Disclaimer: I own nothing of RWBY.

Blush

By: Imyoshi

"Guitar. Check."

Strings tuned, neck sturdy, body free of filth or tarnish, and his lucky pick was clutched tightly between the cords.

Perfect!

Sighing, Jaune Arc rubbed the nape of his neck, thinking over the cliche and cheesy verse he wrote for Snow Angel. All women loved music, right? At least his dad had told him that, but he wasn't so sure to believe him. While he admired his pops, the advice he gave him wasn't working out so well in the love department. Confidence wasn't doing anything for him but making him out to be the fool.

What fool ever got the girl?

Shaking his head, he bashed away the negative thoughts. Only positive thoughts! Positive thoughts! No more doubting! No more hesitation! Today was the day he won over his fair maiden's heart! He, Jaune Arc, would entice Weiss' heart and earn a partner for the upcoming dance! Possibly even date! Now, if only he believed that a one-hundred percent, since his track record was far from spotless, but no!

Positive thoughts!

While flirting and attempted dates might have failed to lure her heart into his hands, no one could resist his musical genius. Not even Weiss! All he needed was confidence, and his lucky guitar was sure to come through for him!

His trusty guitar, El Diablo, would surely ignite the fire in Weiss Schnee's icy heart.

Rubbing the relic, he grinned at the feel of the worn oak rubbing his knuckles. He still remembered the day he bought this piece of musical ingenuity from a weird gypsy lady. What a fifth birthday that had been! Plus, there had been chocolate cake! Ah, memories! Good times! Okay! No more reminiscing! It was go time!

Stepping out of his team's room, he made the short two-step walk over to Team RWBY's door, noticing Blake walking off in the distance with a nerve in her step, before shaking his nerves and cautiously approached the barrier with mild wariness. Taking a deep breath, he stood firmly straight, straightened his elbows, gripped the guitar securely, and raised his hand for the wood.

His knuckles froze on the hardwood.

A million and one scenarios raced through his head.

"What if she says no? What if she hates the song?"

Jaune grimaced, chest hurting. It wasn't like the dance was only a week away! So what if she possibly said no. It would mean he would show up to the dance dateless and be labeled a loser for the rest of his Beacon Academic Career! Not the end of the world per se, only his teenage years, some of the most significant events of a young man's life.

No pressure!

Just knock and play the guitar with a confident smile and overall positive attitude. That was what uncle David taught him, well, that and besides the guitar lessons and strangely catchy campfire song. How was Camp Campbell doing? Been a while since he received a postcard from his enthusiastic uncle. A kid named Max was apparently giving him trouble. Poor guy. Either way, it was now or never!

Jaune sighed and leaned down on one foot, guitar propped on his knee. Now came the hard part, but he practiced for this and wouldn't back down from any challenge thrown at him.

Knock! Knock! Knock!

He sucked in a breath. Maybe he should've announced his presence before knocking? Warn Weiss of his upcoming solo? No! Music had to be spontaneous and from the heart! No planned choreography or rehearsal! None of that mixed well with passionate music. Melodies from the heart deserved better.

The click mechanism of the door alerted her presence, and Jaune steadied his breathing, fingers prepared to play. The light from their room blinded him, but her combat skirt shined through, but strangely enough, the Arc didn't remember Weiss owning a black-and-white outfit. The shadow's shape of her head was different. Hair shorter? Boots? She even wore a cloak. When did Weiss own or wear a cloak?

"Jaune?"

Wait? That wasn't Weiss Schnee's voice. Not even close! Too soft. Too heartwarming. That was—his face turned three shades of red in full embarrassment.

Oh! Gosh! No! Ruby Rose answered the door instead and now Weiss and Yang were looking at him with interest clear across her face. Try not to panic, Arc! Nothing more than a mild setback! Positive thoughts! From his standpoint, he had one but two options. Either play his guitar and change the lyrics for just Ruby or walk away and turning even more awkward than before.

Honestly, the situation could've been worse.

Making a fool out of himself over getting rejected didn't sound that bad, and Ruby and he could laugh about it later over a plate of milk and cookies. Changing the lyrics in his poem hardly proved challenging and music was music. Yeah, a good laugh would fix this whole problem.

Wing it!

He suddenly strutted his fingers across the cords, somewhat tone-deaf. They brushed and swept across the chords. A simple melody played between the pulling and flicking of the strings, one decent and not all too profound. Nothing like his uncle David, but Jaune played it anyways, dancing to the beat with his hips swaying and eyes glued to the growing silvery ones. A charming smile, at least he hoped so, stretched between his eyes as he played for her.

"Ruby!" Jaune sang, drawing out her name. "You're such a beauty! Sweeter than candy, and of so very handy! You're a cut above the rest, better than the best, which is why I hope you give me the chance to take you to the dance!"

Jaune finished the only-versed solo with a single finger strutting across his guitar strings, arm thrown out in an arc, head down in what he thought to be an awesome pose. Not his best work. The solo, that was. Filled with cliches and lackluster rhymes, but he managed and expected to hear laughter any second now. When none came, he braved a glance up, blinking at the display in front of him.

Ruby was frozen in the doorway, eyes wide! Oh no! She hated his song! It was one thing if he crashed-and-burned. That was at least funny, worthy of laughing over, but if she hated it, then this might be the end of their friendship. Jaune Arc needed to end this on a high note.

Time for the kill! The final card in any man's arsenal.

Poetry.

He kneeled down and gently grabbed her stunned hand with the softness of a cloud, only able to think of the most cliche verse of poetry of them all.

"Roses are red, and violets are blue, but none of those matter because they're nothing compared to you." Jaune coughed, sweating for some reason without a nervous smile. "Uh? R-Ruby Rose? Would you go to the dance with me?"

Jaune didn't know why. Maybe it was the lighting or the growing shades of red on Ruby's face, but the raging heartbeats in his chest thundered in his ears. Somehow the anticipation of her answer raged deeper than any storm. Suffice to say the dreaded emotion pulled at his heartstrings, but he hadn't a clue as to why. Matters of the heart never were simple.

She squeaked tomato red. "O-Okay!"

His nervous smile widened. Wait? What? No. Did she say okay? Okay! No! She was supposed to laugh and say no! Not say yes! Yes wasn't supposed to be a viable option. No was! Now that raging thunder in his chest roared with the fury to sink a ship, a ship commanded by a white-haired Snow Angel and her first-hand mate, Tango Whiskey.

Plans thrown astray or not, he got up, held her shaking palm between his, and hummed gently with his heart racing. An Arc honored their word.

"I-I'll pick you up at s-seven."

Ruby nodded timidly, bright red. "Okay!"

"Bye."

"Bye!"

Jaune released her hand and backtracked to his room, walking backward, which ended with him bumping into the door. He laughed it off, struggled to find the doorknob, and awkwardly tripped inside the moment he turned the handle.

Across from Team JNPR's room, the door to Team RWBY slowly closed with Ruby remaining uncharacteristically quiet, shutting with a soft click. Five seconds passed without any movement from Ruby, and before Yang voiced her concerns, her sister exploded into a mountain of emotions and messy hand gestures.

