This Girl's Kind of Weird... - Chapter 3

Next chapter! Sorry, this took a bit. We see more of the chaos Ruby causes and a setup for more timeline divergences.

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Blake's time in Beacon had been an interesting one. Granted she'd only been here for a week or so, but it'd been interesting all the same. In some ways, Huntsman culture had a lot of similarities to the White Fang. Huntsmen were a prideful bunch, intentionally or otherwise. They were some of the strongest people in their generation and pitted against Grimm and criminals. That led to a lot of burgeoning egos about who was the strongest in their already exclusive group.

It reminded her of some of the White Fang members she'd talked with over the years. Huntsmen were told they were heroes. The protectors of mankind, to quote the headmaster. She knew that it was only to give them a more positive view of themselves compared to being mercenaries, but it also led to inflated egos and a sense of superiority. They were the heroes, people should be grateful to them and they could do no wrong.

The way Sienna ran the White Fang was similar. They weren't criminals or terrorists, they were freedom fighters and revolutionaries. All the blood they spilled was for the greater good of ensuring Faunus equality no matter who they'd done it to. And if you died? You would be remembered forever for your instrumental sacrifice for the cause of equality. It led to a culture of martyrdom where they treated death as the ultimate honor.

She'd come to Beacon for a fresh start. An escape from the five years of constant bloodshed. Well...sort of. At least she wouldn't feel guilty about killing Grimm or wonder if she was falling down some slippery slope. Killing Grimm was dangerous work, but it would give her the peace of mind she so desperately needed.

She wondered what Adam and the rest of her old allies were doing now. Despite how things ended between them, a part of her still wished them the best. Adam had started with the best of intentions once and she hoped that her leaving would be just the wake-up call he needed to realize that he was pushing past the brink. Maybe one day she could see them again...

Blake turned to another page of the book she was reading and tried to push that thought from her mind. She was currently at the library hoping for some peace and quiet. Team BYRN was...a bit much. Ren was a surprising voice of reason, but Yang and Nora often drowned him out. How the boy hadn't gone insane dealing with the shorter girl's antics for the past ten years.

"Heya, Blake!"

She was jolted out of her thoughts by the sudden greeting. The hidden Faunus looked up at the new arrival and saw Ruby Rose looking down at her with an almost-blinding grin. She didn't know much about the leader of Team RASP. She was apparently a prodigy of some kind, and her performance in Initiation spoke for itself. She had to admit that she was sort of jealous. If she had that level of skill, she could've just taken the test to be a Huntsman without sneaking into an academy.

"Hello." Blake nodded and turned back to her book, the universal sign of 'please leave me alone'. Unfortunately, the shorter girl didn't take the cue and took the empty seat next to her. Blake sighed. Why couldn't she have gotten into a team (and sister team) full of introverts? It would've made her life so much easier, "Can I...help you?" she reluctantly asked. The silver-eyed girl was just looking at her, legs swinging idly.

"Oh, do you mind? I was waiting for you to finish."

"I can't exactly read while you're staring at me." She sighed and snapped the book shut, taking a mental note of the page, "What do you want?" Maybe she came across as unfriendly, but it was better if people didn't get too close. That way they wouldn't feel hurt if they ever found out the truth about her...

"Oh, nothing, nothing! Just figured that it's been a week since our teams were formed and we never really talked, that's all." She leaned back, still sporting that electric grin, "We're leader buddies! That and you're Yang's partner."

"Okay...?" Blake raised a brow. The girl was just being friendly, but she still found it odd. The White Fang, or at least her cell, wasn't too keen on 'unnecessary closeness'. They knew they could trust one another in their fight, but that was as far as their bonds went. Adam had told her once that being too attached was detrimental. They had to be ready to sacrifice themselves for the cause. If she was too attached to someone, her grief would distract her once they were gone.

Considering the two of them had been in a relationship at the time, she wondered if he realized how contrary he was being.

