Author's Note: And we're back. Sorry for the long delay between chapters; had family come to visit, and then I used a lot of my free time reading Coeur Al Aran's "White Sheep" fanfic, all ninety-something chapters of it so far. And have now started in on "Forged Destiny," which is even longer. I regret nothing!

Oh, and there will be some… skimming of Volume 6 canon from this point out, and will probably diverge more heavily in the next chapter. Which is to say, I'mma make stuff up to concentrate on that sweet, sweet shippy goodness. Spoilers for Volume 6, and all that. So, there's that. Finally, I continue my proud streak of owning absolutely nothing at all.

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Weiss concluded that, whatever she was feeling for her new boyfriend, it must be more than a mere passing infatuation. The former heiress derived this conclusion from the simple fact that, somehow, someway, using dark and evil magic surely derived from the most diabolical of sources, Jaune had managed to talk her into joining in with the ludicrous capering that he had had the gall to adjudge "a concert."

It hadn't helped that her own partner had conspired with him against her. Ruby had joined her ridiculous puppy dog gaze together with Jaune's to obliterate any trace of Weiss's resistance to participating in the farce. The three of them had set up in a pavilion just outside Mistral Central Station, and had played songs at the request of a small, but growing crowd of onlookers.

Forget whatever magical Grimm-slaying powers her silver eyes might have, Ruby Rose's true secret power was the overwhelming force of weaponized cuteness. And when Jaune had turned those huge, deep blue, expressive, beautiful eyes at her in soulful dejection, Weiss had found herself up on the small stage before her brain had regained its capacity to form rational thought.

Damn it, those looks were gonna be a problem.

Weiss Schnee had drawn capacity crowds at some of the largest venues in the world. Everyone, from high school girls to captains of industry, had at least one of her singles downloaded to their scroll. The power of her voice had brought the elite of Atlesian society to rapturous, silenced awe at its numinous revelation of the higher mysteries.

And now she was singing backup for a goofy boy strumming a guitar on an impromptu stage, as the trio performed what could only be described as "ditties," to the delight of the crowd. The entire experience was utterly alien to the Atlesian huntress. Whereas, to her entire world perspective, audience members were to remain properly silent until such time as was proper to pay homage to her talent and skill, Jaune playfully interacted with the crowd, taking requests, cracking jokes, and sometimes goading them to sing along with him.

At one point, he had concluded a song by having Weiss and Ruby clap out a beat as he led the audience into singing the chorus, which, as Jaune had said, "they'd better have learned by now, or else he's gonna be real sad." The knight-turned-musician had interjected a quick statement between each line of the chorus that the audience sang.

Country roads,

"Yeah!"

Take me home,

"Sing it!"

To the place,

"Everybody!"

Where I belong!

"Whoo!"

Southern Sanus,

"Louder!"

Mountain momma,

"Almost there!"

Country roads,

"Bring it on home!"

Take me home.

"All right!"

It wasn't just the unorthodox, completely informal nature of the concert that had taken Weiss aback, but aspects of Jaune that she had never seen before. He had taken his innate dorkiness, and utilized it into an "aw-shucks" persona that complimented his easy humor. Jaune was able to read the crowd and keep a high energy to the place.

Weiss was forced to admit that Jaune, when freed from his crippling self-doubts and emotional trauma, could actually be quite charismatic. Most people just couldn't help but like him, even just a bit. Even when some agitator had tried to whip up bigoted anti-faunus sentiment to cause trouble, Jaune had managed to defuse the situation by composing a new song on the spot, one that he'd tentatively titled "It's a Great Day For Me To Whoop Somebody's Ass." The song was an impromptu challenge to the heckler to put up or shut up. Said heckler had opted to shut up, to the derision of the crowd, and Jaune had taken the opportunity to move on.

Of all of the foreign experiences that Weiss was discovering for the first time, it was the idea of just straight-up asking for money that had stunned her the most. Having grown up as the heiress to the most powerful Dust company on the face of Remnant, Weiss had always had contracted arrangements with concert organizers, with most of the revenue going towards whatever cause her father had felt would reflect best upon the SDC. Here, she and Ruby had gone in front of the stage with a small bucket, collecting what pocket lien people felt inclined to give. The whole time that was going on, Jaune had turned it into another comedic moment, playing a song of musical extortion to the crowd, singing and playing in an exaggeratedly-poor manner.

Give us some money,

And I swear we'll go away.

Fork over some cash,

And you can go about your day!

A little bit of change,

A handful of lien,

Cough it on up,

Or we'll start to play again!

Just give us some money,

And I swear we'll go away!

After repeating the simple verses, Jaune then brought his playing to an end, taking a dramatic bow before hopping down to see how well they had done. "So, did we make enough for you to get the thing for your sister?" he asked Ruby.

"Yup!" The small scythe-wielder fished out some lien chits, counted them out, handed the rest to Jaune, and pulled him into a hug. "Oh, you're the best! Weiss, tell him he's the best."

