This was probably the most atypical class Jaune had yet attended. There was combat in it, to a degree, but not with one another and only in their human forms. There was only one person they were intended to attack, but unlike with Tyrian's bloody arena, Yang was not front and center. That person stood at the center of the room, large arms crossed. Their teacher, Professor Rainart, who had spent more time sighing to himself than Jaune could recall any teacher before him. Besides his kindergarten teacher when one of his classmates had asked why and how Jaune had so many sisters...

Yet while this was some kind of defense class, Jaune quickly caught on that it was more than that. All of the hybrids that he could see had gone to different corners of the room, twisting their bodies into something that looked like meditation poses. At least, as much as some of them could. Cardin settled with resting with his fists planted on the ground like a gorilla, Wesson's jacket poofed out, writhing as his many limbs struggled to get comfortable. Another male hybrid, Brawnz, leaned against the wall instead, the intricate metal working around and through his legs leaving him unable to sit down properly.

Yang on the other hand didn't seem to care about proper etiquette. While she was more than physically capable of resting with her legs crossed, she chose to put all of her weight on her Grimm arm. Weiss was a picture of lady-like mannerisms, perfectly mimicking the ideal stance in sharp contrast to Ruby. Ruby had her legs spread wide, arms behind her and leaning back, like a kid basking in the sun. Jaune found himself between the two, uncomfortably trying to get his legs to bend the right way. Blake was not visibly present, but Jaune had no doubt that the creature waited still.

"Why are we here?"

Jaune's attention snapped to Hazel, his low rumbling voice suddenly snapping his attention forward. Weiss immediately rose her hand, eliciting a tired nod from the older man.

"That's one of life's great mysteries. I mean, are we the product of some grand coincidence, or does Salem really watch everything? You know, with a plan for us. I don't know, sir, but it keeps me up at night."

Jaune could not recall when he had seen a flatter stare at another living being in his life. Including the time when one of his fellow classmates had cheerfully piped up 'Because the Arcs can't afford condoms!' to his teacher. Hazel brushed her reply off with another sigh.

"Existential preening aside, I was looking for an answer in the here and now. Why are we here in this classroom?"

"So we can take a nap for an hour and a half?" Yang's voice called out from across the way.

Hazel's glance in her direction betrayed no annoyance or anger. Instead he nodded. "For those of you who seek to only be bloodthirsty monsters, little more than expendable fodder for the strong to use as a stepping stone, that is true."

If Yang had a retort, it was immediately squashed as Hazel continued. "For those of you who seek to uphold Mistress Salem's belief in you, belief in your purpose and future, the answer is different. To come here to embrace that which you believe is without merit. Each of you," his gaze drifted from student to student. "Each of you are hybrids. Children found abandoned or worse, saved by the grace of Salem and made greater than the humanity you had been shackled to. Yet that humanity, though dead and buried deep within you, cannot be cast off. You must embrace it."

Jaune's eyes widened. Was Hazel advocating for the hybrids to actually improve themselves?

"You must take hold of it and control it. It is a powerful weapon and a dangerous tool, and must be treated as such. Otherwise you will never be able to fulfill your purpose in life and infiltrate human society as Salem seeks."

A frown settled on Jaune's face. Was that all he meant? Improve themselves for the good of Salem? Did they deserve no better future?

"All of you, assume your best human form. We will practice unarmed, human combat today."

His eyes widened. "Really?"

Hazel nodded. "A firm grasp of the basics is better than raw instinct."

Yang snorted. "As if."

Hazel glanced back at her. "If you have something to prove, do so. Otherwise return to your nap, child."

Jaune could feel the air grow colder. The hybrids that had been trying to follow his instructions went still. A few moved further away. Jaune took in again the surroundings. The desks were very sparse, kept away from the grand center. It wasn't as large as the arena that Tyrian taught in, but it wasn't a normal teaching stage either. Hazel had his back turned to Yang, the blonde monster fuming.

With a sudden bellow, she leapt at the stage, still in her Grimm form. Twisting black muscle pulled back as she aimed a punch directly for Hazel's back. One that he met with a punch of his own, snapping around in the blink of an eye.

Glaring at the younger girl, Hazel pushed forward. Jaune winced as he saw the meat that made up Yang's arm quiver, an unseen battle for supremacy waging. One that Yang abruptly lost, her arm, and by consequence her body, flung backwards through a set of stone desks into the wall. Jaune had seen Yang take considerable damage from the battle before, but this seemed to throw her more than anything the would-be sniper attempted.

"You let your arm do too much of the work. Your footing is a joke and your form pitiful. Learn how to punch as a human and maybe you'll do better."

