Jaune adjusted his tie and then ran a comb through his hair. He squinted at himself in the bathroom mirror for what felt like the millionth time. He sighed and adjusted his tie again.
There was a knock on the door. Jaune cleared his throat.
"Be right out!"
He turned and walked to the door. He prayed to the Table Breaker for strength, and opened it up.
He held back a sigh of relief: It was just Ren. The stoic Mistralian raised an eyebrow as he looked Jaune up and down.
"You actually shaved," he observed.
Jaune nodded.
"Yup. Still usin' safety razors but ya know, they're practical."
Ren nodded back.
"Indeed," He stated. "Coast is clear."
Jaune smiled.
"Thank you," he said in genuine thanks. He turned and headed to the door to the common room. He opened it... And was greeted by all of RWBY and the rest of JNPR, all standing ready.
Jaune's eyes narrowed. He looked back over his shoulder at Ren.
"Et tu, Ren?" He muttered.
The Mistralian martial artist shrugged.
"Purely self preservation," he murmured back.
Jaune looked back and forced a smile on his face. A smile nearly as brittle as Pyrrha's, though the redhead was blushing.
"Wow Jaune, um, you clean up... Very nicely," she complimented him. Jaune coughed and nodded.
"Thank you, Pyrrha. There is a dress code, after all."
"Yes, a very strict one at the Minerva," Weiss observed, boldly walking up to examine him. She hummed.
"It's a bit cheap-"
"Says the richest girl on Remnant," Ruby muttered. Weiss ignored that.
"-But well tailored," she complimented him. Jaune nodded back.
"Thank you, Weiss."
"Yeah, but your tie's a bit crooked," Yang chuckled. She brushed Weiss aside (ignoring the heiress's squawk) and reached up to adjust it. She smiled up into his eyes, her fingers lingering a bit too long as she undid and redid his tie. He gulped and blushed.
"There. That's better," she winked, "Gotta keep you on the straight and narrow, don't we, cowboy~?"
"Uh, um, y-yes," Jaune stuttered. Ruby shoved Yang aside, using momentum to make up for her smaller stature. She beamed up at him.
"You're using hair gel, too! What about your hat?"
Jaune winced.
"Er... Well... They apparently don't let hats in. Or ponchos."
He scowled.
"Or guns."
"Aw, it's like you're going in naked~," Yang cooed, leaning in. Ruby scowled at her. Pyrrha tactfully reached out and led Jaune away from the glaring sisters.
"No cologne?" She asked, sniffing the air. Jaune shook his head.
"Ain't nothing but a friendly dinner. So no need," he stated.
"Still, a bit wouldn't hurt," Weiss suggested. She held up a spray bottle and squeezed the bulb. Jaune coughed at the very strong musk that entered his nostrils, and he waved his hand in front of his face. Pyrrha, despite her impeccable manners, grimaced.
"Landsakes, Weiss! What in tarnation is that?!"
"'Essence of Stallion'," Weiss said with a smirk over at Blake, "It will keep Miss Scarlatina from getting any ideas, given she is a Faunus and thus has a heightened sense of smell. Isn't that right, Blake?"
Blake, who was sitting on the couch, nodded.
"Just to keep things from getting awkward," Blake added.
Yang, Ruby and Pyrrha looked at the smug Weiss with some grudging respect. Jaune sighed and nodded.
"Well, thank you, but again: It's just gonna be a friendly date. I'll be back in time for movie night."
"You'd better!" Nora shouted from the projector set up on the other side of the room, "I still haven't gotten all the subtitles off this movie!"
"The subtitles come with the movie, Nora," Ruby said in concern. Nora frowned and tilted the holoprojector upside down.
"Really?"
"Have a good time!" Pyrrha said, her smile extremely brittle, "We'll be counting the minutes until you return!"
"So don't take too long," Yang said with a cocky smirk, "You'd better hop to it, got it?"
"That's racist," Blake muttered.
Jaune nodded slowly.
"Sure thing," he said. "Jest as long as none of you follow me."
All the women gained looks of innocence that might have fooled a nun.
"What? Follow you? What for?" Weiss asked.
"You on a dinner date with Velvet? Totally boring!" Yang added.
"We would never violate your trust and privacy like that, Jaune!" Pyrrha contributed, "Even if we thought it was for your own good."
"We can just track you by your Scroll!" Ruby added. The other girls glared at her, and she coughed. "I-I mean... Just in case of any trouble?"
Jaune rolled his eyes. He reached out and patted Ruby on the head.
"She's just a friend. We're all friends."
He did his best to ignore the hurt in their eyes. Honestly... He wasn't some kind of Adonis! The sooner they realized that, the better.
Still, he caught Blake's intense look, I shouldn't be so dismissive of their feelings.
"Honestly, you have nothin' to fret over," he said calmly, "Any of you."
That mollified most of them, though Pyrrha still looked concerned. Jaune patted Ruby on the head again, before he turned and headed out the door.
He walked down the hallway, down the stairs, and for CVFY's dormroom.
