A/N: Here's an AU that's been swimming in the back of my head for a week. If you were one of the people who wanted a happy (non-canon) ending in my fic Laws of Attraction, you're welcome. My challenge to myself in this fic is going to be keeping chapters 1000 words or less, with 26 alphabetical prompts taken from a word generator as titles. Each chapter will be one prompt.

This chapter is based on some fun memories I had in first year of uni. I honestly sort of miss finding food for the intoxicated kids on the block. They were fun to watch.

Let me know what you think!

Thrown to the Wind

Accident

It all started with poor timing, a box of cereal, and the gullible, easily-corrupted mind of Ruby Rose.

The tram which ran through campus, allowing students to jump on and off wherever they needed for the sweet, sweet price of free (although maintenance costs were surely hidden somewhere within their student fees- who really knew?), was nowhere to be seen. While this normally wouldn't be a problem for most students, Pyrrha Nikos was very much alone by the track on the outskirts of Beacon University without a ride home, and it was dark.

She was exhausted. Every single muscle in her body ached. And whoever had thought it was a smart idea to house the entire track team in the residences farthest away from the track itself needed to be fired. However, in the darkness of a Friday night, the redhead just wanted to be past the Great War Memorial before the drunkards came out to play. The moment she passed the giant statue of the university's founders, she'd be in the clear. I just have to get to the other side.

So, she shouldered her bag, straightened her back, and began the forty-five minute walk home along Main Avenue, keeping her pace brisk. At least she was still wearing her workout clothes- it made it far easier for her to break into a half-jog anytime she saw a concerning shadow in the bushes.

Unfortunately, returning home late on a Friday night meant only one thing; she had missed her opportunity to avoid the resident partygoers. The moment the elevator finally dinged onto the seventh floor of her building, the sound of (less-than-sober) laughter hit her ears. I suppose it's a rest day tomorrow, so it could be worse, she pondered wryly. Might as well say hello. They'd never let her hear the end of it if she didn't.

Inside of their shared lounge, a group of her housemates were huddled on the couches. At first glance, they looked innocent enough- just a few bags of chips, some soda, and a mysterious loaf of plain white bread on the table. As the redhead dumped her bag in a corner and undid her long, tightly-wound ponytail, however, she saw at last what the group was circled around- a small Tupperware container of chocolate brownies. Pyrrha knew better.

She propped a hand on her hip, shaking her head at the guilty smiles shining up at her. There was only one person who refused to look up at her arrival- little Ruby Rose, the youngest person in their tight-knit community. "Where's Yang? Weiss? Who allowed Ruby to eat pot brownies? You know she's too nervous for it."

The girl in question shuddered quietly, eyes bloodshot and hands jittery as they clung onto a pillow. "I want cereal," the girl pouted, fidgeting incessantly in her corner of the couch.

Blake wrapped an arm around Ruby's shoulder. "Yang's at the frats, Weiss went home to daddy, and I'm not moving," she hummed happily, already drifting off in her own little world thanks to the treats she always supplied.

As Ruby repeated her demands, Blake listening-but-not-hearing by her side, Pyrrha was tackled from behind by familiar arms. "Pyrrha!" Nora squealed.

Pyrrha chuckled, untangling herself from her roommate. "Hey, I just got back from practice."

The shorter girl crinkled her nose. She was already dressed in her pyjamas, headphones slung around her neck. Leaning around Pyrrha to stare at the numbed-out crew lurking on the couches, she rolled her eyes, grinning evilly. "So who's the virgin this time?"

Pyrrha jabbed her thumb at the tiny brunette in the corner, who by now was poking Yatsuhashi's shoulder fervently, muttering, "I want some cereal. Pumpkin Pete's. Who has any?" When no one responded, the pale-eyed girl turned to look at Pyrrha with woeful, frantic eyes. "Pyrrha, please tell me you have some."

Nora's hand shot up. "Nope, but we can totally go buy some. I'll grab Ren! He just finished his assignment, he can come!"

Pyrrha chuckled and nodded, picking up her bag and waving goodbye to the crew. It wasn't the first time Blake's victims had sent her on a snack run- and, she thought wistfully, it likely wouldn't be the last.

Nora hijacked her exhausted mathematician boyfriend from his room, dragging him away from his proofs while Pyrrha grabbed a five-minute shower and put on some proper clothes. Soon, the trio had left the building, heading out of the campus grounds towards the nearby city of Vale.

She traded an exasperated look with Ren as Nora began to ramble about her day almost immediately. Pyrrha didn't mind. Her roommate for the past two years, Nora was like a sister to her. Where Pyrrha was quiet, Nora filled the air comfortably- so, as they meandered down the road away from distant echoes of frat houses and parties happening around central campus, the shorter girl amiably chattered away with her arms looped through the redhead's and her boyfriend's arms.

Their search was almost in vain. No matter how many late-night convenience stores they checked, there was no sign of the cereal anywhere. As Nora chatted and Ren hummed absently in encouragement, the redhead merely tuned it all out, focusing on her plans for after their errand. She had a few readings to do, plus a couple of reflections- I suppose that's what Saturday is for- Sunday is weight training.

It was in Generic Corner Store #7 that Pyrrha found herself stopped in her tracks, eyes affixed to the boy working the cash register while Nora and Ren breezed past. With shaggy blond hair, a small pout, fair skin, and the bluest eyes she had ever seen, his silhouette, outlined by the unnatural neon glow of a nacho cheese dispenser, made her heart race. She stepped back, face flushed, watching him concentrate adorably on a Sudoku puzzle in a ratty newspaper.

Please don't make me talk to him. Please don't tell me they have cereal. And of course, they did.