"Ah! What am I going to wear? I haven't picked out a dress! Shoes! I need shoes! Now!"

Weiss wanted to roll her eyes, not seeing the big deal with Jaune asking Ruby to the dance but figured the effect of her eye roll useless when her stubborn leader was pulling out dresses from the dressers in haste. Better Ruby than her, anyway. Yang, on the other hand, smirked like Dust-mas came early and began snapping pictures of her frantic sister.

Weiss huffed, dodging an article of clothing. "As sickening sweet as that was, can we please get back on topic here? What are we going to do about Blake?"

Ruby growled, throwing an identical dress to the side. "Blake's a big girl! She can handle her own problems!"

Weiss paused, quip dying on her tongue. That didn't sound like her insufferable partner. What happened to her depressed partner? Ruby was many things, annoying and synonyms distinctly resembling said word and a few others, but she had a big heart. Bigger heart than all of them. Ignoring Blake's problem for some silly dance, even if she individually didn't think it so ridiculous, didn't sound like the Ruby Rose they all knew. Moreso, when she dodged another article of clothing, this one more festive, she humphed.

"I didn't figure you for dress up." Ruby ignored her, pulling an assortment of clothing to try on in the bathroom. Weiss turned to Yang. "I've never seen Ruby act like this. It's like our Blake problem has completely vanished."

Yang shrugged and used her shoulder as something to lean on. "As you've probably noticed, Ice Queen, Ruby's not the best when it comes to socializing."

"No."

"Yes!" Yang humored the sarcasm. "So she's never been to a dance with a date."

"Didn't she have suitors back at Signal?"

Her sister appeared guilty. "Well, with our uncle and me at the school, boys were normally intimidated and never asked her. And don't even get me started on my dad. He's way overprotective."

"What did he do?"

"Work at Signal, too."

Wow! Weiss frowned. That sounded dreadful. Absolutely, without a margin of doubt, awful. Three overprotective family members to ruin any chance of a potential date or suitor? In school no less? Sure, not the cruelest thing family were capable of, being embarrassing came with the territory, but it must've stung and nurtured her social inadequacies. Lack of privacy aside, now her lack of social skills made way more sense. Weiss almost pitied her partner. Still, if that was the case, then Ruby had one more obstacle to overcome.

"And what about you, Yang? Not gonna stop Ruby or go threaten Jaune?"

The perpetrator in question smirked, waving a hand. "Nah! Not this time. What kind of sister would I be if I didn't give Ruby a chance to break out of her shell?"

Weiss blinked. "That's strangely sweet of—!"

"Besides, how can I pass up such blackmail material!"

The Schnee snorted. Blackmail and teasing material? Now that sounded more like the Yang Xiao Long she knew. Why pass up such an opportunity, especially with Yang's goal to help Ruby break out of her shell if it involved embarrassing material. If anything, Yang not doing that would crack the norm.

"Discriminating evidence aside, we still have the Blake problem to consider."

Yang's smirk dropped. As much as she hated the killjoy risque of the news, Weiss had a point. Blake's conflict and obsession with The White Fang did drive a rift in their team dynamic. Not having her at the dance changed things, and before she could fully appreciate Ruby's first date-date, a dance date no less, she had to fix Blake's problem first.

Boo!

...

Across the hall, Jaune stared at the wall of the door, lost with El Diablo hanging loosely between his fingers. He hadn't moved from the spot for a while now, and Nora and Ren were starting to worry about their lethargic leader. Either one or two things had happened. Either Weiss said and yes, and their Fearless Leader remained too stunned to move, or she said no, and Jaune was this close to bashing his head on the door in defeat.

Eventually, Nora grinned, leaning on Ren's shoulders. She always believed unconditionally in her silly leader. Maybe the resident Ice Queen said yes?!

"Well? How did it go, Romeo? Did you get a date to the dance or not?"

Her leader sighed and backed away from the door. Well, he didn't bang his head on the door or throw his guitar to the floor, so that was a good sign. Then, when he turned, the wobbling of his lips sold him out. A light smile threatened to form, and her leader appeared to be fighting it, apparently unsure if he should smile or not.

"Kind of."

Whelp! That was more than enough for Nora Valkyrie! Unlike his lips, her smirk grew, revealing a row of pearly whites to mock Jaune and his dumb luck. "Weiss said yes!"

He coughed, looking awkwardly away. "Uh. It wasn't Weiss who said yes."

Her smirk vanished. Ren's brow rose. What the what? What did he mean someone else said yes? Their dorky leader only went two-steps across the hall! Who could he have possibly asked in that short distance? Improbability, thy name was Jaune Arc. Then again, this was their leader. If anyone broke the norm, it was Mr. Tall, Blond, and Scraggly. Jokes aside, who did Jaune-Jaune end up asking to the dance?

Nora predictably laughed her guts out, using Ren's chest to pound her fists. "Only you could ask the wrong girl out! So? Who was it? Yang? Blake? Glynda?!"

No. Jaune wished that had been the issue. That would've been far much simpler if that had been the case.

"Ruby."

For a second time, Nora Valkyrie was rendered speechless. Ruby? Not Blake or Yang? Ruby! As in little sister to Yang Xiao Long? The adorable reaper? The awkward cinnamon roll? That Ruby? Their leader asked her to the dance, and she said yes?

Ren felt Nora's arms slackened as she fell from his back, twisting and turning on his bed with her laughter strong and arms wrapped tightly around her midriff. The poor girl couldn't control her breathing, legs thrown into the air with spastic movements. Ren, at the very least, maintained his cool exterior in control, offering the Arc only a small smile that somehow drowned out the room of Nora's laughter.

"So? What's the game plan? The dance is only a few days away."

His leader looked away, red in the face. Going to the dance with Ruby drew out Jaune from his comfort zone. An oddity with his zero-reluctance to serenade Weiss with his trusty guitar. An enigma, sure, but it wasn't without merit. Ruby was his first real friend. As far as Ren knew, romantic feelings between the two were platonic. Zero romance. For them to suddenly go to the dance as dates, well, Jaune staring down their room's door suddenly made way more sense.

Nora's laughter certainly added a level of drama.

"I'm not sure? Am I supposed to pick her up or meet her at the dance? Do you think Ruby wants a corsage?"

Lie Ren sighed. All girls wanted a corsage. Good thing Pyrrha wasn't here. They had a lot of work on their hands with a short amount of time. Thinking of Pyrrha, Ren hummed. "What about Pyrrha?"

Jaune blinked, light bulb flashing. "Oh! You're right! Training! I'm supposed to be training with Pyrrha soon! She's going to wipe the floor with me if I'm late! Thanks for the reminder."

His leader ran half haphazardly out of the room before he could stop him. Nora stopped laughing entirely to sit up, copying the same worried expression as Ren. Times like this made them hate Pyrrha's reluctance. Slow and steady didn't always win the race, not when Ruby Rose, super speed extraordinaire was the opponent. Even if she hadn't meant to participate in the first place.

Nora pouted, wrapping her arms around Ren's neck.

"Ren?"

"There's nothing we can do now, Nora."

