Blue eyes meet amber as her heart beats faster at the look he is giving her from above.
A look filled with happiness, gratefulness, and fondness that could easily have been mistaken for love. She finds herself looking away to the side bashfully, unable to take the affection he is giving her with his eyes.
"I love you, Blake. You're smart, sexy, beautiful, kind, and strong enough to kick my ass."
Words get stuck in her throat as she closes her eyes and nods wordlessly. A squeak sounds through her mouth as Blake feels him lean down to capture her lips in a kiss. She feels his hips roll forward and slowly but surely he enters her pu-
Her eyes snap open and instead of Jaune's beautiful blue eyes looking down at her, it is Weiss' tired red-rimmed eyes that greet her.
Weiss only grunts at her, thankful that she doesn't have to wake up at least one of her teammates.
Blake could only sigh back down at her bed. Another night of wet dreams as she feels the heat disperse in her core.
It has been a week since her talk with her team and Ruby bringing up her simple solution of Blake being with Jaune because she likes him.
It has been a week since that's been running through her mind coupled with the fact that Jaune basically publicly confessed what he thought of her made everything into a nice recipe of chaos in her mind.
With that said, it has also been a week since she began avoiding him, not because of shame but because of embarrassment and confusion. Uncharacteristic of her, she knows.
The fact is, her first relationship was not normal, what with both of them busy doing their part for a paramilitary organization, Blake Belladonna has no idea how to make a normal relationship work.
It got so bad that Pyrrha had to pull her aside to get the truth out of her. And in an ironic twist of fate, Blake finds herself on the receiving end of Pyrrha wanting to help her get with Jaune just like what she did for them.
She had to convince Pyrrha not to initiate another threesome, Brothers know she has no problems in the sexual department. What she is having problems with is the rest.
What do you even normally do with the boy you like? Surely the answer isn't to raid SDC trains and go camping in the woods. Surely there's more to a relationship than just having sex with each other. What else even is there? Hold hands? Feed each other? Even Pyrrha hasn't done any of those with Jaune in public yet, what with Jaune possibly being put under scrutiny and exposed if they did.
Unlike Pyrrha however, Blake would have no problems if she is publicly recognized as Jaune's romantic partner. Sure, they might get a few raised eyebrows but nothing as bad as a background check by the public. The thought of her walking across Beacon's halls while holding Jaune's hand sends heat rushing through her cheeks however.
"Yang, there's drool in your hair."
Weiss' words snap her out of her haze as she hears her blonde partner squawk and sputter above her.
"Wha-, ewww, gross." Yang lazily mutters as she pats her hair for any drool.
Blake then sees Weiss approach Ruby's bunk and tiredly leans near their leader's face.
"Ruby, Nora's about to eat all the cookies."
"Nora, no!" Ruby snaps out as she sits up in an instant, it takes her a moment to realize what has happened.
In fairness to Weiss, she has learned how to wake each and everyone of them up early in the morning as evidenced by her leader blinking blurrily after her outburst.
"Wh-Weiss you lied!"
"Classes are about to start, we've only got so much time for breakfast." Weiss grunts out wearily to which all of them groan.
"At least this would be the last time we'd be like this." She sighs out, trying to put levity and a bit of good news in the air as they all prepare for the day.
Ever since they started going to Professor Port's detention, Team RWBY and Team JNPR have both run themselves ragged as they did their best to capture Grimm under the auspices of Beacon's faculty. They had a rough start with all of them actually having problems restraining themselves from killing creatures doing their best to kill them but they eventually managed with each team developing their own methods to capture the Grimm.
Speaking of Team JNPR, Blake's cat ears twitch when she hears the door opposite their room open. She equips her bow just in time as Ruby opens the door lazily to greet their sister team. Greetings flow from one side to the other smoothly with both teams too tired for anything else.
In Blake's case however, she does her best to keep her gaze away from the blonde male it is usually drawn to. It is all futile however when her eyes are inevitably drawn to the space beside Pyrrha, only to see…nothing.
Blake blinks and everyone keeps walking. She rubs her eyes just to confirm what she is seeing, or in this what she is not seeing. It hasn't even been five minutes since their teams met each other in the hallway and something is already happening.
"Uhhh guys, where's Jaune?"
Because really, where the hell in Beacon could Jaune Arc be?
Beacon Academy, a place of learning, culture, strength, honor, excellence, and the gathering point of the best of the best. All those descriptions are especially true now that students from all over Remnant have gathered inside it.
Yet for one Jaune Arc, Beacon Academy is not just currently that. It is also apparently a place of torture and interrogation.
Whip!
"What did you do with my Bunbun?!" Coco Adel asks as she whips the side of the table Jaune is currently tied to.
Jaune would have tried to respond but with his hands cuffed to the table and his mouth blocked by a ball-gag, all that comes out are muffled cries for help. He's not gonna ask where the gag and chains come from, he has more important things to think about. Particularly how and why he got here.
It was just the start of a normal day and he was tiredly walking with his team towards breakfast and then the next thing he knows he is being dragged somewhere with a sack over his head.
Coco must've taken his muffled words as something because she was suddenly slamming both her hands down on the table.