She smiled at her boyfriend. "Eh," said Weiss with a critical look. "He's okay. I think I'll keep him for now."

"Such high praise. Anyways, go get the thing for Yang. We'll catch up." Jaune tousled Ruby's hair for a second before she zipped away in a cloud of roses. As he finished mecha-shifting his guitar into a compact state and putting it in its case, his girlfriend took his arm and held it tightly.

"It was kind of you to do that to raise money for her," Weiss said. The two began to make their way into the train station proper.

"Ah, it's nothing. Team RNJR would do stuff like that all the time on our way here. There weren't always Grimm to fight in exchange for supplies or a night at the inn, so after we got the guitar, it was a backup way to make money. Besides," Jaune said with a little smirk, "This was a fine demonstration of what we mere mortals call 'having fun.'"

She clicked her tongue. "So, you typically make fools of yourselves for fun?"

Jaune shrugged. "I've done dumber things for worse reasons. I like making my friends happy. Speaking of which…"

The couple found most of their friends seated on a large bench. Yang and Nora were speaking about something involving trying to figure out how to combine their Semblances to hit things really, really hard, while a quietly alarmed Ren looked on, a small box resting on the floor between his feet. Oscar sat off to one side of the bench, still looking and feeling out of place and isolated. Weiss took a seat on the bench, while Jaune leaned against a wall.

"Where's Blake?" asked Weiss.

"She went to bid farewell to her companion," Ren answered quickly, clearly seizing the opportunity to change the subject to something less destructive.

"Do you think they're together-together?" Nora stage-whispered. Weiss had never heard such a loud whisper in her life.

Yang frowned. "That's not really any of our business, is it?"

"Why not? Do you think they're making out? Maybe she pulled him into a broom closet and-"

"Shut up!" Yang's eyes flared red, before she paused, shook her head, and looked away, embarrassed at her outburst. "Why do you care so much anyway?"

Nora opted to ignore Yang's temper flare, and shot a lascivious look Ren's direction. "Weeeelll… it's just that, with Weiss and Jauney being all lovey-dovey, it might get other people to take a hint. Wouldn't that be great, Ren? If more people took a hint about people close to them being in looove with them, Ren?"

Ren blinked, honestly surprised. "Wait, are you talking about us? I thought we were already a couple."

Nora froze. "You… you did?"

"Sure. At least since the fight in Kuroyuri. Really, this whole time, I was just waiting for you to be ready for that sort of relationship. After all, the only one who insisted that we weren't involved was, well, you."

For once, the hyperactive motormouth of Team JNPR had nothing to say. A brittle smile was frozen to her face, her eyes were wide and unblinking, and a slight throb was visible on her forehead.

Nora has crashed. Would you like to send a report?

Jaune was about to ask if she needed to lay down, when a familiar red cloud of rose petals zoomed towards them, materializing into one Ruby Rose. The girl stood before her sister, with her hands behind her back and a positively enormous smile on her face.

Yang gasped and jumped towards her sister, ignoring Nora, who stood unmoving in a state of catatonia. "Did you get me something? What did you get me?"

"Ta-daa!" Ruby produced a large bag of fine chocolates and held them out to her sister.

Yang pulled her sister into one of her patented death hugs. "Oh, you're just the best baby sister ever!"

"Hey!" complained Weiss.

"The best baby sister ever," Yang reiterated.

Jaune started as he remembered something. "Oh, right, presents. You have the thing, Ren?"

At that, Ren, who had been secretly enjoying the brief moment of relative peacefulness, leaned down and picked up the box that sat on the ground between his feet. "As requested," he said, as he got up and handed it to his teammate.

"You're the best," said Jaune, before turning to Weiss. "I asked Ren and Nora to pick this up for me while we were playing outside."

He handed her the box.

Weiss didn't know what to say. She had received gifts before, of course, but they had either been impersonal items given to her by her parents in exchange for some behavior, or else meaningless things sent to her by fans, would-be suitors, and sycophants looking for an in with the SDC. This was the first time she had received a present from someone who had got it for her for no other reason than to make her happy.

"Ruby told me you play piano," Jaune said, as Weiss carefully unwrapped the box, revealing the compact form of a mecha-shifting electronic keyboard. "I thought that it would be good to get you your own instrument, that you can take with you."

As the heiress to the Schnee Dust Company, Weiss had played only the highest-quality heirloom pianos, gloriously crafted implements whose components alone would cost the typical Huntsman five good years' worth of pay. She had played pianos that cost more than the train that they were going to board. As she shifted her new instrument to full size and gave it a few experimental plinks on the keys, Weiss realized that this was a simple, bog-standard keyboard for traveling players. She treasured it more than all the Dust in Atlas.

It was a simple, bog-standard keyboard, but it was also Jaune telling her that he thought about how to make her happy. It was a simple, honest way of telling her that he loved her.

