Remnant Rumble

by Curbizzle

In Remnant's Vytal Pro-Wrestling Company, Jaune Arc, a down-on-his-luck underdog forms an electrifying partnership with the spirited Ruby Rose. Together, they'll grapple with personal demons, forge unbreakable bonds, and eventually step into the ring of a high-stakes tag-team tournament, where their resilience and friendship will be put the ultimate test.

12. Chapter 12

IT'S SEASON FINALE TIME! I can't wait to bring this to you guys, so I'll just keep this AN brief. Sorry it took a while, but I really wanted to make this one special for you guys, since you've been absolutely incredible readers. So without further ado...

Let's get it started!

Beta: Wolfy

Art: Gyanguirus

Chapter 12 - Contender

---

This was it.

Today was the day.

He leaned back, supporting himself on the cold steel of the lockers as he tried desperately to stave off the nerves. He was somewhat successful, minus the fact that his leg had been bouncing up and down for the better part of thirty minutes, and he couldn't get it to stop. Months in the making, buckets of sweat, and a new friend forged through desperation and a shared love for the sport later, and here he was, suiting up for his long-awaited return match.

He almost pinched himself, just to be one hundred percent sure he wasn't dreaming. Nope, he was completely lucid. It was important to check though, because these last few days had been like a dream. Getting the call from Ruby, her letting him know she was joining him tonight had been an incredible feeling. Like thousands of pounds had been lifted off his shoulders. Just thinking about it brought a smile to his face. Ruby really had come through, hadn't she? She had to be one of the bravest people he knew. Walking through the fire that was her own painful experiences just for the chance to save him, and more importantly give herself one more shot at rediscovering her love for the game.

It was a lot of pressure. The rest of the weekend was a blur. He'd called Glynda moments after Ruby's call, adamant that there was not a single second to lose. Her response had been well…lukewarm to say the least. He winced as he recalled their conversation.

/

"You're going with Ruby Rose?" Glynda asked, finally breaking the silence that had descended over the line."

"Yes ma'am," He replied handily, "I don't think there's anyone better for the job. You've got records on all of us, you've seen that I've spent a ton of time training with her. If it wasn't for Ruby, I don't think I'd have half the chance I do now to succeed."

"Well," Glynda began, her voice tentative, "I did say you could pick anyone on the roster for a partner, but I assure you Mr. Arc, there are better candidates out there. If you wished, we could've discussed this."

Jaune shook his head to no one in particular as he gripped his scroll tightly. "I've made my decision Ms. Goodwitch, just as you asked."

Glynda chuckled, the sound filled him with warmth despite the static that followed it, muttering something about stubbornness running in the family. "You did follow my instructions, yes," She began, her voice oddly cautious. He hadn't heard her speak that way before. "Just…be careful, would you?"

"Will do, Ms. Goodwitch, thanks again for everything. I'm going to make you proud. See you Monday."

"I have no doubt, Mr. Arc." Glynda replied back. "Best of luck with your match. I'll be watching."

/

Even now he wasn't sure why she'd been so apprehensive. It reminded him of when he'd first brought up the subject of Ruby to her all those nights ago in her office. Glynda hadn't been too fond of his newfound partner then either. But that didn't matter now. Heck, the only thing that mattered was that he was ready to get in that ring in a matter of minutes. He bent down to tie his boots, before exploding up off the bench, swinging his arms around in a few dynamic stretches.

It felt good to be back in his ring gear. Even if they were still pretty worse for wear.

I swear, the second my check comes in, I'll fix you guys up, he thought as he looked himself over in the mirror, trying to ignore the small, frayed threads that were poking out from his tights. His eyes lingered on the golden arc crest, but only for a moment. He stayed that way for a while, pacing back and forth up and down the empty locker room. It was a rare luxury, getting one all to himself. He had the fact that he was in the main event of the show to thank for that. What a feeling, he mused. Main eventing an episode of the VWC was a massive honor, and he'd be lying if he said he wasn't just as giddy as he was nervous. He was sure Ruby was thinking the same. She had the whole women's locker room to herself too.

He chuckled as he remembered how exactly he'd arrived. Glynda had made sure he was escorted to the back by security during one of the earlier matches. Due to the fact that this was his official return, things had to be kept as quiet as possible. The audience loved a surprise after all. He hadn't even been allowed to tell Ren and Nora the big news! Despite the fact that he badly wanted to. He scratched the back of his head, if he and Ruby won tonight, there was a possibility they'd face Ren and Nora in the tournament. He wasn't sure how he'd approach taking on two people he considered family. He pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind.

He really didn't need any more stress right now.

He threw on his black hoodie, drawing the hood up and pulling it closed as he swiftly pushed through the door as he started his way towards the women's locker room, trying to make sure nobody recognized him. Thankfully everyone was too engrossed in what they were doing to pay some random with a hoodie any mind. He finally arrived at his destination, quickly rapping his knuckles against the heavy door.

"J-Jaune?" Ruby's voice called from inside. "Is that you?"

"Yeah," Jaune called back. "You ready? We're on soon."

"Almost!" She replied, "Come on in."

Jaune turned the handle and stepped in. Ruby was sitting on one of the benches, her face pale, one of her hands clutching her stomach in what looked like discomfort. Thankfully, her nervous expression ran away from her face as she laid eyes on him, a cheerful grin splitting through the worry. "You look great! Going for the classic gold and white, huh? It looks awesome. I've never gotten to see you in your ring gear. Well, in person that is. I've seen plenty of your promos." She explained as her hands darted around wildly. "The crowd's going to be so excited to see you! I love returns! They're so awesome and I can't wait to see how loud the cheer is when they realize it's you and–"

"Good to see you too." He grinned as he dropped down onto the spot beside her. "You don't look too shabby yourself." She blushed, giggling as she looked away. Warmth bubbled up in his chest. This was the Ruby he knew. Excited, animated, and chatty to a fault when she had something on her mind she was passionate about.

"I've had this outfit ready to go for forever. Still fits great." she finished as she patted her midsection.

"Looks great too." He grinned. "And much nicer now considering last time I saw it you'd just bowled me over right outside of Goodwitch's office. Ruby let out an indignant squawk, her face a bright shade of red that matched the accents on her black gear.

"Hey, you had it coming!"

"I was just minding my own business." He exclaimed back. The two glared at each other before descending into one of their classic fits of laughter.

"I-I missed this. Laughing and joking like this." Ruby finally said, breaking the beat of silence that had taken over. "It felt like things got so heavy. I won't lie to you, Jaune. I'm nervous…about a lot of things right now."

"No worries." He replied. "And remember, if you want out, all you have to do is say so." Ruby's face conveyed so much gratitude he almost awww'd.

"Thank you, Jaune. For everything you said back at my place."

Jaune rubbed the back of his head and laughed. "It was all true. And besides, I wouldn't be thanking me yet, we've still got a whole match to win."

Ruby inclined her head, and Jaune nearly did a double take. The nervousness was gone, her eyes shined like stainless steel as she nodded up at him. "We're winning that match, Jaune. We're going to be in that tournament."

"That's the spirit. And as for the other thing we discussed. If we win, are you up to it?" he asked nervously.

Ruby gave him a determined nod. "I'll be ready. It's what I practiced all this time anyway."

"Then let's do it." he said as he stood up, offering a hand to her. "But for now, we should probably head to the gorilla. It's almost time."

"Alrighty." Ruby nodded back, letting him haul her up as she began to rock back and forth on her heels. "Remember, you and Yuma will start as the legal men. That means you two are fighting. You'll have to tag me in for me to take over, and don't forget, you can't hit the legal man when you aren't the one tagged in, unless–"

"Unless someone tries to pin you, then I can run in and hit them, breaking up the pin. I can also fight their tag partner so they don't break up your own pin attempt." Jaune recited back. Ruby had done well to drill the rules into him over the weekend.

"Perfect!" Ruby grinned.

"I'm driving you home tonight, right?" Jaune said, remembering that she'd mentioned she didn't have a ride home.

"If it's not too much trouble, yeah." Ruby replied, her muscles tense. "I was supposed to go to some sports bar with Weiss and some of our friends tonight, but I cancelled last minute so I could be here tonight."

Jaune inclined his head. "Sorry, I didn't know I was pulling you away from that." Ruby snorted and waved her hand.

"You did me a favor! I uh, didn't really wanna go anyways. Too many people. She'll be mad at me, but she'll forgive me, she always does." She finished, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips.

"Sounds good then." Jaune started as he began to walk towards the door, Ruby in tow. "You remember the plan?"

"I thought of most of it, Jaune." Ruby replied with a giggle. "Do you?"

"Yep. I take Yuma, you take Perry." It had been at his request. Needless to say, he was very new at tag teaming, so he preferred to keep it simple for now. Ruby had insisted that they'd need to change things up but conceded that they could take that on eventually. It's better to stick with what I know for now, he assured himself as he looked over his shoulder at Ruby. She just smiled and waved. He'd almost forgotten her competitive spirit, and her drive to succeed that bubbled over when it was time to wrestle. Not to mention that she was a lot better than most people he knew on the roster when it came to fighting. It was reassuring to see her so confident.

That confidence lasted about five more minutes.

Just as they'd reached the gorilla, Ruby had frozen up like the lakes he and his sisters used to skate on in the wintertime back in Ansel. It didn't take a genius to see why. The gorilla was bustling with activity. Sound and light technicians scrambled around like bees in a hive, television screens ringed the room, displaying the massive crowd and the ring itself. The dull roar of the audience could be heard even from back here, and it wasn't lost on him that this was Ruby's first time in front of an audience larger than ten for the first time in what had to be years.

He laid a hand on her shoulder. "You got this, remember? We're going to be in the tournament."

"Mhm." She mumbled back, distracted by the scene unfolding on one of the screens. Jaune followed her gaze. Yuma and Perry stood like two pillars in the ring, commanding the audience's attention as they delivered a promo. It was a classic spot. The heels would get some heat from the crowd and the triumphant and plucky babyface would return from their break to interrupt them, to the crowd's surprise. Truth be told, he couldn't wait to run through those curtains.

