AN: Update time! Glad to see the positive reception for this fic so far. Updates on this particular fic might be once every two weeks. Same goes for my other fic 'One Cold Morning' I usually write a chapter for one story, then after its posted, work on a chapter for the other one. Hopefully that schedule works. Anyway, like I said, I'm glad you guys are liking this so far. I've read your comments and pleased to see people giving prompts and ideas for later chapters. I will definitely be using some of them. I'll be sure to give proper credit should I use a particular idea that I haven't already planned on doing. Either way, I hope you enjoy the newest chapter!

Beta: PotatoBlaster

The sounds of the boombox Yang had brought in annoyingly echoed between the two dorms. Weiss sat on a bed in team JNPR's room. It was the furthest possible spot she could go to take a break from the music without Ruby calling her a 'party pooper'. Surely, they would be receiving a noise complaint by their floor's RA.

… Did they even have one of those?

A blue plastic cup appeared in front of her. Weiss looked up at the source.

"You looked punch-less," Jaune said with a grin. "Thought I'd change that."

Weiss gave him a small smile, accepting the cup into her hands. Jaune sat next to her and began drinking from his own.

"The party's back there, you know," he said.

"If I seem to recall, your room is part of the party," she pointed out, "so it's not my fault if I take advantage of it."

Jaune peered over his shoulder at the other room and winced. "I guess the musicis kinda getting annoying." He turned his head back to Weiss. "Mind if I stay here too?"

Giving him a soft smile, she held out her cup for a toast. Jaune mimicked her actions.

Click.

Weiss was happy to admit that Jaune wasn't as bad as she had originally thought. After their initial outing, Weiss had asked that they take it slow and not fully start dating, just so that they could become closer friends first. Much to her pleasure, Jaune had understood and agreed. Due to their schedules, however, spending time together was tough.

Aside from their date earlier in the week, they'd only been together by themselves one other time.

Jaune had come by her dorm and asked if she wanted to join him in the common room for a movie before they went to bed.

Weiss had accepted the offer with little hesitation.

Barely any of the movie was watched as the two decided instead to just… talk.

Weiss had learned of his seven sisters. Jaune had learned of her butler with seven personalities. Weiss had let slip her feelings of being an heiress. Jaune tried consoling her with his doubts of upholding his family's legacy. For those thirty minutes, she felt like she had on their first outing.

What surprised her though, wasn't how easy it was becoming to talk to Jaune. No, it was when he flashed her a simple grin.

A simple, stupid, Arc-patented grin that had made her stomach feel weird.

"-eiss?"

"Hmm?" she snapped out of her reverie. "What is it?"

Jaune chuckled. "I asked if you were having a good time," he said. "You know, besides the music?"

"Oh, sorry." She cleared her mind of lingering thoughts. "I'm enjoying myself. Are you?"

He nodded. "It's nice to just, hang back, you know?"

Weiss let out a low chuckle. "I thought the same thing on our outing."

"Speaking of which, are you free anytime soon?" he asked. "A new café opened up in Vale, so I was wondering if you wanted to get lunch sometime? Err-" he paused. "With me, I mean."

Weiss rolled her eyes. "Of course I knew you meant with you, lunkhead." She stared through the window to the evening sky. "I should be free tomorrow, if that works for you."

No reply came whatsoever.

She turned back to Jaune to be met with a bewildered expression. "Uh, Jaune?"

He flinched. "Oh, yeah, sorry." He scratched the back of his head. "Saturday works for me too. I'll come by at noon, then?"

Weiss frowned. "Are you okay?" she asked.

Jaune blushed and looked off to the side. "Yeah," he said. "It's just… weird… you accepting a date from me, and all."

"I could always decline," she offered.

"What!?" Jaune's head whipped around. "No, no, no, I mean-" he noticed Weiss was smirking- "oh, okay, haha, you got me."

Weiss giggled, covering her mouth with her hand.

Wow, her and giggling? Was she even the same person that started attending Beacon all those few months ago?

"Well, well, well! There are the lovebirds!"

Weiss groaned.

"What do you want, Yang?"

"Oooh, someone's feisty." Yang stepped to the side, revealing the shorter, orange-haired girl behind her.

Weiss was positive she was reliving a nightmare.

"Aww!" Nora gushed. "They snuck away from the party so they could be together!"

