Winter Break 21

Joan's hands moved across the paper in haste, each line was drawn with deliberate and swift transitions, "The shape of the symbol is only important for basics, the feelings and desires when carving give shape to the art is what gives shape to the symbols meaning and power. A Master Symbologist can create new Symbols and grant them new meanings, but one has to pour their Aura, their very soul into them."

Jaune and Ruby listened to Joan's teachings as she planned out new symbols that look like tribal markings with crescent moons.

They continued to listen until the sun was high in the sky.

After carving in the markings with the Moon Dust, Jaune saw the runes blow before going dim and returning to a simple piece of artwork.

Jaune sent it into his inventory and checked out its description, he was shocked to discover his chest plate was classified as a +1 Auric Relic.

[+1 Pale Moon Mrk.2 Chest Piece: An almost unbreakable armor, made from an unnamed mixture of metals. Grant's wearer +25% increase to healing factor when using Aura to heal. Can be worn as a set, the complete Pale Moon Armor will grant an additional 25% to Aura capacity.]

When given the prompt, Jaune quickly named their mixture as Marigold Alloy. Since Red and Yellow both represented Ruby's and Jaune's colors, he thought it was appropriate that the metal they made together should be named as such.

Joan proceeded to create several other Symbols to take the place of the ones used in his eight Dust Sheaths.

It was a group of Enchant Sword Symbols for every Element, it allowed much more variety than his old ones, each one was carved from High-Grade Dust, being part of the royal family earned Joan some perks as she pulled out more Carving tools made with Dust tips and carved away.

Taking a note from Raven's weapon and putting his own spin on it, Jaune created a rotating scabbard that when sheathed would imbue his Aura Sword with elemental energy.

Jaune and Ruby made some last-minute adjustments to his shield and added on a Tower Shield form to the Heater Shield.

With a press of a button, Jaune could switch between the two. However, it was almost 40 pounds heavier than his old shield.

After copying his Grandmother's symbol, Jaune carved out the same Masterwork Symbol with his Moon Dust and created his +1 Pale Moon Shield Mrk. 2!"

[+1 Pale Moon Shield Mrk. 2: Gearshift Shield with Rotating Dust Scabbards and Greatsword Option, Crescent Arc Symbol Enchantment: Grant's wearer 15% Increased healing factor when using Aura to heal. Can be worn as a set, if worn with the complete Pale Moon Armor Set, this shield will grant a 3% Aura Regeneration per minute.]

Jaune slipped his Sword into the sheath and hit a switch next to the entrance. With some whirling noises and mechanical shifting, it transformed into a greatsword, not unlike the one he had when traveling with team RNJR.

On top of getting Masterwork Dust Symbol Patterns, both Jaune and Ruby managed to get the Beginner Dust Symbologist Title and all the related crafting Skills involved with the subject.

He hugged his grandma making her smile as she pat him on the back and said, "Oh, it's nothing, sweetheart, as long as it helps keep you safe."

After they separated, Joan pulled out her scroll and said, "I'll send you some reading materials. It's mostly my research and a few fundamental books for Dust Symbology. Don't tell anyone I gave you this, or else you may end up getting grandma arrested."

Ruby was shocked, "Would they really do that?"

Joan sighed, "Yes, there is a reason they call it a lost art. Since I'm going against that selfish law set up by the Royals, and am teaching it to you, if they find out, they might even arrest you as well."

Ruby gulped, "I don't think I would do well in prison."

Joan laughed again, "Then don't get caught, besides at best they'll force you to marry Jaune earlier, as long as you are part of the royal family, they can't do anything to you."

Ruby blushed hard as Jaune shook his head, "Don't listen to her Ruby, she's playing with you. Really, Grandma? Are you only telling you half-truths just because you want Ruby to be your disciple?"

"Hush," Grandma Arc said as she put her finger up against her grandson's lips.

"What he said is true…You can request the information by joining the military, becoming an official Huntsman, or even be accepted as an apprentice for a Symbologist Master that own governed shops." 

"Although… You'll have to sign a legally binding nondisclosure agreement. That way, it'll be kept as a company secret," Jaune followed up.

Ruby looked at the Elderly Arc with stars in her eyes, "Wait, there are non-officials that know Symbology? Where can I find shops they sell this stuff in? I mean, I know that there is Dust Weaving in clothing, I never seen an actual shop sell one with Dust Symbols."

The grandma sighed before saying, "You can find more of them in Vacuo, and a few of them in rural areas here and there all across the globe as well. Those that carried on the tradition are very few. However, as Jaune said, you'd have to agree to keep this all secret, both the method of creation and where you bought it." 