"There you are, Mr. Arc." Glynda's voice called out from the right. She was dressed in her classic suit, headphones firmly clamped on her head. She was in the same area she always was, sitting at one of the large desks, beckoning him forward. He motioned to Ruby to follow as he walked up to her.

"You're on in one." Glynda explained as she briefly turned back to the monitor.

"We're ready." Jaune confirmed before noticing the empty seat beside Ms. Goodwitch. "Where's Ozpin?"

Glynda snorted as she returned to her screen. "He said he'd be here. Perhaps he'll decide to grace us with his presence tonight." she finished, her smile undercutting her stern tone. For as much flak as she gave him, he knew Glynda had a lot of respect for their CEO, even despite his eccentricities and decisions.

Ruby cut in, offering a hand Glynda's way. "H-Hi Ms. Goodwitch! It's been a while since we last talked. Whatcha been up to?" she tried weakly as Glynda leveled her with one of her classic glares. The ones that made you sit down and shut up.

"Running the show, as I always have." She replied sternly.

"Ah, of course you have, because it's your job and everyone knows that and I'm going to shut up now." Ruby gagged, the words spilling from her mouth as Jaune cut in.

"Thanks again for giving us this opportunity."

Glynda eyed Ruby warily. "Of course. Now, we've had a bit of a quieter night than we would've liked, as is usual with weekly shows before a big event kicks off. I'd request you two do your best to wake up the crowd."

It wasn't really a suggestion; the message was clear. Try and have a barn burner and get the crowd invested.

"We'll do our best! You can count on us." Ruby crowed; her face determined. Glynda fixed her with a strange look, before she nodded.

The two walked back towards the center of the room, only a few feet from the luxurious red curtain that separated them from destiny, or in this case, ten thousand screaming fans. He let his eyes drift shut, taking a few deep breaths as his heartbeat thundered in his ears. His throat closed up; his tongue as dry as a Vacuan desert.

God he'd missed this feeling. The fear, the excitement, it was all what made him a pro wrestler. A glance at Ruby showed she must've been feeling the same from the way she bounced up and down restlessly. Her ashen face showed maybe she wasn't as excited as he was to face the crowd. His eyes flicked back to the screen, listening as Yuma wrapped up his promo.

"But I came here tonight for a fight, so whoever's foolish enough back there to take on the White Fang tonight, get your ass out here NOW!" he roared, removing his entrance gear and squaring up for the cameras.

"Yo!" A voice called to Jaune's left. He looked over and locked eyes with a familiar face. Flynt Coal, the lead sound tech. He held up three fingers, slowly counting down until only one finger was left.

Jaune nodded at him and Flynt hit a button on one of his soundboards. The sound of fast paced trumpets and an electric guitar blazed to life as his very own entrance music blasted over the industrial speakers, flooding the arena like a tidal wave. It crashed over the audience, the crowd only taking a few seconds before they recognized the familiar tune.

With no time to lose, Jaune sprinted forward, crashing through the curtain and onto the stage, throwing his fist to the sky just as his music hit a thrilling crescendo. He let out a battle cry, his fists coming down in front of him as he curled in on himself. His vocal cords bulged as the crowd swelled around him, hailing the returning hero. He only stayed that way for a moment before he exploded upwards, throwing his arms up and to the sides, basking in the glory of his return.

He was home.

His eyes roved wildly over the stands around him, blinking back a few tears as he took it all in. Smiling faces, teeth shining like diamonds in the mouths of adoring fans. People who were happy to see him back. Even after all this time, they still had his back, didn't they? He waved to them, no doubt grinning like a maniac before he remembered the most important part of his return. He waited for his music to hit a bridge, the song building up as he brought his hands in front of him. The crowd waited patiently as he turned on his heel and pointed at the curtain.

Right on cue, Ruby stepped into view. His smile faltered as he watched her march towards him. Her shoulders were stiff as she walked, eyes glassy as she joined him at the center of the stage.

"Give them a wave." He whispered to her as he brought her in for a hug. Ruby woodenly waved to the audience. A trembling smile carving its way across his face. He'd expected it, of course. It wasn't easy to be thrust back into the limelight. But he knew better than to just let her die out there. He grabbed her right hand and hoisted it upwards, using his other to point at her confidently. Being in front of them for so many months, Jaune had a decent understanding of the pulse of the crowd. They weren't really sure what to make of Ruby. But as she herself would say, she did her talking in the ring. He gave her a nod as they began to briskly walk down the entrance ramp. Hands like tree branches framed their walk, and Jaune made sure to high five as many of them as possible. Ruby did too, albeit far stiffer than he was.

"PLEASE WELCOME, FROM THE ISLAND OF PATCH AND THE VILLAGE OF ANSEL," Peter Port boomed, his microphone cutting through the sea of cheers. "THE TEAM OF RUBY ROSE AND JAUNE AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARC!"

As they approached the ring, Jaune sprinted forward, tromping up the leftmost steel steps, turning to face the audience. He flashed them a brilliant smile as he flung his hands up in a wide arc, asking them to pump up the volume. They were more than happy to oblige, bouncing and cheering as they popped. He turned back, beckoning Ruby to join him as they made it to the ring apron, he sat down on the middle rope, drawing it down so Ruby could slip through, before he too joined her on the canvas.

As he turned to the center of the ring, he almost forgot they weren't alone. Yuma sneered at them. He cut a scary figure, with his spiky hair, classic bad guy goatee, and his sleek black ring gear. Not to mention the bat wings that framed his figure. Jaune had to admit though, they were pretty awesome. Perry on the other hand was less awesome. He wore the classic White Fang grays and mask, complete with a pair of spectacles that adorned his face.

"Guess it's my lucky day, I got an easy one. Hope you had a nice break, Arc." Yuma sneered. "Shame it's gonna be permanent after tonight."

Jaune rolled his eyes. In any other situation, he would've shriveled under the insult, but in the ring, it was just another day. "Permanent? Please. I've survived worse than your best shot on a bad day, so try me. Might even get Ruby here to break a sweat if you try hard enough."

Ruby giggled from beside him, managing to shake off her nerves long enough to stick it to Yuma. The faunus in question rolled his eyes, motioning to Perry to join him in the opposing corner. Jaune did the same with Ruby as they returned to their own corner as they waited for Port's commentary.

"The following contest is scheduled for one fall, and the winner will go on to compete in the VWC Tag Team Tournament for a chance to win the world titles! Introducing first, from the Island of Menagerie, they are the Soldiers of the White Fang, PERRY AND YUMAAAAAAAA!"

Yuma scoffed at the crowd, turning his head and spitting outside the ring. Ruby growled from behind him as the crowd rained down boos. Perry awkwardly waved at the audience, before resigning to his role as the heel.

"AND IN THE OTHER CORNER, MAKING THEIR EXCITING RETURN AND NEWFOUND DEBUT RESPECTIVELY, THEY ARE RUBY ROSE AND JAUNE ARC!"

Jaune raised an arm, softly elbowing Ruby in the ribs to do the same. The referee slipped in through the ropes. He recognized her as Dew Gayl. She'd refereed a few of his matches in the past. He gave her a smile as she nodded back.

"Are you two ready?"

Jaune and Ruby shared a brief glance before nodding, watching as Dew requested the same from Yuma and Perry. They gave her a thumbs up. Ruby hopped over the ropes to the outside as Perry did the same, taking their places as the partners to be tagged. Dew paced over to the ropes towards the commentary booth, and shook her hand, pointing towards ringside.

The bell rang once. He fell into Ruby's stance, putting weight on the balls of his feet.

The bell rang twice. He took a deep breath and cracked his neck.

The final clang sounded. The next time he heard that bell, he'd either be holding his head high, or packing his things for the last time. He pushed that thought aside, the time for thinking was done. It was time for action. Yuma's eyes bore into him as the faunus approached. Jaune brought his guard up, bouncing up and down in his new stance.

He surged forward, wrapping his left hand around the back of Yuma's neck. Unfortunately, his opponent had the same idea, doing the same with his right. Jaune clamped his right hand on Yuma's elbow as he felt the man's calloused hand on the back of his own neck. They were in a classic lockup, a test of strength and technical skill. Jaune dug his back heel into the mat and began to push. Yuma reciprocated in kind, turning their position into a pushing match.

One that Jaune was surprised to say, he was winning.

He gritted his teeth and jerked his body, pushing off his right foot and sending Yuma sliding backwards. He considered his options as he pushed Yuma back again. I'll bulldoze him into the ropes and force a rebound, he decided as he managed to send Yuma staggering back one more step, his grip on the faunus tight. What he wasn't expecting however, was for Yuma to step to the side and wriggle out of Jaune's grip. As the white fang captain jerked his body away, he snaked the hand that was on Jaune's neck down and around, dragging him down into a side headlock.

Damnit! Jaune swore. Yuma had taken him by surprise and was beginning to put pressure on his neck. The White Fang captain reared back as he tensed his muscles, his grip on Jaune's head tightening like a vice. He heard the crowd begin to boo as he heard Yuma's raucous laughter. The jerk was already taunting him. But that was the least of his concerns. If Yuma brought his weight down, Jaune would be in serious trouble. Last thing he wanted was to go to the ground already.

Thankfully, he had no intention of doing so. Jaune clasped his hands together, turning his body until he was perpendicular to Yuma's. Grasping his grip together tightly, he reared back and drove his elbow into the older man's ribs, earning a sharp exhale from the faunus for his troubles. Yuma attempted to keep his hold of the headlock, but Jaune had no intention of stopping, he leaned back and threw all his weight into the second elbow. It found its home between Yuma's third and fourth rib, knocking the wind out of the white fang's former champion. His grip loosened and Jaune took advantage, backing up suddenly and slipping his head out of the crook of Yuma's elbow. Now wasn't the time to celebrate though, he needed to capitalize, and there was no better way to do that than giving the winged warrior a taste of his own medicine. In a flash Jaune threw his own arm over the back of Yuma's neck and clasped his hands together, catching him in a headlock of his own, and Jaune was willing to bet his was a lot tighter than Yuma's.

"Got you now." Jaune gritted out as he began to squeeze, applying pressure. Ruby had told him to start small and diversify his moveset. Starting with a grapple set a good precedent. His jovial tone was short lived as Yuma sneered up at him.

