The First Date

Part II

Ruby squirmed in her seat, the pit of despair in her stomach growing exponentially with every passing second. The Airship's ticket inspector was quick, efficient, and - in Ruby's eyes - ruthless. While in reality, the man had a very charismatic smile and was even cracking the occasional joke. Ruby knew that it would soon be replaced with a stern frown when he finally arrived at her seat and asked for her ticket.

The thought of running off had crossed her mind, but the ingenious architects of the civilian Airship had made it so there was only one entrance, and, therefore, only one exit to the seating area of the Airship. The rest of the ship was off limits to anyone who wasn't an employee, and, although Ruby didn't know it, being caught there would have the Air Marshall ensuring the next time she touched the ground would be in cuffs.

Sweaty fingers drummed against her seat as the man collected the tickets of the nice family who'd been sitting across from her. The children she'd been trading grotesque faces with sent a smile her way, which morphed to confused expressions when she failed to do the same. Her heart spiked to levels it never reached without her Semblance being used, as the blue-uniformed man turned to face her.

"Hello there, Miss. It's a bit late to be out on your own, don't you think?" The man asked her, and Ruby tried to respond, learning she'd lost her voice at some point. Ruby gripped her seat tightly, upset that this was as far as she was going to get. Unable to meet the man's gaze, she tried her best to focus on his words and pretend she wasn't talking to a person.

"That's not really the case." Ruby finally squeaked out, staring at his chest. She noted his name was Xavier, if the silver pin was anything to go off of.

"Oh, so your family is here with ya, then?" The now dubbed Xavier asked, questioning himself as he tried to recollect having seen anyone leave the room since he entered.

"That's also, not really the case." The redhaired teen admitted in a soft voice.

"Well, which is it, Ma'am? Can you show me your ticket or not?" Xavier narrowed his eyes, his mouth turning into a thin line, much like Ruby had suspected, though she didn't look up to see it.

"I… I… I… listen, Sir-" Ruby tried to plead as pinpricks of tears began to form in the corners of her eyes.

Ruby would never know what Xavier would do since a hand fell upon his shoulder that very moment.

"Babe," he whined, "I asked you to wait a minute. You forgot I have our tickets, didn't you?" The blonde asked as he held up the small, stubs of paper.

"Thank you very much, sir." Xavier said warily, eyes shooting to Jaune, who was panting heavily, his chest pumping, while Ruby herself looked to be on the verge of collapsing.

Jaune flashed him a smile full of teeth as he sat down beside the red haired teen.

"J-Jaune!?" Ruby squeaked out, very surprised to see the blonde, though not ungrateful.

"I told you I'm here for you, didn't I?" The Arc managed to huff out, sinking into his seat and sending an awkward wave to the family across the aisle.

"Yeah… yeah, you did, didn't you?" Ruby mumbled, punching Jaune in the shoulder absent-mindedly.

"Oowww, what was that for?" Her manly date whined, holding his arm.

"That was for taking your sweet time getting here."

Jaune was still rubbing his arm, his genuinely true rebuttal dying in his throat as he turned to tell Ruby off in a playfully upset manner, when he saw her smiling at him before enveloping him in a hug. His eyes widened in shock, and he stiffened at the contact before he felt the young, redhead squeeze his sides.

"But, since you did get here, in the end, I'll let the babe thing go." Ruby murmured softly, her breath just reaching his ear and tickling him in just the right way that sent shivers coursing through his body.

"I, uh… yeah, thanks a lot, for that." The blonde remarked slowly, seeing the very young boy from the family across the aisle visibly disgusted, as well as the even younger, little girl besides him who was clasping her hands in excitement. His brain didn't have any time to digest the information, however, as it became engrossed in burning the memory of what was currently happening into its depths.

Ruby leaned back a bit, her arms still wrapped around Jaune's back, and smiled at him, before leaning forwards and pecking him on the cheek. Pulling away from the chaste kiss, the scythe-wielder let go of him, only to nuzzle into his chest, intent on being as relaxed as possible for the duration of the ride.

"I might not even mention it to Yang, once we get back to Beacon." She lazily said, adjusting herself in the hopes of finding the spot that would let her comfortably prop her legs up on the seat beside her.

Jaune himself just draped an arm around Ruby, eyes still closed as he basked in the moment that had completely blind-sided him. The goofy grin on his face slowly began morphing into one of abject horror as the words after the kiss finally registered.

