Chapter 1: Beginnings

Jaune Arc was, for the first time in forever, nervous for battle.

Being the four time Vale Tournament Champion meant stress was a regularity. Screaming fans or worse— rabid haters were a regular sight. He had gotten used to it over time— letting his skill and his weapon do the talking.

Today was different. It was an altogether different challenge. A new battle. Today was the beginning of his student career at Beacon Academy, and he was positively terrified.

It had seemed simple enough. He had lived his entire life as a fraud— his persona built up by the public. He had to play the role of a ladies' man and a daredevil who lived for the thrill of the battle. Now, he wanted to leave that all behind. No more competitive fighting, no more interviews, and definitely no more Jaune Arc fan clubs. He would become a proud Huntsman-in-training at the prestigious Beacon Academy. He would join his own team, make some real friends, and— at the end of the line, he would get a girlfriend. It was just like his training regimen, with steps. Simple. Easy. Concrete.

He had been an absolute idiot.

It had all started when he had gotten into the Bullhead— the stares, the whispers, the looks of wonder. He had expected it, of course. That was good, that was fine. It didn't hurt to be respected. And then, his greatest fear.

Air sickness.

Oh, it was a riot that the feared and powerful warrior Jaune Arc would fall to something as paltry as nausea— of course, no one would understand that it was actually a fairly common and completely legitimate medical problem. What made matters worse was that he had somehow ended up barfing on the shoes of this blonde haired bombshell... Yang, or something, and made a complete fool out of himself.

She had taken it well, of course, with the whole 'Honored to meet you' excuse. Thankfully she had done most of the talking, and then he had managed to escape her clutches, because if he had opened his mouth for too long, he would have no doubt revealed his true identity— good at fighting, but absolutely terrible with the ladies. Or men, for that matter.

Seriously, what was it with some people? Since when had good— nay, excellent combat skills translated to being a suave and confident lady killer? Or was that how it was supposed to be? Was he the result of some cruel joke of the gods?

"Hahahaha! Let's make this guy a total badass on the field, but then totally screw him over in the personality department! No confidence! Super dorky! Complete absence of social skills! Air sickness! Bwahahahaha!"

His sisters nagged him constantly about it. It didn't matter that he could cut down opponents with ease, that he could literally manipulate Aura to blast opponents off their feet. Noooo, all they saw was their beloved brother who couldn't talk to a good-looking girl if his life depended on it.

They had made bets, like they always did. Eighty lien that Jaune can't get a girlfriend by his fourth year! No, a hundred!

Screw it, he had thought to himself. I'll show them. When I bring my girlfriend home, she'll blow your socks off. She'll be smart, pretty, cool, strong, loving—

Heh. The innocence of youth.

His parents had been far kinder— as they always were. His mother, ever the worrywart, had gone over the packing list around two hundred times, to the point where he had begun to worry about her mental health. His father, a graduate of Beacon himself, had been similarly nervous, but of course had gone about it in a more... withdrawn way.

He had bought him a book.

Jaune had no idea what his father had with books, but he had deemed it part of Jaune's 'intellectual education.' Every birthday or holiday, while his sisters received new shoes or the most recent scroll, he received a book.

He had long given up on attempts to complain about injustice.

Jaune looked down skeptically at the dark green book. The cover read '365 Wise Sayings for an Year," in bolded gold letters. By… 'Yatsuhashi Daichi?" It was hardcover, and he enjoyed the feeling of it in his hands. He wasn't a bookworm by any means, but rather enjoyed the smell of books and pages. He was a big fan of 'Ninjas of Love.' Not that he would ever admit it to anyone— if anyone found out that he was a closet pervert who loved reading smut, he would be ruined.

If his sisters found out... all hell would break loose.

He shuddered at the thought as he tentatively opened the cover, peering down at the daily saying.

In flowery writing, it read: "Life is like a flower— it wilts and blooms. When it blooms, heed it."

Yech. Then again, what had he expected from his father? Still, better than the last gift he had gotten me. His father had claimed for Jaune's seventeenth birthday, he needed 'sexual education.' Jaune recalled with horror how he had brought forth an encyclopedia on reproduction, including STDs and contraception. He had forced him to read it aloud, especially the part about contraception.

Jaune cursed as he quickly stowed away the thoughts of the cursed item. That way led madness.

