“You ready?” I asked. Aria nodded as she held out her fist. I held out mine too.

“Don’t look into my eyes.” Aria demanded, “That’ll be cheating.”

“Fair enough.” I nodded, closing my eyes.

“Rock, paper, scissors, SHOOT!” we both yelled as I held out two fingers in the “Scissors” move.

“Oh, COME ON!” Aria yelled as I smiled, taking the last of the cookies we’d had at our table. It was halfway through lunch, and team OAKS was sitting with us as Aria punched the table hard, making it crack. “How did you know?!” Aria questioned.

“The tone of your voice while we said ‘shoot’.” I answered, grinning as I took a bite of the cookie, “You were smart to have me not look at you, it made you a bit more difficult to read. But your tone gave away your intentions.”

“Wow…” Kat began, “You’ve gotten REALLY perceptive over the years.”

“He kinda deserves the cookie for that.” Arcana (The “A” in team OAKS) agreed.

“That’s SO unfair!” Aria pouted.

“Um, aren’t you the one that wanted to play for the last cookie?” Violet sweat dropped.

“Here.” Oliver smiled, handing Aria a muffin, “This one’s special. The kind I always make to help you feel better.”

“Thanks, Ollie!” Aria smiled, going chibi as she accepted the muffin.

“Well, you two are just a match made in Heaven, aren’t you?” Violet asked.

“W-well…” Aria blushed, “You think so?” Violet just grinned.

“I think so.” Oliver smiled warmly, “We’re on for the Dance, right?”

“Y-yeah…” Aria blushed darker.

“Dance?” I asked, “What Dance?”

“You know, that school Dance that’s coming up in less than a week?” Oliver explained.

“Oh, yeah…” I began, “I completely forgot about that.”

“What kind of super soldier doesn’t pay attention and forgets everything?” Violet sweat dropped. I just shrugged.

“So,” Aria began, “You gonna ask Ruby?”

“Ask her what?” I asked innocently. Everyone sweat dropped.

“To the dance!” Aria replied, “Are you slow today?!”

“Oh…” I blushed, “Well… yeah, I guess I will ask her to come with me.”

“You guys gonna make out?” Arcana suddenly asked and my entire face went dark red as I froze.

“Wha- wai- huh- WHAT?!” I stuttered, unsure how to respond to what she just said.

“Arcana!” Kat began, “You don’t ask something like that!”

“So, are you?” Aria asked, tilting her head as she continued to eat her muffin.

“She DID kiss you once after all.” Violet added.

“Stop it!” I ordered. By this point, my entire body was a dark red. “I don’t know if I would do that! And even if I did…!”

“Even if you did what?” A familiar voice asked. I turned around to see Ruby and her team.

“N-nothing!” I said quickly, “Nothing at all! We were just… erm, cracking jokes! Yes! That!”

“Why are you so red?” Yang asked.

“Uh, b-because…” I began, trying to think of any kind of excuse. Suddenly, my eyes narrowed, focusing on an airborne cup that was flying towards the back of Yang’s head. My skin turned back to its usual shade as I moved forward, reaching out. I grabbed the cup, and now I was directly in front of Yang, my face mere inches away from hers. She blushed as I stepped back with the cup that nearly hit her. My eyes turned red with the realization that my friend had nearly been hurt. “Who threw this?” I hissed, glaring at the cup, then tracing its path over to another table, where a girl with long dark brown hair, wearing black leather gloves, was shoving a student out of his seat.

“How many times do I have to tell ya?!” The girl growled, hitting the other guy, “Stay outta my seat!” I growled, getting up and walking over to the girl. My red eyes met her yellow eyes.

“Did you throw this?” I questioned, holding up the cup as the other student ran away.

“So what if I did.” The girl shrugged, taking her seat and beginning to eat her food. I then threw the cup down on the table, breaking the cup.

“You almost hurt my friend.” I hissed.

“So?” The girl groaned, “Get lost, or I’ll stomp your face in!”