Yang let out a grunt of frustration as she uprooted herself. She idly glanced his way, Jaune suddenly recalling their shower encounter the day before. As if in response to that memory, red eyes turned to lilac as a warm tone overtook her skin.

She shrugged. "Had to give it a shot."

Jaune wasn't sure he agreed. Ruby flung herself at his shoulder, silver eyes brimming with light. "Do I look more human yet, Jaune?"

He looked down at the two horned hybrid. Her skin color was better now, her eyes were right. Her arm wasn't quite right though. Of course her horns remained. Smiling, he ruffled her hair.

"Sure do. Just wait 'til those lessons, Ruby. We'll get you up to snuff in no time."

A heel crashing into the side of his head brought his attention into sharp focus, even as pain bloomed through him. Stumbling back, he looked to see Weiss struggling to maintain her posture as she recovered from the impromptu attack.

"What the hell, Weiss!"

Weiss shrugged. "We are supposed to work on our human hand to hand, yes?"

"Feet are not hands!"

Weiss raised an accusatory finger toward Jaune. "False! I have seen the creatures called monkeys and they possess hand-feet! Are humans not a relative to such beasts? I thought as much!"

"...Weiss, humans do not have hand-feet."

"How would you know!" She tossed her wild ponytail over her shoulder, as if this one response had won her the argument.

Jaune sighed. "Weiss, do you have hand-feet?"

"Obviously not. However I have yet to perfect my human guise, so I must clearly be doing something wrong."

He looked her up and down. Weiss, more than any of the other hybrids, had the 'looking human' thing down to a science. Maybe a tiny nub remained where her horn was, otherwise she was a pristine princess carved of snow. He sighed again.

"Weiss, what do you think is wrong with your human form? And no, again, humans do not have hand-feet." Jaune hoped the answer would be sensible.

"She can't make herself grow bigger tits when in disguise."

Yang made her approach known, eschewing subtlety. Jaune winced, waiting for Weiss' backlash. Backlash that did not come. Looking back, Jaune saw a tinge of red on the young girl's face. Noticing his questioning stare, Weiss crossed her arms.

"It wouldn't do to have a human form so similar to my own. I wish to obscure some of my natural perfections with needless faff. Is there an issue with that? I thought not! To be of slim, sleek build is to be of a superior breed! To be of a higher, elite class! This is why I must, nay, need to hide my perfected, beautiful form beneath pounds of worthless, ugly fat! Not because I need it but because it is the only way! What good would a disguise be without disguising, I dare ask? Nothing! Nothing good! Furthermore..."

Ruby nudged Jaune's shoulder. "She's going to be on this for a while."

The boy nodded, stepping away as Weiss ranted to herself.

"Hey Jaune, heads up!"

Jaune activated his Aura on reflex, primed for another sneak attack. Instead a clumsy fist crashed against his body, crumbling into a hurt hand. Ruby let out a whining noise.

"Wow, you're hard as a brick! Dipped in, like, hard stuff! How hard can you be, Jaune?"

Yang slid up next to Jaune, eyeing him with amusement. "Quite hard, little sis. Take it from me. Quite hard indeed."

Ruby squinted between the two. "How would you know that? I never let you two fight!"

Jaune stepped away, raising his hands. "What she means is-"

"I got to see Jaune's secret horn."

He went dead silent, gawking at Yang. Yang had her arms crossed, a shit eating grin on her face. A face that was struggling to keep her natural face holes closed.

"Please don't."

Ruby made a high pitched noise that he wasn't sure was her yelling in surprise or outrage. "You showed her your Grimm form! No fair! That's a besties privilege if ever there was one! I want to see it too!"

"Ruby, please, you really..."

"Show me your secret horn!"

Yang had a grin like a knife. "Yeah Jaune, whip it out." Yang leaned in close, her two horns rapidly regrowing, positioned to squeeze his neck between them just ever so slightly. "You show me yours and I'll show you mine."

The quick kick to her shin by Ruby made Yang back off faster than Jaune would have expected.

"Yang! No beating up Jaune!"

That was a very good rule for Ruby to introduce. He could only hope that Yang would follow it.

Jaune would like to say he learned anything about proper hand to hand techniques that class. He also had been taught at an early age not to lie. Looking around, none of his fellow students seemed to have much of a clue what to do either. A flailing of limbs and misshapen forms, many of them unable to come close to a proper human visage. Weiss was the best at it, naturally as she would say, but without her Grimm form giving her super-human abilities...