"Think again, human." The bat faunus spat, his fingers prying at Jaune's grip.

But Jaune had prepared for this eventuality with Ruby. He stepped closer to the faunus, getting his hips as close to Yuma's as possible. As Yuma slipped a finger into his grip, Jaune flung his body to the side, throwing his weight on his front foot and pulling with all his might as he used Yuma's own weight against him, flipping him over in a hip throw that sent his opponent crashing down to the mat with a raucous thud.

"Nice one Jaune!" he heard Ruby crow from behind him as he got back to his feet. No chance he was staying down there with Yuma. He took a brief moment to look at the crowd, giving them a nod as he went to stomp at the prone White Fang warrior. But life was never that easy, as to Jaune's dismay, Yuma rolled to the side and made it to one knee. He was only there for a moment before he launched himself at Jaune, his arms locking behind Jaune's own knees, using his weight to take him down to the mat. Jaune went to push him off, but Yuma cracked him with a nasty elbow. Before he knew it, Yuma was already back on his feet, he stepped back a few paces before sprinting forward and leaping into the air towards Jaune, he came down hard, planting both his feet firmly into Jaune's chest in a devastating double-foot stomp. Pain exploded across his pecs as he felt the force of Yuma's legs. This was going to be a rough night.

Jaune dragged deep breaths as Yuma stooped over him, electing to drag Jaune upright. Once he'd stood Jaune up, his hand clamped down on Jaune's wrist as the man threw his weight backwards, whipping Jaune towards the ring ropes at an alarming speed. The crowd gasped in barely concealed concern as he just barely had time to turn and throw his arm over the ropes and begin to rebound, stomping back towards Yuma.

The man in question had fallen into a low stance, seemingly ready to catch Jaune in some kind of grapple. Not this time, Jaune thought, determined as he rocketed towards Yuma. Right as he reached his target Jaune planted his feet and threw his right shoulder forward just like he'd done with Ruby, barely managing to see Yuma's eyes widen as he smashed into the man like a battering ram on a castle gate. The effect was instantaneous. Yuma was sent rolling across the canvas like tumbleweed. The crowd roared their approval as Jaune continued his assault, sprinting after the prone faunus and kicking him square in the gut. Yuma glared up at him in hatred. It didn't matter though, the bat faunus wasn't going anywhere, at least for a few seconds as he clutched at his stomach. Despite Jaune's newfound stamina, he couldn't keep up a pace like this forever.

Taking one last look at the prone man to make sure he wasn't playing possum, Jaune ran over to the turnbuckle in the corner closest to him and jumped, climbing on top of the middle rope facing the audience. He threw his fists to the sky and let out a roar. The crowd matched his intensity, their own screams of excitement and approval like a shot of pure adrenaline into his veins. This was what he had been missing. This is what he trained so hard for. Moments like these were nothing short of incredible. He turned back around and hopped down, just in time to see Ruby sending him a double thumbs up.

Yuma had made it back to his feet by the time Jaune had finished riling up the audience and sent him a cruel smirk. "Not bad. For a human that is." Jaune rolled his eyes as he fell back into his ready stance. Yuma assumed his own and went on the offense, darting forward and peppering Jaune's guard with jabs. But to his elation, Yuma just couldn't seem to catch him. Ruby's stance was working wonders, and by the frustrated look on Yuma's face, he'd never seen anything like it. Jaune bounced off his back foot and threw a quick combination. His jab hit air, Yuma having slipped to the side. His hook, however, did not, his fist crashing into the side of the faunus' neck, having only slightly missed its mark. Yuma threw his own hook to counter, but just as he did Jaune stomped the ball of his foot down so hard he might've left a print on the canvas, sending himself hurtling back out of harm's way.

"Damn it, get your ass back here!" Yuma growled as he charged in again. The two continued to trade strikes. Yuma seemed to have found his range, catching Jaune with the occasional body shot. If there was one thing Yuma definitely had on Jaune, it was speed. The older man pressed him, putting Jaune on the backfoot with wild strikes that came at him from all angles. However, despite the pressure he was facing, Jaune came to a startling realization.

He was winning.

And not just gimmicking his way to winning. But he was genuinely winning. For every strike Yuma landed, he paid him back two more. Jaune was beating a former intercontinental champion! He was too quick, and at the same time too sturdy. A quick glance showed him he was still firmly in the green aura wise. The decision to check was a bad one however, with Yuma sending a body kick his way in the brief moment he was distracted. He managed to parry it with his lead hand, backing up to get some space.

"Jaune be careful!" He heard Ruby yell. He wasn't sure what she was referring to, considering how well he was doing. He blocked another one of Yuma's strikes, her voice cutting through his concentration once again.

"Corner!" Ruby shouted from across the ring.

Corner? What the heck did she mean by corner? He got his answer a second later as he felt his back impact the cool metal of the turnbuckle. Damnit! I'm out of space, he realized as Yuma smirked. Ruby was trying to warn him, and he'd trapped himself in the corner. He raised his guard, shelling up as Yuma stepped in to throw clubbing shots. He wheezed his aggressor's fist buried itself in his ribs, the white fang member smelling blood in the water. Jaune covered up as Yuma used him like a punching bag. He was cornered. Or was he? Memories of his watch party with Ruby slammed into his brain as he waited for Yuma's next blow. As soon as the faunus loaded up to throw a vicious overhand, Jaune threw his body to the right, circling away from Yuma and throwing a hook that caught him square in the gut.

"Now's your chance!" Ruby shouted. Jaune sent her a nod as Yuma bent double. He clambered forward, circling around Yuma and getting behind him. He wrapped his arms around the stunned man's waist, locking his hands together. It was time to show the fans what he'd been working on. He bent his knees, taking a deep breath and bracing his core before he exploded up and backwards, arching his spine as he let himself fall, slamming Yuma's upper back and shoulders to the canvas.

It was a picture perfect atlesian suplex.

He released his grip on the dazed older man and scrambled to stand up, running to the corner and scaling the ropes. He made it to the middle one, and after taking a brief moment to catch his balance, launched himself into the air, spreading his limbs out as wide as he could, bracing himself for impact. He crashed down on top of Yuma's prone body with a thunderous BANG.

He winced as laid on top of the bat faunus, his sternum still hurting from Yuma's stomp earlier, but that didn't stop Jaune from leaning forward and hooking the man's leg for leverage as he pinned his shoulders to the mat. He watched the ref slide over, her hand poised to count.

1…!

Yuma jerked his body, lifting his shoulder off the mat as Jaune sagged. Only a one count? Sure, it was early, but he thought he'd put some good offense in. He had this in the bag, right? Doubt began to creep in as he brought himself to his feet. He couldn't afford to lose this one. He just couldn't. Everything was riding on this. He leaned over to grab one of Yuma's ankles in the hopes of dragging him back towards the corner for another diving move. They were quickly dashed as Yuma leaned back and kicked with his free leg, his boot smashing into the side of Jaune's face.

He staggered back, seeing stars as he clutched his cheek. He was still reeling from the attack when he felt Yuma wrap his arm around Jaune's upper thigh, lifting Jaune up and draping him across the faunus' strong shoulders in a fireman's carry. The white fang captain held him there for a moment, jeering at the crowd as he sprinted forward, Jaune in tow.

What's he doing? Jaune barely had time to wonder before Yuma leapt backwards, intent on slamming himself down onto the mat back first, using Jaune as his airbag. His back hit the canvas hard, sending Jaune spluttering.

"MENAGERIE DROP!" He heard Port bellow from his ringside place at commentary. "What a move by the veteran Yuma!"

His head spun as he was vaguely aware of Yuma moving away. To where he wasn't quite sure. Jaune took ragged breaths as he tried to shake the cobwebs out of his brain. Just when he felt he'd recovered from the drop, things got worse. Ruby's yell of alarm was the only warning he got before Yuma's leg smashed down onto his pecs, driving the breath from his lungs in a violent gag. He must have leapt from the ropes, he realized. He'd been too stunned to see him! Yuma elected to leave his leg draped across Jaune's chest, pinning him down as the ref returned, slapping her hand against the mat.

1…2–

She didn't even make it to a full two count before Jaune exploded up, thrashing his body with all his might. He jerked so hard he threw Yuma clean off of him. He wasn't even close to done, rolling over to his side and taking a few deep breaths. A quick glance confirmed that Yuma was still seated too, the older man dragging his own rapid breaths. The menagerie drop stung, but…not as much as he expected it to.

He really did have a beefy aura huh?

As Jaune recovered, Yuma slipped outside the ropes and flung his arms wide, taunting the crowd as he shouted insults towards them, giving Jaune ample time to get back to a fighting position. It was a classic tactic. Sure, Yuma could've stomped over and dragged him back up like he'd done before, but that expended energy. Jaune was on the skinnier side of the roster, but he was still almost two hundred pounds. Dragging an unwilling body from the ground was exhausting. Sometimes it was better to take a breather for yourself, strategize, and wait for your opponent to get back to their feet. Taking the fight to the ground was an option too, but the risk of getting tripped up and reversed was incentive enough to keep it standing, especially if you were more of a striker like Yuma was.

Once Jaune had staggered to his feet, Yuma made his move. He slid back into the ring under the top rope on his belly, like a snake stalking its prey. Jaune glared at him.

"You're not landing that again." He assured Yuma as he brought his guard up. Yuma barked out a loud laugh.

"I don't need your permission." he retorted as he surged forward, using the fact that he hadn't just been leg dropped to his advantage as he closed the distance, managing to wrap his arms around Jaune's waist. He yanked upwards violently, lifting Jaune off his feet as he attempted a suplex.

But Jaune was more than done with letting Yuma have his time in the sun. Sure, his stance left him open to getting picked up more easily, but that didn't mean Jaune didn't have any options to deal with a grapple. His right elbow came slicing down, catching Yuma on the eyebrow as Jaune rained more down upon the unsuspecting faunus. He wasted no time in using his other hand to pry at Yuma's grip, which was locked around the small of his back. He needed to work quickly, and thankfully, he was rewarded for his ferocity as Yuma faltered, recoiling back after a particularly nasty elbow to the temple. He folded in half as Jaune buried his boot in his abdomen with a fierce kick to the midsection, wasting no time as he secured his own lock around Yuma's waist, braced his core, then ripped Yuma upwards into powerbomb position.

