A/N: Hi, I'm Soren, and I've been dragged into the pits of shipping hell by my friend Jenny. This fic was begun for her, as she's like a younger sister to me.

This is a humanized AU with a lot of heavy reliance on headcanons developed in the nintendask community on tumblr. Please keep that in mind going in. Other than that I hope you can at least get a giggle or a good few minutes of enjoyable reading from this. Thanks!

Bouncing Back- Chapter One

Podler's was hiring.

That was a surprise. For as far as Austin Grubba knew, the older man had been running his establishment on his own for decades now, with only a waiter or two to keep things going smoothly. Now though, it looked like he was searching for another bartender. And he wasn't going to complain about a job opportunity falling into his lap so soon after his release on parole.

Drink mixing was something he actually had some experience with, too, from way back before...everything. Before the crystal star and its influence mucked up his mind, his morality, his judgment. But if he stood around thinking about that all day, he'd never get an application in his hands, so Austin shook his head, adjusted his shirt (the standard issue gray shirt that people leaving the prison were given) and stepped inside.

It was just about the same as he remembered it being. Podler's juice bar was dimly lit and decorated in deep reds and muted purples with a hardwood floor. From the dooorway, the bar was in the back left corner and a small performance stage stood in the back right- that one was new though.

If any of the patrons who looked up to see who had entered recognized him, they didn't make a show for it. There wasn't even any muttering or a single dark glare thrown his way. Seven years had passed, though...Austin counted his blessings and headed for the back where Podler was polishing a glass. He felt his hands start to sweat a bit and calmed himself down as best as he could, reminding himself that he used to be a big name around here and spoke in front of thousands on a day to day basis once upon a time- he could ask for a job application no problem.

Once he bumped into someone, he realized that closing his eyes while walking might not have been the best decision. They snapped open- and Austin Grubba had to audibly swallow to keep his heart from climbing out of his mouth and dancing merrily away.

Jolene. He knew her on sight. She'd been his assistant for years at the Glitz Pit, he'd all but killed her brother, and she'd been a material witness in his trial. She was different now in some ways- her clothes were somewhat more casual, she was wearing slacks instead of a pencil skirt and her glasses were new. But the short blonde hair was the same, the naturally standoffish expression hadn't change, and she was still wearing that raspberry beret.

And now her fist- oh god!

Austin barely managed to duck the incoming sucker punch. With a yelp, he took a step backwards, straightened his sunglasses and held a hand up defensively while he did so.

"Cool it!" He said desperately, "I ain't here for trouble!"

That seemed to get through to her quickly, thank the powers that be. Jolene lowered her fist, crossed her arms and glared at him lowly, probably sizing him up.

Grubba didn't look like much anymore. He'd had to cut his hair above the collar while in prison, never shaved enough so he had a dusting of stubble over his face right now. Then there was the plain, wrinklygray button down and faded jeans he'd been given to change into when he left. Nothin like the "King of Spiff" he'd touted himself as when running the Glitz Pit all those years ago.

"I'm just...just pickin' up a job application, missy, that's all." He said pleadingly "Please don't hit me."

Jolene relaxed, but still glared. "So they let you out." She said candidly.

"On parole." Grubba added.

"What, were you well behaved or something?" She was squinting now. Austin almost didn't want to affirm her accusation, but that was exactly the reason he'd gotten out. A model prisoner, they said.

He nodded, reluctantly. Jolene raised a brow.

"Fine then." She said curtly. It nearly sounded like a huff, but the spiteful part of Austin said she wasn't expressive enough for that.

She was about to walk away when, impulsively, the former glitz pit manager made a decision. Probably a stupid one, his past decade's track record considered, but he went for it anyway and grabbed her shoulder.

"Wait a tick, though!" He said.

This time the sucker punch connected solidly with his jaw.

Austin stumbled back a couple of steps from the shock. He was bigger and stronger than Jolene, so the punch hadn't done much more than surprise him, but it still got him to back away, which was probably her intention to begin with.

He held up his hands defensively again when it looked like she was about to go in for another swing. "Sorry! No touching! I got it!"

Jolene took a step forward. Austin took a step back. "Really, I just wanted to ask a question!" He said desperately.

Jolene crossed her arms. "Speak."

Taking the order to heart, Austin launched into his explanation. "Listen, I know ya got no good reason to, but...really, I got some of what they like to call 'penance' to do and I got a lot to say, some of it to yerself. This is awkward, but...would you hear me out over it? Coffee? Somethin'?"

There was a long silence. Grubba was about to give up and walk past her when Jolene finally spoke up, jerking her head toward the counter.

"Get your application and follow me." She ground out.