"Oh you did not do that to my Bunbun, tell me you did not do that to my Bunbun!"
He didn't do anything! If he would've been able to, that's what he would've said at least. As it is, it falls to someone else to answer for him.
"Coco! He didn't do anything to me!" Velvet Scarlatina cries out from behind Coco with a red face which Jaune would like to assume means she is angry on his behalf.
"Lies! Everyone knows Jaune Arc slept with a Faunus! And you're the only Faunus he publicly knows. It's what the Beacon First Years have been talking about ever since he confessed in public some time last week."
Last week? He didn't confess anything in public…..okay, maybe his argument against Cardin might have been taken as an admission of something, but it obviously did not involve Velvet right?! Right?!
Before Jaune could try and deny it however, the door holding them inside the room blows wide open.
"Sorry Coco, we couldn't hold all of them back." His large upperclassman, Yatsuhashi Daichi says from beside a kneeling Fox Alistair.
Both boys were pushed inside the room by a force from the outside. A force that they now all know as Pyrrha Nikos, Jaune's wonderful and amazingly strong girlfriend.
"Let go of my boyfriend." Pyrrha growls as she enters the room with the rest of Team JNPR and Team RWBY behind her.
Jaune's eyes blow wide open at that. Say what you will about Pyrrha, she's kind, lovely, beautiful, amazing, smart, but it seems like when things involve him, she tends to have tunnel vision and make mistakes. Definitely something they'll have to work on, but now they have bigger problems.
"Boyfriend? Did you know your boyfriend slept with my Bunbun?" Coco raises her eyebrow and waves towards a furiously blushing Velvet.
He didn't! He absolutely didn't! Again, the ball-gag prevents him from saying the words before his friends register Coco's words.
Gasps, cries, screams, screeches, and squeals. All manners of reaction happened with that bombshell of a statement.
"Another one? Huh, nice." That was Yang and Jaune's eyes blow wide open as she gives him a grin and a thumbs up.
That implied she knew he slept with Blake and if Yang knows then…..
"Eep! Yang! You can't just say that out of nowhere!" That was Ruby covering her face and looking away from him beside Blake who just raised her eyebrow at him.
"Arc! You pervert! How in the world did you even find the time?!" Weiss screeches at him with a blushing face of her own.
Yup, Team RWBY knows. And no Weiss, he didn't find the time because it never happened!
"Oh Gods, Renny! Jaune-Jaune's really building a harem!" Nora shouts to a Ren guarding the door from any other interlopers or eavesdroppers.
Not helping, Nora!
"Another one? A harem?" Coco asks confusedly.
Damn, it seems like everyone's just dropping hints. By the way things are going, he already expects Coco to find out he slept with Blake too. Luckily for him, someone cuts through the conversation to stop Coco from putting things together.
"Bullshit."
The word cuts through the room and gasps erupt again as everyone realizes where the curse just came from.
Pyrrha Nikos, his wonderfully, kind, amazing, and lovely girlfriend just glares at Coco. Jaune's heart fills with hope as the most important person in the room to him at least rejects Coco's words because of her faith in him.
"We've been trying to sleep together for more than a week and you tell me Velvet just found a time and place where we could do that when we haven't?! I don't believe you. Jaune didn't sleep with Velvet." Pyrrha continues with frustration in her voice.
Okay, maybe it wasn't because of her faith in him but Pyrrha's libido, she's still right though. He didn't sleep with Velvet. And if he knew a place where he could do it with Pyrrha in private then he would already have slept with his girlfriend once again. They could hardly fool around inside their own dorm with Nora and Ren inside after all. As it is, more than a week since they became official, Pyrrha and Jaune haven't had sex again and not for the lack of trying.
Pyrrha and him have been spending the whole time they were together looking for a time and place to do it again but with their classes ramping up after the transfer students arrived they've had no time and energy to sneak away. Add to that his now hectic schedule of adding Dust lessons with Weiss, his training time with Pyrrha had to double as Dust applications in combat with Weiss watching them.
With no privacy to be found in Beacon, Jaune even went so far as to try and fool around with his girlfriend in the Emerald Forest during their detention with Professor Port. An Ursa walking into them just as they were getting handsy after they snuck away dissuaded them from ever trying it again.
Their pent up frustrations served as a great Grimm magnet those days though and Team JNPR had a lot of practice beating up with Grimm without killing them because of that. At first Jaune just served as a tank with his Semblance, soaking up hits, tiring his enemies, and letting his teammates take the final shot. That was only a good plan however when his team wasn't being overwhelmed and they had the time to soften up targets.
In high stress situations however when his team was fighting hordes of Grimm, he eventually managed to turn down the force of his hits and the intensity of his Semblance allowing him to knock out Beowolves and Ursas by himself.
Not that Coco would know any of that seeing as they just returned from their own mission, but just that fact should have told her that he didn't sleep with Velvet. Instead, she jumped to conclusions and did….this.
"Oh? Then who did he sleep with? Everyone knows he slept with a Faunus after arguing with Cardin. And everyone knows he defended my Bunbun against Cardin before that. If not my Bunbun, who else did he sleep with?" Coco asks provocatively.
