A/N: Wanted to try something different I came up with on a whim. Hope you readers like it.

Rescuing the Princess

Jaune Arc trotted down a dirt path, his head in a small map that was marked in red. He confirmed that he was heading the proper direction and continued on. Just a couple hours walk ahead was the abandoned Fort Forelock, a place that long since fell into disrepair since the last war against Atlas to the north. It was there he had to go, for the princess of Vale was being held prisoner there by an evil witch. This would be only the second witch he's fought in his lifetime, but one he knows to not take lightly, and he came prepared with plenty of weapons and tools in his knapsack on his back, and his silver sword at his belt is the best weapon for any magic user and beast.

An hour later, and Jaune noticed an overturn cart scorned to blackened wood. Near it was the dead body of a Vale knight. "What happened to you? Did the witch kill you before you even reached the fort, or did she kill you as you were fleeing?" he asked the burnt corpse. He waited a moment, as if he was going to receive a response. He waved his fingers in the symbol of the Lord Oum. "May you find peace, brave knight."

With that, he continued on. He eventually came upon the fort and made his way inside through a broken wall. From his pack, he slipped a glove bearing indescribable markings upon his left hand and drew his sword in his right. He did not know where the princess was being held, but it was the witch he was more concerned about. He made his way through the rubble, of destroyed barracks and a ruined dining hall. Nearby, he heard a voice and the clinking of glass, making him freeze. He moved slowly, making his way towards the source and found the witch tucked in a corner pouring over a spellbook with various plants and dead, small animals around her. Brewing a potion or something? Jaune wondered as he peeked out from the corner. Nearby, he saw what looked like a large jellyfish bop up and down in place, long red tendrils weaving across the floor.

The witch, Cinder, glanced towards the jellyfish and a low hum and clicking sound could be heard from it. She immediately stood and looked over towards where Jaune was, who had already ducked into hiding. "I know you are hiding there!" she shouted, throwing a ball of fire at him, where it exploded against the corner, spreading embers across the ground. "Come out and face me, intruder!"

Jaune ignored her and circled around her. As soon as he saw her backside, he double tapped his thumb and ring finger together and a spark of lightning appeared in his gloved hand. He swung his hand at the witch and a streak of lightning erupted from his palm, narrowing hitting her and forcing her to evade it. "You know magic?! What are you, a warlock?!" she screeched.

"Just a sellsword with a fancy glove, nothing much," Jaune answered calmly. "I'll give you one chance to release the princess and walk away with your life, witch."

Cinder merely laughed. "You are a fool if you think a little man like yourself can frighten me!" She let loose a stream of fire, and in return, Jaune double-tapped his middle finger and thumb together, causing a shield of white energy to form, causing the fire to disperse around him, causing him no harm. Cinder retaliated with a flurry of small fireballs, which Jaune swatted away with his sword, then turned and ran. "You can't run forever!" The witch chased after him, finding herself out in the open ruins of the fort, but Jaune was nowhere to be found. "Where are you?" she mumbled to herself.

From out of nowhere, something glass smashed against the back of her neck and she felt a warm liquid course down her back, soaking her clothes and dropping broken pieces of glass to the ground. "What the…?"

"It's just water, sweet cheeks," came Jaune's voice from above. "but did you know water makes a good conduct for lightning?" He double-tapped his fingers again and let loose a stream of lightning upon Cinder, making her freeze in place as lightning coursed through her body, frying her from within. After a few seconds, Jaune retracted his spell and the witch fell to the ground dead. He went to the corpse and pulled out a bottle of black oil from his back and poured it over her, then with a snap of his left hand, he conjured fire in his palm and set her ablaze, watching her as she was reduced to ashes. He made his way for the nearby tower that still remained intact. After making it up the stairs, he saw the burned remains of a magical rune that were etched upon the door. It must've faded away with the death of the witch. Jaune yanked the door open and made his way inside.

The room was still in ruins, but was slightly altered to allow for a person to live within it, and upon the bed was the princess. "W-who are you?" she whimpered.

Jaune kneeled before her, showing respect to the noblewoman. "Princess Weiss Schnee, I am Jaune Arc, I'm here to rescue you. Do not fear, the witch is dead." He reached a hand out for her and she took it, where the two left the fort and began the journey back to Vale's capital.

As they walked, Princess Weiss observed Jaune, getting a good look at him. "You don't look like a knight," she remarked.

"No, I'm just a sellsword, nothing more," Jaune answered, paying her no attention as he lead her down the dirt path.

