Author's Note:

Another chapter. Another new girl get's introduced. Woot! Thank you to all who reviewed and have positively shown this story some love. You guys are the best.

Project Jaeger

Chapter 2: Good To Be Back, Beacon

"I know I've said it before, but I am glad to have you back with us, Jaune."

Jaune thought he saw a flicker of life come from those tired eyes, but he must have imagined it. Professor Ozpin was never a sentimental man. A brilliant inventor, strategist, and robotics expert, yes. Not so much one in touch with his more human like qualities. Here in the confines of his office, Ozpin looked about as comfortable as Jaune had ever seen the man. Cool and calculated and completely in control.

"Thanks, Prof." Still Jaune appreciated the gesture of welcome, heartfelt or not. "But remember I'm still not sure about the whole piloting gig, I mean, it's been too long."

"Of course, my boy. One step at a time. For now, having you here, teaching our future rangers, well that's more than enough for me," Oz assured him.

"Still though, I am glad at what I'm seeing." The blonde young man played off the mood casually. "I'd never thought I've seen Beacon so... "

"Lively?" Ozpin smiled.

"So big. I mean, holy cow. It's like twice the size of when I was here."

"You can thank my second in command for that." Ozpin glanced sideways at the blonde beauty that stood beside him. Glynda, ever the professional, kept a calm and collected face on. "Instructor Goodwitch here has earned herself a legendary reputation amongst the crew."

Jaune had been catching up with Glynda on the way here, so he had heard the tale and Oz just confirmed it for him. While Oz was away convincing the higher powers that be to let the Jaeger program continue, it was Glynda who held down the fort. Teaching, commanding, guarding. All that, and somehow she still found the necessary funding to keep the Jaeger program alive and thriving.

"It was merely my job, nothing more. Just a simple reminder to the right ears about who keeps their cities safe whenever the ground shakes, and you'd be surprise who is willing to give a helping hand," Glynda stated casually as she adjusted her glasses.

To someone who knew her less well, this might come off as a mere subtle gesture, but Jaune knew better. It was a little thing she did right after she was praised for something, even back when she was a pilot. It meant she was proud, and embarrassed about feeling that way. No matter how much she achieved, she never felt she had the right to be boastful.

But she had gone from pilot to now second commander of the Jaeger fleet.

What an accomplishment.

He would have been proud of his friend and senior had he not felt such a twinge of guilt for leaving in the first place. What he would have accomplished together here with Glynda, well not together together, but…

… the years away he wasted.

He must have come off as such a loser.

He probably did deserve that smack earlier.

He could still feel the bitter sting from Glynda's palm on his cheek. That must have been part of the pain she had felt of his betrayal.

No Ranger in the history of Beacon had ever walked away from the battlefield. But he did.

He was the only one.

And nobody faulted him for it. They even gave him a medal.

Except for the ones that truly mattered.

She had stopped speaking to him all those years ago and yet here they were, like it had all been a bad dream.

Funny how life works sometimes.

He definitely needed to make it up to her somehow.

"So are these?..." Jaune pointed at the folder that was placed in front of him, laying on Ozpin's desk.

"The brightest and newest candidates this school will have the privilege of molding. The up and coming Rangers and Jaeger Pilots of Beacon." Ozpin nodded.

"They look so… young." The ex-pilot flipped through the folder and glossed over the names and the faces.

The headmaster's brow raised in surprise and amusement. "Not any older than you were, Jaune, when you first started here."

"Seventeen, seventeen, eighteen, seventeen, FIFTEEN?!" he couldn't help but exclaim the last part.

"I assure you, Miss Rose has more than earned her spot on that list. She has gotten top marks at her combat school in Patch, she comes from a piloting background, and as far as we know it has one of the highest drift rankings with her sister, Yang," Glynda spoke up on Oz's behalf.

Jaune went back over the notes and found the girl's chosen partner, a miss Yang Xiao Long. Half-sisters, from what he read.