She turned off the keyboard, shifted it to storage mode, and then hugged onto her boyfriend. "Jaune, I love it," she said, looking up at him with shining eyes. "It was very thoughtful."

"I try," he said with a smile.

"Ew, they're gonna do the mushy stuff again!" complained Ruby. She moved away from the couple, then paused before Nora, who still hadn't blinked or moved. "Hey, guys, what happened to Nora?"

"Oh, Ren just told her that he thought they'd been in a relationship this whole time," offered Jaune.

"You mean they weren't?"

"She should be fine before we have to board the train. And if not, then… by the time we reach Atlas?"

Weiss sighed. "I'm really not looking forward to being back in Atlas. You all have no idea how much I went through to leave it in the first place."

"Don't worry, Weiss!" Ruby cheered. "Team RWBY won't leave your side, no matter what!"

Jaune coughed meaningfully.

"Oh, and I'm sure Jaune will try his very best as well," Ruby added lamely.

"Oh wow, Ruby, really?"

"You ladies won't have anything to worry about as long as you're traveling with us," a new voice broke into the conversation. They all looked to see two young men, muscle-bound, swaggering, and not apparently burdened by an overabundance of intellect, approaching their group. One of them smirked at Weiss, who tightened her grip on Jaune.

"Why don't you ditch the kid and hang with a real Huntsman?" he asked. "Hell, you put that one in a dress, and he'd be as pretty as the rest of you."

"Jaune is all the man I need. And I'll have you know that he is perfectly enchanting in a dress," Weiss spat, in her Weiss-iest tone. Jaune resisted the urge to facepalm. She was trying, she really was, and her heart was in the right place. Well, in times such as this, he could either get embarrassed or get snarky, and since he couldn't see how getting embarrassed could help, it was time to get snarky.

"It's all the rage with the ladies these days," he deadpanned, face absolutely straight. "Bare shoulders show off the build in a non-threatening kind of way, and it lets her know you'd do anything for her."

"It's true," Weiss nodded gravely. "He was the talk of the girls for weeks afterwards."

"So you do wear dresses to impress ladies!" called Yang. "Was this before or after she tied you to the bed?"

"Before, of course," Weiss huffed. "What do you think made me want to?" Jaune turned bright red as his girlfriend put her arm around his waist… with her hand slipping under his shirt, resting on his lower abdominals. She realized her mistake immediately, but she couldn't very well pull away and apologize now, could she? Those creeps might get the wrong idea.

Yes, that was the reason she couldn't move her hand away. Selling the bluff. That, and nothing else. Weiss certainly wasn't suddenly appreciative of what a year of hard training, constant exercise, and proper eating had done for Jaune's physique. Nor was her mind racing with possibilities of how the rest of him might feel, bare to her touch.

Lies and slander! Weiss was a proper lady, thank you very much, pure as fresh-fallen snow.

She bit her lower lip. But… what if she weren't?

"My, Jaune is developing so well," she said. "His muscles are so lithe and corded, each one perfectly in balance with the rest." Jaune felt himself start to… react, as she looked at him with a dreamy smile, her voice heavy with open desire. "Feeling is good enough, but the way he moves, so graceful and smooth…"

Jaune tried to tell himself that she was just kidding to get these guys to go away. It was hard to think straight with Weiss's delicate hand running over his torso, and with her saying such things in that tone of voice. It was just an act, right?

Right?

"WE COULD HAVE BEEN NECKING THIS WHOLE TIME?!"

Nora has reinitialized.

All eyes snapped to Nora, who, being unsure as to whether she should strangle Lie Ren or try to smother him in kisses, pounced on him and opted to do both at once.

The two Huntsmen looked at each other. "These chicks are freaking nuts," one said. The other nodded in agreement. "Let's get the hell out of here." With that they turned and walked off, no doubt to be obnoxious elsewhere.

"Okay, they're gone, you guys can… you know… stop now," called Ruby, staring at her partner and chewing her bottom lip.

"I know that I can stop, but does that mean I must?" Weiss asked, her hand now under the bottom of Jaune's hoodie, exploring the new and exciting territory of his abs. Was that a v-shape she felt? Meanwhile, the part of Jaune's mind that was a teenager was having a grand time, with all sorts of thoughts about what his hands could be doing back. The part that was a responsible team leader and generally stand-up kind of guy recognized that it was time to stop. For now.

"Come on, Weiss, they got the message and left. We're making our friends uncomfortable."

At that, Weiss came back to Remnant, turned bright red, and pulled her hand back as if it'd been scalded. She looked around quickly, but with the exception of her friends, no one else paid the team any mind. "I apologize for my inappropriate behavior," she said, Miss Prim and Proper once more. "I may have been… carried away. Can you forgive me, Jaune?"

"I'll survive," he said gallanty. He was really, really hoping no one paid any attention to him below the waist.

"Eh, these things happen," shrugged Yang.