"Speaking of, how is Yang? She just kinda...cries whenever she looks at me." Ruby rolled her eyes and huffed.

"She's...fine," Blake lied through her teeth. Yang Xiao Long had made a...powerful first impression. She was strong and she knew it, but more than that, she was the exact opposite of Blake. The kind of woman who liked to spend her time having fun and wore her heart on her sleeve. The kind of person Blake would've normally avoided if she had any choice in the matter.

Of course, that ball of flaming energy lasted for only a couple of days. After she'd gone shopping  with Ruby, she'd...changed. Blake still remembered how she came back to her room looking like a woman defeated before she collapsed on her bed and started crying her eyes out. There was a lot of 'it's all my fault' and 'I'm a horrible big sis' said, which left Blake feeling rather awkward about the whole thing.

It made her almost wish for the energetic brawler with no sense of personal space. Almost.

"Really?" Ruby raised a brow.

"...Fine, she's been weird." Blake sighed, "What did you do to her? She only got that way after she went out with you."

"Nothing! It's not my fault she's being stupid." She huffed again and crossed her arms. Blake had to remind herself that this girl showed as much skill as a fully trained Huntress, "She'll move on when she realizes I'm not a baby."

"Right. Well, is that all?" Because she really wanted to get back to her book now.

"Nope!" Ruby smiled again and leaned in close. Blake had to resist her natural impulse to shove her away, "I wanted to talk to you about something personal. Wanna go somewhere more private?"

"I think I'd rather talk about it here, thanks." Blake pursed her lips. What was with this girl?

"Are you sure? It has something to do with a certain fanged group of a certain alabaster color."

Silver eyes flicked upwards to Blake's bow and the secret Faunus felt like her heart stopped. Ruby was still smiling as innocent as can be, but all Blake saw was a malevolent presence straight out of her scariest horror novels, "How did you...?" her voice came out weak and strained. For the first time in the months since she'd left it all behind, Blake felt true fear.

"Hm, that's a secret~" Ruby put a hand to her lips and winked, "Now come on, we should really talk somewhere more private, okay?"

Blake nodded mutely and followed the younger girl out of the library. Ruby was humming a tune like all was right with the world. Was was this, Blake wondered. Blackmail? There had to be a reason that she didn't just go to the headmaster or someone else with what she knew. She watched as Ruby swung her arms idly and continued to hum, the very picture of innocence. What devious things hid under that pure face, she wondered.

Ruby led her behind one of the buildings in the courtyard. Her instincts bade her strike now while her potential blackmailer was distracted, but she ignored it. She didn't have a weapon, and she knew the girl wasn't as demure as she looked. The same applied to most Huntsmen, really. Yang, despite her muscles, didn't exactly look like someone who could take on an entire group of officers without taking a scratch.

Ruby spun around and looked up at her with the same grin once they arrived. She was the very picture of innocence, "So..." Ruby put both hands behind her back and stood on the balls of her feet, "You okay to talk about your old not-buddies now?"

"How do you know that?" Blake hissed, "I made damn sure that no one knew about my past."

"I mean...not really? The bow's cute and all, but it twitches." Her bow twitched in agitation and Ruby cooed, "See? It just did it again!"

"Fine!" Blake threw her hands up, "But even if you did find out I was a Faunus, how in the world could you have found out...who I was?"

"I have my ways." Ruby hummed cheerily. It sounded like a death knell to her, "And, you know, you didn't change your last name. I always wondered how no one else caught onto it. Maybe it's cause your dad wasn't violent like Sienna? Especially Weiss." Blake cringed. The thought of Weiss Schnee finding out about her past was a nightmare. Thank God they weren't on the same team.

"Fine, so you know..." Blake didn't see the point of denying it. She could, but then Ruby could go to someone like Goodwitch and then she'd get in trouble. There was a non-zero chance that they would find something to connect Blake to her sordid past, "The question is, what are you gonna do about it?"

