So, here we are with a new fic. This plot is – and I'll admit it freely – a rather common trope for romance fiction. It's not just in fanfiction, but has been in numerous movies, books and more. I know that and am happy with it. I wanted to write one nonetheless. More than that, I wanted to try and do this type of story properly.

The pairing might be considered cracky but give it a go. I don't think this will be a long fic, and I'm kind of trying to work on stories nowadays that are of a more reasonable length. For some, anyway. Certain fics will be mega length like Professor Arc, NTF and Forged Destiny, but I also want some short and sweet stories like Stress Relief and Beacon Civil War.

Given the unusual pairing, I don't expect this to be my most popular work, but I enjoyed writing Captain Dragon. It's fun to sometimes write a story where Jaune is not involved.

Small note: This chapter is being posted and uploaded by a friend as I am busy at an expo. If there are any errors with genre, story type, etc, then they'll be fixed when I get back to my hotel or when I have time.

Chapter 1

"I can't believe I'm doing this…"

Weiss Schnee sat in an abandoned diner digging her heel into the floor as she waited for her `boyfriend` to arrive. The emphasis on the word was important, for Weiss did not have a boyfriend, nor someone she was seeing, nor even an interest in seeing anyone. And yet here she was, waiting, dreading. A mug rose to her lips and Weiss flinched, looking down. It was empty. Impatiently, she flagged down a waitress who looked as tired as she felt and ordered another.

He wasn't late; she was early. It was still fifteen minutes until the time when they'd agreed to meet and she'd only come because she worked best under pressure. Sitting in the safety of their dorm, she might have worn a hole in the carpet pacing back and forth, but out here in public, Weiss had an image to maintain.

That image did not, as it turned out, include a boyfriend. Her fingers tapped energetically on the table's surface as she watched both the door and the clock above it. As two minutes ticked by, Weiss caved and dug out her scroll once more. The tone only rang twice before it answered.

"I don't think I can do this, Blake."

"Already? Is he even there yet?"

"No. There's still time. This was a bad idea. I knew it would be, but-"

"You don't have much of a choice, Weiss. You told us that. Unless you think your sister was wrong."

"I trust Winter."

"Well, there you have it," Blake said, with the kind of tone that told Weiss her arguments were pointless. "If your father really is looking to marry you off to someone, you need to have a date to this business meet. It's only for, what, four days?"

"Five days," Weiss corrected. "Four nights." She had the distinct impression Blake was rolling her eyes on the other end of the call.

"Right. It's not too late to change your mind, you know. He'll not be offended."

Weiss teased her lower lip with her teeth. "Who else is there?"

"Jaune?"

"Out of the question. Besides what that would do to Pyrrha, I don't want to encourage him with something like this." Or hurt him if he believed it was any more than it was. While Weiss didn't necessarily enjoy Jaune's company, she held no desire to be cruel about it.

"What about Neptune?"

"Not him."

"I thought you liked him."

"I might," Weiss admitted. "It's too early to tell." He was handsome and charismatic, with a smile that made her heart stutter. Weiss would admit there was attraction there; she just wouldn't admit it to Blake when Ruby was no doubt listening in. "If there is something there, I don't want to make things complicated with this. I was hoping to invite him to the school dance, not..."

"Not something like this, since it would be too heavy when you're not really together. I get it. And Ren is obviously out because Nora. You don't really have a lot of options, Weiss. Not unless you want to ask Cardin to pretend to be your boyfriend."

Weiss sighed. "I know, Blake, it's just… Sun?"

"He's perfect for the role."

"Really…?" she asked sarcastically.

"Hear me out, Weiss. You need someone to pretend to be your boyfriend so that your father doesn't try to pair you off with someone you don't know or like. You need someone your age, someone you can trust, and someone who isn't going to be swayed or intimidated. Sun is all of those things, and better still, he has no interest in you whatsoever."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?"