"Not to me!" Ruby interjected. "Yang, why was Weiss acting this way?"

Yang froze, staring at her sister in wide-eyed disbelief. "Okay, Ruby, I know I've given you the talk. Don't even act like I didn't."

"What talk?"

Yang glared at her sister. "You know, about the birds and the bees? Boys and girls? Or girls and girls, or boys and boys? Together?"

"Oh," Ruby's silver eyes widened in recognition. "I wasn't really paying attention, since it didn't have to do with weapons, or fighting Grimm."

Yang felt her eye twitch.

"Wait," Ruby continued. "Was that the one where you hoped Blake liked you too, because she has a magnificent Bellaboo-" Ruby found herself unable to continue speaking as Yang had snatched her up in a literal iron death grip, her real hand pressing over the smaller girl's mouth.

"Ruby Rose, you shut the godsdamned hell up right now." Yang looked up at her friends, smiling weakly. "You, uh, you forget you heard that, okay?"

Jaune shrugged. "Not really any of my business anyway. Plus, I'm all for team cohesion. Weiss?"

The white-haired girl glanced at the floor before meeting Yang's eyes. "I… may have suspected," she said. Yang nodded as she recalled the private conversation the two had shared in her room in Mistral. "Just remember," Weiss added, "I'm still here for you. Both of you, no matter what happens."

"I'm just as confused as Ruby," admitted Oscar. "Ozpin says that 'discretion is the better part of valor,' which I guess means I should just mind my own business."

"Help me," Ren gasped for breath as Nora finally let up enough to let him gulp sweet, sweet, life-sustaining oxygen. His eyes widened as Nora resumed her siege a moment later.

Yang relaxed. "Thanks guys. You're the best. Except for you," she said, dropping Ruby to fall to the floor with an ignominious splat. Whatever she was about to say was lost as Qrow arrived with tickets in hand. The adult Huntsman frowned as he saw Nora clinging on to Ren, who was turning a distressing shade of blue.

"Pinkie, get off Ninja Kid, you might actually kill him this time." Nora complied, looking vaguely guilty.

"Uncle Qrow!" Ruby dashed up to him before Yang could stop her. "Nora and Ren are necking now, and Weiss was acting all weird, touching Jaune and talking about him moving, and Yang was all like, 'I gave you the talk!' but it was boring because she just wanted to talk about girls and their booties all day, so could you explain what's going on?"

Qrow blinked. Slowly, deliberately, he took out his flask and took a long, long pull from it. He then took a single ticket for himself, tossing the rest in a pile onto the bench, and then turned to board the train without a single word.

All aboard the Nope Train, express to Screwthatville.

[/]

The large collection of teenagers and Qrow had their own car on the train, with a designated seating and dining area, small dormitories, and a lavatory. Light from the setting sun cast the interior of the car in a surreal, golden hue. Qrow and Ozpin were in a corner booth, deep in discussion. Ruby was reading one of her comic books, while Yang and Blake were doing… awkward Yang and Blake things by the window. The two partners, with assistance from their teammates, had been working on repairing their relationship, and while they had made progress, every once in a while one of them would say something to set the other one off.

Weiss sighed. At least some relationships were going smoother. Nora had, for once, completely exhausted herself, and was now sleeping soundly with her arms wrapped around Ren, who, in turn, was quietly meditating, and appreciating the joys of an unrestricted airflow. Jaune leaned against Weiss, steadily working his way through a medical textbook that Ozpin had suggested he "liberate" from the Haven Academy library during the confusion, along with books on Huntsman tactics and leadership. They found that keeping him focused on other tasks, as well as keeping him from seeing the movement of the scenery through the window, helped keep his infamous motion sickness under control.

Weiss herself had her new keyboard on her lap, and was idly experimenting with a new melody. She thought about how she felt, here with her friends and teammates, and the contrast between the love and acceptance that she knew here with the cold disdain and guarded manipulation of the Schnee "family" back in Atlas. The feelings of warmth, comfort and joy that her true family had given her as she had nearly passed out from self-inflicted exhaustion welled up within her. Almost of their own accord, her fingers began to play a soft tune, almost wistful in its tone. Weiss's voice was soft and gentle as she found words to give voice to those emotions within her.

Hush your cries,
Close your eyes.
Stay with me...
Let's just dream,
Quietly,
Of what might be.
Calm your fear,
I'll be near,
To you, I'll cling.
Rest, my friend.
Time can mend,
Many things…

Jaune had put his book down, and had his eyes closed, softly smiling at the soothing tone of her voice. Across the car, shoulders lowered as the teenagers began to sink into a relaxation. Qrow rolled his eyes. "Do those kids ever stop with the singing?"

Ozpin answered him, a wry grin on Oscar's face. "Surely there are worse hobbies for teenagers to engage in?" Qrow just grunted. At least Blondie over there hadn't tried to move in on Yang, or gods help us all, Ruby. Smart kid.