This. This is the moment Jaune already expects another bombshell to drop.
"Me, he slept with me."
He was right. Gasps fill the room again as Blake Belladonna pulls the ribbon away from her head and shows her cat ears to everyone in the room.
As much as he expected this to happen, he is still a bit surprised that Blake admitted it and even displayed her Faunus heritage. For the past week, Blake has been avoiding being alone with him. It got to the point that he thought she regretted their time together and didn't want to do anything with him anymore.
Luckily, a talk with Pyrrha clarified a few things. According to her, Blake Belladonna was being shy with him. Shocking, he knows, but it's the truth. Throughout the week he would see Blake staring at him from the corner of his eyes and every time he turned around to look at her, she would blush and look away. Suffice to say that was a new experience for Jaune and certainly got him smiling silly at times.
"Okayyyy, so you didn't sleep with my Bunbun?" The situation finally dawns on Coco and she turns towards him to ask.
As before however, all he could let out are muffled sounds, he did nod his head however so everyone could see that yes, he did not sleep with Velvet.
"Well, why didn't you just say so?"
Jaune's reply to that is just a stare conveying the incredulousness of the situation. Fortunately, Velvet has had enough and pulls the ball-gag out of his mouth with a blushing face.
"Really, Coco? Really?! How did you even manage to get me here without anyone noticing?! Where even is here exactly?!" He says frustratedly as he is so done with this situation.
"Advance Capture Techniques son, you'll learn them in your second year. Also we're in the third floor mock interrogation rooms" She replies haughtily.
"Beacon has interrogation rooms?"
"Forget that. Did you really sleep with catgirl over there?"
Jaune blushes as all eyes turn to him, waiting for an answer. He could already see Team RWBY's expectant looks and even Velvet looks at him with a surprising degree of intensity.
"Yes." He admits it as he locks eyes with an equally blushing Blake. He wouldn't contradict her, not when she's the one who admitted it first.
"Damn, and Pyrrha Nikos is your girlfriend?" Coco continues with an impressed tone.
"Yes." He admits it as he smiles at his girlfriend. He sees no reason to deny it now that she's the one who admitted it first.
"How'd you manage that?"
He'd like to say that he kept his face flat and refused to answer but that would be a lie. All Coco needed was to see him blush to know something happened.
Her eyebrows rise in surprise as she turns around and notices everyone else of his friends also blushing with Yang even giving Jaune a thumbs up.
"Okay, there's a story there and I'm getting to the bottom of it."
His reply to that is only to growl and mumble, unimpressive he knows but what else could he do chained to the table. He has too much respect for Pyrrha and Blake to tattle about what happened between them.
Not satisfied with his silence however, Coco turns to Pyrrha to address her concern.
"You okay with that Champ? Your boyfriend here sleeping with catgirl over there?"
"Why wouldn't I be? I was there." Pyrrha answers with a resolute gaze.
Forehead, meet the table.
"Jaune?!"
"I'm okay, Pyr." He says tiredly as he raises his head up.
He is not okay. Not okay at all. All that effort of keeping it a secret and it amounted to nothing. With Team CFVY's shocked faces and Team RWBY's own blushing looks, it looks like everyone's gonna know sooner or later.
Why did they even decide to keep things secret if one of them would just share it to others? He could understand sharing it to Team RWBY since they're Blake's teammates, but Team CFVY?
"She was there?! Really?! Did you do both?! At the same time?!" Coco yells in surprise, looking back and forth between him, Pyrrha, and Blake.
"Can someone get me out of these cuffs now please?" He deflects tiredly, neither confirming nor denying Coco's questions.
Blake's and Pyrrha's blush seems answer enough however. Coco for her part just brings out a key and looks at him impressed.
"Nice." Coco says with a grin and Jaune could see her own teammates, Fox and Yatsuhashi, giving him approving nods of their own as Velvet blushes at him with wide eyes.
He doesn't know how to react to that so he just doesn't. He rubs his wrists as the cuffs come off. Before he could give off another word however, Ren turned towards the room panickedly.
"Goodwitch incoming!" Ren yells hysterically.
Jaune can't blame him, looking at the gathered mass of teenagers and the busted down door, Jaune could already see what was going to happen next. Glynda Goodwitch was going to find all of them here, see the damage, and then…detention.
Oh hell no! They just managed to finish a week of detention with Professor Port last night, he'd be damned if he let it get extended again.
Everyone realizes the exact same thing at the same moment because next thing Jaune knows everyone was scrambling.
"Scatter!" He doesn't know who shouted it but they do what teenagers do best when running from authority. Improvise.
Vale was burning.
Vale was burning and it was all because of her. Penny Polendina smiled as her fleet of Atlesian Battleships decimated the Kingdom of Vale.
"And that's another round dedicated for the glory of Atlas." She states victoriously with a smile.
"Noooo, my kingdom. My beautiful kingdom." Friend Ruby cries across the library table from her.
Penny would've felt bad for making her friend cry but Friend Jaune told her that the goal of Remnant The Game was to make your friends cry in order to teach them the cruelties of war and rulership.