Blake laughed. "I mean that he won't get the wrong idea. He won't let it go to his head like Jaune would. There aren't any awkward feelings between you like with Neptune, and there's no competition like there would be with Ren. You don't need a boyfriend, Weiss. You need someone to pretend to be your boyfriend. You need an actor."

"I suppose you're right."

"You know I am. Sun will look out for you and be a perfect gentleman. It's not like he's going to try anything. I promised I'd go to the dance with and give him a real chance if he did this."

Weiss snorted, "I guess that'll stop him being bribed off, at least."

"Be nice to him," Blake chastised. "He isn't all that bad."

And he was helping her, Wiess thought with a sigh. "You're right. I'll see this through."

"Good. Ruby and Yang say good luck. If you can get any signal, give us a call once you're there."

"I shall. See you all in a week." Weiss ended the call and sat back. She felt a little better already, and when the waitress came back with her coffee she sipped of it in silence, lost in thought.

The letter from father had come unexpectedly. The SDC had, through some interesting business deals, come to acquire a high-class holiday resort known as Amber Cove. On the western shoreline of Mistral and nestled between two large cliff-faces, the resort was a holiday destination for the rich and famous. Weiss had never visited, though she knew her father had once or twice. She wasn't sure if that motivated his desire to acquire it, or if that were personal greed and little more, but the current owners had been bought out.

As part of the deal, however, the owners wished to meet with the Schnee family, ostensibly to hear the SDC's plans for the Cove before they made the decision whether to sell or not. Such wasn't terribly uncommon, but that they'd requested Winter, Weiss and Whitley attend was. It should have been enough for Jacques to meet with them and finalise everything, seeing as he was the one who would have immediate control once the papers were signed.

Weiss might have thought nothing of the request – or demand – that she attend. Father had been forced to invite her and that was that. However, another letter from Winter had arrived with it, marked as urgent.

The family selling, the Metelia family, had a son of seventeen years, Azure Metelia.

It was nothing definitive, but Winter had strongly suggested Weiss find a reason to be unapproachable. Barring the ability to say no and not attend, coming with a significant other was the only thing she and her team could think of.

Weiss kneaded her brow with one hand. "I can't believe I'm doing this…"

The bell above the door to the diner chimed twice. Weiss glanced up, cursed inwardly to herself, and ducked her head as Sun entered. She shouldn't have, but this was embarrassing enough that she wasn't quite ready to face him just yet. Instead, as he looked around once and made his way to the counter, Weiss took a moment to inspect her… date.

Sun was by no means an unattractive man. In fact, he was rather pleasing on the eye. Broad shouldered, well-sculpted and with wild blond hair that hinted at a rough and tumble boyish nature, he could – and likely had – set many women's hearts aflutter. He'd buttoned his white shirt today, either to acknowledge the cold early morning or because he felt he'd best make an effort for her, but he normally went around with his abs on display. Abs that even Weiss would admit to admiring once or twice, as if she were alone in that. She'd even caught Ruby looking once. He'd also gone for some black jeans instead of the blue he wore drawn up. His appearance was smart, or at least as smart as someone as bright, cheerful and roguish as Sun Wukong could look.

And that was the issue, really. Or the reason why Weiss didn't entirely like him. It wasn't the tail that swept behind him – she wasn't that shallow – but rather his personality and overall manner. Sun was so cheerful. So nice and energetic and outgoing. He might have reminded her of a female Yang, especially with the hair, and while there was nothing wrong with that, it just wasn't her type. Weiss preferred cool, intellectual and mysterious men. Men like Neptune.

Maybe that's for the best, Weiss considered. Like Blake said, I'm not looking for a partner, just someone to act the role.

Sun's interests were well-known in that regard and lay firmly with the faunus member of their team, Blake. He hadn't had much luck there, but he was persistent, and not in the way Jaune was, so Weiss figured he had a fairly good chance in time. If all went well here, Sun would get his date with Blake a little sooner than expected. That ought to keep him focused.