Over in their corner, Weiss continued to sing.

I don't know the answers,
Tomorrow's still unknown.
But I can make this promise,
You won't be alone.

I don't know where we should go,
Just feeling farther from our goal.
I don't know what path we will be shown.
But I know that when I'm with you I'm at home.
Yes, I know that when I'm with you I'm at home.

"Weiss, that's beautiful," Ruby gleamed, eyes glinting in the soft golden light.

There's a quiet place,
In my embrace.
A haven of safety where
I'll dry your tears,
Shelter here,
In my care...

But even when we stumble,
And someday when we fall,
What I will remember
Is that I had you through it all...

I don't know where we should go,
Just feeling farther from our goal.
I don't know what path we will be shown.
But I know that when I'm with you I'm at home.
Yes, I know that when I'm with you I'm at home.

With a brief coda from her keyboard, Weiss's song came to an end. Instead of a round of applause, she was met with the simple, sincere smiles of her comrades, and her boyfriend's arm reaching around her shoulders and pulling her close. She reached up and dabbed a tear from her eye before looking up at him.

It was good to be home.

[/]

That evening, Weiss sat at a bed in one of the cabins, her long hair free and loose, and slender shoulders bared. She offered a little smile to the scroll camera that sat across from her before switching it off and packing away her keyboard.

She had found another song in her, but this was one to be shared between her and Jaune alone. Weiss tried to be as optimistic as Ruby, but after the Fall, after Haven, she had meant what she had said about the risks that they all faced. So, she had recorded a message to Jaune, one that she would send if it looked like they would be separated or… should something happen to her.

No regrets.

She had just finished packing her things when a knock sounded at the door.

"Come in."

Speaking of charming, goofy knights, here was hers, with a cup of tea for her, which she accepted gladly. "Hey, Weiss. Just checking up on everyone. You feeling okay?"

Weiss sipped her tea, some kind of herbal mixture that Jaune had found. She still preferred coffee to tea, but she made an exception for the tea that Jaune drank. Apparently, it was common to his hometown, and she liked how the scent reminded her of him.

"I'm fine, but I thank you for your consideration." Weiss paused for a second, frowning into her tea. "Actually, there is something I would like to discuss with you. Would you mind closing the door?"

He complied, before sitting next to her on the bunk. "What's on your mind?"

She flushed, embarrassed. "This is… going to sound absolutely silly and shallow."

"Weiss, what is it?"

"Do you… do you think I'm beautiful?"

Jaune blinked. "What? Of course I do, you know I do. Anyone would. Why would you even ask that?"

Weiss gazed into the tea, idly stirring it with a single, delicate finger. "I knew this was going to sound dumb. I have… scars. Not just the one on my face, but new ones on my back and stomach. From Haven. I know that I sound like an idiot girl, but..." she trailed off, embarrassed and insecure.

"Those scars mean something," Jaune spoke up.

"Huh?"

"You could have stayed in Atlas, safe and sound and rich beyond any reasonable amount, but becoming a Huntress, fighting to change the world and how it saw your name… that meant something to you. After the Fall, you could have given up on that dream, gone off and resumed a singing career or done anything, really, but finding your team and keeping up the fight, it meant something to you. Those scars mean that you're brave enough to put yourself at risk for the people that matter to you."

She had actually been intending to find Winter at Mistral, not her team, but she didn't have the heart to interrupt him when he was on a roll.

He moved in on her, kissing her gently above the brow, where her facial scar began. "Your scars are beautiful, because you are beautiful. And they remind me to never take you for granted." He kissed the top of her cheek, just under her eye, where the scar ended.

Weiss stood up, putting the teacup on a shelf. She took a deep breath to steady herself and then turned to her boyfriend. "Can I… can I show you them?"

His breath caught, before he steadied himself. If she needed this, than he needed to be there for her. Meeting her gaze, he nodded.

Her dress hit the floor.

She stood bare to him. The scar on her abdomen had faded from an angry red into more of a brownish-pink color, albeit one that still stood out from the pale tone of her natural skin. There were some jagged lines radiating from the center, but really, it could have been much worse.

At least she was still here to complain about it.

Weiss gasped as he gently pulled her close by the hips and planted a soft kiss on the scar. Her hands trembled as her fingers ran through his hair, eyes closed. She whimpered a little as he let go and pulled back, looking into her eyes from where he was seated.

She bit her lower lip as her hands slid down to work at the buckles of his armor. Suddenly, Jaune took one of her hands in his, gently but still firmly.

"Weiss," he said, his voice heavy. "Are you absolutely sure that this is what you want?"

Did she trust him with this?

She found that she did.

Weiss answered him with a kiss, and a shove that sent him on his back on the bed. "What about you, Sir Jaune? Is this what you want?"

His enormous, wild grin was all the answer she needed, and she found herself practically flowing up to him to capture this lips in another kiss.