Jaune's eyes fluttered open, contrasting sensations along with the drowsiness of having been asleep making for one very comfy awakening. The moment was not meant to last, however, as the rest of the world came into focus, in several, different ways. His back ached from having sat upright on the rigid seat for the last few hours, the arm he had wrapped around Ruby at some point had gone numb, and the quiet serenity composed of the white noise sounds the airship had been producing was shattered as the rest of the room's occupants began chatting animatedly.

The only thing that offered Jaune any comfort at the moment was the bundle of warmth that had made itself home on his chest. Smiling softly at the sight of Ruby peacefully slumbering away her worries, he reached over to move a loose strand of crimson hair. Flinching when the girl stirred, the Arc gave Ruby, who was mid-yawn, a reluctant smile.

"Hey there, sorry to wake you. I didn't mean to, since it still looks like we have a few minutes on hand." Jaune softly explained.

"That's too bad, I was just getting comfy, too." She quipped, wriggling a bit, but not moving from her spot.

"Just? The only just here is that you just woke up from what was probably your best nap ever as poor, little ol' me has his backside freezing while I sit in arguably the most uncomfortable piece of plastic this side of Remnant." The blonde rebuttled, a bit more efficiently than he had thought, seeing as how Ruby immediately shot up, sitting on her own seat.

"Is that true? Oh, poor Jaune! You're so right! I made you sit like that this entire time, didn't I? Here I am, all relaxed and happy on the trip I kinda forced you into, and you're the one who has to put up with all this stuff and I'm just lett-" The girls rant was cut off as Jaune pulled her into a hug.

"Hey, don't think anything of it. It was worth it, just being with you. Besides, what else was I going to do? I mean, if you really wanted to pay me back, you could forget about that little kiss when you tell Yang about this all."

"You're ruining the moment, dolt." Ruby informed him, resting her head on his shoulder.

"Oh, were we having one of those?" Jaune asked as he tucked a tuft of hair behind Ruby's ear.

"Yeah, but it's kinda walking the line between redeemable and dead." She responded.

"Do you think that crying baby a few aisles down is affecting it? Or maybe that little girl over there who just decided to show everyone what she had for dinner last night?" He asked, his monotone voice showing Ruby just how serious he was being.

"Aaaand, it's gone. Way to go, Vomit Boy. Ya goofed again."

"Good, it's been working fine so far, why fix it if it ain't broke?"

"And what makes you think that it has been working?"

"You're still hugging me, aren't you?"

"Oh, whatever! We're still on our first date, remember that." Ruby cried, pushing herself off of him playfully.

"Yeah, I almost forgot." Jaune responded, moving to stand up, but immediately sat back down with a cry of pain, his hand shooting up to rub his back in an effort to alleviate some of the pain.

"You weren't kidding, your back really does hurt. I'm really sorry about this, Jaune. This is hardly how a date should've gone." The redhead said as she put a hand on the blonde's arm, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

"Wouldn't trade it for the world." He responded, smiling at Ruby as he grit his teeth and began to try and stretch the pain away.

"You don't mean that." The shorter of the two companions whispered, obviously flustered.

"Is it time to go yet? I'm pretty sure we've landed." Jaune asked as he looked around at everybody in the room, who were all still firmly planted in their seats.

"Yup, this is our stop. I'll just grab our luggage…" Ruby trailed off as she moved towards Jaune, their chests pushed up against one another, and Jaune was left to stare down with a flustered expression as she looped an arm around him and seemed to pat his rear. Flashing the blonde a smile, the redhead began to skip towards the exit, holding Crescent Rose up in its retracted form.

"Uh, no one else is getting off, Ruby." The above mentioned blonde informed his female companion whilst jogging to catch up to her, easily matching her stride once he arrived at her side.

"We're kinda in the middle of nowhere. Or the far end of Patch, same diff', really." The redhead casually explained and smiled at Xavier as they passed him, before waving goodbye. She was a bit put off when he failed to return the gesture; instead, choosing to stare at them until the Airship's walls broke their line of sight.

If the event was any sort of omen for their journey ahead, it flew right over our oblivious duo's heads.

"Wow, you weren't exaggerating." Jaune muttered to himself as they stepped out of the airship. He looked around to see they had landed in a clearing, surrounded by lush forest, the trees dying shades of green as opposed to the bold red he had seen in the Forever Fall.