"We did no such thing!" exclaimed Weiss.

"The music was too loud," said Jaune. "We wanted to get away from it for a bit."

"Well, it's time to come back," said Yang, turning to leave the room. "The two dorks of Team SSSN are here. You need to greet your guests, Ice Queen."

Did he hear that right? The 'N' of Team SSSN was here?

Ruby had said it would only be her team and his! Did Weiss know? She had helped in planning the party, after all.

Just play it cool, he thought.

"So," he said, looking at Weiss. "I didn't know they were coming?"

Weiss' eyes were wide too. "I didn't know either."

On the plus side, it meant that she didn't invite him over. On the downside, he was still here: Weiss' first crush at Beacon.

Weiss kept saying that she and Jaune weren't dating. They were just testing the waters and seeing where it went. He was completely fine with that, but with Neptune here…

Maybe this will be as far as it goes.

Swallowing the lump forming in his throat, Jaune decided to bite the bullet. "So… I-I guess we should be getting back."

"Yes… I think we should," she said.

Jaune internally sighed.

A few reluctant steps later and the group found themselves standing in the doorway of RWBY's dorm.

"There they are!" Ruby ran up and threw her arms over Jaune and Weiss' shoulders, drawing them to her cheeks. "Where have you two been!? You're missing the party!"

"Ruby, how much punch have you had to drink?" asked Weiss.

Ruby paused before holding up three fingers, then slowly dropping one. "This many."

Yang groaned and brought a hand to her face. "Sugar rush," was all she said.

"Should we do something about it or…?" trailed off Jaune.

"Nah," Yang said, waving off her hand. "I'd give it a few. She should be crashing anytime now."

"Crashing?" asked Ruby, letting go of Jaune and Weiss. "I'm just getting started!"

Yang took out her scroll and started typing.

"Hey, Snow Angel."

Oh no… Jaune internally sighed.

Neptune stood a few feet away with his fingers plugged into his ears. Even in this awkward position, he still managed to pull off the 'patented' Vasilias grin.

"Yang?" he asked, turning to the girl in question. "Shouldn't you turn the music down? We might get a noise complaint."

"Thank you!" blurted Weiss.

Neptune turned back to her and flashed another one of his grins, causing her to look away.

He had said a total of three words to her, three, and Weiss was already this flustered!? How could Jaune keep up with that? He needed help.

"Ugh, fine!" Yang walked over to the boombox and lowered the volume. "Happy?"

"Very much so, yes," said Neptune. He put his arm on the door's archway, then leaned down to Weiss. "So, how was your day?" he asked.

Weiss' eyes widened a bit. "I… I- uh-"

He needed help now.

"Alright," Jaune said, holding up finger guns, "I'll be right back." He fled the scene as fast as possible, further into the room.

"Wait, Ja-!"

"There you are," Sun slugged an arm around Neptune. "I can't leave you alone for a minute without you going off and flirting."

"I wasn't flirting!" exclaimed Neptune. "We were just talking. Right, Weiss?"

"Uhm…" Weiss looked off towards the party.

Why did he leave me alone with him!? Her mind screamed.

This was bad.

This was very, very, bad.

This was Neptune. The cute, charming boy who had caused her to swoon over him when they'd first met. The flirt, who even though would do it too much, still had a decent heart. This was the guy who threw away his insecurities to make it up to Weiss for declining her dance invitation.

She couldn't face him alone.

Weiss had hoped that with Jaune, facing Neptune would have been easier. Alas, that option went out the window. Luckily, there was always one person she could count on for these kinds of things.

And that person was currently watching Ruby bounce around their dorm.

"I'M QUEEN OF THE WOR-!"

BEEP, BEEP, BEEP. BEEP, BEEP, BEEP.

Ruby slammed face-first into the ground. Surprisingly, she still held firmly onto her punch without spilling it.

"Three minutes exact," said Yang, reading off her scroll.

"Ow…" moaned Ruby.

Yang shook her head and clicked her tongue. "Sorry Rubes," she said, "but you have to learn somehow." And with that, she scooped her sister into her arms.

"You know what," Weiss turned back to Neptune. "I think Ruby might need help. I'll be right back."

With that, she hurriedly walked to Yang.

"Pyrrha!"