Looking around her inside the library, Penny could also see a dazed Friend Yang staring blankly at her own Kingdom of Vacuo and a mumbling Friend Pyrrha gazing forlornly at her own destroyed Armies of Mistral. Their other friends seemed to watch in horror as they witnessed the match however.
With all that said, Penny would call this a mission success for teaching all of wonderful friends the cruelties of war, strategy, and rulership. And she owes all of this to one friend in particular.
"Did I do good Friend Jaune?" She asks the person she is most grateful for.
"Great job, Penny. You did good." Friend Jaune says with a beaming smile aimed at her that heats up the processing units inside her body.
She beams back at him and thinks back on the events of the day that led to them playing together.
It hasn't been that long since she encountered her friends who were falling from the sky. According to Friend Jaune however, they were just practicing their landing strategy by jumping off a window from the third floor. Her friends truly are wonderful to have such dedication to improve themselves.
It only went better from there as Friend Jaune invited her to join them later in order to foster better relations with other schools. Even Agent Ciel thought it was a good idea with her not having any objections to Friend Jaune's suggestion.
And all that led her to here. Winning four rounds of Remnant The Game after having lunch and deepening their bonds of friendship. Truly, Friend Jaune is the master at making friends. It is only evidenced by the fact that even more people are approaching him right now.
"'Sup Jaune? Hey losers." Monkey Faunus Sun Wukong approaches them while holding two fingers up into the air.
"Sun! 'Sup man." Jaune greets him equally with a fist bump while Friends Blake and Pyrrha nod at him in greetings too.
"Neptune! You're here." Friend Weiss then happily greets the man beside Sun Wukong, now identified as Neptune.
"Hey, Snow Angel. How have you been?"
Penny's head tilts in confusion at that. Snow Angel? Is that also Friend Weiss' designation?
Before she could ask or the conversation could even continue, Friend Jaune cuts through their greetings.
"Hey, Weiss. I think it's time for our Dust Training already. I've only got the training room reserved for some time" Friend Jaune looks at his scroll at that.
"Wha-What?! Is it that time already? I'm sorry, Neptune. I have to go. Come on, Arc. No time to waste." Friend Weiss sputters as she hurriedly drags Friend Jaune.
"W-wait for me." Friend Pyrrha hurriedly follows to Penny's own confusion.
"Are they still doing that thing?"
"Yeah, Weiss lost a bet so she has to go train with Jaune." Friend Ruby answers Neptune's query sadly as she fixes the game board they have just used.
Penny's confusion increases at her tone of voice. All sources say Friend Ruby should be happy her other Friends are spending time together, but why isn't she? Before Penny could inquire further, Neptune's own question rises up.
"For a week though?"
"She's doing it as an apology for something. Don't sweat it, Nep. Pyrrha's there to either chaperone or help them train." Friend Yang helpfully adds.
"Lucky bast-"
"Anyways! Up for another game Penny?" Friend Ruby stiffly pipes up and even as an android, she knows something is wrong.
"Friend Ruby….."
He doesn't know it.
He's become a hunk and he doesn't even notice it.
Pyrrha could see how others see her boyfriend now. It started last week when Jaune argued against Cardin.
Him telling everyone that Faunus are wonderful, beautiful people the same as them endeared him to their population. Him basically admitting he slept with a Faunus smart, sexy, beautiful, and strong enough to kick Cardin's ass put him in the sights of most female Faunus in range. While she was happy that it made Blake bashful towards their mutual lover, the other females of the Faunus race's attention were not welcome.
Add to that a week of continuous training with their team and even Weiss, Jaune has begun to develop into someone very impressive in the eyes of anyone who even comes across him. Broad shoulders, well-defined arms, abs to grate cheese on, and even thighs to die for. Each of these traits has begun to show on him and Pyrrha has the front row seat to all of it.
But that's not all she has a front row seat to. As the one training with him the longest, Pyrrha could absolutely say that Jaune was a beast. Oh she knows she's good. You don't become a four-time Regional Champion by being mediocre or average. But in all honesty, it feels like Jaune is even on a higher level than her. His rate of improvement is just that astonishing.
He went from someone untrained two weeks ago to someone who can now make her work for the win like now!
Clang!
Shields bang against each other as they meet each other in the middle of the arena.
"Now!" Weiss cries out from the sidelines, signaling the next phase of their training.
She would love nothing more than to test his close-quarters combat skills but that isn't the focus of their training today. As usual though, it is Jaune who wins their contest of strength as he pushes her away from him.
Distance builds between them and Pyrrha uses her superior speed and mobility to get into position and shift her sword into a rifle just as quickly. Taking advantage of Jaune's current weakness, she shoots the space in front of him to interrupt his next attack.
Ice shatters and…Jaune fails again.
"Damn! I thought I had it that time!" Jaune yells frustratedly and with the training over, Pyrrha relaxes her position.
"Don't worry, Jaune. You're already improving tremendously and I'm sure you'll get it next time." She tries to say comfortingly but even she could see the tense lines on his shoulders.
She sees him take a deep breath and Pyrrha is ever more thankful that her boyfriend isn't the type to blame her for being too good.
"Thanks, Pyr. You always know what to say to me." He says with a brittle smile trying to comfort her back the best way he knows.