The doors of the ship slowly opened, and he winced as the ship groaned under the weight of students rushing out. He sighed. Okay, Jaune. Not a great start, but you can make it up. Not all battles start well.

He put on a confident smile as he walked out. Beacon Academy, here I come.

Yang Xiao Long watched as Jaune trudged away.

The day had begun with a bang— it turned out that Ruby would be going to Beacon with her, two years early in fact. A surprise, sure, but come on, that was awesome!

Then she had met Jaune Arc— championship fighter. He was good, for sure— she had watched some of his fights. She wasn't a rabid fan, of course, but she gave respect where respect was due. Arc was legit— probably as good as some graduated Huntsmen, even.

She wasn't sure what she was expecting when she met him, but it definitely wasn't what she had been met by.

He had walked into the Bullhead looking like the world was about to end, clutching onto his luggage for dear life. To her delight, he had taken a seat on the same bench as her, oblivious to the people around him. They had sat like that for a few minutes, Ruby angrily kicking her for some joke she had made— she didn't even remember at this point.

Realizing that the situation would only become more awkward as time progressed, she switched on her Xiao Long charm and said, "Hey, nice to meet you. The name's Yang."

He turned, and she realized in horror that his face had turned a brilliant shade of green. He opened his mouth as if he was a fish before spewing out projectiles of vomit. Her instincts kicked in and she rolled away from the torrent. Her shoes were splattered, though, much to her disgust, but before she could say anything he had begun showering her with apologies.

She had shared a confused glance with Ruby. This was the Jaune Arc?

He seemed nice enough, though, although she had done most of the talking— he had been busy drinking water and cleaning up his mess. He did give her the occasional 'uh-huh' and manly grunt, which she supposed was a crucial part of the male language.

It was when he had finally spoken on his own that she had come to an epiphany.

"Y-yeah. Are you nervous for initiation? Because I am. Well, er, not to say that I'm, like, unprepared or anything, because I'm not unprepared. No, n-not at all! I-I- I'm prepared, but, you know, like, stage fright and stuff, right? Plus, uh, we're going to be getting our teams soon, right? Yeah. I mean, geez— think about it— four years, am I right? Like, this is a big deal! So I guess my point, is, uh, I'm more nervous about like, the teams, you know? Not the actual fighting part. I'm sure that'll be okay. You think maybe they'll give us some supplies before the initiation? I heard..."

He trailed on like that for more than a minute as the dawning realization fell upon her.

Jaune Arc, championship fighter and prodigy— was socially awkward.

Oh, sure, she had seen some of his interviews, but they seemed far too scripted. Honestly, who talked like that in real life?

This was hilarious. Of course, she didn't think any less of him or anything like that— being socially awkward was fine! It was a bit ironic, sure, that Jaune Arc of all people was socially awkward, but she knew at least one another person who suffered from being awkward, and if she could get the two to be friends? She had kind of forgotten to introduce her, but it was fine— there were still many chances. Two awkward people becoming best buds! That would be perfect!

She was jolted back to reality by Ruby, who piped up with her regular cheer. "He seemed nice."

"Yeah, I suppose. Bit socially awkward, though, eh? He reminded me of someone I knew."

Silver eyes looked at her with a suspicious look, as if expecting something. If Ruby was trying to look intimidating— she was failing miserably, looking more like a bunny rabbit. Awwwww. But Ruby wasn't wrong with her suspicions— Yang supposed that as her sister it was forgivable.

"Really?"

Yang nodded. "Yep. You." Before Ruby could protest, she placed a finger on the younger girl's lips. "Not in a bad way, I swear— it's just that you'd expect with him being this hotshot that he'd be really confident and cool, too— but he isn't! He has his own insecurities and problems! There's nothing wrong with that, right?"

Ruby paused as if considering her words. "Yeah, I guess?" Her eyebrows knit together in that cute way Yang always loved. She really was too adorable sometimes.

"Anyways, my point is— you should try to get closer to him! He seems like a nice enough guy, but you can bond over your lack of social skills! Plus, I'm sure he's a weapons nerd, too." She teased, raising her eyebrow.

Ruby pouted, clearly unimpressed. "If you call me a weapons nerd one more time, I'm not going to help you with your upgrades on Ember Celica next time."