He held him up there for a second as the crowd roared around him in anticipation. Once they'd popped and cheered to their hearts' content, he put his personal spin on the classic move. His thighs tensed as he jumped into the air, dragging his unfortunate victim in tow. Once he reached the crescendo of his leap, he followed through with the move, using the momentum from the fall to slam Yuma down into the mat, letting himself land in a sitting position as the two crashed down to the canvas with enough force to shake the ring ropes.

"SIT OUT POWERBOMB!" Peter Port roared from the ringside commentary booth. "What a move from Jaune Arc!"

Ruby voiced her agreement, hollering as she waved her hands ecstatically. Jaune gave her a grin as he leaned forward to pin Yuma. Because he'd sat out with the powerbomb, not only was Yuma flat on his back, but Jaune was also seated right in front of him, wristlock around his waist still intact. He pushed forward, rolling Yuma up onto his shoulders as the referee slid down beside them, arm raised as she began to count.

1…2…!

Jaune groaned in dismay as Yuma tore his own shoulder from the mat, the latter rolling the former off him. It was a two count though, he thought triumphantly. He'd nearly just beaten Yuma! The White Fang fighter knew it too, his wide eyes narrowing into slits as he glared up at Jaune, cursing as he made it to all fours. Jaune stood up, turning his back on Yuma as he raced to the nearest corner, climbing up the ropes and raising his arms in victory towards the audience. They cheered back as he rallied them to his side. The crowd moved like the ocean, bobbing and cresting as he finished the motion, firmly behind him. He stepped down from the ropes returning his attention to Yuma. His opponent snarled at him, lips peeling back in a sneer as he turned his back, stomping away from Jaune.

"Perry!" He barked towards the timid looking man in his corner. "Get your ass in here." he finished as he slapped his hand against his subordinate's palm. Jaune briskly made his way over to his own corner, content to follow the plan. Ruby looked at him cautiously as he closed the distance between them.

"You ready for this?"

Ruby swallowed past a lump in her throat, before her eyes hardened. She nodded, reaching out and extending her arm, her hand palm up facing him.

"Show them why you belong here." He said as he slapped his palm on hers just as Perry entered the ring. Ruby leapt over the ropes and onto the canvas, any trace of nerves gone as she got into her stance, bouncing restlessly. Jaune climbed out of the ring, finally taking a breather as the crowd murmured and hummed, not as excited for the new matchup as they were the one previous. It hurt to see, but it made sense, Ruby hadn't proved herself yet.

But knowing her, it wouldn't take long to win them over.

Jaune suppressed a smile as he watched Perry make his first mistake. The White Fang grunt dashed towards Ruby, a battle cry slipping from his lips as he ran, loading up a haymaker with the intent to knock her head clean from her shoulders.

Ruby stood her ground, much to the crowd's confusion. She waited until Perry had almost reached her before she sprang into action. Just as he threw his punch, Ruby bent backward, dropping low as her left arm snaked up to hook its way into the crook of Perry's elbow mid strike. The moment she locked their arms together she threw herself back, dragging Perry's arm in tow. Jaune's eyes widened as she flipped Perry clean over her, the momentum from his sprinting assault too much for him as he somersaulted over, crashing down hard on his back. Ruby's landing was far softer from the way she was already getting back to her feet. Perry clambered up, gnashing his teeth as he shook off the daze and sprinted towards her once again. This time throwing a massive left hook. That was his second mistake, and Ruby made sure to punish him for it. She dropped low once again, catching Perry in another arm drag that sent him sprawling, this time towards the opposite side of the ring.

And she had the nerve to tell me she was nervous, Jaune whooped as he clapped his hands. Ruby popped back up, turning towards him and giving him a thumbs up. He gazed out into the crowd, seeing quite a few people cheering for the move. A growl from Perry turned his attention back to the ring. His shoulders rose and fell as he breathed heavily, less from exhaustion and more from frustration. Like a broken record he raced towards her again, this time with no clear strike. He wasn't sure what Perry could be going for, but it looked like it was going to hurt. Unfortunately, the spectacled White Fang member didn't have as much time as usual because just as he began to run, Ruby began to sprint towards him, shirking her previous attitude of counterstriking to meet him head on. Perry threw a vicious gut kick but missed wildly as Ruby leapt into the air.

Jaune's eyes widened in awe as Ruby leaned back mid leap, sailing over Perry's kick at the perfect angle that allowed her to wrap her little legs around his neck. Just as she did, she threw her body sharply to the right, dragging Perry in tow as she released her tight leglock, sending him flying towards the ropes. He slammed into the cables, bouncing off them and impacting the canvas with a hard thud.

"HURRICANRANA FROM RUBY ROSE!" Port roared as the crowd swelled in surprise. Jaune shared their sentiments, it wasn't every day you saw a highflying move like that. They only had a little time to bask in the afterglow of the technique before Ruby was on the move again, slamming her textbook knee square across Perry's jaw, the latter barely having made it to his knees. Ruby rolled through as Perry lay flat, dragging in deep breaths. She glanced back towards him, her toothy smile glowing. It was an expression he knew all too well, the same one he wore when he was giving a promo, or pumping up the audience. Ruby had hit the nail on the head, once that bell rang, she was at home.

"For god's sake Perry! Slow it down and get your head in the damn game!" Yuma barked from their corner. Perry grimaced, embarrassed as he used the ropes for leverage to pull himself up. He fell into his own stance, far more cautious as he approached Ruby. The two met in the middle and began to exchange blows. Well, exchange was a strong word. Perry was learning firsthand what it meant to strike with Ruby Rose.

Perry threw a heavy elbow, cleaving the air above Ruby's head as she ducked down and to the side, burying her little fist in Perry's ribs. He wasn't one to be deterred though, throwing a check hook with his free hand. At best it only grazed Ruby's hair as she bobbed under it, closing the distance and slamming Perry's sternum with two quick uppercuts. Growling in frustration, he surged forward, his arms poised to trap Ruby in a bodylock. Well, it would've worked if Ruby hadn't already rocketed off her lead leg and was now at a safe distance. If Jaune thought his stick and move strikes were good, Ruby was next level. Perry just couldn't hit her. Every missed cross Ruby landed a firm kick on the faunus' thigh. Every missed kick and Ruby went up top, clacking Perry's teeth together with a cross or uppercut.

That being said, Ruby wasn't perfect. She threw another uppercut, this time trying to sit down on the shot so it would have more power. But Perry wasn't going to fall for the same trick three times. He yanked his head back, leaving Ruby overextended as he grabbed her free arm, heaving backwards to whip her towards the ropes, intent on hitting her with some kind of rebound attack.

"Careful!" Jaune yelled out to Ruby as her momentum carried her towards the cables. But just as he began to fear the worst, Ruby did something he'd never seen before.

She threw herself forward, bringing her chest down as she planted her hands against the canvas as if she was going to do a handstand. No, that wasn't quite right. She wasn't going for a handstand at all. She was doing a handspring! She planted her hands down and let the force carry her, flipping her legs over her head. They sailed forward, bouncing off the ropes. The cables bent, but only for a second before they slingshotted her legs backwards. Ruby used the momentum to reverse her handspring, the force from the ropes catapulting her back into a standing position. Perry only had a second to gasp before Ruby drove her elbow back, catching him square in the nose. His hands clamped over his face as he staggered back. For the first time since she'd started, parts of the audience roared and clapped. It went as brief as it came, but it was something.

"Look out!" Jaune yelled as Perry regained his composure. He'd managed to stay on his feet, something Ruby apparently hadn't expected. Perry's arms wrapped around Ruby's torso as he forced her into a seated position, he stood over her, one arm wrapped around her shoulder and the other free. Ruby's left hand came up to fight the lock Perry's arm had on her shoulder, while her other was restrained. It didn't stop Perry from landing a few solid elbows directly on top of her head. Jaune flinched as her aura flared from a particularly nasty one. Perry smirked cruelly, happy to slow down the action as he laid into Ruby.

"Looks like Perry's giving her the business now!" Port's voice resonated from around the arena.

"That's more like it grunt!" Yuma clapped as Perry landed a hammer fist to Ruby's upper back.

Perry leaned down, jeering at the audience as he went to go for another elbow. He shouldn't have though, for just as his head got close, Ruby bucked back wildly, driving the back of her skull into Perry's already damaged nose. He stumbled back, releasing the hold as he swore loudly, cupping his face. Ruby was already on the move as she turned away from him, electing to rush towards the ropes. Her back impacted the cables, one arm hooking over the top to prevent her from falling out, before rocketing back towards the poor White Fang grunt. Perry brought his hands up to block.

Big mistake.

Ruby went low, going for a slide tackle that knocked Perry's ankles out from under him, sending him crashing to the mat for what had to be the fifth time. Perry's arms didn't know what to do, one cupped his injured face while the other gripped his ankle.

Ruby didn't dwell on it though, popping back up and sprinting to the nearest corner, like a monkey she scaled the ropes, infinitely more deftly than he ever could. It was a movement so graceful he couldn't imagine how many times she'd done it.

"Looks like she's going to the top!" Port crowed as Ruby reached the highest rope. Despite the mythos surrounding the top rope, it rarely saw action from most grapplers. He, like many others, preferred to be closer to the ground. The only time he went up there was for his finisher, which was sadly a rare occurrence. He usually settled for the middle rope. The crowd took notice of Ruby's actions too, leaning forward in their seats in anticipation.

Ruby stood alone atop the ring post, her eyes fluttering shut for a moment, before she leapt into the air, soaring above their heads. Just as she reached the peak of her jump, she tucked her body, only for a second before she extended her limbs in a spread-eagle position, letting herself crash down on top of Perry's prone body so hard it shook the ring. It was a lot like his crossbody, but hers came from much higher.

"FIVE STAR FROG SPLASH! My word Barty, how long has it been since we've seen one of those, and that beautiful no less?" Port guffawed into the microphone.

"Far too long my friend. What a debut from Ms. Rose so far, but will she be able to keep up the momentum?" Bartholomew Oobleck, the VWC's best co-commentator inquired from the booth. It looked like she was going to by the way she leaned forward, using one of her arms to hook Perry's leg for leverage for her pin. Dew landed beside them.

