Howdy Folks

I'm hoping this turns out to be a good one for ya'll.

(I do not own RWBY)

VOLUME 1 CHAPTER 7 - It's All Shits and Giggles Until Someone Giggles and Shits

I twittered out a tune in a low voice. A sorry excuse for a song really, as I misremembered most of the lyrics and simply made most of it up in rhythm with the melody as I walked along the halls.

Something from the life I had not long ago. And is lost to those here.

"Sounds like an oldie."

I stopped walking. My feet ached a bit, although to be honest everything does, and I had draped my blazer over my shoulder with one hand while the other rested in my pocket. My knee jerk is to raise my hands when I'm startled but seeing as they were occupied, I settled for simply flinching. Then turned to the helpful commentator. Standing just in the blindspot of a corner in the dorm hall I rounded.

"Maybe. Though I doubt you know the song." I said.

It's only an old song if you consider songs close to thirty to be 'old'.

Regardless, it's Gone Away by The Offspring. Stuck in my head for days and I'm catching myself almost unconsciously humming it sometimes. From the sound of it, I assume it isn't the type of music people expect to hear from Remnant's contemporary artists. A strange realization, but one that interested me a little. I had to wonder what people listened to here, whether music was really something they had time to engage in all that much and what it was like. What with the looming threat of Grimm out there in the world.

People find a way to make time for that stuff though. Whether times are tough or not. The never-ending desire of the spirit of mankind to endure, to find ways to keep one's head above the water by way of music or some other medium. At least, that's what I think.

But I digress. The world is different, that's all I know. Guessing as to how different culturally is pointless. I'm proved right in my guess time and again however, that things that should stay the same are not and things that shouldn't are.

The girl, who had a beret and a pair of sunglasses (she's indoors, so it makes her look goofy), smirked a bit.

"Names Coco. You've got a funky style."

"Yeah? Is it funky enough to get your number?" She burst out laughing in my face. I didn't take it too hard. I was kind of hoping this tactic would serve to get her to shoo.

"Sorry, but no. You've got a good initiative though, I'll give you that." She responded after her laughing died down.

"Woe is me, I suppose." I shrugged, bored. A twinkle shone through her eye and she pushed her aviators down.

"You're a freshman, right? And you haven't introduced yourself."

"No, I haven't."

"Are you going to?"

"I dunno."

"Huh?" She raised an eyebrow. I sighed tiredly.

"Look, whatever, name's Jack. It's been a long first day. I'm trying to find someone in the dorms and I don't feel like entertaining whatever this is. So you know, peace and love sister." I clicked my tongue at her and winked. Then smoothly turned and continued mumble singing.

I heard a door to her left open and deep voice engage in conversation with her. A brief glance behind me before I rounded another corner let me spy on a mountain of a guy. I lost sight shortly after and shrugged, returning to my business.

Ruby, Ruby, Ruby. Where the hell are you?

The longer I take the less nerve I have to ask her for advice. Damn it, maybe I should have asked Coco where to find her room. Why in the actual fuck is this place so hard to navigate for like, no reason?

I really don't want to go back to my team's room yet. Not until I have some sort of…plan, I guess. An apology is a good start, but I need to know a way to make it up to them. Who better than mustard hair's sister?

By this point I was quiet. I stopped by a window and peered out into the late day campus. Today was a fair bit cooler than yesterday. Some students were out and about with jackets that match their flamboyant and colorful outfits, talking with their friends. Telling them about the first day of classes this semester most likely. I wonder what my team is doing now.

Am I seriously going to start asking a fifteen year old for advice? Well, maybe for Yang. Ruby would know her own sister best. And getting at least one teammate not to completely disregard my existence is a massive win for me.

Then again, I think I really pissed her off…

"Jack?"

I jumped, glancing at Juane rounding the corner. He had his scroll in his hand, a few low volume retro game noises emitted in an almost erratic manner. Like it's designed to put you on edge.

"Hey." I greeted.

