AN: Sorry this took so long this was supposed to be out sooner but I've been sick with pneumonia for the past two weeks.

I've going to bring in a few things although I will admit that the show has done at least three things I planned on doing before the episodes came out. I had planned for Jaune to find a memorial to Pyrrha (although it wasn't meant to be a huge statue) and her parents, to steal an Atlas ship (sea not air though) and meeting his family (but entire not just sister). So I might change it up a bit and yes Maria will show up as she's a good character and I don't want to miss out on writing her.

Heart to Heart

Chapter 11: A growing feeling

Yang had finished with her shower, changed and was currently lying on her bed staring up at the ceiling. Her mind kept running over what she had just done. It wasn't the pleasuring herself in the shower that got her, hell she did that back at Beacon. It was the fact that Jaune had showed up in her fantasy. Sure, she had thoughts about guys in the past that she knew but Jaune normally wasn't the type of guy she had those kinds of thoughts about.

'Maybe I'm just thinking too hard on this,' Yang sighed as she mentally tried to work this out. 'Let's work this out. It's been months since I felt sexually frustrated so that much I get. Maybe it was just because of what Jaune did to me? Yeah that sounds like a good explanation.'

'Okay so he lights my fire and still on a high from that my mind just threw him in there because he was responsible to making me feel like he dipped my entire body in pure emotional bliss. How the hell did he do that anyway!?'

She was seriously wondering about that, the massage was great but when he added in the aura with touching certain areas she felt like she could have reached and actual orgasm if he hadn't stopped and it was just him touching her bare back. A small part of were wondered what if he was touching other areas but she quickly shut that train of thought down. Turning onto her front and burying her face in her pillow, she groaned.

Yang was sure this was all due to all the stress she had been under for the past few months. First the whole Fall of Beacon, then losing an arm, her months of depression and now all the craziness she was involved with now. Maybe that was all just building up inside of her and this was her minds way of dealing with it all?

She sighed, that made no sense to her.

Rolling onto her back, she grunted in a growing sense of frustration about this. 'Why is this so much of a big deal?'

'So I thought of Jaune while masturbating so what? I've thought of guys before, so it's someone I know and a friend and it's a bit weird but it's not like I got a lot of options here. The only other guys I'm around is an uncle, a boy four years younger than me and who has a very old man in his head, another friend that is currently dating another friend. Jaune's the only single guy my own age so it makes sense if he shows up, right?'

She thought about it and it wasn't too bad, Jaune wasn't that bad of a guy honestly. He treated her with respect, she had been having fun training with him and dancing so it wasn't all bad. Plus she did like her guys taller than her too and he was much taller. He had gotten a bit more athletic in build too, he still was a dork at times but he had this more serious streak in him, almost grown up.

Maybe that was part of his charm though?

Yang thought about it a bit more and she had to admit that Jaune wasn't the same dorky guy she had met who had thrown up on her shoe the first time they met. Sure, he still was a dork but he had grown a lot since then. In the end, she had to admit that without her realizing it, Jaune had actually started to become a good guy. Not only that but possibly even a bit of a hot guy?

Yang frowned, she wasn't sure that fit exactly. Jaune wasn't ugly but he wasn't overly hot either. He was above average that much was true but it wasn't just looks, it was everything when you look at the whole package. All the little things about him seemed to add up to a whole.

"I wonder if this is what Pyrrha saw in him," she mused to herself. Part of her wished she could talk to her friend again, for many reasons actually, but that was a question that unfortunately had died with the red haired warrior. No one but Pyrrha knew why she liked Jaune, not even Jaune knew why someone like her apparently. For someone who could have had their pick of anyone they wanted, she had picked the most unlikely person to desire.

But in that moment, Yang thought she was starting to see part of the reason Pyrrha might have started to like him.

"Maybe I should start calling you lady killer instead of vomit boy," she smirked to herself. She shrugged it all off as she quickly got up off the bed and stretched out. Her back really did feel a lot better than it had in a while.