1…2…!

Perry weakly rolled to the side, pulling his shoulder off the mat, stopping the count. Ruby's hands balled into her hair in frustration, clearly, she thought she'd done enough to put him away. Against her better judgment, her hands clamped down onto Perry's gear, intent on dragging him back up to face more punishment. Despite his daze, Perry knew better than to let her, and fell forward, wrapping his arms around Ruby's waist and dragging her to the mat. Jaune angrily slammed his fist down against the top rope. One of their main goals was to avoid Ruby getting taken down. Ruby's short stature and lack of weight made it easy to keep her on the ground, the last place she wanted to be. It was Perry's turn to take over the match, crawling atop Ruby's body and raining down haymakers. She covered up well as he attacked, most of his blows ricocheting off her elbows. She was also still in the green as far as her aura went. The danger was if she was going to be stuck down there for long.

"Attaboy grunt!" Yuma crowed from his corner, clapping his hands. "That's what I like to see!"

Perry hit her with a few more clubbing blows before he leaned up, a look of surprise and admiration on his face as he gazed over at Yuma. "Y-You mean it, captain? Just wait. I can do a lot better than this!" He cheered as he stood up abruptly, lifting himself off Ruby's prone form. Yuma's smile morphed into a look of mortification.

"No! Keep her down you idiot! What the hell are you doing!? She's light as a feather! Keep her down!" Yuma roared as he leaned over the ropes, seemingly horrified at his underling's attempt to prove himself. Perry didn't seem to hear him as he ran to the corner and clambered up to the second rope.

"I'm doing this for you, boss! For the White Fang! I'll put this human down for good!" He hollered as he launched himself from the middle rope, his knee coming down like a sledgehammer towards Ruby. Yuma's fears were proven true though as at the last second, Ruby rolled out of the way, resulting in all of Perry's weight coming down hard on his knee. The reaction was immediate as his hands flew down to grip his knee as he writhed in pain. Ruby made sure to capitalize. She ran to the nearest ring ropes, pulling the top rope down as she yanked herself up, leaping on top of the rope and using it for a springboard as she launched into her signature move.

The shattered moonsault.

It was as beautiful as Jaune remembered. Ruby flew into the air with the grace of a falcon, arching backwards as she performed the parabolic movement, the audience's pitch matching her rising crescendo. He caught a glimpse of her face, complete zen, like in that one moment, nothing existed outside of her. It was unbelievable. Then she came down like a comet, once again slamming down directly on Perry's midsection, knocking the wind right out of him. He went slack beneath her as she went for another pin attempt, hooking his leg and beaming over at Jaune.

1…2…!

Jaune recoiled in shock as he watched Ruby's grinning face get smashed directly into the canvas, an ugly thwack ringing out. She crumpled to the mat, rolling off of Perry. Yuma's boot rested atop her head, his sinister face sneering down at her. Damn it, he'd leapt over the rope into the ring to break up the pin! Jaune cursed himself, in all the excitement he'd forgotten tag partners could come in to break up a pin. He could've stopped the bat faunus before he spiked Ruby face first into the mat.

"Alright, that's enough out of you, kid. Why don't you take a lil breather." he cackled as he posed, his boot still firmly atop her head. Rage bubbled to the surface as Jaune ducked through the ropes, stomping towards Yuma. Yuma glared back, putting his guard up and stepping backwards, off of Ruby. Just as Jaune got within striking distance, a hand pressed firmly against his chest, one that was too soft to be Yuma's.

"That's it, get back! Both of you, now!" Dew shouted as she got between the two. "Get out of the ring if you're not the legal man or I'm stopping this now!"

Yuma growled but relented, electing instead to grab Perry by the arm and drag him towards their corner. The crowd voiced their displeasure at his antics the only way they knew how, heavy boos.

"ASSHOLE!" They chanted, filling the space between the statements with four or five claps. It was a classic chant tailored perfectly to heels. "ASSHOLE!" They chanted again as Yuma glared around the arena.

"And you call us animals!" Yuma mocked. "Shut the hell up, all of you!"

Not knowing what else to do, Jaune helped Ruby to her feet. "You okay?" he asked, his voice thick with concern. Ruby gave him a frazzled yet confident smile despite the blows she'd just received.

"I'm better than okay, Jaune. Just give me a sec to shake this off." He obliged, climbing back out of the ring as Ruby relaxed in the corner. A look over to Yuma and Perry's own space showed they were having a much different conversation. Well, if you could call it that. Yuma roared down insults at Perry, before slapping him in the face, technically tagging him in.

Ruby saw it too, turning back to face their opponent. She went to move to the center of the ring, before she froze, looking back at Jaune.

"S-Sorry, I got so caught up I almost forgot the plan. Sorry." She said as she extended her hand out for him to tag. For a moment he wasn't sure if he was going to slap it. She was on quite a roll. He considered letting her go for it but caught himself. Things were working. Why change what was going well? They weren't abandoning the plan, he decided. Jaune would take on Yuma, and Ruby would take on Perry. He slapped her palm and climbed back in, letting Ruby get a much-deserved rest.

Jaune and Yuma met in the center of the ring for the second time today, clashing as they attempted to get the better of each other. Jaune managed to get one over on the White Fang captain, bulldozing him into the nearest corner. He attempted to follow it up with a right hook to the chin, but Yuma caught his arm, trapping it and muscling Jaune back. As Jaune went to fight back, Yuma's wings unfurled from behind him, flapping forward and sending a gust of wind his way. Jaune staggered back, giving Yuma ample time to sprint forward, leaping into the air and practically caving Jaune's chest in with a missile dropkick that sent him rolling backwards. Jaune was far from done though, forcing himself onto all fours, gazing up at his opponent.

Yuma wore a confident smirk as his wings flapped a few times, beckoning at Jaune to fight him. Jaune stood, falling back into his stance and stomping back towards Yuma. He paused as Yuma's wings came to fold in front of him, wrapping around his torso and hiding his hands. Jaune's eyes widened. When he held them like that, it almost looked like a shield. A way to guard without Jaune being able to see what Yuma's hands were doing. The crowd oohed at the development as Port's voice crackled through the speakers.

"Looks like Yuma's getting serious. But how will Jaune react?"

He wasn't sure to be honest. He tentatively approached Yuma, throwing a few jabs to test the waters. Yuma weaved the first two, letting the others ricochet off his wings. Damn it, what do I do? Jaune pondered angrily as he tried again, failing to break Yuma's guard. To hell with it, he thought as he sprang forward, going for a bearhug.

The moment he did, Yuma's wings unfurled.

Next thing he knew, he was a few feet back, legs shaky. His jaw stung; he guessed it might've been a two punch combo but couldn't be sure. All he knew was that he'd been rocked. Yuma laughed, shaking his knuckles as he looked down at Jaune.

"What? Didn't see that coming?" he jeered as he sprinted forward, jumping past Jaune. That didn't stop his arms from wrapping around Jaune's head and neck while he was mid jump, using his momentum and weight to slam Jaune to the mat in a vicious neckbreaker. The crowd gasped in alarm as Jaune went down, his head slamming against the hard canvas. Ruby's cries of alarm rang in his ears as he tried to stave off the dizziness, but it was clear Yuma wasn't done. He was vaguely aware of the man flying up to perch on the top rope, before he was airborne again, slamming Jaune with another leg drop that felt like he'd been hit in the chest with an iron bar. He wheezed, giving thanks to his surplus of aura. One that had now entered the yellow.

He felt rough hands on his ears as Yuma hauled him up. "We're not done yet, boy." He sneered as he went to wrap Jaune up in a facelock. Jaune wasn't letting it happen again, bucking back throwing Yuma off him. He clamped his fingers around Yuma's wrist, but before he could do anything, Yuma's wing began to beat again, knocking Jaune off kilter. Yuma capitalized once again, flying forward and hitting Jaune with a high kick to the face, sending him barreling into the ropes. He went to circle out, but found his legs were caught in the cables, he fought desperately to free himself, but Yuma wasn't having it. He landed in front of Jaune and began to whale on him.

"Jaune! The distance! You have to work with the distance!" Ruby hollered from across the ring. He sent her a confused look before her face scrunched up. "Just duck out! Run!" He moved on instinct, letting the ropes part around him as he rolled out of the ring. He needed a breather. He growled as he stumbled to the ring barricade, trying to compose himself. He was getting sloppy. He'd been doing so well. They'd been doing so well. It was clear he and Ruby were heads and shoulders above these guys, but Yuma's wings had become an instant equalizer, thwarting every attack he'd tried. Speaking of the captain, he was busy taunting and flexing to the audience to be bothered with following Jaune out of the ring.

"You see Perry? That's how it's done!" He gloated, seemingly deaf to the vitriol the crowd spewed down at him. Perry didn't respond, the grunt still reeling from his beatdown.

Jaune racked his brain desperately. Yuma continuously kept him at bay and picked him apart on the outside. If Jaune tried to get in striking distance, Yuma would just fold his wings in front of him, making it impossible to get a read on what he was going for next. It wasn't an option to trade with him, if Yuma landed clean a few more times, he would be in trouble, no matter how much aura he had. But he couldn't just wait on the outside for Yuma to pick him apart. What was it Ruby had said? The distance?

The answer slammed into his head like a boot to the face. He couldn't just close the distance, but get rid of it completely. Yuma liked to fold his wings for the guard. If Jaune could get in close, crowd him, and secure a waistlock, he could trap Yuma's wings around him and suplex him to his heart's content. Jaune was tanky for a reason, he'd have to take a few hits, but he needed to get in close.

He returned to the ring, sliding in on his belly and standing back up.

"Why don't you just throw the towel in now and spare us the embarrassment." Yuma chuckled.

"Not happening." He gritted out as he rushed in, getting in close. Like clockwork, Yuma folded his wings in front of him, ready to counter. Screw it, he thought, but only for a brief moment as he charged in further, arms open and ready to grab. Yuma caught him square on the chin coming in, but it didn't matter. He wrapped his arms around Yuma's chest, one hand grabbing the other's wrist as he locked Yuma down.

