Author's Notes: Something that I forgot to mention in the last chapter is that the members of Tock's "Crew," are taken from the book Peter Pan, specifically they are names of certain members of Hook's Crew.
Jaune was scared no, he was beyond merely scared! He was terrified, mortified and possibly even horrified by the situation he now found himself in. Now don't misunderstand the poor lad, waking up in bed with a naked Huntress was not a situation that he or most people would find terrible and in fact he would freely admit that such a situation was something that he had fantasized about in the past and it understandably continued into the present even becoming more frequent since he was now surround by Huntresses. However he was well aware that fantasy and reality were two very different things and his inability to remember just how he got into this situation was making his imagination kick into overdrive as it ran through all myriad explanation of how he got here and of all ways that things could play when she finally awakes, Maybe I'll get lucky and she'll be cool with the whole thing… but what if she's not? What if she's upset, assumes the worst and decides to break me half? Some people would say that he was being ridiculous and he would call those people fools in response, while pointing to the large scythe that his best friend Ruby used as a weapon and dare them to try and lift it. Huntsmen were very strong and whoever this Huntress was, she was much stronger than Ruby, But maybe I can slip away before she wakes up.
Then she yawned as her eyes began to twitch.
Of course she's waking up! Of all the moments she could have woken up, of course it would happen while I was trapped in the most compromising position possible! And make it worse the universe doesn't even have the decency to let me remember last night! Okay Jaune, that enough bitching, its time to come up with a plan... He drew complete blank. Oh god! What Am I supposed to do in this situation? Do I help wake her up? Make Breakfast? Flirt? Think Jaune what would Saphron Do? Figure it out before she wakes up! Maybe I can left her arm off of me and slip out! He carefully lifted his hand, softly grabbed her arm and pulled only to discover that even asleep she was more than strong enough to hold him down, I'll have to use both arms... Moving slowly so not to disturb her he lifted his other arm and saw a fleshy stump where his prosthetic should have been, Shit. Looking around he soon found that not only was arm was no longer attached to him it was also nowhere in sight, Guess its time for plan B. The next thing she attempted was to just wiggle himself free, he only succeed in looking very silly. His final brilliant gambit never got a chance to shine because that this point the woman began shifting around in the bed as the time of her awakening drew near. In response the poor boy's mind was racing trying to come up with a million different answers at once with each possible solution becoming more elaborate and doomed to fail than the plan that came before it and then... it was too late.
She woke up, looked at him dead straight in the eyes and for a nerve wracking moment she just stared at him as though she was trying to remember something. Then to his relief and confusion she gave him a smile so friendly and flirtatious that he didn't even notice her razor sharp teeth that looked like they belonged in the jaw of some shark, "Well, tap o' th' mornin' tae ye Captain. Pity ah wis drunk, ah wid hae loved tae remember holding ye in mah arms." She then pulled him even closer, gave him a quick peck on the cheek before letting him go and rising from the bed. Naked, sunlight glistening off of her toned athletic body.
He was understandably stunned and in a state of complete disbelief, I'm dreaming that what's happening this is just a wet dream and I'll wake up soon... hopefully not too soon, he pinched himself and looked at her again and found to his shock and pleasure that she was still there, I must really be in deep sleep… maybe I should relax and just enjoy this dream. Perhaps if he wasn't in a state of utter denial he might have had the common sense to try and keep his arousal and embarrassment to himself but he didn't and now he was furiously blushing while pitching a tent in the blankets however, to be fair to the young wannabe pirate it probably wouldn't have mattered even if he had tried to hide it. This was because in one part due to the kiss which while being very chaste was still very encouraging to the boy and then there was the other part, Tock was an active huntsman, which meant that she had a body that was toned to perfection, a body that still shone like a diamond despite her scales and numerous scars, a body that demanded and received his full and undivided attention.
