The Moon Will Stay Shattered
It had been a long, tiring day of training for everyone at Beacon. Hand to hand combat with partners, sparring practice pitting teams against teams, even an Aura drill involving steep cliffs and an Ursa or two. Everyone had long turned in for the night, too tired to do much else save shower and lose consciousness halfway into falling onto their mattresses.
Team JNPR, unbeknownst to other students, may have had it the worst; Jaune had driven himself above and beyond his limits, even convincing Pyrrha to train with him on their usual rooftop for an extra thirty minutes that night. Because of this, Pyrrha herself was extra sore, adding to her already heavy exhaustion from having to add an extra session of training for her three-form transforming weapon; it was times like these that she and Blake almost regretted having the more complex weapons of their peers.
While Ren was already the most powerful Aura user in possibly the whole school (a name made for himself by single handedly punching the spine of the Ursa out of its ribcage that day) he was pushed to balance that trait with his rather low endurance, with Goodwitch pushing him to break his previous records of stamina by almost half. On top of that, the solemn magenta eyed boy had been introduced to new methods of using Stormflower, battling Ruby in combat with her scythe, using them in tandem to fend of Dust-based attacks, and even using them almost as shurikens.
Even Nora, who normally had boundless energy, was almost completely drained thanks to her own exercise. She was tasked with testing armor for the forges, beating them over and over for smiths to improve durability and resistance to multiple blows. When she had been pouring sweat and heaving breaths, ready for a break, Ozpin had guided her towards a few stinger less Death Stalkers, assigned the task of bashing them in to the best of her ability.
The Valkyrie girl now lay in her bed, soft light snores keeping tempo with her relaxed heartbeat. She truly had it rough, welding her hammer to levels even she wasn't aware of. She had been worn down completely, and truly needed her rest to return to her peppy, sweet-guzzling self in time to pounce on her favorite friend since forever and get him ready to start another sunshiny day.
That, however, was going to take a minor setback.
Nora sprung awake, eyes wide and heart pounding in her ears as she fought for her breath. It had happened again; she had been having reoccurring nightmares for the past week, and sadly this night had been no exception. Now she sat upright, sweaty from fear and anxiously sucking in breath after breath to calm herself and hopefully stop from awaking the others.
"It was just a dream Nora… you're okay… just go back to sleep and everything will be okay," she muttered to herself, trying to settle her heart down any way possible.
But to no avail. Images of red, still vivid from just a moment ago, hung there in back of her vision, threatening to become a reality if she remembered them too much. Clutching her hands to the side of her head, Nora thrashed back onto her mattress, taking as long and as deep of breaths as she could. She eventually regained a regular heartbeat, and her breathes came in short shallow puffs, but the damage had been done. She just couldn't fall asleep again.
She sat up, blinking slowly as she scanned the room. Pyrrha, always so graceful, was laid out in her bed, red locks glinting in the moonlight as she softly breathed air in, and let it out in a soft coo. Jaune, sprawled out on his bed, nearly didn't have any covers left, the majority at his feet or spilling over the sides. He didn't need them, not with his horribly corny footy bunny jammies. Under normal circumstances, she might have giggled at his open drooling mouth and how he hugged his pillow ot his chest like it was a stuffed bear… or maybe a certain red head?
Either way, the last in the series of teammates was her very own Lie Ren. He lay on his side in the bed across from her, eyes lightly shut and the blankets hardly moved, as if he had slid into an extraordinarily made bed without so much as disturbing it's tidiness. As usual, he hardly made a sound, his chest hardly rising and falling. Does he even breathe in his sleep? Nora thought to herself, still not 100% sure of Ren's sleeping habits, aside from the quantity and quality of it.
She kept her gaze on him a while longer, still making up her mind. Should I…? No, she mused, sliding back under her covers, arranging herself comfortably. I can't wake him up… not after today. Her partner deserved his rest; he did, after all, chase after her antics when he wasn't training himself. She couldn't do this to him, not now.