"Hey, Jack!" Ruby materialized next to him. Mimicking pretty much the same actions as him, her scroll out and combining its sound waves with Juanes in a paltry cacophony of an arcade style hubbub. They were playing games on their scrolls together.

"I-uh…hey…" Oh. Yeah. The less said about how embarrassingly nervous I am, the better. And Juane's here too! That's just great.

How do I approach this topic? Juane almost started advancing past me, but paused when he noticed the…I don't even know what to call it. Strain? Tension? Bleeding emotional torment that's so pitiful it would give second-hand embarrassment?

"I…I mean-" I stumbled over my words for a moment. "I think-I know…I should take you up on that thing you offered to help me with?" This feels cringe.

Ruby looked up at me for a moment. She did this weird thing with her face, her eyebrows knitted together almost and she moved her mouth to one side of her visage. It seemed contemplative, in an almost rudimentary way. Like she doesn't quite know the art of the poker face.

I'd have to say I'm much the same. I was actually a little sweaty, and my eyes probably looked like they were about to bulge out of my skull like I was Tio Chico.

"I know somewhere we could go…" Ruby said, she glanced at Juane.

"Wh-Why are you looking at me?!" Juane almost curled his face in a wince.

"You know the way." Ruby said matter-of-factly. Making a shooing motion for Juane in the direction he was supposed to go.

"I don't wanna get in between…whatever." He made wild hand gestures during the pause.

"You're his friend too, right?" Ruby asked with more firmness than before.

Is he though? I looked at him.

He stuttered and then sighed before turning and sulking off to lead us away…somewhere. Ruby elbowed me and motioned for me to follow along. I frowned, but treaded beside her.

The propensity for the rich to seek out luxury over the simple things in life was a topic of some inner controversy within Weiss's mind. On one hand, having the resources and not indulging yourself at least a little feels like a missed opportunity. She doesn't like missed opportunities.

On the other hand, there's a strange appeal to her when it comes to simple things. Sleeping in the dorm rooms for example, instead of large bedrooms with queen sized beds and plenty of room, eating in a cafeteria instead of a lavish dining hall.

Meeting people who simply say "hello" In casual manner rather than curtsy in greeting or are overly polite as an obligation.

However, that doesn't mean she doesn't want the minimal amount of respect a Schnee is owed. Some cretins are just incapable of giving it, even if she's done nothing to them.

Like Blake for instance, trying to make it seem like Weiss knows nothing of the world simply because she had wealth growing up (or at least that's what she presumed Blake meant in the dining hall this morning). But it's quite the opposite, you can learn a lot from being the daughter of one of the world's wealthiest men.

She's half socialite heiress, half aspiring Huntress. And she can't tell whether or not she prefers it that way. One lesson she found herself learning from all of it was: Sheep can never lead. And leaders can never be sheep. And making the right choice when it comes down to it is up to your wisdom alone.

But the choice was taken out of her hands. The headmaster, as respected as he is, had made a grave error. One she feels it is her duty to correct.

As Weiss finished speaking to the receptionist, she briskly found herself in the elevator. Pressing the button to the top floor, Headmaster Ozpin's office, a numb feeling bewitched her nerve endings as the doors closed. The box moved upwards. Now feeling almost coldly like some walk-in refrigerator.

No elevator music played.

She shifted uncomfortably. The Headmaster was always a character of some mystery to the general public and even most Hunters. A Huntsman who earned his stripes and had appeared seemingly out of nowhere in recent history. Yet reached the status of living legend soon after. Hell, he's had biographies written about him. But she digresses.

The Headmaster is the cream of the crop. Someone you don't want to get on the bad side of. So she needs to approach the subject with everything she's got.

Weiss breathed roughly through her nose as the doors slid open revealing the Headmasters office. Marching onward, her confidence evaporated seemingly out of nowhere. The Headmaster was gazing out of the window of his macro office. The visible gears and noise of the clockwork ticking away ominously and leaving a strange reverberation throughout her.

Something wasn't right. This didn't feel like she was nervous. But she did have a gut feeling about the headmaster in general. She was a rational person, but instincts are just as, if not more important in a Huntress.