"A sell…My grandfather sent a sellsword to rescue me?!"

"Disappointed? Sorry, but guess he got desperate when the knights he was sending kept dying instead of returning, so he opted to send me, since I'm the best in Vale." Princess Weiss remained silent and followed after her savior, but she soon grew tired and had to stop, where she seated herself upon a roadside log. "C'mon, we've got return to the capital as soon as possible."

"I can't walk forever, and I'm wearing high heels, in case you haven't noticed," she spat at him, to which Jaune took notice of her shoes.

"Yeah, that's a problem, but unfortunately, I can't wait for you to rest up, I'm on a tight schedule." With that said, Jaune hoisted the princess up over his shoulder and continued on, much to her protests of kicking and yelling.

They continued on (with the princess eventually giving up) until the capital's walls were within sight, to which Jaune finally let the princess walk on her own now. "Soon you'll be able to return to your comfortable way of life, princess."

"Good, because I cannot stand your company a moment longer, sellsword," the princess retorted, giving a huff as she looked away from his direction. He rolled his eyes and moved on, with her following shortly behind. "and furthermore, I intend to tell my mother about how disrespectful you have been to me!"

Jaune scoffed at her, but let her lead the way. When they reached the gates, they were greeted by the citizens and a group of knights ready to escort them to the castle. As they marched on, Jaune stuffed his magic glove back into his pack and slipped a gold ring onto his finger, and he himself was eager for his reward.

Inside the castle, Jaune and Princess Weiss was taken before the royal family, who's queen , young prince, and older princess greeted her with warm embraces, while its king, Nicholas, father to the queen and grandfather to the prince and two princesses, greeted the young man before him. "Jaune Arc, I cannot thank you enough for rescuing my granddaughter from that vile witch."

"Forgive me for being rude, but if you wish to properly thank me, then you can do so with the payment we agreed upon," Jaune insisted. Instead of being insulted, King Nicholas Schnee merely nodded.

"Of course, of course, I did not forget…" The king beckoned at a servant, whom rushed over with a large sleeve full of Lien cards, which Jaune took.

"Figures that a sellsword would demand his pay so quickly!" Weiss proclaimed for the entire throne room to hear, her eyes glaring daggers at the blond.

Jaune chose to ignore her. "Thank you, your Majesty, truly, and how is my wife?"

"W-wife?" said a puzzled Weiss.

The king slung his arm around the sellsword. "Ahh, don't fret, Mr Arc. According to our best doctors, she is of perfect health, and Dr. Miyuki believes that she's set to give birth within the next couple weeks, of which she will be under our care when the time comes."

At that moment, Jaune's wife was escorted out into the throne room with a couple of doctors at her side who helped her along. Pyrrha Arc approached her husband and the two embraced in a loving hug. "I missed you so much, honey," he whispered into her ear before peppering her cheek with kisses, his hand softly placed upon her belly to avoid pressing against her.

"I'm just glad you came back in one piece." She too riddled him with kisses, even as the king and Weiss watched them. "Though, I never doubted you for a moment."

"How about we go home, cuz I could use a rest and some lovin' from my wife." The two embraced again, this time enjoying the comfort of each other.

"What's wrong, Weiss? You've been watching Mr. Arc for a while now," her mother remarked as she stood behind her. "Feeling a little jealous?"

"As if! Why would I be jealous of a disrespectful sellsword?"

"Disrespectful? He sure doesn't act like that when in our company. What did he do, by chance?"

"He refused to address my woes, and worse, he carried me over his shoulder instead of letting me rest my feet!"

The Queen Mother giggled to herself. "Sounds like he was more concerned about returning home to his wife than he was worrying about your tired feet."

The realization hit Weiss, and she suddenly felt guilty for her previous remarks. "Right…I mean, if his wife is almost ready to give birth to their first child, then of course he'd want to hurry home…" She watched the sellsword and his wife leave and suddenly felt happy for them. "…I suppose I shouldn't complain, given that he did rescue me."

( )( )( )( )( )( )( )( )( )( )

Two weeks passed, and Pyrrha Arc gave birth to a healthy baby boy, whom they named Mikado. There was much excitement, and even Weiss was pleased with how happy everyone was at the news. In the previous weeks, Jaune was tasked with rescuing a wounded knight that was captured by bandits, which he succeeded at, and the princess came to admire the sellsword more and more.

In time, what began as bitter resentment became a fond friendship between the most unlikely of people: a sellsword and a princess.