She gives him a soft pat on the shoulder as she approaches him. She knows his frustration. It's been a week since he started training with Weiss and he still hasn't been able to successfully use Dust as a quick range attack. The problem he's been having is….
"You're still too slow." Weiss sighs harshly and Pyrrha can't help but glare at her.
She's right but she still doesn't have to be such a bitch about it.
"I know. I just can't release the Dust faster." Jaune admits sadly with a sigh of his own.
Don't get them wrong, Jaune is doing so well. When they started last week, they found out that his application of Dust allows him to command the pace of a wide area. But therein lies the weakness, his application of Dust is phenomenal in wide-range attacks but it needs time to be effective. Time that is cut short by the quick interruption of a bullet.
They tried to remedy this by trying to develop a quick-shot version of his Dust attacks but sadly, it's just too slow.
"The problem is you have too many steps before you could even manage to launch an attack.." Weiss responds flatly.
An accurate assessment. Ever since Jaune beat Weiss last week, Weiss has taken it upon herself to be his personal Dust teacher. Pyrrha knows what she's doing however. It was only supposed to be for a day and yet she had it extended for a week.
What else could it be other than wanting to get closer to Jaune? Blake might have said that Weiss is just doing this as an apology for her poor behavior towards him, but she's her teammate. She'll obviously have a biased view of Weiss, but Pyrrha is different.
Touching shoulders with her boyfriend, she turns towards Weiss with a hard gaze.
"He's doing his best, Weiss. Do you think you could have reached his level of Dust Usage in a week when you were just starting?" She asks back with a raised eyebrow.
That finally gets her to falter. It's true. They both know that Jaune's rate of improvement is phenomenal. He absorbed knowledge like a sponge to the point that Weiss had to ask if he's ever worked with Dust before.
Pyrrha knows for a fact he hadn't but even she was shocked at just how fast he was improving. She had a glimpse of it when they fought Roman Torchwick but those were just launched attacks of one element.
His usage now showed them he could consecutively use different elements of Dust to achieve different combinations. Ice and fire consecutively used produces a steam cloud that they could use for cover. Water and lightning for allows him to lockdown an area to constrict his enemies. And those were just two of what else he has thought of.
The point is, barring his one weakness, Jaune is already an expert in using Dust to defeat his enemies. Besides it's not like their team won't be there to give him the time he needs to use his attacks. Jaune, however, isn't just satisfied with that. Thus the continuous training.
"Hmmm, it's a moot point since I am already at my level. I will admit though that yes, Jaune Arc is doing very well." Weiss replies with a grudgingly impressed gaze towards Jaune.
"No, no. You were right, Weiss. I was still too slow. If only there was a way to launch my attacks faster." Jaune smiles wryly at Weiss and Pyrrha could only sigh at the image.
Damn her lovable boyfriend for being dedicated to being stronger. If only they were alone and that smile was aimed at her. Both of them sweaty from training, eyes darkening with adrenaline and lust, Pyrrha would….Pyrrha would then pou-
"Perhaps you'd like to have Crocea Mors modified like Myrtenaster?"
Weiss' words snaps her out of the dream she was just about to sink into. That was dangerous, every thought like that has her wanting to just pounce on Jaune. Luckily, Jaune's own offended gasp crystalizes her focus again.
He looks at Weiss like she just suggested he surrender his firstborn and Pyrrha couldn't be any happier.
"Uhh, how about no? This is a family heirloom, you know? Besides, I'd like to try something first."
"Again?"
"Yes, again."
"Alright, he's in your care, Pyrrha."
"Of course he is."
Pyrrha just couldn't help but smirk as she said that. She sees Weiss roll her eyes before walking away from them but Jaune's wry smile allows her to laugh.
"Sorry, I couldn't help it." She giggles at him.
"Just…go easy on her. She's doing her best to teach me."
"Of course, Jaune. Now, ready?" She asks with a grin as she walks a distance away from him.
"Ready, partner."
His returning grin sends butterflies flying through her stomach and Pyrrha thinks nothing could go wrong with spending time with Jaune like this. She was wrong.
Betrayal. She has never felt quite like this.
She's been tricked, she's been backstabbed, and she has quite possibly been bamboozled. Ruby Rose now stands the lone member of the Socially Awkward Club. Stupid Jaune, going after girls when they already decided to be co-founders of their very own exclusive club.
"Friend Ruby…..what is wrong? Should you not be happy that our other friends are also deepening their friendships?"
She gasps as Penny's question sends a lance of pain through her heart. Luckily for her, only Penny notices as Sun and Neptune are now talking with Blake and Yang about something in Vale away from the table while Nora and Ren are speaking with Penny's Partner Ciel in another table.
"I..I am happy, Penny. I'm happy for them." She answers Penny's question with a brittle smile.
Yes, she is happy. It's just that…
"Then why are you sad, Friend Ruby?"
"It'sbecauseIfeelliketheirstealingmybestfriendawayfromme!"
A week of frustration finally comes out and her words explode out of her without her consent and she has to cover her mouth to stop herself from saying more. Looking at Penny with wide eyes, she sees her tilt her head in confusion and Ruby is thankful that she didn't understand a thing from what she said.