"Patch itself is pretty small, at least, the town's kinda small and about a quarter of us live in little pockets in the woods. Not many people, really, but those of us who are here are pretty hardy. Growing up here, with almost everyone having at least one parent who was a Huntsman, it never felt dangerous. Patch actually sheltered me, believe it or not. Didn't even know I was being robbed at first the night I met Professor Goodwitch. I never even saw a crime up until then." Ruby explained as she patted Crescent Rose on her hip.

"Oh, yeah. I'm sure. I see the creepy, ominous, dark forest and just wanna pull out a blanket and take a nap under the stars." Jaune quipped as his eyes darted along the tree line, looking for the tell tale sign of the branch or twig that would snap before an entire legion of Grimm exploded from the forest.

"Oh, you just need to man up! We'll be getting some cups of milk after this fight, alright?" The redhead promised with a smile.

"Okay, why not? Milk's not that ba- wait a minute! A fight?! What do you mean?!"

"Well, when that airship takes off, a stray Grimm or two always shows up. That isn't a problem; not hightailing it to the town is, though." Ruby explained, now also scanning the tree line through Crescent Rose's scope as the airship behind them hummed loudly.

"Well then, why don't we take off? I've been working on cardio, we could even race." Jaune proposed, stretching his limbs as he began to prepare himself. The town wasn't in sight, so he expected it to be a bit of a trek.

"Where's the fun in that? Besides, it's always been kind of an unspoken duty to thin the Grimm's numbers a bit. I consider this picking up the slack for being gone at Beacon all semester." The redhead replied in a soft voice, but Jaune didn't get the chance to ponder on it very long since the sullen tone was contrasted by the loud crack of Crescent Rose shot.

His head snapped to the left, eyes falling upon the disintegrating heap of what must've been a Grimm, probably a Beowolf from the size. With a small smile, the Arc unsheathed Crocea Mors, and opened his shield, it's familiar weight feeling slightly more at home on his arm than his hip. Moving into a stance that centered his gravity so Grimm would be significantly hard pressed to knock him over, Jaune moved his shield in front of himself and held Crocea Mors at the ready.

It was after a minute of increasingly frequent but still sporadic firing from Ruby that Jaune's arm began to feel the tell tale burn of early-stage fatigue. After the second minute, Jaune let his shield lower a bit, letting it hang at his side seeing as how no Grimm had yet to even make it past the small fence that surrounded the clearing. It wasn't until the airship left after another five minutes in which Jaune had sat down in boredom that the Grimm began to get alarmingly close.

Crack. Crack. Crack. Cick. Click. Click.

"Jaune." Ruby simply stated.

"Ruby?" The blonde asked in bewilderment.

"A magazine, please?" Ruby asked, thrusting her hand out towards her companion.

"What? Here? I keep all my copies of X-Ray and Vav in my dorm…"

The clueless boy squirmed underneath the redhead's intense gaze.

"I meant like a gun one! An ammunition clip! The boomstick's boom! Ammo! " Ruby cried out, pulling Crescent Rose out of the ground as the most common type of Beowolves hastily sprinted towards the duo.

"I don't have any more ammo! I gave you everything I had back in the airship!"

"You only brought me 10 magazines!?"

"I didn't bring any of them! Ren did! It's not my fault he didn't plan on us clearing out what seems like an entire small island of Grimm!"

"I think he was just being lazy…" She grumbled aloud as she leapt forward, meeting a Beowolf mid-lunge, although she was the only one to land in one piece.

"Hey, it's not so bad not being able to shoot things. I mean, look at me." Jaune said with one of his iconic smiles while lazily holding up Crocea Mors over his head as he promptly stepped into a Beowolf's guard, bringing his weapon down into the Beowolf's kneecap, before quickly ramming the sword through the side of the head of the beast.

"Yeah, yeah…"

"So, uh, Ruby? Couldn't help but notice that these Grimm aren't actually as tough as the Grimm in Vale," the young Arc paused for a second to shield bash a Beowolf directly in the snout before beheading it with the simplest flicks of his wrist, "they're just a lot of them."

"Mh, I guess you're right. Never really thought about that. Guess cause there's a lot less crime here in Patch? Or, practically none, really." Ruby pondered aloud, her tongue sticking out of her mouth to visibly show just how deeply she was concentrating on the matter, all the while bisecting Beowolves with ease, even managing to add a bit of flair to her moves as they got more intricate, almost rhythmic, like a deadly dance.