“You don’t scare me.” I began, “Apologize!” Suddenly, she got up, grabbed the front of my shirt, and pulled my face close to hers as she held my glare.

“I said, ‘get lost’!” She spat, shoving me back before she sat in her seat again. She was joined by three people, who I assumed was her team. The first was a girl with long blood red hair and eyes of the same color. The second was a guy with scruffy brown hair, blue eyes, and wearing red tinted sunglasses. The third was another girl, with dark blue hair that went to her shoulders and blue eyes. The blue haired girl was also clearly a Faunus, and had a long blue tail, which she had wrapped around her right leg.

“Hmm…” I began, heading back to my table.

“What happened?” Ruby asked, “It looked like you were about to kick her butt, but you didn’t.”

“Not many people can hold my glare.” I began, intrigued, “I hit her with my fiercest glare, and she spat in my face. Who is she?”

“Xena Clawe.” Arcana answered, “Leader of team XMEN, and one of the scariest people you’ll ever meet. The one with red hair’s Mana Willsin. The guy in the shades is Elliot Sai, and the last chick is Namine Shadespott.” We all looked at Arcana, surprised she knew so much. “What?” Arcana asked, “I pay attention to the kind of people in class.”

“Xena, huh?” I sighed, looking over at Xena, “Whoever she is, she’s no ordinary student. I can guarantee that.”

“So, Nathan,” Aria began with a sudden grin, “You gonna ask Ruby?”

“Ask me what?” Ruby inquired as I blushed.

“You didn’t know?” Violet grinned, “Nathan wants to make o-”

“Would you go to the Dance with me?!” I interrupted quickly. ANYTHING would’ve sounded better than what Violet was about to say.

“Huh?!” Ruby asked, her face getting a light pink tint to it, “Th-that kinda came from nowhere…” Yang started laughing at Ruby and my shared embarrassment.

“I know it’s pretty sudden and all…” I began, scratching the back of my head, “But, I guess I figured now was a better time to ask then never.”

“Well…” Ruby began, scratching the back of her head with a nervous smile, “Yeah, I’ll go to the Dance with you. I mean, we are dating, it’d be weird if we went with other people, huh?”

“Real smooth sis.” Yang chuckled. I just smiled.

“Good.” I said warmly, “I look forward to it.”

“Me too.” Ruby smiled cutely, “W-well… guess we’ll see you guys later… bye.” Ruby and her team then went off to do their own thing.

“Aww, you guys were meant for each other!” Aria teased.

“They’re a real ‘Beauty and the Beast’ match, huh?” Violet agreed.

“Oh, shut up.” I groaned. We then got back to eating for a bit.

“Hey, Nathan,” Aria began, “I know this is kinda sudden and out of nowhere, but can I have some of your blood?”

“What do you mean?” I inquired.

“Well, I like making poisons,” Aria explained, “And if I had some of your blood, I could make it into a poison that even BlackBloods can’t stand.”

“Hmm…” I began, “Alright, but only if you make it a poison that doesn’t kill. We’re not murderers.”

“Fine.” Aria sighed, “You’re no fun. I’ll make it a paralyzing poison.”

“And make it temporary.” I added, “You might accidentally get one of our friends with that and I don’t want to have to look for an antidote.”

“You’re boring.” Aria pouted, sticking out her tongue, “Fine. One boring, temporary, paralyzing poison, coming up.”

“Thank you.” I nodded handing her a vial full of Black blood.

“You carry around vials of your own blood?” Violet asked, sweat dropping.

“Of course.” I replied, “It might sound crazy, but some people are willing to pay a lot for a BlackBlood’s blood, it’s quite valuable. So, if I’m ever in a tight spot and need some extra Liens, it helps to have this with me.”

“That’s kinda weird.” Violet replied.

“Well, if it makes you feel better, I rarely end up pawning my blood anyway.” I shrugged.