No regrets.

[/]

Weiss tried not to grumble as they trudged through the snow on foot. One would think that a Schnee was above trudging, but low and behold, there she was, hiking through the forest after all hell had broken loose on the train this morning. That her heels made trudging through the snow even more of a chore than it was for others galled her even more. The Grimm had attacked the Argus Limited in force, the two useless morons from yesterday were apparently useless Huntsmen morons that had made everything worse, her boyfriend and his team were now separated from the rest to protect the civilians, they had picked up a nice old lady to hang out with them on a lovely jaunt through a blizzard, there was a blizzard, the reincarnated spirit of her Headmaster was apparently a magician whose evil ex may or may not have provoked an unadulterated genocide, and their bloody shadow war against the forces of darkness and evil had now been upgraded into what appeared to be a literally impossible bloody shadow war against the forces of darkness and evil.

This, for lack of any better term despite the extensive diction at Weiss's disposal, sucked.

Ozpin-or Ozma, she supposed-sucked. His stupid murderous Grimm lover sucked. Poor Oscar tried his very hardest not to suck, but there was no way to banish Ozma from him, so he sucked against his will. The gods sucked. Atlas sucked. The stupid snow sucked. Oh look, a farmhouse. What were the odds that the farm would suck too?

An investigation revealed that, yes, the farm did indeed suck.

Weiss wasn't sulking by a window, she was brooding, of which there was a world of difference. She did take a brief moment to feel vindicated that she'd thought to record the video for Jaune yesterday, and had been able to send it to his scroll before the train moved out of range. Weiss had known, just known that something like this would happen. Mind you, she didn't think it would have happened the very next day, but such was the life of a Huntress.

She allowed herself a small smile as she remembered what else had happened yesterday. Despite some awkward fumbling at first, that had definitely not sucked. She made a mental note to thank Yang for providing her the proper equipment to enjoy herself safely, as well as instruction in the use of prophylactic technology. Weiss recalled the way her boyfriend had looked at her, with a mixture of hunger, wonder, and reverence that was, to be frank, her due. If he was going to insist in calling her an angel, he may as well treat her as such.

It had been a very good night.

But alas, that was last night. This night, she needed to wipe the giddy smile from her face and focus on the mission. She just hoped that Jaune was doing well. There was one thing she could do, though. She could spare a moment for this. Weiss retrieved her keyboard from her pack, and began to play the song she'd recorded for him last night.

She would play it every evening until her knight was in her hands again, where he belonged.

[/]

Jaune tried not to grumble as he led his team through the coastal town of Argus. Last night had been nothing short of spectacular, or at least it was after some initial awkwardness. In a weird sort of way, today had balanced out that greatness. The Grimm had attacked the train, which sucked, the two Huntsmen set to guard it were worse than useless, which sucked, one of them had been snatched up and presumably eaten, which Jaune, who knew well the pain of losing a partner, thought really sucked, and Team RWBY, Oscar, and Qrow had been forced to stay behind while his team protected the civilians.

Not being able to simply look over and see that Weiss was okay sucked most of all. He had to trust in his girlfriend's ability, and those of her teammates, to see her safely through the wilds. Before they had separated, Jaune had made Ruby promise to keep them all safe and to meet them in Argus.

And Jaune trusted Ruby to keep her word.

Things began to look up as he turned onto the street his scroll was directing him towards. There, in front of a small but comfortable house, stood one of his big sisters, Saffron, her wife, Terra, and his nephew Adrian. It was a joyous reunion with his big sister and her family. Saffron couldn't believe how far "little Jauney" had come since she'd seen him last.

As the group sat down a dining room table, Jaune's teammates told them all about his adventures with teams JNPR and RNJR, within reason. Saffron, in turn, told them all about what an unbelievable dork he was growing up, none of which came as a surprise to anyone.

"It's not that I want to say anything bad about him," Saffron began. "But when I saw him last he was… um…"

"Underwhelming?" offered Ren.

"Hopeless?" Nora piped in.

"I'm sitting right here!"

"Callow," Saffron decided. "He was still a silly boy. But I can't believe how much you've grown. Mom and Dad are going to be so proud."

"Weiss certainly warmed up to him," Nora practically sang. Jaune looked at her, appalled. Didn't she know what she was sentencing him to with that?

His sister fixed him with the predatory smirk that was the trademark of all elder siblings. "So…" she began, "Tell me about this Weiss person."

Ren spoke up this time. "His girlfriend." Jaune's gaze snapped to his so-called "brother." Did the bro code account for so little in this day and age? Was nothing sacred in this fallen world?

"His Snow Angel," Nora giggled, setting up a devastating tag team maneuver.

"His Ice Queen."

"Little Edelweiss."

"Don't forget Snow Pea."

"I wish we could forget Snow Pea."