"Less negative emotions to...what? Feed off of? I know I'm not the best student, but I'm certain I've never heard anyone tell me what Grimm survive off of." Jaune confessed as he blunty shoved Crocea through a Beowolf's chest, using his shield to knock away the feeble, last-attempt of an attack that was a claw.

"I'm pretty sure that's because no one knows the answer. I mean, we know they're attracted to bad feelings. And they do...eat people. But they don't need to, otherwise they would've all died out by now. And I know that they don't eat the animals who live here in the woods." The cookie-loving teen explained as she effortlessly removed a Beowolf's limbs before moving on to his friend.

"Hm. This always happens, ya know? I get all philosophical when I'm fighting Grimm. When I shower too… weird."

"Very," Ruby began to say as she slashed through a Beowolf, "Now. Let's. Get. Going. We're. Done. Here." Ruby managed to get out as several Beowolves swarmed her at once, their sheer numbers allowing them to bypass Jaune, who could only slay so many creatures so quickly. This didn't deter the Reaper, however, as her attacks became even more complicated, though this was out of necessity rather than flare as she began twirling Crescent Rose until the weapon was a red blur, at times even throwing the weapon before leaping forward at the spinning pinwheel of death and firmly gripping it once more only to continue the absolute slaughter.

Jaune could only stare on in wonderment, the rather large dissolving mass of smoke at his side dwarfed in comparison to the literal fog of darkness surrounding Ruby, who had launched down towards the final Beowolf, with the aid of gravity having to suffice, disappearing from sight alongside the dying howl of the creature of Grimm who last Jaune had seen had a couple feet of metal through its skull.

"Ruby?" The blonde called out warily when the hooded girl didn't pop back into view right away. He watched on in silence, gritting his teeth, as the seconds continued to roll by. His pulse raced as what seemed like an eternity, but was in actuality merely a minute, came. Just as he was ready to plunge into the darkness in order to search for her, a spine-chilling howl rang clearly amidst the night.

Jaune spun on the balls of his feet, his eyes darting to and fro, quickly homing in on the Alpha Beowolf, who came into view when it smacked a tree aside in its slow trot into the clearing. The larger than average creature of Grimm had about as much black, vulnerable skin as it did bone-white armor, with lethally sharpened spike protruding at various points along its body, mostly clustered along its back.

The creature's eyes seemed to stare into his soul as their gazes met, piercing blue eyes contrasted by the seemingly endless abyss of red that was the Alpha's eyes. It began to run forward, gaining velocity exponentially. Gritting his teeth and doing his best to steady his trembling grip on Crocea Mors, Jaune, too, charged at his adversary.

Jaune then watched as a red blur shot past him, speeding to meet the Alpha. He would've smiled if he hadn't been letting out a war cry.

"You know, now that I think about it, it's not that strange that a date with you, of all people, would include fighting Grimm." Jaune commented out of the blue, having finally worked up the courage to break the silence that had hung over the two ever since they defeated the last of the Grimm horde and went on their way.

"It had all that other normal stuff at first!" Ruby defended, her voice soft, as the sullen look Jaune had been contemplating about for quite a while lifted momentarily.

"Yeah, I guess it did. Did you…" He trailed.

"Did I what?" The redhead asked, curious as to why he hesitated.

"Did… you enjoy yourself? I know everyone thinks of me as ignorant, but I'm not that unaware. You looked… bummed out." The blonde said, his slow delivery showing how much thought he was putting into his words.

Ruby looked over in shock at her companion, who was turning his head to the right in order to avoid facing her. She wanted to assure him she had; she really did! True, Ruby found herself a bit distracted… maybe a bit more frequently than she had knew. She frowned when she reached a realization, before reaching for Jaune's hand and lacing her fingers with his. It was the Arc's turn to look over and find she was looking everywhere but him.

"I didn't do a good job on my end, did I?"

Jaune wasn't sure how to respond, so he didn't, and merely stroked a thumb over her knuckles.

"I'm sorry, Jaune. I really am."

"Hey now, don't go off saying that. I was just asking so I could get it right the second time."

"Yeah… Jaune. Can I ask you a question? A serious question."

"Of course, what is it?"

"Do you ever… have you… what I'm trying to say…" Ruby trailed, unknowingly squeezing Jaune's hand firmly.

