Author's Note: So my master plan to do weekly, or biweekly updates didn't work out. I had a lot of plot bunnies.

Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY. It is the intellectual property of the late Monty Oum, and his team and friends at Rooster Teeth.

Chapter 1 – The Hangover

"You know, I thought to myself that I would do whatever it took to train my semblance, but this… this isn't what I had in mind," said Jaune.

Jaune had been told that it was utterly urgent that he see Ruby. He ran to the other room, and feared the worst. Then, he saw the proud leader of their sister team crumpled in on herself on the bed with her hands clasped onto her head. He remembered their team celebrated the successful defense of Haven last night, and he couldn't help but shake his.

"The drums…" she whined, "Make it stop."

Jaune turned to Yang, Blake, and Weiss.

"So… I guess you all had fun?"

"A little too much fun," admitted Yang, "It was Ruby's idea."

"TREASON!" the pained girl accused, before huddling even deeper into the ball her body made, "Owie… my head."

"First time drinking, Ruby?" asked Jaune.

"It… was a… victory party…" she whimpered.

Jaune chuckled a little, but understood why Ruby might have felt the need to go all out. After the Battle at Haven, Jaune Arc felt waves of relief and euphoria himself. He finally discovered his semblance. He called it Aura Amplification, and its potential made his mind whirl at the possibilities of its uses. He'd be sure to talk to Ren about it later. Just as important though was the fact that Cinder was gone. Maybe not by his hand, but she was gone. The object of his anger and hate was no more, and it was as though a huge weight had lifted off his shoulders.

As he remembered Ruby needed help, he knelt at his friend's side, and had her sit upright, despite the protests, before putting his hands to her temples. He then began to focus his aura, and thought on the moment he activated his semblance for the first time, when Weiss was dying.

"Help her…" he whispered, inaudible to the others.

He felt his aura flicker and his power began to activate. His hands shone bright, which made Ruby retreat even further.

"Too bright," she mewled.

"Keep your eyes closed then, if it helps," he said.

Ruby complied, and she began to relax. The gentle twinkle and hum of his power filled the room. Jaune closed his eyes a little, and it sounded like music to him. Given the more relaxed breathing Ruby started to have, he figured the sound was music to her ears as well.

"So, is that your semblance? Flashy," commented Yang.

"You can heal?" asked Blake, surprised.

"No… aura does all the healing. I'm just giving Ruby a boost," explained Jaune.

"So that's how you helped me," commented Weiss.

"Yeah," he said, "Your aura did all the work, it's just your levels were far too low to do anything regarding… regarding your wound. I just sort of cranked it up with some of mine. Like a jumpstart if you want to think about it that way. I think it also temporarily boosted your aura reserves too."

Weiss nodded in confirmation, and Jaune returned his attentions to Ruby.

"Now, normally aura wouldn't help with something like a hangover, since it's your body's natural response to dealing with too much alcohol in the body. However, just like with Weiss, I'm just urging your aura to make an exception this time, Ruby."

"Thanks…" moaned Ruby, a little less pained than before.

Jaune took it as a sign he was on the right track, and decided to distract Ruby a little more to make the healing go a little faster.

"So… let me guess, whiskey… tequila… scotch…"

"All of it," sighed Ruby with a wince in her voice.

Jaune looked to Yang.

"And here I thought introducing your sister to alcohol responsibly would be something you could easily do, Yang," said Jaune.

"She wanted to try it," said Yang defensively, "I figured a little booze was well earned, given what our teams went through. I did tell her to do it slowly, but you know Ruby. She wanted to rush in, headfirst."

"Uh-huh. Still, you should have had her start with light beer, or if she wanted something harder, wine," said Jaune, "And the good stuff, not that cheap swill from Vacuo Neptune got us before the Vytal Festival."

"Since when are you an expert on drinking?" asked Yang, a little put off by Jaune's lecture.

"For the past eight years; I've been drinking since I was ten," he answered.

The room grew quiet, and Jaune looked at silver eyes that opened in surprise. He turned to see equally surprised looks on the faces of Yang, Weiss, and Blake.

"What?" he asked.

"Eight years?!" asked Yang, "How? I didn't get my first drink until I turned sixteen, and only because I was at a party."

"My dad let me," said Jaune, "My family owns a vineyard. The land was an investment my great great grandfather made just before the Great War. Our wine is some of the best in all of Remnant. When I was ten, my dad figured it was time for me to learn the family business. I've been sampling alcohol for a long time."

"I understand wanting to bring a successor into a family business as soon as possible, but don't you think ten is a little too early? I mean, you were a minor," said Weiss.

