Just a short thing I came up with. This one should last about three or four chapters like 'Daddy? Sorry. Daddy?' and 'Of Monsters and Man'.

Also, as much as the summary might imply otherwise, Blake's exaggerated 'Worst Girl' characterization is one of my favorite characters, so don't think this is a bashing fic. I just love the juxtaposition of Blake presenting herself as this aloof cat ninja who's simultaneously stubborn, makes dumb decisions, and jumps out a window then acts surprised when she gets hurt.

Jaune found himself questioning his choices in life a lot in recent days. He'd missed his chance to enroll (with false transcripts...) into Beacon when he was seventeen when his parents found out and did a little research. They'd screamed at him till their throats got hoarse, asking what in the hell he was thinking and if he had a plan besides winging it and hoping he could pass the entrance exam with no Aura, no training, and a weapon that had been unused for a generation.

And then they grounded him. Technically he was an adult and could run away from home, but that wasn't really in the cards. Sure, he could find a job in Vale and bide his time till he could enroll in Beacon again, but his parents would kibosh that plan the second they found out. That and he didn't really like the idea of cutting all ties with his family. Mom and Dad's lectures were bad enough, but having Lily crawl into his bed crying about how she didn't want him to go broke his heart.

After that, he put aside all those plans and just...stayed at home. The month afterward was awkward, but eventually, his family moved past it and they'd all brushed it off as a dumb teenager doing dumb teenage things. A year passed, Dad trusted him enough to go to Vale to oversee a sale, and Jaune eventually found himself at a bar lamenting about how he could've been a contender.

That was where he met him. Ozpin. Not that he knew it at the time. He was just having a drink when some old man in a black and green suit started mumbling about bitter ex-wives trying to destroy everything he loved. Now, Jaune wasn't married, but he was someone who grew up having to play therapist. Being in the middle of seven sisters meant they all came to him with their myriad of problems. Relationship issues, school issues, worries about the future, did that outfit actually make her look fat? All equally important questions that needed a keen mind to avoid it somehow being his fault.

And so he listened. Ozpin was a remarkably sad drunk and Jaune found himself spending hours listening to the old man vent about all his woes. Ozpin was apparently a fantastical drunk on top of being a sad one. Apparently, he was an immortal fighting a secret war against his equally immortal and unkillable ex-wife. Oh, and that this all started because he tried to run off with their four children to avoid eternal death by snu-snu.

Needless to say, Jaune didn't believe him, but he played along anyway and gave some advice. Theoretical advice that he expected the old man would forget once the next day's hangover came, but he'd dealt with drunks before and knew that sometimes the best way to deal with them was letting them vent it out.

Three days later and he was designated as Beacon's official student counselor.

No, he didn't plan that. He'd left after contacting Ozpin's emergency contact - one Glynda Goodwitch - and was fully prepared to go back home when Ozpin had somehow tracked down his motel room and offered him the job. He thought it was some kind of scam at first, up until Ozpin showed him proof that he was, in fact, the headmaster of Remnant's most prestigious Huntsman Academy (he wasn't biased at all as a Valean, no sir).

He said yes. Mom and Dad couldn't complain if the headmaster of the academy offered him a job. He was honest, telling Ozpin that he didn't have any degree or qualifications, but the headmaster just brushed it off. Apparently their one drunken conversation - well, Ozpin was drunk, at least - had 'changed his life' and he wanted Jaune to do the same for his students.

Jaune agreed, figuring that he could use it as a chance to at least get access to the facilities Beacon had so he could train in his own time. That and, really, what were the chances that Beacon students would have any problems? There was no way the school would let anyone in if they couldn't be trusted with Aura and deadly weaponry.

...Right?

His first 'patient' was one Ruby Rose, a prodigy who got into Beacon two years early for foiling a robbery by one Roman Torchwick. A part of him felt jealous at that, though he brushed it off. It wasn't her fault he never got the chance to train, and they were talking about her, not him. All he had to do was listen to any problems she had and help her understand. He wasn't supposed to give advice or tell her what to do, that was something those self-help and therapy books 13-year-old told him.

"M-Morning." Ruby shuffled awkwardly inside the room and stiffly took a seat on the offered chair, "You're, uh, Mr. Arc, right?"

"Yes." He nodded. He wanted to tell her that she could just call him Jaune, but apparently, you had to make that divide clear. Counselors weren't your friends. They could care about you, of course, but to keep an objective mind they had to stay at a distance. And sure he had no actual credibility, but the students didn't know that. He even put on glasses to make himself look smarter.

"Okay, um...what did I do wrong?"

"Nothing, Ms. Rose." He looked at his clipboard. It had her name...and that was it. He still kept it up; helped him look professional, "Think of this meeting as an introduction of sorts. You can discuss whatever you want and I'll be here to listen. If you don't feel like there's anything to talk about, then that's fine too. After this, you won't have to meet me again unless you want to."

