Reckoning


Welcome back to another random story of mine. Let me know what you think. It's been ages since i last uploaded so cut me some slack. I'm out of practice. I will start uploading more consistently in the future, but I need to work some things out at the moment. So, for now, just enjoy this one. Be sure to let me know what you think!

~K~


Silence… Nothing… All things present at the moment. A copious amount of clear fluid was slowly spreading along the pavement. He didn't want to believe it. He couldn't believe it. How could she say no? He had tried so hard to make things right, but in the end, she still said no. Arduously, Jaune lowered his hand to his side, letting the white flower clutched in its grasp fall to the ground. He said nothing as he slowly let her words sink in. "I just don't think of you as more than a friend." How could he have been so improvident? How had he not seen this coming?

Shaking his head, Jaune turned and began his wretched journey back to the dorms. When he finally arrived, his partner Pyrrha, was sitting on her bed, taking off her gold and crimson armor.

"How did it g-"

She cut herself off, catching a glance at her partner and roommate. Jaune collapsed in her arms, silently weeping. Pyrrha said nothing as she held the poor soul in her arms, hoping to pacify him through touch. To her, Jaune was more than a partner or roommate. He was a friend, a very good one at that, and to see him as dejected as he was, triggered a maternal instinct inside Pyrrha that screamed at her to comfort. After a few minutes, Jaune calmed down enough to look his partner in the eye. Pyrrha saw a look that she had only seen once before.

Three months prior.

Pyrrha was walking out of her Grimm studies class, seeing Jaune sitting on a nearby bench, head in his hands. Dropping everything Pyrrha rushed to her partner and put a warm hand on his shoulder. "Is everything ok? What's going on?" she asked quietly. Jaune slowly shakes his head, still currently cupped in his shaking palms. Just as she was about to respond, a small group of boys strolled over. "Look at Jauney boy! He's cryin!" the first boy jeered. Pyrrha felt Jaune tense under her hand. "I bet he's crying because he got beaten so badly during sparring! Gave him a real flogging I'd say."

Pyrrha slowly lowered her now shaking hand to her side. Her ears were ringing so badly, she didn't even hear the next sentence. She was visibly shaking with rage. After a second, she decided that this needed to stop… now. "Shut up." was all she said. "What? Did you just tell me to-"

"I said shut up!" Pyrrha growled. "You're lucky I'm here and not Nora. If she were here, all your legs would be broken in half by now." The biggest boy sneered and cracked his knuckles. "And what are you going to do? Apologize us to death?" The group snickered behind their hands. "I think the one who needs to shut up is you missy." The biggest of the four pulled out a mace the size of her head. "And I'll be the one to do it." The other three boys took this as a hint and drew their weapons as well. "Try me." Pyrrha snarled.

The boy with the mace smirked and swung his mace down at Pyrrha. Pyrrha quickly pulled out a circular disc, bracing for the impact. But it never came. She saw a flash of white, heard a clang of metal on metal, felt a body push against hers, and lowered her shield. All she could see was a head of blonde hair, and an arm holding a shield. Jaune winced slightly from the impact and glared in loathsomeness and the boy who had swung the mace. "Don't even think about it buddy." Jaune had one arm in his shield. One in front of Pyrrha, protecting her from harm. Pyrrha was speechless, only being able to emit a small gasp. The mace wielder staggered back, not expecting the impact of metal on metal.

At this point, Pyrrah was just as perplexed as anybody. She stepped back from Jaune, to get a clearer view of the current situation. Jaune, last in his sparring class, barely scraping a passing grade in most of his classes, was protecting her, top of the class in a majority of her classes. It made no sense. But then again, it made all the sense. Just a month prior, Pyrrah had found out that Jaune Arc, hadn't actually been accepted to Beacon Academy. So after she found out, she didn't tell him off, report him, or scold him. She had offered to train him. She wanted to help him be the best person possible, and it was working! He had made great strides to becoming a huntsman.

At the beginning, Jaune was foppish, squandered time that could be spent training, and clumsy. Now he was as good enough to go toe to toe with Pyrrah herself. Holding back that is. However, Cardin Winchester still posed a threat. What he lacked in brains, he made up for in brawn. Preferring to overpower his enemies with pure muscle, then plan his attacks. Jaune was the exact opposite. He preferred to outwit his enemies; turn their attacks against them. This was an issue when your opponent had no plan at all. After the third defeat at the hand of Cardin, Jaune began fasting, being more frugal with his time, and staying secluded to study. Compared to a month ago, Jaune was much more fit, felicitous, and overall in a better mood.

Even if Cardin still thought of Jaune as pestilential, and not worth the energy, you wouldn't be able to deny Jaune's improvement. Even Ruby's uncle Qrow, (who had no practice in temperance) had remarked on his increase in skills. Which was impressive, seeing as Qrow was a trained huntsman himself. Cardin was an avaricious person, not caring for how his actions impacted other people. So it would make sense that he didn't care about Jaune. But it was more than that. Cardin went out of his way to bully Jaune. None of the teachers seemed to notice, but his entire team had noticed instantly. Going so far as to threaten breaking legs. (*cough cough NORA! cough cough*) but he denied any accusation of bullying for fear of reciprocation.