"What is it? You can tell me anything, you know that, right?"

"You really mean that, don't you?" She asked, stopping to stare into his eyes.

"What's wrong?" He asked, noticing the admittedly subtle segue.

Ruby let go of his hand and took a few steps away from their path to the grave.

"Why are you becoming a Huntsman, Jaune?" The reaper asked, turned away from him and leaning against a thin tree; the bitter winter having stripped it of its leaves.

"What?" The blonde asked, thrown off by the seemingly random question.

"Why did you come to Beacon? What motivated you to lie your way into something that nobody seemed to think you could do?" Ruby demanded, her voice cracking even as it went up in volume.

Jaune actually took a step back, shocked at how hurtful his friend had all of a sudden become.

"I… I… I guess, because of my family." He whispered quietly, staring intently at the back of Ruby's hood. She adjusted it, and the Knight had to strain his ears to hear her next question.

"What does that mean?"

"I… my… my name. I'm an Arc. It's a title I have to live up to - one I want to live up to. To bring honor to the name by protecting the people." Jaune explained as he walked up to Ruby, putting a hand on her shoulder. He didn't fail to notice the way she flinched at the contact.

"To do good things. That's why we're doing this, right? To keep the people safe, protect humanity, be heroes?" The redhead asked, turning, so silver eyes could gaze into cobalt ones.

"Yes." Jaune said, deciding to let Ruby get to the point whenever she felt like it, which was apparently now, as she threw herself against his chest plate and firmly wrapped her arms around his waist.

"Then why do I feel like this, Jaune?" She sobbed, locking her teary eyes with his, the indecision and confusion in them evident.

"Feel like what?" He asked, almost afraid to do so.

"Like the longer I'm here, the more things speed by, and the world is getting darker and darker! We're supposed to be protectors of the world, our enemies are supposed to be the Grimm!"

"Th- they are, Ruby." Jaune tried to reason, a bit overcome by the unexpected revelation.

"People died, Jaune. On my first mission! Do you realize that?!"

"I… guess that's true. But you can't blame yourself for that, Ruby!"

"They didn't have to die, Jaune! I didn't mean to kill any of them. I was hitting all of them with the blunt side of Crescent Rose, while they fired live rounds of ammunition at me! All so they could flood Grimm into a city full of people who either treated them horribly because of who they were born as or people who watched it all happen and didn't say a word!"

Jaune's stomach dropped at Ruby's words, realizing just how much the entire incident had been haunting her. He racked his brain for anything to say, anything that would make everything better and stop the sounds of despair coming from the girl who was trying to hide herself from the world in his arms.

He had nothing.

"Beacon was supposed to be the best thing to have ever happened for me. It was my dream. To have the opportunity to share it with Yang only seemed like another dream come true. It was a chance to get away from little ol' Patch. I love Patch, but Beacon was my chance to see the world for the bigger place that it is. And it did; I got my team, JNPR, all our classmates… you." Ruby said hesitantly.

"But?" Jaune asked, knowing she had more to say.

"But I'm terrified, Jaune. The more of the world I see, the worse it gets. All the hate between Faunus and humans, crime lords like Roman, the way people are in our lives one moment and gone the next! My whole life I've had to run through things and I've always tried to do it with a smile. I never knew my Mother, I had to bumble through life with a single Father, who we meant the world to but was abandoned to do it on his own, the first weapon that was ever truly my own was built for ripping through flesh and I had to learn that the hard way! I was thrust into my dream school and given a team full of people who expected me to lead them, my first mission had casualty rates in the double digits, Jaune! The one thing I can't outrun is the truth, and sometimes I think that it's all I want in the world."

"I... can't say that isn't all true, but I can tell you that they are truths you wouldn't want to push away! You have your team, you have Beacon, your family, those who love you! You have me! You said so yourself, you can't give up! You're a leader, and I'll always be here to make sure you don't." Jaune explained, his voice soft as he rubbed small circles into Ruby's back, until she shoved him away.

"You can't promise that!" She yelled, venom lacing her words as she glared at him.

"W- what do you mean?"

"I'd bear the entire world's weight on my shoulders happily if it meant you could promise things like that, but you can't! It's not just Grimm out there anymore, Jaune! There's… people, out there. They're not just desperate people trying to survive! Sometimes it seems like all they want to do is watch the world burn! I watch after RWBY, and would do all in my power to protect them. But… if I ever came back to find someone...while I was gone…" Ruby couldn't find it in herself to finish, and slumped down to the floor, too numb to feel the stingingly cold snow.