In the end she decided to just accept things and roll with it, Jaune was moving up in her book and that was that. Sure, it came out of nowhere and blindsided her and she figured that was what really threw her for a loop. That she didn't see it coming but now that she worked it out she felt she could allow things to get back to normal. She paused as a smirk grew on her face.

Then again, maybe a little teasing now and then could help liven things up after all, he did make the best embarrassed faces after all. Maybe that would allow things to get back to normal soon. Besides after what he did to her getting her all hot and bothered like that she deserved a little payback.

In another room, Jaune had also showered and cleaned up but his mind was starting to get confused with similar thoughts that Yang was having.

'What possessed me to try that?' he mentally moaned out. He still couldn't get the sensation of her skin against his palms. How smooth her skin was the warmth of her body and then there were the sounds she had started to make. Oh god the sounds, he was fairly sure that if it had gone on he would have gotten the most embarrassing erection at that point. Given how he had been positioned on top of her there would have been no way she wouldn't have noticed if it had happened.

Jaune didn't even want to think of what she might have done if she had.

Still, despite that he couldn't stop thinking about it. He had never really been in such an intimate position with a girl like that. He was sitting on his bed lost in thought he really wished he would just forget what happened. Yang was becoming a good friend to him lately and not only that, she was Ruby's older sister. Ruby was his best friend, someone who had helped him to be a better leader and he felt bad about thinking these kinds of thoughts about her sister.

Hell he had plenty of sisters so he knew what it feels like to have guys just thinking of them like that.

Still he couldn't get Yang out of his mind and it was starting to drive him crazy. He sighed as she sat down on the bed and groaned.

"Why did I have to offer her a massage? Why did she have to make those noises?" He moaned. He needed to talk to someone but the question was who? The only person he felt he could confide in was really Ren. The girls were kind of out of the questions being so close to Yang. Nora might get too carried away. Oscar was too young and he wasn't sure he could trust Ozpin.

Qrow was right out, for several reasons.

He didn't really know Blake's parents well enough or Ilia although she might give him an outsider's perspective so maybe she could be someone but they were basically strangers at this point. Sun, well maybe he was someone. He was close enough that Jaune considers a friend and he might have some advice but when it came right down to it Ren was Jaune's best male friend and closest thing to a brother he had in his life.

So it was decided then.

Jaune got up and left the room and started his search for Ren. He checked the inside of the home they were staying at, not in the kitchen, the living room or even the training areas. He paused and thought about what Ren liked to do. He did like quiet places at times to meditate so he tried outside next. The training yard in the back was empty for the moment but there sitting down by the wall still as a rock.

Jaune paused because Ren looked like he was really into what he was doing. Disturbing him now seemed kind of wrong so with a sigh Jaune went to turn around.

"Something on your mind Jaune?" Ren asked without opening his eyes.

"Sorry I didn't want to disturb you," Jaune apologized.

"Nonsense if you need my help then please," Ren opened his eyes and patted the ground next to him.

Jaune made his way over and sat down. He wasn't sure if he was supposed to cross his legs like Ren had but he tried anyway. He did have to pull his legs a bit to get it just right, maybe he should look into some agility training at some point. When he was comfortable, he tried to think of where to start, Ren was patient as ever as he waited for Jaune to compose himself.

"Well I did something and I'm not sure how to feel about it," Jaune paused scratching the back of his head. "See I went with a run with Yang and things were mostly well but something happened and she ended up with back pain. So I offered to help with it, I have some experience with massages to get rid of muscle pain."

"Really?" Ren asked him cocking his head to the side. "You never mentioned that before."

"It never came up before," Jaune shrugged. "You never pushed yourself too hard, Nora doesn't seem to get muscle pains no matter how hard she pushes and Pyrrha…well she had years of training for her tournaments that I guess made it so she knew exactly what to do."

Ren nodded his head at that although he noticed it was still a bit hard for Jaune to talk about Pyrrha. Honestly, they all had moments but at least lately, Jaune was starting to use her name more and privately he hoped that he was slowly healing a bit from her loss. "So you gave Yang a back rub?"