"Hm? His partner turned away from the conversation she was having with Blake and Nora. "Yes, Jaune?" she asked, cheerily as usual.

"Please, I need your help!"

Pyrrha looked worried. "Is everything okay?"

"No time!" He grabbed her arm and began pulling her away.

"Man Rubes, you're getting heavy," Yang groaned.

"Yang!" Weiss shrieked.

Yang teetered, obviously shocked by the outburst. "Jeez Weiss," she said. "Kinda carrying precious cargo here."

"Sorry." She looked over her shoulder and caught Neptune sneaking a glance. "I need your help."

"What do you need my help wi-?" Yang followed Weiss' gaze. "Oh, I see," she said with a sly grin. "Somebody's popular with the boys now, isn't she?"

That's it. Weiss was going to kill her.

"Yang!" she said exasperatedly. "Please, he won't stop."

"Won't stop what?" Yang asked.

"Flirting with me!"

Yang stared at her as if she had grown a second head.

"So?" she asked.

Why did she think Yang was a good idea? Of course, she should have seen this coming. Is this what it's like to be completely at wits end? That any thought that would seem crazy to literally anyone else, would seem logical given the vast amount of stress weighing down upon her?

"Look, Weiss," Yang was still grinning, "flirting isn't a big deal."

"Of course it's a big-!"

"Shush." Yang silenced her with a finger on her lips. "It isn't a big deal," she continued, removing her finger. "Flirting is just a game. Don't let it get to you. Besides, you keep going on about how you and Jaune aren't dating. If Neptune is getting to you this badly then, well, maybe that's your answer."

Weiss' eyes widened.

"Don't get me wrong," Yang continued, "Jaune is sweet and funny, but Neptune?"

"No Yang, that's not what I-!"

"Again, shush," Yang interrupted. "I have to go deal with Ruby first. If you still need help, I'll try in whatever way I can, okay?" With that, Yang maneuvered past Weiss.

Weiss was alone yet again. That would only mean-

"Is Ruby okay?"

Weiss crushed her plastic cup.

Oh, she was definitely going to kill Yang.

"Jaune," Pyrrha said, sinking into the common room couch, "what's going on?"

"I… I'm sorry," he started. "I shouldn't be coming to you for this, but you're one of the most level-headed out of all of us."

As the words seemed to dawn on her, Pyrrha's expression softened. "It's about Weiss, isn't it?"

Jaune suddenly found the legs of the couch very interesting. He nodded slowly.

Pyrrha sighed but moved closer. Jaune knew what was coming next, and he knew it would only prove to make him feel worse.

"Jaune…"

Her hand landed on his shoulder.

He looked up.

Pyrrha was smiling, but her eyes still had a lingering sadness. "I'm not upset," she said.

"I still shouldn't have come to you about this…" he said.

Pyrrha shook her head. "No, you should have."

What?

Pyrrha giggled, most likely at the confused face he was currently making.

"Jaune," she said gently, "we're friends first and foremost, partners second, and anything else after those." She shook her head. "I don't want you to think that you can't come and talk to me about things."

"But…" The words died in his mouth.

There was nothing more for him to say. Pyrrha had done nothing but prove that she was one of the best people he's ever known. It made him sick knowing how he must be making her feel.

"We don't choose who we fall for," she said. "We just stay along for the journey… and I can't fault you for that."

She backed up, allowing Jaune to take in everything. Maybe the sadness really had left her eyes, or she was just that good at hiding it. Regardless, she looked determined.

"Now," she said quietly. "How can I help?"

If she had the strength to help, then Jaune needed to match it.

"Neptune is flirting with Weiss," he finally said. "It looks like… she might be… into it."

"Oh, Jaune…"

Sadness returned to her eyes, only this time, it was directed at him.

Jaune shook his head. "What should I do?"

Pyrrha looked thoughtful. "What did you do on your date?" she asked. "How did you act, I mean?"

"It didn't start off good," he said. "But, as the night went on, I started to act like myself. She seemed to enjoy it when I did."

She really seemed to…

"Do you know for a fact that she likes Neptune's flirting?" she asked.

Well-

"Duh," he finished. "It's Neptune. The guy practically won Weiss over with his first sentence."

Pyrrha brought her hand to her face.

"Jaune," she sighed. "When will you learn?"

Apparently never, he internally deadpanned.

"What do you mean?"