"The hell are you–" Yuma began, but it didn't get far as Jaune reared back and slammed his forehead into the man's face, no doubt making Yuma see stars. Jaune threw a gut kick that landed true, bending Yuma double. Jaune wasted no time in securing a front facelock, pulling Yuma's head into his armpit and hurling himself to the mat, spiking the faunus' head directly into the canvas in a thunderous DDT. He yanked Yuma by the wrist, pulling him back up and whipping him towards the ropes, Yuma nearly out on his feet as he rebounded, stumbling towards Jaune. Jaune was ready to meet him there, loading up on his signature move. Just as Yuma reached him, he threw his right arm forward with all his might, catching Yuma across the sternum in a vicious clothesline that knocked the man clean off his feet.

"And Jaune connects with THE ARC BLADE!" Oobleck exclaimed from the booth. "Splendid! Quite the devastating signature when it connects with its target." It felt good to land the move again. But Jauen didn't have much time to dwell on it before he went to pin Yuma. But the bat Faunus wasn't beaten yet, and just as Jaune bent down, Yuma mustered the few scraps of resistance he still had to throw a kick upward to meet him, smashing Jaune on the side of the head as the faunus scrambled to retreat.

Jaune blinked the stars out of his eyes as he watched Yuma take flight, the older man wobbling in the air, desperately fighting to stay airborne. His equilibrium shot. Jaune sent Ruby a grin. Despite Yuma's tricks and gambits, he was coming up short. There was a vast discrepancy in their auras, with Jaune barely in the yellow and Ruby still in the green, a stark contrast to the mid and low yellow Yuma and Perry found themselves with. They couldn't keep it up for much longer. To Jaune's frustration, Yuma must've agreed considering he made no motion of returning to the ring, electing instead to beat his wings until he escaped his daze. The audience shared his sentiment, growing angrier and angrier for every moment Yuma stalled.

Jaune spun towards Ruby, desperate to figure out the new puzzle he'd been presented with. She looked like she wanted to say something, but caught herself, electing to just give him an encouraging nod. He couldn't help but notice what looked like apprehension in her eyes. It wasn't exactly helpful, but he didn't have time to think about it before he watched her point above him.

"LOOK OUT!" she screamed as Jaune turned, but not quite fast enough as Yuma swooped down and hammered his knee into the base of Jaune's spine, the latter gasping in pain. Guess Yuma wasn't as stunned as he let on. Jaune hauled himself up with the ropes. Turning back with his guard up to find…no one. A look to the ceiling gave him his answer. Yuma circled the ring like a bird of prey, darting back down for another pass much to the crowd's chagrin. It was such a cowardly way of fighting.

Jaune dove to the right, narrowly avoiding getting clocked by Yuma's boot. He went to counter, but Yuma beat his wings towards him again, knocking him to the side. They stayed that way for a few more minutes, with Yuma content to hit and run. But fighting on the backfoot had its consequences, and over time, Jaune began to feel his cardio weaken. Despite being the better and fresher fighter, Yuma's wings were proving to be a challenge he wasn't sure he could take on. Finally, after a particularly hard hit, he heard Ruby's shrill voice.

"Jaune! I can get past it! Tag me in!" she exclaimed from the corner; any trace of apprehension gone as she watched him duck another diving pass from Yuma. Jaune cocked an eyebrow. Could Ruby take him? If she was volunteering, then she must've had some faith in her ability to do it. That being said, that would deviate from the plan they'd set. What if things went wrong? What if Perry finally recovered and decided to get back into the fray? Could Ruby finish Yuma in time? Sure, she was fast, but was it worth it putting the strategy that had worked so well in jeopardy?

His thoughts proved to be his downfall as the momentary lapse in attention cost him severely. He felt fingers like iron clamps grab his wrists and to his horror, he was hoisted into the air, he glanced up, thrashing as he tried to escape Yuma's grip. Yuma sneered down at him. "It was a good match, but I'm sending you back to catering." He grinned as he let Jaune fall. It was only eight or nine feet, but his back hit hard. His hands flew to the back of his head, cupping it gingerly as he stared up at the ceiling. Yuma was circling again, readying himself for the finishing blow. Jaune had seen it before, a two-legged stomp from ten feet in the air. If that hit, despite his aura and determination to win, that might be too much. His eyes rolled groggily over to Ruby, who was leaning as far as her petite body could over the ropes, her hand outstretched desperately. In that moment, she looked a bit like an angel, ready to pluck him from the punishment above. Looking at her, he made a choice.

Forget the plan.

Forget it all. Using the last bit of energy he had, he threw his body towards the corner, his arm outstretched in a desperate attempt to tag her in. His last ditch effort was rewarded as he felt his fingers graze hers. It was contact, and that was more than enough. Ruby rocketed through the ropes and back into the fight as he rolled to the outside, taking a few moments to get his wind back.

He was still firmly in the yellow aura wise, but his lungs burned. His cardio had drastically improved, and would no doubt continue to do so, but right now? He was gassed. He watched as Ruby sprinted into the ring, bouncing off the ropes in an attempt to catch Yuma as he came in. Jaune went to sit down on the ring apron, but Ruby's voice stopped him.

"Don't get too comfortable, I need you to be ready!" She called out as she nimbly avoided an attack from Yuma. He wasn't sure what she was getting at. He needed a rest. He went to protest but clammed up at the last minute. He wasn't going to heckle his own teammate. Things were just different from what he was used to. But they'd already thrown away the plan. At this point, all he could do was put his faith in Ruby.

She hadn't steered him wrong yet.

Speaking of his new partner, Ruby closed the distance, throwing a kick that caught Yuma on the side of his guard. Just as Jaune had suspected, Yuma took to the skies to avoid further punishment. But he'd made a mistake.

Ruby was no Jaune Arc, and just as Yuma went to escape, Ruby activated her semblance.

What was once a girl in black and red was now a blur of what he could only describe as pure crimson. The crowd yelped in surprise, clearly not having expected the bizarre transformation. The blur rocketed upwards, arcing towards Yuma like a vortex, traversing the distance between the two faster than Jaune could blink. Yuma saw it too, his eyes widening in surprise as Ruby canceled her semblance right in front of him, reappearing for all the crowd to see as she threw her fist to the skies, the little limb smashing directly into Yuma's chin.

He tumbled from the sky like a modern day icarus. Thrashing his limbs violently as he descended, landing in a heap at the base of the corner across from Jaune. Ruby fell too, reactivating her semblance and coasting back down to the canvas like a shooting star, stopping directly in front of Jaune, in their corner with nothing but a pile of rose petals to prove it.

Ruby threw him a wink before she turned back to face Yuma, crouching down in their corner. She had a hand on the ropes, her other hand stretched towards Yuma, beckoning at him to get up. Yuma wasn't paying attention though, to be honest, Jaune would've been surprised if Yuma even knew what planet he was on. The older man dragged himself up with the ropes, and reclined back in the corner, using the cables to balance himself upright.

It was the worst decision he could've made.

Ruby rocketed forward, reactivating her semblance and crossing the ring in milliseconds. She emerged from the blur; a leg raised in front of her as she flew towards the half-conscious man. There was nothing Yuma could do as Ruby's boot found its home stamped directly against his temple, hitting the man with enough force to snap his head to the side. Jaune barely caught the whites of the faunus' eyes as they rolled back into his head, slumping forward onto the canvas. He'd seen it a few times during training but watching Ruby's Petal Burst finisher on the big stage had him gobsmacked. Speaking of Ruby, she followed Yuma down, face tight in determination as she hooked one of his legs for the pin.

Then she froze. A smile splitting the concentration on her face as she got off of Yuma, instead grabbing the unconscious man's arms and dragging him towards their corner. Jaune gave her an incredulous look as she bounded towards him.

"Stick out your hand!" she exclaimed eagerly. Jaune shook his head.

"Why didn't you pin him!?"

Ruby motioned to the crowd around them. The sea of people rumbled like the ocean itself, with people bouncing and waving all around him.

"They want to see you win Jaune. It's your return match. You should get the pin."

Jaune's eyes widened, his heart beating faster. "A-are you sure? What if he wakes up? What about Perry?"

Ruby shrugged back at him. "Then I guess you better hurry! But it doesn't look like he'll be moving anytime soon."

Jaune's eyes found hers, the two sharing a brief look.

"Ruby, thank you." he breathed as he slapped her palm. The crowd swelled in approval as he stepped back into the ring, scaling the ropes until he reached the top. He took a moment. Unlike Ruby, he knew what he had to do to make this worthy of a highlight reel. The perfect way to cap off his return to the VWC. Standing atop the post, he raised his hands to the sky, turning to face the crowd as he threw his arms up towards them, begging them one last time for their energy. They returned it in kind as they began to chant his name.

"JAUNE! JAUNE! JAUNE! JAUNE!"

The words filled him with passion as if he'd just been injected with thousands of volts of crackling electricity. He curled his right arm into an elbow, tapping it a few times with his left hand before he launched himself from the top rope, turning in the air until he was perpendicular to his victim. Time almost seemed to slow down as he fell, for a moment reliving the pain of being put on break, the joy of meeting Ruby, and the fear and anxiety he felt joining the tag division. He put those all into his elbow as he crashed down, slamming the joint directly on Yuma's sternum, lunging over and hooking his leg for the cover.

Dew was ready for him, sliding down beside them, her hand raised.

1…!

The crowd counted with her, hundreds of voices ringing out.

2…!

Ruby crowed it from the corner, bouncing up and down like a madwoman.

3!

Jaune screamed along with the crowd as Dew's hand came down for the third time, impacting the mat with a soft thud, followed by the ring of the bell. The crowd erupted like a dam breaking, flooding the stands with cheers and applause as Jaune felt everyone in the arena, including himself, breathe a well-earned sigh of relief.

A sigh that for once, he wasn't a failure.

A sigh that he made good on his word to be better than when he'd left.

Emotion clutched at his heart as he rolled off of Yuma, who was only just now beginning to stir. He pumped his fist to the lights as relief crashed down on him, vaguely aware of the sound of guitars and trumpets, his music, filling the hall with a sense of triumph and victory.

