Chapter 2

As the day progressed, Xavier still found himself busy, busy remembering techniques he hadn't practiced in decades and getting a bit of a workout in the process, dummies would be a large part of the curriculum budget it seemed, but one thing at a time. For the moment, it seemed his class was going smoothly as the next group of students came in, and after four classes total introducing the basics of martial arts primarily to the uninitiated, the school day would come to a close. Once the final bell had rung, after classes were over for the day he would make his way outside for a smoke. It wouldn't take him long to hear a few small shouts, noises of exertion coming from the training yard. Xavier would make his way over to see Pyrrha, undoubtedly inspired to practice her own techniques as she went to town on one of the sparring dummies. Once she noticed she was being observed, however, she paused and turned to Xavier, smiling as she saw him. "Hello, Professor." She bowed a little bit.

"miss nikos," Xavier gave a slight bow of the head as he took a drag. "...as a more seasoned martial artist, could i get your honest opinion of how that went?"

"Well, I don't know if I would say that..." Despite the results of their single training bout, she realized she had much to learn from someone who may have viewed her as an equal. "But I think it went well, despite the disruption." She smiled gently, staying standing a bit upwind of him, gently holding her hand over her nose. Xavier seemed to notice and sheepishly turned to the side to attempt to keep the smoke away as he spoke.

"hmm," He turned his head to exhale away from her. "i appreciate your opinion, i was worried about how to even start things since basics and katas are about as exciting as watching paint dry..." He took a moment to contemplate before crushing out his cigarette. "sorry, it's a bad habit, so best not pick it up," Admittedly it was something he had attempted to quit numerous times, but addiction is a powerful thing.

Pyrrha awkwardly nodded. "That's alright. I know a lot of people who smoke. Though... The cold air back in Atlas carried it better."

"heh, ...funny thing is, back home, cigarettes were part of the culture for a very long time, then people figured out they were terrible for you," He sighed and shook his head a bit, wondering if that sounded a little too strange. "...so do you often come here to train alone?" Best to change the topic before her own questions could dig into that.

Pyrrha hesitated before answering. "Well... Yes." She nodded a little, blushing slightly. "If I'm being honest... I don't have much else to do besides Studying and Training." That seemed to carry some weight, her voice was tense as she spoke, as if she wanted to make a complaint of that but stopped just short. Something that he picked up on.

"need to get yourself a hobby then... or maybe someone you can train with?" He mused to himself more than anything, she was a warrior and a damn good one, but only being a warrior isn't healthy, something he knew from experience.

"Oh, well, actually-"

"Hey there, Xavier! Hi Pyrrha!" Came the familiar voice of one Yang Xiao-Long. She smiled brightly, coming over and standing beside Xavier with her arms folded behind her back, looking up at Pyrrha.

"Oh! H-hello Yang?" Pyrrha tucked some hair behind her ear, canceling her train of thought, and adding some awkward embarrassment to her voice as a result.

Xavier gave a small nod and couldn't help but crack a smile. "hey there yang, i was wondering how long it'd take you to show up," He half-joked before turning his attention back to Pyrrha. "...well hey, if you ever want some critique, or a sparring partner, let me know," He figured that with Yang around, his attention would be called away soon.

Yang's eyes seemed to light up at the idea that Xavier had proposed, however. "Ooooh, you're looking for a sparring partner? I'm game!" She stood up, giving a few fake punches towards Pyrrha before dropping the act and laughing to herself, Xavier seemed to find it pretty amusing as he stifled a chuckle. Pyrrha on the other hand...

"Uh, w-well, actually... Um..." She blushed a bit as she turned away, her eyes looking towards Xavier with a bit of a pleading expression.

He nodded and placed a hand on Yang's shoulder. "for another time, ...but yang, next time i give a demonstration i'm calling on you, after what that one asshat tried to pull"

"Hehehe! Totally!" She smiled brightly. "After all, who could pass up the chance to show off a bit~" That was certainly more flirtatious and more public than he was used to. But after a summer break, it was understandable. Xavier supposed that was a hint and seemed to blush a bit himself. The moment, however, was thrown off as another familiar voice came from behind him.