Moving her hand away, Pyrrha's expression was amused. "You were yourself and she liked that," she explained. "Neptune is flirting with her now, but you don't know what she thinks about it."

Jaune nodded along.

"If she liked being around you, for you, can you be positively sure that she is enjoying being around Neptune?" she asked. "He puts up an act too. Odds are, Weiss can see that now."

"But she was blushing and acting shy," he countered.

Pyrrha sighed. Before Jaune could do anything, she moved forward and grabbed his arm.

She was going through with this.

Jealousy aside, Pyrrha wanted Jaune to have happiness. If she couldn't give that to him, then so be it. Truthfully, it hurt, but this was bigger than her.

She had known if the situation was reversed, Jaune would be doing the same.

"Pyrrha, slow down!" the boy in question pleaded.

She ignored him. Sorry, Jaune, she thought. This is for your own good.

The two continued down the grey halls to the dormitories. Well, it was more Pyrrha dragging Jaune than a mutual walk.

Finally, they arrived in front of the door.

"Pyrrha-" Pyrrha felt him stiffen. "Let's not-"

She wheeled around, grabbed his shoulders and stared deeply into his eyes. "Jaune," she said, "you'll do fine. Okay?"

She was sure of it.

Jaune looked uneasy. "How do you know?" he muttered.

Pyrrha smiled.

Had this been another time, far before Weiss Schnee had accepted Jaune Arc's offer for a date, then the words that came out of Pyrrha Nikos' mouth would be very different. But, this wasn't another time. Nor was this before all of that. This was here. This was now.

And so Pyrrha Nikos said what was necessary instead.

"Because we're partners, Jaune."

Then, silence. All that could be heard was the dull booming of music behind the door.

It seemed that Pyrrha's words had some effect. The shaking in Jaune's arm had lessened. His posture went from ramrod straight to more sagged and relaxed. Perhaps the most noticeable though, was the determination in his eyes.

"Right," he said.

Pyrrha nodded and opened the door.

The sound of Yang's music was the first thing to greet them on their way in. The second, Yang on her knees, cleaning up spilt punch. The third, Neptune handing a cup to Weiss."Try not to drop it this time," he teased, his hand lingering on top of hers. His eyes stayed glued onto Weiss', obviously lost in them.

"I- I- " was all Weiss could say. Her mouth opened and closed, trying to form words as a deep blush spread through her cheeks.

A sigh next to Pyrrha's side took her attention off of the teens.

"Jaune-"

"It's okay," he said. The smile on his lips betrayed the sorrow in his eyes. "If she's happy, I can be too."

Jaune exited the room shortly after, but not before Pyrrha heard the mutter of something he had meant for his ears only.

"It's not like we were dating, anyway."

Click

The door to their room closed quietly.

Jaune…

Pyrrha turned back to the two by the punch bowl. Her eyes stayed on Weiss'. It made sense that Jaune would miss it. After all, he didn't know what it was like to be in the spotlight for the entirety of his life.

You're so silly.

Jaune's back was slouched against the side of his bed. He stared emptily into the cup of punch he had left behind -the same punch he had toasted to Weiss before she agreed to another outing…

Jaune shook his head. Stop thinking like that, he thought. Be happy for her. Maybe this is a sign it wouldn't have worked. And look on the bright side! If that was the case, you guys might not even have stayed friends. At least with this way, that won't happen…

Right?

Another deep sigh escaped his lips. Maybe he wasn't as much of a 'glass half-full' kinda guy after all.

A bright light flashed on his face. Someone had opened the door.

He sighed. "Pyrrha, really, I'm-"

"Jaune?"

Jaune's head flew up.

"Weiss?"

Even silhouetted, Jaune could make out the slight smile on her face.

Weiss shut the door behind her, allowing the darkness back into the room.

"You know," she said as she walked towards him, "you kind of left me alone back there."

"Oh," said Jaune. "Sorry."

Weiss lightly sat down next to him with a sigh. "Are you okay?" she asked.

"Yeah."

"Hmm…" Weiss didn't say anything further, instead choosing to sip from her cup of punch. The same cup of punch that Neptune had-

"We're friends now… right?"

The sentence left his lips before he could stop it.

Weiss tilted her head. "Yes?"

He nodded his head.

"Jaune-?"