She quickly noticed the lucky boy staring right at her with a look of utter disbelief, she soon saw that his face had turned bright red while his pistol was primed and ready to go… and she honestly found it adorable, "Sae, ye lik' whit ye see?" she asked teasingly while striking a little pose, normally she wasn't one to tease but the thought of his many possible and undoubtedly humorous responses were, making it very difficult not to burst into laughter out of sheer anticipation and under her breath she whispered, "Tis nae often ah git tae tease someone lik' this, though it's a bit mean. Ah will hae mah fun now 'n' mak' it up tae him efter."
"Y… yes," that was all he was able to stammer out, the reality of the situation slowly dawning on him.
Most people would have laughed this off but most people weren't Bounty Hunters or well-practiced in the art of reading people however, Tock was both and she could tell that the cute little pirate was still in the process of waking up which meant that at this moment the boy wouldn't or rather shouldn't be able to lie even if his life was dependent on it, By th' brothers this guy is completely smitten wi' me,! a'richt, calm doon Tock 'n' mind that yer grandmother didnae raise ye tae be easy, ye hae tae mak' th' laddie wirk a little. "Awww, that's real sweet o' ye. But, ye dinnae hae tae worry about hurting my feelin's. A'm a big girl efter a," If a'm recalling right he's a student ower at Beacon. That's gonnae be a connection worth keeping considering whit happened. Hell, he might even be able tae tell me a thing or two about th' particulars nae tae mention that hero types lik' him are handy in a pinch.
"NO! I meant what I said!" He surprised her, and himself, with the sudden outburst and then he kept talking, "Yes I'll admit you're a bit intimidating with your teeth, Mohawk and scales but they only make you look cool! Like the kind of unique sexy badass that you only find in the really good stories! And I'm just trying to wrap my head around the fact I woke next to someone like you and I'm upset that I can't remember how it happened because I still can't believe that any of this happened and now I terrified th at I'm ging to fuck this up because I would love to get to know someone like you!" he was now fully awake and now was trying to catch his breath, "Oh, Oh god… did I really just say all that?" The reality of the situation was now hitting him like a stampeding Goliath.
His face turned deathly pale as Tock just silently stood there stunned by his outburst, then she smiled, walked over to him, sat on the bed as she then placed both hands on his shoulders and pulled him in close before she whispered into his ears, "Well then love, th' name is Tock 'n' ah will be spending some time in Vale maybe we kin git to… know each other a' over again, soon. Real Soon." She then let go of Jaune and began to walk away grabbing her stuff but making sure to sway her hips as she did so. Oh, this is perfect! Ah, will be able tae wrap this cutie around mah finger. He'll be at mah beck 'n' call! Hell even if he doesn't know anythin' worthwhile he'll aye be a fin little… distraction. 'N' when a've hud mah fun… Tock then turned around to look back at Jaune who was still incredibly flustered and oh so very tasty looking, Well, ah suppose thir's no reason how come ex's cannae be mates. She spun around to give and a little wink when she saw it, a golden glimmer right on his ring finger. At first, she thought she had just imagined it, but then he moved his hand to his face and pinched himself on the cheek and the sunlight began to reflect off of the golden band that was a ring but not just any kind of ring. She could see it now as clear as day, it was a wedding ring and it pissed her off.
Suddenly he felt cold but it wasn't just cold, rather he felt like the entire room suddenly froze over as though some force had sucked all the warmth right out of it and on top of that every fiber of his being began screaming at him to run for his life. The reason for both these things soon became all to apparent when he saw that Tock was glaring right at him with a look in her eyes that screamed bloody murder and she wasn't just looking, she was now walking closer to him with a snarl that showed off all her intimidating teeth that he was finally noticing for the first time. Before he could do anything she closed the distance and grabbed his hand pulling it up to his eyes where he now saw the reason for her ire.
"Sae, 'ere ah thought ye wur a cute wee lamb whin ya wur a wolf th' whole time! Cheating oan yer missus, lik' that! How cuid ye?"