Jaune could have shattered. If they could find some way to harness such complete and utter betrayal and weaponize it against Salem, they'd have this war won in a day. As it was, all he could do was fix his mutinous supposed "friends" with the flattest gaze that he could muster.

"They will never find your bodies," he promised. "There will come a day of such calamity that you will beg, beg for me to grant you the sweet, merciful release of death, and on that day, I shall look down from on high and whisper 'no.'"

Nora shrugged, clearly unimpressed. "That's the kind of thing Weiss would say when you tease her," she explained to Jaune's sister. "I guess she's rubbing off on him."

"Oh, is she now?"

Jaune concluded that if the ground would see fit to split open and swallow him whole, that would be okay by him.

"Yup! Here, look!"

What?!

His horror was complete as Nora pulled out her scroll and opened up a video file, holding the device up for his sister to see. Weiss's voice came from the scroll speaker, slightly tinny but still unmistakably hers. Someone had recorded this? Some gave Nora this?!

You're in love with me… why?

His own voice responded to her question.

When I see you… sometimes so can't believe you're real, here, now and with us. You aren't just beautiful but ethereal...

It didn't help that his sister and sister-in-law were both watching it like it was some new romantic comedy at the movie theater, ooh-ing, ah-ing, and gasping at various parts of the drama.

… if I have to tie you to my bed to do it!

Both of the older women went nuts at that, and began openly applauding as, on the recording, Weiss shoved Jaune into her room and slammed the door behind them.

"So, she seems feisty," Saffron teased. "I have to say, leaving her wanting more was a good play. Get her to commit to the first move."

"I was completely sincere about the reasons for my reluctance," said Jaune from between his fingers, his hands having flown to his face in mortification."I had saved her life recently, and I was worried that her feelings might not last beyond the euphoria of her survival."

His sister paused. "You saved her life? Did you swoop in like some kind of knight in shining armor and sweep her off her feet?"

"Nah, that was the second day of school, when he jumped out of a tree to catch her after a Nevermore dropped her," Nora continued to contribute.

Saffron was genuinely stunned. "You've had quite the experience, haven't you?" She turned to Nora. "Nora, sweetheart, would you be so kind as to send me those video files?"

"Sure thing, big sister Arc!"

"Oh, you are just delightful!"

Well, the day officially sucked again, moreso than ever. Knowing his sister, she was practically planning out his wedding already, and Ren and Nora stood ready to spill all the beans about their Fearless Leader. Mom and Dad, and all the rest of his many, many sisters were going to flip.

[/]

That night, Jaune set his armor aside and quietly slipped out of his sister's living room. As long as scroll videos were the order of the day, he might as well watch the message Weiss had sent to him. He figured that leaving the armor behind would make him sneaky enough to watch a video with some privacy for a change.

He sat at the edge of the back porch, and turned the message on. Just one day away, and his heart was already catching as he saw her again. This was recorded the previous night, as she had her shoulders bare and her hair loose down her back.

Hello, Jaune. If you're watching this, then something has happened to separate us, either for a short time or… more permanently.

Her eyes narrowed at the camera.

I know you, Jaune, and if I am hurt, or worse, then you have it from my own mouth that you are not to torture yourself with this video. I want your memories to bring you happiness, not more pain. I know that Ren and Nora are watching you watch this, so to them, I would like to say that, if Jaune starts acting moody and goes on suicidal death charges again, you have my permission to tickle and/or punch him until he stops.

Jaune snorted. Okay, so they might have caught him with Pyrrha's video, but he was being really careful this time so-

"Sure thing, scroll-Weiss!"

"Nora!"

Aw, come on!

What made it worse was that Weiss had anticipated this very thing, and had paused for long enough for that exchange to take place. She even giggled on the recording, somehow knowing that this was the most likely course of events.

I told you that you aren't nearly as sneaky as you think you are. Leave that to Ren and Blake, and stick to being my bold, handsome knight. This next part is between Jaune and I, so would you two care to grant us some privacy?

"Okay, scroll-Weiss!" came from an upper story window, followed by a sigh.

I'm glad that they're there for you, Jaune. No matter how it must feel sometimes, you're never alone. You mean so much to us, to all of us. More so to me, though; I've laid claim on you, Sir Jaune. I… I want you to know that I love you, Jaune. I know that it probably seems too early, and perhaps it is, but… my life is my own. My heart is my own. And I'll share it with whomever I see fit, however I see fit to do so.

On the recording, she expanded her keyboard.

Thank you again for this wonderful gift, by the way. With all of the emotions I've been experiencing, music has been a way to express them, and communicate them to the people I love. That's what brought us together, isn't it? The lullaby, the heartbroken song in the courtyard, the battle hymn… music is the shared language between us, Jaune. So, I have one song in particular to share with you on this occasion.

She began to play the keyboard, and opened her mouth to sing.