Joan leaned in and whispered, "But to be honest with you Ruby, I don't give a crap about their rules, especially with what we're going to be facing in the future."

Joan pulled her head back and patted her head, "Do what you want, my dear. If anyone says anything about it or gives you grief, just say you're my number 1 new pupil."

Ruby blushed as Joan patted her head, "Thanks, Joa..."

Joan gave a glare to Ruby that almost made her jump. 

Jaune snickered at her expression before Joan said, "Call me Granny or Grandma, and be careful of who you teach. If it ends up in the wrong hands, it can do a lot of harm."

Ruby nodded her head with an embarrassed expression and continued, "Gr..gra...Grandma, we won't teach anyone who will abuse it, but we'll sure as hell kick Grimm-Butt with it."

Joan smiled, "I look forward to seeing your original works."

While watching his grandma get along with his girlfriend, Jaune paused as he suddenly realized he still had to train. 

He then gave Ruby a quick kiss and said, "Got to go. I forgot to do my morning routine."

Ruby chuckled as she said, "See you later!"

Joan gave a happy smile at the two acting like a husband going off to work and his loving wife sending him off, "You know, Ruby…in my era, 16 was the legal age to become an adult. The sooner you give me some great-grandchildren the longer I can spend with them."

Ruby's mind wandered to what their kids might look like. Her face lit up as she imagined a young girl with vibrant blond hair and stunning silver eyes and a little boy with her dark hair with Jaune's piercing sapphire eyes.

The crimson reaper covered her face with her hood and shook her head as she shouted mentally, "Why am I thinking about that?!"

"Quit teasing my girlfriend, grandma!" Jaune shouted as he finished putting on his training gear and opened workshop door. 

"I'm going to get something to eat after my work out. You want strawberry jam on your pancakes right, Ruby?"

Ruby continued to hide her face with her hood and nodded, "S…sure…sounds great…Jaune…"

Joan laughed at how cute her new granddaughter was and gave her a hug.

Done with his teasing, Jaune quickly ran off to go train in a good mood. 

After escaping from Joan's grasps, Ruby's eyes darted around as she rubbed the back of her head and giggled out, "I'll think I'll join them for training today."

Joan grinned, "Oh, and here I thought we'd talk about what you would name your kids."

Ruby blushed hard as she dashed away and shouted, "I'm not thinking about that, it's too soon for that kind of thing!" All while knowing she already had some names in mind.

Catching up with Jaune, he grinned at her and said, "Couldn't take the heat?"

Ruby flicked her wrist while making a 'Pshh!' noise and said, "What heat?"

"The heat from all that blush Granny was giving you," Jaune snapped back.

Ruby kicked his shin as she sped ahead and met up with Pyrrha. When the silver-eyed petite arrived, she saw that only Weiss was training with the Spartan at the moment. 

The two were practicing their hand to hand skills and Weiss was failing spectacularly.

As the white-haired heiress punched out towards Pyrrha's face, the red-haired Spartan grabbed Weiss's arm and flipped her over. 

As Weiss' back slammed into the ground, she let out a squeaky, "Ow!"

The Schnee got back up and brushed the dirt off her bottom as she stood in a fighting stance and said, "Again!"

Ruby's jaw dropped open as she saw the most pathetic set of punches she had ever seen. It was even worse than her own unarmed skills. 

Pyrrha once again tilted and bobbed her body, easily dodging Weiss's attacks before she grabbed her opponent's wrist and tripped her with a simple sweep-kick.

This time Weiss fell on her butt and let out another squeaky "Ow!" 

However, she immediately stood back up before shouted, "Again!"

Jaune stood next to Ruby as she shook her head, "At least she's trying."

"Maybe we should teach her the basics, even dad made me learn boxing," Ruby said as she got into a basic boxing stance.

Jaune raised an eyebrow and snorted, "You have no footwork, and your punches suck."

Ruby looked at Jaune with an aghast and betrayed expression, "Why?"

Jaune stood up and said, "Because it's true, at least for now. You do know that if you worked out a little more, you would be even faster. I get that you haven't had a use for martial arts because of your Semblance, but, you need it more than you think."

Jaune stood across from Pyrrha and said, "Pyrrha, you have to stop being so nice when you are teaching."

Pyrrha blushed and lowered her head with a shameful pout. 

Jaune chuckled and patted his girlfriend's shoulder before saying, "Right let's start from the basics."

First, we do road work, same as yesterday," Jaune quickly explained the route they had to run.

"YOU, wanna race ME!?" Ruby said with a confident grin.

"No, semblances allowed, no Aura with the exception of healing and Aura Burst," Jaune added breaking Ruby's confidence into pieces.