Jaune stared down at Ruby, unable to fathom how he could've never seen it. The first friend he made at Beacon had been ripping herself apart in silence, all the while he worried about his own petty, little, insecurities and had the gall to give up. He took a seat beside her, taking her hand in his.

"This is all my fault, you know?" Jaune finally said after a moment of silence.

"What?" She whispered, leaning into Jaune's shoulder.

"I should've taken you out on a date months ago. Maybe then you wouldn't be worrying about things like these."

"You're not funny." Ruby whispered, a bit hurt that she apparently wasn't being taken seriously.

"No, I'm not. Then again, I'm not making a joke. I get that you're sick of the truth, but there's one more disappointing little tidbit you left out." The blonde began to say, wrapping an arm around her waist. "Ruby Rose won't be on Remnant forever. One sad, sad, day, you'll be gone. The world will lose a bright spark, and there will never be anything quite like it ever again. You want to know something even worse?"

Ruby's breathing hitched, and Jaune could feel her body shaking.

"I've gone and wasted a lot of time. I was too much of a dolt, chasing after Weiss, worrying about my place in life, in general, just being myself when I could've been with you. There aren't many things I can promise you, you're right. But let me promise you this. I, Jaune Arc, will do everything in my power to assure that Ruby Rose spends the rest of her life happily, surrounded by the ones she loves. It may not always be easy, there will undoubtedly be rough patches, but I'm going to stand beside you every step of the way. Even if… there ends up being someone else standing besides you, I'll always be there. The world… it's a lot harsher than it has any right to be, but I'm determined to make mine the brightest one it can be. And do you want to know something else, Ruby?"

At this point, the Reaper had gone still, entranced by his words, and he had to turn her chin with his fingers to make her face him. He leaned forward, never breaking eye contact.

"You're my world."

Thus Kindly I Scatter

Ruby read over the words etched into the stone tablet like she had done so the - oh, so many - times before. The bluff by the cliff always seemed to cut off from the world when she visited, with the wind dying down and the sounds of the birds from the trees disappearing.

"Hi there, Mom. I missed you. It's been awhile. Life has been… hectic. I… I got really lost in it, for awhile. I tried to stay strong, for everyone's sake. But… I learned I don't have to. I found a… well, friend isn't the right word anymore," she said with a blush as she looked over her shoulder to look at Jaune. "And… I think he can help. He's no you… but maybe that's a good thing. I don't want to pester you with my problems and I'm sure it only hurts you to hear about them. But now, we can get back to the happy things. The simple things. I…" She trailed in a fit of giggles. "Don't tell anybody, but I had my first kiss today. That's… it. I'm sorry I don't have much more to say, but this whole visit was kind of a spur of the moment thing. I'm technically still on the first date. I promise to tell you all about the rest of it the next time, alright?" Ruby smiled as she turned around, making eye contact with Jaune, who began to walk towards her.

"So, uh… this is her, huh?" The blonde awkwardly asked.

"Yeah. Jaune Arc, meet Summer Rose. Summer Rose, meet Jaune Arc." The Reaper commented, a nervous smile on her face as she introduced the two.

"Uh, pleasure to meet you, ma'am." The Arc stated, deciding to focus his gaze on the words on the grave. They both stood there awkwardly for a few moments.

"She's not going to say anything back, you know that, right?" Ruby asked with a giggle.

"Yeah, I guess that's true." He admitted with a hesitant smile. She met his gaze then looked away, a red tinge on her face, though it wasn't entirely due to the brisk winds.

They both fell into a comfortable silence, and Jaune found the tombstone had a haunting beauty to it, with the sheer drop beyond it and the forest in the background. 'Thus Kindly I scatter.' The words echoed in his head, and it began to dawn on him that Ruby's mother almost certainly didn't die here. Patch had its share of Grimm, but nothing that a Huntress would fall to. He wouldn't even fall here. It made sense, though, for the grave not to be with the body. Grimm hardly ever left much evidence behind beyond torn armor and weapons.

"So, Summer Rose, huh?"

"Summer Rose, yeah." Ruby replied in a soft voice.