Her instincts were screaming at her not to speak to him.

"Ah, Ms. Schnee. To what do I owe the pleasure?" Ozpin turned and addressed with casual politeness. Weiss shook off the feeling as much as she could. Ignoring what her instincts told her.

"Yes, hello Headmaster Ozpin. I was wondering if I could speak with you regarding-"

"-Mr. Horus?" She momentarily lost the lead in the conversation.

"If you are here to request you be made leader in his stead then I'm afraid I cannot do that." He sipped from a coffee cup, a seemingly uninterested expression on his face.

"S-Sir he's hardly qualified for a position of leadership! You must see that!"

"Perhaps. But with this method, it's entirely possible he'll rise to the occasion like many others have before." A baffling stillness followed and Weiss gawked for a moment. Being shut down so quickly wasn't exactly something that never happened to her, but hardly from people that weren't related or hardly without at least some explanation for the heiress of the Schnee Dust Company.

"I don't understand. He's very clearly untrained, and doesn't recognize Grimm types. He doesn't even know what the responsibilities are for a leader of a hunter team!" She spoke. On the verge of losing her temper in…she supposed she could call this negotiation. If she could even get a foothold.

Ozpin simply glanced at her with a small smile.

"He shouldn't be here, sir. He's an anomaly. It baffles me how lenient you are with him." She continued.

"Oh no, I disagree. Not an anomaly." Ozpin spoke. "You have my answer Ms. Schnee. But if you'd like some advice…learn to accept the things you can't control. Or, of course, you could make things easier for yourself."

"I'm not certain I understand…"

He shrugged.

"Teach him what you know regarding leadership, it's almost certain to make things better for you. One of the benefits of being on a team is learning the eclectic skills of your teammates and how that meshes with your own. I like to impress upon the importance of adaptability." He elucidated. Weiss blanched at the idea.

Jack Horus is the type of person whom her family would scoff at the idea of it learning even basic etiquette. To consider the mongrel capable of learning anything leadership related is preposterous.

"Sir, I must object strongly. I recommend I be placed in charge of JWBY. They all need to have someone like me as a leader or I fear they won't-" Ozpin slammed his cane down.

Weiss was around ten when she first saw her father berate her mother. Spit and spittle was about the only thing, it seemed, that her father was capable of producing then (aside from the colorful expletives). And for her mother, it seemed it was a stream of hateful barbs aimed at father. In hindsight, both sides weren't…well…it doesn't really matter.

Things didn't get better over time. And it came to a head when her mother finally broke in front of the whole family while they were eating dinner together. It was the last time in recent memory that she could remember having all of her family together in one place.

And her mother had screamed and cursed at her father about how much of a mistake it was to marry him.

Whether that tangentially meant her and her siblings were mistakes, she didn't know…But sometimes it can keep her awake at night.

When the cane clashed against the floor, the same feeling she had on that last family dinner seemed to swell in her for such a short amount of time she almost shook it off before it inundated her memories…almost.

Sorrow.

"This is the last time I'll say it. He will remain in the position of leadership for your team. You may not like it, but you must respect it. I hope over time you will come to see why I made this decision." Ozpin pushed his spectacles up his nose and shut his eyes almost solemnly.

Weiss looked down at the clockwork floor, finding nothing appealing about looking at anything else at the moment.

"I understand, sir." She bowed her head. Cowing yourself again, coward? Staring momentarily at the moving gears below the floor of glass. Watching the time go by.

His dismissal went in one ear and out the other as she turned and left. She pushed the button of the elevator back to the ground floor, she had plenty of time to humor a passing thought.

After all the tutors, training and studying. Can she really say she's liking where this is going?

She craned her view up to the numbers above the elevator door, decrementing by the passing second.

She's not backing down. And she's definitely not thinking about it anytime soon. But with everything that's happening now, and with all the obstacles she can see coming her way, does she still think this is the right thing for her?