He realized that he needed to say something to try and calm her down before this escalated any further, "What No! I'm not married! Hell, I don't even have a girlfriend! And I can't believe I just said that and I'm sorry but it's true what I'm telling you! I don't have a girlfriend or a wife! Hell, I don't even know anyone who might be interested in me-" Needless to say, his long string of denials only made her angrier.
"Oh, sae ye just wear a bloody wedding band fur kicks 'n' giggles, eh? How stupid dae ye think ah am!?"
This is it. This is where I die. All because of some stupid ring that somehow made it to my finger. There was so much that I wanted to do like graduate, kick a villain's ass and get a real girlfriend, sail a pirate ship, impress everyone around me… this sucks. Just when Jaune had all but accepted his death, he saw it. His salvation in the form of a golden band around Tock's ring finger that looked just like the one on his finger, "You're wearing a ring too!"
She let go of his hand and raised her hand into the light and stared at the band on her finger, A wedding band!? 'n' one that looks just lik' his, does mean that a'm his missus? After a few silent seconds she lowered her hand and turned back to face the boy with a scowl still on her face and just stared at him, staring deep into he scared eyes looking for any sign of deception but there was nothing, He is either th' best liar a've ever seen in mah life or he is telling me th' truth… she then finally relented and backed away from him, "Put oan your pants 'n' help me fin' th' certificate."
"The what?" asked an understandably confused and still admittedly aroused and scared Jaune, How is it possible to be both horrified and aroused at the same time and by the same thing!? What would you even call this?
"Th' marriage certificate ye Dolt! Every couple in Vale got one 'n' we're na exception!"
"And if we don't find it?"
"Considering mah luck lately, that wilnae be an issue."
With that Jaune and Tock began searching through the hotel room and were prepared to tear the hotel room apart to find it. Fortunately for the hotel owner, it wasn't long before he found the Marriage Certificate laying right on the kitchen counter in plain sight for all to see, unfortunately for the blond amputee, his prosthetic hook arm was still unaccounted for and it looked like it would remain lost, Well, at least I still have the spare back in my dorm. Steeling himself he called Tock over and together the two began to look over the Certificate.
"In the presence of Lie Ren and Nora Valkyrie as witnesses, by the hand of Bishop Dr. Gris by the Authority of the Brothers and the council of Vale, these two shall henceforth be united in Holy Matrimony as husband and wife. Therefore they shall now and henceforth be known as Jaune Arc & Tock Arc till death do them part or till the alcohol wears off and this marriage is annulled, whichever comes first."
"Tock… I… am," Jaune didn't know what to say to her, he didn't even know how he felt about the whole thing and it wasn't too hard for him to imagine that she felt just as confused as he did now, however, he knew what he had to do even if he had no idea how to do it. "Tock, I'm… I promise you, I'll make this right. I don't know how but I will make it right by you!"
"Heh, heh. Ha, HA, Ha, HA, HA, HA HA HA HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" she was laughing and laughing hard.
Jaune had no idea how to react, frankly he was bewildered by her laughter but at the same time it wasn't the worst thing that could happen since she didn't seem to be angry with him anymore and in fact was using his shoulder to keep herself from literally falling over in laughter. Seeing nothing better to do he decided to awkwardly laugh along with her, "Heh heh heh…," What is even happening here?
"Oh, this is hilarious! This is just Perfect!" Tock finally said as she started to calm down a little.
"Perfect!?" Jaune asked, looking at her in complete disbelief, "You may be fine with this but what about me? I woke up in a hotel room that I don't remember going to and waking up married to you! A woman whose name I would have not even known if you hadn't told me earlier! This is a big deal so how are you so okay with this? I'm seriously asking because I'm confused and a little scared right now!"
"Well, ye see hon. Ah wis mad at ye earlier cause ah thought ye hud binn cheating oan yer girl 'n' ah wasn't going tae be yers or a'body's side chick. As fur this whole marriage thing, it ain't a big deal." Tock said with a dismissive and casual attitude that started to grind Jaune's gears but she kept going. "Look, we kin just git th' marriage annulled whenever th' courts reopen. Now a dinnae know about ye bit ah will be staying in Vale fur a bit, sae ah will be thare whin ye'r ready tae end it."