Her frown grew with the hyperactive girl slothing on his back, and her cheek pressed to his. At least things between Ren and her wasn't so complicated, even if they weren't together-together. A tiny spark in her chest hoped differently, but density was a trait specially made for boys, no matter how observant they thought they were, but that was okay.

Her emotionally-challenged sloth didn't need to be quick to catch her lightning-fast heart.

...

Clash! Cling! Clang!

Pyrrha Nikos' Training Regime, an extra class on the rooftop with no grades but all of the sweat, back-breaking labor. Student count, one. Connoisseur, Pyrrha Nikos. Training dummy, Jaune Arc. Chance of survival, zero.

Thump!

A quick whack of Milo's hilt sent him down onto his rear.

Jaune yelped, rubbing his butt with a crooked grin. "Ouch. That stings."

Pyrrha held back a grin, biting her lip instead. Her partner's game was off tonight. Like he had a million and one things to worry about over training. While undoubtedly an exaggeration on her part, the champion blamed Nora's influence. Too much time with the girl rubbed off one of her more eccentric qualities. Still, she offered a hand to her partner.

"You seem distracted?"

Jaune shook his head and accepted Pyrrha's hand. This whole dance-date with Ruby tied his stomach into knots. If it had been Weiss, he doubted his airheadedness would've changed, but there probably would've been more grinning than thin-lipping. Somehow the thought of spending an evening with Ruby in a dance setting didn't sound bad. More like interesting. Possibly exciting. Was it weird? Was he weird? Pyrrha must've thought so with his tight lip answer.

"Sorry. I've just got a lot on my mind."

"Oh? About what?" Jaune shrugged his sight away. She merely smiled. "Jaune, you know you can tell me."

He sighed. "It's the dance."

Her smile tightened. "Oh? What about the dance?"

He laughed, but it was somewhat misplaced. "It's dumb. I wanted to ask Weiss to the dance, but I ended up asking Ruby instead." Pyrrha didn't know whether to laugh, smile, or frown. It all depended on what he said next. "And she said yes. It's strange because I never thought of Ruby in that way, but I'm still kind of looking forward to it. You know, the date part. Is that weird?"

She shrugged, going with a weak grin. A pain filtered across her chest. "No. You know what they say, there's plenty of fish in the sea. Maybe Ruby's a better fit for you."

"Is that your way of saying I'm dorky?"

Even if she wasn't pleased with the outcome, she couldn't help but smile. "Jaune, you've always been dorky. No amount of my training is going to change that. Sorry."

"I never thought I'd see the day. Betrayed by my very own partner."

Pyrrha felt a laugh bubbling. While the situation was far from ideal, it was workable around. If Weiss had said yes, then she could've kissed her chances goodbye, but Ruby left her odds salvageable. Not the best compromise she could've wished for, but it beat the alternative. However, her odds were diminishing. Pyrrha needed to act fast or lose the race. Sadly, how did one win a race against Ruby Rose?

"Make sure to save me a dance."

Jaune grinned and rubbed his cheek where Milo had thumped him. "I'm warning you, Pyrrha. I've got moves. Think you can keep up?"

If her Fearless Leader had any redeeming qualities demanded to be an exceptional Huntsman, it was confidence. Confidence was contagious, vital in a world plagued by the monsters hiding in the shadows. Even his false courage served a purpose. When others needed a boost, Pyrrha felt she could count on her partner to fill that role. However, confidence and ego shouldn't clash so much. A lesson in humility she planned to teach.

"I don't know?" Pyrrha held her weapons up, practice not yet finished. "Think you can keep up?"

His confidence shattered upon reflecting the gleam in his partner's hungry eyes. Weapon raised, her smile daunting, Jaune gulped.

Oh great! Him and his big mouth.

Whack!

...

It wouldn't be another hour later until Pyrrha returned from their training session. Based on the running water and Nora's humming to headphone beats, Ren was in the shower, and when Nora noticed her arrival, the headphones fell, and the sugary powered girl plastered a grin for the champion, wearing her pajamas. She kept her voice purposely low, just in case Ren heard something he shouldn't. Girl talk was sacred. No boys allowed.

"Hey, Pyrrha? How's whooping Jaune's butt into shape going? He must be getting better with you as his teacher. Hey? Wait a second? I'm not hearing any moaning? Where is our Fearless Leader? He didn't come back with you? You didn't put him in the nurse's office again? Did you?"

Pyrrha sighed and sat on her bed, kicking off her boots with lazy movements. "No. He's out buying a corsage for Ruby."

Nora's grin fell. Out the window went all pretense of joy. She'd be lying if she said she hadn't expected this, but so soon? Her dumb leader had no tact. Just like Ren! "Oh? So the Blake's out of the bag, huh?"

Smush!

Tabloids would pay big bucks to see the four-time champion face stuffed into a pillow. "Weiss was supposed to say no."

Nora shrugged, patting Pyrrha on the shoulder. "She didn't exactly say no, Ruby just said yes."

Somehow that made everything worse, and the girl groaned into her pillow. Nora's patent shoulder patting helped only so much. Maybe a lesson was to be learned here? Somewhere? Whatever it was, Pyrrha ignored it and pushed her head deeper into the pillow. Moments later, Lie Ren walked out of the bathroom with a towel around his waist, saw the scene before him, and wisely dipped back into the steam-filled room.

...

Corsage shopping.

Not one of his shining qualities.

Jaune Arc stared heavily at the display case of wristbands and pins, unable to make up his mind. He reached out and grabbed a booklet, hoping maybe it might help with his selection. No such luck. Inside, more versions of corsages popped out at him, colorful in their display. Each mocked him more and the more. Not to mention his muscles were killing him. All he wanted to do was stuff his face into a pillow and groan.

Was that so much to ask?

Flipping across the pages, he frowned. Whoa! Who knew there were so many corsages to pick from? He expected maybe like three or four when he walked into the store. Not a catalog! Each flip of the page only sunk his confidence deeper into his stomach. At this rate, he'd never leave this shop. He'd never find the perfect corsage for Ruby!

"Oh-ho! What do we have here? A Monsieur in, eh, how do you say, way over his head?"

Jaune turned around to find a sharply dressed gentleman smirking at him with a mask of measuring tape hanging off his shoulders with a mustache that resembled Port's, but retained a cleaner look to it. He stood tall, sleek, substantial, and overall professional. The air around him even tasted better. Best of all, he had a devilish accent!

Jaune grinned, knowing the man saw right through his struggle. "Yeah. I guess I am. Can you help me? The name's—?"

A hand suddenly shushed the Arc, shaking with vigor. "No! No! Do not tell, Enzo! Enzo will guess! Hm? Tall like tree! Strong like the mountain! Hair kissed by the sun! Daring eyes with the ocean's tears! Ah! Yes, Enzo knows! Felipe!"

Jaune opened his mouth, closed it, and opened once more with no words coming out. Felipe, huh? That had a pleasant ring to it. Felipe Arc! Yes. Maybe, if the day ever came, Felipe would be an excellent cover name to live by. Possibly a name to settle down with, or hide from the law? A rouge Huntsman! Felipe!