When his eyes roamed over the diner once more, Weiss finally raised her head, catching his bright blue eyes. Sun noticed, waved, and slowly made his way over. Despite that they'd not interacted much, Sun met her eyes with a cheerful smile.

"Morning."

"It certainly is." Weiss cursed herself for a fool a moment later, and again when Sun raised a single eyebrow. "Sorry. My head isn't in the right place. This is…" She struggled for the right words.

"Not what you thought you'd be doing today?" he offered.

"Yes. That's a good way to put it."

"Heh. That makes two of us, then. Blake told me what she could about this. You don't mind, do you?"

"Not at all. It's best you know the full story." Weiss relaxed, pleased he'd brought the conversation to business and not the awkward air between them. It was to be expected, and there really wasn't much either of them could do about it. Best to ignore it rather than draw attention. "Did you have any questions?"

"Got a couple, yeah." Sun took a sip of his coffee and put the mug down. "It's mostly on what you want from me, you know. How you want me to act an' all that. What to say, what to do, what not to say…"

"It almost sounds like you've done this before."

"Nah." Sun laughed. "Just been agonising over it all the way here. You know how it is. Thinking of everything I had to ask. Blake said I need to pretend to be the perfect boyfriend but, well, I don't have much to go on there. What's perfect to you?"

"Honestly, I'm not sure."

Weiss ran a finger around the rim of her mug as she considered the question. Her ideal of the perfect man and what Sun was differed greatly, and she wasn't sure she wanted him to meet that ideal. It might just make this more awkward than it already was. In terms of improvements, his manner of speech would almost certainly get on her father's nerves and Weiss wasn't so enthused with it herself. Sun was rough around the edges and it showed. His every word seemed only to dig that hole deeper.

That said, it would be rude, and probably futile, to ask him to change the entire way he spoke for a full five days. The very fact he was a faunus would rub her father the wrong way already, and likely the Metelia family, too. That might be a good thing. If they saw her as spoiled goods, they might be tempted to call off any chance of an engagement.

"For both our sakes, I'll come out and say that this whole relationship is fake," Weiss said. "We both know that."

"Sure do. No offence, of course."

"None taken," Weiss returned politely. "You are enamoured with my teammate."

"And you like mine."

"T-That has yet to be established!"

"Huh? Oh, sorry." Sun grinned at her. "I'll shut up on that. But yeah, I get it, this is fake. I'm not going to start thinking it's not on you, trust me. Blake hit me up with the full story and both Ruby and Yang gave me the expected `hurt her and die` warnings."

"Good. And thank you," Weiss added, trying not to show how embarrassed she was at the thought of what Yang or Ruby might have said. She had a feeling ignorance was bliss in that regard. "I don't think I've said it yet, but this means a lot to me. I really do need your help and I am grateful that you're willing to give it."

"Yeah." Sun's face became more serious. It wasn't an expression she'd seen on him often. "I understand how serious this is. Or I think I do, anyway. Might have helped even without Blake offering to…" He coughed and looked away. "Well, you know. Anyway, I'll play my part. I can promise you that. I just figured we should set boundaries. Like, what to do and what not to do."

"No kissing," Weiss said immediately, and then felt embarrassed a moment later. "I meant no offence with that, it's just-"

"This is going to be a thing, isn't it? How about a promise none of us will take offence for what the other says here?"

Weiss had to smile at that. He had a way with words, even if he was rough. Maybe it was the bluntness that helped. "That's probably a good idea. We're just setting limits on what each of us is comfortable on, not because we have issues with the other. Agreed?"

"Agreed. So, no kissing. I can understand and respect that. I wouldn't feel right doing that either. We can just say we don't do anything like that in public. Hand holding, though. I mean, we're going to have to show some affection. You okay with that touching in public?"