"HERE ARE YOUR WINNERS, AND THE FINAL TEAM TO ENTER THE VYTAL TAG TEAM TOURNAMENT!" Port began before taking a deep breath. "RUBY ROSE AND JAUNE AAAAAAAAAAAAAAARC!"

He'd done it.

They'd done it.

He dragged in ragged breath after ragged breath as he stared up at the rafters, too overcome with emotion to move from his place on the canvas. Thankfully, he didn't have to. His vision, which was once filled with the harsh glare of stadium lighting, was replaced by something infinitely better. A tired pale face, with two silver eyes that shined like moons, looking down at him with an emotion he'd been longing to see for months now.

Pride.

The warmth in Ruby's gaze was only matched by the dazzling smile she wore.

"We did it! We won!" She squealed as she helped him into a seated position. The moment he had his balance back, he lurched forward, wrapping his arms around her and crushing her against him in a tight embrace.

"Thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you." he murmured into her ear as he felt her stiffen, but only for a moment before her own arms wrapped tightly around him. She didn't say anything, but she didn't have to as they stayed there for another brief moment, relishing their victory. Someone cleared their throat behind him, and Jaune flushed, letting go of Ruby and gazing up at them.

Dew Gayl beamed down at the two, extending a hand to both. They took her up on her offer, and before he knew it, he and Ruby were standing tall in the center of the arena, all eyes on them. He looked over to Ruby, mouthing "Three, two, one." On one, they threw their arms up, posing victoriously in the middle of the ring. It elicited another cheer from the crowd. A look over his shoulder showed Yuma slowly rolling out of the ring, with Perry finally having come to. It was customary for the losers to vacate the ring, leaving the winners to enjoy the spoils. The winners. He was a winner. He sent them a nod before turning back to the ring, just in time to watch Peter Port unceremoniously slide through the ropes. His fine girth made it a bit difficult, but he managed to make his way in, a microphone clutched tightly in his right hand. As he reached them, he brought it to his mustachioed lips.

"Let's hear it, for Jaune Arc and Ruby Rose!" he demanded as the crowd popped once again, showering them with applause. Jaune waved to the audience while Ruby shrunk nervously against him. "Fine work you two, a proper smackdown befitting of the show we've come to love. Jolly good show!" Jaune leaned forward and took the mic from Port, bringing it to his lips in a swift motion.

"Thank you, and it's good to see you, sir." Jaune laughed. He turned his attention to the crowd. "WHAT'S UP VALE?" The crowd roared its response as Jaune shrugged his shoulders. Classic trick, but never fails. "I've missed you guys. I've missed all of this." He began, "I promised you I'd be back, didn't I? I promised I'd come back and show you I had what it takes to win in front of all of you!"

Chants of "WELCOME BACK! WELCOME BACK! WELCOME BACK!" rained down upon him as his heart fluttered.

"Thank you, thank you." He chuckled, waving a hand as if to say, "Aw shucks." "But I didn't come back just to win in front of you guys. There's something else I promised…didn't I?" He continued cheekily, giving the audience a few beats to wonder what he was referring to. "Last time I stood in this ring I promised I'd become a Vytal champion! And that journey begins…right NOW!" he finished, spittle flying from his mouth as he dug deep, putting as much heart and passion into the words as possible. "You best believe we're coming for those tag team titles!" He let the crowd process his words for a few beats before he spoke again. "But it wouldn't be right for me to say that, and not introduce you to my new partner." He added as he stepped towards Ruby.

"Everyone, this is Ruby Rose, my new tag partner. I started training with her when I got put on my break, and as you can see from her performance tonight, she's here to change the game!" He bellowed as he pointed at her. She flushed, then she plucked the mic out of his hands.

To her credit, she didn't outwardly show just how terrified she was, but Jaune had known Ruby for a decent amount of time now. The subtle rocking on her heels, her trembling hands, the way she twitched a bit when she was nervous. It was all he needed to see. But they'd discussed the possibility of her trying her hand at the post-fight interview. In truth, it was Ruby who brought up wanting to speak if they'd won. They worked hard during that last day to practice for Ruby's debut on the microphone.

"T-That's right!" Ruby exclaimed, her voice trembling. "I…I know I'm new here, and that you all don't know me, and that maybe a lot of you…might not like me at first. But I'll win you over!" She yelled, gazing into the skeptics. "Jaune and I? We're going to fight. We're going to give it everything we've got. And we're not just here to fill a spot in this tournament. We're here to win it and become the new VWC tag team champions! And you can BET ON THAT!" she hollered, her vocal cords bulging as she threw a fist pump so tenaciously that Jaune couldn't help but join her.

To Jaune's elation, they cheered. Sure, it wasn't quite as loud as the other pops of the night, but for Ruby's first promo in front of a live audience, it was a result she could be thrilled with. And she was, if her wide smile was anything to go off of.

"Powerful words! I for one can't wait to watch your next performance, and I'm not the only one in that regard." Port remarked before turning back towards the stands. "Ladies and gentlemen give it up for Jaune Arc and Ruby Rose!"

Just as he finished, the speakers began to blast out Jaune's music once more, a perfect backdrop for their victory as they continued to celebrate with the fans.

/

Weiss Schnee looked up at the bar's neon sign and groaned.

Out of all the venues they could've chosen, they had to pick this one. Her nose wrinkled as she pushed through the glass doors, careful to avoid the various smudges that dotted the panes. She'd just gotten a fresh manicure, and she would be damned if she was going to damage her newly baby blue nails in a place like this.

Why couldn't we have just picked the cafe, she lamented as she began to push her way through the packed bar she'd found herself invited to, making sure to shoulder past a few oafs blocking the entrance. Her eyes narrowed, the lights were bright, obnoxiously so for a place of dining. But surprisingly, that wasn't the biggest thing that aggravated her about the establishment. No, it was the abundance of flat screen televisions that littered the walls, covering enough of the place that the top half of the walls looked like the surface of a disco ball.

At least it's not a club this time, she reminded herself as she let out a relieved sigh, finally pushing past the initial surge of people. She craned her neck, attempting to scan the bar for any sign of her friends. Unfortunately, she wasn't what anyone would call vertically inclined. Her short stature made it far too hard to see over the clusters of heads that dotted tables, booths, and barstools. She got on her tiptoes, gracefully stretching her spine as she got a few more inches in, her head moving around on a swivel. Thankfully, she was rewarded for her efforts.

"Weiss!" A voice called out from the other side of the room. "Over here!"

The familiar voice was like a lighthouse in a storm, if the storm was a gaggle of drunk hooligans, and the lighthouse was a familiar hand sticking up from one of the booths. She shuffled through the various groups of bodies, finally reaching a booth tucked in the far corner, away from the barrage of televisions. The warm smile of her cafe coworker greeted her.

"Hi Weiss," Blake Belladonna began, a warm smile on her face. "I'm glad you could make it."

Weiss returned the expression in kind, bowing her head slightly as Blake got up, pulling her into a light side hug. "Like I'd miss this," She began as she stepped back. "We only get to go out once a week after all, if we're lucky."

Blake looked like she appreciated the sentiment. "Thank you for understanding about moving it from Friday to Monday this week," she started sheepishly, "It's just that this weekend's going to be busy and–"

"Save it Belladonna." Weiss chuckled. "I know you two have plans. I'm just happy that we even managed to get something on the books for tonight, despite the uncouth company we find ourselves in."

"And to think you were so cold when we first met." Blake said, suppressing a laugh as Weiss cringed at the memories. She'd been hurting after she'd left her father, and the decision to start work at Tukson's Books and Cafe wasn't an easy pill to swallow.

"Like you were any better." She retorted with a smirk. That was right. Blake hadn't exactly been too fond of Weiss once she'd realized she'd be working with a Schnee. But a mutual distaste of Weiss' father had helped the two break the ice, and in the years following they'd become inseparable, bound by a love of sarcasm and warm beverages.

"We both learned not to judge a book by its cover, didn't we?" Blake mused as she took a sip of her drink. Weiss went to say something but fell forward as some idiot shoved past her. She whipped her head around, determined to give the buffoon a tongue lashing he wouldn't forget, but Blake stopped her.

"Weiss wai–" But Weiss didn't end up needing the warning, managing to reign her building temper in. It wasn't directed at Blake, but she couldn't help but find the setting of their little rendezvous unsatisfactory.

"Ugh this place is full of idiots." She grumbled, turning her attention back to Blake. "Why couldn't we have just picked the Cafe? It's nice, it's quiet, and there's drinks I can actually enjoy there." She huffed, crossing her arms.

"Because it was my turn to pick!" A cheery voice hollered from behind her. Weiss balked as two strong arms wrapped around her midsection, letting out a yelp as she was lifted a few inches off the ground. She craned her head, sighing as she recognized the familiar voice. Baby blue eyes met lilac as Weiss came face to face with Yang Xiao Long.

"Put me down you oaf!" Weiss yelped as the blonde brute squeezed her tighter before setting her down.

"Sorry Weiss cream," Yang started, scratching her cheek. "But it's been a minute since I've seen ya!"

"I saw you last week, Yang." Weiss deadpanned. "And of course it was you who picked here for this week's rendezvous." she groaned as she slid onto the booth's bench. Yang did the same next to Blake, her expression morphing into one of mock anger.

"Come on, Weiss. How could you not love this place? There's everything you could ever want here. Sports, music, drinks, and you can't forget about the bar food." She gushed as she flipped open one of the sticky menus. "I'm gonna get the wings. Blake, if I'll let you have a few if you let me have some of whatever you're getting. I'm starving."

Blake rolled her eyes as she opened her own menu. "You never like what I get though."

Yang nodded. "That's because you keep getting spicy stuff. You can knock back food that's practically doused in lava like it's nothing."

"Maybe Ms. Vale needs to up her spice tolerance. Wouldn't hurt to refine your palate." Blake teased as she leaned against Yang's broad shoulder.

"I'm sorry I'm not from Menagerie! What were they raising you guys on? Pepper spray?" The blonde balked.

Weiss giggled as the two continued back and forth, absentmindedly flipping through her own menu. There was a reason she always looked forward to their nights out. Yang and Blake just got her, even if the former was a bit of a buffoon. They also made for excellent entertainment. She closed her menu, deciding on a salad, hopefully one that wouldn't be dripping with grease, like she suspected everything else here would be. "Are we ready to order?"