"Huh?" Ruby tilted her head to the side.

"You know what I was. Is this the part where you try to get me expelled?" And that's if she was lucky. Arrested seemed more likely.

"Wait, what? Are you crazy?" Ruby huffed and crossed her arms, "Why would I do that?" Blake didn't answer. She wasn't going to play along with her sick mind games, "Look, I only came here to get some info. You know that Adam guy. You know him, right?"

"Adam?" Blake blinked. She shouldn't have been surprised that Ruby knew the name. Adam was (in)famous considering his exploits. He was probably the White Fang's strongest fighter, "Yeah...why?"

"Well, word on the street is that he's planning to do something nasty. Like 'destroy all of Vale' bad," Ruby said in a conspiratorial whisper, "And since I live in Vale, I kinda wanna stop that. I figured you did too since you're on a whole redemption quest to wash away the sins of your past."

Blake puckered her lips in a frown. Ruby wasn't wrong, but hearing her choice reduced to such a thing made her feel irritated. She shook away that thought and focused on Ruby's words instead, "So...you think Adam's going to try and destroy Vale?" Blake asked, making no attempt to mask her disbelief, "Look...I know that Adam's not..." She chose her next words carefully, "He's not that ba-"

Ruby suddenly put both hands on her shoulders and looked her dead in the eye. All trace of mirth was gone, replaced with a deathly serious look that left Blake shivering in her boots, "Yes, Blake. He is that bad." The reaper's voice was low and flat, brooking no room for argument, "I know it doesn't seem like it now, but he's not gonna change his ways just because you left him on that train."

"H-How did you..."

"I have my ways." And suddenly she was all smiles again. She pulled back and shook her head, "Listen to me. Adam Taurus is bad news. He's worse than raisin cookies, and that's saying something since those things are the most abominable things on Remnant."

"Uh..." The sudden shift in mood left her floundering. What was with this girl?

"I know you probably don't know much. You left that life behind, and that's really awesome of you." Ruby's words sounded sincere despite the situation, "What I need to know is about Adam Taurus specifically. Not the White Fang, just him. You knew him best, so if anyone can get into his head and figure out what he might be planning, it's you. If he was trying to destroy Vale, what would he do?"

"I...I don't..."

"I'm not asking you for it now. We still have some time." Ruby stepped back and suddenly held her right hand in a firm but gentle grip with both of her own, "I know this is hard. He...didn't treat you well and you just wanted a fresh start. If I knew where he was then I wouldn't ask you at all, but I don't, so I have to ask. You're the only one who can get into that creep's head and make sure that he can't hurt anyone else."

"How...How are you even sure that he's going to do something like that?" Blake asked.

"You don't wanna know." The graveness in the younger girl's tone made her shudder. Was she...had she fallen victim to some tragedy in the past because of Adam? Yang never said anything about it, but that might've been because they didn't know each other that well. Blake was keeping her own secrets, "The point is we can stop something horrible from happening and I need your help. I know you want to stop him too."

"...Let's say I believe you about Adam planning to destroy a whole kingdom. What happens next?"

"You give me the info and I go stop him."

"By yourself?" Blake raised a brow.

"Yup." Ruby's tone had no trace of doubt or hesitation. Blake didn't know whether to be annoyed or impressed, "Trust me, I can handle it. All I need is for you to help me find the guy then I'll do the rest?"

"...And if I say no?" She wouldn't - if Ruby was telling the truth then she was obligated to help - but she felt compelled to ask anyway.

"Then...I'd be disappointed."

Whatever relief Blake had disappeared and was replaced with a cold dread. For all of Ruby's good intentions and sincerity about how she believed Blake wanted to atone for her past, the double meaning behind her words was obvious. She'd be disappointed...and then she'd go tell the headmaster because Blake 'proved' that she wasn't honest about wanting redemption.

"I-I'll help you!" Blake said quickly, "I'll tell you when I come up with something!"