Oh no…

There was no mistaking that gorgeous confident face. Hot blondie from the airship who made him feel funny, was the very same seventeen year old partner of Ruby Rose.

Well there go my dreams of getting her number…

And she looked perfect for him too - although to be fair Jaune would have probably said that about any girl who might have had a slight interest in him.

He shook his head.

Mind out of the gutter, Arc. We came here for a reason.

He came to Beacon to make a difference. Not to date, especially if said date entailed fraternizing with students. Still... a man can dream.

"Something wrong, Jaune?" the Professor inquired.

"Oh no, it's nothing. Just thinking of something stupid."

It was Ozpin's turn to get serious. "Ranger Arc, you know better than anyone else the Grimm do not care for age or gender. We are nothing but food and vermin to those monsters. And as far as we know it, the melding process is more efficient and easily mended by younger candidates."

He didn't have to be reminded. He remembered his time as a student with Louise. Still it just suddenly dawned on him that the free world of Remnant lay in the hands of the next generation. A generation of youths who should be spending their years talking about stupid everyday things like who to date, who to take to the prom, what to wear, what kind of music to listen to, etc. Not at a school teaching them to risk their lives.

But such was the world they lived in.

He had been one of those youths not so long ago. Perhaps in a few years, they would be him… Or else they would be Louise.

"Right, right. Sorry, Prof. I got a little emotional there. I'm pretty sure these kids knew exactly what they signed up for."

"Good." Ozpin nodded in agreement. "Then it's settled. We'll start introducing you as early as tomorrow. Make yourself at home, and Glynda here will show you to your quarters."

It had been awhile but Jaune remembered his training and the etiquettes that were expected of him. He saluted Ozpin in the same manner he had been taught all those years ago. "Yes sir!"

"... Once again… welcome home, Ranger." Ozpin slyly smiled.

"Just like old times, sir." Jaune couldn't help but smile back.

"He is genuinely, happy to see you, you know," Glynda commented as they both began to long walk towards the staff dormitories.

"You think so? I could never tell my 'I'm happy' Oz face to the 'I hope this is black coffee' Oz face."

Glynda paused and glanced at him before a smirk pulled at the corner of her mouth. "Same old, Jaune. Always with the jokes."

"Yeah I remember you not laughing at them, back then too." Jaune nervously laughed.

"I would have if you were actually funny, Arc."

Was that a joke from Glynda?

"Oh, so The Good Witch can appreciate humor." Jaune's eyebrows raised in delight.

She looked at him like it was such a strange thing to say. "I am human after all, Jaune. Laughter is a delightful source of stress relief."

"Annnnddd there's the Glynda that I know."

Okay, here was his chance to make things right.

"I am sorry, you know." He tried to state it casually, one hand in his pocket, the other holding steady his duffle bag, eyes forever looking forward, but apologies always take a serious turn.

"Hmm? For what?"

"... C'mon Glyn. You know what. For… leaving. For abandoning our mission… I… I shouldn't have done that."

Now it was Glynda's turn to pause and reflect his words. "I don't fully blame you. You lost… you lost someone. I get that. We all get that. And I know it was worse for you… because you lost Louise… while you were melded together. I can't imagine what that must have felt like."

The events of that day were still fuzzy to Jaune, like a nightmare he didn't have all the pieces of. Just shards… shards of bitter, broken, memories. One moment there was Louise in his head and the next… nothing but the bitterness of the void. It was like she had been stolen from his existence.

"Jaune?"

"Hmm? Oh. Yeah… yeah, it was tough." An image came to mind of him struggling to bring Crocea Mors alone back to base, the smell of oil and of dried and fresh blood mixed together coated the air, his vision hazy from the beating he had taken.

"I've always regretted never talking to you when you left." Glynda's words surprise Jaune. Glynda regretted something? It's true what they say, time can change people. "And I am… sorry about slapping you earlier. I am quite sure I was out of line."