Grinning, the Arc laughed but shook his head. "Close, but nope! The name's Jaune Arc. It's short, sweet, and rolls off the tongue."

Enzo perched his lips. "Jaune... Arc? Jaune Arc! Ah! Yes! Tis great moniker. Enzo will remember!"

Jaune chuckled. He was growing to like this man. Still, jokes aside, he came here on a mission. "So? Can you help me? I'm trying to buy a corsage for my... friend Ruby. We have a dance coming up, and I asked her."

Enzo grinned slyly at the mention of friend but bit his tongue and threw his arms out. "Of course! Enzo knows all about the matters of the heart! So! Which flower was Mr. Monsieur hoping to buy? Perhaps a carnation? Tulip? Rose? Stop Enzo anytime!"

Jaune wished he could. Carnations? Tulips? Roses? How many flowers were there to choose from? "Uh? I'm... I'm not sure."

Enzo openly grinned. "Ah! This is your first time, yes? Then Enzo will help you. What type of corsage were you hoping to get for the lucky lady?"

Jaune blinked harder. Corsages had types? As in more than one? "Types?"

The gentleman clapped his hands. "Oh, do not fret, dear boy, we have only pin or wrist corsages."

Jaune sighed. That was a relief. "Um, I guess a wrist corsage."

Enzo hummed, rubbing his mustache. "Ah! Good choice! Now, for the pretty lady's dress! What color is it? The corsage needs to match both the meaning and style of her dress."

Color meaning? Colors meant something, too? Style he understood, but meaning? What next? Animology? Blue fox! Pink sloth?! Okay! Now he was just making stuff up, but the complications remained the same. Common sense and him weren't on the same page. He just wanted to buy a flower attached to a ribbon! Why was that so difficult?

Thinking hard about this, he recalled Ruby's color scheme. Okay! Ruby wore red! A lot of red and black to be precise! So the flower had to be reddish, but what if she wanted something different? Gasp! What if she wore something not red? Then the corsage wouldn't match! She'd end up hating it. Yang would beat the living tar out of him for ruining Ruby's special night! He'd lose his first friend, and things would spiral downwards from there!

Arg!

Sighing, Jaune Arc glanced at the display of near-infinite rows of colorful corsages. Some simple. Some not. All flowers with colorful ribbons and beautiful designs that any girl would probably love to own. Still, Ruby Rose wasn't any girl. She was his friend—his first friend! That meant something!

She meant something!

Throwing his head back, the Arc chewed his lip, wondering if there was any possible chance of buying the right corsage. Then, like a lighthouse, an idea struck! While not perfect, far from it, it was guaranteed to make Ruby happy!

"I've made up my mind."

...

Wow!

Deny someone anything remotely classifying as a date, ergo Ruby, and they suddenly latched onto the idea it with giddiness. Ruby might as well not be here. Her assistance wasn't needed if she planned to sit at the table all day and daydream. Help with setup? Nope!

Yang hummed at the said scene, lips pouted. Maybe threatening the occasional boy or two back at Signal might've not been the smartest move? Well, even if she had backed off, her pops and badass uncle would've stopped the poor fool dead in his tracks. Yang Xiao Long was merely the mercy killing when it came to the three of them.

Which brought her to her current predicament, a starstruck leader of a sister.

Ruby was too busy daydreaming about the dance to help with setup, already having a dress in mind. A classy little red thing that flaunted her body and showed shoulders. Cute was the best word to describe it. Naturally, Yang would've teased her sister to no end, but first business and then merciless teasing. The dance was tomorrow, so the Blake problem had to have been solved yesterday, and since Ruby was preoccupied, this left only her.

Weiss certainly wasn't going to be any help with her doily and tablecloth crisis.

Yang huffed, dropping a speaker she had been carrying around. Sometimes being the awesome one had its drawbacks, but she fit the role assigned to her. Being cool came naturally to her. Like her fog machine idea. Too bad for Ruby. Not like her dad was any different. Coolness must've skipped a generation.

Oh? Look! Sun and Neptune were here.

...

Through some dark dealing, backdoor, voodoo magic, Yang managed to convince Blake to come to the dance. The bags under her eyes vanished with a good night's rest. Her spirit returned. Blake was acting less Blake-y. Perfect! Just in time to tease Ruby! All was going according to plan.

Just like she knew it would!

Now! All that was left to do was take embarrassing photos that would emotionally traumatize Ruby for life! Create the perfect Dust-mas card! Give her dad a person to hate and make Uncle Qrow come home early. All in one night!

Knock! Knock! Knock!

"Hey, it's me, Jaune!" Jaune's voice sounded so squeaky from the other side of the door that Yang just knew his face was tomato red, and not a minute after seven. "I'm here to pick up Ruby."

Showtime!

"And the mouse takes the bait."

"What was that?"

Yang ignored her partner, taking out her Scroll. Propping her elbow on the bathroom door, she grinned, pounding on the side while making sure to keep her tone just loud enough to push Ruby's buttons. "Ruby! Are you ready yet? Jaune's waiting outside."

A crash was heard in the bathroom. "Gah! Stall him!"

Her sister blinked? Stall him? How? By not opening the door? Well, that would work. Making guys wait an atrocious amount of time was a favorite past of girls. However, he might end up sweaty. Couldn't have that—and Ruby was already opening the door, walking stiffly out with the wall as an anchor. She looked down at the heels Yang chose, grumbling with a stiffness.

"Eurgh! Weiss, why would you ever fight in these?"

Weiss humphed, hogging Zwei between her lap. "A proper lady should know how to dress accordingly to any situation. Heels are the standard for any social gathering."

Ruby pushed her tongue out. "Bleh!"

Not wanting to break up the argument, but knowing Ruby's prince charming was awaiting outside, probably having a heart attack, Yang nudged her sister and flicked her sights to the door. "Ready, sis?"

Her sister straightened out her crease-free dressed. Yang smirked and allowed Ruby the small distraction, secretly taking pictures of the nervous wallflower. When she finished, the girl stood straightly, hoping to Dust her balance didn't betray her. Too bad her sister offered no warning and threw open the door to come face-to-face with a wall of flowers covering Jaune's face.

Grinning bigger, Yang pulled him in. "Come in."

The flowers and her amusing tug made him stumble, dropping a few. The girls reached down to pick up a few, finding them not what they believed. Bouquet of flowers, nope! Try again. Every single of these were corsages. Some different colored, others a mix of roses or lilies, but all flowers. When all eyes turned to Jaune Arc, wanting a reason why he brought so many of them, the Arc rubbed his neck in embarrassment and found his sight only on Ruby.

"Sorry! I didn't know which one to get you, and they all looked so good. So I sort of bought them all."

All of them? He bought all of them! Yang snorted. Dorks! Both of them!

One of the said Dorks, Jaune, panicked internally as his date sorted through the corsages, awing at the choices. Ruby tried on almost every one, pouting at some and shaking her head no vigorously at others. He hadn't a clue as to why the idea of her not attaining one she cherished irked him, but it did. Jaune honestly wanted Ruby to adore one of them, and not because it was date-date! No! He serenaded her, and she said yes.