"It's just," he interrupted. Screw it, "since we're friends, I… I just want you to be happy, you know?"

Jaune turned his head to face Weiss. The look she gave him told Jaune that Weiss wasn't understanding.

"Neptune," he continued. "You were enjoying your time with him."

"… What?"

… Why did she seem so offended?

"I'm not upset or anything, honest," said Jaune, putting his hands up in defense. "Just, you know, if you like him, you should go for it. I understand."

Weiss blinked owlishly at him.

She then brought her hand to her face.

Why is everyone doing that?

"No," she sighed. "No, no, this is my fault this time." Her hand slid down her face, landing in her lap.

"Weiss, what are you-?"

"I don't like Neptune, Jaune."

All the wind left Jaune's chest.

"Wait… what?" he asked.

"I mean, I used to, but I don't anymore."

"But- but-," he stammered. "You were blushing! Like, really, really badly."

Weiss closed her eyes and let out another sigh. "Which is why I'm blaming myself."

She didn't move for a few seconds. Then, her head slowly lifted and her eyes opened. Said eyes never reached Jaune's, though.

"I wasn't blushing at his flirts," she explained. "I was flustered at the fact that he was flirting."

"Come again?" Jaune asked.

Weiss finally met his eyes. "I never told him about… well…" She motioned her hands between them.

"Okay," he nodded. "I'm following so far."

"I just," she paused. "I just don't know how to turn somebody down, okay?"

…

"What?" she asked.

"Really," Jaune deadpanned. "You don't know how to turn somebody down?"

"I don't know how to politely turn somebody down," she reluctantly corrected.

"You don't say?"

She thumped him on the shoulder.

Jaune chuckled.

Weiss smiled.

Things were finally beginning to return to normal. Then again, what was considered normal between them?

A look at her smile reassured him that it didn't matter.

"Ahem."

He'd been staring at her smile that whole time, hadn't he?

"… sorry"

Weiss shook her head in amusement. "I swear, what are we going to do with you?"

"I don't know," he shrugged. "I've been asking myself that for a while now, actually."

She breathed out a laugh. A ghost of a smile still was still visible in the low light.

"So, I'm sorry," she said. "Had I handled the situation better, this wouldn't have happened."

He knew that even she thought that an apology wasn't necessary. It wasn't like he wouldn't forgive her. Even so, it wasn't the apology that was on his mind.

"You said before that you didn't like him anymore, right?" he asked.

"Mhm."

"What changed?"

Weiss exhaled. "I really thought that it was obvious."

She couldn't possibly mean-

"Yes you, dummy," she confirmed.

His expressions must've been getting easier to read. "Huh…" was all he could muster.

Her eyes flashed. "'Huh'?" she asked.

Oh boy, here it comes.

"I tell you that I like you and all you reply with is huh?"

"Look, I- wait a minute." His eyes widened. "You… you never said you liked me! You like me!?"

"What did you think I meant!?"

"I don't know!" he exclaimed, throwing his hands into the air. "I thought you just meant that since you were giving me a shot, you moved on!"

"Nope, never mind," she shook her head. "I take it back!"

"That isn't how emotions work!"

"It is for a Schnee! If I can get over Neptune's grins, I can do the same with yours!"

"… My grins worked!?"

It was Weiss' turn for her eyes to widen.

"That isn't what I- you- you know I don't- I never said-"

A loud groan cut across her. "Guys," Ruby moaned from the bed. "Please stop… Headache."

Turning to look at her, Ruby was making a look that was very un-Ruby-like.

"Sorry, Ruby!" they both whispered.

She let out a low groan and flopped back onto the mattress. "It's okay…"

Yep. Ruby was definitely not the person to be messed with when tired.

Wait, when did she even get in his room?

No, that wasn't the thing to be focusing on right now. Weiss liked him. Jaunee had done something to turn her emotions towards him into something positive. At the same time, there was still something she needed to take care of…

He saw her delicate smile as she looked off at Ruby's sleeping form.

… and he would be right there to help her.

"Come on," he whispered. His gloved hand hesitantly met her bare one. "We should get back."

Weiss looked down at their held hands.

"Y-yeah," she stuttered. Her blush was visible even through the darkness.

The now closed door of her dorm room towered over her and Jaune, making the world around them seem small in comparison. Weiss was getting dizzy just staring at it…

Don't falter now, she thought. She looked up to Jaune, who was smiling down at her. He gave her hand a small, reassuring squeeze.