"Hand holding is fine," Weiss agreed. "As is touching me without my consent, so long as you keep to areas that wouldn't normally get you slapped." Now that they were talking about it like a business deal, Weiss began to calm down, leaning forward and gesturing with her hands as she spoke. She had performed on stage numerous times before. This would be no different. "Hugs, embraces, arm around the shoulders, all of that is probably expected and you shouldn't feel afraid that I'll snap at you for doing what I'm asking you to do. We need to look like we're comfortable with one another."

Sun sighed. "That's not gonna be easy." He laid a hand on the table, palm up.

Weiss regarded it as though it were a snake.

"Just try it," he said. "You'll see what I mean."

Accepting the invitation, Weiss placed her hand in his. Sun's hand was big and warm and enclosed around her fingers entirely. She could feel the calluses on his fingers scraping gently over her skin. She'd have liked to say they meshed instantly, but that would have been a lie. While not unpleasant in any way, there was a certain… something missing. It felt more like he was gripping a weapon than a lover's hand, and on her part, she didn't look relaxed at all.

He let go and they tried again, in a few different positions. Intertwining their fingers didn't quite work; his were too big and stretched hers uncomfortably. They even ended up with a handshake that looked more formal than romantic. They eventually settled on her hand resting in his palm, fingers curled around his.

It looked forced, Weiss conceded. "The flight over will be a few hours. We'll have to practice on it."

"Heh. Who'd have thought holding someone's hand would be so hard."

Hard, yes, but not overly awkward, Weiss was relieved to say. Maybe it was how open he was, or just the earlier agreement that they had no interest in one another whatsoever, but whatever the case, this felt more an amusing failure than an embarrassing one. Blake was right; Sun was perfect for this. Even more so because he was a faunus and she the heiress of the SDC.

"We'll need a fake history as well," Weiss said, "Something about how we met and how we fell in love. Something not sickeningly sweet, I beg of you."

"We could just say you had to show me around Beacon and we hit it off."

"It will have to go further than that. Specifics. Dates. How we became closer over time." Weiss fought to prevent her cheeks heating up. "It's best we think of everything and not need it than be caught unprepared." Weiss checked her scroll as the alarm beeped. "But we'll have to talk more on the flight." She swallowed. "You ready to go?"

Sun wasn't. It was obvious on his face, and in a way that helped make her feel better. Neither of them was ready.

But she appreciated that he lied and pulled a confident smile for her benefit.

"Yeah, I'm ready. Let's get this party started."

/-/

This wasn't how Sun had expected to be spending the week…

There was something bizarre about going through the check-in at the airport with the Ice Queen herself by his side. It was in the way they had to hand in their ID and bags together, and the way the woman behind the counter looked knowingly at them both, that created the unmistakeable image of their being a pair. It was an impression they wanted to give, sure, but it was still creepy.

Saying he'd be her fake boyfriend, as it turned out, was a damn sight easier than actually being it. The two of them stood with an obvious space between them, like two ends of a magnet repelling one another. A part of Sun thought he should try and sell the image by reaching for her hand; another part of him was afraid his fingers would freeze and fall off.

I really should have said no, Sun thought with a little sigh. An offer to take Blake to the dance or not, he knew he should have turned this down. Intellectually speaking – and no matter what Neptune said, Sun was no idiot – he knew that even if he went to the dance with Blake, the fact he went because of a deal they made wouldn't be a good sign for a lasting relationship. He should have been the bigger person and told her he wasn't about to do this.

Should have, would have, could have – Sun had folded like a house of cards and he hated it. It's just a week, he told himself, and Ice Queen – sorry, Weiss – isn't that bad. Not as bad as she acted, anyway. He idly watched her from the corner of his eye. She was lost in her own thoughts. Sun had the suspicion they weren't so dissimilar to his own.

Really, he did feel bad for her. He liked to think sympathy guided his actions as much as his feelings for Blake, but he knew he was leading himself on. This was all for the promise that Blake would give him a chance. A genuine chance.