She didn't really amount to anything, Jaune realized. None of her strikes were effective so long as he kept his aura up. None of them had aura, which didn't matter as much for their Grimm forms, but seemed to negatively affect them as humans. He grimaced. Could they even unlock aura? Were they still capable?

Yet, these questions didn't matter to Jaune as much. Even though it was more play fighting than actual training, it was rather relaxing. The hybrids would snipe at one another, tempers would flare, only for Hazel to intervene and try to instruct some basic level of human action to them. At one point, while Jaune was avoiding the flailing limbs of Ruby, Hazel stopped beside him.

"Though you have an advantage over them like this, do not forget what they truly are. If you want to get stronger, I would advise you spend some of your free time training. We have facilities for it."

"I wasn't aware of that. Thank you, Professor Rainart."

The man grunted in return, resuming his policing of the class. After this period, Jaune figured that'd be a good way to test his growing muscle mass. Maybe it'd be nice and peaceful, unlike the present chaos?

Unknown to Jaune, a gleam entered Yang's eye.

Peace. Solitude. Rare commodities in the academy, as Jaune had come to learn.

It wasn't as if he hated his friends. He just wanted a little bit of time to himself.

Jaune shook his head at the thought.

Friends. It was still hard to believe that he had befriended literal monsters. Yet somehow he had. Somehow his mother's words of wisdom had rung true even under the strangest of circumstances. These girls, these onetime strangers, were indeed friends. At least until they found out the truth.

That was why he was here today. It was why he would need to come here every day. To train. To improve. To increase not only his odds of survival, but to increase the perception that he was indeed strong. That he was not merely a squishy human in a world of Grimm hybrids. He had bluffed his way through a fight against the hybrid known as Wesson. But what about next time? What if he fought someone who was stronger? Someone who could reduce him into a red, gooey paste on the floor?

He gripped his sword and shield tightly. He had lasted weeks in this place living a lie. He wasn't about to let that all be for nothing. He wasn't about to give up now.

Neither on himself, nor his friends.

Somehow, someway, he would help them. Sweet, innocent girls who were taken against their will. Corrupted beyond imagining. Reduced to little more than animals in human flesh. If he could just help them remember, if he could maybe make them appreciate their humanity, then maybe, just maybe, they could find their way back from the darkness.

Jaune went through his usual motions that he had learned back home. Back when he had been adamant on becoming a huntsman. Perfecting his stance. His strikes. His form. Each swing and thrust of his heavy ancestral blade would help to build muscle in his arms. Each day would make the sword feel lighter and lighter. His speed would improve. His reflexes would be enhanced. Even without his Aura, he would become a better warrior. One who was capable of standing toe to toe with the monsters which surrounded him. One who would be capable of slaying the true creature of Grimm who infested the landscape.

Every time he imagined the same target. The same woman was the victim of his attacks. Salem. It was always her. No other beast of destruction was quite as despicable as her. The Grimm were mindless in their violent tendencies. The hybrids were victims, unable to control their nature. But Salem? Salem was the worst monster of them all. She had knowingly and willingly ruined lives. Yang's life. Blake's life. Weiss' life.

Sweet, innocent Ruby's life.

The last thought made him lose control, his wild swing striking the stone wall and rending a chunk of concrete from it. The blow did nothing to damage nor dull Crocea Mors. It was a fine blade, forged in a time before the strange and complex weapons of contemporary huntsmen. It was a different breed. A sword that relied on nothing but the strength and sharpness of its edge, rather than fancy transformations or ranged capabilities. It could probably slice through steel without losing its potency.

Had Jaune not been wearing gloves he would have seen his knuckles turned white from gripping the handle so tightly. His breath came out in ragged pants. His fury threatened to overwhelm his waking mind. As much as he hated this place, he could not blame the academy's inhabitants for it. He couldn't even blame the faculty. No, his hatred was reserved for the creature known as Salem. He wanted nothing more than to drive his sword through her stomach and watch her slowly bleed out in front of him.

"I like it."

Jaune whirled around at the sudden sound of a voice behind him. Striding across the room, unbeknownst to him until the moment she had spoken, was Yang. She wore a satisfied grin on her face as her crimson eyes peered at him with anticipation.

"Yang," Jaune said, unknowingly taking a step back from her. "How long have you been here?"

"Long enough to see you get mad," she smirked, her tongue running across her lips with excitement. "I was hoping that you might lose control, but then you stopped. I'm so disappointed in you, Jaune."

He saw how the fingers of her monstrous arm squeezed and flexed. Her excitement was not restricted to just her eager smile. He had a bad feeling about this.

"Sorry," he said, not quite knowing what he was apologizing for. As she neared him he found himself taking more steps backwards. Until he had finally hit the very wall he had just struck. "Anything I can do to, uh, make up for it?"