“Well… anyway…” Violet began, trying to change the subject as she turned to Kat, “Kat, you gonna go to the dance?”

“Well, I might.” Kat shrugged, “But I don’t think I’ll have a date. I don’t like many of the guys here.”

“I dunno.” Arcana entered, “Some of the guys here are pretty cute.”

“...I have no reply to that.” Smiley shrugged, still grinning, “I don’t have a date.”

“I wonder why.” Violet said sarcastically, sweat dropping.

“Well,” I began, “If I’m going to this dance, I guess I’d better start getting ready. Get some nice clothes and such.”

“I’ll help you out there.” Oliver offered, “The dance is still a few days away, we’ll have plenty of time to find the right thing.”

“Alright.” I agreed.

I’d hate to jump the gun, but the next couple days were fairly uneventful, aside from a lengthy and boring shopping search with Oliver and Aria to find the “Right outfit” for me. Studies were the same as ever, I didn’t get any updates from Vincent on his research, and fights were few and far between, not to mention that those fights were harmless sparring matches. Well, on the day before the Dance, Ruby and I decided to take a walk together in the Emerald Forest.

“So,” I began, “Tomorrow’s the Dance, huh?”

“Yeah,” Ruby smiled, “I’m a bit nervous, but I’m also excited.”

“Me too.” I agreed with a grin, “I’m hoping it turns out great. Aria and Oliver had me looking for a good outfit for hours.”

“Heheh, I know what you mean.” Ruby giggled in agreement. Suddenly, we both paused as a loud growl caught us off guard. We turned to see a large Ursa snarling at us, drool dribbling from its mouth.

“Talk about an unwelcome third wheel.” I groaned, pulling out my sword as Ruby readied her scythe. Suddenly, the Ursa stopped, then fell dead.

“Huh… haven’t seen a Grimm do that before.” Ruby began, nudging the beast with her foot. As it evaporated, I looked past the corpse to see Xena Clawe from the other day. She was now wearing a leather jacket that matched her gloves, a black shirt, blue jeans, and brown boots.

“You again?” I asked, sheathing my sword, “What’re you doing here?”

“I’ve been hearing rumors about you, Nathan Black.” Xena began, readying her fists, “You’re next!” She then lunged forward, landing a punch to my face that knocked me back.

“Hey!” Ruby began, “What’s your deal?!” Suddenly, Xena aimed a punch at Ruby. I quickly recovered and caught Xena’s fist before it could hit Ruby. I then punched Xena in the face, which sent her into a tree.

“Get back, Ruby.” I began, unsheathing my sword, “If she wants to fight me, she’ll get to fight me.”

“Finally,” Xena began, slowly taking off her leather gloves, “Someone who can fight!” I then noticed that, from the wrist to her fingertips, Xena’s hands were pitch black.

“Huh?” Ruby pondered. Suddenly, long white claws extended out of Xena’s fingers.

“Black hands with retractable claws…” I began in realization, “You’re Aftin’s Half-Grimm, aren’t you?”

“I got no idea what you’re talkin’ about…” Xena began, “But I’m about to crush ya!”

“Bring it!” I grinned, getting into a fighting stance with my sword. She charged at  me and swiped her claws several times. I parried each swipe, then countered, my blade digging into her shoulder. She just grinned. “Huh?!” my eyes widened as she headbutted me. I stumbled back. “What’re you…” I began, but froze as Xena’s wound closed up. My eyes went into X-Ray mode and analyzed Xena’s skin and bones. I noticed, her bones weren’t bones at all, but rather, all her bones had been replaced with a robotic endoskeleton made of ShadowSteel, just like my arm. I also noticed, Xena’s skin, flesh, and muscles seemed to have an impressive regenerative factor as her wound recovered almost immediately. I wondered, had Aftin done all this to her.

“Nice counter.” Xena grinned, “Been a while since anyone’s managed to cut me. Now…” She readied her claws, her yellow eyes glaring at me.