And that was probably for the best. No mixed-up feelings otherwise, and Weiss didn't seem like the kind of person to take pity well.

At least Neptune had taken the news well. He knew his pal had an interest in the girl and he didn't want to intrude, but Nep had been a total bro when he heard the full story. Probably helped that Nep knew he was after Blake, and he at least understood why Weiss hadn't asked him to go. Would have been too weird. Sun had promised to put in a good word or two on Nep's behalf. Would be nice if this could end with him going to the dance with Blake and Nep with Weiss. Assuming they survived this in the first place.

And now I'm thinking of this like it's more dangerous than fighting the Grimm. Wonderful.

The speaker system called, announcing them to their flight. Sun followed after Weiss, a little surprised to see they were the only ones currently standing. "How expensive is this place?" he asked.

"Amber Cove is the premiere destination for the elite," Weiss said, as if she were recounting information off a brochure. "It's expensive. Very expensive."

"Explains why no one else is getting on this flight…"

"What?" Weiss glanced at him. "No, that would be because this is our flight."

"And no one else is coming? It's gonna be pretty empty in there."

Weiss sighed. "It's a private flight, Sun. We are the only passengers."

Oh.

Oh, right.

Open mouth insert foot. Sun sighed and followed Weiss on board, nodding to the single flight attendant, who seemed surprised to see him. Weiss stiffened and placed her hand into his almost mechanically. Shit. It started now, did it?

"I didn't realise you were bringing a guest, Miss Schnee."

"My boyfriend," Weiss said. "We did purchase two tickets. Was that somehow missed?"

"No, no, no." The woman eyed Sun again and he didn't miss how her attention strayed down to his tail. Yeah, that was to be expected. Worse, Weiss noticed, and instantly bristled next to him.

Sun threw an arm around her shoulder before she could say or do anything she might regret, dragging her in so that their cheeks touched. He felt her freeze against him and forced himself to speak before he could lose his nerve altogether.

"Hey now, it's fine. It's just a little mix-up, Weiss." He grinned at the attendant. "You got our seats ready?"

"Y-Yes, of course, sir. Please," she bowed, "Follow me."

They were led to a pair of seats side by side, which were far larger and comfier than anything Sun had seen in an aircraft before. With the attendant still watching, Sun made a show of letting Weiss sit first, taking her bag and stowing it away with his own beside it. Once she was gone with a promise to come back once they were airborne, Sun sat down and buckled himself in.

"Sorry about that," he whispered. "Figured it'd be best not to ruin it, though."

"It's fine." Weiss' voice was clipped, making it clear it wasn't. Sun winced. "You're right that they might report to my father. It's best we portray the image of being together even now. It's important you realise that the only person you can trust will be my sister, Winter. Don't trust anyone else there."

"I'll just pretend to everyone. Safer that way."

Weiss huffed but didn't respond. That was about expected with her. Sun couldn't claim to be close to Weiss or even to have had a proper conversation with her. He mostly knew her as Blake's teammate, but from what he'd seen – mostly of how she forgave Blake for the whole White Fang thing – she wasn't a bad person. Certainly not by the standards of what the average faunus expected of a Schnee.

She was prickly, though. It was why he called her Ice Queen, even if he didn't mean it as an insult. Between her attitude and fighting abilities, it was more a statement of fact. Sun had felt he had her place in his life sorted out. She was Blake's friend, and thus someone he'd be friendly to even if they never had a need to interact further than that. Not, you know, being her boyfriend and going to meet the parents.

Not that Weiss wasn't pretty, of course. Neptune had taste and Weiss was beautiful in an untouchable kind of way. She had that slight frame, the long hair, the aristocratic features and smooth, pale skin that most people thought of when they described a princess. Had she been a normal girl, things might have been easier, but since she both looked and essentially was a princess, she'd come out with the personality to go with it, and therein laid the problem.