"You... look like you're having fun." The sound of Blake's voice made Xavier and Pyrrha jump a bit, they both only just seemed to notice Blake. She had come up entirely silently until she decided to speak, and neither had really seen one another in over a month, let alone had the time to talk...

When Xavier saw her, however, alot of his tension seemed to disappear. It had been some time since they spoke, and the awkwardness seemed to have faded somewhat. He addressed her earnestly with a short nod. "good to see you blake, what's up?"

She stepped over, standing a bit awkwardly beside Yang. She seemed... Tired. "Nothing specific, I suppose..." There was a tension that now hung in the air as everyone went quiet. Pyrrha, however, was the first to break.

"W-well... It was nice seeing you, Professor." Pyrrha quickly bowed and bowed out, excusing herself before things got any more awkward or tense. After an awkward moment's silence, Xavier would be the one to speak next.

"...i was uh, gonna head over to the library, want to join?" He asked Blake, where would be better, after all, to have a conversation in peace without the awkwardness of the bedroom...

She glanced over at Yang, blushing slightly. "Are you sure..?"

"Yeahh!" She put and arm around Blake. "C'mon, you're overthinking things, it'll just be fun."

"um..." He wondered what Yang was doing, and, if/how to break it to her what he was after. However, it seemed she had her own idea and being the resident extrovert gave Yang a serious advantage in social leverage. The trio made their way to the Library, Blake trying to relax a bit as she could tell Yang was trying to relieve the tension... But she clearly wasn't all the way there yet.

Once they arrived, Xavier spent a moment looking for a particular book, without his actual glasses, he realized just how sorely he took the translation software for granted, but soon enough he did find it... a comprehensive history of the last century, the most eventful time in Remnant it seemed. How odd. Once he sat down, Xavier noticed an obvious tension in the air, and so decided to break the ice... "well, my first teaching gig didn't go terribly i hope,"

"It was good." Blake nodded a little bit, having sat down opposite of where Xavier had decided to park himself, Yang, however, took a more direct approach and sat down next to Xavier. A cute girl on both sides of the man.

"and here i thought you slept through it," He teased Blake a little, hoping to be casual. "...no lie, i picked the library to get away from craziness, i uh... it's been awhile since any of us really got to talk, and i get the feeling the awkward emotional rollercoaster hasn't exactly come to a stop" He hoped that was a thing here, or he'd have no frame of reference.

"Sorry about that, my fault I'm sure." Yang laughed a little bit, definitely getting the metaphor. Blake sighed a little and looked away.

"no one person's fault but mine," Xavier immediately blurted out, catching them all off guard. His cheeks lit up red and he cleared his throat, considering his words carefully. "...but ...with the break, i've had alot of time to think, about how things have been going, about... what i've done since coming here, and i think i've got an answer," Both girls fell dead quiet, staring at each other with a blush before looking at him... He couldn't mean what they thought he meant right? They hadn't seen one another in weeks and he wasn't about to just...

"...i know i haven't told either of you much that's actually useful about my past, hell we could all say we don't know that much about one another, but i'm used to leaving things behind when the going gets tough... i've decided i'm going to stay, i like this job better than any one i've had, so i want to stay... with... with you" He would look between the two girls as he spoke, having not made a choice it seemed. However, this was more personal to him than to them, but since the two members of team rwby were indeed the best friends he had, it was immensely satisfying.

"I..." Blake slowly let the tension that had frozen her in place for a moment melt away as she let go of the breath she had been holding, and gulped a bit, ready to actually speak. "I understand... I know how it feels and, I-I'm tired of running away too." She was firm in her statement, possessing a conviction that he hadn't seen from her yet. Albeit for a different reason, one that she hadn't told them yet.

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"Um... Yeah, I get it." Yang reached over, rubbing Xavier's back. "I can't really relate but... As long as you don't plan on going anywhere, I'm happy with that." There was a warmth that Xavier felt when Yang smiled at him. He blushed lightly and awkwardly chuckled.

