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twoidiotwriters1 · 3 years ago

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Copycat: The First Young Avenger —(Marvel Fem!Oc)

Words: 2,429

Warnings: None.

Series’ Masterlist

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Listen to: ‘I Was An Island’ -by Allison Weiss

xvii: Partners

Her winter break had been uneventful in the best way and would remain in her mind for all the right reasons.

When it was time to go back to the city, the twins were far better in combat, and they were entirely capable of controlling their powers.

Pietro was still unable to hold his tongue, though.

"Say hi to your boyfriend for us," He teased her. "We'll see if we can get to know him before the year ends."

"Hopefully, you won't know him at all," She retorted in a bad mood. "Are you done acting like a kid?"

"Turning fifteen has made you boring," He pouted. "You had a sense of humor before..."

"I still do, it's just that your jokes aren't funny," She said.

"Okay, we will stop," Wanda intervened. "If you promise we'll be the first to know if you ever have a crush on someone."

"Why do you care?" C.C. laughed. "It's so silly, having a crush isn't everything in life, you know? It's the last thing I care about, I don't know why everyone's so obsessed with it."

"It's not the last thing you care about," Pietro said. "I remember how eager you were to know how falling in love felt like— and now you say you don't care? You're lying."

"Maybe I changed my mind."

"Or maybe you're starting to realize how scary feelings can be," Wanda taunted with a little smile. "C'mon, C.C., don't be a chicken."

"I'm not a chicken."

"Don't be a scared cat, Copy—"

"Stop..."

"Don't be a baby..."

"Oh, fuck off, honestly," She grumbled.

The twins erupted into laughter, they engulfed her in a hug and wished her good luck on the second half of her year.

Since her midterms all ended up having high marks, Tony admitted defeat and handed her three VIP passes to the expo.

"Oh, just two," She tried to give one back, but Tony stopped her.

"One's for you, kid, you can go with your friends, seize the day."

"Really?"

"Yeah, go ahead. Consider this a test, if you prove to me you can spend a whole day out on your own without putting yourself or others in danger, I'll let you use the bus instead of having Happy picking you up every day."

"You just want your driver back, don't you?"

"Obviously," He taunted.

"Ned!" C.C. ran through the hall, elbowing people as she moved forward. "NED! I got them!"

The boy looked at the items she was holding above her head and his smile instantly grew wider.

"No way!" He grabbed the badge with his name and stared at it. "You're the best, C.C!"

Ned hugged her, the girl tensed and immediately stepped back, but her smile didn't falter.

"Not a problem, it was thanks to you that I passed my exams on time, I owed it to you."

"We should celebrate— lunch's on me today. Hey, have you seen Peter since the field trip?"

"No, why?"

"He gave me a call the day after," They started to walk towards the classroom. "He sounded really off..."

"Was he ill?"

"He was freaking out," Ned told her. "I answered the phone and the connection was awful, but he was talking fast and he said something about some guy trying to rob him?"

"Oh my god, is he okay?"

"He just sounded scared," He shrugged. "But I saw him last Saturday and he's looking good— like, really great."

"What do you mean?"

"I can't really put my finger on it..." He tilted his head.

C.C. walked into the classroom and saw Peter seated at the front row as usual.

"Holy shit," She froze.

"Told you," Ned muttered, walking past her without reacting. "Hey, dude!"

Peter and Ned did their terribly long handshake, which gave the girl enough time to analyze her friend's looks with extra attention:

He was no longer wearing glasses, his hair was slightly longer and he was filling his clothes far better than before... somehow his figure was easier to notice, but he was still the same.

"Pete, hi," She frowned a little. "Where are your glasses?"

"May gave me a pair of contacts as a Christmas present," He smiled at her awkwardly. "I look weird, right?"

"No, you look... you look great," Her voice didn't sound convincing, though. "Did you buy new clothes?"

"No?" He looked down at his hoodie. "I wear this all the time?"

"Really?" She insisted. "Did you gain weight?"

"C.C!" Ned scolded her.

Peter blushed, he shifted on his seat and scratch his neck tensely.

"You know how I got sick during the trip?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, I..." He grimaced. "I got so sick I wouldn't stop going to the bathroom and I lost so much weight May had to take me to the doctor—"

"Ew," The girl and Ned said.

"...and once I got better she just kept feeding me more than usual, so I guess I gained weight."

"Man, I'm sorry," C.C. pouted, "you should've called me, Pete. It sounds like it was quite serious..."

"It's alright, my aunt took care of me."

"Wait, but the weekend you got sick you were outdoors," Ned frowned. "You said something about a guy..."

"No I didn't," He was quick to answer.

"Yes you did!"

"I mean," He glanced at C.C. "I mean... I may have, Ned, I don't know... I had a high fever so... maybe I was hallucinating and I called you because you were the first person that came to my mind..."

C.C. couldn't believe what she was witnessing.

Peter was lying!

Why would he lie? Was his illness more serious than he led on? But then he would be looking worse and not better, he even looked healthier than before... maybe she was just being paranoid, just because she was always expecting the worst it didn't mean that was exactly what was going to happen.

"Well, I'm happy you're better now," She stated, patting his shoulder briefly.

"Me too," He smiled.

"Show him the badge!"

"I almost forgot!" She searched through her bag and pulled out Peter's VIP pass. "I hope you're free this Sunday, tough guy..."

"No way!" Peter stood up and stared at his badge as if it were made of pure gold. "You got them!"

"I got them!" She showed him her own badge. "And he gave me one more so I could go with you!"

"That's awesome!"

Peter also flung his arms around her, he was now the same height as her, if not slightly taller. She was so confused she didn't push him away, and by the time she realized how close he was, Peter was already going back to his seat.

"It's gonna be the best weekend of the year, for sure," He looked back at her with the sweetest smile. "You're amazing."

Ned and Peter were too busy gushing about the expo to notice her attitude, C.C. sat next to Ned and hid her face behind her backpack, she was bright red.

"Oh, no..." She whimpered quietly.

"Maybe he started working out?"

"You don't look like that after only three weeks," C.C. clicked her tongue.

"Growthspurt?" MJ offered.

"Can we talk about something else?" The girl implored. "I seriously need to keep my mind busy with something else than Peter, it's making me uncomfortable."

"Why? Because girls are starting to notice him?" The girl teased.

"C'mon, not you too," She groaned, laying her head on the table. "I'm tired of this stupid—"

"Guys, guys have you seen the news?" Liz approached, she seemed excited. "There's a new superhero!"

"What? Who?"

"Look!" Liz showed them her phone, in it there was a youtube video of a random guy in red and blue clothes.

"Who the hell is that?" C.C. asked in annoyance. "A new superhero? Haven't we got enough with the ones we already have?"

"He's local, though," Liz couldn't contain her excitement. "Isn't it amazing? Now that the Avengers moved out of the city we were kinda defenceless, it's cool to know someone's looking after us again."

"I wouldn't say they're all gone," C.C. pouted, but she spoke so quietly Liz didn't catch it.

"Well, I just thought I'd show it to you, C, in case your uncle wants to ask him to join the Avengers," She beamed. "See you!"

"Bye..." C.C. waited until she was out of ear shot. "I don't like this new guy, Jones."

"Yeah, it's fishy. I mean, who fights crime in their pijamas?"

"I should inform Tony, just in case this guy's a weirdo."

"Totally," MJ took a big bite of her sandwich. "You should ask Peter for help, you'll have the perfect excuse to spend more time with him."

"Oh, go to hell."

She had it all planned out, calling Stark sounded like an exaggeration, and calling Fury was definitely too much, considering she'd been trained to handle minor threats, she decided to investigate on her own.

The girl went to bed at ten, earlier than usual but no one that knew her well enough was inside the tower at the moment, her suit was still hidden at the back of her closet, and she put it on quickly while F.R.I.D.A.Y was looking for the new guy.

"There's been a sighting near Brooklyn," It told her. "If you hurry you might catch him there, C.C."

"Thanks— can you open one of the wider windows for me, please?"

"Would you like me to select a blind spot?"

"Can you do that?" She approached the back of the room. "Yes, please!"

The window opened at the bottom left, she crouched in front of it and secured her lenses tight around her eyes.

"Feels nice to go solo," She muttered. "Go Copycat..."

She threw herself out of the window.

"Activate jetpack!"

Her body flung upwards, she had to dive back in order to stabilize her movements.

"Friday, update me on the position of the... what is people calling him?"

"People call him the spider-man."

"Really?" She frowned, trying to fly behind tall buildings to not catch attention. "But he looks nothing like a spider!"

"I believe it's thanks to his defense system: he shoots webs out of his wrists..."

The spider-guy swung across her line of vision, about twenty meters away.

"How about we ask him in person?" She muttered.

C.C. flew faster towards him, when she was about forty feet she slowed down so he didn't hear her coming.

"Activate camouflage mode..."

Her suit instantly darkened to match the nightsky, as soon as she landed, the masked guy stood up and turned around, but he couldn't see her.

"Hello?" His voice kind of sounded familiar, but it was muffled by his mask. "Anyone there?"

She circled him slowly, watching as he kept his eyes where she'd previously landed. It was clear that he didn't have professional training judging by his posture and size, he was also quite nervous, and he didn't carry any deathly weapons.

C.C. decided to speak.

"Over here."

The guy cursed louldy and shot something at her, C.C. moved a little and the substance flew past her shoulder.

"Turned off the camouflage, Friday," She said. "Before he pees his pants."

"Who's talking?" He squeaked.

"I was about to ask you the same thing," Her suit was pitch black again, she raised her hands in the air so he could see she wasn't going to attack him. "I just wanna talk, are you going to cooperate?"

"I— wait, are you an Avenger?"

He pointed to the small logo on the left side of her chest.

"Meh," She shrugged. "Young Avenger. I'm not supposed to go public yet. You can call me Copycat."

C.C. offered her hand, the guy shook it.

"I'm the... I'm spider-man."

She snorted. "Why though? What's your deal?"

"Ah..." He looked at his body as if trying to find the answer there. "I'm like super strong and sticky. I can... crawl around?"

"Do you lay eggs as well?" She teased. "Are your legs and arms hairy? How many eyes do you have behind that mask..."

The girl approached him without actually intending to touch, he stepped back anyway.

"No, I'm-I'm normal— I mean, I changed physically but nothing gross happened, I was a lucky guy."

"Very well, lucky guy," She crossed her arms. "I just wanna make sure you mean no harm and you're just trying to help others. If you tell me you're a good guy I'll believe you and leave you to it, but you gotta be honest, man, otherwise I'll call Nick Fury and he'll catch you so fast you won't even have time to throw one of your..." She looked down at the white substance on the floor, a few steps behind her. "Glue?"

"It's web— artificial web. I did it, it's really strong and it helps me..." He rambled. "Doesn't matter. Look, Miss Copycat—"

"Copycat, no miss at the front, that's stupid."

"Okay," He started again. "Copycat. I just wanna help others... and you probably can tell I'm new in this, but I'm pretty good at it, I don't know if you've noticed, but the Avengers are too busy to deal with regular shoplifters and creepy dudes lurking in dark corners, so I've been taking care of them."

There was a very sweet innocence in his speech, he sounded young, not older than twenty, and she felt the strong impulse to support his mission.

"You're right, the Avengers are too busy for that," She admitted. "I think I can help you."

Spider-man's shoulders relaxed. "Wait, really?"

"Like I said, I'm a young avenger, and I can tell you're kinda young too... I'm not supposed to be seen with the team yet, but that doesn't mean I'm not qualified to go out and help people. I like your idea, I can help you."

"That would be great... But are you sure the others won't need you?"

C.C. knew this was a risky idea, if Tony found out she'd left the tower to navigate New York's streets in the dark, he would freak out and send her back to the Avengers facility without even asking. But was it better to leave this onesie-wearing boy alone in the city, without nothing but webshooters as his only defense? He needed training, and he needed someone who could heal him in case he got injured in a fight.

"Don't worry about them, Webs," She replied. "Do we have a deal?"

He moved towards the edge of the building and stared at the people below. He looked back at her and nodded.

"I'm in."

Next Chapter —>

Taglist.

@ieatpanicattacksforlunch @jesuswasnotawhiteman @23victoria@siriuslysirius1107 @greengarsstuff @itsyagirl01

#twoidiots writing #marvel #marvel fanfiction #marvel fic #copycat fic

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undercover-trio · 4 years ago

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Ruby Rose x Gender Neutral! Reader(with silver eyes)

I gotchu (｀∀´)Ψ

-Mod Pengie

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Credit:

https://mobile.twitter.com/MyBFF_S2/status/1128329257539686400

—————————————————————

As all good relationships start it had to be a special meeting

A red cannonball slammed into your stomach as you were walking down the hall toward Miss Goodwitch’s class. Laying on your back, temporarily dazed from the unexpected blow to your stomach you didn’t notice the young girl profusely apologizing at first.

When you did manage to get up you were slightly aggravated, looking at the girl in front of you, you decided to be that one salty person.

“Pint sized ping pong ball acting...sugar rush having….” You murmured under your breath, you managed to stop yourself from insulting the girl straight to her face.

“Erm..are you okay..?” The red themed girl asked, still dazed you somehow managed to answer.

“Just fine pomegranate.” Your face scrunched over the random fruit you just blurted out.

There was a moment of silence between the two of you.

“Phftt-hahahaa!”

The red haired girl finally introduced herself.

“I’m Ruby, not pomegranate” She smiled, you felt your anger wash away.

“Y/N.”

You put that person on a pedestal compared to others, favoritism at its finest

“Hey Y/N, I bet I know who your favorite in the friend group is.” A teasing voice stated next to you, none other than Yang Xiao long in the flesh.

“Ruby.”

“Ruby”

The both of you stated that at the same time, you didn’t look up from your book. The moment you do Yang would see the internal crisis you’re having.

“Might I ask why oh dear sassy Y/N?” Yang asked with a chortle, regaining your composure you turned to Yang.

“Simple, Silver eye duo.” You answered while pointing at your right eye, Yang snorted at your obvious excuse.

“Sure Y/N, sure.”

“Y/NNNN!!” A high pitched voice yelled out happily..

...then promptly slammed into you.

“Hey Rubes.” You groaned out and looked away from Yang, she was giving a shit eating grin cause you looked like a tomato.

There comes a time when you realize you were as dense as a brick

You and Ruby were both on branches in the emerald forest, hiding from the entity called Weiss. You had a strawberry dum dum in your mouth while Ruby was munching on some cookies.

She was focused on scanning the area and you couldn’t help but observe her. Her silver eyes, much like yours, had an enchanting glimmer. Your eyes glanced to her choppy yet unique hair, unbeknownst to you a few minutes had gone by of you observing her.

“I think we’re in the clear Y/N” She whispered causing you to snap out of it, you made a sound of acknowledgment then jumped down with her.

‘She looks beautiful in the sunshine’ You subconsciously thought.

Crap

‘I’m in love.’ You realized with a blush.

But as life has it, bad things have to happen, but good things bear fruit

You laid in bed, your eyes were unbelievably irritated, it didn’t help that you had a multitude of cuts and bruises on your body. You blamed all of this from the sudden flash of silver light that came from you. Seeing Yang like that just...it messed with you.

You could feel a small hand grasping yours, desperately holding on, as if you would disappear. Just a few moments later you could feel water dripping on your hand, you immediately felt awake once you heard the voice.

“Y/N...Yang lost her arm..Pyrrha’s gone… Team RWBY is separated.” Her voice trembled as her grip tightened.

“Please don’t leave me too..” She begged, that’s when you knew you had to move. With sheer willpower you managed to bring her hand to your cheek and gave a small groan.

She knew you were tired but was just so happy and gently hugged you.

She knew that Y/N would never leave her.

As your relationship grows stronger so does your adoration

Ruby could be seen leaning on a tree trunk, she was curled up, the others were asleep. These moments were the ones where Ruby could be insecure, she didn’t like worrying others. Unbeknownst to her you were walking up to sit next to the redhead.

She didn’t say anything from under her hood, so you decided to have a one sided conversation.

“Nice night.”

“...”

“Stars are real big today..”

“...”

“This tree is pretty comfy too.”

She snorted.

You grinned.

She finally let out a sigh as she leaned on you, the moment was perfect.

“I love you, y’know Y/N” She asked rhetorically, you froze for a second.

You being the person you were placed your hand on her head..

And messed up her hair under the hood.

“Hey!”

“Yeah yeah, I love you too Ruby.” You muttered nonchalantly though both of you could tell you were shy.

“Truly?”

“Yep.”

But no matter what life throws at you, you both know you’ll love each other

“Hey Y/N!” Ruby greeted with a smile, thing was.. she was hanging upside down from a tree vine.

You being the loving partner you are decided to take a video on your scroll.

“Hey!!”

“I’ll help out now.” You assured with a smirk, what you didn’t expect was the sudden hug when Ruby got down.

“I love you Y/N/N(Your nickname)”

“Love you too Pomegranate.”

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A/N: I have finished the thingie with romance and vanilla stuff, in other words these headcanons

Actually I’ll not sure if these are headcanons given that I’m basically telling a story but eh, if worst comes to worst I’ll just redo it for ya

Also not sure if it’s just me but pomegranates make me uncomfortable (°◇°;)

Sorry if it wasn’t what you expected dear Anonymous ✨friend ✨ but here it is

(´∀`)

Mkay now I’m gonna go eat some mint ice cream, see ya next time Penguins and Ruby simps

(｀∀´)Ψ

Oof I’m in a crummy mood, I’m sorry pals, long story short..ice sucks

-Mod Pengie

#rwby #ruby rose x reader #mod pengie #gender nuetral reader #tagging still sucks #tagging stuff #cute drawing #rwby x reader #rwby ruby #i’m salty #hope you enjoy

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itsclydebitches · 4 years ago

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RWBY Recaps: Volume 8 “Ultimatum”

Welcome back, everyone! We had an unexpected break last week due to the horror going on in Texas. I'm glad we did. Not because of any salty "RWBY is bad right now yay free Saturday" feelings, but because keeping to a schedule for a fictional webseries should never take precedence over peoples' safety. I can't believe I need to type that sentence out, but it's true! Over the last seven days I've seen fans who are not merely disappointed by the mini hiatus (understandable) but outright hostile towards the crew because they... were ensuring everyone survived during an unprecedented emergency? Yeah. Given the highly critical nature of these recaps — including today's! — I want to be clear that my thoughts towards Rooster Teeth's creative choices are distinct from any thoughts about the crew itself, including the most basic forms of compassion like, “I sure hope everyone is okay over there.” In an age where it has become horrifically common to harass creators and even send them death threats over stories, it has likewise become necessary to remind people: Don't do that shit. Never do that shit. If I can teach anyone anything at all, let it be that!

Anyway, dark fandom reminders out of the way, let's dive straight into our delayed episode. It was certainly a doozy. Titled "Ultimatum," we open on a trigger warning for flashing lights. Good on Rooster Teeth for including that, though I do wonder if creators shouldn't be including time stamps as well? Or perhaps a note that you can find those time stamps in the credits, avoiding any (minor) spoilers for everyone else? I'm not photosensitive myself, so I certainly don't mean to speak for that group, but my first thought was, "So how would I watch this episode if I was? Hand on the pause button, hoping I stop fast enough as soon as the lights start?" Hard to do given the surprise nature of the scene. Really, my answer would be, "Wait for the fandom to post warnings of their own, likely including where it happens so I know when to skip" which is perhaps an indication that this information that should be included from the get-go.

But I am glad the warning exists, regardless. The episode itself begins with a shot of Ironwood looking down at the kingdom. He's used his windows as a vantage point since Volume 7, so that's nothing new, but something about this particular shot reminded me of Ozpin, looking down from his tower. I'm sure the response from many would be simply, "Ah yes, the two power hungry dictators watching over their victims," but I think there's a much more nuanced reading here about leaders being expected to fix the literally unfixable and what that responsibility does to an individual. Of course, it's a nuance that is absolutely obliterated by the episode’s end, but the implication existed for a hot second!

Two other soldiers are in the room with Ironwood, reporting that Cinder has helped Watts escape. They try to soften this with news that they still have Jacques in custody, but receive only a, "I don't give a damn about Jacques Schnee." Which, fair. He's pretty useless at this point. It's when Ironwood learns that both Qrow and Robin escaped too that he really gets mad, something his subordinates have been expecting given their scared expressions.

Now, I'm treading lightly here because I realize how this is going to sound given the end of our episode, but I still want to note that outside of that ending... this is a weird take? Just hear me out. Since Volume 7 the show has worked very hard to make Ironwood seem scary and unstable — bad setup for what we end with today — but the problem is that none of it works in context and it certainly doesn't work when compared to other characters' actions. They are literally in the midst of an unwinnable battle and thousands of his people are dying. If the audience wants a human being — who also just lost a limb and was betrayed by half his allies — o remain perfectly poised and polite during that, sorry, but that's not how human beings work. But even beyond this, what’s the message here? Ironwood raises his voice, so does Yang. Ironwood hits his desk, Qrow hits a child. If we're going to examine how Ironwood handles his stress and anger, he often handles it better than many of our heroes. Namely, by continually taking that anger out on inanimate objects. I kept waiting for him to attack his subordinates or attack Winter this episode, especially given where we end up, but it never came. Ironwood always has enough control to break the desk or punch the wall, not the person in front of him. Which, of course, would not be a good thing in the real world. I want to be clear given these sensitive subjects that if someone is breaking things in your presence that's a major problem to address. But this isn't the real world. This is a fantasy world in the middle of a war, populated by other characters who express their anger by punching people, slamming them into walls, or screaming at them until they run away. The story wants us to fear Ironwood long before he makes his objectively horrific choices and it tries to achieve that by showing us characters who are clearly terrified in his presence, by giving us a string of broken objects in his wake. But those details don't land well when we compare them to other instances of stress. In the same volume I have watched Ironwood take a deep breath to calm himself down when things have gone horribly wrong. I've also watched Weiss start a conversation by threatening her defenseless brother. So again, what’s the message here? It can’t be that acting violently towards someone = villainous behavior because, as established since Volume 6, that’s common for the heroes. Why are these subordinates terrified about Ironwood slamming his fist on a table, but Whitley has no problem hugging the woman who threatened him? Obviously there is a HUGE difference between our main group and Ironwood when it comes to other actions (cough-bomb threats-cough), but these day-to-day moments don't match up. The show wants to use violence as a way for us to easily identify the Bad Guy while ignoring all the times when our heroes do the same thing.