She had the figure of a princess but not the mind to go with it. That was where Jaune went wrong, Sun felt. He looked at her like she was someone who needed to be saved, while Sun got the feeling if Weiss was ever locked in a tower, she'd find her own way out, and to hell with anyone who got in her way. Treating her like a princess wasn't going to earn the poor guy any favours. Sun might have offered him some advice but, well, not like he could claim any real success with Blake, either, so who was he to talk?

Yeah, Weiss was beautiful alright, and Sun wished Neptune all the luck in the world with her. He certainly wasn't going to try. She was just too rigid, too unyielding for him. Weiss felt like the kind of person who had her whole life planned out, whereas he preferred a more lackadaisical approach. Sure, Blake could be stubborn as well, but at least she was passionate about some things and willing to do something on the fly.

But that didn't mean he couldn't look out for her, he supposed. This was a shitty situation on both their parts and they were in it together. Sun laid his hand out on the armrest between them, palm upwards. Weiss noticed it and glanced his way.

"I'm scared. Hold my hand?"

Weiss snorted, accurately catching his teasing tone. Not that he wasn't at least a little serious. The week ahead had all the hallmarks of one from hell. Most faunus were afraid of the SDC, especially Jacques Schnee. Sun might not feel quite the same way – and that was probably for the best – but he'd have to be an idiot to not be at least a little hesitant for all this.

"My brave, brave boyfriend. I'm truly blessed to have you." Weiss laid her hand in his and his fingers curled around hers. Her hand was cold, like the rest of her. Something he'd have to get used to. "Remind me again why I'm in love with you?"

"Because of my sexy figure?"

She slapped his arm.

"Hey, being shallow is a perfectly viable excuse. It'll be believable."

"I'm not pretending to be shallow – nor into you for your body. If I'm going to love you, it will be for some deeper, respectable reason."

"But it's fine if I am with you?"

"Of course. Then again, you could claim to be a fan from my singing career."

"Considering I don't know a single one of your songs, that might be a stretch."

"What? How rude! Well, you'll be expected to memorise them quickly. It'll look ridiculous if my boyfriend doesn't even know anything about me."

"Doesn't that mean you'll have to know some things about me?"

Weiss cringed. "I… I suppose it does. Although I could just make up your past and no one at Amber Cove would know."

"Or we could tell one another a little bit about ourselves," Sun suggested. "Since, you know, we're supposed to be deeply in love and everything. And we've got a few hours to spare. I'm not saying our deepest secrets and all that, but at least our past and stuff."

"I suppose that would make sense."

"I'll go first," Sun offered. "So, the name's Sun Wukong and I grew up in Vacuo. No parents to speak of, not that I remember, anyway. There was an orphanage and I grew up there, where some of the bigger kids ganged together to look after the younger ones. It was hard, but we got by. See, there was this older girl I saw as a big sister who looked after me. Her name was Sophie and trust me, she was great. Rough around the edges, but great."

"Not like you're any better."

"Hey! If you're comparing me to her, I'll take that as a compliment."

Weiss rolled her eyes as Sun laughed. It was forced on both their parts, the words and gestures there but nothing quite clicking. Even so, Sun was able to forget the fact Weiss' hand was in his, so he considered that a success if nothing else.

"This is going to be an interesting week," Weiss groaned.

Yeah. That about summed up his thoughts, too.

So, first chapter there. It's a bit of an odd one because typically in this kind of romantic scenario, you'd have the two characters not know one another quite so well. That's not to say Weiss and Sun do really know one another, but they've already had their first impressions before now. Sun is here to help and because he gets his date with Blake. Weiss is here because she has no choice in the matter.

I did have to write this chapter in advance, in the middle of a load of other deadlines, because it landed on the week of posting, I'll be away at an expo. Annoying, but I didn't realise it would fall on that.

Next Chapter: 9th October

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