"So..." Blake cleared her throat a bit, her brows furrowed slightly. "Ruby talked to me a little the other day..." She trailed off with a blush. It seemed the leader of team RWBY was ahead of everyone else when it came to the tension between the three.

"Yeah, me too." Yang awkwardly laughed a little bit. "I guess our uh... Little quadrangle has her worried."

Xavier paused for a moment before breaking the silence. "i'm... not surprised there's worry..." Hell he was worried now.

Blake shifted uncomfortably in her seat, her ears flattening against her head. "It's um... It's mostly my own fault, so I'm really sorry to both of you for that." She bowed a little bit, not lifting her head again. Xavier shook his head before standing up, raising his hands a bit.

"look, if we're going to assign any blame, it's more my fault than anything i think, i know... just how badly i've fucked up dealing with everything, if it wasn't for me-"

"N-no!" Blake cut him off, raising her head as she clenched her fists. "No. It's more my fault than anyone's, look." She pulled out her notebook, starting to draw up a series of circles... And putting names in them... Xavier immediately recognized what was happening, a shiver of almost PTSD went through him remembering one particularly painful memory from the Dream Bubbles. However, Yang would grasp her hand away.

"Oh, Cut it out, Blake!" She snapped as she stood up, frowning a bit.

"Y-you can't deny that if I just..!" Yang cut her off again by raising her hand in a gesture of silence, making Blake flinch.

"Bullshit. You and I both know that if it was that simple you would've just picked him already!" She pointed at Sun's name on the chart and sighed, trying to keep her voice down, her eyes having turned red. "I... I don't want you to beat yourself up over this, Blake. It's not that big of a deal in the end, you know? It's complicated, and..." She glanced over at Xavier, petting his head since he was the only one still sitting down. "A-and I don't want you to make the wrong choice just because you think it's convenient for others. If you think I'm scared because of a little romantic rivalry, or even that it's gonna get in the way of our friendship, then you just don't know me that well at all!" She smiled brightly. "If we're gonna do this... I want to win fair and square, so you better make sure you focus on what you really want." Blake... dashed forward, pulling Yang into a big hug... which the blonde reciprocated.

Xavier was... shocked, and didn't know what to do, now feeling more guilt than ever. He would stand up, and collect his book, wanting to just let the two friends enjoy each other's embrace for the moment. He glanced over at the chart before back at them, and only barely dared to open his mouth. "...i-"

"You shut up too, dude!" She laughed, opening an arm and roping him into their hug! "We're all gonna be FINE, everybody CHILL." She gently scratched behind Blake's ears, causing her knees to buckle as she quickly placed a hand over her mouth to stifle the involuntary moan... Blake's cheeks were dark red, their hug breaking as everyone stepped back.

Xavier couldn't help but laugh, his mood returning, he held her hand... And Yangs, and smiled at both of them. "i'm not gonna lie, i've never been good at it, ...i'm just, happy that i didn't ruin things," He neglected to add 'for once' in an attempt to humor Yang's positive vibe, though his head was spinning a bit at Yang's... Well, confession. He hadn't considered their relationship to be anywhere near that level yet, but... Wasn't... opposed to it in any regard.

"Well, you haven't ruined things completely at least..." Ren poked his head out from a nearby shelf which he was returning books to from a cart. "I am going to have to ask you three to leave, though. People are studying."

"R-right, sorry." Yang nodded a bit, kissing Xavier on the cheek and still holding his hand, while Blake nodded, let go, and scurried off.

"...sorry, poor choice of locale affects us all," Which was a bit of a jab at himself, but still, he started to walk off with Yang still in tow. The two walked in silence until they found themselves in the courtyard once again.

"Ah... I was hoping she'd stay with us..." Yang sighed. "I think part of this whole thing has been like... She doesn't really know what we've been up to when we're hanging out." She tenderly traced a thumb over Xavier's knuckles as her gaze lowered.