All of which isn't meant to be a defense of Ironwood. As we'll see in a bit, there is no defense for what he's done. Rather, it's a way of acknowledging just how badly he's been written. Why does a man who consistently reins in his anger and takes it out on objects suddenly shoot a councilman for literally no reason? Why does a man defined by wanting to save as many people as he can suddenly threaten to bomb his city? Ironwood's characterization is all over the place, in the sense that they keep writing him as the morally gray, sometimes harsh, but ultimately compassionate man he started out as... up until they need a villain. Salem isn't here yet, so Ironwood can shoot Oscar. Salem isn't attacking yet, so Ironwood can shoot the councilman. Salem is currently reforming, so Ironwood can threaten YJR and Mantle. He's the B-plot villain whenever Salem is out of commission, which is a problem for both their characterizations. This filler doesn't make sense for Ironwood and it severely undermines the threat of Salem. You finally introduce the Magical Big Bad and our heroes are facing more of a threat from a guy with a broken army and three loyal allies left? Hmmm.

The tl;dr is that Ironwood's arc is a disaster and, frankly, it's gotten old reading simplified takes of, "It's just a realistic look at what white U.S. men will do in power sweetie :) " RWBY does not have the context capable of conveying that sort of critical take because our world is not besieged by literal monsters and an immortal witch, to say nothing of how real life good guys do not get deus ex machina canes that fix the problem instantaneously. Ironwood is not an example of anti-U.S. imperialism, he's an example of writers who don't know how to write.

Anyway, I'm getting severely off topic. Obviously Ironwood is a major part of this episode, but the problems demonstrated here are two years in the making. This is the culmination of things I've been discussing for months across hundreds of posts... so I should probably stop trying to summarize it all in a few paragraphs lol. Perhaps when RWBY is over — or Ironwood has died — I'll do a single meta on his character, try to pull everything into one, unified argument.

For now though, we have an episode to analyze.

While Ironwood is receiving this news we get flashbacks to Qrow and Robyn. Qrow attacks a soldier in his bird form, which is hilarious. Someone GIF that please. It does raise some interesting questions about this magic though: does Qrow retain his aura and strength in this form (something I thought given his choice to transform during the explosion), or was that soldier just so shocked at being attacked by a crow that he went down easy? We'll never know, because that would require establishing concrete rules for this world. The point is Qrow is going feral in his freedom, throwing punches left and right — did he kill that guard? — while Robyn watches it all from under a rock. They're apparently still somewhere in the facility since all the exits are guarded, but that's not the good thing Ironwood seems to think it is. After all, Qrow is out to murder him. He wants to be there.

We all see where this is going, right? The show is going to ignore Qrow's crazy belief that Ironwood got Clover killed in favor of a "Qrow saved Mantle by murdering Ironwood"/“Qrow got revenge for Mantle by murdering Ironwood” ending. Who cares why Qrow wanted to kill him in the first place now that Ironwood has his finger on the trigger? If RWBY is good at anything, it's writing moments that encourage you to ignore everything that came before it. We'll be seeing more of that in just a bit.

"Damn it!" Ironwood yells, because the show is leaning into its cursing. He orders that the subordinates not return until "you have Qrow Branwen in custody." Here we have another great example of the show conflating what the audience knows with what other characters know. See, we know Qrow has a vendetta against Ironwood. We know their relationship is the important one to the story and that Robyn is incidental. Ironwood doesn't know that. There's no reason for him, as a character, to specify that they only bring Qrow back, but it makes sense for the audience who has the whole, thematic picture. Our understanding of the situation is influencing Ironwood's dialogue, which is... not great.

This entire scene we've had creepy music to hammer home just how evil Ironwood is. Except, as said, he takes a breath to calm down and the music fades. Instead of flying into a rage, hurting someone, or doing anything the music suggests he might, Ironwood calmly calls in for an update — which is when the explosion hits.

It's MASSIVE, seeming to originate from a lightning strike, which is weird, since it's coming from inside the whale, but whatever. The animation is very dramatic and pretty, as we've come to expect of RWBY, but the actual plot is lackluster at best. It's funny though because I thought for a hot second, when Winter and the Ace Ops were caught in the blast, that RWBY had actually done something exciting. I mean, holy shit! There are the deaths we expect from a battle like this. My god, what is everyone going to do when they realize that Oscar's needless attack took out five characters, including Weiss' sister —

No wait, never mind. They're fine.

Let's talk about that "needless" descriptor for a moment though. Do you all remember, two weeks ago, when I went, "Hey, why isn't anyone telling Oscar that that Ace Ops are approaching with a bomb? They're on a time limit! If someone would just mention that Very Important Information then Oscar wouldn't keep standing around to fight Salem." See, at the time I was frustrated because of how the plot was needlessly allowing Oscar to put himself in danger (especially when the whole point of this mission was to rescue him). Now, I'm frustrated because that same plot needlessly wasted the most powerful weapon the group had. There was no reason for Oscar to use literal lifetimes worth of stored energy when the heroes already had a bomb to do the same job! What was the point of that? I guess he took out the other grimm too, but without the whale that still would have been a challenge with a finite end, one Ironwood's army and the remaining huntsmen should have been able to handle. It doesn't feel justified to have Oscar use a weapon kept on the bench for lifetimes when there was another option literally minutes away.

There's so much wrong with this I need another list. So:

Ozpin's cane supposedly stores kinetic energy, which may contradict what we've seen from it before. Regardless, we’ve never heard about this. The all powerful weapon comes out of nowhere

It also begs the question of why Ozpin wouldn't use that power at Beacon and why he wouldn't insist that they try to get their cane back while captured. You had an out this whole time! But we’re going to ignore that because Oscar is a little hesitant?

Which makes YJR's presence even more useless than it originally was, which was already pretty useless. Oscar essentially rescued himself

This kinetic energy miraculously doesn't hurt any people or buildings, just grimm

So what is the point of Silver Eyes? That's been their MO since they were first introduced. Sure, Silver Eyes can be used far more often than Ozpin's cane, but it still feels like a let down to learn that the Big Secret behind this weapon is... the exact same thing Ruby has been doing for years

Like Ruby, Oscar likewise didn't need any practice or training. He just set off this massive attack perfectly and without issue

We have now eliminated the biggest threat to the cast instantaneously — the whale and the other grimm — with no effort from the rest of the heroes. Like the Hound, the stakes are obliterated with no satisfying work on the part of our protagonists

Instead, as said, the actual plan already in place never happened. The bomb just... goes back. Kind of like how Cinder attacked and then just went back to Salem. Penny woke up and then just got knocked out again. We continue to go in circles

This is because no one took two seconds to tell Oscar, "There's a bomb on the way"

Because this threat is gone the show needs a new one, hence Ironwood randomly threatening Mantle with said bomb

The one way we might have justified Oscar blowing up the whale instead of Winter is if he did it to save Hazel, but Hazel is implied to be dead

Maybe he's alive, but if he's not that happened off screen and we're not sure how. It couldn't have been because of the blast itself — everyone else is fine — so what, Salem somehow killed him before she was blasted to bits? While he was holding her?

And there's no body?

Salem was torn apart multiple times during that fight and reformed instantaneously, yet now, conveniently, she's taking her time

None of the characters mention the issues above. None of them admit that there was no reason for Oscar to waste LIFETIMES worth of power when they already had a solution in the works. Fantastic

I need to take a moment to acknowledge that so far this recap feels... bad. Disjointed. Bit all over the place. Which makes a certain amount of sense because that's where my thoughts are at. There's so much going on in this episode — so much wrong with it — that I don't know how to boil it all down into a few, neat claims. This episode is a mess! We're barely a few minutes in and the combined issues of Ironwood's characterization and Oscar's choice have left me reeling. So if you're still reading this, bless your patience, I think we'll both need it for the rest of this journey.

Let's snag a neater plot-point to discuss. Amidst all the chaos Neo literally skips away with the Lamp, clearly thrilled at how her own life is going. Later in the episode she'll text Cinder with the obvious: Salem is going to be pretty pissed when she realizes this is gone. “If you want her name you know what you owe me."

So wait... what is Neo leveraging here? Is she agreeing to give the Lamp back so Cinder doesn't get in trouble with Salem? Give Salem the password she's been looking for? Or give Cinder the password to use the Lamp for herself? What would Cinder even want the Lamp for when she's after the Maiden powers? I'm confused about what Cinder is being blackmailed with. Regardless, she needs the lamp for something and presumably what she "owes" Neo is Ruby. We get a cut to her just to hammer that home.

(Side note: both pictures of Neo are hilarious.)

Before that though, back at the whale, everyone is taking stock of the situation when Marrow cries, "Hey, they were still in there!" I feel like this is another scene meant to make him look like the one good guy in the group — he cares about YJOR while the others can’t be bothered — but as always, that reading doesn't fit well with the situation as a whole. The others have barely had time to realize they're alive. I don't think it's a moral failing that they didn't instinctually worry about four betrayers, one of whom attacked them, while they're still checking that they have all their limbs intact. Besides, why does Marrow assume they're dead? The Ace Ops were caught in the blast as well, yet miraculously came out unharmed. They clearly didn't set their own bomb off, so it's logical to assume that YJOR did something themselves. It feels weird to have a "Marrow mourns them and Winter is the only other character who cares" moment when everyone is recovering from bomb shock and no one even knows if the others are dead. But, of course, the show is out to portray only two of these characters as good people, so ignore the logic and run with the emotion of the scene.

All of which is bolstered by Elm pulling away when Vine puts a hand on her shoulder. Why is she acting cold towards him now? Because they're not friends, remember?

While we get more ridiculous relationship dynamics, Ironwood calls in and congratulates them on the bomb working, but tells them to get back because they have another problem in the works. That would be Qrow and Robyn. Winter decides to tell him about the bomb in person.

We cut to Watts and Cinder watching the remnants of the blast from a rooftop. Cinder has tried calling, but no one answered. Unsurprising, given that Salem doesn't have any other allies left. Cinder says that the plan hasn't changed, she's still going to take the Winter Maiden's power for herself, and Watts can help her by bringing Penny here. He explains that he doesn't have full control over her. Rather, he implemented a virus that is setting her on a single path: open the vault, then self-destruct. Cinder, as one might expect, is furious.

She snags Watts by her grimm arm and threatens to toss him over the side of the building. Thus begins the best part of the episode, hands down. Despite the danger he's in, Watts throws common sense out the window in favor of dragging Cinder in the most satisfying manner possible.

“You think you’re entitled to everything just because you suffered, but suffering isn’t enough. You can’t just be strong, you have to be smart. You can’t just be deserving, you have to be worthy! But all you have ever been is a bloody migraine!”

It's true! You know what else is true? This speech could apply to our heroes as well. Accusations of entitlement and reminders to be smart as opposed to just strong hit hard, considering those are the same flaws our protagonists are struggling with. The difference is that Cinder, miraculously, listens, pulling Watts back to safety and going to cry by herself. That moment is simultaneously more growth than Ruby has gotten and more sympathy than Ironwood has gotten. The woman who murdered Pyrrha is treated more kindly by the narrative than one of our initial heroes and our very first villain has taken more time to reconsider her choices than our title character. You know a show is falling apart when excellent choices are applied to the worst possible character.

So Cinder is crying while Watts looks guilty and we cut back to YJOR's group post-blast. Yang is finally able to answer a call from Blake who is obviously overjoyed to see her. Weiss gives them directions to the mansion and they ask what in the world they'll do with Emerald, currently on her knees, mourning Hazel.

Thus begins the third most frustrating part of this episode. See, on the way back the group continues the conversation about what to do with Emerald, with Yang and Jaune distrusting her vs. Ren and Oscar encouraging cooperation. I can't believe I'm saying this after's Ren's speech and Oscar's entire existence... but I'm team Jaune and Yang here. Look, what Oscar and Ren say — the literal words coming out of their mouth — is nonsense. Ren goes, “We can’t let all of our actions stem from fear," as if Yang and Jaune are being ridiculous for mistrusting Emerald, one of the established villains, after years worth of harm from her. It’s weird that Yang points to her arm as something Emerald is responsible for, rather than being framed or the deaths at Beacon, but the general sentiment of, “She’s done horrible things!” is true. Ren’s perspective is the same simplification that was applied to Ironwood last volume, wherein everyone acted as if he was crazy for fearing an attack on his kingdom... post an attack on another kingdom and pre an attack on his kingdom. Putting generic lines in Ren's mouth about not being afraid makes him sound willfully ignorant, as if choosing to believe that someone is good will magically make them so, to say nothing of thinking it will erase all the harm they've already done.

Oscar at least acknowledges the difficulty here, but then follows this up with, “You don’t have to forgive her… just give her a second chance."

Oscar, honey, that amounts to the same thing in this situation. Allowing Emerald a second chance means working with her, which means trust, which means emotionally reaching a point where these characters can put aside the harm she's done them in an effort to give her that chance in the first place. This actually ties into a post I saw last night, one I've come across before, that claims redemption arcs don't require any suffering on the part of the person who has done wrong. I agree in theory, that prolonged suffering doesn't help anyone, but the problem is that people tend to conflate suffering with consequences and someone who has done this level of harm should face consequences for their actions. The problem with redemption arcs is not that the bad people suffer too much — emotionally and physically beating on them as a form of revenge — but that the people they've harmed are put into situations like this one. If Yang and Jaune let Emerald go like she suggests, they are agreeing that she doesn't have to face any consequences for the damage she's done (which, keep in mind, involves multiple deaths, not including all the lost lives here in Atlas). If they agree to give her a second chance, they are forced to jump straight to some level of forgiveness. We might claim they don't have to forgive Emerald to work with her, but from a practical perspective how are they meant to function, especially during a warzone? Anything she provides them with — information, watching their back in a fight, undertaking missions, etc. — requires trusting her enough to allow those things to happen: working with that info, letting her protect them, allowing her that responsibility. It's all about trust, trust she has yet to earn. In order for a redemption arc to be successful, the power has to be in the hands of the victims. They need to be able to see some justice for what was done to them, be offered some proof that the person in question has truly changed, and have the ability to walk away if they decide no, I don't forgive you, glad to hear you've improved, but please stay out of my life. Jaune and Yang have none of that. There are currently no systems in place for Emerald to face consequences for her choices, she has offered them no proof of her remorse or true motivations, and the other half of the group is pressuring them to give her that second chance without closure or reassurance. None of that makes for a good redemption arc and reducing that to, "So you want to see poor Emerald suffer, huh?" ignores the suffering she has already caused. The group are her victims and they are under no obligation to give her a second chance, particularly under these circumstances, which makes the story's choice to have Ren and Oscar act like Yang and Jaune are being stubborn or inconsiderate a problem. The conversation boils down to, "Give the woman you know to be a liar, manipulator, murder accomplice, and servant of our enemy a second chance based entirely on unfounded faith. If you don't you're letting yourself be ruled by fear."

RWBY's touchy-feely themes really don't sit well within its realistic, morally gray premise. We cannot continually have these characters go through hell one moment and then have others accuse them of being paranoid the next. The fact that all of this is wrapped up in the group trusting Robyn, Emerald, and Hazel over their established allies remains beyond frustrating.

Because yeah, you know how Oscar finishes his speech? “I’ve already gotten a lot of help today from someone I don’t exactly trust right now." Meaning Ozpin.

The story is trying to compare Emerald and Hazel to Ozpin.

"Oh hey, I kept a secret from you after lifetimes of watching that secret lead to betrayal and death. I keep apologizing for my mistakes while ignoring that I had no reason to trust a bunch of kids with such world-shattering information and also that you tore it from me in the most traumatic way possible."

"Oh hey, I willingly joined our world's version of the devil and helped her destroy your school, leading to numerous deaths including your friend and headmaster. It was his death that put Oscar in this position in the first place! I then continued to attack your group, leading to another near death of a friend, and a kidnapping, and the destruction of Amity, until I became scared enough to make a run for it."

Which one of these characters is granted an instant second chance? You'll never guess who!

And I do think the word "instant" is important here because just like Jaune and Yang have the right to have distance and justice from Emerald, they had that right with Ozpin too. The difference is they got it. They had the power in the situation, as evidenced by their use of the Lamp and physically attacking him. Ozpin heard what they needed from him — leave us alone — and did that without complaint. They were given months to come to terms with the secrets he kept. They were offered apologies and acts of service to demonstrate intent: saving them in the airship and continually saving Oscar. I don't believe Ozpin ever needed a redemption arc, but even if we think he did, he had it. After three volumes of material Oscar's perspective is still "I don't exactly trust [him] right now" but Hazel and Emerald have earned at least the same amount of trust in a matter of hours? They're really having my boy look at the guy who has tried desperately to do right by him despite unimaginable circumstances, and the guy who tortured him to get information for Salem, and went, "That first guy. He's the one we need to watch out for."

To make things even worse, Oscar tells the others that Ozpin took on all the torture so he wouldn't have to. So he did that and they still don't trust him? If you had told me back in Volume 6 that two years later the group would still be hostile towards Ozpin, while simultaneously urging one another to trust Emerald, I would have said you were lying. RWBY has its problems, but it's not that bad. Yet here we are. I suppose the one silver lining here is that Ren smiles when he realizes Ozpin is back? So at least one of them isn't prepared to draw their weapon at the mere mention of his name.

Both these moments raise more questions though. How in the world did Ozpin take on that torture when we clearly saw Oscar getting pummeled for a good portion of the kidnapping? Is that a weird merge thing the story hasn't bothered to explain? I wouldn't be surprised, considering Oscar said last episode he didn't want to use magic because it hastened the merge, he uses the biggest explosion of magic we've ever seen, and nothing has changed. Ozpin is still in the back of his head, thanking him for the tinniest shreds of decency they get. Ren, meanwhile, seems to be back to mindreading. How in the world does he know that Ozpin is back? I assume it has something to do with his semblance, but we don't know what. They could have shown us Oscar from Ren's perspective, perhaps with two distinct emotions swilling around to imply that he sees two different people now, not a useless shot of Emerald with purple flower petals, whatever purple means.

Oh, but no, we shouldn't have gotten either of these scenes. Remember that Ren's aura broke a very, very short time ago? Is it back already? Can he use this part of his semblance without it? Considering it was near impossible to see Ironwood's aura breaking in the Watts fight and we were then mistakenly told he used his semblance in the office, I'm going to go with, "The writers forgot."

Oscar explains that the cane had "lifetime after lifetime" of power in it and though there's still some left, "we have to be careful with how we use the rest." He says that Ozpin trusted his judgement and of course he did! Ozpin also didn’t know that there was a bomb on the way. Yet funnily enough, no one else mentions that, whoops, your choice made in ignorance was a waste and that's due entirely to us prioritizing hugs over basic mission information.

Also, all these explanations take place in front of Emerald. Half the group doesn't trust her, but they'll freely discuss their powers and limitations here. Remember how the group once wanted to talk about magical relics in front of the old lady they'd just met? Yeah, they've learned nothing.

Combine all this insanity with the fact that Ozpin's magic saved the day before Ironwood's bomb could do the same... while Ruby sat in a mansion drinking tea. Who's our hero again?

So things are a hot mess, to put it lightly. Their conversation finally ends when they hear voices and round the corner to find all the Atlas citizens huddled in the subway. For once the show actually writes them in a sympathetic manner, emphasizing how terrified and helpless they are. This image doesn't lead the group to any revelations though, certainly not anything that would tie back to Ren's earlier speech in the snow. No, once again the justified criticisms here are ignored as we hear that “However this fight ends, we could really use someone like you, [Emerald.]” That's it then. Discussion over. We knew as soon as it started that blindly trusting her was being presented as the "right" thing to do and now here we are, deciding that conclusively, despite Jaune and Yang's complaints. By the time the group reaches the mansion, Oscar is defending Emerald from Ruby. We're supposed to just accept that she's a part of the group now, only minimal pushback allowed.

Before that though we return to Ironwood getting news that their bomb never went off. He briefly wonders who else could have done that, but puts the currently unanswerable question aside for what he does know. They still have the bomb and it could be "useful." See, this moment — like shooting Oscar and the councilman — is when Ironwood just randomly goes off the deep end. One minute he's talking about what they've lost and cradling his new arm,

the next he's saying that he should have tortured Qrow to get Penny to obey him! Which doesn't even make sense since I'm pretty sure Penny hasn't ever spoken to Qrow. She wouldn't want anyone to suffer, true, but it's not like Ironwood had a close friend like Ruby to use as leverage. Qrow is just Some Guy to her. Regardless, he thinks Yang, Jaune, and Ren are decent replacements, despite Penny also having no relationships with them. This is what happens when your characters only start breaking up their teams eight years into the story, the response to Ironwood wanting to torture Ren to hurt Penny is, “Does Penny know Ren exists?” But, you know, torture is torture, right? Maybe. Probably not. I mean, if they're going to turn Ironwood into a cartoon villain, they could at least keep him smart.

Because all of this is just the height of stupidity. Ironwood wants to torture people Penny barely knows to make her listen (so just grab some civilians? It would do the same job...). Ironwood wants to shoot down empty ships, even though no one, including us, knows where in the world those ships would have gone. Ironwood wants to destroy an entire city to try and save another city. He wants to use a bomb meant for a comparatively small whale and acts like that alone will take out the majority of a kingdom. None of it makes sense! And I know the easy comeback for that is, "Well yeah, Ironwood is crazy and evil" but he's not. I mean he is. Threatening torture and bombings is obviously evil, but he's never been insane, or stupid. As said before, his arc (or lack thereof) is an absolute disaster. The fandom assumes so many things about Ironwood given the opportunity — the whale is a suicide mission. He expects the Ace Ops to die on his order — and the writing hints at so many things that never happen — he's going to hurt his subordinates, attack Winter for disobeying him — and every time what we actually get is a far more compassionate, level-headed character... until he randomly does a 180 and goes, "Let's murder a whole city now!" I never wanted Ironwood to be the bad guy, but they could have at least given me a persuasive decent into this level of horror.

So... yeah. Ironwood has got to die by the end of the volume, yeah? Between Ruby warning the whole world about him and him going into full villain mode, there's no coming back from this.