He was surprised but had to admit to himself that Tock was completely right, there was absolutely no reason why they just couldn't get an annulment. It shockingly really was that easy! Honestly, we're both legal adults who married while under the influence, why wouldn't it be easy to undo it? Hell the marriage certificate even brought up the possibility of an annulment!"While I'm a student at Beacon so yeah, I won't be going anywhere either," This feels a little anticlimactic but it is undoubtedly better this way.
"Well ye see, thir's no problem!" she was rather pleased, A student at Beacon? Weel, he kin nae be a proper Huntsman, bit ah ain't gonnae say no tae an insider in th' Academies. Hell, ah might just scoop him up whin he graduates, assuming he isnae a dumbass or an asshole.
Jaune, however, suddenly remembered his promise to Ren and the settlement that Team JNPR would have been assisting had the Breach not happened. Shit, that mission isn't going to go away and given the negativity it won't be delayed for very long, I just hope she understands, and so Jaune with just a little bit of nervousness turned to tell her. "I'm not trying to come up with any excuses but you should probably know that there is a mission outside of the walls that my team and I will probably be sent to do and I don't know when we'll leave or when we'll come back."
"That's no problem, in fact, just gimme yer number then we kin just keep each other updated if anythin' comes up, "Tock suggested and Jaune seeing the reasoning behind it agreed. Afterward there were no other surprises as they gathered their things and quickly checked out of the hotel. Upon stepping outside Jaune was surprised but relieved to find that he recognized the neighborhood that he was in and on top of that he still had plenty of time to catch the Bullhead back to Beacon.
"Oh thank god! I thought I was going to be in some real trouble, well I'm still in trouble but it could have been far worse and we never found my missing arm but that's fine," he then turned to look at Tock who had been watching him and trying not to giggle at his reactions and asked her, "Do you need any help, finding your way?"
She chuckled and in a teasing voice answered "Ye, dinnae hae worry about me darlin', ah kin fin' mah wey back just fine. Bit ye shuid be heading back tae yer friends." However before they went their separate ways Tock once again grabbed Jaune and pulled him in close to whisper in his ear, "Dinnae forget love, thare no reason how come ex's cannae be… friendly wi' each other." She held him for a few seconds letting him feel her hot breath on his neck before letting him go and giving him one last smile before walking away. That laddie is wrapped around mah fingers.
It took quite a bit of time but Jaune was eventually able to tear his eyes away from Tock's ass and began to walk back towards the Bullheads. It was time for him to go home and he had a lot to think about.
Two seconds, that is how long it took Nora to tackle hug Jaune to the floor after he opened the door to JNPR's dorm room. "Oh My God! Jaune where have you Been!?" Nora was now hyper excitedly jumping up and down in the room all while still gripping tightly her team Leader, "We were afraid that you were kidnapped by Pirates! Well, I was afraid the others were like No Nora. 'Those guys were not Pirates, they just happened to be dressed like pirates,' but I knew that they were wrong!"
Then as suddenly as she grabbed him, Nora let him go free from her grip and gravity eagerly reestablished its dominance causing the blond wannabe pirate to fall to the floor with all the grace of a wet noodle, fortunately for him, Ren and Pyrrha were there to help him back up. However, while he was grateful for the two for the assistance he was also worried because he knew that this only meant that now he had nowhere to run when they did ask him about last night. Sure maybe he could lie but he was never good at that sort of thing and he knew that Ren and Nora would see through it automatically, Even If I was the worlds best liar it wouldn't have mattered, they were the witness at my wedding.
"Soooooo, Jaune. Where exactly were you last night?" Pyrrha was asking and she was not going to let go until she got an answer.
"Well um, you see, I was drinking." he said trying to delay long enough for a distraction to occur, Remember, the best lies have a sliver of truth and besides, it's not like this is a secret that will hurt anyone.