Yang's arm moved faster than should have been physically possible for something its size. Her palm slammed up against the wall mere inches away from his head, effectively trapping Jaune in front of the girl's body. "I can think of something," she offered suggestively.

Jaune's mind went back to the locker room a few days ago. When he had seen Yang in her human form. When he had seen all of her human form. She had spoken suggestively then too. About mates, and mates. As if there was a difference between them which he was unfamiliar with.

"A-and what's that?" he asked nervously.

White teeth flashed with her eager grin. "Fight me."

He blinked. "What?"

"Fight me," she repeated, somehow more enthusiastic this time. "You're always so restrained. So comfortable in your human form that you might as well be one yourself. So in control." She leaned in, bringing her lips next to his ear. "I want you to lose control," she whispered.

Her breath tickled his skin, sending shivers down his spine. If this had been any other girl in any other situation, it would have oozed with sexual tension. The fact that he had seen her naked body, and that she had suggested casual intimacy with him did not help matters. There was a part of him that wanted nothing more than to have her transform back into her utterly gorgeous human form and take her up on her offer. To take her right here and now. Yet he couldn't. He wasn't the kind of guy to have a casual, meaningless physical relationship. Even if he was, he wasn't sure that she wouldn't crack his pelvis in the process, even with his Aura.

Trapped between Yang's body and her arm, Jaune had nowhere to retreat to. All he could do was shrink under the intimidating girl's gaze. "You know I can't do that..."

Those eager red eyes of hers quickly narrowed. "Why not?" she asked accusingly. Frustration laced her tone. "You think I'm too weak?"

Yang pushed herself away from the wall, and away from him, allowing Jaune some breathing room. He used it, and moved to get some distance between himself and the girl. "No! Of course not!" he argued. "You're probably the strongest hybrid I know!"

She stalked after him, her hands squeezed into fists. "Then what? You don't respect me? You think you're too big for me to take?"

Jaune continued to move back and away from her. Yang continued to pursue. "No! It's not that at all! It's just-"

"Come on, Jaune! I wanna see your Grimm form! I wanna see how big and strong the top student in the class is!"

What else could he say? What other excuse could he come up with? It wasn't that he didn't want to show her his Grimm form. It was simply that it didn't exist. What Yang wanted was impossible, and all Jaune could do was try to convince her of a good reason for why he could not transform.

Apparently she wasn't going to buy his excuses anymore. Not when she had him alone in the arena.

"Can we just talk about this?" he asked desperately. "Maybe we can go to the kitchen and I could make you some-"

He never got a chance to finish his offer before the large, meaty fist of Yang came down like a hammer. It took every ounce of speed and agility Jaune possessed to be able to roll out of the way of the attack. He was back on his feet in an instant, knowing that a follow-up blow could come at any second.

"Yang!" he shouted. "What the heck?"

"You don't think I can handle how big you are?" she snarled. "You're afraid you'll hurt me? Split me in half? Is that it!"

Jaune winced. The poor girl had no idea what she was saying sounded like. It did nothing to help the mental imagery of her beautiful body that was already burned in his mind. "Yang, please stop it with that kind of talk!"

"No! Not until you give it to me! Give it to me hard! With everything you've got!"

He didn't have the time to protest before she swung at him once more. He was able to dodge the attack again, but this time it left a large fissure in the floor. Raw strength had shattered concrete. Jaune was certain it would do far worse to his body, even with his Aura.

The attacks continued, and each time Jaune was forced to evade, lest he be reduced to a bloody, meaty pulp. Each time he was only barely able to avoid being hit, and he honestly wasn't sure how much longer he could keep it up. One thing was for certain, however. He wouldn't be able to win in the long run if he played Yang's game. And violence was her game.

Yang's fist struck like a lightning bolt, and Jaune ducked underneath it just in time before it punched a hole in the wall behind him. He stumbled away again, desperate to put space in between them. "Yang, wait!"

"Why! I can go at it with you all night if I have to! I'll outlast you any night!"

Somehow, Jaune didn't doubt that. In both her intended meaning, and the one that he had in mind.

Still, she hadn't landed a single hit on him yet. Maybe he could use that, and her preconceived notions of him, to his advantage. "Because it's pointless," he bluffed.

Yang gritted her teeth and took a purposeful step forward.

"Yeah," he continued, trying to convince himself as much as he was her. "Look at you. You haven't hit me once, and I'm still in my human form. Do you really think you could beat me if I transformed?"

The blonde was practically seething at his insulting words. "You haven't hit me either," she countered.