"Great!" Ruby's smile was all teeth and her grasp on Blake's right hand tightened. She felt like a vice was clamping down on her, "Tell me as soon as you can. We need to get that psycho into jail as soon as possible."

"Y-Yeah..."

"Oh, and before I forget! How's it going with Yang?" She waggled her brows.

"What?" Blake was caught flat-footed at the sudden change in topic, "We're...fine? I told you before."

"Not that." Ruby rolled her eyes and let go of her hand, "She's being a weirdo 'cause I'm actually acting my age. I mean how are things between the two of you!"

"I...sorry, what do you mean?"

"Ugh, you two are still blind." Ruby crossed her arms, "Listen, Yang puts up this mask about how she's this badass party girl that doesn't give a crap about anything, but she's a total wallflower. You get me?"

"Not particularly."

Ruby shook her head again and muttered something under her breath that even her cat ears couldn't make out. She suddenly had a bright smile on her face, "Whatever, we can deal with that later. Just make sure to give Yang a hand whenever she needs it." Ruby simpered. Another threat, Blake wondered, "Listen, I gotta go. Call me on my scroll if you hear anything, okay? See ya!"

Ruby waved cheerily and sped away with her Semblance. Blake watched her go without a word then looked down at the ground. Being blackmailed by another student wasn't how she expected her time at Beacon to go. She was tempted to ask Yang for help before thinking better of it. Her partner was acting weird and would probably side with her sister regardless.

In fact, it was probably for the best if she didn't interact with Yang unless she had to. She'd considered trying to get closer to her partner despite her odd behavior, but if she was anything like Ruby then it was probably best she keep her distance.

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Jaune felt like a man walking to his execution as he made his way to the training room, Crocea Mors held limply at his side. Today was his first time training with Ruby. He knew he needed the help - he wouldn't even have Aura if not for her - but he didn't like the idea of staying in a room alone with his blackmailer. So far she hadn't done anything, sure, but the implicit threat from the first day still hung over his head.

And yet he went along with it anyway. Not just because of the blackmail, but because he knew that he needed it. He'd gotten lucky enough to not get called up into Combat Class yet, but he knew it was only a matter of time. The professor would notice that he wasn't trained and then she'd start asking questions. Jaune shuddered. He was caught between a rock and a hard place, and he really couldn't blame anyone but himself.

In his defense, how was he supposed to know he had a stalker with Huntress-level training?

Jaune took a deep breath and looked up at the door to the private gym. Ruby told him that she'd reserved it just for them for the next few hours. He had to do this, he told himself. Not just to keep his family safe, but also to accomplish his dream of being a Huntsman. With that in mind, pressed his scroll against the reader and stepped inside the room.

"Jaune! You're here!" Ruby cheered. Despite the situation, he found himself staring at her outfit. A dark top that left her midriff and arms bare, black and red yoga pants that clung tightly to her legs, and similarly colored sneakers. It wasn't anything scandalous, but her touchy behavior from before had made his mind wander into places that it really shouldn't have.

"Y-Yeah..." He rubbed the back of his neck. His own outfit wasn't anything spectacular. A white shirt, gray sweatpants, and the same sneakers he usually wore. He could've sworn Ruby looked disappointed when she saw him, but it was quickly replaced by the same smile she usually wore.

"Alright, set your sword down next to Crescent Rose." She gestured to the compact scythe leaning against the wall.

"I'm not gonna use it? I thought this was training?"

"It is, silly, but your body needs to be conditioned first. Training isn't picking up a sword and swinging it at Grimm. Your body first needs to get used to the strain. So we're going to start with regular exercises first. If you do good then maybe we can do some basic swinging drills, but that's for later. We have to start from the basics. So..." Ruby grinned, "Let's get some stretching done."