Neo sends her text to Cinder and the group makes it back to the mansion. Remember Yang's criticisms of Ruby's leadership? The ones she conveniently forgot about when Ren started to agree with her? Yeah, those are entirely gone as the sisters hug it out and, presumably, forgive one another for... daring to admit that things are bad? Look, I'm not going to deny that Ironwood's scene with Winter was creepy as fuck,

but I'm not of the opinion that the heroes are any better when it comes to the theme of obedience. They've attacked one another, screamed at one another, and any dissent from Ruby's leadership results in the questioner being left behind in the snow. We'll accept you again when you fall back in line. I used to adore the relationships in this show, but watching them now is just discomforting. The show might be 100% more obvious with Ironwood, using creepy music, a smile, and that hand on Winter's shoulder, but the concept of, "Sorry I dared to question you before! We won't ever do it again :)" isn't healthy either. The fact that the show keeps erasing theses problems with hugs — Weiss hugs Whitley now, Yang hugs Ruby, someone will probably hug Emerald soon — doesn't make the circumstances any less uncomfortable.

None of this even gets into the Blake and Yang hug. First of all, why is Blake acting like they had a fight and Yang might not want to see her? She's hiding inside rather than rushing to greet them, ears down in a devastated expression until Yang touches her. Combine this with Yang's "Do you think she's mad at me?" and it feels like the writers cut a fight in the final script and then didn't bother to remove the fallout from that. Seriously, where did any of this come from? You can't just have characters act like they've been fighting when they haven’t.

Also, can't forget this.

At this point there's nothing more I can say in regards to RWBY's almost-queer baiting. Is touching foreheads more intimate than the hugs Yang gave the others? Absolutely. Is that an appropriate stand-in for overt representation? Absolutely not. This would have been a perfect time for them to kiss. Take out Blake's nonsensical fear and replace it with them both reuniting after their first separation since Volume 5, working under the knowledge that either one could have been killed, finally admitting their feelings. Hell, they don't actually have to kiss. Not all girlfriends are interested in kissing! But they could use the terminology that makes things unequivocally canon. Another forehead touch when we got that in Volume 6? It's not enough, especially not when our straight couples have all been allowed their rep.

Ren at least wants to know where Nora is. He's presumably told what happened off screen as Oscar tells Ruby that Emerald is their friend now.

Then an emergency call from May interrupts the reunion and the group learns that Ironwood is bombing the Schnee ships. “Those ships… they were going to save people” Weiss whispers. How? Tell me how they were going to save anyone. Where were you going to take these people where they would be safer than where they are now? RWBY continually asserts things without explaining them, meaning there is precisely zero emotional weight here. Again, Ironwood is far past the point of defense, but I'd be a whole lot more critical of this particular action if I had a better sense of why it's bad. He appears to be endangering the people given May's shout to run — falling debris? — but the further implication is that Ironwood has doomed the people of Mantle by denying them these ships. It's that part that makes no sense based on what we've been told.

Which finally comes to the ultimatum of our episode title: Penny opens the vault, or Ironwood bombs Mantle. Great! So glad this plan is wicked smart and works well for his characterization. It's definitely not a nonsensical, unfounded, overblown change that feels like it belongs in a child's cartoon, complete with dramatic spotlight. Nope. Excellent writing choices all around.

Our final line of the episode is, “I hope you live up to the title I gave you," referring to Penny's job as the Protector of Mantle, and you know what? That line could have been very cool if it was delivered by an Ironwood with a persuasive fall and a halfway decent plan in place. I love that we've twisted the concept of a protector and turned the title into a horrifying, rather than honorable responsibility... I just hate everything surrounding those details.

So, usual RWBY fare.

(At least we get to see that Nora is awake!)

Will things get better over the next four episodes? I doubt it. We're still expecting the rest of the Ace Ops + Winter to ditch Ironwood, someone getting the vault open, the fall of Atlas, now the potential destruction of Mantle, and none of that includes Salem who should reform at any moment. Frankly, I'm not looking forward to any of it. The final leg of a season should make its audience excited to see how everything turns out, not dreading it. I've heard from multiple people that this is the volume that finally got them to drop the show and honestly? I'm not surprised.

As a final (happier?) note: we've finally got a bingo! I completely forgot our board last time, which was a terrible oversight, but we can update it now.

Our army of grimm can't kill anyone now that it got KOed by Oscar (that is the third one hit defeat of a major enemy we've seen this volume. Yes, I'm including the Hound considering it was obviously on its last legs after Ruby's eyes.)

I'm likewise including "Ozpin apologizes for everything including his existence" because he's done nothing but apologize since he came back. The emotion is there even if the literal words are not. Oscar reminded everyone of how untrustworthy he is, but kept the group from jumping them again. And Ozpin thanked him for it.

Neo didn't literally backstab Cinder (shame), but the Relic still counts.

So a triple bingo! Is that how bingo works? Idk, I've never played. I feel like I should have thought up some sort of humorous prize, but sadly I've got nothing. If you think of anything, let me know lol

That’s all then, folks. Until next week! 💜

#rwby #rwby spoilers #rwby volume 8 #rwby ultimatum #rwby recaps #mymetas

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redmaneroster · 4 years ago

Text

Our Home Away From Home, Away From Home

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PART 4 – Coping

Qrow isn't exactly the intimidating uncle so much as he is the nervous older friend. Sure, he comes in with cheek and swagger, but he hesitates sometimes and watches what he says. Things are uncomfortable for a while.

Jaune and Qrow are sitting alone on the sofa, eyes passed the TV and out the window. Jaune breaks the silence and asks him how he knew. Qrow, surprisingly, explains that he turned into a bird and followed them home. He fully intended to leave when they got into the door but then he overheard the bit about Ruby going missing so he sat by the window and waited for updates.

He fell asleep on the windowsill.

Yang's moaning woke him up.

Both men don't even dare look each other in the eye. They both agree not to bring that up with her for as long as they live.

It's minutes later after they've both taken a swig from their flasks that Qrow asks, "So what are you two?"

"I don't know," he answers; almost apologetic. Almost fearful, but not of Qrow. "We're close and trying to… forget things."

"Yeah, I can see that." Qrow takes another swig. "Tell me, is this about Tai and Rae?"

"More than a little, yeah."

"Those two idiots aren't the least bit careful anymore… I'm sorry she's lumping it onto you. If I'd done better, none of this would have happened."

"I don't mind just listening to her."

"I know. It's the fact that she has to go through it at all… She's still in school. Distractions are dangerous when you're still fresh on the hunt."

Jaune laughs. "She's been doing this for years. If anything, I'm the one that's still green."

"You runts don't get to be proper huntsmen unless you've faced a real, proper threat or graduated. To a licensed huntsman, there's a reason why you're all still in-training. All the glory and shit is the stuff you gotta revel in while you're still in the safety of these halls instead of roughing it in the wilds day after day, facing odds stacked against you."

Qrow is amicable, asking only that he doesn't also seduce Ruby. Jaune's confusion is answer enough. He's no Casanova. He isn't Taiyang. Qrow has it that he believes men like him are unprepared as partners and fathers. Jaune disagrees, saying that his own father was like Tai. To him, any man can work their way into being a proper partner.

They talk about it for long enough that Yang stumbles back into the apartment. She hopes Qrow hasn't spilled any embarrassing stories about her.

They're deftly quiet at that.

-0-

Yang doesn't stay long (it isn't like she spends every weekend with him after all), but she lingers at the door. She hears their muffled voices through the gaps but she doesn't strain her ears to decipher them. She isn't here to eavesdrop.

She hears them laugh. Briefly, she wonders if even Qrow knows Jaune more than she does.

Breathing evenly, she calms the fiery doubts and walks off.

-0-

"What are your intentions?" Qrow asks an hour later, once he's sure Yang is long gone because of course he knows when she's there.

"We didn't sleep together."

Qrow winces at the thought of them. Then it's so deeply uncomfortable that his whole body shudders. "Ah, god, fuck! Damn it, kid, I don't want to think about you two naked! How would you feel if I shared my stories with you!"

Jaune, similarly, melts down at the thought.

Yang actually comes back because she forgot Ember Celica. She hears them freaking out through the door and pivots into the other direction. Blake asks about her bracelets. Yang says it isn't important right now.

-0-

Jaune and Qrow sip their flasks at the same time. They joke about it.

When it's quieter, Qrow can see in his eyes that he wants to ask something so he encourages him to.

Jaune, with an uneasy breath, asks what Qrow is always drinking to forget.

Turns out, he doesn't drink to forget. Drinking is when he does the most thinking, actually.

Drinking is a hobby. Less a recreational drug and more a medicinal one. "Confused? Let me explain…" He doesn't recommend it but he's built up such a tolerance for it before he even went to be Beacon as a kid that it's all basically like water to him. Alcohol isn't his coping mechanism, but he confesses that he does technically have one if it can be called that.

He lost an old friend a long time ago and he isn't sure if his semblance is to blame. The thought has haunted him since. Grief mixed so deeply with poisoned guilt has made him obsessed with loneliness.

He enjoys the quiet nights sitting alone at home, eying the moon, dreaming of what ifs. He enjoys sitting in meadows, letting Summer heat hold him like a familiar embrace. He enjoys hunting solo and coming out on top, all in her name. It's proof that, even in death, she's still the best partner he ever had.

Alcohol is normalcy. It's where he thinks the most clearly, acts the most boldly, acts like himself. Being sober unsettles his mind, makes him act irrationally.

Somehow it makes sense. He always did seem the more sober man when he's got a flask in his hand. Even subconsciously, Jaune realizes that he's made that his gospel.

Qrow warns that it certainly isn't the same way with Jaune. (Jaune knows, of course. His tolerance is likely as weak Ruby's might be.) But Qrow confesses to being more worried about what he might do if he drinks too much. He saw all the whiskey in the fridge.

"I'm not going to hurt Yang. I stop myself from going too far."

"I don't mean Yang. She can handle herself around you, I'm sure." Qrow shows him a photo on his scroll. "This is what I'm worried about."

Jaune reels. He feels a few things. Mostly anguish, discomfort. Saphron and Terra are in Vale.

"When was this?"

"This morning. I thought they'd show up today and that I could be your convenient alibi for having an occupied guest room once they dropped in, but it looks they're busy doing whatever it is they're actually supposed to be doing in the city."

"They're going to come by eventually. Even if not today then…"

"I can't stay, kid," Qrow says, cautiously, quietly. "You facing them is just as inevitable as their visit. I'm no good at this stuff but... my advice: Don't run."

-0-

Yang comes back to Jaune sat at the sofa, staring at a movie he isn't watching. Yang turns it off and when the screen buzzes into silence, Jaune finally realizes she's in the room.

He doesn't notice the many bags she brought with her.

When she asks what's going on, he tells her that Terra is in town.

Yang asks if Saphron is with her.

He realizes that he forgot to mention his own sister.

Yang takes his hand and leans into his side. "It's that bad, huh?"

His free hand pulls out the now empty flask. "I might need more than the watered down whiskey."

She sits on his lap and pushes his flask away. "Get drunk on me." Her eyes are half-lidded and pleading, a promise etched into the wetness of her lips and heat rolling off her breath.

He does what she asks.

They press together so closely that he feels another one of inhibitions snap.

That night he decides – without really thinking about why – to steal a kiss while she sleeps. He realizes that the gesture is far too affectionate than it should be but can't bring himself to regret it.

She was awake the whole time.

-0-

PART 5 – Accommodation

Yang fixates on the kiss. Not that it's changed how she feels or how she's going to feel, only that she wonders what's changed for him with her. She finds herself lingering on his silhouette in bed, paying attention to subtleties in his tone, the way he moves around her or if he catches himself saying anything he wants to say but can't.

And all she's found in mapping him out is that he's no different from before.

Blake tells her that it could mean any number of things. Weiss maintains that it has to be burgeoning love. Ruby, much to their surprise, tells them that it was probably a moment of weakness and that he probably still doesn't know what it means.

The girls – Pyrrha included – suggest that Ruby is probably right. But Yang finds herself unwilling to accept it. She isn't one for sitting still. So instead of deferring to their wisdom… she hatches a plan.

It falls apart immediately.

-0-

Lingerie is her first idea, a vibrant red with thin enough material to tear off with ease. Scented candles to fill the spaces, lighting the bed and the nightstands while drowning the rest in dark. A nice ambient drone off the speakers in another room just to fill any silence. And makeup, the kind that layers thick and she feels physically on her face but comes recommended from Coco's article on a magazine.

She calls up Pyrrha to coach her on it, but the girl only blinks at her beyond the digital lense and asks, "Do you want him to sleep with you or fall in love?"

At first, Yang is confused until she takes a good hard look at herself in the mirror and… doesn't recognize who's looking back at her.

"I don't know," she says honestly. She smiles placatively and hangs up. Pyrrha knows she'll figure it out, but Yang has to first get rid of the mess she's made in his bedroom. Everything else will follow after.

She tosses the heels in the bin (they were cheap anyway), rips off her stockings, and covers up the rest in a bath robe. She tries to wash off the makeup but it smears and will take longer than she has time for. She tries too frantically to get the candles out and accidentally sets fire to one of his chairs – she ends up violently launching it into the tiled shower wall and leaves the shower running.

Finally was the music wafting in from the living room, playing off her scroll. She's already halfway into the living room when the front door opens. She freezes in place just as Jaune is letting in his guests, Saphron and Terra.

Yang doesn't know Saphron, not really, but there's a mutual trust between them when the older girl runs over to her, takes her by the wrist, and drags her back into Jaune's room.

Minutes later, Saphron is dabbing some solution on her cheeks. The makeup comes off in clumps – some semblance of relief comes with them.

"I'm Yang," she says suddenly.

Saphron's bemused smile banishes any tension she has left. Yang already embarrassed herself and not much could make it worse at this point when your first impression is half naked in the living room. She'd also spied the lingerie but she'd thankfully neglected to mention the familiar strap peeking off her shoulder.

"Saphron," she says but says no more. She focuses on the task at hand and Yang quiets with her. Then Saphron starts humming. It's familiar, as if carved out of a chapter in her life that she can hardly remember. Suddenly it's clear that this woman is a mother.

"My brother mention me a lot?" Saphron asks.

"He tries not to but can't help it. You always manage to come up in his stories to curb his nonsense. You'd be a punchline if the stories were supposed to be funny."

"Tends to happen." Saphron winks. "Us older sisters have to butt in all the time."

"He told you about me and Ruby?" She wasn't expecting to come up in conversation.

"No… I can just tell." Another smile. More secretly knowing. And she is briefly afraid that all her secrets have already been laid bare. "He told me you were his roommate."

"Ah." A safe descriptor. She'd been expecting a cover story like being his live-in girlfriend. She'd even prepared the lines and a backstory. It's a small a comfort that doesn't have to go through that.

Saphron pouts for a moment before her eyes turn devilish. "He also mentioned that you two share a bed and make out." Yang blinks at her. Her confusion also confuses Saphron. Isn't that supposed to be embarrassing? "Is… was he wrong?"

"Uh… no. That's exactly it. I guess I just wasn't expecting the truth."

"And you really aren't sleeping together?" Saphron peels the gown off her shoulder and tugs at the bra strap. Yang yelps when it snaps back into place. "With an outfit like this?"

"It was a lapse in judgement." She gestures to herself. "I swear this isn't how I normally am. I don't think I'll ever put on something like this ever again."

"Hm… a honeymoon might change your mind, but let's not dwell on that. You've got scented candles in the corner and I can smell…" – she sniffs the air – "burnt wood from the bathroom? What led to all this?"

"I'm… not sure I should say."

Saphron takes Yang's hands in hers. "You don't have to tell me, but it feels like you're struggling with something all on your own."

"I'm not, actually," she admits sheepishly. "I just didn't take anyone's advice. I don't like the idea of waiting for something to happen when I can already do something about it."

"There is value in patience."

"I don't think waiting is my problem. I think I'm just too proactive to do nothing."

"My brother leave you hanging or something?"

"Kind of? … I've said too much already."

"Or not enough." She smiles in that way again. As if knowing. "But I won't pry. I know that sometimes it's better to wait and come to your own conclusions. Right or wrong, a decision you make yourself stays with you and sometimes that's more valuable than being handed the keys to the castle."

"You really think highly of Jaune, don't you?"

"Hm? What makes you say that?"

"I've never heard someone describe the way to someone's heart as 'keys to a castle'."

Saphron gives her a catty cheek. "Oh, so you are in love with him." But she is surprised again when Yang doesn't blush.

She shrugs instead, looking away. Not out of embarrassment but to eye her own fragmentary reflection on the corner of the vanity's mirror. "I wouldn't know. I've never been in love before."

"But… you're so pretty."

"So is Jaune. So is my sister. And all but one of my roommates have never even kissed anyone before coming to Beacon. It isn't like we don't have time to fall in love, it's just not always our biggest concern. They drill it in you early that staying alive out there should be your priority." She eyes the bra strap on her shoulder in the mirror, hates what it represents, what it almost made her do. She pulls up the sleeve again, hiding it away, and she almost looks like herself. "I think that's why I like being around him. He doesn't pass judgement on whether not my problems are big or small. He just knows they're important to me and lets me be heard."

"Is being a good listener what you look for in a partner?"

"It might." She laughs. "It's hardly an extensive list, though, isn't it?"

Saphron huffs, settling herself comfortably beside her and dusting off her skirt. "Lists are overrated. Not that you shouldn't have standards, but if you want to extensively checklist every potential partner, you'll end up with a growing criteria less and less people will be able to fill. And trust me, I've lived a storied life – been dating people since I was fifteen – and I've found that it's easier to talk to people and let things click. Hell, I wasn't even trying to flirt with Terra when we first met. She was the wingwoman to the girl I was actually trying to get with and we just happened to get along better."

"Sounds like quite the story."

"Why don't I tell you over dinner? It'd be a nice little preamble to me and Terra. I suspect we'll be meeting quite often in the near future."

"I guess I will be tagging along with Jaune if you really want me to."

"If I really want you to? You sound a little meek there," Saphron teases. "Jaune described you as the kind of girl with confidence to rival a peacock. Was my brother wrong or are you just starting to sound like him?"

"Hey, I don't…! Oh shit, you're right."

"Fair tradeoff, I suppose. Jaune's got peacock confidence now and I guess you're to blame."

"Ha! No, I can't take credit for that. Pyrrha – his ex – I'm sure she's your culprit."

"We've met. Jaune brought her over last year before they started dating. Wasn't even going to take her to the dance, the little dunce."

"Oh, but they hooked up that night! After they both showed up stag and he tore up the dance floor in a dress."

"A DRESS!?" Saphron screamed, her eyes lighting up with mischief Yang realizes she's just armed her with.

A knock at the door. "Everything alright in there?" Jaune asks, muffled through the mahogany.

"We're fine!" Yang says.

"Peachy, little brother," Saphron adds with a flare of sarcasm, "but you're going to regret keeping secrets from me."

"Yang!" Jaune screeches, panicked. "What did you tell her?"

Yang laughs, hearty and comfortable with Saphron snickering beside her. It almost feels right, like it's something that always should have been, and she wonders why she was ever so afraid. "What you should have told her! You know you can't keep secrets from big sisters!"

"Oh really? I can promise you that there are secrets Ruby hasn't told you."

Yang shot up from her seat. "What!?"

Saphron sits back. "Aren't you two lively…" she whispers.

"I'm no snitch, Xiao Long!" Jaune shouts, snark clear in his voice.

"You'll fess up one way or another!" Yang, in her excitement, marches to the door.

Saphron bolts out of her place and grabs her arm. "You're still underdressed," she says calmly, belying the panic quickened in her chest.

Yang looks down at herself. She's showing a little cleavage too with the loosened bath robe. She takes an extra step back for good measure and clutches the lapels closed.

"C'mon. You're looking a little too comfortable now. Let's find you something modest." Saphron tugs her towards the closet.

"Backing down already?" Jaune said in what – to him – was a moment of silence.

"I'll get you yet, Vomit Boy!" Yang jeers.

Saphron perks up. "Vomit Boy?"

Jaune groans behind the door. "Yang!"

Yang, despite the grin tugging at her cheeks, silently promises to make it up to him later.

-0-

Jaune stands in the center of his living room, staring at his shut door. Saphron has just dragged Yang into it, and his mind has been reeling with what he'd seen. Barely dressed, slow music off her scroll, and with smeared makeup on? He doesn't want to come to any conclusions, not without talking to her first, but the obvious ones come to mind.

He isn't certain he can reckon with the inevitable outcome.

Behind him, Terra sensibly cuts off Yang's music playing off her scroll. Jaune nearly jumps when he's brought out of his stupor and into her beautiful, suffocating presence. Terra is still as captivating as he remembers, tinted with the gloss of a boyhood crush that refuses to die. At least with Saphron around he could suffuse it, but not alone in the heavy quiet of his apartment.

Terra gives him a bemused smile. Ever sympathetic. She pats the seat cushion beside her and Jaune joins her, plopping on the cushion with a held breath he eases out of himself.

"You seem surprised," Terra says. "And here I thought you'd already seen her in less."

"I did say we've only made out… and snuggled." He can't decide which one is more scandalous. Perhaps neither. Or both, given that they aren't even dating.

"Yeah, despite that being unusual enough to be true, I still had my doubts."

"Have any still?"

"No. You definitely don't look like the kind of couple that's seen each other naked."

Jaune's eyes narrow. "We're not a couple."

"I believe you," she says with a smile. She's so dangerously close to him that he can smell her perfume. A glance shows him that she's eying him expectantly. He's tense, uncertain, and it's clear that she can see that. She pulls away, giving him room to breathe. "Guessing you've still got a crush on me then?"

His spine gets stiffer, spotting her at the corner of his eye because he refuses to look directly at her. She's smiling still. Being cheeky. "Terra…" he groans.

She scooches a little closer again (taking a chance that his nerves might not erupt), and lets his heat wash over her and lets him feel hers. The affection is platonic, he knows that. He and his sisters huddle together for comfort often, and Terra has just learned to follow suit. But he can't help but revel in it, letting it sink into his pores till it leaves a familiar tingle.

A small part of him hates it but mostly hates himself for indulging.

"If I asked you why, would you tell me?" Her tone is quiet, almost a whisper. She's trying to ease him.

"Because you cared about me."

She chuckles because it's naïve and honest and oh so very like him that it's almost nostalgic. "Was that really all?"

"When you're young and naïve, that's all it takes."

"I didn't know you were lonely."