"That's a nice name." Jaune said just as quietly, though he walked over to the Reaper and draped an arm around her. She merely smiled at him and leaned into his touch, grateful for the warmth he provided.

An indefinite amount of time passed, both of them content to stand there in each other's presence, until it was finally Ruby that pulled away from him.

"I think I'm just about ready to go. Thank you so much for this, Jaune. For all of this. I… I needed this. And maybe...even if I didn't know it at first… I needed you."

"I'm glad to hear it. And don't thank me, Ruby. If anything, I want to thank you for letting me be there for you when you needed me."

"You're really one of a kind, aren't you, Jaune Arc?" She asked as she caressed his cheek unknowingly, much to the blonde's surprise, but not displeasure.

"I do my best." The Arc replied modestly, putting his hand over Ruby's and giving it an affectionate squeeze. His heartbeat spiked as she closed her eyes and slowly began to lean forward. He was quick to do the same.

Jaune watched Ruby walk away, typing away at her Scroll to update Yang. He turned once more to face the tombstone, his eyes being drawn to the words etched into the stone again. He then tugged at his collar as he chuckled nervously.

"That, uh… must've been awkward. I'm sorry?"

The tombstone didn't comment.

A frown began to make its way across Jaune's face as he began to think of his own mother. He hadn't talked to her since… well, since he had all but basically ran away to Beacon. Guilt instantly wracked his person as the blonde realized he had forgotten all about his family since he arrived at school. Sure, he had occasionally mentioned them, his sisters especially, he had never really thought about them. Jaune let out a sigh as he came to the conclusion that it wasn't an issue that would solve itself over time; he needed to address it at some point, and sooner rather than later.

"I should be so thankful I have a Mother to come back to, shouldn't I?" He said aloud, running his hand against the cool marble surface of the tombstone. Jaune then cast a sad look back at Ruby. Just thinking of the possibility of his mom being gone felt like a punch to the gut, he couldn't fathom the thought of never having gotten to know her in the first place. An immense wave of nausea ran over the Knight as he realized something even worse; she had never gotten to know her own daughter. Jaune's grip tightened on the stone unintentionally as he took a deep breathe. He swiped at his eyes when he finally composed himself, looking up to see Ruby waving at him, beckoning him. With a smile, he started to jog over to her, happily taking her offered arm in his as they started down the single path they had came from.

Jaune smiled to himself as the redhead dipped her head onto his shoulder, muttering a vow into her hair.

"I promise...I will watch your daughter grow up, for the both of us."

The Scroll seemed to screech loudly whilst making the most annoying noise ever heard as it vibrated against the small, wooden table. Yang groaned as the infernal machine dragged her from her slumber. After a seemingly endless night of waiting for word from Ruby, the buxom, older sister had finally succumbed to fitful slumber.

The Scroll beeped a second time, and this time the blonde leapt out of bed once her senses had fully returned to her. After casting a quick glance over at the room's occupants, Yang returned to her bed and turned on her Scroll. Her heart soared when she saw it was from Ruby.

Hey there, sis. It's Ruby here, but you already know that, huh? Yeaaahhh. Anyways, we're on our way back. We're going to be taking the first Airship back to Vale. It's scheduled for 6:00 AM, so we'll be staying in the small town for a bit. You know the one.

Yang bit her lip, relieved that Ruby had finally gotten back to her, but a little put off by the contents of the message. She was quick to reply.

You talked with your Mom then? Is everything alright? Is Jaune treating you right? Just say the word and I'll thrash him.

The older sister only hesitated for a moment, her eyes lingering over the word Mom before thumbing the send button. She let out a sigh and turned to see Blake staring down at her from her bunk. Yang shot her a thumbs up, which seemed to satisfy her partner, as she turned over, presumably to try and reach the soothing oblivion of sleep once more. The Brawler wasn't surprised when she felt her Scroll vibrate again; Ruby had always been a quick typer.

Yeah, we talked. As for Jaune, he's being very respectable and really… he's a big comfort right now. So, no thrashing, please.

She smiled as she read over the text, not very surprised about Jaune's actions, but glad nonetheless. Yang made a mental note to question Ruby about how he was specifically comforting her later on, though her attention wavered when she picked up on what Ruby hadn't talked about.

That's good to hear. But… a pause. Is everything alright?

Yang put the Scroll down, and apprehension began to grow in her as time passed. She finally picked up her Scroll to send another message when a new text filled the bottom of the screen.