True. But then again he wasn't trying to. However, Jaune knew that he probably couldn't even if he wanted to. And that was the issue. That was why he had to keep on pretending like he was too strong to go on the offensive.

"I don't need to. You're the one who wants this fight, not me."

For long seconds the pair stood there silently staring at each other. Jaune hoped that Yang would not call his bluff. He hoped against hope that she would believe that he was indeed too strong and too fast for her, and that she would just give up and walk away.

Sadly, Yang was not that kind of girl.

The blonde girl stood up straighter. Out of her fighting stance. "I get it," she said knowingly. "There's no incentive for you."

Her new posture made Jaune relax just a little bit. At least he didn't seem in imminent danger of being attacked. His head tilted curiously. "What?"

"Yeah. This is all for me," she explained. "I want to fight you to see how strong you are. To show you that I'm just as strong, if not stronger. But what do you get out of it? Nothing."

What she said was in fact true. Even if Jaune could transform into a massive Leviathan hybrid, why would he? As Yang said, he got nothing out of this fight. It was all purely for her ego.

"So does that mean it's over?" he asked hopefully.

The grin which had disappeared during their fight reemerged. "Nope. Just means we're gonna change the rules."

He didn't like the sound of that. He didn't like the mischievous look on her face. "What does that mean?"

"It means..." she said as her body began to change. Snow-white skin and black veins turned to a healthy tan. Pale, straw-color blonde hair became brighter and more vibrant. Almost golden in shade. Glowing crimson orbs turned to a calm and gentle lilac. But most importantly, her massive Grimm arm shrunk and morphed into a perfectly normal human arm. "You and me are about to have some real fun."

Jaune swallowed hard. The fact that she had become less scary looking and less dangerous somehow only made him more apprehensive. Yang obviously had a plan in mind. One that involved her human form. Her stunning, beautiful human form.

"I remember how you looked at me in the shower," she said as she sauntered up to him.

"Y-you do?" he asked nervously. It wasn't like it was his fault there had been a gorgeous naked girl standing in front of him. He hadn't meant to stare!

She nodded. "Mmhmm. And here I thought lust was more Blake's thing. But the way your eyes were burning into me... the way they couldn't get enough of me... that was hot."

Jaune was once more put on the defensive as he backed away from Yang's sultry steps. "Yeah, I really shouldn't have been staring. I'm sorry."

A soft, sweet giggle slipped through her lips. "Don't be. Because now I know your weakness. Your incentive."

"My incentive?"

"You need a reason to fight me," she said. "I'm gonna give you one. You liked what you saw, so you and me are gonna do some good old fashioned strip sparring."

Jaune blinked. Had he heard her right? And since when was anything of that nature old fashioned? "Strip sparring?" he questioned.

She nodded again. "Yup. One knockdown equals one piece of clothing. No weapons. No Grimm appendages. Just you, me, and our fists. So how does that sound?"

Truthfully? If he could actually fight, it sounded like the greatest thing ever. Land enough hits on Yang and she'd lose her clothes? It looked like she only wore maybe three pieces of clothing at all. The long stocking on her right leg. A pair of criminally short shorts. And the top that was somehow able to cover up her ample chest, but left little else to the imagination.

He on the other hand wore a complete assortment of human clothes. It would take about ten hits to render him fully nude. Nude, and expected to show her his Grimm form.

"If you win, then you hit the jackpot, big guy," she continued. "You get to see all of me again. I know you'd like that, wouldn't you?"

He wasn't about to lie and say he wouldn't. Instead he chose to dodge the question just as he had dodged everything she had thrown at him so far. "And if you win?"

"If I win I get to see more than just your junk. If I win you're gonna bare all of yourself for me. Grimm form included."

So that was once again her end game. She really was desperate to see his non-existent Grimm form. To see how strong her truly was. Yang was in for a major disappointment should she ever learn the truth.

"You're actually giving me a choice in this?" he asked.

She smiled again. "Nope."

A moment later she was back on the offensive. Only this time with her human fists.

When Jaune had told her that he wanted to get some private training done in the arena, Ruby had been more than happy to oblige. After all, it wasn't like they were connected at the hip or anything! They were friends. Just friends. Nothing more. Not mates. Certainly not mates. Nope. Just roomies and besties. The very best besties that besties could possibly be.

The arrangement also gave her time to do some training of her own. Training that she would have liked to keep private as well. Ruby liked to work on her human form when no one else was around. When no one was there to judge her. No one could laugh at her for not being able to rid herself of those pesky horns. But someday she would! And when she did, she would be perfect. Just as perfect as Jaune. Certainly more perfect than Weiss.