"I'm from Seine Province, southwest of Vale proper," began Jaune, "Technically, the legal age for drinking there is 16, though some families introduce it earlier. Even then, we aren't given goblets or bottles if that what you're thinking, but we are allowed sips of wine as soon as we're old enough for soda. Furthermore, all taverns and bars are required to ask for IDs before serving alcohol to anyone. For me though, drinking that early is almost expected given our family trade."

"I thought, your family were, you know, huntsmen," said Blake.

"Yeah, we are…" he replied wistfully, "I come from a line of heroes going back to my great great grandfather and his campaigns in Anima during the Great War. Each generation has performed extraordinary deeds. However, the vineyard is our most reliable form of income these days. Unless they're the highest classification of danger, huntsman missions don't pay much, and with me and seven sisters, my dad had to help out mom a lot and take on less dangerous missions on the side. My older sisters and I also had to pull our weight with the farm, and raising our younger siblings when they were babies. Add in the fact my older sisters also had teenage issues of their own to deal with, my dad never had the time to train me, or most of my other sisters."

"That sound pretty rough," said Yang.

"It was," he answered, "I think dad knew I wouldn't be able to learn from him, as tradition dictated, so he had me learn the business. We knew other Seinese huntsman families. Any children I, or my sisters, might have could learn from them."

He deactivated his semblance.

"Feel better?" he asked.

"Yeah," said Ruby.

"Good," said Jaune, "If you ever feel like drinking again, let me know. I'll get you set up properly."

"I don't want to think about alcohol for a while," groaned Ruby.

"That would probably be for the best. Well, if there's nothing else ladies, I've got studying to get back to," said Jaune.

"Studying?" asked Ruby.

"Yeah… with your team back together, and my semblance finally revealing itself, I have to figure out how I'm going to reconfigure my team," explained Jaune.

Ruby blinked at him.

"W-What do you mean reconfigure it?"

"Well, I mean with RWBY back together, I have to figure out how I'm going to lead Ren and Nora," said Jaune.

"Just because my team's back doesn't mean things have to change. We can still do RNJR," argued Ruby.

Jaune was taken aback by the concerned, no, worried look on Ruby's face. He looked around, and saw that Yang, Weiss, and Blake were just as surprised by their team leader's outburst. Jaune thought on his words, and realized how it might have sounded to Ruby. After months of traveling together, Team RNJR had grown just as important to her as Team RWBY had in Beacon. His words made it sound like he was going wrench that away. He felt horrible as he looked back to the confused, scared face Ruby had, but he still had a responsibility to Ren and Nora, and he steeled himself for what he was about to say.

"We can still do Team RNJR, I'm not saying that it will never happen again," he began before he took a breath, "But it won't be that way forever. I thought Team JNPR was going to be forever too, but… well, things happened."

Ruby was quiet.

"I don't want to scare you Ruby, but I have to do this. What if my team gets separated from yours in a fight? I need to know if, and how we can hold our own as we are now. I hope you understand where I'm coming from with this," said Jaune.

"…I do," said Ruby, after some thought, "It's just, you don't have to do it all by yourself, Jaune."

"By myself?" asked Jaune, confused.

"I saw you training by yourself in Anima from time to time. You pushed yourself longer and harder while the rest of us were sleeping. I know you want to do things on your own, to prove yourself, but you have to remember you have friends who can help."

Jaune stared at Ruby for a bit before he gave her a soft smile.

"Ruby… thank you," he said warmly, before he chuckled, "Although since you mentioned it, I didn't plan to do all my training by myself."

"You didn't?" she asked.

"No," he reassured, "The truth is I need help exercising and exploring my semblance. I was hoping to ask you guys, but I didn't know when to ask. I figured you'd all want to spend time reconnecting with each other first. Since you seem to be offering though, maybe you could swing by tomorrow when your hangover is gone, and you've had some rest?"

Ruby nodded quickly.

"Yeah, no problem… ow!" yelped Ruby as she gripped her head, "I thought you got rid of the hangover."

Jaune rubbed the back of his head with a sheepish smile.

"I need the practice?" he suggested.

Ruby made puppy eyes.

"Er… think of it as a lesson to not trust your sister when it comes to drinking?"

Ruby made sad puppy eyes, and he could hear Yang growl.

"… Close your eyes. I'll take care of it," sighed Jaune.

Ruby grinned a little too victoriously, but Jaune went along anyway. He did need the practice, and being this close to his friend would keep Yang at bay.

This story is essentially going to be a montage of events, leading up to the formation of a new team setup of Jaune, Nora, and Ren. It also introduces a headcanon for Jaune's background that I'm working on for another story of mine. Let me know what you think about that.

The next chapter will be up tomorrow for Easter.

Reviews are welcome.