He blushed darkly as he traced his free hand over the cheek she kissed. His eyes went to the ground for a moment, while Yang was absolutely beautiful he hadn't thought of her in quite that way before... Today was somewhat of a revelation, though, maybe she was more comfortable escalating things with friends than he ever was. "not much to know, mostly crappy movies and innocent back and forth..."

"Yeah, as opposed to guilty back and forth." She smiled big, making a lewd humping gesture with her free arm, stopping walking to do it, it was a whole thing. She certainly knew how to make him laugh.

"n-no stop! ...jeez i'm in enough trouble as is, don't need more ideas-" He froze for a moment when he released the particular turn of phrase, but while Yang's laughter helped him calm down, she didn't stop his mind from wandering. "...no, no, not gonna bring doom and gloom here now, let's chill for today,"

"Hey," She stopped and moved to grasp his other hand, the two now stood just inches apart, looking right into one another's eyes. "I don't wanna be the girl you can't talk to..." She smiled a bit, before putting an arm around his shoulders. "Let's talk if you wanna talk."

"i know, but not this, not today..." He smiled and squeezed her hand a bit. He saw in that brief moment that she was willing to try to make this work. In the back of his mind he considered his position with Blake, and felt a pang of guilt, like he had been chasing her... He wasn't ready to give up, but maybe trying something new couldn't hurt? Though if this has a chance of working, there was something he remembered they could try. "this weekend, um, let's go and do the club thing,"

That made her blush a bit. "Really? Hell yeah, alright!" She bounced a little, talking to him about some prior experiences as they made their way to the mess hall for dinner, before long, however, he felt a vibration in his pocket. A little less than a week ago, Ozpin had provided Xavier with a Scroll, Remnant's version of a smartphone, for necessary communication. Xavier pulled it out of his pocket only to see a strange, unknown number... Though he immediately recognized the font and tone of this text.

SN

y0u have decided t0 stay... acceptable f0r n0w... y0u kn0w h0w t0 reach me when y0u need an escape

-GT

Yang briefly looked over Xavier's shoulder before offering to give her own scroll number. The two would walk and talk as they got their food, and would sit together as they ate, but wouldn't have much time to themselves... "Hey there, teach." Qrow flopped down in the seat next to Xavier, across from Yang... Definitely not as comfy a presence as Blake, but... Well, there was no but.

The smell of alcohol made Xavier wince a bit as he put on his best fake smile, gently setting his scroll down on the table "qrow... what brings you over to my side of things?" Qrow raised a brow at the presumptuousness of that question, but the answer clicked in his head immediately, he was Ruby's uncle, which meant...

"Oh, YOU know..." He eyed Yang, who blushed dark... "Just making sure you crazy kids aren't getting into too much trouble."

Xavier gave an awkward laugh, trying to not seem guilty. "no kind of trouble that would get anyone more than a talking to ...need a drink?"

"Yyyyyup. Whether or not I can get one is another story..." He chuckled to himself.

"O-okay uncle Qrow, that's enough." She leaned over Xavier to push the older man away, inadvertently pushing her chest a bit too close to Xavier's face. Aaaand he turned to Yang right as she moved, getting a direct face-full of her chest and giving a harsh blush in return. Quite frankly, he was almost too embarrassed to move.

Qrow saw that... Laughing as he stood up. "Right, right... Get a room, you two." He headed back out of the mess hall, having had enough fun.

"maybe..." He mused practically under his breath as he slid back a bit, his face beet red and his head left spinning just a bit. ...wait did Qrow hear that?

No, but Yang sure did! She was smiling, holding back a cackle as she blushed. "D-dude you totally just put your face right in my tits!"

"you put your tits in my face! i... just... looked at the movement over my shoulder, it’s a reflex thing" He deflected a bit, but gave her a sly smirk.

She stuck her tongue out at him before glancing away nonchalantly. "Wellll... You're welcome back any time~" She winked before standing up and headed to the exit, leaving her tray. Xavier was left for a few moments with his thoughts.