It was his turn to chuckle. "I wasn't. I was never some lonely little kid who didn't have any friends. I had enough love from my sisters alone to fill my heart a hundred times over."

"Then why?"

He shrugs. "I don't know. Do I need to have been missing something in my life to want to fall in love?"

Her feet shuffles in place. "I guess I haven't seen it that way. After I was old enough to date, I'd not gone a year without someone I wanted to be with or was already with. I always felt like love completed me, like it does now with Saph… Is that not how you feel?"

"I'm… I'm not saying love doesn't make me happy or anything. It's just that I don't feel like I need it to feel whole. I don't think it'd complete me, just that it might be nice to have too. Is that not how you feel?"

She chuckles again, a nervous uncertainty tinting her quiet, teahouse melody. "I don't know. Never been without it, really. At least not for long."

He looks at her – examines her, really – because her cheek is gone, as is her confidence, and it feels like she's revealing her artifice in a vulnerable moment. She's digging gaps into her own thoughts and he can see her pick apart her own internal logic and she seems more and less somehow. Like she's less the perfect cut gem he thought she was and sees the girl underneath it.

He's less tense all of a sudden.

And for a moment he feels like he can come to grips with everything that she is. Who she was to him, who she wasn't, and who she's become. A boyhood crush, flightful fantasy, and… he can't bring himself to think of the last. Fist clenching and unclenching, a slow motion that tries to hide the trembling in his digits.

He swallows and he worries if she can hear it. She doesn't, but she can see something's troubling him.

"How's Adrian?" he asks.

"Oh, he's –"

"A DRESS!?" Saphron screams from beyond the locked bedroom door.

Jaune jolts up from his seat and nearly bumps into Terra who'd stood along with him. She steps aside and he hurries to the door, asking after them. Terra tries not to pay attention (she can barely hear what they say beyond the door anyhow) but then he mentions Yang's sister, Ruby – the girl Terra thought he actually has a crush on – and Yang audibly shouts, "What!?" passed the door at him.

"Aren't you two lively…" Terra whispers.

-0-

Dinner is a largely pleasant affair until the alcohol gets introduced. The hills of drink they stack onto the table to peruse intimidates Jaune and he cautions that he cannot – will not – drink anything that isn't at least on the rocks. He'll shoulder tomorrow's regret but he doesn't want to sleep through the sun burning through the morning and afternoon.

Saphron and Terra share a glance before pulling something out of Terra's bag. Diadem, a vintage Vacuan drink stronger than everything else on the table. They only ask that he a takes a shot. It'll buzz him through the evening.

It's too strong and he nearly hurls.

Yang half remembers all the stories they tell. Saphron regales them with tales of how she met Terra, the proposal, the wedding, and even the honeymoon off the coast of Menagerie. Jaune spouts on about his team and a misadventure with his twin on an old farm and a horse, and Yang, somehow, talks about a food fight twice. It's funnier the second time around.

There's a gap in her memory of whatever story Terra was telling because she fixates on one part and can't focus on anything else. "…she's little Adrian's babysitter," she mentions briefly but doesn't have the faculties to ask about.

When Saph and Terra leave for their hotel, things wind down and Yang's sitting on the sofa in Jaune's hoodie. Yang returns the shirt and shorts she borrowed but she feels like wearing something that's his might help with tonight.

Jaune joins her, easing down slowly as his head rides the waves of a dying Vacuan storm.

"Who's Adrian?" she asks.

He's quiet for a moment, perhaps from the drink. "He's Terra's son."

Yang can see it. Saphron isn't mentioned deliberately. He doesn't just forget this time. "Oh! From a previous marriage?"

He shakes his head. "No, nothing like that," he says, sobering up.

"A previous partner then?"

Jaune says nothing. He's sitting upright. Rigid and awake. There's something there. Maybe Terra had a previous partner he didn't like, but then things click into place. Realization sets in like headlights through the fog, suddenly and violently.

"Oh my god…" she whispers, "…he's yours."

He doesn't answer. Doesn't need to. She grabs onto his arm and pulls him into a hug. She's hit a nail on the head and panic sets in when she thinks she's opened up an old wound. It's precisely the kind of thing they're supposed to help each other forget. Only, Yang doesn't realize that Jaune is so caught off-guard by her sudden burst of affection that he's at first startled and – when she goes in for a kiss and ends up headbutting him instead – he ends up laughing it off.

His mirth is almost strange until it makes complete sense somehow. She's done her job, kept her end of the bargain, and now she's laughing with him too.

When he's calmed down, he lies back on the sofa when she goes to get a drink. She comes back to find him lying across the sofa and she makes the executive decision to just fall on top of him. She crashes into his stomach with a hefty oof from him and she makes no apologies for retaliating.

"Sofa hog," she jeers from her perch on his chest, chin resting on her arms.

"I bought it," he shoots back playfully, eying her down from the arm rest.

"Still pay half the rent. And I never asked you to pay me back when I foot the bill for refurbishing them."

"Wouldn't have needed to if Zwei didn't tear them up."

"It was a joint decision that we took him in for the week. You're as much to blame."

He sighs. "I guess I am."

It isn't actually an issue. They've basically already had this discussion and Yang had insisted on covering for it at the time. They're only stalling. Even Yang isn't quite sure she wants to go on.

She doesn't know how long it takes her to summon the courage to speak again. All she knows is that he's willing to answer, even if it would be easier for both of them to stay ignorant. To let these problems solve themselves and never to bear your heart until it is absolutely necessary.

But she speaks anyway. "I thought it was the wedding that got to you."

And so does he. "No, it… it just happened at the wedding. Saph had to go talk to an old classmate and so she left Terra with me. I was already holding Adrian and with Joan running off somewhere, we were alone. Just me, Terra… and our son. It hit me then. Slowly, like when you stare at yourself in the mirror at the night of a recital. You think, 'This is it. This is where things fall apart… or meet in the middle.' I knew I had to make peace with it before it got worse."

"And your answer was watered-down whiskey the minute you got back home?"

He shrugs. "Qrow gives good advice."

"Hm… maybe. I still think mine is better."

"Oh? And what's that?"

She pushes herself up over him, arms at either side of his head till her silhouette is against the dim glow of the incandescent bulb, warm light pooling through her hair till it looks like it's on fire. "Get drunk on me," she says, her breath tickling his nose and burning his lips.

But he doesn't kiss her. She sees the way his lips quiver, almost wanting to, but he doesn't even try.

She retreats instead, nestling back onto his chest but his cheeks are still burning and she swears hers are too. The room feels like it's boiling.

"When we kiss, do you think of her?"

"Never," he says honestly, and that seems to be the part that stings the most to him. "That's the most dangerous thing about you. You don't taste, feel, or smell like anyone else." He looks at her and only her, and she shrinks away as she gets up and off of him because she feels like a moon in a sea of stars, and as he straightens up and sits parallel to her, his eyes never leave, like a captive witness.

He leans in, and she doesn't know if it's to kiss her or just her sheer pull on him. She ultimately doesn't decide. Their foreheads meet – her eyes are downward but locked to his lips – and she breathes quietly as she asks, "Jaune? Are you in love with me?"

"Yang, are you even sure you are?"

"I… don't know yet."

He pulls away just an inch as something unsettling furrows his brow.

He gets up. "Gimme a minute," he says, and he's gone for just long enough for her to notice that the familiar heat she had pressed against her is missing.

She doesn't know what to expect when he comes back with his hand clutching a small object, but she would have never guessed a ring. It's nestled in a velvety box that he sits on the coffee table and he leaves it open as he sits down and watches it with her like it's some alien thing. He doesn't speak but he gives her a glance and…

It's then that she realizes that she's afraid. The look on her is uncertain – she can feel it, and she feels it freeze on her features.

"Did you pick this out for me?"

He shakes his head. "It was supposed to be Pyrrha's."

She blinks. "Is… is this what scared Pyrrha off?"

"No… it's what scared me off." He leans back against the sofa and she takes that as an invitation to do the same. They're huddled close, shoulder-to-shoulder. "Our breakup was only supposed to be temporary. Some tournament rival tried to pin her to a scandal when they found out she slept with me."

"What? Why would that be a problem?"

He snorts. "I was too young." Out loud, it sounds absurd.

"You were seventeen," she reasons.

"And Pyrrha was eighteen. As far as the law is concerned, Pyrrha slept with a minor."

Yang can feel herself coil up like a loaded spring. "Well, that's fucked! You're barely three months apart!"

"Didn't matter to them. Tabloids would have pinned it on her for the rest of her career. The context doesn't matter to the public."

"Okay…" she says slowly, stifling her frustrations for later. "So, what changed then? Why did you set her up with Sun?"

"Because I went to the wedding and found myself thinking about Terra again. It gave me some unhealthy doubts. I loved Pyrrha, I really did, but it felt wrong when I danced with Terra that night, holding our son in our arms… It felt like I'd betrayed Pyrrha somehow, even in my own mind, by feeling those things. It didn't matter that I didn't actually do anything about it."

"That's not how feelings work though," she says. "You're supposed to have doubts sometimes because people aren't perfect or consistent. Life isn't fiction, Jaune."

"I know that now." He shrugs, resigned in a way. "I found out a little too late though."

"How did you even get Pyrrha to agree to this?"

"She's not very honest about her feelings. Doesn't have the courage to be. When she heard that I'd pushed Sun to ask her out because Nora can't keep a secret, she thought that I might have given up on her. By the time we got the chance to be honest about it, she'd already gotten to know Sun enough to start taking him seriously."

Yang glances back at the ring. Not quite as alien as it was earlier. It just seems strange now, like it's out of place. There's a small comfort in that. "So where does the ring come in?"

"I got it as a sort of celebration when would get back together, but then people started asking about what it meant and… it felt like I'd stumbled onto some finality between us. Like I'd somehow found 'the one' over a year of friendship, a few dates, and showing up to the dance in a dress."

Yang smiles. Not because he seemed silly at the time, but because he's smiling. Because, in spite of his somber reflections, he can't help but feel like what he'd done turned out to be a triumph.

Her arm loops into his and his head leans on hers in response. "Doesn't sound like a bad set up to me," Yang says, shrugging against his arm. "If anything, it sounds like the stars aligned for you two." She speaks honestly. Forgets herself and sees him as Pyrrha's too-perfect other half to a too-perfect couple. If things hadn't turned out the way they did, she might have cheered them on for the rest of their lives. But that isn't how it turned out.

"That's what everyone was saying. It's like we'd ripped ourselves out of a fairytale, only I was a dense, blind princess and she was some stoic, stubborn prince. But it put a lot of pressure on us, living up to that story, and it felt like I wasn't as ready as I should have been. I came to Beacon unprepared for a lot of things. Might have hurt the people depending on me by not being ready. I was lucky my shield arm was always sturdy, but my heart wasn't. I naively worried that my inexperience would hurt us irreversibly." He rolls a hand over his knuckles. Contemplatively, regretfully. "I thought I was leaving her in good hands, but even if that's true, should I still have stayed instead? Did I have any right to decide if we should have stayed together or not?"

Her fingers slide off his arm and weave into his. She's huddling closer now, feet off the ground and knees tucked up to her chest. "I think, when we fall in love, we have to decide for ourselves if we want to keep going. We don't choose for the other in that. We choose for ourselves cause we are who we're supposed to look out for. You have to protect yourself first." Yang clutches tighter, and somehow Jaune can tell that her mother is involved. "That's the beautiful thing about a love that works. We decide for ourselves and it all just happens to fall into place with someone else. It doesn't always magically align – sometimes you don't agree with what they want or how they take it – but real love compromises just as much as it just… clicks." Like her and her dad. And Ruby. And maybe – if things turn out alright – her mom.

He wants to believe her. Even if he and Pyrrha didn't pan out, they still love each other as friends and things ultimately haven't changed between them. They were always bound to work out their issues and it's clear now that they've compromised without needing to sacrifice the friendship they'd fostered together.

He wants to thank her, but her eyes are away and she's chewing her lip. Yang is thinking of something else. Her sigh cuts through the silence and she's too shy to look at him.

"Jaune, why did you kiss me?"

He blinks. "What?"

"Last night. In bed. While I was sleeping."

His eyes widen. He's been caught. "Is it really so unusual?"

"It is when you aren't thinking of Terra or Adrian. When you do it just because you wanted to."

"How… how could you tell?"

She can hear the panic in his voice. Caught and cornered, it makes her a little happy to know he's unable to hide it. But it's the speed of which he accepts his fate that gets her grinning, because it's as if a part of him is tired of hiding it. "Because you weren't trying to forget something. You weren't trying to tease me and I certainly can't flirt back when I'm asleep…" She shoots him a knowing look and he gulps through a feeble foundation of defiance. "It was none of that. You did it hoping I wouldn't notice. You did it because you were hiding something you wanted."

He crumbles under her teasing. "Y-Yang, I… I can't –"

"Shh, it's okay," she says evenly, defusing his tension and giving him a moment to breathe and look into her eyes. "Don't jump to a conclusion you aren't ready to make." Her tone is slow and deliberate, fingers gliding along the skin of his arm like a soothing, gentle caress. "I get it, Jaune. Like me, you're still trying to figure it out."

He pulls away but fixes her with a stern, serious look. She doesn't realize he's holding her hand till he's squeezing it. He's composed, certain, and so deftly drunk on her that Yang remembers Jaune telling her that drowning in drink gives him clarity. "That's just it, Yang. I know I feel something. I've been feeling a lot of things when I'm with you…" His confidence wanes before he admits that, "It's just that I haven't figured out what I'm supposed to do about it."

Yang blinks twice and tries to speak but can't. And suddenly she can't stop the curl of her cheeks when she feels a growing smile coming.

He's almost afraid. "Yang?"

"Sorry. I'm still… you know you just confessed, right?"

"Ha!" he laughs, heart squeezing his chest. Relief in many ways settling into his skin. "Were you expecting me to say 'I love you'?"

"…"

He chuckles. "Oh my god, Yang."

"Is it weird that I'm a little giddy about that total cliché? Say it again."

He thinks it a little much but the words are easy, flowing freely from his lips. "I love you."

"Agh! You're a serious cheat. Why is it so easy for you to say?'

"Cause I already made peace with it. You stood there in a white dress and I could see you tearing Terra out of that place in my mind and putting yourself there in her stead. I already knew. You've been nothing but a tidal wave to my emotions, just swallowing everything up and leaving little traces of yourself everywhere."

He settles back into the cushions, sinking comfortably into it. "I used to sit on this couch and scream curses at the moon through the window," he says. "Nowadays my eyes are glued to the screen watching a movie with you. I used to be careful about what I threw into the sink because I was afraid I'd have to call in a mechanic to fix the shredder again, and now I don't even give it a second thought."

"And you used to lie in bed thinking about her…" Yang teases.

"Actually, no. I was at peace when I went to bed. Pyrrha trained me to shut down once I got under the sheets. Nowadays it feels like the sandman keeps missing my eyes with the way you move me around in bed."

"I don't think your tongue's been doing much complaining."

"Seems you were willing to use more than just your tongue earlier," he says, teasing her. She shrinks a little, embarrassed. "What were you doing anyway?"

"I was, uh, trying to seduce you."

"Oh… What changed?"

She groans. "I guess my wires got crossed. I thought that if I got you to sleep with me, this" – she gestures between them – "would suddenly clear up. But I'm not that kind of girl. I don't put on lingerie all the time expecting you to see it. Not even sure I'm the kind of girl who wants her clothes ripped off when I get you riled up."

"Yeah, your outfits look expensive. Custom fit and embroidered."

"I wouldn't hit you if you tried, FYI. I'd maybe cry or get upset."

"I'll try not to ravage you through your clothes if that ever happens."

"If? Still don't think we're gonna end up doing the dirty tango after all we've been through? Seems inevitable at this point."

"I think we'll either do it when it makes sense or decide we aren't meant for each other."

"I don't know. I'm pretty snug right where I am." She gives him cheek, brimming with certainty. Confidence. "Still," she says more seriously, "are you really so ready to give up what we have? I don't see it happening, but it looks like you think we're just as likely to stay together as splitting up."

He looks away. Yang is surprised to find him embarrassed, not concerned.

"You don't actually feel that way," Yang says gleefully. "You're as sure as I am."

"I'm not ready to take that risk just yet," he confesses.

She moves to straddle him and loops her arms around his neck. "I can wait."

His hands grip her waist through the thickness of the hoodie. "I can't ask you to do that."

"I'm not asking you. I'm telling you. I told you that love was about deciding for yourself and settling into compromises if our choices don't align. I'm choosing to stay. And – I hope – we agree to compromise."

He takes a moment to look away before locking eyes with her. He leans in and pecks her lips so briefly that she doesn't get the chance to kiss back.

"Wh-what?"

"It's how I'm supposed to say yes, aren't I?"

She laughs and so does he. Yang was expecting to cap off the night with a kiss, pressing bodily into the sheets as their hands roam their bodies, but none of that happens. They clean the dinner the table, take separate baths, and settle into bed together.

She does kiss him on the neck for good measure but he realizes that he can still feel the kiss and it isn't because there's a tingle there. Cracking an eye open, he notices the gloss on her lips. "Are you wearing lipstick?"

"The light kind," she says. "Told myself I'd leave a mark on you during my little lapse earlier. I've decided not to give you a hickey. Consider it an act of mercy."

He shuts his eyes and tries to ignore it but can't. He's painfully aware of it and he just knows he's gonna smudge that on something. It'd be funny if it's Yang's face but he'd hate to get it on his sheets. He sits up. "Yeah, nope. I'm washing this off."

"What? C'mon!" She grabs onto him, anchoring him back into bed.

"Nope. Not doing it," he says defiantly.

"Have it your way, Arc. Hickey it is!"

"Wait, Yang! Yang!"

-0-

Jaune is reminded everyday that he showed up to brunch that following morning with a hickey his scarf couldn't hide. Yang makes it up to him by buying dessert.

The get-togethers go on and Yang is less and less embarrassed about openly teasing Jaune and showing her affections publicly. Jaune retaliates, of course, and they even get hot and bothered in the hallway of a movie theater. They spend the rest of the movie in a stall. Terra finds them and is honestly just surprised they haven't taken each other's clothes off… ever.

Jaune and Yang don't tell them that neither of them and ready to go that far yet. Jaune takes the brunt of the blame and says that if he doesn't hold back, they'll end up doing something stupid. Saphron slips Jaune a condom and he regrets everything for the rest of the night.

Two weeks pass with much the same. Sometimes they introduce Saphron and Terra to some of their other friends, and they even manage a weekend together in a cottage near the coast. They're excited about reuniting with Pyrrha and they even meet Sun on her scroll.

Yang finds out that Saphron is every bit a mother as she is a big sister, and Jaune reminds her that she is practically no different herself.

Jaune learns that Qrow and Terra are old classmates and that they had more in common than they thought.

And after Joan is caught scheming with Nora and getting her and Ren back together, after Blake engorges the shrimp platter on a Schnee-sponsored dinner, after Weiss tames a friendly rivalry between Winter and Saphron about who has the cuter sibling, after Ruby gets her cheeks pinched till they go red cause she lost a bet and showed up in an adorable beowulf costume, and after Penny freaks out and her head pops off at dinner (her severed head still tries to chew on a salad)… their two weeks together are up and they're standing at the train station, ready to see them off.

It's been raining for the last few days and everything is damp and cold. Even the air is still thick with the smell of misty rain water and the sky hasn't seen the sun even peek through the cloud cover. It's almost a somber way to say goodbye.

Saphron is introducing Yang to her babysitter and little Adrian over a video call. Jaune stands aside, unwilling to let the last few weeks burn away at the sight of his biological son gurgling through the screen.

Terra nudges into his side. "Can we talk?"

He nods and she pulls them away beside a pillar. Saphron notices and winks at her wife.

"Is there something wrong?" Jaune asks.

"Nothing, actually. I might even say our impromptu vacation here might as well have been perfect."

"Impromptu?"

"I guess it never came up but… we were only supposed to be here for a few days."

"Why did you stick around then? Wouldn't that have been imposing on your babysitter?"

"Oh, Taffy was plenty happy to be at the house with Adrian. She's an orphan and she takes every excuse to come over." She leans in to whisper. "We might even adopt her once I get a raise at the office so look forward to a niece! And, really, is it such a surprise that we enjoy spending time with you and your friends?"

"After the bonfire? I guess not."

"Good. Now that isn't why I needed to talk."

"Oh…" He glances at Yang a few feet away. He can barely hear her and Saphron through the rancor of the station.

"I know you've been holding back."

"Did Yang tell you that?"

"Call it a big sister's intuition."

"You're an only child."

"Not anymore, I'm not. Now I've got six little sisters and a not-so-little brother." She pats his chest then busies her hands with straightening his collar. "A little brother who is too afraid to take a chance and would much rather play it safe than play at all."

"Terra…"

"I know you're afraid that you aren't ready. I wasn't either. Hell, sometimes I worry I'll mess up and ruin a perfectly good marriage. These are all normal things to be afraid of, and for some people, these fears don't go away. We just learn to live with them."

She slides her hands to his arms and down to fingers till she's holding them softly and looking up at him. There's a quiet concern in her sad little smile that he isn't sure how to respond to.

"I think you've driven yourself to be so careful with your feelings that you've forgotten to just take things as they come," she says. "I know you have to be careful with your heart but the thing isn't made of glass. Even if it hurts, even if it hurts easily, the fact that you're still in one piece should be more than enough proof that you aren't as fragile as you think you are. Maybe take a risk. Maybe love will hurt, but so few of us get better at it without giving it a shot first. Like a lot of things, Jaune, it takes a lot of trial and error."

"I've been down this road before already…"

She squeezes his hands. "And you'll go down it again and again. Sometimes people find love once and that's all it takes. But for the rest of us? For most of us? We gotta keep trying."

With a kiss on the cheek and a whispered 'good luck', Saphron and Terra disappear into accelerating train until even it vanishes into the horizon.

Jaune stares into the middle distance and Yang, much like Terra, nudges into his side. "What did you talk about?" she asks.

He shrugs. "Stuff."

"Oh, well that's lame. Should've had more to say to someone you really care about." It's clear she doesn't buy it.

He knows she doesn't. "Yeah, real shame I wasn't more profound and emotional."

She rolls her eyes because she'll let it be and won't pry for his sake. "C'mon, it's getting chilly out here and it might rain again with the wind picking up." She makes to walk off.