Surprisingly, she was dead serious about all of that. Jaune spent the next few hours stretching and running across the length of the wide room with Ruby coaching him. He expected her to do something off and cause trouble, but she didn't. She was stern and professional about the whole thing. Not mean like Weiss was, but she'd definitely pushed him to his limit.

"Ten more, Jaune!" Ruby said as she crouched beside him. His latest exercise was pushups. He was told to do sixty 'just to start' and he'd followed her orders. His arms felt like jelly and his entire body was coated in sweat, but he refused to stop. This was what he wanted, wasn't it? Someone to train him to be a Huntsman no matter how hard it was and how long it took.

He finished up the required number and then collapsed on the mats. He felt sore all over, but he couldn't deny that it was a good kind of pain. He did some exercises back home, sure, but it was nothing compared to this. Having someone else here also kept him from stopping halfway or being lazy.

"Good job." Ruby beamed and ruffled his sweat-matted hair, "I booked the gym for the whole week, so we're gonna keep going."

"Can I...use the sword yet...?" He panted.

"Not yet." Ruby shook her head, "But I want you to bring Crocea Mors with you every day. You might do extra good and then we can get started on the sword lessons early." She stood up and offered him a hand which he took without thinking. Being completely exhausted tended to remove any hesitation, "Take a shower then get some sleep. We still have classes tomorrow and you need to keep up with both that and your training. Okay?'

"G-Got it..." Jaune nodded and stumbled off to the showers. All thoughts of being blackmailed were gone from his mind, replaced with the utter fatigue from today's training. It was an odd feeling. No matter how much he trained back home, he never reached the point of wanting to collapse. He wondered if every part of training was going to be like this from now on. He didn't know if he'd survive it.

Sleep came mercifully quickly after that. He passed out less than a minute after lying down and woke up feeling...great, actually. The expected sore muscles weren't there at all. Ruby told him later that Aura repaired all muscle tears while he slept, which was why she insisted on training with it 'off'. That was how all Huntsmen trained, really. Push their bodies to the limits, heal them overnight, and repeat.

He was feeling so good that he didn't even care when Ruby pressed up close to him at breakfast and started feeding him, "Come on, Jaune~ Ahhh~" She raised the spoon full of eggs and beans to his face. She'd chosen his food, too. It wasn't just having the right amount of exercise but also the right diet, she said. No part of that required that she feed him, but he didn't have the energy to argue.

How she wasn't embarrassed at all, he had no idea. Pyrrha was blushing and tried not to look while Weiss' face was similarly red and she muttered something about how 'shameless' the two of them were. Jaune couldn't even muster the will to defend himself.

Their sister team wasn't much better. Blake had her eyes glued to her book, though she occasionally glanced up to look at Ruby. Nora looked intrigued and was trying to do the same to Ren, who tried and failed to politely refuse the spoon pressed against his left cheek. And then there was Yang. The other blonde was rocking on her her chair with her arms around her knees and lamenting where she went wrong.

He was just gonna ignore her...

A part of him wept as he swallowed the food. This was almost exactly what he wanted. A cute, kickass Huntress who cared enough to feed him without any shame. If only she wasn't a blackmailing stalker who knew about his family...

The rest of the week passed with the same routine. Wake up, eat Ruby's prescribed diet, classes, exercise, sleep, repeat. It didn't take him long to get used to the rhythm, much to his surprise. It helped that Ruby, for all of her quirks, was a really good teacher. Strict but fair, to use his mom's words. She pushed him to his limits but not to the point where his body broke from the strain and she was generous with encouragement and praise.

He idly wondered what she got out of it. Sure, she was his stalker and all, but something like this took a lot of time and effort. Wouldn't making him a good fighter just make blackmailing him way harder? Or was she just so confident that she figured that she could always take him down if she had to?

Saturday arrived soon after, which meant all-day training. He was both dreading and oddly looking forward to it. Ruby told him that he was doing well enough that they could get started on some weapons drills today.