It was a date. To the dance. Between first friends. Who happened to be a boy and girl. An adorable girl with a cute nose and quirky character and didn't get disgusted at the thought of spending any time with him. Who smiled his way, and made him believe in himself better than anyone else.

Nope. Nope. Nope.

Ruby Rose was all that and more. So much more!

In the end, after sorting through them all, Ruby ended up choosing the corsage with three elegant red roses. Simple in design and completely Ruby. Then, to his everlasting embarrassment, he offered her his arm. Hn? Yang chewed her lip. Not bad, Arc. At least he had some sense of class. Ruby must've thought so too, looping her arm, albeit slow and clumsily, around his and used his body as a way to balance herself upright. Darn heels!

They said their goodbyes and tried to venture off, however, before they escaped her, she yelled out to Ruby and dragged her sister's butt back in. She then swiftly pushed them to a corner, shooing away Blake and Weiss and shook her Scroll with a teasing grin. Just needed a few pictures!

"Wait up, sis! Dad wants pictures."

"To put in a photo album?"

Yang blinked before coughing. "Uh... yeah! Photo album! That's why he wants them. And not because he wants to know what Jaune looks like!"

"Yang?"

"Picture time!"

...

A few minutes later and Jaune practically dragged Ruby out of her sister's hold, walking her faster toward the dance and away from a relentless Yang. Once they turned a corner and escaped from her team's prying eyes, she groaned into his shoulder. He found the action adorable, knowing he put some of his own sisters through the same torment.

"Ah, sorry about that, she's so impossible sometimes!"

He snicked at the memory, not so worried anymore. "It's no big. I can't tell you how many times my family did that to one of my sisters. I'm used to dishing out the embarrassment, not the other way around. It was fun."

She grumbled. "It was not fun! It was embarrassing!"

Knowing there was no winning this argument, he dropped it and squeezed her arm a bit tighter. The action rushed blood to his face, alongside with Ruby, who had forgotten about the awkward position they were in after ranting about Yang. An awkward silence filled the void, only broken with the occasional trip of her heels.

Jaune spoke first, voice breaking. "You look nice. I mean not nice! No! I didn't mean that! I meant you look great! I mean—you look beautiful! Ah, shutting up now."

Against her beating heart, she giggled and leaned into him. "You look nice, too."

Elegant. Simple. Ruby Rose.

He smiled, cherishing the sound of her laughter. It was nice having someone enjoying his company, even at his expense. As far as he knew, Weiss never laughed at anything he said or did, much less enjoyed his company or acknowledge it for that matter. Ruby did the opposite. Still, for all the confidence he boosted, none of it revealed itself when a girl returned the affection, and no one was more affectionate than the cinnamon roll of Team RWBY.

The beating of his heart resonated loudly in his ears.

Not to say the same wasn't for Ruby, but Jaune's distractive nature allowed for her awkwardness to slip through. To be fair, she hadn't expected to get a date to the dance. Yang being a factor and all. Ruby fully expected to join the Socially Awkward Club where they had club meetings by the punch bowl. While the idea of joining said club was still highly possible, she doubted the idea of visiting the punch bowl for more than a few minutes. Strangely, the thought didn't sound as dreadful as she might've believed. Ruby hardly even missed her hoodie.

Perhaps this ball might turn out to be fun, even if she wasn't a fancy, pantsy, dancy girl.

Holding Jaune's arm just happened to be an unexpected bonus. One she swore never to reveal. Pyrrha's training clearly showed results. Ruby grinned at those results, squeezing his arm just a little tighter. Not the way she planned this evening to go, but no complaints made it past her lips.

A soft thumping beat invaded their ears and the leaders steadied themselves, finding the door to the ballroom ahead of them. They walked inside the ballroom, greeted by Velvet with a warm smile. With a knowing glance, the bunny Faunus nodded and guided them in, content. Once they got past her to hit the dance floor, Jaune leaned closer to her ear to whisper, afraid those ears might not just be for show.

"Wasn't Yang supposed to be the usher?"

"She, uh, stayed behind and promised to take over an hour later."

He grunted, remembering the flash bombardment. "I wonder why."

She elbowed him and led him to the dance floor, or at least tried to. Instead, the two found themselves waiting just outside the dance floor, petrified. The evil high heels and anxiety kept Ruby at bay while Jaune gathered whatever courage dwelling inside him, breathing with slow breaths. No more cowardice! No more awkwardness! Dance time!

Positive thoughts!

Breaking away from Ruby, he breathed out and offered his hand this time, not his arm, and gestured out to to the dance floor with a bit of shakiness.

"May I have this dance, milady?"

She blinked at the cheesy accent and snickered. "You're such a dork."

"You're a dork."

She beamed and grabbed his trembling hand. "I would love to."

He grabbed her hand and pulled her into a dance floor with rowdy students. The tempo was upbeat and fast. This dance required plenty of wild movement and fast body shaking, just the type of dance for a hyper Rose to show her stuff, and it was impossible to make herself out to be a fool, especially in heels.

Jaune, on the other hand, appeared to be in his natural environment when it came to shaking his booty. He had it all. The lean back. The shoulder shake. The jazz hands. The arm strut. Anything dance related and marginally between the line of cool and uncool, and her fellow leader owned it.

"How are you dancing like that?"

Jaune cocked a brow like it was an easy question to ask. "What do you mean? Just dance! Let the music flow and move your body! Be spontaneous!"

Spontaneous? She grinned, enjoying this side of him, and allowed the rhythm to move her body. Fast and unpredictable. That was how the music played, and if anything, that was how Ruby Rose lived. Her body swayed, and her arms swooshed. Occasionally, she almost tripped on her heels, but he always grabbed her arms and leveled her body before that ever happened, shaking them to the groove. If anything, that raised the fun factor by a few notches.

From across the room, Ozpin smiled underneath his collar. Miss Rose seemed to be enjoying herself with Mr. Arc. Clearly, they both showed signs of nervousness, adolescents and all, but managed to push on through and have a good time. Good. One could not spend their entire life on the battlefield. Every now and again, when possible, one should cherish the moments they could have with friends and family. These small moments of peace wouldn't last forever.

When the song ended, the duo made their way to the punch bowl. Ruby was the first to pour herself a cup of punch, huffing playfully with a tiny bead of sweat on her forehead. Jaune grabbed a drink as well, leaning on the wall with deeper breaths. He twirled the fruit punch a few times, surprised with how much fun he had.

Ruby grabbed his arm and waved the other. "Dust! Where'd you learn to dance like that? You were like swish-swosh! Ba-dum! Whoosh!"

He shrugged and drank his punch. "I have seven sisters."

Ruby waited for the punchline, hoping for him to finish his drink and story, eventually discovering there was no said punchline, and that was, in fact, his reasoning. Well, that wouldn't do! Not at all! Ruby had one Yang, and the only thing that gave her was embarrassment and dad talks. Seven sisters must've upped that by a hundred, yet he wasn't spilling the juicy details.

She poked him in the arm, stubbornly. "And? What else! Seven sisters and what?! Tell me!"