"We all drank. We meant what happened to you afterward." Ren was looking at Jaune strangely and so was Nora.
He looked back at his two teammates with confusion plainly visible on his face, "Guys, what's going on?" If anyone would know what happened last night it would be you two! Unless they also got so drunk that they don't remember anything that happened!
Nora quickly answered confirming his suspicions, "Well Jaune, we are trying to figure out where everyone was last night! I know that Ren and I were together but not together, together. But, I have no idea where we were together! And Pyrrha was missing as well!."
"Not to mention that Ruby came by earlier looking for us, she wanted us to meet her and the rest of her team at the cafeteria once we were ready. They have something they wanted to speak to us all about." Ren added.
Pyrrha raised her hand, "Actually there is one question I can answer. Coco found me last night and insisted on having me stay over in her dorm room for the night."
"Well, that's Boring!" Nora was visibly disappointed and even Ren seemed to be unimpressed.
"Sorry," Pyrrha apologized.
Ren turned to face Jaune once again, "So where were you?"
Jaune thought it over for a moment and decided since the first half-lie worked so well that he would tell another half-lie at least until he was ready to come clean, "I was too drunk to go back to Beacon so I stayed at a Motel Room."
"That was a good idea, Nora and I were also in a motel room, sadly our scrolls were broken so we really won't know what happened until they are fixed," Ren looked contemplative as though he was struggling to remember something and it was making Jaune just a little bit nervous. However he soon gave up apparently deciding that it along with everything else could wait till after breakfast and Jaune was all too happy to agree.
Beacon's Cafeteria was closed due to the Breach. There was nothing that could have prevented it as most of the staff left to go check on their families and homes instead of coming to work, naturally this meant that many students were forced to go looking for their breakfast somewhere else. For Team JNPR it was fortunate that the common kitchens were still open and stocked with ingredients so after whipping up something quick, they took their meal to the cafeteria where to no one's surprise they found a still tired but standing Team RWBY eating their own freshly cooked meal.
Blake Belladonna was the first to notice the approaching Team JNPR. "Hello, it's… fortunate that you are all here. If it's okay with you all I would like to speak to all of you while we eat."
It was at that moment that Team JNPR noticed the heavy atmosphere around their sister team, something was wrong. Something was very, very wrong, it was clear that RWBY wanted to say something but they just didn't know how to say it and for most of team JNPR, they didn't know how to ask. However, Pyrrha was thankfully able to gather up her courage and just ask the question that everyone was already thinking, "This is about the Breach isn't it?" she and the rest of her team could see the answer in RWBY's eyes, "You've learned something, something huge." Pyrrha was nervous, the entirety of Team JNPR was nervous but, they steeled themselves and sat down for breakfast.
Ruby was worried, but she and the rest of her team had already decided to come out and tell their friends what had happened and why, "They are all connected, the Breach, the White Fang, Roman, the Docks and even the Woman."
"What woman?" Nora asked.
That's right, they don't know about the woman who broke into CCT Tower during the dance. Ozpin asked me to keep it to myself, but I can see that it was a mistake. One that I won't ever make again! Ruby looked at team JNPR and said, "There is a lot that we need to talk about, something bad is going to happen, something worse than the Breach and we all need to get stronger."
Weiss then began to explain, "The dust Robberies were masterminded by Roman Torchwick but then Ruby interfered with one of the robberies which resulted in the men he was using being caught, he then somehow started to work with the White Fang."
Jaune was impressed by what he just heard and he was pretty sure that the rest of his team were impressed as well, "Ruby, you were able to stop Roman Torchwick single-handedly?"
She was a little embarrassed and shook her head, "Actually I stopped his henchmen, Roman chose to escape rather than waste time fighting me. But, the woman I mentioned earlier was there and she helped Roman escape and I'm sure that she was also at the CCT during the dance. I have no idea why she was there but I'm certain that it was something to do with everything that has already happened!"
Now it was Yang's turn, "The thing that you have to understand here is that the Breach wasn't supposed to happen, not yet anyway."