She smiled back.

"So, what's the plan?" he asked.

Luckily, Weiss had thought up the perfect three step plan after they left JNPR's room that insured not only success on her part, but also that Neptune wouldn't think horribly of them.

Step One: Locate Neptune. Once found, extract him from the room.

Step Two: Once alone, have a serious sit down. Jaune and her will both explain what happened and what they feel. She will let Neptune know it wasn't him, it was her. Perhaps, a small bit of pathos will be useful as well.

Step Three: Both she and Jaune apologize, and will understand if Neptune no longer wishes to be associated with them, thus showcasing their moral standings. He may then be accepting and willing to work past this situation.

It was perfect!

"Okay," she said, "so once we get in-"

"Hello again!"

Jaune and Weiss both jumped.

"Pyrrha?" said Jaune.

Sure enough, Pyrrha stood next to them, smiling brightly as usual. She wasn't alone, though.

"N-Neptune?" Weiss gasped.

The way he appeared did not reflect what she knew of Neptune. His hand firmly stayed behind his slightly bowed head. All confidence in the way he held himself up was lost in his slouched form. His eyes flicked to Weiss, to Jaune, and back to the wall across from him.

"Hey," he dragged out.

Pyrrha leaned in close to Weiss' ear. "I saw you needed help," she whispered. "Once you left, I led him away from the party and filled him in on what's going on."

Weiss looked incredulously at her.

"Don't worry," she whispered quickly. "Trust me, please."

With a wave, the door slammed shut as she vanished behind it.

No one moved. Their eyes kept darting back and forth, expecting someone else to say something in their place.

"So…" Jaune trailed off.

"Yeah…" said Neptune.

So much for the three step plan.

"Neptune…" Weiss began. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to lead you on. I just… I didn't know how to tell you." She bowed her head. "I understand if you won't forgive me. Just know that I really am sorry."

"What are you talking about?" Neptune asked. When Weiss looked up, he was frowning. "I should be the one apologizing."

The couple were taken aback. "What!?"

"Yeah!" he exclaimed. "I mean I was flirting with you when you were taking things slow with Jaune. That wasn't cool."

"You didn't know," Jaune pointed out.

Neptune put his hand up and shook his head. "Doesn't matter dude, it goes against the bro-code."

"I was the one who talked to you about Weiss, though," Jaune argued. "Wouldn't I be breaking the code by accepting a date with her?"

Neptune looked up at the ceiling thoughtfully. "Nah," he finally said, turning back to the duo. "She asked me to hang with her first and I turned her down. She asked you next and you said yes. Sounds fair to me."

Weiss couldn't believe it. Whatever Pyrrha said had worked. It appeared that Neptune didn't look down at them at all. At the same time, the blame wasn't on him. Whether knowingly or not, Pyrrha had set up the best situation possible. Jaune was right, she just might be one of the best people in their group.

"How about this?" Weiss offered, causing Jaune and Neptune to look at her. "We all apologize for our own parts in all of this and then we move on. Does that sound like a plan?"

The two boys looked to one another before smiling and nodding.

"I'm sorry for accepting a date when I knew you liked her." Jaune.

"I'm sorry for flirting with Weiss when you two were trying to start something." Neptune.

"And I'm sorry for leading you on and not telling you about Jaune and I." Weiss.

With a three-way handshake, the deed was done. The result? Three pleased individuals.

"Well, now that that's out of the way," said Neptune, "I'm gonna head back to the party."

As his hand gripped the knob, he looked back at Jaune and Weiss. Instead of a grin, he gave a genuine smile.

"I hope everything works out," he said.

The door shut. Weiss sighed with relief.. Finally, they could relax.

"Well, that was simple," she said, mostly to herself.

Jaune exhaled. "I'm just happy it's done." He moved to wipe his forehead.

That was when Weiss felt her arm rise with his.

It became apparent then that throughout their entire talk with Neptune, they hadn't stopped holding hands.

One look to Jaune confirmed that he was just as unaware as her.

The amusing thing was, Weiss didn't care. In fact, it just made that weird feeling return to her stomach. It was warm… and kind of fuzzy now that she thought of it. The sensation doubled when she squeezed back.

"Huh."