He grinned amusingly from the edge of his plastic cup, taking deliberately slow sips. She frowned instantly and swiped the beverage from his hand. A quick gulp later and nothing was left.

Monty Oum must've hated her because the next song playing was one of her favorites, and her dumb date knew this, offering his hand out without a care. "Care to dance, Rubes."

She accepted it, pouting. "We're not done talking about this."

Into another song they went.

...

By the time the rest of Team RWBY and Team JNPR arrived, the dance was blazing, and no usher was needed to meet-and-greet any wandering dancers. The teams quickly split apart with Nora dragging Ren to places unknown, Pyrrha wandering off in the distance, Blake and Sun mingling into the hordes of party animals, and Yang pulling Weiss.

Time to find Ruby and Vomit Boy!

"Yang! Will you slow down!"

The blonde grinned, ignored Weiss, and peeked her head over the sea of hair in hopes of finding a familiar mop of yellow. Weiss pulled her wrist free, trying not to appear as apprehensive as Yang was. Ruby was her partner at the end of the day. She cared. She did! Not like the Heiress felt she needed to stew. Jaune Arc was insufferable at times, persisted too, but he remained relatively harmless. Just a boy lovestruck by her beauty and name, she couldn't fault him for that. After all, his various courting rituals were plaid and naive, but innocent. A perfect match for her silly partner.

So why did her eyes narrow when she spotted them on the dance floor, apparently having fun?

The display of indulgence irked her. Blood pulled to her face. Arms crossed. Seeing her partner having fun, while she, Weiss Schnee, merely stood here struck a cord in her chest. The emotion forced her eyes to travel across the dance floor, spotting a distinguishable sea of blue hair, and that cord snapped.

An elbow to the side pulled her back, forcing her to meet Yang's happy smile. "They look like they're having fun, eh, Weiss?"

Weiss huffed.

Fun.

The only word capable of describing the bumbling fools current mood and Yang had hit it dead on the nail. Yes. By Yang's current appraisal, Jaune Arc and Ruby Rose were having fun. They danced and moved to the melody of the fast-paced music, abandoning all care for a night out of festive joy, and where was she?

Dateless.

She hummed, wondering what Yang's battleplan was. "Aren't you going to do something?"

Yang grinned and shook her Scroll. She snapped more shots of the adorkable pair. "I am. I can't wait to send these to my pops. He's going to love these."

"And he's okay with Jaune accompanying Ruby to the dance?"

She laughed. "Oh? Heck no! Some of these are for his dartboard."

Dartboard? Weiss wanted to comment more, but the song ended. Her partner saw them, and stubbornly pulled Jaune toward them. From their point-of-view, he was half Arc and half leaning post.

Ruby tried running up to her sister but had to hold onto Jaune's sleeves or else fall victim to uncomfortable heels. Gah! Dress accordingly her butt! No one, and she meant no one, should fight or walk in these! With these ankle biters on, forget the Grimm. Still, she threw her arms up and greeted her team with enthusiasm, practically radiating joy. Who knew dances were so much fun? All the body flaying and swooshing! Almost felt like a battlefield, minus all the blood and carnage. Made her think why she never went to one at Signal.

Oh well.

"You guys made it!"

Yang snorted. "Why wouldn't we have? We practically set this all up ourselves."

Ruby laughed at that, cheeks burning, remembering how little she helped with the setup that day. Her mind had been elsewhere. At least during her absence, Yang and Weiss managed to rope Blake into the dance. How? Sun might've helped. Maybe? Ruby hadn't a clue, but she was glad it all worked itself out.

Jaune threw his sight all over the ballroom, amazed. "You girls did an amazing job! This place looks great! The music's perfect!"

Yang blinked. She then snickered and leered playfully at the clueless leader. "Oh? And why's that, Vomit Boy? Like dancing with Ruby? Maybe you're hoping for a slow song?"

Before he could blush, Ruby did and rushed over to the punch bowl, leaving a small trail of rose petals, almost tripping on her heels. That only made Yang snicker more. Teasing Ruby, too easy, but teasing both of them?

Priceless.

Turning back to the Fearless Leader of Team JNPR, Yang poked him squarely on the chest with her voice adopting a sing-song tone. "So Jaune, I didn't hear a no."

If she thought his face couldn't turn redder, she would've lost that bet. Poor Vomit Boy appeared to be tongue-tied. Flustered? Maybe both. Whatever it was, she planned to milk it for it was worth.

"Oops."

A handkerchief fell from Weiss' hand, dropping to the floor. Jaune saw the opportunity presented to him and thanked Monty Oum, picking up the tissue before handing it back to Weiss. She accepted the gesture, hiding a small smile only Yang and Jaune noticed.

"Here you go, Weiss." Jaune pointed at Ruby, suddenly parched. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm, uh, going to go help Ruby with her punch. Yeah! See ya!"

Yang observed Jaune's escape, but her mind was on other things, like that sad excuse of a setup. She almost chewed her lip at the thought. Drop her handkerchief her butt! Weiss Schnee did not drop things! More importantly, Weiss Schnee did not say oops! Oops was a word used to attract people's attention.

She narrowed her eyes and tapped the Heiress on the shoulder, roughly she might add. "What was that?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

Lilac eyes narrowed. Plausible deniability was a strong suit Weiss wore expertly, but why wear it now? Girl was as transparent as water. So what changed? What pushed Weiss to act like that? What prize was there Yang Xiao Long couldn't see?

Sneaking a peek back at the dopey duo, she studied the way Ruby listened to whatever tale Jaune was telling her, eyes shining above the rim of her cup. When a new song played, and he offered his arm for her to grab, she heard the huff Weiss made once the two made it on the dance floor. Upon turning around, she found Weiss glaring daggers, not at Jaune Arc, but both of them, arms crossed. Then Snow Angel's eyes floated over to a ruffle of blue hair, and everything suddenly clicked for Yang.

Weiss Schnee was jealous!

She almost snorted at the idea. Weiss jealous? Ha! Sounded like a bad pun. Not even a bad pun! More like a joke her dad would say when trying to be hip, yet, she felt pity for Weiss. Maybe if some hero had confronted the blue-haired neanderthal, they might've smacked some sense into him and got him to take Weiss dancing, for whatever reason he chose not. Sadly, no such hero existed.

Leaving her to be the voice of reason.

"Weiss, you had your chance. Don't ruin this for Ruby. Look. She's having fun. I didn't even think I could get her into a dress tonight. So why don't you just go mingle? Try to dance and have fun! That's what I'm going to be doing."

The Dust Heiress said nothing, walking off into the group of students, but she knew the message was received loud and clear.

...

Jaune Arc gulped.

Realistically this was to be expected, but he was still ill-prepared for when it did happen.

A slow song!

Ruby noticed too, suddenly shying up, contrast to her previous mood from just a few seconds ago. For a while, all the songs had been fast-paced, jam-filled, and electrifying beats. Anyone with or without rhythm could dance to those. Anyone could dance to them and act like friends and nothing more. This song—this slow song—was none of those things and so much more. Slow songs involved touching and holding!