Most of the hours were spent on the same exercises, but eventually, she told him to pick up his sword. It amazed him how much lighter it felt in his hands compared to before. He wasn't a bodybuilder like that Cardin guy, but could definitely feel some of his work already paying off.

"Alright, Jaune. Show me how you swing a sword."

"Uh, alright..." He shifted from one foot to another uncomfortably and did just that. He tried to remember how the warriors in his favorite video games did it and looked to Ruby for approval once he was done. She shook her head and sighed, "No good?" He winced.

"Nope." She came up behind him and traced her hands up his arms. He jumped at the sudden contact, especially when she drew in closer and pressed herself up against his back. He could feel her breasts through her thin top, "You're too stiff." The word made him cringe, "Huntsmen and Grimm are fast, Jaune. Even people with two-handed weapons aren't slow. Just look at Nora. You can't do it like this."

"S-So what should I do?" He gulped nervously.

"Get faster." She moved her hands and positioned his arms till he was holding his sword with just one hand, "You're using a shield and this is a bastard sword. Using both hands is pointless. Maybe you can do it that way if you want to put a little more force into your swings, but we can do that later."

"Right..." Gods, why was she still so close?

From behind Jaune, Ruby smirked, though, of course, he couldn't see it.

"Let's take it slow," she whispered, standing up on her tiptoes. It wasn't enough for her to reach his ear, but it was enough to make him shudder, "Hold the grip firmly, Jaune. Your weapon is your lifeline out there. If you let go, you're dead." She shifted her hand till her smaller fingers were intertwined with his over the grip, "Out there, it's nothing but you and your weapon. Even when your partner fails you, your weapon never will."

"R-Right..." he said again.

"That's why you have to care for your weapon," she continued, voice taking on a somewhat breathy tone, "Some people just don't care, and then their weapon fails them. You don't want that, right?" Jaune shook his head numbly, "Good. So you need to take good care of her. She needs a lot of love, care, and thorough attention. Do that and she'll never fail you."

"I...I think Crocea Mors is more of a 'him', actually," Jaune laughed nervously.

"I wasn't just talking about the sword."

He didn't get the chance to say anything before Ruby jumped up slightly and blew on his ear. He was ashamed to say that he did jump up and scream, though it was quickly drowned out by Ruby giggling and looking up at him with a mischievous smile. It looked absolutely cute, but right now, all he could think about was how close she'd been and the way she whispered to him.

'Don't even think about it, Jaune. She's a stalker.'

"Alright, enough fun. Time to start training!"

At least the drills kept him distracted. It didn't take long for his arms to feel like they were about to fall off, though he welcomed the feeling.

The training ended earlier than normal. She expected them to continue until the middle of the night, but they stopped in the afternoon with Ruby telling him that he had to pace himself. Jaune didn't argue and just went to the shower to let the warm water wash away his exhaustion. He needed to get a grip. It didn't matter how cute and helpful she was, she was still a blackmailer. He had to remind himself of that.

He changed into some fresh clothes and walked over to their room. Weiss and Pyrrha weren't gonna be there. Pyrrha said she had to meet her agent about some kind of commercial (she really was famous) while Weiss said she'd be in Vale all day to see the quality of their Dust. That left him alone with Ruby, which wasn't a comforting prospect. Whatever. He'd just get some of his stuff then head down to Vale too.

Jaune opened the door with his scroll and-

"Mmm~"

That was Ruby's voice. His hand gripped the doorknob tightly and he stopped himself from pushing the door open like he wanted. Instead, he froze on the spot with the door only opened a crack to let him hear what was going on inside.

"Ha~"

He should close the door. That was the right thing to do. Even without seeing inside, a part of him already knew what was on the other side. So the right thing to do would've been to shut the door and walk away.

"Ngh~"

He didn't. Instead, he cracked it open just a bit and looked through.

It was exactly what he expected. Ruby was lying down on her back naked as the day she was born. Her left hand pinched her nipples while her right reached down to the thin slit between her legs. The position of their shared bed allowed him to see everything and Jaune watched, body shaking, as she continued her self-pleasure.

