17

"Not that I don't appreciate this, but what made you offer?" Neptune asked. Right foot, left foot, back and-

Jaune hissed as his foot was crushed under his dance partner's.

"Sorry!"

"No, it's fine." He reassured Neptune. "I'm used to it, even if your foot comes down a lot harder than any of my sisters' ever did." The two of them started again, trying to perform a simple waltz. "But to answer your question… Second told me to? I didn't really get an explanation, but he said it would be a good idea to have someone teach you how to dance, and with all the practice that I have under my belt I'm just the logical choice for the job."

"Right…" Neptune was still trying to come to terms with Second's existence, having only been informed recently. "Well, don't look a gift horse in the mouth and all that. I don't know what I would have done without you offering…"

Made a fool of himself and others. Second Thoughts chimed in.

Not now, I need to focus. At this rate I'll need to use my aura to protect my feet from these dance lessons.

"...but I am a bit confused. Why are you teaching me a waltz? Seems like something you would need for a fancy ball rather than a school dance."

"Because you're Weiss' date," and hadn't that stung? Seeing Weiss so easily accept his offer after he'd been told to move on…

Stop moping over it, you'll have a date too.

Who?!

That's none of my business.

"...and she's also helping to organize the dance. Yang will probably fight her over it, but I'm certain there will be at least one song of a more… traditional variety, and that she'll want to be on the dance floor for it. Most of the attendees will probably use it as an opportunity to grab some punch, which means less people on the dance floor, and more eyes on you two. Being somewhat decent at a waltz will serve you better than more time spent on more modern dances. If you were bringing literally anyone else, the opposite would be true."

"You have a point there. I'm still surprised that of all the people that could have taken over the prep for the dance it was Yang and Weiss. Their plans have to be polar opposite, don't they?"

"That was probably the reason for it. With the two of them having such different visions, they'll have to compromise, and so we don't have to worry about either extreme. Weiss won't let Yang turn it into a night club, and Yang won't let Weiss turn it into a gala."

"Pitting them against each other? That's pretty clever…" The two young men fell back into their dance routine, with only the occasional blunder from Neptune. "Speaking of dates to the dance though, who are you going with? I don't think I've heard yet."

"Ah…" Jaune hesitated before chuckling nervously. "I'm actually going alone. Which, you know, not ideal or anything, but it's not like I'll be the only one."

Cough. Moron. Cough.

Really Second? You know it doesn't have the same effect when you say cough instead of actually coughing.

My point stands.

"Seriously?" The bluenette looked at him incredulously, stopping their dance practice. "Why would you be going alone?"

"W-well, who am I supposed to go with? I mean, obviously teams RWBY and JNPR will all be there, so I can dance with my friends, but as far as a date goes…"

"You could ask one of them? Sun is going with Blake, I'm going with Weiss, and Nora and Ren are… well, they're Nora and Ren. But aren't the rest of the ladies dateless? I think I heard something about Penny going with some Atlas soldiers but I'm not sure how accurate that was…" Penny was always a straightforward sort of robot girl, but her grasp on social interactions was spotty, so knowing when she had misunderstood something was a struggle at the best of times. "But even assuming that's true, that still leaves Ruby, Yang, and Pyrrha as potential dates."

"I mean…" Jaune paused to consider Neptune's suggestion. "I guess you're not wrong about them being available, but are they really options for me? Ruby is a great friend, but she's got that little sister vibe, and I think Yang might kill anyone who so much as implied that they were interested in Ruby in a way that wasn't completely platonic. Yang still calls me vomit boy on occasion, so I'm not sure if she could ever see me in that sort of light-"

"Vomit boy?" Neptune asked, only to be ignored.

"-and Pyrrha… well, she's Pyrrha! I can't say I completely understand the whole tournament hype thing, I barely recognized her from a cereal box and that was after her fame was pointed out to me, but I've seen the way guys look at her. She doesn't have a date yet. I can't compete with most of the guys in Beacon, let alone all of the guys who are here for the festival."

Neptune considered Jaune's rebuttal. "I guess you're probably right about Ruby. I wouldn't want to get on Yang's bad side either. But I think you're selling yourself short when considering the others. You'll never know if Yang, Pyrrha, or Penny will say no until you try. I get that it's nerve wracking. If you can keep a secret, I was sweating bullets when I asked Weiss. But getting rejected isn't the end of the world. And if you still don't like your chances, there's always girls from other schools! Just because Sun and I didn't ask any of the girls from the other academies doesn't mean that there aren't any available."

He's right, you know. Who knows? Maybe one of them already has a crush on you.

Who would have a crush on me? Jaune asked in disbelief.

I'm not telling you that. But Yang's teasing is playful, Pyrrha is overly nice to you, and Penny… well, you know how she is. None of that is a clear sign that they're into you, but you at least know that they don't dislike you. Going to the dance isn't asking their hand in marriage, you could frame it as a one time thing and see how well things go.

"...I guess I'll have to give it some thought. There are still a few more days until the dance…" His feet began to move again, guiding Neptune along. "But don't think I missed what you were doing! Distracting me with my own problems doesn't mean you're getting out of waltz practice, and if you keep stepping on my feet then I'll have to return the favor. Maybe that'll hammer the muscle memory into you!"

Neptune whimpered.

Qrow hated missions like this.