Maybe it was time to back away and—no!

Positive thoughts!

He asked Ruby to dance, and by golly was he going to dance with her. So what if his stomach tied itself in a million knots, or if his heart beat a little too quickly? A gentleman danced with the lady of the evening. Ruby deserved that and so much more.

Remembering lessons from his seven sisters, he offered his hand with his best charming smile. "May I have this dance."

Butterflies suddenly fluttered in her stomach. Her chest burned. The slow tempo of the song tugged at her heartstrings, strings almost as perfect as the song he played for when he asked her to be his date. She still saw through that facade of his.

With a simple smile, she placed her hand on his and smirked. "You're still a dork."

Jaune laughed and pulled her in, wrapping an arm gently around her lower back with her chest pressed to his. Those knots and butterflies grew exponentially, and they continued to grow as he led her throughout the song. Being so close to her body with her hand fitted so easily inside his made him realize how tiny she was compared to him, but underneath the soft skin and glittering eyes was a seasoned warrior with a heart of gold.

...

From afar, Pyrrha Nikos watched the entire scene unfold, frowning. From the way Jaune held Ruby close, and how she appeared to be comfortably content between his arms, any chance she once had died. Sparks practically burst to life around them. Deluding herself anymore wouldn't be healthy. Why twist the knife in her heart?

Unable to watch this anymore, the champion instead walked outside to catch some air, leaning on the rail guard. A cool breeze brushed past her hair. Without a thought, she flicked her mane out of the way, twisting her neck to stop her hair from getting into her mouth. Doing so crocked her line of sight to a shadow sprinting in the background, silent as a ghost with its silhouette betrayed by the moonlight.

Trained eyes narrowed at the target racing across the rooftops.

"Who could that be?"

Glancing back at the ballroom, Pyrrha Nikos braved a face, possibly worrying over nothing, and pulled that knife out of her heart to chase that shadow.

It might be a Grimm or worse.

...

Not the way she expected this night to go.

Ruby had her head rested upon Jaune's chest, smiling like a fool. This slow dancing, where bodies touched, she could get used to it. Calling it romantic didn't do it justice, but for the life of her, she couldn't come up with a better word. Any word—all words even—didn't roll off the tongue.

Not like she planned to say it out loud, but maybe her racing heart betrayed her and sold her out anyway?

It didn't matter.

Well the name's Jaune Arc. Short, sweet, rolls off the tongue, ladies love it.

Swaying to the beat, she pursed her lips and glanced up at him, finding his rosy cheeks so pinchable. The big dummy had hardly changed since the first time she bumped into him.

My mom always says, strangers are just friends you haven't met yet.

Even when talking, he put on this brave face. Then when someone called it out, his real colors showed. Some confidence existed there, but paranoia gripped him usually hard. Not anxiety and social clumsiness similar to hers, but real, genuine fear. Maybe his biggest weakness was himself? At least it was, at one, until she nipped that bud.

You know, you're not the easiest person to talk to about this kind of stuff.

That memory made her smile the biggest. Look at the big dork now. Look at her now! What happened to all that social awkwardness from before? Gone! Poof! No Social Awkwardly Club for these two leaders!

Eventually, like all good things, it concluded with the song coming to an end. As much as Ruby wished to dance some more, maybe a little space to gather her jumbled emotions was the better move, and she distanced herself from Jaune with a shy grin. Lucky for her, he felt the same and pointed a lame thumb sign at the giggling Nora and stoic Ren.

"I'll be back. I'm just going to go check up on my team."

Ruby hummed. "Okay! I'll be by the punch bowl."

Grinning, he turned around to pull at his outfit's collar, already mentally preparing for whatever it was Nora wanted to say. She didn't disappoint either, elbowing him in the ribs once he got in elbowing distance.

"So? What's the scoop, Romeo? I saw the way you were dancing with Ruby over there! Roar! So, what! Does that mean you're over Weiss? Huh, Lover Boy?"

He blinked, upping his grin. Leave it to Nora for the direct approach. Strangely, the Arc wouldn't have it any other way. Still, the question raised some unknown feelings in his chest, mostly fluttery and things resembling heartburn.

Was he over Weiss?

Turning his head, he found Snow Angel mingling with some random students, appearing to enjoy their company. The scene hardly affected his overall mood. Honestly, once he had asked Ruby to the dance, everything Weiss Schnee related slowly melted away like the first days of Spring. Heh! Funny! Now that he compared the two, Ruby Rose resembled the personification of Spring.

Jaune Arc's favorite season just so happened to be Spring.

He sighed and rubbed a hand through his hair. "Yeah, I guess I am. Well, maybe not entirely, yet, but give it time. Life's too short to be chasing after a girl that might never return the feelings. Why wait? If I do, someone else might steal my chance from me."

His reasoning was grand. Simple and to the point. While nothing a philosopher would add to their book of subtext and crisscross lines, the words struck a cord with Nora.

Why wait? If I do, someone else might steal my chance from me.

"Well, that's good." Nora bit her lip, remembering Pyrrha's defeated smile. Yeah. Why wait? If she did, that might be her someday with some other girl's hands wrapped around Ren's arm. A nightmare. "Hey, Fearless Leader, how long's the dance?"

"A few hours. Maybe four." Jaune glared over the dance floor, unable to find Pyrrha's red mane. "By the way, have you seen Pyrrha?"

Nora was already lost in her scheme, sizing up Ren's unaware body like a delectable stack of lumberjacks. She waved away her leader's question, shrugging.

"Nope."

"Well, if you do see her, remind her I still owe her a dance. Kay'?"

She grinned and suddenly wrapped her arms around Ren's arm, pulling him close. "Sure! No problem!"

Thankful, Jaune left to find Ruby, leaving the confused Lie and guilty Valkyrie alone. Ren didn't seem to find her abrupt change in demeanor off-putting and simply spared a quick glance to the overly cheerful girl.

"Ready to dance, Nora?"

Judging by the widening, lecherous smile she gave him, it appeared dancing was the furthest thing from her mind.

...

Ruby precisely knew what she was doing by drinking punch alone.

It was code for the vulture, not raven or crow, but the vulture.

It didn't disappoint. Yang swooped in and wrapped an arm around her neck, and leaned on her body. Ignoring the growing grin was asking for the impossible, so she humored her sister and enjoyed the punch for however long the cup lasted.

Two seconds before Yang swiped it out of her hands and threw it Oum knew where.

"So... sis? It might just be my eyes playing tricks on me, but it looked like you were having fun back there. You know, slow dancing with Vomit Boy."

Ruby wished for a cup to hide behind, adverting her eyes. "Yeah? So?"

Yang pursed her lips, casting a knowing glance over to the suit-wearing Arc. "You know, once you get past Jaune being Vomit Boy, he does clean up nicely. And he's kind. Dad would love him, once he gets past the whole Jaune part."

Ruby frowned. "What are you saying, Yang?"

Her teasing grin vanished. In its place came a sincere smile. "You only live once, kiddo. Gotta make the most out of it."

"That sounds like something Uncle Qrow would say."

She threw her thumbs back and backed away. "I can do both dad and Uncle Qrow. I'm amazing that way."