"I don't understand, how could they steal your bestfriend away from you?"
Noooooo, she understood! Ruby groans at her blunder.
"No, Penny, no! I don't feel like they're stealing my bestfriend away from me." She denies with a whisper-yell, not wanting the other to hear.
If Yang hears any of this, she's never gonna hear the end of it. She even had to stop her from teasing Jaune, Blake, and Pyrrha after learning about their sexlife. Add her own drama to the mix and Yang would either be teasing her or angry with her bestie. She does not want either to happen.
"But you just said you were sad because it feels like they were stealing your bestfriend away from you."
Penny however just blurts it out like that and Ruby is horrified to see Yang starting to turn towards them to listen better. Thinking fast, she slams her hands on the table and laughs loudly.
"Ha Ha Ha! Very funny, Penny! Nice joke!" Ruby laughs woodenly and she could see heads tilting and shoulders shrugging from their friends before turning back to their own conversations.
Sighing in relief, she sits back down and shushes Penny by putting a finger to her lips. To Penny's credit, her eyes widen in surprise and she repeats Ruby's gesture.
"Is this a secret, Friend Ruby?" Penny whispers at her, finally getting what Ruby wants her to do.
"Ughh. Yes, Penny. I don't want anyone to know. Ow." Ruby groans as her forehead slams into the table with the board game still on it.
"That you feel like they are stealing your bestfriend away from you?"
"Yes, that." She replies tiredly, so done denying it if Penny's just gonna keep blurting every time she says no.
She's ashamed that she even feels this way to be honest. But more than a week of not being able to spend time with her bestie has got her feeling like this. No video games, no Xray and Vav, nothing for a whole week straight with her bestie.
Every time she tried to spend time with him he is either spending time with Pyrrha or training with Weiss. Heck, even Weiss spends more time with him now than she does with him. Add to that their own detentions and classes ramping up, they really had no time to mess around together.
"I don't understand, how could someone steal someone else's bestfriend?"
"Well, Penny. When they can't spend time with you anymore that means your bestfriend is being stolen."
"Does Friend Jaune not want to be your bestfriend anymore, then?"
Ruby gasps at that question. She doesn't think that Jaune doesn't want to be her friend anymore but….
"I don't know Penny. He might have already forgotten being bestfriends with me." She sighs sadly.
Guess it's back to being alone in the Socially Awkward Club. Penny's words however cut through her depression.
"Nonsense, Friend Ruby. You are not a forgettable person." Penny says with a smile that brightens up her day.
"Awww, thanks Penny. You could be my new bestfriend." She doesn't stop the grin finding its way on her face as she looks at Penny.
"That would be wonderful! I always wanted a bestfriend! However, I need to point out that according to all data analyzed about Jaune Arc, he is not the type to forget his friends. I am sure he wants to spend time with you too. We could then all be bestfriends!"
Ruby's eyes blow wide open at that. Jaune still wanting to spend time with her. She never thought about it but she's sure that really does sound like Jaune. As if Vomit Boy could forget Crater Face. They were each other's first friends in Beacon after all.
The grin on her face just keeps getting wider as she raises her hands in a stretch, taking away all the sadness out of her body.
"Thanks Penny, you really know what to say. But data? Analyzed? Makes you sound like a robot."
"I do not know what you are talking about Friend Ruby, I am a normal meat person."
Hiccup!
Ruby blinks, Penny blinks back. But before she could ask anything else, the doors to the library slam open as a frazzled Weiss stomps inside.
"Uhhh, what ha-"
"Don't ask." Weiss raises her hand to cut off Yang's question.
Looking at her female bestie, Ruby sees her hair sticking upwards and out of place. Behind her, follows her male bestie walking more slowly with his girlfriend. All of them stare at their hair. Their hair which are all sticking outwards. Even Pyrrha's beautiful red hair has most of it still sticking up despite her best efforts to rub them down.
Before any of them could say anything, Jaune approaches their table with increasingly rapid steps before saying the words she has always wanted to be said to her.
"Ruby, I need a gun."
"Ruby, I need a gun."
The next thing Blake saw after those words was a burst of rose petals which finally managed to get them kicked out of the library.
With nothing better to do and classes ending early without detention to go to, Blake opted to visit Vale. It's been some time since she got a book from Tukson. The fact that he might have some info on the White Fang is just a bonus.
Ever since they busted the smuggling operation in the docks, Blake has been watching the news closely for any word about Torchwick or the Fang. What she found was disquieting.
She found absolutely nothing. It's like the White Fang and Torchwick just disappeared. That would only happen if they were caught or if they were planning something big. Since there was no news of them being caught, it could only mean one thing. The White Fang was planning for something big.
"Are we there yet?"
Blake sighs as her partner's words cut through her thoughts.
"Why did you even come with me if you're just gonna complain."
"Hey, someone had to make sure you weren't running away again."
Again, with nothing better to do, Yang opted to accompany her to Vale on account of making sure she's not running away again.
"One time, Yang. It happened one time."
"Hey, I'm not the one avoiding someone that it feels like I'm running away."
"Grk."