She traced her pointer and middle finger across her petals and moaned softly. She was already wet, he could see that from where he stood, and yet she continued to rub at the doors to her entrance without breaking the boundary. Jaune swallowed and gripped the doorknob so tightly that it was a wonder that he didn't pull it off with his shaking. Did she know what she was doing? That anyone could walk in on her?

"Ha~" She licked her pink lips and continued to play with herself. There was nothing inexperienced or fumbling with her movements. Her short, slim fingers worked dexterously and he found himself completely unable to look away as she pinched her hard, pink nipples between two of her fingers.

Jaune had to bite his tongue to keep from making a sound when she finally stopped rubbing at her lower lips and inserted her pointer finger between the folds. He needed to turn away, the sensible part of his mind screamed, and yet he was utterly unable to. His eyes were completely focused on the digit as it slowly slipped inside Ruby's sopping wet quim.

And then she inserted another. Jaune felt his mouth go dry as she pushed both her pointer and middle finger up to the knuckle, "Ngh~" She let out a rough sound and let herself relax for just a moment. It didn't take long before she continued, pulling her fingers back before shoving them back inside. In, out, in, out. He heard the sounds of flesh meeting flesh mixed with her soft moans of pleasure.

Jaune had watched porn before. He was a healthy young man with hormones just like the rest of the people his age. And yet despite that, despite watching older, more mature, and curvaceous women being taken in all sorts of ways, he found himself utterly entranced watching his partner pleasure herself with just her fingers. Was it because he knew her personally? Because he was seeing it himself instead of through a screen? Regardless, he found himself unable to close the door like he should.

His cock strained against his jeans and he clamped down the urge to do anything with it. He was still out in the halls, and despite how utterly shameless the whole thing was, he still had enough sense (and pride) to not expose himself where anyone could see it.

Her fingers started moving faster now, pushing in and out of her core like a piston. The pale digits were coated with see-through fluid, which only made sliding in and out easier for her. His cock was so hard now that he could practically feel it fighting its way through his zipper. He needed to turn away now, he thought. Any longer and-

"Jaune~"

Jaune's eyes widened and he watched as Ruby - stalker, blackmailer, partner - came while calling his name. The white-ish fluid shot out of her pussy lips and dripped down between her fingers to the sheets between her legs. Right now, he didn't even care that their beds were close enough that she probably stained his sheets too, or that he'd just watched something private that no one should see.

And then his eyes flicked upwards and saw that she was looking at him with her lips curled up in a devilish smirk.

Jaune slammed the door shut and stumbled back till he hit the opposite wall. She saw him. More importantly, she was satisfied that he looked in on her. His legs finally gave in and he was forced to with his back against the wall. He hadn't just imagined that. Ruby knew that he was watching and she looked like she enjoyed it! Was...Was this another way to blackmail him? Show the world that he was a pervert who looked in on his partner's private time? He couldn't exactly cry victim there compared to everything else she threatened him with.

He expected her to open the door with that innocent-looking smile on her face, but she didn't. Jaune stayed there for a few minutes and shut his eyes tight, calming himself enough that the stiffness from before disappeared. There was no way he was going in there alone. He stood up shakily and limply dropped his bag next to the door before shuffling awkwardly to the bullhead docks. Some time down in Vale would be just the break he needed...

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Inside the room, Ruby giggled to herself as she stood up from the bed. She stretched her arms above her head and then put on Jaune's hoodie, letting the warmth comfort her in the cold room.

Mission Success.

She giggled again as she remembered the look on Jaune's face. He looked so embarrassed when she 'caught' him; so cute! To think that she was worried that he wouldn't be attracted to her now because of how she looked. So silly. Of course, he'd still like her! The two of them were pretty much destined to be together. Still, she was worried enough that she did her little test.