Ruby wanted to blow her tongue at her but knew Yang was right. Everyone only lived once. Got to make the most of it. The subtext to what her demented sister spoke wasn't missed. She knew perfectly well what she meant, and the thought burned her cheeks.

Dumb Yang.

Glancing down, she picked at the corsage Jaune got for her, almost laughing at the memory of the pile of corsages he bought for her. Dumb Jaune. Who bought out the entire store's stock just to grab the perfect corsage?

Butterflies fluttered in her stomach.

Jaune Arc, the brave noodle of Team JNPR, and all for her.

Ruby hummed, playing with the roses. Yup, definitely a dork, but maybe a dork she didn't mean being around. A prodigy on the battlefield did not make her a grandmaster on human relationships. How to approach Jaune, without her heart exploding into a million pieces, baffled her and she prayed for a miracle.

"Hey, there you are."

She looked up to be staring at her date's awkward grin. "Here I am."

Offering her another hand, she tilted her head. It became unmistakably clear when she noticed the new slow song playing, forcing her to pause. When had another slow song started? Across the room, Yang backed away from the DJ, slipping him a twenty for the discreet service.

Seeing her miracle possibly playing before her, she accepted his hand and danced to the melody with the surrounding couples. He appeared to be holding something back in his throat, beyond nervous, even for him. However, into the second half of the verse, he gathered all his remaining courage and held her away by arm's length.

"So... there's that new monster movie coming out next week, would you like to, you know, if you're not busy, maybe, possibly—glmph?!"

She placed a finger over his worried lips. "I'd love to."

He then grinned with that finger still pressed to his lips, pulling Ruby closer for the second half of the song. Upon holding her close, she rested her head on his chest, swaying. Jaune, on the other hand, expected to see Nora's merciless smile from across the dance floor, but she was missing. Gone!

Ren too!

Hn? Odd? Oh well. Knowing Nora, she probably dragged Ren around for some misadventure.

Poor guy.

...

"Nora! Where are we going?"

She said nothing. Nothing at all and pushed Ren to their team's door once they made it, smile mischievous with her eyes hungry. Regrets? Yeah! No! Her Clueless Leader was right. Life was too short. Why wait for Ren to get it through his thick skull to make the first move? That might take too long, and some harlot might sink her claws into her man. While Nora pitied Pyrrha, the early bird got the worm and Nora never believed in subtly in the first place.

Resting on the door, she grabbed him by the neck of his tie, purposely trailing a finger down his torso. From the way his breath hitched, he knew what she wanted. Was it wrong she liked that vulnerability of emotion? To think it was hot.

Sexy.

Not to say the hitch in his breath wasn't a turn-on, but she found her own breathing betraying her. Confidence both allied and betrayed her. Thunder couldn't possibly replicate the beating thumps of her heart. This wasn't asking someone to the dance. This was asking for more. So much more. For all the marbles! He knew from the way his eyes reflected a waterfall of emotions. Nora almost bit her lip, but shook her head.

Positive thoughts!

Letting go of his tie, she kicked their door open with the back of her foot and walked right in. Each stepped emphasized the shaking of the hips. Her arms shivered across her body, reaching for the zipper, barely unable to reach the dreaded thing.

Perfect.

Throwing him a smirk, she placed a finger on her lips and kicked off her heels. "I'm tired of waiting. You could either leave or help me take off this dress."

No more games.

Lie Ren blinked, collected his emotions, and undid the collar of his suit. Walking away would be the wrong thing to do. After all, his father once offered him sagely advice on the matter.

Sometimes the worst action to take... is taking no action at all.

Time to take action.

"You know if I cross this door, I won't be able to stop myself. Everything will change."

Nora twirled around and grabbed him by his tie. "I'm counting on it."

Slam!

...

Beacon Academy's Mess Hall.

A few days after the dance.

The dance, in Yang's professional and wholly unbiased opinion, went off without a hitch. Spirits were high. Love was in the air. All that fun jazz. Above all else, Ruby had a boyfriend. Someone to cuddle when scared or drag along to unbearable places she only enjoyed. A significant other. A lover. A slave. Somehow who was universally hated by her father and uncle.

A boyfriend!

Well, boyfriend might be stretching the term, but sooner or later the relationship would progress to such a stage. Not like Vomit Boy had any choice. Making Ruby sad wasn't an alternative. So the only option left was to keep her smiling. Not a bad deal. For her, anyway. Jaune looked like the dopey, love-dovey type.

Ruby so owed her one.

Speaking of the lovebirds, she snuck a peek at the duo, finding Jaune feeding Ruby some strawberries. No hidden motive existed for her to see. No corruption to call him out on. No filth. Tame in her opinion, and it better stay that way! No funny business! If her sister wanted more, something more risque, then Yang wouldn't lift a finger, but Jaune was an entirely different story.

Only that Arc pride of his saved him from a future beating.

Narrowing her eyes at the possibility of corruption, Yang's vision traveled to both Jaune and Ruby's arms and figured them to be holding hands underneath the table.

Cute.

While on the topic of cute, she trailed her eyes over to the affectionate Nora, who held the exhausted Ren's arm in a vice grip. If she stared hard enough, the blond potentially saw hearts bubbling out the two. Hearts three-times the size of normal ones. Seemingly, not only Jaune and Ruby joined the First Friends to Something More Movement.

About damn time.

"Is it just me, or is Nora glowing?" Blake asked, enjoying her tuna sandwich.

Yang smirked. Radiating was more like it. "Glowing, the same as Ruby over there."

Weiss huffed. "I find it nauseating."

Yang winced. To be fair, feeding each other lunch made everyone queasy. Sickening sweet had limits. "Ah! Jealous, Ice Queen?"

"Hardly."

The brawler smirked. Weiss was totally jealous. By the way, on the topic of green-eyed, they were missing one resident champion. "Hey, where's our champion? There's no way that girl's on a diet. Not with the way she kicks butt."

Jaune answered. "She's having a meeting with Professor Ozpin. Apparently, something happened during the dance and she managed to fix it before it got out of hand, so I guess Ozpin needs to work on damage control."

Yang snorted. Damage control? Extra work? Yup! That sounded like Pyrrha.

Accepting the answer, Yang grabbed her meal and dug in, not seeing the gleam in her baby sister's eyes. Ruby smiled a bit too widely, more than ready to dish out revenge payback for all the teasing she endured and made sure to hug Jaune's arm overly affectionately like Nora, practically pressing her face to his sleeve. Her innocent nature was lost to Jaune, but he refrained from saying anything and wisely kept his mouth shut.

"So, Yang, when are you planning on getting a boyfriend?"

When Yang choked on her food, only Jaune Arc noticed the devilish smirk playing across Ruby's innocent face.

This rose had thorns.

Author Notes: I purposely avoided writing the Blake and Yang confrontation because little would've changed from canon except Yang telling Blake about Ruby's date. Also, it's come to my attention that some people thought I was going to write four one-shots, not one, so I want to say my bad and apologize for the mix-up.

P.S. The more I write Yang, the more I love writing Yang.