Still, her bed had held all that sweat and tension from her night fright; Nora just couldn't seem to relax. Haunting images still echoed around in her head, bumping against her temples as an unpleasant reminder of how alone she was.
It's no use, she grumbled angrily to herself, standing up abruptly and stalking over to the balcony window. I can't sleep, my bed's uncomfortable, my sweat smells like anxiety, I want to be nice to Ren, Pyrrha and Jaune are… well, Pyrrha and Jaune, so it's this or nothing.
Cracking open a sliding glass door, Nora stepped out into the cool midnight air, taking a deep breath of relief. It wasn't Ren's arms, but it would do for now. She already felt the sticky sweat of her skin be replaced by cooling misty air, almost cathartic for her trembling nerves.
After a while, Nora adjusted her eyes and caught a look at the moon, currently facing shattered-side-sideways in the sky. She smiled up at it, too tired to try to try and make conversation, but not exhausted to the point where she couldn't spare a smile and polite wave in its direction. She leaned messily against the railing, eyes still fixed on the soft mellow light ahead of her.
Ren always said this was his favorite phase, Nora reflected, flicking a small hint of rubble from the balcony railing. It's when the shatter pieces are most visible, and their trailing is at its longest.
She paused, a new thought coming to mind.
"It is kind of an ugly position for the moon to be in though, isn't it?" she had said to him years back. They had gone to his older sister's wedding together - as friends, as usual. It was by no means a date; while Ren held a very special place in Nora's heart and vice versa, both had agreed to enjoy their friendship the way it was – they'd probably spend the rest of their lives as a couple, why waste the time they can spend as friends pulling so dating act that they weren't ready for?
Ren had smiled softly, pink eyes framed by his long black mane as they stood with drinks in hand, watching this same phase of the moon twinkling over the beach. Most of the wedding party was still inside; Mr. and Mrs. Valkyrie had come along to keep the already busy Lie family company, which suited Ren's parent's just fine; they loved Nora dearly, and Mr. Lie and Mr. Valkyrie had been meaning to settle a bet about how many times Lie Julia (Ren's sister and the bride) would mispronounce "registry" before the night was over.
But those details were unimportant; Nora's flashback was about her and Ren sitting out on the rocks, staring up at the moon while talking about anything and everything.
"But really, Ren, look at it you can see all its shatters, like how deep they went and everything. I like the moon when you can see it was one big circle! That way you can make little shadow puppets in front of it. Doesn't it look prettier that way? I mean not as pretty as the sun, even though I can't stare at it for long, but you know I know the sun's waaaay better than any hunk of space rock."
A knowing smirk crossed her boy's face, and he returned his expression from hers to the moon. "Well, yes. But that is pretty brave of the moon to keep doing that."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean it still hangs up there, giving us it's light when everything else is dark." He took a swig of his watered down wine before continuing. "Sure, it's broken, and it's in pieces – everything isn't perfect. Heck, we're had to cancel any exploration to the moon indefinitely thanks to how unstable it's gotten up there, all of the pieces hanging in the air like a messy break in it's confidence."
Nora frowned; there went her dreams of zero-gravity and endless space-cheese to eat.
Ren looked back at Nora, a soft smile still tickling the edge of his lips. "The moon remains beautiful because it accepts the ugly in its life and keeps moving. So, where it is now," he said, raising a glass to where it hung in the air, "is a reminder that we can't let the hurt, or scratched edges, or fear stop us from doing what we love. And we can't be afraid to show the world what we are." He hopped off the rock, holding out a hand for Nora to hold as she did the same.
"Come on, Ren," Nora remembered smiling as she beamed and led him by the arm, "The DJ promised he'd play "Gold" for us if we made it back in time."
Flash forward to the present, Nora stood on her balcony, looking over Beacon's campus and up at Ren's favorite celestial being, standing broken in the sky. She had always loved when he went poetic on her; it always made her happy to see him be so expressive in contrast to his normal stoic self. She couldn't help but blush at his coy smile and way with the words he used so little, and she'd usually try to reinforce that kind of behavior to surprise hugs and tender smiles.