But all of that had been over an hour ago! So where was he!

The redheaded hybrid stalked the halls as she made her way toward the academy's arena. She wondered if he was taking on a whole pack of Beowolves single-handedly. Or Ursai. Or maybe even a fully-grown Death Stalker, if she dare be so bold. After all, he had tamed one of the giant beasts out on his excursion in the Grimmlands. To him such an ordeal must have been more for fun rather than a desperate bid for survival. It was so cool. Ruby hoped to be as strong as he was one day.

She finally reached the arena, where a soft tingle in the back of her mind beckoned her to enter. Something was going on inside, and it drew her to it like a moth to a flame. Wasting little time, Ruby shoved the doors open, and took in the sights and sounds before her.

They were not at all what she had expected to find.

"Get back here!" her sister shouted, chasing after Jaune in her human form.

Jaune was in his human form as usual. More or less.

Why was he wearing nothing but his underwear?

Scattered clothes lay strewn around the arena. Boots. Socks. Pants. A hoodie. Not in a neat pile as she might have expected, but thrown haphazardly around as if done in a hurry.

Ruby blinked, watching in rapt fascination as Yang continued to chase after the boy. The blonde girl swung wildly with her fists, and each time Jaune was only barely able to duck and weave to avoid being hit. Had Yang taken Professor Rainart's earlier words to heart? Was she really trying to rely less on her Grimm arm to win fights?

That still didn't explain why Jaune was almost naked.

It didn't explain why Ruby's body suddenly felt a lot warmer than it had only seconds before.

More fists were thrown. More fists were dodged. Why wasn't Jaune fighting back? Was he afraid of hurting her or something? It was the only explanation she could come up with as to why he wasn't actively trying to hit her sister.

Yang swung again, this Jaune once more stepped back to avoid the blow. Only this time his feet got tangled up underneath him, and Jaune fell to his backside.

The blonde girl took a step back, and she pumped her fist into the air excitedly. "That counts!" she cheered. "And that means you gotta lose the undies!"

Lose his what now? Oh no.

Ruby took purposeful strides into the arena. There was no way, and she meant no way, that she was about to let her sister see Jaune in a state of complete undress. That right was reserved strictly for roommates only!

If Jaune ever decided to let her see such a thing, that was.

"Hey!" Ruby shouted as she neared the duo. "What's going on here?"

Yang swung around to look at her, a wide grin plastered on her face. "Oh hey, Ruby! Jaune and me were just doing a little strip sparring."

Strip sparring? "What does that even mean?"

"Means if you get knocked off your feet, you lose a piece of clothing. And as you can see, Jaune's lacking in that department."

Ruby shifted her focus to regard Jaune. Jaune's mostly nude body. Rippling with muscles in his arms and torso. Swinging that big sword of his around must have done wonders to build the muscle mass on his big, tall, strong, male form...

"So now I get to see everything," Yang said excitedly. "Well, not that I haven't seen everything before, but I get to see his Grimm form."

"You know I still never agreed to that..." he protested.

"Oh yeah? Well then why were you playing along?"

"Maybe because you said if I didn't then you'd forcibly tear my clothes off piece by piece?"

Ruby's gaze shifted between the two blondes each time they spoke. She came to a single and undeniable conclusion. This was utterly unacceptable!

"Hands off!" Ruby squeaked as she stepped in between her sister and friend. "Jaune, get your clothes and go back to our room!"

The boy didn't need to be told twice, and quickly ran off to collect his belongings. Ruby meanwhile stood in front of her older sister, peering up at the taller girl's face.

"It's not smart to stand between me and what I want, little sister," Yang said smugly.

Ruby did not flinch as those lilac eyes burned into her. "Oh yeah? Well, it's not smart to try anything weird with my roommate!"

"Roommate? Or roommate?"

The implication made Ruby feel uncomfortable. However, if it meant protecting Jaune from her sister's aggression, it might just be worth it to lie. She could always explain it to Jaune later.

"What if it was the second one?" she asked softly. Saying the words aloud gave her more confidence as she continued. "What if he was my mate? Would you back off if I told you to?"

For long seconds Yang stared down at her. Then she did something Ruby had not expected. The older girl's hand came up, and pat her on top of her head.

"Way to go, sis," she said warmly. Genuinely. "Claimed the strongest guy in the school. I knew you had it in you."

Ruby blushed at those words. As much of a lie as it was, she would gladly tell it if it meant keeping Yang away from Jaune. If it prevented future incidents like this from happening.

"Y-yeah," she agreed. She couldn't just leave it at this. She couldn't let there be any doubt in Yang's mind that Jaune was hers. "We sleep in the same bed. We share our scents. He's mine."