Maybe. Maybe not. But even if she could make the Schnee name just a little shinier with this, turn things around for her family's legacy, it's worth it. It has to be. Because what else does she have?

As the floor number hit one, the doors opened. And she stepped out.

"I'm gonna kill myself."

"Don't say that!" Ruby grabbed my arm before I could fully swan dive off of the roof. Then pulled me back roughly from the edge with a frown.

"Dude! It can't be that bad?" Juane had the idiocy to frame that like a question.

"Nah man, it's pretty bad." Well, maybe not from their perspective. I put my hands on my knees as I hunched over, feeling sick. I'm pretty sure I have some mild PTSD that I don't quite have a handle on. And there's something to be said about quite literally losing everyone I ever cared about just a few weeks before reality melted around me and plopped me into fantasy land.

And me, not knowing how to deal with it, took that shit out on other people by acting crazy. If I'm being real, I've been doing that my whole life.

…Am I being too dramatic? Eh.

Nonetheless, I took a step here by telling them about my plight when it comes to my team. That's something at least.

"It's only been a few days. Your team can't hate you that bad…" Maybe Juane is right. Maybe I'm not completely hated. Maybe over time I could earn a little of their respect after flushing most of it down the toilet bowl by making an ass of myself. Pissing all over an attempt at making a good first impression, that is.

The thing is…I don't think I have enough time. Ozpin's going to clamp down on me. I can just feel it.

"I'm cooked. I can't think of a single thing I can do to at least alleviate my already horrible standing." I rubbed both sides of my face with my palms roughly. Imagining for a moment that I was made of clay and could change into someone else with considerably less issues.

I was so focused on this inane action that I was sufficiently startled when I felt Ruby pulling me down to look at her.

"You need to get your shit together." Oh. Thanks Ruby! Real great advice.

"My shit is together. My body is a machine that compresses shit at the atomic level."

"No. It isn't. On both counts. And that's fine. But you need to listen to me when I say that you freaking the heck out isn't going to help anyone. Least of all yourself. Trust me. Four-seven-eight. Breathe for four seconds, hold for seven, exhale for eight. Uh..well, That's the technique my therapist gave me anyway."

Oh really now? That doesn't inspire confidence. Speaking of, when did she become my therapist? Oh right, unbalanced superego.

"Alright….alright, I'm good…" A few obnoxiously deep breaths and I was back to just marginally stopping myself from curling into the fetal position on this rooftop and sobbing in front of them.

"Jack…are you ok? I mean, really ok? Anything you wanna talk about?" Ruby asked. Juane shuffled on his feet for a moment as he looked at me.

A pit opened in my stomach. So many thoughts rushed forth I had trouble really deciding what to voice in the first place. It's honestly surprising that I've had the willpower to even think about it at all let alone voice them in front of people. But…well…

"I think I miss my aunt." I could feel the contours of my face angle downward.

"Well, does she have a scroll? Can you talk to her? It might make you feel better." Ruby said oh so helpfully.

"She's dead." Surprisingly, it was pretty easy to get out there. "She…she…no, I can't say it." Until it wasn't easy to get out there.

They both reeled from my bluntness for a moment. Ruby going a bit pale and Juane faltering even more in assuredness as he glanced away from me perpetually. Golly, I think he wasn't prepared to be made uncomfortable. Does this qualify as 'trauma dumping' I wonder? Should I trauma dump? Is that really a thing I should be doing right now?

As I stood there spying them both trying desperately to pull themselves back onto their life boats and maybe jump in to comfort me like I know Ruby is going to try to do, I let the thought drive the main track for a moment…

No, I shouldn't be 'trauma dumping'. Because 'trauma dumping' is for little girls. And I'm a big manly man. The type of manly man who's too manly to be unmanly by doing the forbidden ritual of…showing emotion. It's time to stuff that shit back into that pit in my gut like always.

Except…it's not happening. No matter how hard I flex my abdomen and try to hide it with a grin. That deep profound sadness in me has been growing and growing since I stepped off that airship. And even by then, it was probably too bloated to shove down into me like always.