Maybe I should have gotten flowers or-or something-NO! This is just a friendly outing, nothing more, He thought to himself. He knocked on the door, and stood back respectfully.
A moment later, Coco Adel opened the door up. She looked Jaune up and down with an accomplished fashionista's eye. She sighed.
"Well, it could be worse," she said, "That tie is terrible though."
Jaune looked down at the red and blue tie, and shrugged.
"Is it? Thought it went well with my eyes-Hey!"
Coco yanked the tie off, and quickly replaced it with a bolo tie inset with aquamarine. She then produced a white Stetson, which she placed on Jaune's head.
"My little Bun-Bun is expecting a cowboy," she stated firmly, "So don't disappoint." She glared at him and grabbed his lapels with some truly impressive strength. "Got it?"
"G-Got it!" Jaune stuttered.
"Coco? Is it him?" Velvet called from inside the dorm. Coco set Jaune down and dusted him off.
"Yup! He's all set, Bun-Bun!" Coco said, sing-song. She glared and jabbed Jaune in the chest. "You make sure she has a good time!"
Jaune shook his head rapidly, still mystified as to how Coco knew his hat size, before he responded.
"Don't you worry, Miss Adel. I will not take advantage of her, nosiree."
Coco's eyes narrowed dangerously.
"Oh yes you will, Mister! If she wants it, you're giving it to her!"
Jaune gaped, his cheeks flushing red with blood.
"I-Wha-?!"
"Hey! Sorry it took me so long!" Velvet apologized. Coco stood aside and let Velvet be fully framed by the door. Jaune's jaw dropped and his heart seemed to freeze.
She was blushing and utterly radiant in a sleek red dress. It had a slit going up the side, showing off her gorgeous legs, while the neckline was low enough to tease her cleavage without being obscene. Red straps went up around her neck, and she smiled bashfully as she held her purse in front of her.
"So um... Y-You look nice," she complimented him. She sniffed the air, and blushed harder. "N-Nice cologne!"
"Oh, uh, th-thank you, you look... V-Very nice," Jaune stuttered.
Coco waited for a moment, before she elbowed Jaune. He coughed as his manners came to the forefront. He held out his elbow, and Velvet shyly took hold of it.
"Shall we?" Jaune asked. Velvet nodded eagerly. The two set out, her hips bumping against him with every step.
He looked back over his shoulder. Coco was scowling at him. She then made an obscene gesture with her hands, and pointed at Jaune menacingly. He gulped, and nodded, even as Velvet strayed a bit closer to him.
"So uh, I hope we're not late to the Bullheads," she said.
"D-Don't worry, we'll be on time," Jaune managed.
Table-Breaker, give me strength, he mentally groaned.
- - -
Cardin Winchester turned the corner and walked towards CFVY's dorm. He had some wildflowers he had picked-Nothing fancy, just enough for an apology. He stared at Coco Adel, who was standing outside the dorm.
"Uh, hey Adel," he greeted. The fashionista turned around and glared at him.
"What do you want?" She demanded.
"Er... Just wanted to apologize to... Velvet," Cardin managed, wilting a bit under the intense glare.
"Why should I believe you?" Coco demanded.
"Because... Because I screwed up and I want to make things right," he said, spreading his arms wide. He grimaced. "I don't know if an apology can make up for it but... But I wanna try. I want to fix my mistakes."
Coco glared at him in silence. Cardin twitched a bit, but was able to hold his ground. In hindsight, maybe picking on a Faunus girl with such an intimidating team leader had been a bad idea.
Finally, Coco relented and shrugged.
"She's out on a date with Arc," she said. Cardin's eyes widened.
"Wait, what?!"
"So," Coco said with a grin, "You wanna apologize to her? You're gonna have to wait... Or go after her."
"Well, uh, I can wait," Cardin said with a shrug. Coco glared.
"The hell kind of conviction is that?!"
Cardin blinked rapidly.
"Huh?"
"After what you did, you should chase after her and dramatically beg for forgiveness!" Coco growled, "Make it clear how sorry you are!"
"But I-"
"I will not accept anything less!" Coco declared. She hefted up her handbag, and released her Gianduja. The minigun spun up ominiously.
"So, either you chase after her and declare how sorry you are, or Gianduja here will make you sorry. What's it gonna be?"
Cardin wisely ran for the door, clutching the flowers tightly as he sprinted for his very life.
Coco smirked.
"Well..."
She went over to a window to look down at the entrance.
"That was lucky... Now... Three, two, one..."
Team RWBY and Pyrrha emerged from one door, clearly intent on the Bullhead landing pads... When Cardin barreled out the other door, right into them. A very large and loud argument broke out between them.
People wondered if Coco Adel was just a pretty face with a broken Semblance and a minigun. Truth be told, in order to be effective with her fire, she had to be good at math. And while she was no Steven Falconing, she was able to make calculations on the fly that would impress an Atlasian Fire Control Officer.
Paired with her mastery of social fu... And it was little wonder she'd become not just a team leader but the queen bee of Beacon.
"That should keep those thirsty girls out of Bun-Bun's hair," Coco chuckled. "She'd better appreciate all of this..."
- - -