Stuck roughing it in the woods when civilization was only minutes away because he didn't want word of his presence making it to the target. Lionheart, guilty or not, would undoubtedly have a pretty decent information network going in the area, even if that just meant everyone he spoke to idly telling him things. All it took was one person to visit the bar he would inevitably end up at and then Leo would be hearing something like "The drunkest huntsmen on Remnant is back in town". You have a little too much to drink one time in a Mistral tavern…

So instead of getting drunk in a bar, he was stuck sipping on his flask while resting against a tree.

Though perhaps having something easy to complain about was a blessing. Two days of monitoring Leo while transformed, and nothing concrete had turned up. Was the guy a bit off? Yeah. Was it enough to be suspicious? Also yes. But those things in and of themselves were not a crime. He didn't know the guy on a personal level, but nobody wanted the headmaster of a school for huntsmen to fit the rap sheet that he'd been given.

Of course, nothing having turned up yet wasn't proof of innocence. It was possible that he had become aware of the other investigators and decided to let things cool off until they went away. Atlas talked a big game, but even those picked out for covert ops like this had that definitive Atlas air about them. They could never blend in quite right, and if Qrow had spotted them, it was likely that the locals had as well. Good ol' Irondick took his responsibilities seriously, and Qrow could respect him for that much, but Oz really needed to talk to him about not sending obvious spies into the lair of a potential follower of Salem.

But dealing with problems that cropped up like this was all part of the job. Not that Oz paid him for this, the stingy old fart. The least he could do was give his go-to guy a lifetime supply of booze…

Taking one last swig out of his flask, he transformed, taking flight to start another of his regular scouting runs. As he soared above the academy, keeping an eye out for where Lionheart had wandered off to, he found himself considering his second objective for this mission.

Not letting Second Thoughts and his own semblance land him in the hospital again.

"We really have to stop meeting like this." Jaune awkwardly chuckled, trying, and failing, to defuse the tension in the room. He had once again found himself called in for a meeting with visitors from Atlas, though the fact that both General Ironwood and Winter Schnee were present this time made him understandably more nervous. He found himself sat in front of a desk, Ironwood across from him, and Winter stood off to the side. Both of them were giving him stern looks that made him feel like he was about to be in a whole lot of trouble.

But what did I even do?!

How should I know? They're military, maybe they're just always like this. Or they want something from you, and want to seem like they're in a position of power so you're more likely to agree? I don't know a lot about business dealings, but I'm pretty sure it's a standard negotiation strategy.

What could they want from me though?

Uh, information? Anything they get out of me has to go through you. Relax, this might be a good thing! They have all sorts of stuff to bribe you with, you should take it.

I don't think that-

"Perhaps. Though at the rate things are going, I'm doubting that these meetings will stop any time soon." Ironwood replied. "Before we really dig into things here, I want to cover a few points. As a citizen of Vale, and student of Beacon, it is not within my legal authority to take any official action against you."

Why does it sound like he's about to blackmail you?

"That said, our investigations have turned up some troubling information that I will give you a chance to explain." He set a stack of papers in front of Jaune, giving him a moment to look at them. But there was no need to go through the whole thing. Right on top were his transcripts. His forged transcripts.

Oh. Wait, can he even do anything with that? Ozpin already knows and I'm sure the rest of the staff has been made aware by this point.

"I'm… not sure what you want me to say here." Jaune hesitantly started.

"Admitting to the forgery of your transcripts would be a start." Winter cut in.

Admit to nothing!

"However… in light of your recent attempts to assist us in our investigations, I am willing to… overlook a few minor issues. So long as our relationship remains in a positive light, I will not bring this to anyone else's attention."

Interesting. They must not know that Ozpin already knows then. Trying to blackmail us with material that doesn't actually matter is a bold strategy, he's got guts. Maybe we should give them a bit more information to make them think they've got something over you?

Is that really a good idea? I don't like the thought of Atlas trying to blackmail me!

Relax, there's information they should have anyway with the dance getting so close.

"I-In that case, on a totally unrelated note, Second believes it would be a good idea to increase security on the night of the dance. Specifically for the CCT."

"The CCT? What reason would someone possibly have for taking down our communications on the night of the dance?" Winter asked.

"Someone intent on causing a panic." The General answered, his mind already racing with plans and strategies. "What sort of forces are we looking at?"

"Second says that it's a single person, but that they won't be taking down communications."

"Just one person?" Winter raised a brow. "Then either our men need their training doubled, or this is a particularly skilled individual. Huntsman level at the least… and on the night of the dance…"

Ironwood pieced it together at the same time that Winter did. "They would be able to slip into the tower, accomplish whatever their goal is, and slip back among the mass of the crowd at the dance, entirely undetected until it was already too late. Arc, are you telling me that there is an enemy force hidden amongst the students?" But before Jaune could answer, the man was already moving on. "In that case it can't just be a single person, people would notice if something was off about one teammate in particular… it would have to be an entire team. One person commits the crime, while the others stay in plain sight, creating an alibi for the whole team."

"Give us a name, Arc." Winter demanded, leaning over the desk like she was ready to beat it out of him.

"That's all I know! This is just how Second is, straight answers are extremely rare!" Jaune held his hands up in surrender, barely able to keep up with them.

"Focus, Winter." Ironwood barked. "He's given us all the information we need to form a solid plan. It can't be Atlas or Beacon, Oz and I wouldn't miss something like this. Shade is a possibility, but given what we've learned about Lionheart-"

"It would be a Mistral team, slipped into the group without much fanfare because the headmaster himself approved it." Winter finished his thought.

"Arc, if there's no other information Second is willing to give us, I'll ask that you leave so we can get to work stopping this."

Jaune was all too happy to make it their problem.

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