It felt awkward making such a false claim. Yet at the same time, much of what she said was true.

"And what about Weiss?"

Ruby's eyes narrowed. "What about Weiss?"

"Oh nothing," her elder sister said amusedly. "I guess you'll cross that bridge when you get there."

Ruby didn't know anything about bridges, but she knew that Weiss and Jaune were also close. Almost as close as he was with herself.

"Yes, well," she said nervously as she looked back over to Jaune, who by now was wearing his clothes again. "If you'll excuse me, Jaune and me have to go and do roommates stuff together. Roommate stuff together!" she added for extra emphasis.

Ruby turned in a huff, not waiting for Yang's response. As she neared Jaune she latched onto his arm, dragging him behind her as she led him back to their dorm.

Jaune stepped out of the shower feeling clean and refreshed. His training and subsequent spar with Yang had left him sweaty and exhausted. The cleansing soap and warm water washing over his body had felt like utter bliss. It was the little things in life like this that kept him going here at Grimm Academy.

After dressing himself he stepped back out into his and Ruby's room, ready to start preparing for bed. It would take a little while for his hair to fully dry, so he would still be up for a little while. He hoped it wouldn't be awkward. Ruby had found him and her sister in a less than innocent position. Not that it had been his fault in the first place, so he hoped that his roommate would understand.

The girl in question was sitting on the bottom bunk of their bed. It was unusual, since she was usually perched on her top mattress whenever they were in here together. Her hands were clenched together atop her lap. Red eyes stared down between her legs at the floor. She looked apprehensive for some reason. He hoped that he wasn't the cause of it.

"Ruby?" he asked as he took a seat next to her. "Are you okay?"

Her head rose, and a pair of glowing crimson orbs regarded him. He would never get used to that eerie stare. "Can I ask you something?"

Her tone indicated concern. Uneasiness. Jaune nodded, hoping that whatever she asked, that he would be able to provide an answer that would put her mind at rest. "Yeah. Of course."

"Your, um, spar with Yang earlier," she said. "Did she really beat you that badly?"

Jaune let a breath out. From an outside perspective, and by the rules of the 'match', it did indeed look bad. If they were playing a game of strip sparring, the fact that he had lost most of his clothing did tell the story of him getting thrashed pretty badly.

What Ruby didn't know was that Yang had never even hit him. All of the knockdowns he suffered were from his own faulty footwork as he tried desperately to evade the hybrid's assault. Yet Yang had insisted that since she had caused him to lose his footing, that it still counted as a knockdown. The last thing he was going to do was argue with the creature who could literally tear him in half if she got angry. And as he had seen many times before, Yang had a tendency to get angry.

"No. I fell over a lot. That's all."

Ruby looked up hopefully at him. "Really?"

He nodded. "Yeah."

"So she never put her hands on you?"

An unusual way to phrase it. "Yup. Never touched me."

The smile which curled on her lips made Jaune feel warm inside too. "Good."

It was an odd thing to get happy about, but Ruby was nothing if not an odd girl. Or an odd hybrid. If such a thing wasn't already redundant. All hybrids were odd in his eyes. Ruby, however, was the oddest of all. Not because of any weird Grimm appendage or personality quirk. But because she was so unusually human with her emotions. For some reason, more than any of the other students he had met, Ruby seemed to just be a normal human girl who merely wore the same skin as the other hybrids. If you took away her odd color palette, horns and Grimm arm, she could easily pass as just another human girl.

Jaune felt a tiny nudge to his arm. Ruby had poked him with her elbow. "Yeah?"

"Hey, Jaune. Do you remember when you and Weiss had to kiss in Professor Fall's class?"

Remember it? His lip certainly did. The girl had briefly drawn blood before his Aura was able to heal the wound. "Uh... yeah."

"What did she do wrong?"

She bit him. But he was certain that explanation wouldn't be good enough for a girl who probably didn't understand what kissing was in the first place. Or its meaning. "Why?"

Ruby shuffled nervously beside him. "I dunno. Just so I won't make the same mistake?"

"Is there someone you plan on kissing?"

"No!" she said hurriedly. "It's for when we infiltrate the human kingdoms. I have to be a good kisser. Or else people might think I'm weird."

Jaune chuckled softly. "Trust me, Ruby. That ship has sailed."

She blinked, her head tilting slightly. "There's a ship? Where?"

He laughed more. She was so innocent. Adorably so. "Nothing," he said amusedly, before moving on to answer her question. "What Weiss did wrong was that she bit me. That simple. You're not supposed to do that."