"It was more like a deep tissue massage," Jaune correctly innocently. "I've helped my sisters with that and stuff before but I've never, well I've never tried it with another girl before. One of the reasons it never came back up at Beacon I guess. I mean I couldn't see Nora or Pyrrha asking for them."

Ren had to nod at that point both girls wouldn't have been able to ask for that. Despite her energetic outlook, Nora could get flustered when things got personal like that. As for Pyrrha, she wouldn't have been able to work up the nerve most likely.

"So did something happen?" Ren asked.

Jaune paused thinking about it. "Well…not exactly? I mean I was doing a good job from the, well, sounds she was making."

He blushed a bit as he shifted a bit uncomfortably. "Well then I tried to see if I could use my semblance to you know, help out and then she started to, really moan."

Ren cocked an eyebrow as he thought about it. "Normally when you use your semblance you just have to touch someone but now you're pressing your hands against them I guess would 'push' your aura into the other person."

"Really? It's not dangerous is it?" Jaune was starting to worry a bit. He finally had a semblance but he was still learning what he could do with it. He really wished he had paid more attention in class when it came to aura, he felt he just didn't know enough on the subject.

Ren had to think on it. "I'm no expert but aura can repel people and can be harmful if you're not careful."

Jaune hadn't even thought about that, he could have hurt Yang by doing that! He was just glad that hadn't happened.

"But it seems like everything went well at least." Ren continued.

"Yeah a bit too well," Jaune blushed at the memory. "Well she was, well she was very vocal about what I was doing."

"Vocal?"

Jaune blushed even more. "Well she was making sounds that, well if anyone outside the room was listening wouldn't be thinking I was just giving her a massage."

"Oh." Ren blinked at that. "I can see why that might have been troubling."

"That's not the worst of it," Jaune sighed in defeat. "I keep thinking about it, I just wanted to laugh it off and get back to normal but I keep thinking about it. How her skin felt, the way she, well enjoyed herself. This is Yang, a friend and I feel like thinking about a friend in this way is, well that I shouldn't."

Now Ren saw where this was coming from, Jaune was the kind of person that respected his friends and unlike other young men would feel guilty about something like this. Ren could kind of understand where he was coming from. Before he got together with Nora he had moments like this himself, they had been childhood friends for so long that any other thoughts seemed like something he shouldn't have been doing.

It wasn't until recently that he started to look back on those thoughts and was starting to wonder if maybe his feelings for Nora had always been there and he just didn't want to admit it. That brought a thought to Ren's mind as he looked at Jaune. Could it be that he had feelings for Yang?

"Jaune, do you think of Yang as attractive?" Ren said calmly.

"W-w-what!?" Jaune wasn't expecting that question from him.

"It's an honest question, do you?"

"Well, I mean, she is very, not that I've looked mind you," He stuttered. Did he think Yang was attractive? Of course, there were a lot of girls he hung out with that were attractive these days. He seemed to surround himself with good looking girls that were also very strong. Yang however was a bit above the norm. Everything about her just screamed 'sex appeal' at least on the surface, he knew that behind that was a young woman that loved her sister and friends so much that she would do anything to protect them.

Jaune was silent a moment hanging his head, "Yeah I, yeah she is attractive, but she's also a friend Ren! I mean she's Ruby's big sister and she's one of my best friends."

"You didn't have any issues when you were asking Weiss out all the time," Ren said.

Jaune winced a bit looking back he had seen that he might have been a bit too strong in his pursuit of Weiss. "We weren't friends back then. She was Ruby's friend and teammate, we only kind of recently started to really become friends."

"And since Yang is a friend you're feeling guilty thinking of her like that?" Ren surmised.

"Yeah," Jaune sighed.

Ren thought about it for a moment, "Jaune I can tell you that thinking these things are normal."

"Really? So have you ever thought of Nora like that, at least before you guys got together?"

Ren couldn't hide the small blush about it. "There…were times."

Sharing a small room with her hadn't exactly helped those matters at times but he hadn't been ready to admit what the source of those thoughts were until now.

"Jaune I have to ask, maybe you're thinking these thoughts because you might see Yang as something more than just a friend?" Ren asked him.