“Let’s dance!” I exclaimed, charging forward. I landed several slashes, but she ignored my attacks, and landed three slashes to my chest. She aimed another swipe, but I countered, landed a dozen more slashes, and hit her with a kick that sent her through a tree. She got back up.

“Gotta admit,” Xena began, her wounds healing easily, “That hurt.”

“Hmph!” I began, vanishing in a flash of red. I hid in a tree, waiting to sneak attack Xena.

“No use hiding, punk!” Xena began, sniffing the air. I jumped out of the tree and aimed a swipe. She dodged, and dug her claws into my chest.

“Nathan!” Ruby gasped as I groaned.

“The nose knows.” Xena grinned as she slashed me several more times and knocked me back. I recovered, readying my sword. I dashed forward, running my sword through her chest. She ignored the wound, stabbing me three times with her claws. I somersaulted back to avoid another stab. I then ran up, punched her in the face, and pulled my sword out of her chest. I then did a backflip, kicking her in the chin as I flipped. As I landed, my kick knocked her into the air. I quickly sheathed my blade, gripping the hilt tight.

“I’ll end you!” I yelled, pulling the trigger. My sword was shot out at incredible speed, which I used to slash Xena with a powerful swipe. It knocked her down, spilling blood everywhere.

“Ouch!” She groaned, getting up as her wounds healed, “That’s it! Now I’m pissed!” I turned Final Sight into a second sword, ready for dual wielding as Xena charged at me. Her claws and my blades clashed a dozen times, then we both landed a slash on each other. She paused as a cut appeared on my right cheek. I turned Final Sight back into sheath form and slowly began to put Crimson Edge back in its sheath. As my sword finished entering its sheath, blood exploded from a new gaping wound in Xena’s chest. She collapsed, passing out.

“Looks like I overdid it…” I began, using Violet’s semblance to heal my wounds. I then looked over at Ruby and froze. I guess in the fight, we’d gotten blood on her. She was staring at us, her eyes white circles, her mouth gaping open. “Oh!” I began, “I’m sorry! Didn’t mean to…!”

“Uh, it’s okay…” Ruby lied, then looked down at Xena, “So… did you, you know…?”

“I’m still alive.” Xena groaned, which made Ruby take a large step back, sweat dropping. I stood between Ruby and Xena. “You…” Xena began, getting up as her wounds healed, “You called me something… ‘Half-Grimm’ was it? You know what happened to me?!”

“What, you don’t remember?” I asked.

“I can’t remember anything before age 8.” Xena sighed, “I just woke up with these claws. People around me called me a ‘freak’, a ‘monster’. They attacked me, tried to kill me. But no matter what they did, I didn’t die. My cuts, bruises, and scars all healed up like nothing else. Eventually, I ran away, and I eventually got into a Fight School, and that led to me being here. Though I’ve kept these on.” As she spoke, she put her gloves back on.

“I’m… I’m sorry to hear that.” Ruby began.

“Then, I heard about you.” Xena began, “The ‘Freak with Black Blood’. Finally, a bigger freak than me.”

“Let me guess,” I started, “You thought that by beating me, other people would accept you, even with your claws?” Xena was hesitant, but nodded. “It doesn’t work like that.” I sighed, “You can’t scare people into accepting you. They’ll just think worse things about you.” Xena just looked down. “If you want to be accepted,” I continued, “Why not try being nice to people, so they’ll do the same to you?”

“I don’t know…” Xena groaned.

“Look,” I sighed, “It doesn’t matter what you do, there will always be people who won’t accept you. Believe me, I know. But that just means you’re trying to please the wrong crowd. Take that into consideration next time you think about hurting people.”

“…” Xena was quiet.

“C’mon, Ruby,” I began, taking hold of Ruby’s hand, “Let’s get that blood washed off you. Sorry, again…” Ruby and I then walked off.