Pyrrha immediately cut in, "How do you know that?"
"The train only started because we showed up. Because we found them, we put them in a situation where they had no choice but to use the train and all the stolen dust earlier then they intended or not at all. Right in front of our very eyes they put their evil plan into motion and we failed to stop them," Yang was clenching her fists in frustration, memories of her defeat playing in her head.
"The woman, whoever she is broke into the CCT tower for a reason but, whatever that reason, it didn't come into play during the Breach. I believe that all of this was preparation for something bigger." Blake was resolute on this belief.
Jaune was suddenly hit with a realization that was crazy to think about but it all made sense and he hoped he was wrong, "The Vytal Festival, that was when it was supposed to happen, I mean... I don't know for sure but, what else could it be? This attack was clearly mean to incite panic and when better to do it than the festival celebrating safety and unity?"
"They are not going to stop just because the Breach was a failure, I… used to be a member of the White Fang." Blake didn't want to say it, but right now the situation didn't care about her wants. "I was fairly high ranking too and I also used to… be involved with Adam Taurus. He's the leader of the Vale Branch of the White Fang and he wasn't on the train but his Lieutenant was and even though the plan failed, Adam won't stop there. I know him far too well and he won't ever let it end like this."
Ruby was the one to wrap it up, "We need to get stronger, all of us. We cannot just hope that the authorities will be able to stop them because so far they haven't been able to even touch them. We need to be able to stop them ourselves if it comes down to it. They are going to attack again and just like Jaune suggested it will probably happen during the Festival. We need to be stronger by then if we want any chance of making a difference this time around."
Ozpin was sitting alone in his office partially relieved that the Breach was just that, a temporary Breach in the walls that were fixed before much harm had been done. But, it could have been worse and most importantly it should have never happened at all and the fact that it did was what was weighing heavily on his mind. The peace and stability that I have fought and planned so hard for was nearly destroyed with a single train and to make things worse I have no idea what Salem could be planning next. The door to his office opened up and an extremely sorry and displeased looking Glynda Goodwitch walked into his office. "Miss Goodwitch, is something the matter?" inquired Ozpin.
"I regret to inform you Sir that the Council of Vale has decided to investigate you for reasons of negligence and incompetence."
"Already? I knew that the Council would soon start pointing fingers but, this is just a little silly." Ozpin had to fight the urge to chuckle.
"Sadly Sir, you know as well as I do just how much they dislike you. The Breach only gave them the excuse to do what they have been wanting to do for years." Glynda sighed, "This couldn't possibly happen at a worse time."
"Well Glynda, perhaps we should consider acquiring some help."
"Do you have any ideas Ozpin?"
"I was thinking about contacting Maria Calavera to see if she has heard of any rumors and maybe help out with security at the festival."
"With all due respect Ozpin, Maria is a bit of a recluse and would be extremely difficult to find even on a good day."
"Ah, but you forget that Mr. Branwen is her biggest fan! On top of that, she was recently seen not too far away from Vale. If she doesn't want to come to Beacon then fine, if nothing else we will know that she is safe and we can inform her that her skills may soon be required."
"Well Sir, I suppose that this is an acceptable first step, but it will not help with the council. You have a lot that you need to be able to account for and there is much that we can't tell them, however we do know that they are going to insist that the Breach could have been avoided." Glynda was focused and her precise mind was already putting together an official explanation for the Breach.
Ozpin took a deep drink from his hot chocolate and when he was done he addressed her concerns, "Unfortunately Glynda they are right, looking back on it the Breach could have avoided entirely but, now we have been informed. Now we know for certain that Salem has or if we are lucky, had a plan. Either one doesn't matter, because we will be ready. Beacon will Stand."
Author's Notes: Oh, Ozpin. If only you knew just how in the dark you are.
Also, did anyone else find it weird that Team RWBY never told JNPR about what was going on? I know that the two teams aren't exactly soulmates but, I would think that Ruby would confide in Jaune.