Everything is… like it's always been; manageable. But… I think it's going to only get easier from now on. I realized I don't have to carry everything by myself anymore.

Yang wasn't sure how to take that.

You know you've always had me. Always will, right?

This time, the response came almost immediately.

I know that! It's just… well, now I have you and Jaune!

"Ohhhh, yikes." Ruby winced as she pocketed her Scroll, turning to see Jaune giving her a curious look.

"What's wrong?" The Arc asked, obviously concerned. The duo were walking down a larger trail, the last sighting of civilisation having been a few miles back.

"Nothing, really. Yang just told me... not to expect the team to go easy on the training tomorrow cause of all this! So, that stinks, but what can you do, right? Haha…" She trailed nervously, motioning for Jaune to stop.

"Yeah, that sounds rough. Uh… is that the place?" The Arc asked as he pointed at a large cabin.

"Yup."

A beat.

"So, who's place is it?" Jaune ignored the off-handed stare his lovely date gave him.

"My home, duh!" Ruby exclaimed as she continued walking towards the home.

"Oh, nice."

Another beat.

"Wait!" Jaune screeched, grabbing Ruby's wrist and pulling her to the side in a mad dash.

"What's wrong?!" She screamed, or tried to, before the Knight threw his hand over her mouth, silencing her verbal discontent. He ignored the irritated silver eyes staring at him questioningly over his thumb.

"Isn't your home where your father lives?!"

His response came in the form of a raised eyebrow.

"Ruby, I thought you liked me. What did I do wrong?"

This remark earned him two raised eyebrows, along with what sounded like muffled laughter. Jaune fell forward as Ruby disappeared in a flurry of rose petals. He heard loud knocking as he was picking himself up off the floor. His face was ashen.

"I'm...sorry, Summer. It looks like this is the end." He muttered to himself in defeat, lifting his head to see that the front door was open. A tall, blonde man was visible over Ruby's shoulder. Presumably Mr. Xiao Long.

"Daddy! I missed you, too!" "What am I doing here?"

Jaune flinched, his intuition and imagination filling in the other half of the conversation.

"Well… What? No, of course not! Yang? Oh, no, no, she's not the one with me. Another blonde!"

He cradled his head in his arms. Jaune just hoped Ruby wouldn't beat herself up too much at his funeral. With a small, morbid, chuckle, the Arc began walking to his doom.

"I can handle one man. A single person can't hurt me so badly if I focus entirely on defending my vital organs." He muttered to himself, intent on assuring himself he could survive through the night. Jaune looked up, his drooped gaze having shown him Ruby's heels, informing him he was at the door. His eyes start to trail up.

A pair of hunting boots, some relatively hairy legs, cargo shorts, a vest, and golden stubble on an admittedly chiseled chin. Jaune held his gaze, fear's grip on him not allowing him to meet the man's eyes.

"A girl? Oh, that's great. For a second there, I thought I was going to have to do some certain bad things." Taiyang bellowed happily, his tone far too jovial for the subtly implied violence the older man was so ready to commit.

"Noop, he's a he. A guy, dad."

With that, Jaune could feel a change in the air around him, it suddenly grew silent, and he felt a sense of fear akin to knowing you were about to die but didn't know how.

'This is it. This is it. This is it.' The young Knight thought as each second of silence that dragged on spelt doom to him. He expected to be struck down, probably with a gun.

"Oh." Was all Taiyang said to his daughter's words, his eyes locked through the dark with the younger blonde.

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Fate: And there we have it.

Prick: Holy crap, this took awhile. I was very fickle with this story. Hell, for a good awhile, I debated having it be a dream, having it tie into the main story or not. Very conflicted, tell me what you guys want. Fate suggested I make this a "Slice Of Life" for Jaune and Ruby, whatever that means. I'm assuming he means I use this story to write all the happiness that is rather absent in Lunar Rose. Review and tell me what you guys want!

Fate: Not just Lancaster, all of Beacon and RWBY. Just a happy little Slice of Life AU until Prick realizes he can't write fluff for more than a few thousand words and turn this into Lunar Rose like he almost did in this story already. Seriously, I watched him write angst and stopped then asked, "Fate, I need help, these type of problems can't be magically absolved by a hug or a kiss on the head." He said it less elegantly, but, you get the point. So, I guess we'll make a poll or something to see if people would like to see more of this AU.