Mehhhhh. "Fine, fine. Sorry." She plastered on a grin. "But at least try to make friends with him, okay? Maybe even more than friends? Eh? Eh?"

"Yang! I haven't even talked to him yet!" The girl hissed, but nonetheless her face flushed. Yang laughed. It was too easy sometimes. Ruby looked up at the ceiling, deep in thought, before nodding. "But... yep. I'll give it a try. Dad said I should try getting out of my shell, right?"

"Yeah! Plus, being friends with the best fighter our age? That's cool!"

The reaper seemed to get more excited by the second. A 'cool' stamp of approval from Yang meant it had to be a good idea. This was a great idea, Yang thought to herself. Now, just one more step.

"Well, look! He's right there! Why don't you go talk to him? Bye!"

"W-wait!" Yang smirked as she looked back to see Ruby with an utterly betrayed expression on her face, arms akimbo. You'll thank me later.

Anyways, if Jaune ended up being a douchebag or tried anything on her sister, she'd kill him herself, championship fighter or not.

Ruby watched as Yang gleefully smiled back at her as she, despite not having a speed Semblance, zoomed away at a breakneck pace. It was just like her darling sister to ditch her like that. After all, who wanted to be seen with the little, awkward, bumbling mess that was Ruby Rose.

Sometimes she just felt it was unfair. Why couldn't she have gotten more Xiao Long genes? She wanted to scream up at the sky, but thought better of it. Then she would be little, awkward, and insane. Even she knew those three weren't a good combination. Acting out here would significantly lower my chances of getting a friend, she mused. It's not worth the risk.

She saw Jaune, who she had yet to introduce herself to— she wasn't even sure if he had seen her. Chances were her sister's enormous bosom had completely hid her from view. Whether it had physically done so or had simply distracted him, she had no idea. Stupid Yang.

Still, she had heard most of their conversation— if you could even call it that— and she had to agree with her unusually perceptive sister. He was awkward.

Like her. Hooray!

She had seen Jaune before too— one of the Signal Academy teachers had used a video of one of his matches for a lesson. Naturally with him being a celebrity and all, she would have thought that he would be one of those suave guys Yang drooled for on TV. Yuck.

No. Instead, he seemed like a normal enough guy! Bit tall, and on the muscular side for sure, but at the same time scrawny, awkward teenage voice, and kind of lanky. Plus, he wasn't a conversationalist.

Strangely enough, that brought a nice warm feeling to her stomach. Finally! Someone who was as bad as talking as her. Heh, and it was the super awesome and cool fighter. That was a first, for sure.

He was looking around, head swivelling wildly as if looking for something. Heh. He's lost. Ruby thought, a smile smile appearing on her lips. It was time for Ruby Rose to come to the rescue!

She began walking towards him, plotting how she would begin the conversation. She thought back to some spy movies she had watched when she was younger. Even now the gadgets in some of them were sooooo cool.

"The name's Rose. Ruby Rose." She tested it on her tongue, but scrunched up her face. Too forced.

"Wassup? My name's Ru—" No. Definitely not.

Deciding she would just wing it— the ultimate strategy, mind you— she approached him, ready to offer her gallant aid.

Which was why she was just a teeny bit surprised when someone smashed into her.

What the hell is with this place? Jaune thought to himself as he spotted a girl sprawled on the pavement, the ground around her cracked. She was literally in a crater— a crater of her own.

Most of the students were gone now, already making their way to the Hall, for sure. Yet he had to get involved in another tricky situation with some crazy girl who had decided it would be a good idea to take a nap on the road. He watched as a beautiful girl dressed in white walked away from the scene. If he was smarter, than he would do the same. Sadly, he was an idiot.

"You okay?" He asked, stretching out a hand. "It kinda looks like you want some help. Er, unless you were laying down there on purpose." Great going, Jaune. "Uh— which is perfectly fine too! I'm sure it's good for your— your health?"

The girl giggled before taking hold of his hand. Jaune was impressed to feel a lot of calluses on her hand— so she was a serious Huntress. He had kind of doubted it with how small she was, and had guessed she was a visitor or something.

"So...what were you doing there?" Because, come on, that was kind of weird.

She scrunched up her face. "Ugh. I don't know. I crashed into this mean girl's suitcases and she scolded me for it. Then this other girl saved me but then walked away. Then I—" Her eyes widened, and Jaune noticed that they were silver— a peculiar color.