He gave that a thought before responding.

"Nah, don't be. I deserved that. You always expected better of me. Better of all of us. And I always appreciated that, Glyn." Finally he turned to meet her gaze. "I guess what I'm trying to say is, you were the pilot I always wished I could have been."

Jaune didn't fully anticipate how much the unintentional compliment would mean, because he didn't even noticed Glynda's steps pausing a beat before continuing with him.

"Well, you're here now and that's all that counts," she replied back, hands steadily adjusting her glasses.

The two continued their small talk until they had reached their intended destination. It was a comely enough room. In fact pretty swank even, by Jaune's standards. He had a small kitchen to himself, a tiny dining room area, a live in bedroom and a full on shower and bathtub.

He whistled out loud. "Does all the staff at Beacon have this?"

"Naturally as well as the students." Glynda answered. "During their downtime both staff and student need to be able to relax in the comforts of their own home for maximum rest potential. It minimizes stress and infighting while maximizing focus and productivity."

"Well whatever it is, this is great. I think it's bigger than my old place at Olivia's."

"I'm glad you think so." Glynda smiled, but not before she pulled out her scroll and began to jot down some notes. "So as of eighteen hundred hours today, you have til twenty hundred hours to procure your meal and dine before your next appointed schedule for the day which is a psyche evaluation from the school's physiotherapy counselor."

"From the who the what now?"

She gave him a confident smile. "I look forward to seeing you there, Jaune."

"Wait, that's you too?"

"Of course. Who else is more qualified than me?"

She did had a point there. Glynda was a natural judge of character, much like Ozpin. It was no wonder she was his protege.

"I'm sorry. Oz never mentioned any of this stuff to me before."

"Jaune." She looked at him seriously. "You are the only survivor of a Grimm attack where you lost your sibling and partner, all the while having to endure the stress of maintaining the drift on your own will. I don't know anyone who can come out of that undamaged. I have to make sure you are qualified once again to take the field and to teach the students under a sound mind."

What Glynda was saying did make sense, and deep down he knew he was going to have to face something like this sooner or later. He'd had rather preferred a much later later.

"...Okay," he reluctantly sighed, combing through his hair. "Okay. I'll be there."

"Please do." She looked at him with solemn green eyes once more before greeting him farewell for the night, leaving Jaune to unpack his baggages… both physically and mentally.

"I probably shouldn't have eaten that last burger."

Jaune grimaced as he held a hand near his stomach. It had been awhile since he had a decent meal away from Olivia's cooking (his sister was a genius when it came to baked goods, but atrocious when it came to real meals) and he just couldn't help himself. Beacon knew how to treat their people right.

With meat, meat and more meat.

Well there was more then just meat, but as far as Jaune was concerned, it was pork chops, chicken, and steak as far as the eye could see.

And now he was paying the price for his meaty crusade.

He had time to kill before his appointed session with Glynda, so Jaune figured he could walk some of the meal off. Reclaim his old haunting grounds. And the more Jaune walked, the more he felt distanced from the school. So much had changed. The old lecture hall had been upgraded into an entirely new wing. The pool and field had been completely revamped. Even just the layout of the streets and tracks had been completely redone.

It was as if the old Beacon he had known had disappeared and a new one had taken it's place.

Where did the time go, Louise?

Had he really spent four years of his life secluding himself from the world? Sighing to himself, Jaune suddenly became aware that he had been treading a familiar path. One that led to an all too familiar old elm tree.

He remembered this spot. He used to eat lunches there sometimes.

He cantered on and proceeded left, where he found himself at a nearby green pasture with some benches. This was one of Louise's favorite hangout spots, and they had spent more hours than he cared to count upon those benches. It was far enough from the bustle of the Academy to feel the beauty of nature but close enough to hear the sounds of students in the background, running, laughing, playing. Being the young adults that they should.