Jaune looked shocked by what he had said. "What!? I mean sure Yang is, well she would be nice as a girlfriend but there is no way someone like her would see me in that light. It would be like Weiss all over again and I don't want to go that route. Yang and me are getting closer as friends and I don't want to mess that up like I nearly did with Weiss."

All his times perusing Weiss he could now see were most likely annoying to her. If he had just asked her out once and then let it go, it might have lead to him and Weiss being friendlier at school. It wasn't until after the dance when he had stopped chasing her that things between them started to slowly get better. He was finally getting somewhere with Yang as a friend and he didn't want to ruin that.

Besides what were the odds that Yang of all people would end up liking him? Yang was just way out of his league.

"Well if you're sure about that then," Ren didn't want to push things. He wasn't sure how Jaune felt about Yang. If he only saw her as a friend then that was okay as well. Ren just didn't want Jaune to miss out again on a possibility. Pyrrha had waited too long and now anything that could have happened was long gone. He had seen how much of a hole in Jaune's life it had left in him, he and Nora had talked about it when they were alone and both of them were worried about Jaune.

He seemed angrier at times and it wasn't healthy for him that light that had been inside of him that had grown at Beacon, the light that made him a good friend and a leader that they all had been proud to listen to had slightly waned. For a moment, he was wondering that maybe finding love again would help heal those wounds he kept inside. If such a thing would work, it had to be natural though and pushing him towards something he may or may not be ready emotionally for would only harm him more.

Ren focused his mind and tried to think of what to say next to him.

"Jaune I can say with certainty that you are a good man, one of the best that I've ever known." Ren opened up to him. "I can't see you doing anything that would change that. If you felt an attraction to someone you feel was attractive then there is nothing you can stop it. So let me ask you, did you act on those thoughts?"

Jaune paused for a moment. "Uh…no I just kind of tried to keep focus on my job."

Ren smiled a little with a nod. "That's why you shouldn't be too hard on yourself. How many other guys would have acted in your place?"

Jaune's thoughts immediately went to that guy that cat called Yang during their run. Yeah he wasn't someone like that, that was for sure.

"So…it's okay to think on these things?"

"It happens to everyone Jaune," Ren told him.

"I just, well I've never had many friends growing up, especially female friends." Jaune scratched the back of his head. "This is kind of new territory in a way. I've liked girls in the past but I've never had female friends like I do now and it's kind of strange to think about at least one of them like…well like that."

"Like I said it's natural and it happens, plus you're not the kind of guy that would act inappropriately about it."

"Yeah…yeah I think you're right," Jaune felt a bit better now maybe all he needed was a bit of a talk with someone to help straighten out his head. "Thanks Ren."

"Anytime," he replied.

Later in the day mostly everyone was gathered up in the living area catching up. On the TV was a recording of a Ghira's speech. It was him with his wife at his side as he was addressing a small crowd of reporters. Ever since the White Fang had been defeated by a group of faunus led by him the public were anxious for a statement from the former leader of the same organization.

'Today the world has seen that not all faunus want violence. That there are those that will stand up for what's right against anyone that would use violence or bring more violence into this world.'

"This is so cool," Ruby smiled as they were watching the broadcast.

"Ruby we were there in the crowd, remember?" Weiss asked her.

"I know but it's cooler seeing it on TV, we were off to the side," she defended herself.

"You always did cut a nice profile," Kali said running a hand over her husband's arm.

'Many of you have questions but I only have a few answers. Many have heard the reports of the death of Sienna Kahn. This is unfortunately true but it was not by human hands as the White Fang have led you to believe.' Ghira was shown to hold up a scroll. This was the one Ilia had which held all the information she had at the time. "I have here proof that it was done by none other than Adam Taurus. The same man that lead the attack here and who abandoned his fellow White Fang members.'

They could see a large reaction out of the audience on the TV from that which wasn't surprising.

"I bet Adam won't have many friends left in the Fang after this," Yang said crossing her arms.