Blake went to say something, but Yang beat her to it, her voice tentative. "Not yet, we're still waiting on Ruby. Right?"

Weiss winced. She'd known the subject was going to come up, but that didn't make it any easier. It also didn't help that it was a routine she'd become somewhat used to over the years. Blake realized what she was about to say, shifting her gaze to Yang.

"Ruby…well, she said she wasn't going to be able to make it tonight." Weiss confessed, Yang stilled as silence took over the booth, only broken up by the loud shouts of sports fans around them. It took a few beats until Yang spoke again, her voice low.

"Was…was it because of–"

"No!" Weiss blurted out. "She didn't even know you were coming, I swear. She was going to be here tonight, but something came up last minute, and she was gone by the time I got off my shift."

"Ah." Was all she said as she snatched up her menu, flipping through the pages once again. Blake laid a hand on the taller woman's bicep, giving it a light squeeze.

"Maybe she'll come next time." Blake murmured into Yang's ear, before she pressed a brief kiss to Yang's temple. Yang just looked away. Weiss suppressed the urge to roll her eyes. Even in a situation like this, she always managed to become the third wheel.

Thankfully, the mood was saved as a waitress in a tight black outfit stepped into view. "Welcome to Dust & Drafts, I'm Draya, I'll be your server today. Are we ready to order?"

They ordered, happy to have something to change the subject from Ruby's absence. Thankfully their food and drinks arriving was a perfect distraction. Weiss cursed under her breath. She loved Ruby like a sister, it was hard not to. Sure, she was a complete geek, but no one on Remnant would be able to hold out before Ruby's heart and kindness won them over. While Weiss wasn't surprised that Ruby hadn't shown tonight, the reasoning this time confused her. She'd been all over the place since the weekend, spending the whole time in her room, when she came out to eat, Weiss had caught her zoning out more than usual.

She hoped she was okay. She'd attempted to broach the subject, but Ruby had assured her there was nothing to worry about. She'd gotten a text from her earlier today, explaining she'd be missing their night out.

"ATTABOY, JAUNE! GIVE 'EM THE BUSINESS!" A voice from the booth behind them boomed. Weiss rolled her eyes at the loud distraction. Yang saw her expression and shrugged, her toothy grin finally returning.

"Sorry Weiss, that's just what you get when you come to a sports bar." she joked as she took a long sip from her strawberry sunrise. The fact that it was her second was not lost on Weiss, or Blake for that matter.

"You might want to slow down." Blake purred, her amber eyes twinkling mischievously. "We don't need a repeat of last time. Yang paled before nodding. Weiss knew exactly what she was talking about. It was the one good thing to come out of the one time they'd gone to the club. Watching Yang pay for bringing them there by vomiting into the toilet for half an hour more than made up for the rough night.

"Yeah, Yang, maybe you should–" She began before she was cut off by the same loud imbecile from the booth behind her, clapping his hands in satisfaction.

"THAT'S HOW IT'S DONE! THAT'S MY GOAT RIGHT THERE!"

"Even if he wins this, he's going to be 5-6, the hell do you mean GOAT?" another voice rang out from the booth.

"He's still my boy no matter what!" The drunken fan belted out. Weiss could feel a headache coming on, desperately missing the chill atmosphere of the quiet cafe. She glared at Yang.

"Did you have to pick this place? This racket is unbearable."

Yang rubbed the back of her head. "Sorry Weiss, I just thought this place would…" She trailed off, shaking her head and scooping up a menu. "Who wants dessert! I'll pay." Weiss shrugged, come to think of it, she was in the mood for a bit of a sweet treat. She flipped towards the back end of the menu, her eyes scanning the items. They lingered on one at the top. "Vale's best strawberry milkshakes!" She hummed, a little confused at the specificity of the accolade. Her eyes widened a bit, Ruby did love strawberries, didn't she? Milkshakes too. Come to think of it, Ruby would be in heaven here. The chocolate sundaes, milkshakes, and various puddings would have her roommate's mouth watering. Weiss lamented that she couldn't make it.

They ended up ordering milkshakes, with Blake choosing to grab a brownie instead. They chatted idly, catching up, lamenting over bad customers, or in Yang's case, working with the other techs at the machine shop. This was always the part Weiss looked forward to most about their time together, taking a load off from the week and sharing stories with two of her favorite people. The two lovers also did well to keep Weiss' temper at bay as the ruffians behind them continued to chant and cheer over whatever dumb sport they were watching.

"I've got half a mind to tell them to quiet down." Weiss grumbled.

Yang laughed, shooting a glance at her girlfriend. "Look out Blake, Weiss might just get us into a bar fight. I'll protect you, promise."

"Like I'd need protecting." Blake retorted, mirth dancing in her golden eyes.

"It's not a bad thing to want some peace and quiet." Weiss huffed as she folded her arms against her chest. "What are they watching that could even evoke such a disruptive reaction?"

Yang shrugged. "My best guess is VWC. It's a Monday, and it's right around main event time."

Blake and Weiss shared a look, but only for a second as Yang's chuckling cut through the silence. "Guys, I'm fine with talking about the VWC. It was a long time ago." She finished with her classic cocky grin.

"1…2…3!" The booth roared in delight from behind her as the stamping of feet could be heard. Weiss spared a quick glance behind her. It was a mistake. One of the idiots threw his hands up to cheer, still clutching his pint of beer. It sloshed out of his grip and over the side of the booth, spilling directly onto Weiss' shoulder. Right onto one of her nicer dresses.

That was it.

Blake and Yang shared worried expressions as Weiss stood, shoving herself up from the booth to give those idiots a piece of her mind. Yang rushed up from across the table.

"Weiss hold on–"

But Yang was too late. She'd already rounded the corner, ready to shout her disdain for their ridiculous behavior. She almost smirked as their eyes went wide as they looked away from the screen mounted on the side of her booth as she stood before them, ready to let them know just what she thought of them.

But the words never made it out of her mouth. No, instead her jaw simply hung open as she got a chance to see what exactly they'd been cheering about. A ragged gasp from beside her confirmed that Yang had also seen what she was looking at.

Or rather, who.

/

Vale's guest hotels were terrible, she decided. The lights were too bright, the television was too small, and the beds, god, the beds. They were hard as rock. Sure, she'd slept on much worse, but come on. So much for hospitality, she groaned as she shuffled, trying and failing to get comfortable.

When she ripped through this tournament and became champion, the first thing she'd do was buy a bigger and better one.

It was what she deserved after all.

After everything she'd been through, she deserved everything, and there was no time better than now to prove it. The prospect excited her. All that was standing between her and all the lien she could ever want were fifteen fragile teams. She couldn't help but snicker. If that was it, then she was as good as rich.

But it wasn't her imminent wealth that excited her. Not this time at least. No, it was the scene unfolding before her on the VWC Network. She thought it would be best to do some last-minute recon on their competitors, but she hadn't been expecting this. It was rare enough that she received a surprise, even rarer that it would be a good one. But this? This had her grinning ear to ear. Jaune Arc and Ruby Rose continued to celebrate on the silver screen, taking in the cheers of the audience. She uttered a quiet prayer that they wouldn't get eliminated too early.

"Poor bastard," her partner remarked, lazily flipping through a comic on the bed beside her. "He's got no idea what he's getting into, huh?"

"Eh, it doesn't matter, does it?" she said nonchalantly, hoping he hadn't seen her real intentions. Her teammate could be a real pain in the ass, and the last thing she needed was to further dumb herself down by speaking to him. "Just another team."

"Yeah, but I know that look. I think you're especially excited to crush that team." he quipped, putting down the comic to give her a knowing grin.

"Maybe you're not as dumb as you look, Mercury." Emerald Sustrai snickered, a cruel grin worming its way across her face as she clicked off the TV.

If Ruby Rose really was going to be one of their competitors, then it was something to get excited over. It had to have been years since she'd last seen the signal rookie. She knew she'd enjoy carving her way through the brackets, but that team? Breaking that one would be special. Especially taking their history into account. All she had to do was crush little Ruby Rose's dreams.

After all, she'd done it once before.

What was the harm in doing it again?

---

And that's how you end a season! I can't believe arc 1 is already over. And with a villain reveal to boot! Shoutout those that figured out Emerald was Ruby's ex tag partner. We'll just have to see where things go from here, hehe. I wish I could do a more detailed breakdown but sparking zero is about to release and I wanted to get this out first!

When I first started this, I gotta be honest, I didn't really expect to make it this far. I had written a quick oneshot before, but that was about it. I'd never done character interaction, or any type of chapters in my life. But sitting here now, almost a year later, I'm really proud of myself. I don't want to toot my own horn or anything, but this work matters a lot to me, and I hope to continue making it for you guys.

But I can't talk about how I feel about all this without talking about you guys. You guys have been INCREDIBLE! Your guys' reviews singlehandedly provided me with the motivation to write all this so far, and without you guys, it wouldn't be the same. So I just want to say thank you, so much for reading my fic up till now, and I'm grateful for every single one of you. You guys have made this journey we've started together fantastic, and I owe it all to you. After a chapter I'll wake up to see if anyone commented, and it fills me with passion and motivation to keep the train rolling.

But we're not stopping here, we've only just gotten started. I have the ending already figured out, and most of the act 2 story beats. Now I just need to connect the dots. But hopefully it won't be too long. We'll be back in no time.

Once again, thank you all for your support and see you in the next one,

- Curb

---

As promised, a list of the moves done in this chapter and where you can find them on youtube to help visualize it.

Headlock throw - Hip toss

Atlesian suplex - German suplex

Menagerie Drop - Samoan Drop

Yuma's leg drop - Diving leg drop

Jaune's powerbomb - Sit out powerbomb

Ruby's first two moves - Arm drag

Hurricanrana

Ruby's handspring - Handspring back elbow

Five star frog splash

Shattered moonsault - Springboard moonsault

Yuma's neckbreaker - Running neckbreaker

Arc Blade - Clothesline from Hell

Petal Burst - Helluva Kick

Arcangel Elbow (WIP Name haha) - Diving elbow drop