She has no reply to that. Yes, she's avoiding Jaune, but it's not like she's gonna run away just because she's shy. She's not that bad right? Right?! She just has to learn how to interact with the boy she likes normally without vandalizing racist shops or robbing SDC supply trains. That was all.
"Are we there yet?"
"...Yes."
"What? It's a dump, Blake."
Blake's eyes are wide open at what she is seeing in front of her. Tukson's bookshop. Abandoned with its door half-opened and glass windows broken. Yellow tape covers parts of the shop but Blake could see where they've already been cut.
"No, this is Tukson's bookshop." Blake says quietly as she approaches the front door.
"...I'm sorry, Blake."
Yang's words wash over her as she pushes the door open and sees the bookshelves toppled over and the countertable broken.
"Tukson?"
She expects no reply as she walks inside, approaching the door behind the counter. Her breaths come in short pants as she walks closer. Her vision narrows. Her hands shake as she puts her hand on the door handle.
"Blake?"
She jumps at Yang's voice.
"Don't do that!" She hisses quietly but Yang's focus is elsewhere.
Turning towards the direction she is looking at, she sees it. Three claw marks on the face of a wolf behind the front door. She must've missed it when she entered the front door but she knows it now. The White Fang.
"LT, what have you done?" She whispers in horror.
One week.
It's been a week since he got a priority message from LT.
It took him about a week to reach the general area where Adam Taurus' camp was located in the wilds of Hinoki Forest south of Kuchinashi in the Kingdom of Mistral. That's not even taking into account the time he'd have to spend looking for the real camp instead of stumbling into a decoy one.
However, instead of just charging into the wilderness willy-nilly, he opted to stay in the nearest frontier town so as not to get lost. As befitting for an old courier like him, he made arrangements in order to save time. His bison tail swishes in relief as he sees his current target.
"Perry Flynn-Fletcher, I presume?" He greets the platypus Faunus currently waiting for him by the inn he was staying at.
"You presume right, Richard Bullson. How did you know it was me?" Perry greets him with a handshake using his webbed fingers.
"My son, Billy, told me about you. " Richard replies with a sad smile.
Richard could see the young man's smile fall with that.
"My condolences, Mr. Bullson. Your son was a good friend of mine. He was like a brother to me. I was there on his last mission to raid an SDC shipment headed back to Atlas."
"...Thank you, Perry. It means a lot that someone remembers Billy as a good friend."
"..The Courier Corps sent a priority signal, I assume you are carrying the package."
"Come now, Perry. You know better than to ask that."
"It's just….I'm wondering what could get a Vale Postmaster like you to come out here." Perry replies sheepishly.
That's right, Richard Bullson is one of the few Postmasters of Remnant's Global Delivery System. By all rights and purposes, he was a civilian, albeit a successful one. That is of course if he wasn't moonlighting as one of the White Fang's premier logistic and intelligence officers.
After all, sensitive messages and secret packages for the White Fang need to be delivered using special ways without going through the CCT or border control. Thus, the need for the White Fang to infiltrate Remnant's Delivery and Communication Systems. Not to mention the amount of potential intelligence he could gather from his civilian job.
Now why would a man of his position need to go out to the forests of Mistral, away from his assets and post in Vale? It has to do with the recipient of the latest message he received on his desk a week ago. Adam Taurus.
"All you need to know is that it's confidential, Perry. Now, where to?"
"We're already here actually."
"What?!"
"Shhh! Look, all you need to know is Adam helped the Faunus here and they're letting us stay discreetly."
"Here? In town?"
"In one of the abandoned farms outside the town walls actually. It turns out the SDC has been pushing their hiring centers for more recruits. If they don't hit their quotas they lose funds. So to consistently hit their quotas they-"
"Kidnap people. Shit."
"They hire slavers, but yes. A slaving band was picking off people in the town at night or when they're alone and Adam intervened."
"What about the humans?"
"What about them?"
"Come on, Perry. We both know that they don't just target the Faunus. They target everyone. They target the orphans, Grimm survivors, or even travelers on the road."
"We…."
"Perry…"
"Look, it wasn't up to me, but we just couldn't let those humans know we were here, you know?"
"...Alright. Just take me to the camp."
Half an hour. Half an hour of walking, that was how close Adam was to the frontier town of Gaipan. Richard found Adam Taurus giving a lecture to a crowd of Faunus inside a barn.
"Don't you want to live free?! Don't you want to be able to travel Remnant without discrimination following you?!" A familiar voice yells from the front of the crowd.
Shouts of agreement answer back at him and Richard finally lays eyes on the symbol.
Everyone knows who he is. Red hair with black horns poking through, mask covering the eyes of his chiseled face, his sword in his scabbard attached at the waist, Adam Taurus himself.
"We can win against the humans! We've done it before and we will do it again. We shouldn't fear the humans! We have nothing to fear from them!" Adam speaks up passionately in front of all the gathered children from as young as 10 to as old as 18 years old.
Recruitment. He's trying to recruit them. Richard thinks horrifically to himself as he looks on with wide eyes from behind the impassioned crowd.