It was getting late, so, while Ruby’s clothes were being washed, she changed into her pajamas, since she was about to go to sleep anyway. She was wearing a black tank top with a heart-shaped Beowolf design, and long white pants with pink roses decorating it.

“Sleepy?” I asked.

“Yeah, I’ll probably go to sleep after this.” Ruby nodded.

“That’s probably a good idea.” I nodded, “It’s been a bit busy. I look forward to the Dance tomorrow.”

“Me too.” She smiled.

After I finished helping Ruby wash her clothes (Still apologizing repeatedly), I began to walk to my dorm, figuring she’d be alright on her own. I paused, before entering my dorm.

“I know you’re there.” I said suddenly, “No use trying to hide from me.” I looked over to a corner, where Xena appeared.

“Guess I’m not the only one that’s tough to sneak up on.” She sighed.

“Looking for round 2?” I asked.

“Nah.” Xena began, “Ya beat me in a fair fight, can’t whine about it. Wouldn’t be right.”

“Then why are you here?” I questioned.

“You never told me what a ‘Half-Grimm’ is.” Xena began, “You know what happened to me, don’t you?”

“Vaguely.” I sighed, “Xena, you and I are quite alike. We’re both experiments. I was taken in by a man named Vincent, who turned me into a BlackBlood Cyborg. And his younger brother, Aftin, somehow implanted your body with the DNA of the Grimm, with some other adjustments, including a ShadowSteel endoskeleton and a healing Factor of some sort. Unfortunately, that’s all I know.”

“So… this guy, Aftin…” Xena began, taking off her right glove to reveal her claw, “He’s the reason I’m like this?!”

“Yeah…” I sighed, “I’ve got a bone to pick with Aftin too.”

“You find him, you let me know.” Xena said, putting her glove back on.

“Trust me, you won’t be the only one.” I nodded, “So… you didn’t try to beat the information out of me. This mean you’re done with the bullying?”

“Hmph!” Xena began, leaning on the wall with her arms crossed, “Far as I’m concerned, if people stay out of my way, I’ll leave ‘em alone. And the stuff you said there did make sense. But how am I supposed to know you weren’t just saying those things, and how am I supposed to know you aren’t actually worse than me? So, from now on, I’m gonna keep an eye on you, to see if you’re really the man you wanna look like.”

“Uhh… okay?” I sweat dropped.

“See ya.” Xena sighed, turning to leave, “Oh, and tell your blond girlfriend back there I’m sorry about the cup from earlier.”

“Wha- Yang’s not my…!” I blushed, but Xena was already gone. “Huh…” I sighed, “Looks like I’ve got a weird one to look out for.” I prepared to enter my dorm when I was suddenly contacted by Vincent.

“Nathan.” Vincent began, “I saw what happened through your com-link. Are you certain you can trust her? This is the same Half-Grimm that Aftin created to help destroy everything.”

“She’s still human.” I argued, “And she’s just about as trustworthy as I am. Besides, you’ve clearly seen which one of us is stronger.”

“Well, that is true…” Vincent sighed.

“Why are you contacting me?” I asked, “I doubt it was just to talk about whether or not Xena’s trustworthy.”

“Right.” Vincent began, “I would appreciate it if you snuck down to the lab. I’ve prepared a few new toys for you that I think you’ll find worth your time. Especially with that tournament coming up.”

I let out a deep sigh. “Fine,” I began, “But after this, let’s keep the lab visits to few and far between, okay?”

“Of course.” Vincent agreed, “I’d hate to get you in trouble. But I really do think you’ll have a more positive outlook once you see your new presents.”

“Alright, I’m heading out now.” I nodded. I then began to sneak out of Beacon once again.

********

“That was fast.” Jeff remarked as I entered the lab.

“Well, speed is one of my semblances.” I shrugged. Just like before, Jackie and I didn’t say anything to each other as I passed. I just moved on to meet up with Vincent, who was standing beside a desk with a blanket over it.

“Welcome back, Nathan.” DIAL greeted.