(oO00Oo)

The place she took him was a cafe on the main thoroughfare a little further down from the Glitz Pit. They ordered coffee and sat, and she tapped her manicured nails on the table while he stared at his cup and tried to think of how to start. When the tapping grew louder and more insistent, Grubba launched into things full throttle without any more care as to what happened. He had gotten this far- the worst that could happen was another sucker punch, right?

"I ain't gonna just plain old apologize." He said first, "'Cos I know that won't do the trick. That isn't enough to repay you for everything I put ya through."

Jolene stopped tapping.

"Your brother too. Bandy Andy. Everyone." Grubba continued, and idly poured some cream into his coffee so he could have something to do with his trembling hands.

"A professor, realy scholarly type, called Frankly showed up and visited me one day while I was in the big house."

"I know of him." Jolene interjected. Grubba nodded.

"He told me, I guess...some kinda weird energy surrounds them crystal star thingies. Messes with folks' heads, makes 'em crazy. He said things like how it messed with some dragon and made a vengeful ghost and other junk like that."

Jolene was staring.

"The point is, he thinks...that the crystal star I got my dirty mitts on did the same thing to me."

"He thinks it 'made you crazy.'" Jolene did air quotes, looking thoroughly unimpressed. But Austin nodded.

"Yeah. Sounds dumb, but that's the gist of it. Frankly said a buncha brainy junk I didn't get, but the lowdown is that the longer someone uses a crystal star or has it in their posession the loonier they get." He shrugged, "Ain't no excuse for my actions, just an explanation."

Jolene was quiet for a long moment, and Austin set about sipping at his coffee nervously (He'd put in too much cream while he was speaking).

"So you're...is this you apologizing?" Jolene's brow was furrowed.

"Tryin' to, anyway." Austin said, "I don't expect anythin' from you, Jolene. No forgiveness, no nothin'. But I am sorry, and for my own sake I gotta say it. 'S gonna sit in my stomach until I get sick, otherwise."

Another silence ensued. Austin kept drinking his coffee while carefully watching out for any more spontaneous socks to the jaw. He knew this was bizarre to his former employee. He had already been well under the influence of the crystal star's energy by the time they met. Sincerity was likely not something she thought possible for him. And that was fair- it had been a long time since he'd been sincere.

But, eventually, Jolene sighed and sat back and took a sip of her own drink. She seemed to be taking him seriously, then. That was better than nothing.

"So then. Seven years in prison." She finally said after some time. Austin had to admit he was surprised she hadn't left him alone by now.

"Yeah." He mumbled, "Probably wasn't enough but y'know...parole."

"Agreed." Jolene set her coffee down a bit roughly, but her tone was much less dangerous than it had been at the beginning of the conversation.

"What are you going to do from here, then, Mr. Grubba?"

Austin blinked. "Figured I'd just find a job and a place to staya and … live m'life, ya know?"

"Not returning to the Glitz Pit?" Her tone was sarcastic. Austin rolled his eyes.

His coffee was gone. Austin stood up and dug for his wallet to go pay for his drink with the dusty coins still inside from when he was taken in. Jolene stood too.

"Why did you ask to speak to me just to tell me all this?" She asked as he turned to leave ahead of her.

He cringed. It had been spontaneous, but he couldn't say he had never thought about it either. There was a part of him that wanted to pay penance to any of his victims who would listen. An attempt to redeem himself in anyone's eyes was all he wanted from it, really, and a chance to prove to someone out there that he really was going to shape up again.

Instead of saying all that, he shrugged. And as he turned to leave again Jolene making a motion stopped him.

Afraid he was in for another blow to the face, he lifted a hand, but once he took a proper look he realized she was holding hers out for him to shake.

"Wassat?" He asked anyway.

"Call it a second chance, out of grace." Jolene said curtly, "If you're going to be working at the juice bar and I'm going to keep being a regular, we may as well agree to terms of nonhostility, don't you think?"

Blinking, Austin reached out slowly.

"And don't think this means I've forgiven you by any means." Jolene said clearly, "You have a long way to go before I'll ever do that."

There was a pause.

Austin shook her hand.

And then, for the time being, they parted ways. Jolene back to the Glitz Pit- she ran the place now, after all- and Austin to the Juice Bar to finish and hand in his job application.

There was still a long way to go before he could find a life again, he thought as he took to wandering the streets for a place to stay for the night. But if things kept going as unexpectedly well as they had today, he might stand a chance.

Chapter End

A/N: Constructive reviews and positive feedback on what you liked or enjoyed are welcome! Negative feedback is welcome as long as it serves to help me improve. Ciao!