"Grr! Stupid machine! I demand you work!" So lost was he in nostalgia he almost overlooked a cry of frustration nearby.

Almost.

He glanced the direction of the voice and sure enough he spotted a young woman with remarkably striking features. Her silver hair matched her stark white dress and the cute little blue bolero jacket (At least that's what he thought it was called) definitely served to amplify her features. He had a feeling, had he been younger, he might have fallen for a girl like her instantly.

She was gorgeous.

Apparently most of the women who went to Beacon were.

Beautiful girls, dangerous girls.

But so far this one just seemed peeved. He could work with peeved though. He understood peeved.

"Something I can help you with, Miss?"

The young woman yelped, startled by his appearance. She covered her quick jump with a refined dusting of her white skirt, before calmly collecting herself. "I didn't know someone else was here."

"Yeah, sorry. Didn't mean to scare ya," he apologized. "Uh, so what's going on?"

"It's this stupid machine." She pointed at the nearby soda dispensing machine. "It ate my money and now it won't give me anything. Not a soda, bottle water, not even a tetra pack!"

"How much did you put in?"

"About a hundred Lien."

He blinked twice. Did she say a hundred? Like as in a hundred Lien bill?

"Well, that could be one problem." He nervously laughed. "Machines like this don't usually like to take more than five. Also you chose old greedy here."

"Old greedy?" Her light blue eyes narrowed at the name.

"Yeah. This machine is known to eat your money. I should know. Old greedy's taken more of my lunch money than I ever cared to count." He walked towards the machine.

"Here's the trick though," He winked at her as he began to pound away at the machine. "Old greedy tends to just give things out if you rough him up enough. Guess he's not the big tough soda machine that he thinks he is."

Soon enough a random soda can had dropped alongside a bottled water and a juice box. Jaune easily bent over and picked up the liquid goods. "Have a pick at your bounty."

She paused to look at him before deciding "I'll take the melon soda."

"Excellent choice." Jaune smiled as he handed it to her. "Cool nights and melon sodas often mix well together, or so I'm told."

"I'm sure…" The white clad young woman went along with the casual talk, not really sure what to make of him.

"Well I'll leave these other ones here by the bench. They're yours anyway, considering how much you paid." Jaune placed down the beverages, but not before hearing the beeping sound of the cantankerous machine. "Oh would you look at that, it spit out your money too. Old greedy's being generous tonight." He laughed as he took the bill and placed it back in the hands of the ice-blue eyed woman.

"Wow… what a piece of crap." It was the first time he had heard the pretty stranger gave of as much as a chuckle, but now she wiped a tear from her eye as she managed to withheld a jolly snort. Just barely holding it together, she covered her mouth daintily and regained composure. "I really should tell my father about getting that whole machine line properly inspected and fixed."

"Yeah, you should really- wait… did you say father?"

She looked at him in a puzzled way. "I didn't stutter, did I?"

"No I… but why would you…"

He looked the the machine and the girl one more time.

One word came to mind. One word that had it's name and brand written all over the soda machine.

"Are you… are you a Schnee by any chance?"

"Weiss. Weiss Schnee."

Okay, Jaune had been living in solitude, isolated from the rest of the world. But even in the little town where Olivia had settled, the Schnee name held some weight and power.

And hers was a name he had heard before.

"The young heiress of the Schnee Corporate Empire… Oh I'm so stupid."

Of course she was somebody. Nobody that gorgeous could have just been a regular person.

"What? It's not like I expected you to know who I was." She gave him a weird look before opening her soda and taking a dainty sip. "I know what you're thinking. What am I doing here at this school and buying a drink from my own company's machines?"

"No… well not exactly," Jaune half lied. "Yeah, okay, something just like that."

"We'll despite my name I am my own person, you know. I have my own goals apart from my family. Can't a girl be an heiress and be a Jaeger Pilot?"

"I… suppose you can," Jaune felt like his response was more to convince himself and less for Weiss.

