around them.

Peach guessed Neptune put all his strength into it, because he managed to launch Jaune backwards, sending him bouncing across the rooftops like a kicked pebble. But he did not let up there. Now he hurled bolt after bolt, a cascade of lightning flying at Jaune as if Neptune was hurling them at random, hoping at least one would hit its mark.

Jaune proceeded to not only engage the assault by charging forth, but also by leaping into line of fire. He landed on one bolt and it turned to ice beneath his feet. Using that as a springboard, he jumped toward the next bolt and did the same. Then another, and another. He was a pinball bouncing about the board, a grasshopper springing off blades of grass, a streak of light darting this way and that so quickly that at times Peach lost track of him.

Peach couldn't even blame Neptune for being too shocked to react. After all, Peach wouldn't have expected anyone to charge into a fray of lightning with such confidence. Not even she was insane enough to try something like that. And all of this told Peach the one thing she'd suspected, but was afraid to be true.

Jaune was growing far too strong, far too quickly.

He scored a blow to Neptune's face with the flat of his ax, spiked him to the ground like a stone tossed in fury. Neptune managed to catch himself by stomping a foot on the ground, refusing to go down. He tried to get Jaune on the back swing, but Jaune used the back of his free hand to smack the trident away, sending it clattering off like a discarded toy. Jaune, ever merciless, bashed him in the back of the head, making Neptune crash flat onto his face. Still it was not enough, Neptune punched into the ground, refusing to go down. Refusing to be weak. Refusing to lose.

Peach had not made him train, and in fact had suggested he quit after the incident in Qrow's heart. But then he'd surprised her by begging to be trained harder. I couldn't do anything before, so I need to be stronger for next time. Please, I'll do whatever it takes. And to his credit, he had grown considerably in a very short time. He was no prodigy, but his dedication and hard work had turned him into a real warrior. A real Heart Hunter in training.

But he was fighting Jaune. Who had everything he did and more.

The ground shattered as Jaune pushed Neptune down, like a dog who refused to obey a command. Neptune hand twitched, fought for consciousness, but ultimately fell still. Defeated, once again. And to think, Jaune had not even used his shield or defensive abilities.

Jaune was in as much of a marvel of his power as Peach was, staring at his hands with a mad grin. She saw the words on his face. I'm so strong. I might be the strongest! Who can beat me? Who can stop me?

And there were very many who certainly could. But at this rate, that wouldn't be the case for long.

Ruby was pissed.

She didn't even bother holding back a snarl as she cut a wide swath around herself and destroyed Blake's annoying ass clones. God, it was like playing a fighting game against a scrubby player that used the same move over and over. Spam, spam, spam. Braindead! But there was no denying that it was effective.

By now she'd gotten an idea of Blake's pattern, only it was very difficult to get around. She saw no other way than to rush her down. Offer no breathing room. Screw tactical defense. She had to go for the kill.

Ruby gave into that deep, primal anger and frustration that she always kept so buried. Gone were her excuses and tendency to forgive, gone was her understanding and kindness. She was hungry. Vengeful. Wrathful. At so many things.

She cut viciously at Blake, heaving and growling, tired and yet pumped on adrenaline. Blake caught her in the gut, but Ruby dodged the follow-up and struck her in the back. It exploded into ink, caught her in the face, yet she'd seen by now that it did not burn her like everything else. Why? No time to find out. She spun around, backpedaling as a clone came swiping from above. She destroyed that one, then the next, one by one, two by two, three by three. Had to keep moving. Had to keep fighting. Had to win.

But why did she want to win?

Ruby had never asked for any of this. Never wanted it. Ruby did not like to fight. She did not like to get hurt or hurt others in general. It was better to talk things out, to be understanding, and practice patience and forgiveness. That was how her Mom and Dad had taught her. One should only fight if there is no other choice.

And there was a choice here. She could quit today and never do any of this ever again. She didn't want to train anymore, didn't want to fight Grimm, didn't want to be the hero, or save the day. That wasn't her. But then… who would help Jaune?

Peach was constantly, annoyingly reminding her all the time how she could save Jaune. How she was so important and special and needed. It didn't feel good to hear at all. It felt like being put on a stage, having no idea what your lines were, yet expected to give an outstanding performance. It was too much. It was all too much. Who would want this? Why would anyone do any of this?

With a roar, Ruby batted aside Blake's knife with the brutal smack of her scythe. Free fist balled, she punched her straight across the face, surprised at being strong enough to crack her mask. She saw a glaring yellow eye as Blake spun back and threw a ninja star that forced Ruby to dodge, giving her all the time in the world to kick Ruby in the face.

She was tired. Ruby wanted no more.

Except, she did.

Before Blake could pin her down and force a surrender, Ruby scrambled up, starting dodging Blake's attacks. Ducking left, weaving right, left, duck again, trying to counter. Blake got in her guard, caught Ruby with an elbow to the chin, snatched her by the hood, booted her in the chest so hard it sent her skittering.

A storm of ninja stars followed, too many to swat away. Ruby summoned a wall and swept the projectiles away. Blake's sickle came flying, Ruby caught the chain in her scythe blade, stamped it to the ground. Blake came flying toward her, forcing Ruby to raise her guard. Her feet pressed against her, but not for long. The force of Blake kicking off of Ruby buckled her legs and made her fall to her knees. Flipping in the air, Blake halted her movement, then shot back down toward with her dagger poised to cut her in half.