"Oh." He watched the tension drain from her body and she sat up straighter with a relieved smile, "Cool. I thought I was in trouble because of Weiss even though I didn't do anything!"

"Weiss...Schnee?" He looked at the files Professor Goodwitch gave him. Weiss Schnee, heiress to the SDC and a member of team RWBY. She was pretty...and that was as far as that thought went before he flushed it down the toilet. No, Jaune, you were a counselor now. Don't perv on the students even if they're the same age as you, "I wasn't aware you two were having any troubles."

Ruby chewed on her bottom lip and looked like she was debating whether to confess or keep quiet before, with a soft groan, she chose the former, "She's just...being such a butt!" she said 'butt' like the most heinous curse, "She's been complaining about how she should be the leader and that I didn't 'earn' it! Well, neither did she! And I was the one who came up with the plan to stop that Nevermore!"

"Go on..." He wrote down 'team issues' and circled it twice.

"I've been trying to get along with her, but she keeps trying to show me up because she thinks it'll convince the professors to make her the leader. When I told her about a Boarbatusk's weakness in class she yelled at me." Ruby sighed and leaned back on the chair, "I'm just...I'm so annoyed! Yang - that's my sister - wants to beat her up for being such a jerk and Blake doesn't really get involved unless she has to."

"Have you talked to anyone else about this?"

"I was gonna talk to the headmaster about maybe he should just make Weiss the leader if it'll make her less cranky, but then I was told to meet you. That's...kinda why I thought that I was in trouble."

"No, Ms. Rose, you're not in trouble," he said again. Oof, this was more complicated than he thought it'd be, "What do you think about what Weiss has told you? Was it just annoyance or..."

"N-No, she was...she was right about some stuff." Ruby sighed again, "I really do need to study more and shouldn't sleep in class, but she doesn't have to be a jerk about it! And I know that no matter what I do she's just gonna make up another excuse to get mad at me." She pouted, "Then Yang gets mad, Weiss gets even madder, and suddenly everything's going wrong again-"

"Breath, Ms. Rose." Catastrophic Thinking, the book said. Always imagine the worst-case scenario. She was just like Lily that way, "I can't tell you what to do, but you did say that you were going to Ozpin to talk about possibly not being the leader anymore. Is that really what you want?'

"I...I don't know..." Ruby shook her head, "I just...I was so excited when the headmaster told me I could attend Beacon two years early that I didn't think about what that meant. I skipped two years of classes, so now we're getting lessons where I'm supposed to already get things I didn't learn about. If I complain then people just think I don't deserve to be here. It sucks."

"Ozpin chose for you to be here. Even if it's difficult to see now, he did that for a reason." Or so he hoped. This was the guy who hired him because he was drunk and ranting about his fanfiction. For all Jaune knew, Ozpin could've invited her because she gave him money for the bus fare, "You're right that you need to catch up, and you're also right that it doesn't give Ms. Schnee an excuse to be a jerk about it. Have you talked to her about this?"

"What's the point? She's just gonna ignore me anyway..." Ruby grumbled.

"Maybe, but you two are partners. That has to mean something." Or so he hoped. Really, he was just talking out of his butt here. He didn't even have unlocked Aura, so what did he know about how Huntsmen worked/ For all he knew most partners hated each other, "But like I said, this is up to you. What do you want to do?"

"I still don't know...but I definitely don't wanna stop being a leader just cause Weiss is being a jerk about it." She crossed her arms, expression fierce, "You know what? I'm gonna talk to her and I'm gonna make her listen. If this doesn't work then I can at least say I tried, right?"

"Sounds like a plan."

"Alright! Thanks, Jaune!" He didn't comment on the switch in name or the fact that she ran off before the hour was done. He put a checkmark next to her name on the clipboard and nodded. That was...good, right? He helped. Either that or he just caused team RWBY to split up.

He really hoped he didn't mess up on the first day.

Weiss Schnee walked into his office the next day looking like she'd sucked on a lemon just as he was thinking of heading to the facilities to train. He didn't get the chance to introduce himself before she sat down on the seat, right leg crossed over her left and a dainty brow raised as she looked at him. Despite being about a foot shorter than him, Jaune suddenly felt small.

"Mr. Arc, I presume?" she said, not really asking despite the words.

"Yes. It's nice to meet you, Miss Schnee." He raised the clipboard again. She'd caught him so off-guard he didn't even have time to write anything on it.

"Likewise." Her tone was as icy as her hair and he shivered, "I suppose I have you to thank for Ruby's sudden burst of confidence."

"Uh..."

"I'm you'll be happy to know that she put me in my place in this morning's Combat Class and embarrassed me in front of all my peers. Now any chance I had of convincing the teachers to support my bid for officially replacing her as the team leader is gone."

"Why is being the leader so important to you?" There were other things he wanted to ask but he was coming up blank right now. Mostly cause it felt like he was being frozen solid.

"Why? That's a foolish question." She uncrossed her legs and narrowed her eyes, "I am a Schnee. I was raised to lead, not to follow, and I will most definitely not let a child give me orders."