"Hey, Yang?"

She stops. "Yeah?"

For a moment he doesn't speak, his eyes are uncertain and elsewhere but then his fists clench as if he's just convinced himself to do something. "Wanna get dinner?" he asks, reaching out to take her by the hand. "We can put on something nice and there's a real fancy place with the best lobster in town."

Yang isn't sure how to take it. She doesn't resist when his thumb brushes over her knuckles, but she summons a bit of bravery herself, stepping closer and resting a fist against her beating chest. "Is… this a date?"

She yelps when he pulls her in. He kisses her, drowns her tongue and melts their bodies together till she's flush against him and tugging at his hair. There's still fear in his eyes when they pull away, but there's a determination in there she's happy to see. "Is that answer enough?"

She giggles through the haze of her burning cheeks. "Plenty."

Then she's on him this time and tilting him backwards with her lips alone until he's just as hazy. Still, he doesn't expect it when she clambers onto his back and slips into a piggyback ride before she starts laughing uncontrollably.

"Hiya, noble steed! To the bike!" she cheers from her perch atop his head.

He's laughing too, even if he's huffing a little from the jog to Bumblebee. "What's gotten into you?"

"I can't help it…" she whispers into his hair, excitement mixing into a bubbling cocktail with a giddiness she can't stop. "I'm happy."

#Jaune Arc #yang xiao long #jaune x yang #yang x jaune #rwby dragonslayer

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shera-dnd · 4 years ago

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Face Turn - The Finisher

Here we are, folks. After nearly two months we have reached the big finale.

What started as just a silly prompt from Freezerburn week 2020 has now turned into nearly 20k words of some fun gay shit, and it’s now finally ending

Gotta say it was nice having stuff to write out of love again and not just to pay the bills. Can’t wait to finish my next little project, so I can share it with you nerds.

Spoilers: it’s more RWBY AU shit, because I got back into this show again someone help me

ANYWAY here’s the AO3 link and let’s get on with the fic

The kiss had been a stupid and impulsive spur of the moment decision, but she hoped she managed to sell it like she’d been planing this the whole time. The mix of cheers and boos from the crowd told her she did a good job at that at least.

Yang lying on the floor and laughing her ass off like an idiot was also proof that she did a fantastic job today.

She shook her head at her favorite dumbass as she climbed down next to her, offering her a hand.

“Aww, you really wanna break kayfabe just for me?” Yang teased.

“Who said I’m breaking shit?” She taunted back as she yanked her up with a single pull.

“Kiss me again,” Weiss whispered to her.

“I’m not sure that’s gonna help with the rumors”

“I don’t care,” she insisted. She didn’t want to look like some creepy predatory lesbian trope to the audience, so she needed to show that she didn’t do that just to win, “we’ll just flip the fans off while we do it.”

Now that earned a smile from Yang.

She held Weiss’s face with one hand and flipped the crowd off with the other as she leaned forward for a kiss.

After retreating backstage the first thing they heard was the last thing they wanted anywhere near them. A very angry Blake Belladonna.

“I spent hours arguing with the other writers to let Yang win this, and you two just had to go and pull that on me!” She shouted as she marched up to the two of them, “if that kiss hadn’t been such a genius move, I’d be kicking both your asses right now.”

“Phew!” Yang exclaimed, happy that she would get to keep her hide, “no more out of script kissing, I promise.”

Weiss turned to glare at her after that comment and she quickly amended.

“In the ring, ice queen, in the ring.”

“Good,” Weiss nodded and then gave her another kiss, for positive reinforcement.

Blake cleared her throat to get their attention again and wordlessly raised her brow in question. She looked more amused than surprised by this turn of events.

Yang hooked her arms around Weiss as they both turned to explain things.

“Well, you see--”

“Yang, what the hell!” Ruby’s familiar voice shrieked down the corridors. Her boots screeched as she broke her momentum to turn around and stare down her sister, “have you two been together this whole time!?”

They both blinked at her in surprise and looked at each other. By their smug grins it was clear that the two had been struck by the same terrible idea at the same time.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Yang shrugged as she pulled Weiss closer to her.

“Yeah, it was all kayfabe stuff,” Weiss played along, brushing her hand over Yang’s arms.

“Ugh,” she groaned, “you guys are the worst!”

“What do you mean?” Weiss continued, turning to hook her arms around Yang’s neck.

She expected Yang to go in for the kiss, but instead she decided to surprise everyone, by poking Weiss’s nose with her own and nuzzling them together.

For a moment there Weiss was pretty sure she forgot how to breathe and maybe she took a little too long to recover from that.

“Ew ew ew!” Ruby stomped in place, “no. No more PDA allowed! You two already kissed in front of thousands of people! Twice!”

“Aww, aren’t you two adorable,” Blake commented, shaking her head at those two idiots, “come on, let’s hit the Fang. It looks like we got two wins to celebrate tonight.”

“Ugh, can we at least shower and change before that?” Weiss complained, not wanting to hit the bar in her smelly wrestling clothes.

“Fine,” Ruby replied, before adding, “separate showers you two!”

Weiss rolled her eyes as she left. Sure the idea of showering together sounded pretty nice, but for the actual showering together part, not whatever Ruby expected them to do without her interference.

By the time she was back from her - solo - shower, Yang had already finished getting ready and was now teasing poor Ruby relentlessly. The reason for all that teasing was the red haired woman standing next to her, trying really hard not to blush at everything unfolding around her.

That’s when Weiss decided that she was gonna be a little shit.

She put on her best Schnee scowl and marched up to the group.

“Who is the little shit?” She greeted in the tone she used for cutting promos.

“S-Salutations!” The woman stammered in surprise, “I’m Penny. I’m uh--Ms. Rose’s colleague.”

“And who the fuck is that?” She asked, trying not to laugh at how spooked the poor girl was.

Ruby was having exactly none of that.

“That’s my name, Weiss. I’m Ruby Rose,” she explained, “and stop trying to spook my friend!”

Well that was embarrassing.

“I thought you were a Xiao Long!”

“It’s complicated,” Yang interjected.

“Alright, alright,” Weiss dropped it, raising her hands in admittance of her defeat, before she turned to face their guest, “sorry for that. Hope you enjoyed the match though.”

“I did!” Penny answered with excitement, “it was very different from what I expected.”

“I could say the same,” Blake commented, “and I wrote it.”

“Alright, we get it,” Yang chuckled playfully, “you can roast us for it once we get some drinks.”

“Oh you two can bet your asses I’m gonna roast you,” she threatened, mostly as a joke. Mostly.

With that they made their way back to the White Fang, and Weiss couldn’t help but smile. It reminded her of what Yang had said, about the four of them - and now Penny - making the most of their time together.

Except this time Weiss wouldn’t leave - she had promised, after all - and this warmed her heart with a feeling she hadn’t felt in a long long time. Hope. That her future will be a bright and happy one.

It was almost funny to think, how from what felt like her darkest moment, came all this.

So she offered Yang her left hand and together they walked onwards to whatever their lives had in store.

#rwby #Freezer burn #freezerburn #weiss schnee #yang xiao long #wrestling au #fanfic

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moistmailman · 5 years ago

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Qrow: Oh great. What’s your problem?

Glynda: You were assigned to substitute for me yesterday while I was sick.

Qrow: Yeah? So? I did. So what’s your damn problem?

Glynda: It’s HOW you substituted is my problem!

*FLASHBACK*

Qrow, hungover: Okay, class. I am Qrow, your substitute teacher, but you all will call me Mr. Branwen. *sips flask* Oh don’t. I don’t really give a shit.

Class: ????????

Qrow, grabbing papers: So today we are going to be learning about— *squints at papers*.....oh hell no, that shits boring. *tosses papers in trash*

Class: ????????

Qrow, sighing: Okay, let’s see. How can I distract you brats for an entire hour? Hmm, let’s see.......*sips flask*.......OH! I know. Th first one to make Pyrrha say ‘Fuck’ gets 600 points of extra credit.

Class: What?

Pyrrha: What?!

Qrow, lying behind the desk: Meanwhile I’m going to take a nap. Wake me when she says fuck. Or don’t. Actually don’t at all. Just write me a note or something. *closes eyes*

Pyrrha: W-Wait, is he serious?

Nora, in Pyrrha’s face: Pyr-Pyr, you gotta say fuck for me! Come on, mama needs that extra credit!

Pyrrha: What?!

Jaune: No, say fuck for me instead! I need that extra credit more! I have a D in this class! A D minus to be exact!

Pyrrha: H-hold on! Y-you two calm down!

Yang, pushing her way through students: Say fuck for me instead, and I’ll let you ride my bike! Come on! I don’t even let Ruby ride that thing and she’s my sister!

Ruby’s voice behind a bunch of students: She really doesn’t, and it’s totally unfair!

Yang: See?! I treat that thing like my baby, and I will let you borrow it! That’s how much this extra credit means to me!

Pyrrha: B-but I-I dont even know h-how to ride a motorcycle though! I don’t want to wreck your bike! And guys, can I please get some space?

Weiss, trying to move everyone out the way: Everybody back off! Give her some room!

Pyrrha, sighing in relief: Oh thank you, Weiss.

Weiss: You’re welcome. What are friends are for? But anywho, how about you repay me by saying fuck real quick? I would really appreciate.

Pyrrha: WHAT?!

Weiss: Come on! Just say real quick! I want that extra credit!

Pyrrha: B-But you have an A in this class! You don’t need it!

Weiss: Nonesense! There’s nothing wrong with wanting to over achieve in school! Now come on, say it! You can even whisper it in my ear if you want!

Pyrrha: Bu—

Yang: DONT YOU DARE SAY FUCK FOR WEISS! SHE DOESNT NEED THAT EXTRA CREDIT! I DO THOUGH! JUST SAY FUCK FOR ME!

Weiss: I DO TOO NEED THAT EXTRA CREDIT!

Jaune: WELL I NEED IT THE MOST THOUGH! COME ON, PYR! IM YOUR PARTNER!

Pyrrha: G-guys.......

*More student starts to surround Pyrrha, of them speaking at the same time, making them all incoherent except for a few clear fucks being heard*

Pyrrha, head spinning: G-guys, p-please! I-I need some space. G-guys?.....g-guys?.....*sighs* Oh frick.

*END OF FLASHBACK*

Glynda: Well?! What do you have to say for yourself?!

Qrow: That your students are giant disappointments, cause none of them could make Pyrrha say fuck?

#rwby #pyrrha nikos #jaune arc #nora valkyrie #yang xiao long #ruby rose #qrow branwen #glynda goodwitch #incorrect rwby quotes

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wu-sisyphus-gang · 3 years ago

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Motion Sickness Chapter 63

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"Well, are you?" I asked Jasper.

"Am I what?" She returned from her place by the counter.

"Going to shut down the strikes. She made some pretty good points about the Grimm," I said. I leaned on one of the tables, my massive sword handle extending over my head.

"No… I told you we aren't even in charge of the strikes really. It's a bit of an avalanche that's carrying us along. And if we don't get on board we'll be left behind," Jasper returned. "I'm not saying that she didn't have any good points. And maybe the only way to get real change going is with the elections. And Robyn Hill is basically a shoe in over Schnee. Especially down here in Mantle. Money can only buy you so much. Might be for the best if things were to die down."

"But you're not sure," I affirmed.

"How can I be? Nobody's sure. It's the Cetra condition. The Happy Huntresses are about defending Mantle, though. They've been at it for a while and they've done some real good. Maybe they're right about this too. I certainly don't think the military will shoot on the crowd but if they do it would be bad."

"The Happy Huntresses don't seem to like me which is a point in their favor."

"Oh pssh. None of that. You do fine."

"So, I'll just come by again later?" I asked.

"Yeah, really sorry about this, cutie." She winked. Her fox tail swished around in the air behind her in a brownish-red and white flare.

I ignored that last bit.

Neo tugged on my sleeve from her position by my side.

"What?" I asked her. "Want one of their drinks?"

She held up a finger to her lips as though deep in thought. Then shook her head.

"Then I have no idea what you want." I turned back towards Jasper. "We'll be back later. I'm going to go scope out this Adam Taurus and the protests. I might end up having to kill him after all."

"If you say so. See you later tonight."

"Yeah well no promises, especially if I end up in a fight."

Neo and I strode out and mounted my motorcycle. "You are being a needy bitch today, Neo. What's up with you?"

She shoved a finger in out of a rounded hole made of her other fingers. "Not happening. Didn't happen. I would remember something like that."

I was like seventy-five percent sure. Maybe a hard seventy.

She shrugged at me, somehow making the gesture teasing. An 'if you say so.'

"I do say so." And I did. It did not happen.

No matter what she herself implied. I would remember. I would know. Sure the night before was little more than golden blurs. And sure I somehow ended back up at the motel with all my armor and gear.

Anything could have happened after I really started drinking and the morning when I woke up. Anything but that, that is. The warm memories I felt were probably from The Den not from you know… sex… with Neo.

I rubbed a hand over my face hard.

"Neo you're fucking killing me. You know that, right?"

She grinned and nodded.

"Yeah well even if it happened once it's never ever happening again. I'm too fucked up to be doing that level of drugs again, that was a mistake. I don't know what I was thinking. I'm also too fucked up to be having sex with you."

I looked down at her as she frowned and slapped me on the arm.

"No points against you. You're drop dead gorgeous. But, well, tough shit," I returned. "For me and for you."

I revved up my motorcycle. Neo straddled behind me and flickered into a disguise for while we were driving. She was wanted, more so than my own form. No reason to give some patrol-man a reason to pull us over and start calling for backup.

And she couldn't exactly cover every camera we came across while driving. There were too many on the main roads and we went by too fast. So this little disguise helped.

She was still gorgeous in her double, with bright green eyes and dark black hair, just as long as it was when she was in her normal form which was to say waist length. Neo had that otherworldly angel-esque appearance some hunters got after a few years with aura.

It was a cure all to wrinkles and blemishes and left the user looking out of this world. Neo was no exception with her tight stomach being exposed and her muscular, relatively long smooth legs in those heels propping up her butt. Her short stature didn't detract from her beauty.

Huntresses, man. They were just like that. Like they came from another planet. Maybe I was a bit like that too, though. If I could be so arrogant. I'd had aura most of my natural life. Tall, blonde, and huntsman, I recalled a conversation in GaiLong I had with an old man about it. He told me not to be dense. I attracted more than my fair share of looks. More than my fair share.

Ruby had been like that. Beautiful like a little angel. Her hair and eyes stood out unnaturally even amongst huntresses. Yang, of course, was staggeringly gorgeous with her blonde mane of hair and lilac eyes. Weiss had a sort of pristine crystalline look to her that had drawn me to her immediately. Like she was multifaceted. Like a cut diamond. Blake had that bookish appeal but translated over to the huntress side of things it made her stand out in any crowd.

Pyrrha… well it went without saying with Pyrrha. Her emerald eyes and bright red hair flashed behind my eyelids every time I closed my own. She haunted me, Pyrrha Nikos did.

Even Jasper had started to have a bit of that. Stomach and face like a supermodel and long legs to boot.

Huntresses, man. Ain't nothing like 'em. Aura was a hell of a drug. It turned people into angelic beings.

But Neo was no exception. When I first arrived at Beacon I thought I'd have been lucky to have sex with someone as gorgeous as she was.

Now the thought only filled me with a slight sense of dread. A mix of betrayal and hurt welled up from deep inside me. Even though I had no right to feel that way. My feelings about it weren't valid. Not then when I'd first arrived at Beacon, all my feelings from then were fake. And not now when I was cruising around like a monster.

I rolled up on where the miners were picketing. It was near the open pit mine I'd been at for the bombing. They'd lined up around it, eight or ten people deep. They were armed with protest signs and little else from what I could see. They had no weapons.

Could Ironwood really open up and fire on a crowd like this? Would that really solve the negativity problem or just make it worse? I could see it now, a swarm of Atlesian Robots mercilessly breaking up the protest with sleek assault rifles.

I thought it would make things worse. For sure, for sure but my opinion hardly counted for squat, did it.

By the crowd there were police officers lined up around the perimeter. They probably had standing orders to leave the crowd be but break up any fighting. They looked nervous. As they should before a mob like this.

The people were baying for change.

From the protestors' signs they were demanding safe improvements to their work and higher wages. Nothing crazy, at least in my opinion. In my estimation they would get it. They deserved it. These people weren't hunters. They hadn't signed up for danger. They wanted their working environments to be safe so they could go home and see their families every day.

There was nothing crazy about that. Nothing insane. These people already should have had that. Mining should be one of the safest occupations. It could be done right. It didn't have to be a dangerous, well, a minefield. Save that for the hunters.

I guess the collapse of this mine, artificial or not, had been a bit of a breaking point for the people. I trolled around the crowd for a few hours. Traffic was ground to a halt in places as the protest spilled out onto the streets, blocking vital arteries of city flow beyond the capacity to reroute. It backed up traffic for miles and miles. It was unbelievable.

It was a mess. I could confess that. But it seemed like an easy enough decision at the top level. Capitulate, and nobody would have to get hurt. Of course if old man Schnee cared more about people than the profits his company could pull in, then people wouldn't be protesting, would they.

It was hard to see him winning the election to the council with open picketing happening against his company but Atlas got a vote too and they were separated from all this. One of the benefits of keeping the people of Atlas and Mantle segregated.

It was gross but effective. Keep the different stakeholders in different places and there would be no need to capitulate. I didn't hide the disgust I felt and let it roll out onto my expression. Jacque Schnee could keep his company rolling the way it had been and become a council chairman. He could have his cake and eat it too.

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I never found Adam Taurus.

It wasn't exactly a point of shame for me either. The entire Atlas military couldn't find me but then again I was driving around in broad daylight with my own illusionist. It made me wonder if Adam had his own illusionist. Like maybe someone like Emerald Sustrai. She was an illusionist too.

What I managed to do instead was drive around and observe the absurdity of the crowd for a few hours. If I needed to find Adam Taurus bad enough I would use Aurum. Not drive around lost.

Still it was good for me to see the crowd and feel their negativity for myself. It was easy to talk about it and have it all get lost on you what ten thousand angry people really felt like against your skin. Or aura. Whichever. They felt mostly the same to me. Maybe it was my short lifespan with a relatively long period of having my aura activated but I could hardly tell a difference.

I could feel Neo riding behind me with her cruel cold. I could also feel the crowd. Blazingly hot. Burning me up. Throngs of people fired up over a common reason. A common goal.

I wasn't much of an empath but even I could feel the negativity. Ren had always been better than me at that. Ruby had been too. What did it say that I was able to feel the negative emotions rolling off the crowd like a tsunami?

It meant that even a layman could probably notice it and pick up on it. The walls of Mantle had probably been under twenty-four seven assault by the Grimm. Meanwhile Atlas rested above, safe and sound. Connected to Mantle only by shallow guide wires for the gondolas and trams.

A shallow spider web that connected the two cities. Never crossing, never overlapping, but allowing the transference of people and ideas.

They probably felt none of this rage. Atlas was an island in a sea of negativity and Grimm. Albeit a floating island but an island nonetheless.

How could two places so close together feel so disparate? Was this how the segregation had remained mostly in place for so long? How long has things been like this with Mantle's red hot rage and Atlas's grey cold apathy?

It unsettled me, the stark difference between the two.

I shifted on the bike and Neo scooted down closer to me. She kept a single arm around me and under my plate.

"Well Neo, what do you think? Think we should cut this off and kill Adam Taurus?"

Was I just hunting for a reason for me to kill someone. Maybe. Salem was driving me mad. I at least had that as an excuse.

"Of course killing Adam Taurus won't end this. We'd need to get that Dyne guy. We started this, though. We're responsible for it, to one degree or another."

"I feel bad. Last night I was getting wasted in The Den and this shit was happening down here. You couldn't even tell how bad things are from up in Atlas. All the people down here, if you even care to look and see them, just look like ants."

I rolled back up on Seventh Heaven in the evening. There were more cars parked outside than normal. I marched up to the place and walked inside with a jingle of the bells.

It was relatively crowded. It had all the members of Avalanche inside, looking as they did before with their red bandannas. Then it had another man in a white mask, red hair and a long katana. He had the horns of a bull on him.

There were two more guys inside. A taller white skinned gentleman with a white shirt, green trousers and a green vest with red trimmings. He had only one arm. The other was cut off at the elbow with red bandages around the end. He had a wiry tail like that of some kind of big cat.

Another man was in there but his opposite arm, his right, was cut off at the elbow. He was taller, taller than me, with black skin and black hair. He had thick brown boots and a brown vest with green trousers and a darker brown under shirt. He had a thick bushy bear tail.

Everyone turned to look at Neo and I as we walked in. We were the only humans in the room.

"Cloud…" Bisque said in greeting.

"What're these humans doing here?" The man in the white mask gestured his blade forward at his hip towards me.

"We invited them, before we knew this meeting was going to happen," Jasper said.

The man with the katana growled at me. I stared him right down back. It would be inaccurate to say nothing scared me, but not this asshole.

"He worked with us. He's a mercenary who helped us blow up the mine. He fought the Turks. He's cool," Wenge said.

"You did that?" The taller dark skinned man asked.

"I did." I nodded.

"Why would a human do that?" The masked man asked.

"Money. Information. Take your pick," I shot back.

"I don't like your attitude. And I do recognize her. She's Neapolitan. She used to work for Roman Torchwick."

"She works for me now. You got a problem with that then we can take it outside."

He growled and stepped forward towards me. A hand held him back and his chest from the man without his left arm.

"I'm Dyne. This is Barret," Dyne introduced. "We could use the help of a skilled merc. The picketing is losing steam already. We need to set a fire under Schnee's ass."

"Avalanche was telling us about another operation, one to sink an SDC freighter," the man without his right arm continued, Barrett was his name. "Make them beg for the miners back."

"They told me about it. I recommended that they wait," I said. "I take it you gentlemen want the operation to go ahead?"

"That's right." The man with the sword said. "If you think you're up for it. If they think a human like you can be trusted."

"Avalanche has one of my retainers." I pulled my pipe out and lit it. I made myself look comfortable.

"Oh Cloud can I get you anything to drink?" Jasper asked.

I looked down at Neo. She nodded. "Just one of those house specials for Neo. I'm good." I'd had enough to drink the night prior. "And who's this?" I nodded at the man with the Katana. "The rest of you were polite enough to introduce yourselves."