Ruby just barely rolled out of the way, huffing and puffing, scrambling to get her scythe. But Blake was not letting up. Again and again she pressed her, making Ruby's head swim with confusion. Maybe she couldn't win. Maybe she was too weak.

Ruby pushed through the onslaught with a wide swing, finally making Blake back off. Her turn now. She harassed Blake with a flurry of mindless, mad strokes, like a blinded artist working angrily at a painting. Blake started to panic, and that was good. That was what she wanted.

Ruby stopped one swing midway through, forcing Blake to raise her guard. Then she spun on her heel, and scored a deserved blow to Blake's side, so strong that it flipped her like a coin. Blake landed on her back, and Ruby did not waste the opening. She pressed the head of her scythe against Blake's neck and pressed her boot on Blake's dominant hand so she didn't make any sudden moves.

"Give up," wheezed Ruby.

Blake heaved for breath, but managed to crack that damn smirk again. "You first."

Ruby gasped as a dagger blade pressed against her throat from behind. How? When? And then Ruby realized. That was why Blake had engaged her so intensely, so that Ruby wouldn't notice the clone she'd hidden. That meant that Blake had at least anticipated losing in the last exchange. So she'd hidden a clone to come out before the final blow and either steal the win or force a draw.

This girl was a thief in every sense of the word.

Ruby's fist tightened with furious frustration, but there was nothing she could do. She stepped off of Blake and dismissed her scythe.

Peach approached them now, looking exhausted, but also rather unimpressed. A look Ruby was very used to by now. "A stalemate. Well, I suppose that's fine. Jaune trained you well, Miss Belladonna."

Blake rubbed her jaw. "Thanks er… Miss Peach. Sorry, I'm still not used to… you… being a part of all this."

"I should say the same about you," said Peach, sternly. "Still, you're doing well. How about you catch up with Jaune."

Blake adopted a smile that was much too eager to be innocent, then headed off.

That Ruby alone with her master in an uncomfortable silence. Yet another thing she was used to by now. Ruby could only keep her head down, afraid of what Peach would say.

"Ruby," Peach began, "You could have done better than that."

"I… I gave it my all, I swear."

"Maybe you think you did. But I know you can do more. You should have crushed that girl. Wholly and completely."

Ruby said nothing. Because she did not disagree.

"I have to admit that this Blake girl has skill, and Jaune taught her well, but that should not be enough to beat you. I'm very disappointed, Ruby."

Ruby felt like crying, but Peach was not moved by tears, so she swallowed them. "I'll do better next time."

"Good," Peach rubbed her shoulder, and it made Ruby feel a tiny bit better, but it was fleeting. "If there's anything you need, you come to me, okay? Whatever you need."

Ruby nodded, and Peach nearly headed off before she called her back. "What does the Church want with Silver Eyes?"

Peach gave that question some thought. "I wish I knew. I'm doing my best to find out."

Ruby paused. "Is there anyone else that might want me? Or, the Silver Eyes?"

"Yes. I'm sure there are others."

Ruby swallowed. "What would they do to get me?"

"Anything, I'm certain. But don't be scared, honey." said Peach, "No matter what happens, I'll protect you. No one will take you. So no matter who comes to you, do not trust them. Trust me. You understand? I'll protect you, your family, and everyone we love. I promise you that."

And Ruby believed her. She believed Peach would. But she wondered if Peach was protecting her because she was a good person and cared about her. Or because Ruby was a very useful tool that she needed.

"Miss Peach," Ruby lowered, "I think… Well, I don't want to accuse her but… I think Blake…"

"Wants Jaune? Yes, she does."

Ruby looked up at her in strange shock. "You think so?"

"I know so. Your instincts are right. I'd wager that's at least half her motivation for causing us so much trouble."

"But Jaune and I… she's knows we're—"

"And that is clearly not stopping her."

Ruby's fists balled. "What do I do?"

"Are you afraid Jaune will betray you?"

"No!" Ruby protested, "No, I trust him, but… I mean I don't know Blake. She seemed nice, but now I don't know what to think. I just don't trust her. I think." She sighed. "So what do I do?"

"What do you want to do?"

Ruby frowned. "Just to make her stop. That's all."

"Well, I think you need to confront her."

Ruby did not like the sound of that. "I mean, she's Jaune's mark. Maybe I shouldn't intervene…"

"You could tell Jaune. Have him confront her."

"Jaune's already got enough to worry about. I don't want to stress him out."

Peach sighed. "Then maybe you should just trust Jaune not to break your heart. If you want my advice, you have nothing to worry about. Blake can't ruin your relationship. She can't take Jaune from you."

Ruby looked up at her with strange, needy hope. "How do you know?"

"I know entirely too well what kind of girl Blake is. If you have to steal to get a man, you likely don't have enough to keep them. These girls never get what they want. Not truly."

Now Ruby looked toward Blake feeling a strange pity instead of relief. Even as Blake looked up toward Jaune with a big smile, eyes shining like she was imagining him naked, all Ruby could see now was how pathetic it all appeared. "How come?" she asked.

Peach shook her head as if Blake was just the latest young tragedy in the making. "Because girls like her don't have a single clue what they want."

Why do the characters seem to have so much time in-between classes to have these long ass conversations even though realistically they only have like two minutes between classes?

Because plot trumps logic, my friends.

See you in the next one!