Charming-boy-feels aside, Ren's eloquence did usually have a meaning behind it, and she often found herself using it in rough situations for guidance. Take now, for example.
I'm not going to get any sleep standing here daydreaming… or is it night-dreaming? Or should I just call it awake-dreaming because – oh never mind, she thought to herself, slipping back inside and closing the door behind her. She tiptoed quietly back to her bed, reaching not for covers and sheets but for an extra singlet she kept folded on her nightstand, slipping off her still damp one in favor of the fresh, clean fabric that she knew she'd sleep better in.
She then made her way across the room, to a long shape that still hadn't moved since she left.
"Ren," she whispered, giving her friend a light jab. She got no response. Typical.
"Ren." This time it was a little more matter-of-fact, her shaking him a tad more aggressive.
This time she was rewarded with a deep throated sleepy mumble, and a very tired Ren sitting up and rubbing his eyes. "Nora, it's… like, really early in the morning, what's going on?"
She hugged herself, eyes downcast, still feeling bad about waking him. "I can't sleep" she chirped almost to herself, thinking maybe this was a bad decision. With how rough everyone had it yesterday, she wouldn't be surprised if this was the first time he turned her down.
Ren's eyes narrowed. "Nightmare again?"
Nora nodded sheepishly, not trusting her normally functioning voice box.
"Did they get you?"
She shook her head, finally meeting Ren's gaze, just enough to see his indifferent pink hues staring back, blank as the walls around them.
A moment on a silence filled the room, Nora feeling every second of it. Ren's brow faltered, sleep definitely pulling him in deeper, his eyes blinking away as much sleep as they coul. Nora turned to return to her own, uncomfortable bed; he obviously needed to just catch up on his own slumber. "Sorry Ren, I'll let you sleep, it was really rough yesterday and I shouldn't have taken away your –"
"How long ago?"
Nora turned around, not sure what he meant. "Hmm?"
"How long ago was your nightmare?"
She thought hard, confused as to what direction this was going. "Er… maybe half an hour ago?"
Ren sighed heavily, a combination of exasperation, frustration, and – was that affection? – muddled up in the tired exhale. The lean lotus boy, wearing his forest green sleeping pants and a faded light green tank top, flipped open a section of his covers before slumping down in bed.
"You should have gotten me up then, silly."
A very relieved and overjoyed Nora stumbled into his bed, burying herself in the sea of linen smelling of Ren's shampoo and a trace of what small sweat he gave off. Just like at home she mused, reaching in and burying her face in his chest, wrapping herself around the piece of home she dragged to school with her. She let out a content sigh, feeling drowsy again since the nightmare, so glad she decided to open up about her needs.
"Nora, you can always come here if you need it."
"I know, Ren," she mumbled sleepily, grinning as she felt her hair get ruffled affectionately. In response, she gave him a tighter squeeze and booped noses with him before returning to her position over his heart, her own pounding for an entirely different reason now.
Within seconds she felt him drift back to sleep, relaxing all over without losing his grip on her. Nora sighed, knowing it would take a tad longer to slip away herself. That suited herself just fine, she did have something to take make sure of just for a second.
Shifting around and shrugging off Ren's arms so she could prop herself up, Nora moved over Ren's tank top just enough to peek down past the off-green fabric. Inscribed perfectly in line with where Ren's heart was, a tattoo of the Sun blazed against his pale skin, fiery orange and yellow contrasting his calm personality. She smiled down at it, remembering the day she went with him to go get it done. She still remembered him ushering her out of the room just before it happened, claiming he didn't want to see her flinch but, as she heard him telling the artist, he just didn't want her to see him have "Nora" written in pink at the center of the Sun's rays.
She leaned down and tenderly kissed the memento, before snuggling deeper against Ren as she finally fell asleep, her loosely draped night shirt revealing the moon in Ren's favorite phase done in silver ink just over her own heart.
At the center of the Moon's whole, "Ren" was written in a shade of pink just matching his eyes.