“It’s good to see you again, Nathan.” Vincent smiled.

“Alright, I’m here.” I began, “So, what is it you had for me?”

“Right.” Vincent nodded. He then pulled the blanket off the desk, to reveal several mechanical devices. “Please, lay back and remove your eyes.” He gestured to a chair that leaned back.

“Hmm, new eyes?” I asked as I layed back. I reached up and took out my robotic eyes. It was interesting, being blind again. Everything was black.

“Give me a moment to install your new and improved Optical Enhancement Device, or O.E.D. for short.” Vincent began as I could feel him placing the new mechanical eyes into my empty sockets. “Your old eyes were incredible,” He continued, “But there was a flaw. At the time I was crafting your original cybernetic replacements, I didn’t yet have the tools to create such a complex and delicate device as the eye using ShadowSteel. I had to use more common metals, and as you’ve seen, that left your eyes quite vulnerable.”

“Yeah.” I agreed, “I’ve been blinded a couple times already.”

“Yes.” Vincent continued, making a few tweaks to the new eyes, “But now, I’ve managed to create for you, a new set of eyes made from ShadowSteel. They also possess the same database as your previous eyes, and they can analyze events and information over 1,000 times faster than a normal human brain, though that’s only if you really want to do that. There, I’ve finished connecting it to the Optic nerve.” Suddenly, my vision came back as I took in my surroundings. “How is it?” Vincent asked.

“Good as ever.” I nodded.

“Good.” Vincent smiled, “Now, your right arm please.” I was hesitant, but nodded, reaching my left hand over to my right shoulder. I gripped my arm, detaching it from the shoulder. I then handed Vincent my right arm. “Thank you.” He nodded, taking my arm, “I’ve been working on a better arm for you as well.” He reached into the pile and pulled out another robotic arm that looked exactly like my old one, except cleaner. He handed it to me and I connected the arm to my shoulder. “Your old arm could lift up to 12 tons.” Vincent explained as I moved my new arm around, “However, since your fight with Marina, I’ve made a few modifications, to make it stronger. Now, thanks to more advanced hydraulic and BlackBlood-powered mechanisms, it can lift over 100 Tons. I’ve also added a couple more features.” Suddenly, a blade stuck out of my wrist.

“Hmm,” I began, “A retractable hidden blade?”

“Right.” Vincent nodded, “It’s for if you find yourself disarmed. And, it can also inject a paralyzing toxin into your opponent, if you want it to.”

“That’s very handy.” I began, making the hidden blade go back into my metal endoskeleton wrist.

“One more thing.” Vincent continued, “Hand me your current supply of MPDR.”

“Alright.” I sighed, taking off the belt around my waist that was lined with Dust shells.

“The Multi-Purpose Dust Rounds as they are are quite versatile.” Vincent explained, “But by themselves, your MPDR couldn’t do much without being loaded into Final Sight. I’ve made a new version of the MPDR shells.” As he spoke, he handed me an identical belt with more shells, “These also act as Dust grenades. Rip off the tip of one and it’ll explode within five seconds, releasing whatever type of Dust the shell contains.” I looked over my new belt and saw a new type of shell, a black one. I reached to touch it, but Vincent stopped me. “Easy!” He barked, “That’s the ShadowDust shell. That one is to be used ONLY in a life or death situation!”

“Got it.” I nodded, then put on the belt.

“Anyway,” Vincent continued, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose, “Aside from that, there are more shells, each shell is more concentrated, hence more powerful, and so on.”

“Thanks.” I began, nodding, “But… why are you really giving me these enhancements? It can’t just be out of the kindness of your heart.” Vincent paused, sighing.

“I’ll need your help.” Vincent sighed, “Here soon, I might need you to ‘run an errand’ for me.”

“I’m not one of your assassins anymore.” I said coldly, “I thought you were trying to be better.”