"I-I'm so sorry. I didn't mean-" Ruby floundered for a moment.

"You don't need to apologize. Neither of you do. It's just how it goes sometimes. Losing people fucking sucks." I shrugged as the cold words escaped my lips. Sticking my hands in the pockets of my blazer. Scowling at nothing in particular.

"How long ago?" Juane asked gently.

"I dunno. Two? Three weeks? I haven't really been paying attention for a while." Seeing that I was willing to talk, for whatever reason, Ruby chimed in.

"It'll get better…I just mean…I get where you're at right now…you know…"

"Sure." I said, not really caring whether or not she did. "I think I'm doing ok now."

"Are you?" Juane sounded skeptical.

"No, not really. But I'm doing better today than yesterday and so on. It's just…" I swallow. My throat feels dry. "Ever since then it just feels like…too many things have been happening. And all I want is for it to stop." My head fell tiredly into my left hand. My right eye peered unhindered because of my missing finger, spotting a few cans scattered on the roof. This place must be a popular spot. "...But something tells me it won't. And I need to be ready."

After a few moments, Ruby squeezed my arm gently. I glanced at her, and she smiled. Training my eyes on her for a moment, I took a deep breath and lifted my head. A few moments of silence stayed with us.

"Soooo, basically, you don't feel like you're ready for Beacon?" She asked.

"No, I'm definitely not ready. Truth is, I'm not a huntsman in training, I don't have any training under my belt. I don't even have an unlocked Aura."

…

A moment passed. Ruby blinked. Once. Then twice.

"What?" She uttered, dazed.

Meanwhile, the blonde boy stared at me slack jawed more in surprise than confusion.

I looked him in the eyes. Some kind of deep ocean blue that I'm pretty sure my late uncle had from the photos I've seen of him. The guy died when I was too young to have my first conscious thought, so I don't remember him.

But from all the pictures I've seen of him, his eyes were a mystical deep blue. The kind I never would've thought could exist for real. The exact kind of regretful, dishonest, fake transcripty eyes I could see on Juane right now.

But I couldn't really swim in that particular issue, not right now, not while I got other things to worry about. Hell, If he wants to have any chance to succeed here too, he had better tell the truth. But, that responsibility is on his shoulders. I'm not his nanny.

"Yeah, Ozpin let me in. Said he thought I had talent or something. I dunno, he was practically on his knees sucking me off for a bit. And then out of nowhere he gave me until the end of the month to get myself an unlocked Aura and a weapon, apparently." I shrugged.

Juane blinked and looked down as if he was checking if his shoes were untied and Ruby was making a dumb humming noise like she was in a drive thru and about to order.

"He-I mean-he kinda…did the same with me." Ruby said. She cringed a bit. "Praising, I meant! He didn't do any of…the other stuff."

"What? You mean after you stopped that robbery?"

"Yeah. After that."

I knew that already, of course. OH look at me, I'm such a know-it-all.

"Well, at least you have something under your belt. You've got more of a chance here than me. I've got no one to help."

"That's not true! I'll help. I'll even help you get your team on board with helping. We'll convince them. Together, we can make this a whole lot easier for you!" Ruby said. Stoking the fires of hope in my chest a bit.

"I'm not opposed to your help. But, I need somewhere to start and I dunno where. They definitely don't like me enough to help me now."

"You could just tell the truth and apologize." Juane said. Like it was the O word.

"ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND, SIR ARC!?" I screamed. Gibbering my jowls at him like a crazed mental hospital escapee.

"What?! I was spitballing! It's a reasonable thing to do!" He desperately tried to defend himself.

"They won't forgive me after a mere apology you…NINCOMPOOP!" I continued.

"Yang will." Ruby said casually. I was momentarily cut off from calling Juane more names (I felt better after insulting him though, so I might do it more later).

"…say what?" I turned my gaze back down to Ruby's silver eyes. She shrugged loosely at me.

"My sister isn't the type of person to hold a grudge against someone who is genuinely sorry. Besides, apologizing is the first thing you should be doing."