"I'm Adam Taurus."

"Ah," I said. "The man on everybody's mind. I might get paid to kill you tomorrow."

He grabbed his sword but he didn't draw it.

"Is that a threat."

"A little." I exhaled smoke in his direction. "It's the truth. Think you can take me, Taurus? Wanna dance?"

He growled at me.

"I, for one, like you, Cloud. What was your last name?" Dyne asked.

"Strife. It's Cloud Strife."

"Well I think we just may be able to work together. Avalanche has your fee? You'll do this op for us?"

I smoked and nodded. I looked over Dyne's head at Avalanche. They were giving me pleading and grateful looks.

"Should be cinch," I said. "We can discuss my payment later."

pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq

-WG

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tanakavox · 4 years ago

Text

“Merry Christmas!”

The words echoed loudly throughout the Rose-Xiao Long household as they all felt the Christmas cheer in the air. The house had been active with laughter and cheer as everyone had participated in activities throughout the whole day, while Zwei and all of the adults had made final preparations on all of the gifts for the younger members, while secretly preparing their own gifts for one another. Zwei carefully looked over his gift for Xing one last time, making sure none of the wrapping had been torn in any way and that the ribbons were secured on it nice and tight. Rosemary couldn’t stop the smile on her face as she watched her lover carefully look over the gift for what seemed to be the thousandth time.

“I still can’t believe you, of all people, won that thing in a random raffle,” she said with an amused tone. While she said in a joking manner now, Rosemary was actually in pure disbelief mere days earlier at the fact that Zwei had managed to get his hands on the elusive console, and even more so through a raffle of all things!

“Yeah well, talk about a Christmas miracle,” Zwei scoffed, he himself still a little in disbelief that he had managed to get his hands on a honest to Brothers’ Playstation Five. He was still fretting over the wrapped gift, before his musing was interrupted by an amused Rosemary.

“Oh will you stop worrying already? Your nephew isn’t picky Zwei, I’m sure he’s going to love the gift you got him and that there’s nothing to worry about!”

Zwei glanced over at Rosemary, a skeptic look on his face, before he found his eyes drifting back down to the gift.

“I know, I know, I’m probably freaking out over nothing, I just want this to be perfect for him, you know?”

“Well, I for one think my son is going to love it, and that you’re worrying yourself over nothing Zwei.”

A new voice had proclaimed, causing Zwei and Rosemary to look over to see Yang leaning in the doorway with a smile on her face. Zwei narrowed his eyes at his older sister, before asking her, “How long have you been standing there?”

“Long enough to know that you’ve been acting like a worry wart for the past twenty minutes,” she replied with a smirk, before she walked over to Zwei and took a seat next to him. “But seriously Zwei, Xing is going to love this gift, why would you think otherwise?”

“It’s just a lingering feeling is all, you know,” Zwei said with hesitance, “I’m just worried about letting him down by getting him something that he didn’t want.”

“Trust me Zwei, Xing is going to love it and you’re worrying over nothing,” she said, before she let out a chuckle, “hell, you probably could have gotten him that old Playstation Two you had to get back from that thief and he would have been just as happy!”

Zwei stared blankly at his sister momentarily, before he felt the palm of his hand meet his face.

“Now she tells me,” he groaned out in annoyance, causing Yang only to laugh harder at her brother’s response. It was at this point that Rosemary had quietly slipped out of the room, leaving the siblings along to their discussion.

“Hey, it’s your fault for not asking what Xing wanted for Christmas little bro,” she said with a shit eating grin, “Maybe you’ll take that into consideration for next Christmas, instead of spending three days chasing down thiefs, beating up snobby couples, and scaring poor Junior into a early grave.”

“Yeah, yeah, laugh it up will ya,” Zwei grumbled out, “Though you wouldn’t be saying that about “Poor Junior,” if you had heard what he said about Xing.”

The temperature in the room immediately dropped as Yang’s laughter was abruptly cut off. The warm smile on her face was replaced with a thin line and her lilac eyes slowly shifted red, burning with a cold, calm, rage.

“...And what did Hei Xiong have to say about my son?”

Zwei gulped at his sister's sudden shift in attitude, before he quickly related to her what Junior’s nasty comment made towards Xing. Yang slowly nodded her head up and down as she absorbed the information given to her, before quietly stating:

“...Looks like I’ll have to pay Hei Xong a visit soon.”

The tone sent a shiver down Zwei’s spine, and he could only imagine what Yang was going to do to the unfortunate information broker when she decided to make good on that next visit. Sure, Zwei was furious with Junior when he insulted his nephew, but he was only going to rough him up a little if he hadn’t either apologized or given him the information that he wanted. But compared to what his sister was going to more than likely do the man? Zwei almost felt bad for ratting the club owner out. Almost.

The temperature warmed backup considerably, and Yang’s eyes shifted back to their normal lilac before she let out an exasperated sigh. There was a moment of silence between the two of them, before Yang addressed her brother again.

“...I never got a chance to say thank you by the way.”

“Thank you? For what,” Zwei asked in confusion.

“For the fact that you went through all the effort to get Xing his gift.”

“Ah come on Yang, it wasn’t-”

“Don’t you start with that,” Yang said sternly, cutting off Zwei’s attempt to brush off her words of thanks, “You didn’t have to jump through all those hoops and spend all that time getting him this stupid thing, but you did and I’m honestly thankful for it. Not because you managed to get it for him, but because you care so much for him that you went to great lengths to make him happy, and for that, I’m grateful to you Zwei.”

Zwei then found himself in a loving embrace, as Yang closed the small distance between the two and held her brother close.

“You’re an amazing uncle, and an even better brother, and I could not be any more proud of the man you are today.”

Zwei was caught off guard at first by his sister's sudden display of affection, but slowly returned the embrace, doing his best to ignore the moisture that was building in his eyes from his sister's words of praise.

“...Thank you Yang.”

The two siblings held each other for a few more seconds, before their tender moment by tiny voices that were echoing throughout the hallway, screaming at the top of their lungs, “IT’S TIME FOR PRESENTS!”

The glee and excitement from the voices of the children(and of course, one Ruby Rose), was enough to cause Yang to chuckle at their antics, while Zwei merely rolled his eyes though there was little heat behind them. Yang got up from her seat beside Zwei, before giving him a smirk, “ready to open some christmas gifts little bro?”

Zwei eyed his gift to Xing one last time, before he returned his sister's smirk with one of his own.

“I don’t know, is Santa fat, red, and jolly? Of course I’m ready!”

A chuckle escaped Yang’s lips at her brother's cheeky response, before she lifted her brother up from his seating position with his gift in hand.

“Well then we better not keep the kids waiting then!”

Not too long after, Yang and Zwei joined the rest of their family near the Christmas tree and the gift giving had begun. As usual, quite a few gifts were exchanged between the Rose-Xiao Long’s and the Thornbushes, and this year was no exception. Ruby had received an extensive amount of custom weapon parts from Jaune and several others, while Jaune himself had received a new Pumpkins Pete’s hoodie and a set of armour from his wife. Yang had received an extensive line up of hair care products and hair devices, along with several different prosthetics arms to be used in the field(the latter gift was planned between Weiss and Ruby). Taiyang had received both a new grill for when the weather had warmed up and a new desk to replace the old one in his study, while Peach had received several sets of rare seeds for her personal greenhouse in Patch and a necklace from Tai. Zwei was gifted Cyberpunk 2077 and several other games from Jaune(called it!), while little Citrine received a Switch with several games and Lilina has received a Tablet for her to write and play games on.

Rosemary had received a similar gift to Peach’s in the form of rare seeds, but was also gifted brand new gardening tools and a pair of earrings’ from Zwei. Daisy had gotten a new drawing tablet, along with several fresh sketchpads and some new pens and pencils, while Forrest had received copies of old movies he’d been looking to add to his collection, alongside some memorabilia from movie sets of some of the more recent flicks he had seen. Aster had received gifts in the form of new medical supplies and instruments for her clinic, courtesy of Peach using both her medical and Huntress connections to fund the expense.

Finally, there was little Xing, who was quietly watching the rest of his family open their gifts while he patiently unwrapped his gifts given to him when it was his turn. He had received several different things, including clothing, toys, even a new prosthetic to replace his current one that he had outgrown. But it had finally come time to open his gift from his uncle, and Zwei couldn’t help but be nervous. Would he like it? Would he hate it? Zwei couldn’t stop the feeling of anxiety creeping through him as he worried over whether or not Xing would like his gift.

However, his worries were put to rest. Because as soon as Xing had slowly finished unwrapping his gift, he let out a small gasp and his eyes lit up at the sight of the Playstation Five that lay before him. A small smile lit up on his face, before he turned to his uncle and said:

“Thanks uncle Zwei!”

Despite Xing’s quiet nature, it was clear to see the sincerity behind his words as he thanked his Uncle for the gift he had gotten him. Zwei felt a great weight lift off his shoulder, before he returned his nephew’s smile with one of his own.

“You’re welcome Xing.”

Yang caught his eyes a moment later, shooting him a smug look that basically said, ‘I told you so,” before covering her smile as he rolled his eyes in response, though his smile stayed on his face. It looks like everything had worked out after all, and as Zwei warped his arm around Rosemary and looked upon the happy looks of his friends and family, he couldn’t help but think that this was without doubt one of the best damn Christmas’s he’s ever had.

‘A Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night…’

Edits done by @thatorigamiguy!

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danurso · 5 years ago

Text

Left...

Yes! It was on the last second but i did it! Lets finish this year off with a bang baby! Or even better, with a YANG!

Jaune: morning guys. *sits down at the table*

RWB_/Pyrrha: *eating breakfast* morning.

Ruby: where are ren and nora?

Jaune: still on the room, just finished taking a shower and they told me to come and not wait for them, so i guess that means we won't see them at least until lunch.

Weiss: hmph, perverts.

Blake: *reading her book* didn't you kept ruby back almost every day after you hooked up too?

Weiss: *blushes* t-thats different!

Blake: considering how none of you has a male genital, yeah, i know it's different.

Weiss: *dark red* i hate you.

Ruby: *giggles*

Jaune: so, where's yang?

Ruby: she was feeling sick earlier today and told us to go ahead without her.

Jaune: is she okay?

Ruby: probably, it's been happening for a few days now, i thought she had already told you.

Jaune: no, she didn't. I had no idea she was feeling bad. *gets up* i'll go see her. *turns around and faces yang.*

Yang: *with a uneasy expression.* hey. . .

Jaune: hey, what's up? Are you feeling sick?

Yang: n-no, i'm fine i just. . . *sigh* can we. . .talk, just you and me?

Jaune: sure, did something happened?

Yang: on the room, just you and me. *walks away with jaune right after her.*

Pyrrha: what's wrong with her?

Ruby: we have no idea either.

Blake: actually. . .i might have an idea.

RW__/Pyrrha: *raise eyebrow.*

*At RWBY's dorm*

Jaune: so, what's up?

Yang: can you. . .sit down for a bit?

Jaune: err. . .sure. *sits down* are you okay? You look a bit pale. Ruby told me you've been feeling a bit sick the last few days.

Yang: i-i'm okay, i promise, i just. . .look, it's just that this is very hard to explain.

Jaune: what's hard to explain? You're starting to get me nervous.

Yang: . . . *takes in a deep breath before exhaling* jaune. . .do you love me?

Jaune: of course! Why are you asking me that?

Yang: do you know what you wanna do after beacon?

Jaune: we talked about this already didn't we? Our graduation is going to be in just three months, so after that we're going to find a nice apartment in vale and start doing missions to create a name for ourselves, wasn't that the plan?

Yang: i know, but what after that? Don't you have any other plans for after that?

Jaune: i thought we agreed to just see what happens after we get our apartment, take things slowly right? I mean, i have some plans and things i want to do but its nothing we need to worry about for now.

Yang: *avoiding his eyes with a guilty expression* but. . .what if something happened? Something big that would change our lives forever?

Jaune: yang, what are you talking about? I can't really understand where this is all going.

Yang: . . .i'm pregnant.

Jaune: . . .please come again?

Yang: i'm pregnant jaune.

Jaune: w-wait, what!? How did that happened!?

Yang: remember a week ago? When we went to a date to celebrate our two years together?

Jaune: yeah?

Yang: and remember that by the end of the night we went to junior's and got totally wasted?

Jaune: err. . .kinda? My memory of that night isn't perfect.

Yang: well, we got drunk as hell after a drinking competition and decided to rest on a nearby hotel, one thing lead to another and we started to. . . *pink* you know what.

Jaune: *blushes* y-yeah, i remember that part all to well if i'm being honest. B-but wait, i was using a condom on that day, how did you got pregnant?

Yang: jaune, we literally destroyed the bed while doing it, i don't think the cheap condoms we had were made to survive to our. . . *red* intense nights.

Jaune: *looking down, very nervously* so. . .you're really pregnant?

Yang: *nods* i made the test three times, its was positive on all of them.

Jaune: wow. . .so you really are pregnant. . .

Yang: are. . .are you mad?

Jaune: what? No, i'm not mad, i just. . . *gets up* i need some time to grasp the situation.

Yang: w-where are you going?

Jaune: *on the door* i just. . .give me some time okay?

Yang: o-okay.

Jaune: *leaves*

Yang: . . . *sighs and sits down, wandering on her thoughts*

*one hour later*

Ruby: *walks on her dorm* yang?

Yang: o-oh *forcing a smile* hey sis, whats up?

Ruby: . . .are you okay?

Yang: if i'm okay? What are you talking about? Of course i'm okay.

Weiss: yang, we know it.

Yang: know about what?

Pyrrha: blake told us that you were. . .uhm. . .well, pregnant.

Yang: *eyes wide, looking at blake* YOU KNEW!?!?

Blake: i saw you buying the tests yesterday, and after seeing you earlier i knew that the result was positive.

Yang: . . .

Ruby: so, how are you feeling?

Yang: . . .honestly? im freaking out. What if i'm not ready to be a mother? What if i'm not ready to raise a kid?

Ruby: come on, you always took care of me ever since i was a kid, if anyone here knows how to be like a mother, this person is you.

Pyrrha: besides, you're not going to be alone, jaune is going to be there for both of you.

Yang: yeah. . .i guess you're right.

Weiss: speaking of which, where's arc?

Yang: i don't know, after i told him i was pregnant he left saying he needed some time to think.

Blake: for how long he's been out?

Yang: an hour. . .i think.

Ruby: an hour!? Just where is he!?

Yang: i said i don't know, he's probably at the rooftop or somewhere like that.

Weiss: shouldn't he be here with you? This is unbelievable!

Yang: i-its okay, he's probably just thinking about situation.

Weiss: that's no excuse to let you alone and freaking out!

Ruby: im going to call him *dials jaune on her scroll* . . . . . .huh?

Yang: what?

Ruby: it says jaune's scroll is turned off.

Pyrrha: what? But jaune never turns his scroll off.

Blake: isn't him on your room?

Pyrrha: *walks off RWBY's dorm and knocks on her team's door*

Nora: *opens door* hey pyrrha. *looks at the crowd staring at her from across the corridor* what's going on?

Pyrrha: we can explain later, but now have you seen jaune?

Nora: yeah, he passed here almost an hour ago.

Ruby: do you know where he is?

Nora: no idea. He came in a hurry while talking to someone on his scroll.

Pyrrha: talking to who?

Nora: *shrugs* i don't know, all i heard was that jaune was talking about buy a passage home or something like that, then he picked his bags and ran away.

RWBY/Pyrrha: HE DID WHAT!?

Nora: he picked his bags and left, why? You guys don't really think he left for gold right? I mean, what reason could he have to suddenly run away from beacon?

RWB_/Pyrrha: . . . *looks back to yang*

Yang: *in shock* he. . .left?

Nora: hey, whats going on? Why is everyone so nervous?

Pyrrha: w-wait, there's something wrong, jaune wouldn't just leave like that.

Weiss: well, he clearly just did!

Ruby: pyrrha is right, jaune wouldn't run away like that! M-maybe he just-

Yang: SHUT UP!!!

*CRACK!*

RWB_/_NP_: *staring at a red eyed yang whose fist just went through a wall* . . .

Yang: *taking deep breaths*

Ruby: y-yang, we don't know everything yet, h-he might just-

Yang: JUST WHAT RUBY!?!? I THINK IT'S PRETTY OBVIOUS WHAT HAPPENED!!!

Ruby: please calm do-

Yang: DON'T TELL ME TO CALM DOWN RUBY!!! I'M NOT IN THE MOOD FOR THIS SHIT!!!

Ruby: . . .

Yang: I KNEW IT!!! I FUCKING KNEW IT!!! DAD ALWAYS TOLD ME TO BE CAREFUL AROUND BOYS BUT I WAS STUPID ENOUGH TO NOT LISTEN TO HIM!!!

Ruby: y-yang-

Yang: *with hair on fire* WHAT THE HELL WAS I THINKING!?!? I KNEW THAT WAS GOING TO HAPPEN BUT I LET HIS STUPID SMILE AND CUTE FACE TRICK ME!!! I KNEW I SHOULDN'T HAVE TRUSTED HIM!!! THAT ASSHOLE!!! BASTARD!!! SON OF A BITCH!!!!!! *punches the wall, spreading a web-like crack all over it, letting out ragged breaths*

Ruby: *carefully getting closer* . . .yang?

Yang: *sniff*

Ruby: y-yang?

Yang: *falls on her knees, still facing the wall* . . .why did he left me. . . *sniffs, the fire on her hair slowly fading* just what is wrong with me?

RWB_/_NP_: . . .

Yang: *turns to ruby, her eyes back to lilac and filled with tears* why does everyone i love ends up leaving me?

Ruby: *tearing up*

Yang: am i that terrible of a person? First my mom, then summer and now jaune. . .why does everyone i love hates me so much?

Ruby: *kneels down, pulling yang into a tight hug* that's not true! We all love you! And you're a wonderful person!

Weiss: *wiping some tears* that's right, ruby is telling the truth.

Yang: *sniffs, now staring at weiss* . . .

Weiss: yes, you can be very annoying sometimes, but still, you're one of the most wonderful and caring people i've ever met, and if they can't see that, they're the ones losing it.

Blake: she's right, you're wonderful and they're the one losing if they can just give up on you for no reason.

Yang: but. . .what am i going to do now? How am i gonna raise the baby without jaune?

Ruby: well, if i remember well, you always took care of me when i was younger so i think you had a lot of practice with raising kids.

Pyrrha: plus, you're not alone, i think i speak for everyone when i say that if you're going to need help to raise your son or daughter, we will be there to help you.

Ruby: well said.

Weiss: of course we will.

Blake: *nods*

Yang: . . . *sniffs, letting go of ruby and opening a small smile* thanks girls, you're all amazing.

Nora: i don't really know what's going on, but i'll help you too if you need someone to break legs!!!

Yang: *chuckles, wiping her tears* thanks nora.

Nora: don't thank me! Just come here! *pulls her into a bone crushing hug.*

Ruby: us too! *pulls the others and hug yang*

Yang: heh. . . *hugs them back* thank you girls.

???: wow. . .err, did i came in a bad time?

RWBY/_NP_: *looks at the doorway where jaune is standing with a pair of bags on hand* JAUNE!?

Jaune: *confused* yeah? That's me. *looking at the dented walls* what happened? Did you girls fight or something? And- *notices yang's disturbed expression* yang? *drops his bags and walks closer* what's wrong? Why are you staring at me like tha-

Weiss: *standing on his way* back off.

Jaune: what? Weiss, can you please let me-

Weiss: no! Don't you think you did enough already!? Actually, why did you even came back!? You forgot one of your comics or something stupid like that!?

Jaune: wait, what? What are you talking about?

Blake: about you abandoning yang.

Jaune: me abandoning what!? What are you guys talking about!?

Yang: nora told us everything jaune, stop playing dumb!

Jaune: what? Yang, i have no idea what you're talking about, im not planning to leave you.

Yang: oh yeah? Then where were you all this time!?

Jaune: . . . *sighs* well, after we talked i went to the balcony to get some fresh air and calm down a bit but all i managed to do was get in panic. *rubbing the back of his head while looking away* i had no idea what i was going to do or if i was ready to be a father so i called my mom and asked for help. After that i went to vale to buy some things.

Yang: if you were just going to buy a few things then why did you had to take your bags?

Jaune: well. . .cause mom's list of things was a bit big. *picks the pair of bags, opening it and showing a ton of different stuff*

Ruby: what all this stuff?

Jaune: well, these things are lots of skin and massage lotions, medicines for any problems yang can deal with during pregnancy, vitamins for her and the baby, and a few bras and panties with extra sizes since mom told me a woman's breasts grow because of lactation and her hips grow a bit as well during the months of pregnancy.

Pyrrha: so you've been out all this time to buy all of this stuff?

Jaune: yeah, i've seen my mom getting pregnant four times and i know how complicated it can be, so i wanted to buy everything to make sure her pregnancy go smoothly.

Ruby: if that's all then why didn't you answered when i called you!?

Jaune: *sheepishly* well, i was talking with my mom the whole time while buying the stuff, and because of that the battery of my scroll died.

Blake: wait, so what were the passages nora told us about?

Jaune: mom insisted that after beacon is over, me and yang go back to my home so she can teach us a few stuff to help during pregnancy.

Weiss: so you were out all this time just to buy things for yang's pregnancy?

Jaune: yeah, basically.

Weiss: . . .i honestly can't believe you.

Ruby: i can, this sounds just like something jaune would do.

Yang: pff. . .

Ruby: yang?

Yang: *chuckling* all this time. . .i was getting angry and worried because of nothing. . . *sighs, looking down* i feel so stupid right now.

Jaune: *walks to her, pulling yang closer* did you really think i was going to abandon you? Specially now?

Yang: . . .yeah. i-

Jaune: *pulls her into a tight hug*

Yang: jaune?

Jaune: im sorry.

Yang: wait, sorry for what?

Jaune: i should've warned where i was going, but because i didn't do that you thought i had abandoned you. I know how much you're afraid of being abandoned and i made you feel like i abandoned you when you needed me the most, i'm really sorry.

Yang: what? *breaks the hug* jaune, i called you a lot of bad names and said horrible things just because i thought you left me. . .ruby and pyrrha tried to tell me you would never do that but i ignored them and kept cursing at you just because you spent an hour away from me. If anyone here needs to apologize this person is me.