Weiss wasn't fairing any better with Pyrrah, so she joined in on Jaune's teachings. After a full course explanation of the Aura Burst Technique and how to perform a quick step, the two began practicing.

After a few dozen attempts, Weiss started to pick up the skill, right up until she received a notice declaring that she acquired the skill at a Mastery Level of 1.

Ruby wasn't that much worse at Aura control than her partner, and with a few dozen more attempts than Weiss, she figured it out as well.

With that out of the way, they all stood at arm's length and took off at the count of three.

Needless to say, Ruby and Weiss were neck and neck the whole way, while Pyrrha and Jaune stayed in the lead.

Once an hour had passed and they ran several laps, the group returned to where they started. Jaune won the race once again by a hair's breadth and both he and Pyrrha had to wait at the finish line.

Ten minutes later Ruby and Weiss came back panting and sweating badly.

Jaune grinned, "You're feeling like a lead weight, right?

Ruby glared at him, "More like a ton of lead weights."

Weiss, who was in much worse shape, could barely pant out the word, "Ditto."

Jaune laughed and healed them with his Semblance, the two felt their stamina return as their Aura's skyrocketed.

Jaune then held his hand out, "Ladies."

They grabbed his hand and stood up while receiving an Aura Boost. After saying their thanks, Jaune and Pyrrha began to coach them in the basics of hand to hand.

This time, with Jaune's help, and the harsher attitude that came along with it, they could point their mistakes without worrying about damaging their relationship. Thanks to his drill-sergeant attitude, it helped them improve much quicker. Once Pyrrha got into it, she stopped holding back her harsh words and pointed out Weiss's flaws in her movements without error.

Jaune was surprised to receive a level up in his Hand to Hand Proficiency and a new title that he promptly equipped.

[Hand to Hand Proficiency Level14; Progress until next level: 0.2%]

[Novice Instructor: Helps those that you teach more easily learn the subjects you are trying to explain. It takes -50% less time it would normally take for a student to understand. Evolution Requirments: Must raise levels of 3 skills from any student by 5 levels.]

Pyrrha also received the same title and happily equipped it.

After the two shared a nod of appreciation, they each split up their students and got to work. Jaune helped Ruby, and Pyrrha helped Weiss.

"Come on Ruby, space your legs in a little more, and when you pivot the more speed you put into your rotation the better." Jaune demonstrated by dodging her punch and spinning in with a backhand that stopped just in front of her face.

"If this were Crescent Rose your head would be gone. In the future, you should work on close-range dodging and run a lot without the use of your Semblance. It wouldn't hurt to do a little muscle training either. The stronger your body is, the better the output granted by Aura."

Ruby nodded her head as she listened, "But, won't that make me, kinda, buff?"

Jaune laughed, "Ruby, you gained some muscle, but you are still beautiful."

Jaune wrapped his arms around her waist and gave her a kiss, "You normally developed them after 7 years of in and out combat. But that didn't stop me from thinking of how sexy you looked."

Ruby turned bright red when they heard Joan laugh from behind them. The two embarrassedly jumped back and saw the Grandma Arc with Ruby's Crescent Rose and Jaune's Black Eagle.

She threw it to them and said, "I've added Dust Symbols to the insides of your barrels, they will improve the output of Dust Rounds by 50%. It took a while, but it was worth it."

The two looked at the insides of their weapons and saw hundreds of tiny waves like tribal markings coating the inside of their barrels.

"Focus your Auras inside the chamber and pull the trigger," Joan instructed.

Jaune tilted his head, "No way..." he held up his gun alongside Ruby and sent the thin film of Aura over their weapons.

Ruby and Jaune loaded a Simple Metal Jacket with a small amount of Fire Dust Round.

They then pulled the trigger. Their bullets tore through the ground leaving smoldering embers around it.

"Did we just fire a basic FMJ and it had the same force as high-quality Incendiary Dust Round?" Jaune said as he looked at the smoke coming off the barrel.

Ruby took off in a blur of roses as she wrapped her arms around Joan before she started to repeatedly shout, "Thankyouthankyouthankyou!"

Joan patted her head and said, "It was my pleasure, your weapon was truly a marvel to inspect. Did you make it yourself?"

Ruby nodded her head excitedly, "Yep! Every bolt, sliver of metal, and every last inch of that weapon was made by yours truly."

Joan nodded her head, "You picked a wonderful wife, Jaune."

Jaune smiled, "Thanks, Granny."

Ruby blushed and shyly laughed as rubbed the back of her head.

"Alright, that's enough of this talk, what's this I hear about you not wanting too many muscles?" Joan asked.

Ruby blushed a bit before she announced, "Well, I don't mind some, I just don't want to look like a bodybuilder. I wonder how Nora does it."