"B-b-but what if they don't forgive me for being an asshole!?" I sagged. Regrettably, I could feel dread swirl in my chest. GAH, I'M SUCH A PUSSY. Ruby sighed.

"They…probably won't." I felt my face curl as she spoke. "But, it's only the first step. You need to be consistent. Dependably good. Show them that you can be a good leader. Anyways, Yang will definitely accept your apology."

"Are you sure?...I don't think-"

"Nope." She said, Popping the 'p'. "She will." And she smiled at me as if there wasn't a care in the world. "And we'll help you with the others if you're having trouble."

"...She's right. We'll help you. Or uh, I'll try at least." Juane seemed to agree. Finding his footing in the conversation once again.

I glanced at him, unimpressed. But sighed after a moment. Feeling a little overwhelmed at both of them. They're so quick to jump in and support, I had to ask myself if this is what humans are really like.

It was an unusual thought. Until I realized I was standing in a place that shouldn't exist, with people who shouldn't exist.

"Look, I mean…" I hesitated from a moment and glanced to the side. I wasn't used to this. This…selflessness. "I know I came to you guys for help but…I…I guess didn't think you'd be so willing. I'm practically a stranger to you." I ran a hand through my hair.

Juane uncharacteristically gave me a confident smile.

"My mom says strangers are just friends you haven't met yet."

That…got a genuine laugh out of me. I looked at him, a smirk plastered on my face, A lighter feeling seemed to eat away at the dread in my chest like a flame to paper.

"You're weird, man." He gave his own smirk in return. Ruby pinched me slightly and I looked down at her with a frown.

"We're serious. You know that, don't you?" I sighed.

"Sure. Sure…"

"Gimme your scroll." I took it out of my pocket for her. She collected it and began putting hers and Juane's number in it, without his consent of course. He deadpanned briefly at my scroll in her hand and then we both glanced at each other and shrugged.

Ruby handed it back, took out her own scroll, and typed with nimble teenage girl fingers for a moment.

My scroll vibrated in my hand and I looked down.

670624891563852: hi :)

Long ass phone number, or scroll number, or whatever. Another difference I suppose.

I navigated to the group chat she made with me and one other number, which I assume is Juanes.

"So…"

"So, we can talk whenever."

A hummed in my throat.

"I guess…I guess I should go then."

Ruby nodded determinedly at me.

I ran a hand through my hair, fingers trailing across my scalp. I kept them there for a moment as I stared at the door to my dorm room.

Ruby insisted this would be best if I did this by myself, but said that she would be moral support if I needed it. All I had to do was text or give her a scroll call.

Seriously, why the fuck is she so nice?!

I whined softly to myself. My head flopped down and my gaze stared at the carpet. I just need to walk in and be as genuine as possible….somehow. Why is this such a big deal for me?! C'mon Jack! Pull yourself together!

Before I could even comprehend what I was doing I pushed open the door. Walking in.

"Hey-hey gang!" I choked a bit on my spit and ended up coughing roughly.

I laughed nervously as my three teammates glared at me for a moment before ignoring me. I flitted about for a jiffy in the center of the room. Yang and Weiss were still unpacking some of their stuff, with a bonafide metric ton of Weiss's luggage off in the corner.

Blake sat on her bed, her back on the headboard and still giving me a look, clutching a small faded green book at its base and holding open the pages with just her thumb, the rest of her fingers splayed out across the cover and making it hard for me to read the title.

Just. Be. Honest.

"Ladies! Ladies! May I have your undivided attention?" I pulled out a chair from a nearby desk. Flipped it around and sat down in it like I was a guidance counselor trying to seem cool.

"No." Weiss said.

"…Please? It's important." She paused, looking at me strangely.

"If this is about how you're untrained, have no unlocked Aura and still somehow managed to get into Beacon, don't bother. Blake already told us." Yang spoke.

Weiss gasped and gaped and then glared at Yang (HA! The three G's). "What?! This pauper's a civilian?! She didn't tell me that! Are you joking?!"