Jaune: can we just agree that we both messed up, we both feel bad about it, and we're both sorry?

Yang: . . .okay. still, sorry for thinking you were going to abandon me.

Jaune: heh, bold of you to assume i would let you go just because you got pregnant, you're way too good of a catch for me to let you go.

Yang: *chuckles*

Jaune: i wasn't planning to let you go before, and i'm not going to start now.

Yang: what do you mean?

Jaune: . . . *sighs* i was planning to wait for the day of our graduation but, oh well, screw it. *pulls away*

Yang: *confused* what are you doing?

Jaune: *goes to one of his bags, fumbling a bit but finally taking out a small black box.*

RWBY/_NP_: *gasp*

Yang: j-jaune *tearing up* is this. . .

Jaune: *getting down to one knee* Yang, when we first met i couldn't imagine what the future was holding for us, i could never imagine that a girl as beautiful as you would fall for a dork like me, but you did, and you gave me the chance to show how much i love you while you showed me how much you love me, you're the light of my life, the brightness that fills the darkness that surrounds me and the warmth that comforts me during my coldest days, my very own sunshine. *open the little box showing a golden ring with a lilac jewel on the middle*

Yang: *covering her mouth while tears stream down her cheeks*

Jaune: so yang xiao long, would you give this humble knight the pleasure and the honor of being my- *gets tackled by yang*

Yang: YES!! *kiss* YES!! *kiss* YES!! *kiss* YES!! *kiss* A MILLION TIMES YESSS!! *pulls him into a long deep kiss*

Jaune: w-well, not exactly how i imagined but i'm not complaining. *gets back into kissing yang*

Weiss: *deadpans* why am i not surprised?

Ruby: *sheepishly* because it's yang?

Weiss: . . .fair enough.

Yang: *inserts hands on his hoodie while deepening the kiss*

Blake: i think we should leave, like, before things get more intense.

Pyrrha: i think that's an great idea.

RWB_/_NP_: *walks away*

Ruby: so, do you guys wanna do anything for now?

Pyrrha: . . .i'm kinda hungry, you guys wanna eat something.

Blake: sure.

Weiss: sounds good.

Pyrrha: you're coming nora?

Nora: nah, i'll wait for renny to finish his bath.

Pyrrha: okay, join us when he ends up there, okay?

Nora: will do!

RWB_/Pyrrha: *walks away*

Ren: *coming out of the room drying his hair* i heard some screams coming from the bathroom, did i lost something?

Nora: well, yang almost destroyed her room during her breakdown cause she thought he abandoned her after finding out she was pregnant, but turns out jaune was actually just worried with her pregnancy and left to buy some stuff so he came back and they apologized to each other before jaune proposed and now they're making out so no i don't think you lost anything.

Ren: . . .right. do you wanna eat some pancakes?

Nora: sure!

*on the room*

Yang: *on the bed and on top of jaune while making out* hold on a second, if i'm pregnant and you're going to be the father, *grins* does that means i can call you daddy?

Jaune: you already called me like that before so i don't see anything special.

Yang: well, now you're going to be a really daddy, so it spices things up a bit don't you think?

Jaune: *chuckles* fair enough. . .yang?

Yang: what?

Jaune: i love you.

Yang: *smiles* i love you too daddy.

#rwby #jaune arc #yang xiao long #yang x jaune #jaune x yang #dragonslayer #ruby rose #weiss schnee #blake belladona #pyrrha nikos #nora valkyrie #lie ren

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funkyfreshramblings · 3 years ago

Text

A Story Twenty Years in the Making

CW: Swearing, sex, transphobia (Look, I'm not proud of who I was).

Shortly after I was born, a cousin of mine was as well. My mother took me to a store where she looked to buy a dress for her new niece to celebrate her birth. A woman stopped and looked at my mother, baby Devon in the stroller, dress in her hand, and curiously spoke up.

"Excuse me miss, but you know that you have a boy, right?" The woman shopping, presumably for her own daughter, had said to my mother.

"Of course I know I have a son. What about it?" My mother said in response.

"Well, that's a dress you're holding. Why would you be buying that for your son?" The woman puzzled.

My mother, quick as a whip and smarter than most people I know today, responded without a second thought.

"I'm letting him experiment with his sexuality."

---

At twelve (12) years old, I became aware of this really weird website. You see, everyone was talking about it, a schoolyard rumour we didn't dare to talk about in front of the teachers. The mythical status of this website was nothing to scoff at, students would huddle around and talk about their findings. It was like an ARG, a new puzzle added every day. The school was rife with these conversations, and everyone was hooked.

I'm of course talking about Pornhub.

Obligatory "don't go on Pornhub unless you're the legal viewing age in your country" aside (even though I'm aware those warnings stop nobody), I too became a curious mind. One day, when my parents had slipped out of the house and I was alone, I pulled it up on my computer upstairs. What I say fascinated me, women and men having sex.

Sex. Woah. Penises, vaginas, anuses. There was everything on this website. Everything. Including this one tab which I didn't dare click.

This one category had what appears to be two men on it. I assumed it was two men, after all neither of them had pronounced breasts like all the women had. And the title of the category? Gay. 'What the fuck does that mean?' twelve-year-old (12) me thought. I ignored it, thought it was weird, and continued on.

In the back of my mind, I was curious. A few weeks after watching straight porn and being mostly repulsed by how awful the women screamed in those videos, I tried it. I clicked on the category tab and was immediately hit with my first exposure to the gay community.

'Twink? Bear? Fisting? Now that's nasty.' I was curiously disgusted but clicked on anyways. "Twinks" looked cute, so I clicked there. Wait, cute? Did I really think these guys were cute? Like I thought my girlfriend was cute?

The video was, simply put, less aggressive than straight porn. Holy shit was straight porn aggressive. It terrified me how much those women screamed like the men were killing them by inserting their penises too far into their bodies. But gay porn looked softer. It was sweeter, with more love. After all, sex is about love, right? Forgive my younger self, you see. He clearly did not understand that nothing in porn is about love. But hey, when working with a half deck, you have to make the cards work.

So I watched gay porn over straight porn. That doesn't mean I'm gay! But wait, if gay porn is between two men, what is porn between a woman and a man. What's porn between two women? Never mind, I'm not that curious about two women together.

A quick Google search sent me down the most soul-searching adventure I'd ever partake in. At least, up until this point.

I soon learned what gay meant, what straight meant, what lesbian meant. You mean boys liking other boys was normal? Girls can like other girls? Wait, you can like boys and girls?

Oh, wait, you can also not be sexually attracted to anyone.

Asexual was a term I first read those years ago, and I soon thought that it described me. See, up until this point, women never interested me sexually. I was twelve (12). Sex really never crossed my mind, even when it was supposed to. But I was watching porn, I thought!

Doesn't matter. I didn't want to be part of those acts. That's what made me ace, I thought.

My lord was I wrong. (Not about ace people, but about my identity. This is where things get juicy. And chuddy.)

---

Okay, so cut to two years later. I'm fourteen (14), in grade ten (10) during Art class. One of my friends sat beside me, my ex across from me, and I hated Art class. Why'd I taken this god-awful course again? Regardless, as I sat there and thought, I thought about my bullying up until high school.

I filled out as a kid. I mean that literally, I grew tall and wide really quickly. No one fucked with me when I was in high school. No one wanted to, and I faded to the background.

But in elementary school, I was the new kid. Backing up to 2009, eight-year-old (8) Devon moved. I would celebrate my ninth (9th) birthday in a class where no one knew me or no one cared. Well, that's not true. One kid cared. Bless that kid. Regardless, 9-year-old (9) me had a target on his back. A big one, and it quickly meant I was being bullied.

My mother is terrifying. I use bold there because I don't think italics can describe just how terrifying mama-bear is when she's angry. After finding out that I was being bullied, she pulled into the school and chewed out the principal. And the parents. And the kids. Hell hath no fury like a mother who went through the shit mine did. So quickly the bullying died down.

Stopped? No, but quieted. My new friends surrounded me in a wonderful bubble of love, but that didn't mean they also didn't pick on me. The most common insult? Gay.

Gay? Like, porn gay? No no no, I said. I'm not gay.

Cut back to 14-year-old (14) me, thinking throughout Art class. I swear Ms. Taylor had it out for me. Oh, right, gay.

'Holy shit.' I thought.

'Wait. They're right, I'm gay. I like men. Holy shit I really like men. Men are hot, and I want to be with one so bad. But I live in this crap town of conservatives (my parents taught me right, conservatives are some of the shittiest people on the planet after all).'

Okay, so I'm gay. I figured that out at the very least! Now I have to tell people.

Oh. Fuck. I have to tell people.

Coming out. Hell, as I like to call it. First to my friends. My friends would understand, after all, I had a pansexual friend. What the fuck does pansexual mean? Never mind that Devon, focus on your own damn self for a second.

Oh. My. God. I have to tell people.

I pulled up my big boy pants and blurted out in the middle of class...

Nothing. What did you expect?

I waited 'till the next morning. That made sense.

---

"Hi, Sierrah!" I said to my colourful friend. Her hair was always a different colour every month and still is. I wish I had half the hair strength she must have.

"Hey, Devon!" She said, blue backpack on her back, meeting up with me to walk to school in the morning.

"I have something to tell you. I'm gay." She looked at me and squealed before wrapping me in a big hug.

"I'm so proud of you!" Okay, one down. A lot more to go.

My best friend in high school used to be someone who I absolutely despised. We bonded over our shared dislike of our shared ex. We became really close. Telling him was pretty easy. Okay, two down.

Remember that girl I sat beside during Art? Not my ex, the one I bonded with my best friend over disliking, I meant the girl sitting beside me. Well, let me tell you.

No one can give me a reception nearly half as good as what she did when I told her.

"Sara, I'm gay," I said. Less than five (5) seconds later, my face was buried in the tits of Sara. That was... fun. Not sexual in the slightest, it was fun. She was warm, and she loved me. I could tell that as a friend, Sara would become the most important person in my life. Thank you, Sara. Should you ever read this.

I hope someone reads this.

Anyone?

Moving on, I eventually told all my friends that day. None of them gave a shit! Cool!

My parents.

Oh no. My parents were next.

I'm skipping that part, it's no longer relevant.

Sorry. (Not sorry in the slightest.)

---

So I graduated the gay kid of 2018. Yay! Seventeen-year-old (17) me made it to grad!

But before I did, I need to preface this part of the story. I was, unfortunately, a fan of Soygon of Asskad. And Blairina Weiss.

Shame. Shame. Shame. Not a day goes by where I'm not sorry for my actions during this period of my life. I am so profusely sorry for the racism and transphobia I perpetuated during this period of my life. I was even homophobic. God damn it, Devon, what the fuck are you doing?

I am now a proud socialist. University helped. So did Vaush, and BadBunny (who's chat might be reading this. Henlo Nicole! Henlo chat!).

Scream at me about Vaush later.

Okay, where was I? Right, grad. University applications.

I made it into the University of Toronto Mississauga. Canada's best university. One of the best universities in the world. Holy shit, I should be more proud of myself for that. I am proud. I made it there, and as I write this, I'm on my last year.

Here's to me becoming a med student soon, I hope!

So school happened. I went to school as a shy gay kid with undiagnosed anxiety problems. That wouldn't last, and soon my anxiety was written in the prescriptions I was handed over the counter for Lexapro. This is where I met my first friend from university.

He will remain unnamed for legal reasons.

He introduced me to one of the most beautiful men I've met to this date.

S. (Name redacted for reasons you need not know. Not legal reasons. Personal ones. Please respect this decision.)

Woah, was this guy just... hot. He was an athlete, no way he'd like me. He probably also sleeps around, and I don't want that.

Boy was I wrong. I soon found out that S was very much into me. I was someone's crush. Wow!

That eventually turned into a... relationship. You get the gist. Affirmation.

I was very, very gay. S helped me understand that I was very very gay.

Okay, so eighteen-year-old (18) Devon was gay. That was very clear.

So that's the end of the story, right?

No.

We just crossed the halfway point.

---

Cut to twenty (20). I am gay, an active chatter in BadBunny's (Twitch streamer, not singer) discord, and really really confused.

See, progressive streamers like BadBunny typically have features to add yourself to a role on Discord that would tell everyone your pronouns when they clicked on your profile. This is a really good way to affirm pronouns of everyone, so I'm down.

Well, I do have one problem. Any/all isn't listed here. Wait.

Wait...

Any? All?

Why do I feel like this?

I'm cis. Let me make that clear. I am cisgendered. I identify as a man, I was born a man, and I think I will always be a man. I think.

But I know pronouns don't necessarily tell you someone's gender. They is a really popular pronoun for all sorts of non-binary identities, all of which are different from each other. So pronouns do not equal gender.

Can I really use they/them, she/her, he/him, fae/faer, fawn/fawn, etc/etc. all while being cis? I think so, let's try it! I don't know how to describe my gender, all I know is I'm apathetic to my pronouns.

Cut to a TikTok video. I learned my fucking gender identity from a TikTok video. This is why representation is important.

"Gender Apathy" we're the words coming from this person's mouth. She? He? Them? Didn't matter, they didn't care. I didn't care.

We didn't care.

Holy fuck.

---

Google has been a really important resource for me as an academic student. Wikipedia articles affirm my suspicions before I move onto Google Scholar to look up articles.

I'm fucking kidding.

Fuck Google Scholar.

But Google did introduce me to the world of fandom wikis.

Is gender wiki a thing? LGBTQ+ wiki?

As it turns out, it is.

Gender Apathy is an article there, as well as many many other identities. If you're question, do some keyword searches. You'll never know what you find.

Anyways, Gender Apathy. Cisapathetic, which I kind of interpret as someone who identifies as cisgender but doesn't really care? I guess? This is all still confusing, but whatever. Cisapathetic.

I quickly shared this with all my friends. I found something new out!

But we aren't done yet.

---

Cut to a little while later. It's Pride month, 2021. This month, if you happen to read this as soon as it goes up! Someone on TikTok is making Pride moths.

Fucking TikTok.

Moths were, at one point, a really popular meme online. Lämp. Gen Z humour will be the end of us all.

So naturally, people found a love for moths. Great, that's lead us to this point. I notice during these videos that these moths are pretty. I want one, or rather, two.

I want the modern Pride moth. The trans flag and a black and brown stripe were included on this modern Pride flag to signal that BIPOC are central to Pride, and need to be celebrated and that our trans friends need our help. Need our platform. Need our rights too.

And I wanted the Gender Apathetic moth. After all, it was something new I discovered! Well, I noticed something in the comments while I was requesting a Gender Apathetic moth from this creator (they were open to suggestions, so please don't heckle me about it). One commenter said the words "are you doing a Neptunic/Uranic/Saturnic moth as well?" What the hell are those?

To the LGBTA wiki!

Neptunic is described as a sexuality "attracted to women, feminine non-binary people and neutral non-binary people."

Saturnic is described as a sexuality "attracted to androgynous aligned non-binary people."

Uranic is the one I'm really curious about then. I'm attracted to men, after all. Uranic is described as a sexuality "attracted to men, masculine non-binary people and neutral non-binary people."

Woah.

So let me back up a little bit.

When I had access to Twitter (they suspended me for defending my sexuality from someone who was saying gay men all have AIDS, so thanks Twitter) I once made a thread talking about how I didn't feel comfortable with calling myself gay.

"But Devon," I hear you say, "the whole first half of this story was dedicated to you realizing you were gay! How can you say that after wasting so much of our fucken' time?"

Give me a minute, dear reader. Let me explain what I said in this thread.

As I type this out, I recognize the transphobia I had against trans-men even while typing out that thread. I want to say, right here, right now, that my sexuality is trans-inclusive. Men with vaginas are still men. I am still very much attracted to men with vaginas. But this thread still falls on transphobic remarks. Once again, I profusely apologize for my past. I am currently working towards being a better person to my trans friends, both online and offline. I am doing my best to be better. I love you all, and I thank you for taking the time out of your day to read this.

Oh, and U of T, if you're reading this, before you even think about kicking me out for admitting my previous bigotry, I urge you to think about your staff first. Jordan Peterson still has a job and makes the campus trans-exclusive as he continues to teach. Catch yourself before you come for me, a student doing his best to be better.

Okay, so back to the Twitter thread.

I essentially said something along the lines of this:

I really struggle with calling myself gay when in reality, I'm only attracted to people with penises, and who lack vaginas and breasts. I would have sex with non-binary people who have penises. So am I really just "gay?"

But in a lot more words. Before I continue, I want to take the time to explain how this comment is transphobic, and why I am sorry and why I want to explain that I no longer feel this way. Okay? So, here's the short of it:

I go by the term gay, but by saying I'm explicitly only attracted to people with penises while liking men, I was indirectly making the point that trans-men are not men if they too do not have penises.

This is not true. Trans men are men, and I have come to realize my attraction for trans men as well, despite genitalia. My sexuality encompasses men of all kinds, and non-binary people who are masculine aligned or neutrally aligned. Once again, I can only apologize and do better.

I am sorry for my previous transphobia. I hope I can make it better by acknowledging it and doing my best to avoid these implications ever again.

Okay, now that we have all of that out of the way, let's talk Uranic again.

Uranic really does describe me. I feel it in every bone of my body, that I really do find myself sexually attracted to even non-binary people.

So, gay is out, uranic is in.

Where does that leave me today?

---

When I started this post, I explained how I was a cisgendered gay man who was a liberal who almost fell down the alt-right pipeline. But as I type this post, not only has my identity evolved, but so has my political ideology. I am a cisapathetic, uranic man who still uses the term gay in casual conversation because it's easier even though it doesn't really describe me, socialist.

BadBunny/Nicole, chat, if you're reading this, thank you. You helped me a ton in discovering socialism and to reject ideas of capitalism that only serve to continue the systematic racism against black people, the systematic transphobia that kills trans people, and even the systematic homophobia I face as a "gay" man.

Wow, that was long. Really long. If you made it this far, give yourself a pat on the back. You just read the life history of a twenty-year-old (20) and how he came to understand his identity.

I love you all.

Signed,

Devon.

FunkyFreshHomo on Discord.

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ft-dads-au · 4 years ago

Text

Hang In There

I Take Pride in What I Am 2020 Prompt: Beginnings Pairing(s): Master Bob & Weisslogia

A Collaboration by @mdelpin and @oryu404

AO3 | FF.Net

Summary: Bob Aileron has moved rooms more times than he'd care to remember, cast aside by those who refuse to see past his eccentric exterior. Today he'll meet his new roommate, and he desperately hopes to make a friend.

November 12, 1973

Robert Aileron sat at a table at his favorite coffee shop on campus. His suitcase lay on the ground next to him, and he frowned at it in distaste, hating all the things it reminded him of. In some ways, he mused, it was a visual representation of the current state of his soul.

Battered. Torn. Ugly bits exposed for everyone to see.

Every single time he dug it out from underneath his bed, it signaled a defeat of some kind, starting when his father had sent him to that godforsaken place. The things he had endured in the name of pleasing a God that Bob was pretty sure had abandoned him a long time ago had been both painful and humiliating. Just thinking about it was enough to make him shudder.

None of them had changed a single thing inside him. All it had managed was to make him fear what new terrors would be unleashed upon him once his father realized their best efforts had done nothing to turn him into the kind of son he desired.

As soon as he was allowed to return home, Bob had started walking and never looked back, dragging that stupid suitcase through town after town, encounter after encounter, doing anything that would get him money to keep going.

He’d ended up in Magnolia, arguably one of the more liberal towns in Fiore beside Crocus, hoping that things would be different for him there.

But it turned out being more liberal didn’t mean shit, it was just more of the same. The ridicule, the threats, the attacks that he’d experienced in Clover? Happened there as well.

So Bob decided that if no one would embrace him as he was, he would just have to embrace himself. He lived on the streets most of that first summer, earning enough money in dark alleys to rent a dank room the size of a closet.

He graduated high school, made it through four years of college, and now he was in medical school, trying very hard not to dwell on the things he’d had to do to get there. Or on the fact that no matter how educated the people he met were, the way they responded to him never changed.

Which is why he was getting ready to meet yet another roommate. Each time he was forced out of his room and into another for reasons that were never quite made clear to him, the housing advisor assured him that this one would be the perfect one for him. Despite this, he’d lost track of how many times he’d switched rooms since he’d started medical school the previous year.

He’d hoped this year would be different, but this was already his third room assignment in as many months. Was it too much to ask that for once he’d find someone who could see past his little quirks? It was ridiculous in his opinion, these people were training to be doctors for fuck’s sake.

He sighed into his coffee. Whatever, he’d tried changing in the past, adapting to what some of these people’s expectations had been, but not only had it made him miserable, it hadn’t really made any difference whatsoever, so why bother?

The truth was Bob was tired, beaten down from the constant barrage of insults and rejection. Every single one had chewed off a piece of his soul, and just like his poor suitcase, he was starting to fall apart. He really wasn’t sure how much more he could take before there wouldn’t be anything left.

Besides, why should he have to change? He was fabulous just the way he was. Just a bit ahead of his time, that’s all.

He grinned for a moment, allowing that thought to seep in as he eyed his reflection in the window. That blush he’d picked out this morning matched the bright pink of his sweater perfectly, and his mascara was on point.

He didn’t always primp this much, but he figured if this guy wasn’t going to work out, he might as well know from the beginning. He studied the slip of paper where the housing advisor had scribbled down the location of his new room, Fairy Hills, as well as the name of his new roommate, Weisslogia Eucliffe.

Fairy Hills was one of the quieter dorms on campus, but he could live with that. It would be useful for studying, and he tended to go out for his other interests.

On a whim, he decided to buy some muffins to bring along as a gesture of good faith. It probably wouldn’t make any difference, but at the very least, he could stress eat them later.

Loaded up with his backpack, suitcase, and a box of muffins, he made his way to Fairy Hills, trying his hardest to ignore the tiny flame of hope in his heart that refused to be doused, no matter how many times he was rejected.

He entered the building hoping for an elevator as his room was on the third floor, and he wasn’t looking forward to lugging all his shit up the stairs. The lobby was quiet, which wasn’t all that surprising as classes were still in session. He was happy to see an elevator and immediately rode it up to his floor. He got off, looking at the numbers on the doors as he searched for his room. Bob could feel his hands getting sweatier the closer he got to room 302.