Remember me.
Though I have to say goodbye,
Remember me.
Don't let it make you cry!
For even if I'm far away, I hold you in my heart.
I sing a secret song to you each night we are apart.
Remember me,
Though I have to travel far,
Remember me.
Each time you play your sad guitar,
Know that I'm with you the only way that I can be...
Until you're in my arms again,
Remember me…

It was a simple little song, but it said everything that needed to be said. The recording Weiss offered a small smile to the camera.

I know that, one way or another, we'll be together again Jaune. I love you.

The recording ended, and Jaune let out a breath. He put the scroll away and looked up to the starry night, wondering how she was, what she was doing. He started as he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Jaune, she's wonderful." Saffron offered him an apologetic smile. "She seems so sweet. I can see why you fell for her."

"Yeah," croaked Jaune through the lump that had mysteriously manifested in his throat.

Saffron hugged her little brother. "I'm sure that she's okay. She's a badass Huntress right?"

"The baddest. I just wish I was there with her."

"Everything is going to be okay, Jaune."

Jaune studied the ground, clearly unconvinced.

His sister suddenly clapped her hands together. "I just can't wait to meet her! I'll make sure to pass on Mom's stew recipe to her, gotta make sure you're eating right. Oh, and don't forget to take plenty of pictures when you can swing a real date-Mom and Dad are just going to love her to bits! When do you think you can swing by their place…"

Jaune listened to his sister babble happily, grateful for the warmth and the thought of home. It was nice not to feel so alone, even for just a moment.

[/]

A few days later, Team RWBY, Qrow and Oscar limped their busted-down transport into Argus. Weiss was nine-hundred thousand percent done with all of this. Hordes of killer zombie snoozy Grimm. Qrow being a useless drunk. Ruby continuing to shoot lasers out of her eyes. Ruby dropping the Relic of Knowledge down a well, and Ms. Calavera jumping down to fetch it, and it was still cold outside. Weiss had had it. She needed to find Jaune, take a hot bath, get a nap, and have a hot mug of delicious, life-sustaining coffee. Not necessarily in that order.

As they approached the train station where the Argus Limited had pulled in days ago, she scanned the crowd. Her eyes caught the glint of white steel and Mistrali Bronze reflecting the sunlight.

There he was! Jaune was there, scanning the crowd, no doubt looking for Team RWBY. Ren and Nora were a few feet away from him, with Nora speaking excitedly to some random blonde woman, her arms gesticulating wildly. But most importantly, Jaune!

Jaune heard a familiar clacking sound and turned towards it, just in time to catch a high-speed ballistic Weissicle to the chest. He spun as he caught her, the much shorter girl's feet having left the street in their entirety.

She pressed her lips into his, leaning back as he set her onto the ground, her right foot popping up behind her for balance. All her complaints about the last few days evaporated in the face of being able to see, hear, and feel her boyfriend before her.

"Hi," she simply said.

I love you, she meant.

"Hi, yourself," Jaune countered with a roguishly crooked smile.

I love you too, he meant.

Welcome home.

[/]

CHAPTER ENDNOTES: And that's a wrap on chapter three. Was it too soon for Weiss and Jaune to move to that level? Maybe, but that isn't to say that it's necessarily unrealistic; Volume 6, they're somewhere in the ballpark of 18-19 years old, with the impulsiveness of teenagers added to the notions of adults. They've known each other for years at this point, and in the context of this fanfic, Jaune's been head over heels for her this whole time. For her part, Weiss has always been an emotional girl, one who puts up a stoic front. Her sister is the same way, come to think of it.

Besides, I had fun flipping the White Knight script around and having a thirsty, thirsty Weiss convincing a (slightly) reluctant Jaune to throw caution to the wind and just go for it. Hey, girls are allowed to get amorous too!

Now, just because Weiss thinks that it's okay, that doesn't mean her protective older sister is going to feel the same way. Oh, and guess where we're going next chapter? Jaune had better have packed his running shoes.

I also had fun playing with the other ships. Renora is the most canon thing that has ever happened, and the question with all of Blake's potential ships remains "But what does Blake feel?" Good times.

I figure I'll post two more chapters to "Serenade," wrap it up at a neat five. Part of the reason this chapter took so long to come out is that I was halfway through an extensive tavern concert scene for this chapter, complete with Irish drinking songs, Billy Joel, and Ren on drums before I came to the conclusion of "eh." If there's enough interest, I might post it as a deleted chapter or something.

The bit where Jaune deliberately played awfully and joking "extorted" the audience to pay him to stop was inspired by a friend of mine, who said that if he couldn't play well, he could at least play funny. Songs for this chapter were a brief cameo by John Denver's "Country Roads," an allusion to Paul Thorn's "It's a Great Day For Me To Whoop Somebody's Ass," "Remember Me," from Disney's Coco, and "Home" from RWBY Volume 4 OST. It's a silly fanfiction about magical stab-happy teenagers falling in love while on a quest to save the world, what were you expecting, "Freebird?"

Thank you all for reading!

Love,

Mahina