"So you're saying the teachers made a mistake?"

"Absolutely!"

"Are you saying you know better than the headmaster?"

She looked like she was about to respond in the affirmative again before she suddenly clamped her mouth shut. His younger sisters would've said yes, but that was because they were kids who really did think they knew better. He remembered Rebecca's constant ranting and raving about her professor's lectures, but she never once said that she thought she knew better.

"I...believe they had a momentary lapse in judgment," Weiss said eventually, "I'd hoped to prove myself capable and convince them to change their mind. This is for Ruby's own good too. She skipped two years, I'm sure she's struggling to catch up. As the leader, I would've personally tutored her for any studies she missed and ensured she was at her best."

"And why can't you do that without being the leader? You're still partners now."

"If she were better than me then she would deserve to be leader, but she isn't. If she needs my help then why should I let her dictate orders?"

"Listen, I don't know about you or Ruby and who's 'better' or not, but aren't you guys a team? It's not a competition. You two are supposed to be working together."

"That's a childish notion. Everything is a competition, Mr. Arc, whether you know it or not."

Okay...this sounded like it ran deeper than just an argument with her teammate. He scrambled to remember everything from those self-help books he read, "Uh...Ms. Schnee, could you please tell me about your family?"

"...Why?" Her eyes narrowed again.

"Just call it me being curious. You don't have to if you don't want to."

"It's fine, I suppose. Better you hear it from me rather than Blake, I suppose." She sighed and leaned back, though even he could tell she was just forcing herself to look hesitant, "I suppose it starts with my father, Big Nicholas." No, he didn't hold back laughing at the serious way she said the name. Why would you think that?

The next three hours - yes, really - were spent with Weiss talking to him about every detail about the Schnee family. Jaune felt like a student in class. Even when the sun went down, Weiss just continued on talking about three generations of Schnees and how awful things became when her father married into the family.

Jaune wondered if she would quiz him by the end of it.

"So you can see why I refuse to be a follower!" Weiss finished passionately, breathing hard as she paced in front of him. He got the feeling she was waiting to find someone to rant- er, confide in, "All my life I've spent it under my father's control. I fought for the right to be here, this scar is a permanent reminder of that, and yet now I'm expected to relinquish control again?! I think not!"

"Uh...I think we're talking about two different things now," Jaune said, finally managing to get a word in for the first time in hours, "Just because Ruby's the team leader doesn't mean she controls your life or anything. I'm not really sure how things work back in Atlas, but Vale is proud of its independence. Being the leader doesn't mean you have to do everything Ruby says."

"I still don't like it. It feels like I'm being puppeted around again."

"I've only talked to Ruby once, but I'm pretty sure she doesn't want to tug on your strings." Or at least he really hoped not. She looked too sweet to be secretly evil, "For better or worse, you two are partners, and you can't keep going like this."

"Then what do you suggest?"

"That's your choice, isn't it? Like you said, you're in control." Weiss grunted, evidently displeased with her words being turned back on her.

"I...I suppose I can talk to her." Weiss sighed in defeat, "I'll...admit I've been acting immature recently, and by my own logic, Ruby has proven my better when she beat me in class."

"Just because she beat you in class doesn't mean you lost or anything. Some people are better at some things than in others."

"A Schnee excels in everything."

"And an Arc never goes back on his word, but we both know that you can't always live up to that. No one's perfect." She desperately looked like she wanted to disagree. Instead, she bit her tongue and nodded.

"I'll make peace with her tonight. With any luck we can bury this hatchet." She stood and, for the first time since she showed up, smiled. It was small, but it was there, "Thank you, Mr. Arc. You're a very good listener. Would you mind if I came back for another session in three days' time?"

"S-Sure." Please just don't let it be about her family tree again.

Weiss nodded gratefully and left, allowing Jaune to finally let the tension leave his body. So much for using his free time to train. Oh well. Hopefully, this would be the last time team RWBY would need to vent.

Two weeks later, team RWBY blew up the docks, and the entire team was forced to attend mandatory counseling. That was when he met the soon-to-be bane of his existence, Blake Belladonna.

This chapter was mostly setup and showed that Jaune actually does have luck helping people...only to get utterly flabbergasted when nothing he does seems to work on Blake. Every time he tries something she'll ignore it, come up with a justification to personally involve herself with the White Fang, and how Jaune just doesn't get why she has to do what she does.

Other characters will also show up. Yang's a no-brainer, and so does team PRMN consisting of Pyrrha, Ren, Nora, and Mint (disguised Neo). And yes, that means Jaune manages to make progress with the mute criminal over Blake. Pyrrha also immediately ignores the professional boundary and tries to be friends with Jaune in a personal setting because her partner is a mute psychopath. Poor girl.

Question:

1. Obvious question is who else do you guys want to have sessions? I was considering Cinder and Emerald just for fun since they technically enroll in Beacon. Cardin also shows up briefly where Jaune seems to think that he has a crush on Velvet for some reason.