Finally arriving in front of it, he put his suitcase down and fumbled in his pocket for the key. He knocked twice before opening the door, finding the room empty, although one side was clearly occupied.

He moved to what would be his side of the room and dropped his suitcase on top of the mattress, stopping a moment to examine what he could see of his roommate’s belongings and chuckling to himself.

There were no personal belongings anywhere, no family pictures or knickknacks of any kind. Instead, textbooks and notebooks were neatly organized on the desk’s shelf, along with a dictionary. The desk itself was bare except for writing supplies. The bed was nicely made, the dirty clothes were all gathered in a hamper.

Rather than the pinups of big breasted women that he’d become accustomed to living with there were anatomy posters, one detailing the skeletal system, another the muscles, and one of the female reproductive system. This guy was serious, but Bob also had to smile at the last poster that had been meticulously pinned up. It was one he’d seen a few times at stores, showing a picture of a cat dangling from a tree branch, the words Hang in there, Baby written underneath.

He’d begun to unpack his belongings when he heard the sound of the door opening behind him. Bob turned to greet his new roommate, a smile already plastered on his lips only to freeze when he found himself face to face with the most gorgeous man he had ever laid eyes on.

Longish blond hair stood up in unruly spikes with some tendrils framing his face, bringing attention to his eyes, which were a beautiful shade of green. They reminded Bob of the ocean, and just like that great body of water, they made him want to swim in their depths.

“Oh, I completely forgot you were moving in today! Sorry about that, I would have cleaned up.”

Damn it, he had an accent too! His biggest weakness.

”I’m Weisslogia Eucliffe, nice to meet you,” Weisslogia stretched his hand out in greeting, and Bob had to resist the urge to bring it up to his lips to kiss. He forced himself to shake it instead, although the formality of the gesture amused him. This guy was definitely not from around here.

“Bob Aileron,” Bob replied, “Nice to meet you as well.”

He could see Weisslogia looking him over and waited for the inevitable moment when he would frown or look away in disgust, but it never came. In fact, Weisslogia seemed to have no reaction at all. Not to the blush, the mascara, or the bright colors of his clothing. Not even to his painted fingernails. Bob had gone out of his way to paint a picture, and the lack of response to his efforts was disconcerting. He was so confused by it that he didn’t even feel relief.

“Hey, are those muffins?” Weiss asked excitedly as his eyes moved to the box of muffins Bob had placed on his desk. “Could I have one? I was running late this morning and didn’t get a chance to eat breakfast.”

“Yeah, knock yourself out,” Bob muttered, still bewildered.

Weisslogia raised an eyebrow at the comment but shrugged it off, opening the box and moaning happily at the sight. He shoved an entire muffin into his mouth, barely stopping to remove the wrapper.

“Whoa, slow down! There’s plenty more, you’re gonna choke!” Bob watched worriedly, trying to reconcile that this man, who was quite obviously a neat freak, was also the messiest eater Bob had ever seen. Crumbs flew out of his mouth at an alarming rate and damn if the juxtaposition of the two things didn’t make him seem even more interesting. He grabbed a napkin from the box and handed it over.

Weiss gave him a crumbly grin, and Bob felt his heart skip a few beats. He finally managed to swallow the muffin and used the napkin to clean himself up, swiftly putting it in the trash.

“Do you need any help moving in?”

“Nah, I’ve got it down to a science by now,” Bob retorted as he went back to unpacking his suitcase. “So you’re not from Fiore, are you?”

“Nope, I’m from a place called Edolas, it’s an-”

“Oh yeah, that’s an island to the east of here, right?” Bob interrupted, remembering it from his geography class in high school.

“Wow, you’ve heard of it, that’s a first!” Weisslogia’s eyes sparkled at his recognition.

“I used to like maps a lot,” Bob admitted shyly, not bothering to add how he used to dream he could just take off to one of those places and start over.

Weisslogia nodded, grabbing another muffin and wolfing it down in much the same graceless way as before. “Oh, I’m sorry, I’m eating all your muffins,” he apologized with his mouth full, crumbs falling into the collar of his shirt and down on the floor. “Let me make it up to you, I’ll buy you lunch tomorrow!”

Bob found himself nodding along, not the least bit sure of what to make of his new roommate, but excited at the prospect of lunch with a handsome man the following day.

He turned back to his suitcase, attempting to hide his shit-eating grin from his roommate. He’d come in expecting to be rejected, and he’d somehow come out of it with a date.

And even though he knew it wasn’t a real date, it still hinted at a genuine interest on Weisslogia’s part in being his friend, something Bob hadn’t had for a long time.

He pushed the now empty suitcase under the bed, out of sight, daring to believe that maybe he wouldn’t need it again any time soon. That perhaps for once, things would work out in his favor, and this one moment finally marked the beginning of something good in his life.

#fairy tail #ftdadsau #ftlgbtpride2020 #ftlgbtales #bob #weisslogia #I Take Pride In What I Am 2020 #prompt: beginnings #fics #dads pride 2020 #bob & weisslogia

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grimmsnroses · 5 years ago

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So Ruby, out of your teammates, who will you break into yours first? Your sister, Yang? Your tsundere partner, Weiss? The quiet but flighty Blake, to make sure she doesn't run? And what is your plan for the first one?

“Hm? You say something?”

The Team Leader spared you a brief glance before going back to her previous task at hand. Which entail her fucking Weiss Schnee brainless; ever since she had arrived back into this new life. She had forgotten one of the downsides of being younger again, and that had been dealing with Weiss’ bitchy attitude all over again. She had nearly forgotten how annoying she had been initially, and her constant shit-talking her being the team leader, wasn’t really helping matters either. Eventually, the young girl had enough, slapping the Heiress across her face, stunning an owlish Weiss, who hadn’t expected such a sudden action from the supposed cheery and timid girl. She didn’t have the chance to react before she pinned down on her bed. A snap of Ruby’s fingers creating bindings for Weiss, trapping the girl’s arms by her wrist above her head, and spread her legs wide apart.

Weiss gasped at the vulgar position that she was in, about to yell at Ruby and demand that she release her. Her open, however, just served to allow Ruby to plug it up with her balled up panties. Refraining the girl from crying out or call for help. As she didn’t want to do any unwanted attention at the moment, with Blake out researching the White Fang. And Yang possibly hanging out, that just left the two of them to do whatever Ruby, please. Undoing her skirt and letting it fall to the ground, Ruby had to suppress the laugh at the sight of Weiss’ face. The expression of shock and horror etched all over her face at the sight of her throbbing cock, was something worthy of a picture. It almost made her feel terrible about what she was about to do.

…Almost.

Ignoring the muffled pleas, Ruby slowly started pushed herself into Weiss. As she expected and dreamed off, the petite Schnee girl was tight, even tighter than most girls she had fucked in past life. Whether it was because of her status as a virgin; or due to her petite body, she had gained from her years she spent training as both a dancer and fencer, the answer would be unknown to her.

“And I suppose, it ultimately doesn’t matter in then, does it?” Ruby muttered, gently, the soft tone in her voice nowhere near matching the twisted insanity her silver eyes bore at the moment.

Leaving that statement said, Ruby bucked her hips and fully impaled herself into Weiss’ pussy. Relishing in the muffled shriek the Heiress let out as her well-protected virginity was forcibly taken from her. Her bound legs thrashed and twitched uncontrollably, feeling the entirety of Ruby’s monstrous cock drilling deep into her core. Her small stomach bulged out, disfigured to the size and girth occupying her inside, knocking the small breath she had out of her system. Her breathing became even more shallow, once Ruby started moving. Pumping her hips aggressively, the quiet dorm room air soon filled with the sound of Ruby’s hips slapping against Weiss. The intensity of it all was almost maddening to Weiss, each and every violent thrust could be felt. The tip of cock into slamming against her cervical entrance. Giving the impression like her womb was being crushed from the sheer girl. Pain and pleasure crashed down upon her mind simultaneously, battling for dominance over which sensation should the girl in question be feeling. She had often been lead to believe that sexual intercourse while discomforting at first, was something that would leave one breathless. But, this was none of that; the way Ruby fucked her, the way this girl drove her disgusting phallus into her. It was no different than a wild animal breeding with its mate. This only served to confuse the teenage girl as her body was beginning to adjust and clench tightly to the intruding member.

‘I-I don’t understand, how am… I, enjoying being raped like this?’ She willed her mind to fight against the pleasure coursing through her, but it was fruitless. Ruby’s decades of experience and knowledge on pleasing a woman, gave the small crimsonette a significant advantage. Seizing up, she felt Ruby’s mouth wrapping around one of her budding breasts. Her sensitive nipple being traced about by Ruby’s hot tongue.

‘Heh, Weiss may not have a chest like Blake or Yang. But they’re still fun enough to play around with.’

Shooting a hand out, she grabbed Weiss by her throat. Alarming the Schnee when she began squeezing down. “Gonna cum soon,” Ruby grunted, slamming her cock harder into her depths. The sudden asphyxiation causing Weiss’ fold to clench harder around her length. Unwillingly milking her as hard as her body physically could. Drooling endlessly around her makeshift gag, Weiss’ eyes rolled into her skull. Her body spasming through her first-ever climax. Her juices squirting and spraying all over all herself and Ruby; while her pussy grew even tighter around the cock that brought her to this intense orgasm. Ruby herself couldn’t hold it in anymore and came, given one final thrust before blasting her womb full of her hot thick seed. Making Weiss’ baby blue eyes dilate in shock, feeling herself being filled up so suddenly. Inwardly panicking at thought of being potentially knocked up. As she didn’t know whether this was a safe day or not. Toes curling up, her body twitched around the cock; her walls pulsating against Ruby’s member. Ruby soon let out a sigh of relief before pulling out, letting her seed spurt out, making a mess of the bed. Looking down at Weiss, she was met with a teary glare being sent at her.

“Aw, don’t look at me like that.” She pouted cutely, though her tone was clearly mocking the distraught girl. “You might hate me, but don’t worry, by the end of today, you’ll have forgotten all about this.”

Before Weiss could ponder what she meant, the sight of Ruby raising her hand and snapping her fingers was all she saw before passing out.

-A Few Days Later-

“Hey Weiss, you sure you don’t wanna come with us?” Yang asked, asking her baby sister and the Schnee heiress as she and Blake were looking to head out for a day of fun.

“I want to but Weiss is holding me, hostage,” Ruby whined, maintaining her innocent persona.

“Someone has to make sure your grades don’t plummet and since you won’t care about them, I will.” Weiss huffed with a fold of her arms.

The two other girls smiled and chuckled as they way and walked out of the room. Neither one of them the wiser; once the door was closed. Ruby’s cheery smile turned into a salacious grin. Glancing over to Weiss, who had a blush forming on her face. “You did like I ordered you too?”

Weiss slowly pulled up the skirt to her outfit, revealing an active vibrator inside of her snatch. While a bullet vibrator was taped to her clit. The slight trembling made by her legs showed Ruby how much the toys had been affected the flustered Heiress.

“Y-Yes Mistress,” She panted, her pink stained cheek turning full red.

“So you did and you managed to keep a straight face, despite it being in the highest setting. Good girl.” She cupped Weiss’ flushed cheek. “Now then, let’s begin with your training.”

#Ruby Rose #Weiss Schnee #Smut

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bleached-d-soul · 5 years ago

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Team ALAN: Lovely In-CON-veniences

Part 3 of Team ALAB commissions for @the-hapless-ace

This was a mistake.

When you join a terrorist organization, you have to learn how to sense danger before it occurs. You either learn to do it early or have to learn from experiences, sometimes not without the loss of some limbs and sanity. Adam should have know that when Ruby burst into their room with that creepy smile of hers, he should have run and hidden for a week or two.

The Vale Comic Con was an event not unknown to Adam, if only because he once considered it as a potential target for White Fang attack. And no, it wasn't because of the overwhelming amount of Ninja Catgirl cosplayers there. He simply hated the fetishism with reagrds to the faunus. Rehardless of that, he absolutely refused to go.

Unfortunately, he owed Weiss a date of her choosing. And just like the real Schnee, she refused to suffer alone.

"Oh my Gods, can we please take a picture?"

The decision came last moment. And since |Ruby refused to allow him to go there in his normal clothes, he had to make do with whatever stuff he had lying around. His old cloak without the rose emblem. His old mask without color marks. And of course, the black wig provided to him by Blake. Apparently, his ex couldn't miss the chance to get some laughs out of it.

"You look just like the Joker!"

"The clown?"

"No, from Persona series!"

"Ah, right."

He had no idea who that was. In a couple of moments, thankfully, that humiliation was over. Before he could get back to Weiss to give her another piece of his mind though, another couple of girls approached him. More pictures? Fine, whatever got that off his back.

"Can you take a rose from my hands with your mouth?"

Sure, whatever. Quickly, he did as asked. The girl ran away squealing.

"Can you cover your eyes with your hands, please?"

She did promise him to leave quickly so why not. The girl wandered off smiling.

"Can I sit in your lap?"

"Yeah, su-"

The ground shook. The air around them dropped a few degrees in temperature before the wall of ice separated him from the surprisingly large crowd of women. Were they under attack? Finally! Some chance to escape this madhouse and-

"Adam. Taurus."

The chilling and emotionless tone pierced through the air, his eyes drawn towards the source of it. Surrounded by ice and snow, in the middle of the hall stood none other than his girlfriend. And she was absolutely burning with rage, if only the giant Knight of white and blue looming over her was any indication.

"I leave for a few seconds and you are feeling up some other girls?"

What?

"I didn't do anything like that!" Was it really how it looked? He was just trying to get them off his back. It was either caving in to their demands or cutting them down. And it was her and Ruby that explicitly forbade him from killing the people he found annoying. "You know this is not my fault, right?"

Something clicked in Weiss' eyes. The semblance of clearance and understanding that promised him the peaceful resolution and the quiet for the rest of this already unpleasant and annoying day.

That promise died an ugly death as the girl's eyes lost any and all light and her lips stretched into an ugly smile.

One that promised only bloodshed and death.

"You are right... This is not your fault at all."

Good, maybe things weren't so bad.

"It is all these harlots that want you!"

...

Shit.

ALAB

"Yang, are you angry at me?"

"No."

"You look angry."

"I don't."

"Your hair is on fire and your eyes are burning red."

"And?"

Ren looked at his girlfriend's face, wondering what he should say. What he could even say when faced with this angry pout of hers. In many ways. Yang was just as emotionally broken as he was. She hid her abandonment issues and insecurities behind the cocky attitude and pride much like he hid his anger and pain behind the stoic and serene attitude.

But no matter how much they masked their fears and insecurities, those still existed and sometimes came to the surface in the most unfortunate of times. Just like their current situation.

"Sorry for getting us kicked out of that contest," Yang said as they sat down in a nearby cafe. It was a nice place and, thankfully, with only a few people. It was pretty early right now so most attendees must have been stuck buying merch and meeting all the celebrities that were here today. "I know I could have handled that... better than I did."

That was one way to put it.

Ren had little reservations about his body. And even though he was embarrassed with the outfit Yang picked for him, he grew comfortable with it very quickly. Yang herself said she wanted to show off her boyfriend's amazing body in that skintight outfit that consisted of only a shirt that covered his chest and a tight pair of shorts. And she did enjoy the jealous and hungry looks thrown his way.

For a total of ten minutes before she started frantically looking for something to cover him with.

She found nothing and so spent the last hour or so glaring at every woman that passed them by. It was fine, Ren told himself. Glaring and growling was fine as long as things didn't become physical. They eventually did, mostly because he couldn't help himself. Ren rarely indulged in things like video games or junk food like his friends. But when the chance to get the next edition of his favorite game came, he simply couldn't let this chance pass him by.

So he signed up even though Yang wasn't interested and got ready to win. It was all good and great for the first two stages. He was in the lead and, by the looks of it, would be coming home with the prize in his hand.

Then the third stage announced was the couple game. And unfortunately, for all the single ladies and gentlemen, they were paired up with random contestant. It was clear the stage was meant to see who could adapt the fastest and give the most coherent performance. He was lucky to draw the second strongest contestant for himself.

Who turned out to be Neon, the girl Yang fought just a few days ago.

He could have sworn he heard something snap. And when he looked at Yang... Well, he told himself she wouln't do anything drastic in the open.

And for the first few minutes, he was actually right. Their dance was energetic and synchronized, him acting as the strong and solid foundation for Neon's more flashy and bright moves.

The music came to an end, the crowd exploded with claps and whistles. They were going to win, for sure. That game was as good as his!

Then Neon delivered a loud and sharp slap across his ass.

And next thing he knew, the dancing contest turned into a huge catight.

"Ren?"

"Hmm?"

"Are you angry at me?"

"No."

"You look... Well, I never can tell but I would be angry if I were you."

"I am not though," a little bit upset. But not angry. "Plus, I am sure you are not going to-"

She was gone.

He turned to look at the trail of blazes left behind. The sound of an all too familiar laugh of one rollerblading huntress was the proof enough his day was about to become much louder and hotter.

ALAB

Mercury loved to drive the little Red crazy.

Call him an asshole but there was something incredibly satisfying about watching the girl so confident on the battlefield turn into a blushing stammering mess. Sometimes he would kiss her out in the open or flirt with her during the spar. She looked so cute when she was trying to take his head off with that scythe of hers while burning red as her cape.

Today was an exception, though.

Today it was him on the other end of the stick.

"C-Come on, Red, be reasonable here, please?" He was backed against the wall, the passers-by either ignoring them or taking pictures. Something about real-life Yandere of whatever the fuck those nimrods were whispering about. "R-Ruby, I swear to Gods, stay away from me with that marker!"

She dressed up as some superhero named... Flasher or whatever, he didn't pay much mind. He did, however, take the opportunity to show off his assets and get the girl all hot and bothered under that skintight suit of hers. Seriously, for the girl with so many reservations and social troubles, she seemed unaware of how many guys threw horny looks her way.

He did. And now those guys stayed far away from her.

Apparently, she was not as oblivious as he thought and noticed all the lustful and hungry looks. But only the ones that came from other girls towards him. Which brings us back to him, backed into the corner with his girlfriend trying to mark him of all things!

"I will be quick, Mercury, I promise!"

"That's a permanent marker, Ruby!"

"I am sure we can remove it later!"

"This doesn;t make it better!"

In hindsight, it was all his fault. He should have chosen something that could be actually zipped up. Instead he went dressed as this emo ninja with weird eyes powers who dressed like a stripper. And now Ruby wanted to write her name on his chest like some toy.

Sounded kinky but it wasn't!

"I will buy a bunch of strawberry cookies a-!"

"No!" She yelled, covering her ears. "You can't bribe if I can't hear you!"

An opening to exploit! Yes!

He rushed past her and into the crowd. Maybe he could snatch someone's cape or something? Before he could rob some poor sucker, the torpedo of rose petals smashed into him from behind. Positioning herself on the top of his stomach, Ruby showed no hesitation or shame as she breathed down his neck.

With the eyes full of the terrifying emotion and her smile so hollow it sent chills down his smile, Ruby whispered:

"Now they all will know you are mine and only mine!"

Her marker stabbed into his chest like a knife, marking him as her property and lover.

Somehow, he didn' feel so scared about it.

"Now let's go and show them all that you are mine!"

... And now he was.

ALAB

"Go and tell her she is ugly."

"I am not doing that."

"Fine, then the collar stays on."

"Ugh..."

Out of his entire team, Jaune was possibly the only one excited to come here. He never attended one of the major conventions since, well, his town didn't have any and he barely had the money to come here. So when Ruby won the total of eight passes here, he was ready to kiss her! Well, not really, since she was dating Mercury and that was violation of a bro code.

Also because he also had a girlfriend whom he liked a lot

Even if she could become a bit... possessive.

"Come on, this doesn't even make any sense for me to wear a collar! I am Leon Kennedy!" And Leon Kennedy was a badass that could never stay caught for that long. "Also Ada uses a giant crossbow and your weapon looks nothing like that."

"I don't give a shit, it was the costume the guy in the store recommended," Vernal scoffed as she tugged on his leash. Her eyes scanned the crowd like an expert predator. She saw a couple of nerds drooling over how tight the pants hugged her legs and ass. Heh, good time jerking off, losers. Then her eyes caught some girls drooling over how tight Jaune's pants hugged his ass and legs.

...

They would have to go. Not now, of course. Her boyfriend always got upset whenever she threatened other girls with violence, Gods know why though.

"V-Vernal, where are we going?"

"Just shut up and follow me, loverboy."

Vernal might have lived in Beacon now but she still lived by the laws of her tribe. And the law of the strong was simple back home: See. Want. Take.

The last part - about putting down anyone who tried to take something from you - was an unspoken rule, of course. Back in the tribe, it was the strongest who got the best food and stuff. Not because they were better at scavenging and stealing, but rather because they knew how to take something from others better. And Vernal knew that, if she allowed even one of the girls here approach her boyfriend, she would give everyone the signal she was soft.

Not happening.

"And now for the second place in our couples costu- Hey, ma'am, you are not supposed to-Oh! Wait, not in the face! Not in the face!"

The silence fell over the crowd.

All eyes were on them,

Vernal took the mic.

Jaune covered his face.

"Alright, listen up, all of you! I know that most of you here are losers with nothing better to do than dress up as leather-clad morons and bitches and think you are cool because you watched some Mistralian cartoons with lots of yelling. I also know that at least eighty per cent of you are fucking virgins desperate to get some and watching some camgirls dress up like your favorite cartoon girls drives you nuts," she ignored the death glares thrown her way. Jaune yelped as Vernal dragged him up and planted a deep wet kiss on his lips, invading his mouth with her tongue for the crowd to see. "Having said that, neither me nor MY boyfriend here are as lame you all. And if I see any of you bitches looking at my fucking man, remember-"

She spread her arms, showing her toned body for people to drink in.

"- this is what he enjoys every night. Remember that before looking at him next time!"

Vernal dropped the mic.

Then she grabbed him by the collar and began passionately marking him as hers.

Regardless of that, Jaune would cry as he would later find out he was banned from this convention for the foreseeable future.

Just like the rest of his and RWBY teams.

#alab #rwby #team alab #jaune arc is leon kennedy #vernal is ada wong #lie ren is nikaido ren #yang xiao long is caulifla #mercury black is sasuke uchiha #ruby rose is flash #adam taurus is joker #weiss is saber

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