And he'd passed with flying colors! She saw the look in his eyes. He wanted her as much as she wanted him. She would've been so happy if he stepped inside to have some fun, but she didn't let it disappoint her too much. Jaune talked a big game before when he tried to woo Weiss, but he was always such a shy person when it came to doing anything more than that. No wonder it took them four years (and even longer from his point of view) to get anywhere...

Ah, but she wasn't gonna dwell on it now! She and Jaune were gonna get together soon and everything would be right with the world. Well, not exactly, but it'd be a good start. She had to stop Cinder, then stop Adam, then stop Salem. Oh, and she had to make sure that Blake and Yang got together. Yang was acting like a dummy right now, but Ruby did still want her to be happy.

And she'd already planted the seeds by encouraging Blake to talk to her. They were probably flirting already.

Ruby sniffed at the hoodie's collar and sighed happily. She was so close to making her move on Jaune. His obvious attraction only emboldened her. She'd wait till next week when the two of them were alone before she pounced. Oh, she was already shivering just thinking about it. A relationship without the weight of the world on their shoulders and Jaune not having to live through a decade of isolation in a fairytale world. It would be so amazing!

But first, she had to focus. Cinder was gonna make her plans soon and she had to figure out which one to stop first. The Breach was her first choice, but she knew now that Cinder hadn't planned for it to go off so soon, so maybe it was safe to put it off for now? She also knew that Cinder and her cronies would arrive in school as students next semester. That'd give her the perfect chance to take them out and give the powers of the Fall Maiden back to that Amber woman.

Her thoughts drifted back to Roman. She'd initially told him to confess everything he knew about Cinder to the headmaster. It didn't take her long to realize that wasn't the best idea. If he said something then Cinder might change her plans and not enroll herself in Beacon. So she had to bust into the precinct and tell him she changed her mind. At least he was cooperative. A scythe to the throat tended to do that to a person.

There was Lionheart too. He was a traitor and working for Salem, and she knew that he was responsible for Mistral losing a lot of their Huntsmen, but she didn't really know how to expose him without alerting Cinder. The only thing she'd done so far was leave a note at the headmaster's desk warning him to keep an eye on that cowardly lion and check in on where he was sending his Huntsmen without alerting him to what he was doing. Hopefully, Ozpin would be smart enough to take the warning.

She spent the next hour or so mentally filing her plans. Trying to fix the timeline was a lot more complicated than those comic books made it look. Butterfly effect and all that jazz. Stopping Roman was easy since Cinder didn't really care if he was arrested, but for now, she had to be a bit more careful. That was why she'd subtly asked Blake for information. She needed to stop Cinder and then Adam right after before he decided to co-opt her plans to destroy Vale.

Her scroll buzzed and she smiled when she saw she got a message from Jaune. What could it be, she wondered. Maybe he'd gotten past his shyness and wanted to ask her out on a date?

She tapped the message and her good mood swiftly disappeared. There was a picture there. A picture of Jaune tied up and gagged with a sneering Neo next to him taking a selfie. Ruby sat up on the bed and growled. There was a message underneath.

"You take what's mine, I take what's yours. You want your boytoy? Come and get him.

An address followed. It was so obviously a trap, but right that second, Ruby didn't care. Neo wanted to play? Fine, she'd play! She'd make sure there was nothing left of her to ascend by the time she was done!

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Oh, Neo, I think you're biting off more than you can chew here. Ruby caving Roman's face in was her being at least slightly merciful. You just touched Ruby's favorite blonde besides Yang. This will not end well for you.

Questions:

1. Speaking of Yang, a bunch of reviewers seemed to really enjoy her breakdown last chapter and I wonder why? The commissioner found it funny, sure, but at least half a dozen others also really liked poor Yang thinking she corrupted her sister.

2. Do you think Ruby went too far with her 'self-care' stunt in this chapter or was it not that bad since nothing was forcing Jaune to watch her versus just closing the door like most other people would?