"Oh. What should she have done?"

Jaune himself was no expert in kissing. It wasn't like he had ever had a girlfriend before. Then again, to someone even less experienced like Ruby, it wasn't as if he could say the wrong thing. She would believe anything he told her.

Still, it wasn't a topic he really wished to broach. "Maybe this is something better left to Professor Fall's class."

"Why? You're good at it," she insisted. "So... can you teach me?"

A shiver ran down Jaune's spine. "You want me to teach you how to... kiss?"

Ruby nodded eagerly. "Well, yeah! If that's okay with you. It'll help me be more human, right?"

Any response he had been preparing to say died in his throat. Instead, he merely echoed two of her own words. "More human..."

"Yeah. Is that weird?"

Everything about this situation was weird. And yet somehow it wasn't even a blip on the radar in comparison to everything else Jaune had experienced at this school. Kissing a pretty girl, even a hybrid like Ruby, was normal and tame compared to battling monsters, eating raw meat, and waking up in the tentacles of a horny shadow creature.

If doing this with Ruby would help her feel more human, if it could maybe help her get in touch with her buried humanity... if it would maybe help her remember those kinds of feelings and emotions...

"You really want me to teach you?" he asked nervously.

She nodded again. "Yeah."

"Even if it needs a, uh, practical demonstration?"

"Yeah," she said softly. Gently. "I wanna know..."

Jaune swallowed. "O-okay. Um... well you're already sitting next to me. So that's a good start!"

His heart was thumping inside his chest. A girl, even if she was a hybrid, wanted to kiss him. Here. Alone. In their room. Their room. On the bed they shared. The girl he shared a room with wanted to kiss him on their bed. This should have been the greatest moment of his life.

It was a shame that the moment was about trying to remind Ruby of her humanity, rather than any genuine romance between them.

She was pretty though. She had beautiful, shining silver eyes in her human form. Exotic red-black hair. Pale skin. And somehow, even in her Grimm form, she retained her attractiveness. Even with the horns, the white skin, and the black veins, Ruby was still undeniably pretty. The fact that her personality still shone even in her Grimm form made her all the more attractive...

"Now what...?" she asked.

Her face had come closer to his. His hands were shaking softly. She was so close. He was so close. They were so close to...

"Now, um, tilt your head slightly to the right..." he directed her.

She complied. Her tongue came out to wet her lips. He had no idea if she knew what she was doing, if it had been pure instinct. But the sight of her moist lips only inches away from his own made his breath hitch.

"Close your eyes..."

Ruby did just that. She was primed and ready to go. All he had to do was lean in...

Just as he was about to make contact, Ruby closed the last inch to him. Her lips pressed against his own, taking him by surprise.

For someone who had no idea what she was doing, Ruby was a natural. She didn't bite him like Weiss had. It wasn't a stiff, awkward peck like he might have expected. There was movement in her lips. There was pressure. And dare he say, even passion.

He felt her arm slip around her waist, and his mind was immediately put at ease. This was fine. More than fine, in fact. All of his earlier apprehension was drained from his body entirely.

Until he heard her moan softly inside of his mouth.

Broken from his stupor, Jaune pulled back with wide eyes. With breathless gasps.

"What's wrong?" she asked worriedly. "Did I do something wrong?"

No. She had done absolutely nothing wrong. The fact that he had lost his breath, and himself in the moment, was proof of that.

"No, you did great, Ruby," he said truthfully. "Really great..."

He had just made out with a girl for the first time in his life. He also knew that if he didn't nip this in the bud right now, that he would want to do so much more than that. Knowing what he knew about Ruby and her... lack of modesty, she would likely be willing to take him up on it too.

His words made Ruby beam with delight. "Really? Am I doing a good job acting human?"

More than she knew. He nodded, a bittersweet smile on his face. "Yeah. You're a great human, Ruby."

He didn't think she could get any happier. He didn't think she could look any prettier than she did right now. But the way she softly brushed the hair out of her face and hooked it around her ear as she smiled filled Jaune's stomach with butterflies. This girl, this monster girl, was his emotional rock in a cruel and unusual world. His closest and truest ally in a place filled with humans and monsters alike that would kill him in the blink of an eye should they ever discover his true nature.

He was falling for this hybrid.

Author's Note: I do love me some Lancaster fluff. Hopefully you do too!

As always, my sincerest thanks go out to Burkion and Lightningstrxu for their invaluable contributions to this fic.

I want to also thank all the readers for your continued support. This will soon overtake all of my other stories as the most popular. Couldn't have done it without all of you, who continue to inspire me to do my very best.

And of course, I hope you all enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it.