"What's wrong?" He asked, noticing the flush in her cheeks.

"Nothing." She turned for a moment.

How believable, he wanted to say, but instead he patted her on the shoulder. "Alright. Let's get going to the Main Hall, though. I think we're going to be late if we don't get moving." Plus, I'm lost.

"Um— I think I should admit something." Admit? We just met! How could you possibly—

"My sister, Yang, told me to go and talk to you because you looked socially awkward, and I'm kind of awkward like that too, but she didn't mean it in an offensive way— I swear! So I was thinking of coming up to you and I didn't know what to say, so I—"

Jaune waved her off. "Hey, it's okay. I am socially awkward." He couldn't help but give her a smile, and he was surprised at how relieved he was.

Finally! Some good luck! A person as awkward as I am!

Ruby broke out in a large smile as well. "Great! We can be... socially awkward buddies, then. SAB."

Subconsciously, Jaune was aware that that was a terrible name, but hey, he had just made his first friend. Plus, she actually was okay with him being a total wreck in conversation.

"Um, my name's Jaune Arc."

"Ruby. Ruby Rose."

They smiled at each other for a second before the both of them coughed and looked away. Damn. I thought that almost seemed natural for a second.

"You don't look like Yang at all, though. No offense." Seriously, though— she didn't. Yang was tall, buxom, blonde, with lilac eyes. This girl might have been the farthest thing from Yang on Remnant— short, with raven black hair and silver eyes. She was cute, no doubt, but in a really different way.

Ruby seemed to take offence, however, and pouted. Awww... oh, she's angry at me.

"S-Sorry." He offered. Don't tell me I've just lost like, my only friend.

To his shock, she beamed, all vestiges of her momentary anger completely gone. "It's kay! We're half sisters, that's why. We have the same dad."

"C-cool. I guess?" What was he supposed to say to that?

They walked for a while, and Jaune couldn't help but admire the beauty of Beacon Academy— its architecture was modern yet had vintage touches. Its marble pillars shot into the air elegantly, and the walkway was paved with smooth stone. He recalled how he had visited Atlas Academy and been completely thrown off by its design. It had been more military base than school. Plus, the uniforms were soooo uptight.

Shade... heh. There was no way he was going to Vacuo. No way in hell.

Mistral seemed okay, but what was the point of going so far when Beacon looked so awesome? He closed his eyes and hummed, enjoying the trill of birdsong, the chatter of students in the distance, the wind blowing through the trees, the awkward silence of lack of conversation...

"So... I've got this thing!" Jaune's eyes bulged as she pulled out a huge scythe that was almost two times the size of the diminutive girl. Holy shit! And I thought my weapon was ridiculous.

"It's Crescent Rose— a scythe!"

Yes, I can tell, Ruby. Thank you for your explanation. Jaune studied it. The downward facing grooves near the grip indicated mechashift. "Plus... a rifle?"

She beamed, her smile so wide that she could have eaten a Beowolf. "Yep! Highly customizable. Great accuracy."

Jaune grinned, impressed. "That's pretty cool." It was, too— he wasn't a total weapons nerd, but he could appreciate good weapons, and was always looking for ways to make his own better. He had to admit the scythe cut an imposing figure on its own, although he had doubts about how effective a weaponized gardening tool would be in combat. Eh. Who am I to judge? If it works, it works.

She nodded. "Course, I have nothing but TOTAL respect for your weapon. Crocea Mors is soooo cool. It can turn into a machine gun, right?"

Jaune nodded. Although he was usually bothered by people going berserk over his weapon or his fame, he couldn't help but smile at her enthusiasm. Something about it seemed natural. "Yeah, but I prefer just using the sword mode. It's actually a family heirloom, so my dad was pretty pissed when I got mechashift for it."

Ruby giggled, covering her mouth with her small fist. "Yeah, I can see how that might have made him angry."

Jaune felt himself relax. This was fine. This was great! Few minutes into the first day, he had made a friend! Although he had embarrassed himself at first, he was making a recovery! That counted for something, right?

Jaune 1, World 0. Suck it.

She looked around for a second. "W-wait. Do you know where we're going?"

What? "W-what? I was just following you!"

Jaune 0, World 1, he corrected.