This is the reason why he joined the White Fang. To stop things like these from happening again. So there would never be another young Billy Bullson who dies on a stupid mission. It's enough that only the old guard take the lion's share of the load. No need to ask the younguns to fight.
It might be a counterproductive way considering the current version's way of doing things but Richard Bullson thoroughly believes that violence will not win them peace.
"In fact, humans should f-!"
"ADAM TAURUS!" Richard's voice cuts through the crowd and he could see Adam clench his sword by reflex.
Richard gulps as all eyes turn on him. Before he loses his nerve however, he bulls on onwards.
"I HAVE A PRIORITY MESSAGE FOR YOU!" He shouts nervously as the crowd mutters between themselves.
Shaking his head to get a grip on himself he turns to look sternly at Adam as he just returns Richard's stare. A 48 year-old like him shouldn't be shaken by a squirt like this.
"Priority message? It must be from Sienna then." Adam replies with a calm voice.
The moment he said that, the murmurs became louder.
"Sienna? Who is that?"
"Sienna Khan, you idiot. Who else could send a priority message to Adam Taurus?"
"The Supreme Leader of the White Fang?!"
"Do you know any other Sienna Khan?"
"What does she want with Adam?!"
"That's what we're waiting for, you dumbass!"
Richard sweatdrops at the types of conversation he could hear from all around him. He doesn't have the heart to say that it isn't from Sienna what will all of them looking at him expectantly. So he settles for the next best thing.
"It's confidential!" Richard yells out, hoping to separate Adam from the youths and clear up the misunderstanding.
"Confidential? There is nothing confidential between me and my followers." Adam dramatically waves his hand out to every single one in the crowd to their own delight.
This. This is what is dangerous about Adam. Not only is he a formidable warrior, but his ability to pull people in with him is incredible. There's a reason why he's the symbol despite not being the leader.
"Speak, messenger. What does Sienna want of me?" Adam continues with a confident smile to Richard's dismay.
Grabbing the letter with shaky hands, Richard shows it to Adam who only nods the letter back at him.
"Read it. Tell me. Tell everyone here what Sienna wants to say to me."
Shit. There goes his plan to have Adam read it himself first.
Gulping as he opens the letter, Richard speaks out the first words in a loud voice.
"To My Dearly Beloved, I-!"
The next thing Richard knows is a red blur is shoving him to the ground to snatch the letter out of his hands. Looking up at Perry who is also staring in shock, Richard sees the crowd start to surge chaotically towards them.
"Is it true?! Is Adam Taurus dating Sienna Khan?!" A dog Faunus lays his hands on him.
"Did you hear what she called him?" A female voice squeals excitedly.
"'My Dearly Beloved', gahhhh! It's so romantic!" An equally excited voice pipes back.
"And did you see how fast he grabbed the letter?!"
"He was obviously running to read it in private!"
Richard could already see from his view that the mob is rapidly turning from one that was just listening quietly to Adam to something resembling a group fanned by fervor. This is the last thing he wanted to happen. Turning this young, innocent into fanatics that only needs a small push to call for war.
"W-WAIT! IT'S NOT FROM SIENNAH!" Richard shouts panickedly in an attempt to stop the situation from getting worse.
He successfully gets their attention but not their understanding.
"It's okay, you don't need to hide it for them anymore. This is the best thing to happen!" A rat Faunus pats him smilingly in the back.
Richard's expression breaks as the people refuse to believe what he has to say.
"So it's true! Adam and Sienna are an item!"
"The leader and her champion? It's like a story straight out of the legends!" A younger voice pipes up from somewhere.
"They're a power couple! A power couple that will lift up the Faunus!"
"Long live the White Fang! Long live Adam and Sienna!"
"""Adam! Sienna! Adam! Sienna!""" A chant starts as everyone is galvanized by what seems to be good news in solidifying the White Fang into one unified body.
Richard Bullson has one last thought in mind as he is mobbed by White Fang wannabees and new recruits for answers to questions he never even thought of.
What have I done?
A/N: I remember the day I actually finished this chapter. I had a high fever while being pumped full of meds. I probably rewrote this three times. Anyways, what have we got this chapter? Pyrrha having tunnel vision when it comes to her boyfriend. Penny and Ruby friendship is a go. Jaune about to have an upgrade. Blake about to start on the White Fang again. Last but not the least we have our very own OC generated by one of my patrons, tasked with expanding the world of pineapple jam.
Richard Bullson , 48 years old, Bison Faunus.
1. Postman and Courier by day, White Fang spy and logistics operative by night. Delivers any sensitive messages and contraband across different Kingdoms and Frontier Towns. Mainly based in Vale and in a position high enough in Remnant's Courier Service to spy on other people's goods.
2. His son died during one of the White Fang's attempts to raid an SDC shipment which ended in failure.
3. Joined the White Fang to pull back the youth from wasting their lives in reckless attacks. Currently failing at it and did the opposite by increasing their fervor.
4. Respects the Belladonnas for their peaceful approach and secretly still tries to contact them. Currently failing at it since he doesn't have a secure way of sending messages to them without passing through Sienna's people.
5. Sees Adam as a youth lost in his troubles and wants to pull him back from the brink. Currently fails at it.
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