"Of course I can. Dream big, right?" She proudly beamed him an award winning smile, so much different from the icy cool demeanor he had seen of her multiple times in the many, many magazines that had her in the cover.

It helped she used one of his favorite phrases. Weiss Schnee definitely shot to the very top of his charts of favorite new people.

It was all too much, Jaune had to laugh at the absurdity of it all.

At first Weiss seemed offended but sure enough his laughter was infectious and it wasn't long til she was following his lead.

"What are we even laughing about?" she finally asked.

"I dunno, really." He really didn't.

It took him awhile to settle down but he finally did. Only then did he realize he needed to be elsewhere at the current moment. Glynda was expecting him.

"Well, Miss Schnee, I hope you enjoy your many beverages. I'm uh, I'm about to take off." He gave a casually salute as he began to walk away.

"Wait!"

He stopped and looked back at her.

"Thanks… for helping me back there. With the stupid soda machine. Here." She tossed him the juice box. "A little something for your trouble."

"Don't mention it. And thanks… Grape. My inner ten year old's favorite." Really, Jaune felt he didn't do much to be thanked for - but then a grape juice wasn't too much to accept in the grand scheme of things.

"You know… it's pretty rude to know my name and not give me yours."

Oh that's right! Jaune's mom would have killed him for being so rude to such a pretty girl. "It's Jaune. Jaune Arc." He smiled with as much confidence as he could muster. "Short, sweet, rolls off the tongue. Ladies love it."

She rolled her eyes in a playful manner. "Do they, now?"

"Well, you didn't say you hated it, so I'd say yes."

And with that Jaune last word he continued to stroll off into the night, taking out the straw and casually sipping his reward.

That's how we do it, Arc. Now just walk away, and let the dashing image of yourself be fully ingrained into her consciousness. This is as cool as we are going to get - sipping a juice box. Don't blow it.

And for once in his life, he didn't. She didn't say anything to stop him as he walked away, but he still felt the heat of her gaze.

He smiled inwardly.

Nailed it.

Too proud and caught up in his own moment, he couldn't hear the slight guffaw of a stifled laughter from the young heiress.

"Dork".

"Dork".

Weiss was trying to stifle a giggle but it was hard not to. The man she had just run into had been the strangest encounter of her life. But it was something new. Someone had talked to her like a regular person and for the first time in forever it was someone who just wanted to talk to her for who she was, not for her name.

At least she hoped it was.

He could have been some creep trying to pick her up. But she'd seen the gentleness in those eyes. No way. No pervert had clear, strong eyes like that. Weiss should know - she prided in her ability to tell people apart. A talent needed by an up and coming heiress of a billion Lien empire.

Nope, it was clear as day.

Jaune Arc was a good guy.

A dorky guy, but a good one nonetheless.

Wait… Arc?

Arc… Arc… Arc… she had heard that name before…

It wasn't long til Weiss eyes widened with sudden realization as to who her temporary companion was. How could she have been so stupid?! She'd seen that jacket before! She knew the name of Crocea Mors! Who on Vale hasn't?! She moved to try and find his shadow in the distance.

But it was already too late. He had already vanished into the night.

Now she was just left with the impact of his identity.

What was a former hero of Vale - the only one who ever retired willingly - doing, returning back to Beacon on her first day of school?

And here comes Weiss. Sorry for a short chapter but It's 2 am where I'm at and I really need to work on some other stuff. Will try for longer next time.

Also I figured with the age gap between Weiss and Jaune their relationship dynamics changed a lot. He's not being super creepo hitting on her every chance he got, and she's not being the snobbish ice queen that we all know and love because well he didn't give her a reason to be.

As for the results we've got Yang now tied with Blake alongside Pyrrha. These three maidens are going at it head to head and I honestly can't decide amongst the girls. All three seem such good fits. I'll let the story decide. Oh and yeah continue to root for your favorite girl.

Hang in there lancaster shippers.