“I am!” Vincent defended, “I destroyed my list. This is something different. It might be a threat to Beacon.” I paused. “And anyway,” Vincent continued, “It’ll be a good while before I need your help. But what I do know is, only you can pull it off.”

“Sounds like a real threat.” I sighed.

“It is.” Vincent nodded.

“I’ll consider it.” I began, “Oh, how’s that research on my DNA going?”

“I’m still working.” Vincent replied, “I’ve only just scratched the surface of your genetic coding. But I can already tell, you’re different from other BlackBloods. Unique. And potentially, a lot more powerful than normal BlackBloods.”

“‘Normal BlackBloods’.” I sighed, “Because now, BlackBloods can be normal.”

“I’m sorry.” Vincent apologized, “I didn’t mean…”

“It’s fine.” I sighed, “Maybe it’s a good thing I’m a freak, even by BlackBlood standards. We’ll talk later, Vincent. Take care.” I then walked out.

This time, nothing really happened as I snuck back into Beacon. I guess my team either hadn’t noticed I left, or they just decided to accept that I occasionally leave. Either way was fine by me. A lot had happened throughout the day: Meeting the Half-Grimm, gaining new enhancements, and this mysterious new assignment from Vincent that I had to look forward to. Usually these things would’ve been stuck in my mind all night, bothering me. But, as I changed into a pair of sweatpants, crawled into bed, and closed my eyes to sleep, all that I could think of was Ruby, and the upcoming dance tomorrow. It was strange, and sudden. I couldn’t help but feel anxious about the next day’s events. For a few minutes I had no idea why I felt this way, I hadn’t felt so anxious for something so irrelevant since I was just a little kid. But eventually, it hit me, and I knew why I was excited.

“Is this what it’s like to be a Highschool kid?” I asked myself, smiling.

The morning eventually came around, the sunlight entering the room as I still laid awake. I still wasn’t tired, but I was looking forward to the day ahead. As my team slowly woke up, I’d prepared a pot of coffee and provided cups to everyone.

“Morning!” I smiled.

“Hey, how long have you been up?” Aria asked.

“Hmm… all night.” I shrugged, taking a swig of my 13th cup of coffee.

“I thought you said coffee doesn’t help you stay awake…” Violet sweat dropped.

“It doesn’t.” I said, taking another drink, “I just like the feeling.”

“Scan shows you have a high level of anxiety…” Blade began, “I assume you are looking forward to tonight’s dance?”

“Yeah.” I nodded, “I don’t even know why, but I can’t stop thinking about it…”

“You planning to make out with Ruby tonight?” Violet asked.

“Wha-NO!” I yelled, my face going bright red “Why would you wanna know that, you creep?!”

“Hey, I’m just asking!” Violet defended, “Don’t bite my head off.”

“Sorry,” I sighed, “I’m honestly a little nervous. What if I mess up somehow tonight? What if I say or do something that makes Ruby stop liking me?”

“You know something?” Aria began, “You sound like a good boyfriend.”

“Huh?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

“The way you’re worrying.” Aria explained, “You care about what she’ll think of you. Some guys wouldn’t care, they’d just expect the girl to love how he is and expect her to act or look a certain way. But you care. You’re a good guy.”

“Sounds to me like you still have a crush on Nathan.” Violet teased.

“Shut up!” Aria barked.

“Heheh, go easy on her Violet.” I chuckled, then turned to Aria, “Aria, thanks for all the compliments. Oliver had better be grateful to have you for a date.”

“Heheh.” Aria smiled.

Surprisingly, after that the day went by fast. Before I knew it, it was almost time for the Dance and I was on my way to meet Ruby. I arrived at team RWBY’s dorm room and knocked. An answer came as Yang, wearing a pretty white dress, answered the door.

“Yello?” She answered.

“Good Evening, Yang.” I smiled, “Would your sister be ready?”