"Not everything's about you, Schnee." Blake spoke softly, glancing back at her book and turning the page.

"I wasn't saying it was! But as someone on the TEAM, I deserve to know-"

"Guys, stop." Both of them looked at me, rubbing my face tiredly.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry I didn't tell you that. Even though it probably wasn't that hard to figure out-"

"-Uh huh" Blake interrupted. I resisted the urge to glare at her.

"-AND…I'm sorry f-for how I acted. It wasn't cool."

"You embarrassed me in front of the class! Not to mention numerous other times you've disrespected me, and done it in front of people!" Weiss seethed through clenched teeth.

"Yeah, I know. And I'm sorry. And I'm sorry to Blake-" The raven haired girl raised an eyebrow at me using her name for once, lowering her book a bit to look at me. "-for being an asshole and making you uncomfortable occasionally…" She rolled her eyes. Which served to annoy me but I ignored it. Turning to Yang. She stopped for a moment from hanging up some boy band poster.

"And I'm sorry for how I talked to you when we first met. And how I continued to act. I was…no, I won't make excuses. I'm sorry."

"Geez, since when did you turn into The Sorry Guy? That was like fifteen times." Yang huffed.

I didn't respond. Instead I rested my hands in front of me, just on the back of the chair. Twiddling my thumbs slightly.

"Gods, you're even more useless than I thought! Don't even speak to me!" Weiss said. Pretty much hammering her nail into my coffin. She stormed out of the dorm, leaving her luggage still part way unpacked. The door slammed shut and I flinched a bit.

Blake didn't even react. Nor did she look at me. It was like this whole interaction meant nothing to her. I waited a moment, looking at my partner and hoping there was something there…

All she did was turn the page slowly. My head fell.

I knew this would happen. I'm a fucking stupid piece of shit.

There's the pattern. The whole ballad. Failure on top of failure, it doesn't stop, it doesn't slow, and it hurts just the same every time. I'm tired of feeling bad about myself, I'll check the unmanaged anger issues off on my bingo card today.

Something poked my temple. I frowned and glared up at Yang with said anger.

"Don't give me that look, you're fine." I blanked for a moment, squinting up at her.

"The fuck does that mean?!" She snorted.

"Exactly what I said, dumbass." She flicked her hair as it swayed behind her. I cleared my throat and sat up straight.

"O-Oh, that was…Ruby said you'd…nevermind." She gave me a knowing look. My pinky stump started hurting.

"You went to Rubes huh? What'd she tell you?" I stayed quiet for a moment as I stood and walked over to my bed, taking the backpack still slumped against one of its legs.

"That you…wouldn't stay upset with me if I apologized." I unzipped the pack and took my pill bottle, shaking out a few more painkillers and downing them.

She smiled at me. I was once again hit with an odd feeling, like it should have been something familiar.

"Psh, well, she was right. Besides…" She shrugged. "I don't mind if our little circle starts out with a Yang." I deadpanned at her. But huffed soon after.

"Wow, that was so clever it almost made me laugh."

"It just takes three to five business days, don't worry." She grinned at me. I snorted.

After a moment she turned back around and opened a box with the last of her stuff in it. I clenched and unclenched my fist for a moment as I glanced at Blake, she turned the page in her book and continued to pretend I didn't exist.

I sighed. Then I walked over to Yang's things. "Need some help?"

"It's the last box, but if you want." She gave me a look. Like a mixture of caution and inspection. Undeniably, she was still a bit wary around me.

After beginning to help her unpack the rest of her things, I realized Ruby was right. They won't start thinking highly of me just because I apologized. Including Yang, even if she seems cool about getting started back on the right foot.

I need to be dependable. Which means I need to start working on being a Huntsman.

I gotta tell ya, I'm really enjoying where I'm going with this. I forgot to mention last chapter, but yeah, I'm shooting for an update on this pretty much every two weeks. I'm alternating weeks when it comes to posting for this story and another one that I'm doing.

feel free to leave a review!