"He never had friends," Blake said watching reporters asked many questions at this point. "But anyone allied with him will think otherwise now. Sienna was a popular leader and if he killed her that will alienate those loyal to her at the very least but leaving the others behind like he did?"

"They'll view that as treason, at least to some," Ilia finished. It was strange watching this, that was her scroll that held that information, information that just might make the White Fang implode. It wasn't even that long ago that she was a diehard fanatic for their cause. Now here she was living in a small home with the former leader of the White Fang, Blake her friend again that many felt was a traitor for leaving, humans that she honestly was starting to like as friends.

One of which was a Schnee of all things! It wasn't even that long ago that she felt she knew her life and here she was with it completely upside down and yet, she was starting to feel happier now then she had felt in a long time.

'I will give out this information to everyone that wants it,' Ghira spoke again. 'But I've come to realize something lately. I've come to see that the White Fang, which was originally a peaceful organization for Faunus rights, has lost its way. At first, I wanted to see if I could reform it but it might be too late for that. Instead I've come to see that there is another way to ensure Faunus rights.'

'Through my daughter and her human friends I've come to see that if Faunus are to gain equal rights then we shouldn't segregate ourselves. Therefore, I've come here to announce that I will be forming a new organization. One that will foster a deeper bond between humans and Faunus by allowing both groups to enter into this organization.'

'This new Unity organization's goal will be to bring together both our people. This organization will help give a voice to those that wanted to speak up. It will be a place to help each other and bolster friendships and understanding on both sides.'

"I like this idea," Ruby smiled. "If everyone can get along it will help a lot."

"Although it won't be as easy as that," Ghira sighed. "But it will be a start at least. Maybe this time things can be different."

The front door opened as everyone looked to see Qrow walk in.

"Uncle Qrow!" Ruby zipped over to her uncle. "How did things go?"

"Not well," He sighed as he made his way to an empty chair and sat down. "I tried all my contacts, at least the ones that I trust."

After Leo's betrayal he was making sure not to let too much out, there was no telling how many people had been compromised by Salem at this point. They knew she had agents but now they saw just how far their reach was and it was actually kind of a scary thought. He had even thought of going to Little Miss Mistral but thought better of it. He has used her sources before but he also knew that spider of a woman wouldn't hesitate to sell them out if she make some money off it.

"So there's no way to get to Atlas?" Ruby worriedly asked.

"Well I did find a little useful info at least," He pulled out his scroll as someone turned off the television. A hologram popped up as an area of Mistral was shown in the north in red. "Turns out not everyone was pulled back like we thought."

"There's still an Atlas presence in the city of Argus." He told them.

"Wait, Argus?" Jaune perked up at that.

"You know it kid?" Qrow asked him.

"My oldest sister lives there," Jaune explained.

"Oh that means we get to finally meet some of your family if we go?" Nora asked him excited at the prospect.

"Yeah most likely."

"Well it would be nice to have someone there we know." Qrow stated. "Never been there myself but I have heard of the place. It's a major port city but even with the boarders down they should at least have a ship of some kind that if we're lucky we can take to Atlas so we can get that artifact to a secure location."

"Are you sure it will be safe there?" Blake asked him next.

Qrow shrugged. "As long as we got that thing we got a target on ourselves and without the maiden to seal it back up the only other option is to hope Jimmy can lock it up so tightly that it will take a full on army to get to it."

"So how do we get there, we don't have to walk do we?" Ruby really hoped they didn't have to. They walked all the way here and it took forever to do and with winter showing up she didn't like the idea of walking through all that snow for the entire season. It was why she had waited until the spring to leave him after all.

"We can get a train there," Qrow told her. "Although the tracks have seen some Grimm activity so they're sending out huntsman to clear the area or at least thin out the more problematic ones. I'll see when we can book passage and get us there."

"So you'll all be leaving soon then?" Kali had enjoying seeing her daughter again and meeting her friends but she knew that this couldn't last forever. She just hated seeing her precious little girl leave again.

"Yeah," Blake's ears fell slightly.

"I think we have a lot to plan for," Ruby stated.

TBC…