“Yeah, she just needs another minute.” Yang nodded, “I’m heading out now though. So, take good care of my sis, got it?” She was giving me a look that said if I didn’t take good care of Ruby, I’d regret it. I just nodded in response. “Good.” Yang smiled, “See ya.” She then left for the Dance. After a moment, Ruby came up too. She was wearing a lovely sleeveless red dress with black lace, as well as heels.

“Hi…” She said shyly.

“Wow…” I began, “You look… great…” I blushed. Ruby blushed too and smiled.

“Thanks. We should get going.” she said and I nodded, holding out my hand for her to take. Ruby took it and we headed over to the dance.

As we arrived, literally the first people we ran into were Aria and Oliver. Oliver was wearing in a normal suit, minus the jacket so he was in a black shirt with a silver vest over, black pants, black shoes and a silver tie and Aria wore a floor length silver dress with white gems on the top and had invisible sleeves that just sparkled right, a pair of black heels and a white bracelet and a white bow, to hold her hair back.

“Wow, you guys look so nice together.” Ruby began.

“Thanks Ruby.” Aria said.

“So, are you two gonna dance?” Oliver asked.

“Uh, no not really.” Ruby said before I could answer.

“No?” I asked, a little surprised.

“Sorry,” Ruby apologized, “I'm just not really much of a dancer.”

“That's okay…” I said with a slight sigh, “We'll find some other way to have fun.”

To make it brief, we didn't. It was surprisingly awkward how quiet things were. I sighed, going to get some punch. As I got the drink, I naturally filled a second cup for my date. Unfortunately when I returned, Ruby was gone. Still carrying my beverages, I sought out Yang.

“Hey Yang,” I began, “You know what happened to Ruby?”

“I think she left.” Yang shrugged, “Not really sure why.”

“That's just great.” I sighed, admittedly a little frustrated.

“Not going like you hoped?” Yang asked. I nodded.

“I'll be honest, this was disappointing.” I sighed, “I was excited for tonight, but I didn't even get a dance.”

“Well…” Yang began, “I guess if you want a dance that badly…” she blushed a little, “I guess I could dance with you.”

I blushed, “R… really?”

“Yeah, but just as friends.” Yang answered quickly.

“Right…” I nodded, “Just friends.”

I felt her fingers slide in between mine as she grabbed my hand and pulled me to the dance floor, where we began dancing together. Our bodies moved in unison, as if we shared one mind and could read each other's thoughts. It was strange, how natural it felt to dance with her.

After a while of dancing, we hung out over by the punch for a bit.

“You were pretty good.” Yang remarked, “Where'd you learn to dance like that?”

“Well,” I began, “Back when I was an assassin, there was almost no real normal-ness in my life. So, just for the heck of it, I started learning to dance. I actually found it enjoyable so I made it a bit of a hobby.”

“Heh, cool.” Yang smiled, “Too bad Ruby didn't wanna dance…”

“Yeah…” I agreed, and found myself staring into Yang's eyes. We slowly started leaning in close to each other, until our lips were mere inches away…

Suddenly, we both realized what was almost gonna happen. Our eyes widened as we both instantly separated, chuckling awkwardly. We were left in awkward silence for two, maybe three minutes before Yang spoke up.

“Th-thanks for the dance.” Yang said, getting up.

“Yeah, no problem…” I nodded. She soon left, and I started punching my own head. I couldn't believe I almost cheated on Ruby with her own sister. That's a new low, even for the Grimm Reaper.

“Hey, lady killer.” a familiar voice said as Xena of all people joined me. She wasn't in a dress like the other girls, just her casual clothes. I looked up at her.

“Hey.” I said.

“Not having fun?” Xena asked.

“No I am.” I shook my head, “I'm having a great time. I'm just a little mad at myself for almost kissing Yang.”

“Well, you were complaining about your life not being normal a minute ago.” Xena shrugged, “Having girl problems is damn normal for high school students, so quit whining.” she then got back up and started leaving. But before she left, she turned to me with a small smile. Then she left.

I thought about her words, and chuckled a little.