Here is chapter 2 of Partners in Crime. Expect a new chapter every Sunday. Enjoy!
Jaune lifted some more spaghetti into his mouth as he listened in awe to Ruby's epic tale of how she had battled the notorious criminal Roman Torchwick. He'd managed to meet up with her after the headmaster's speech and had gone to the canteen, along with the rest of the applicants, to eat the dinner graciously served by the academy.
It was amazing how someone that was two years younger than him, about as old his youngest sister, had been so strong that the headmaster himself had invited her to join Beacon. It was also somewhat terrifying since he was a fraud with no official training that now had to pretend to be a trained warrior of Ruby's calibre. Am I really cut out for this…
No. He had come this far and he wouldn't back out. Jaune had run away from home with the sword of his ancestors and faked his way into one of the most prestigious combat academies in Remnant for his dream of becoming a hero, just like his forefathers. He had spent far too long living in indecisiveness and he had promised himself the night he left home that he would no longer be the nervous, uncool guy with no friends and that he would do whatever it took to become a Huntsman. Jaune Arc would not, could not, question himself, or his decisions, any longer.
"And that's how I got moved ahead by two years by Headmaster Ozpin himself!" Ruby finished with a proud smile as she picked up another cookie to munch on.
Jaune smiled back. "It sounds like you completely deserve the promotion. I can't believe you actually got to see Miss Goodwitch fight though! I've only ever seen professional Huntsmen and Huntresses fight properly in videos on my scroll before and even then those were just spars rather than the real thing."
"Yeah, I guess I was pretty lucky back then. I still can't believe I didn't get her autograph though," she pouted.
"I still can't believe you had the guts to ask her for an autograph."
"She isn't as scary as she looks." Jaune paused mid-spaghetti to stare at Ruby. "Okay, maybe she is. She's still a total badass."
"Excuse me, is this seat taken?"
Jaune turned to face the feminine voice which had asked the question - and was left dazzled by her beauty. The stunning woman who stood with a tray of food before him wore a pair of white jeans which tightly hugged her long legs and a breastplate with a pale-yellow and white colour scheme. He willed his eyes to move past her chest area to her face and his heart skipped another beat. Her face was crowned by blonde hair which matched the colour of her breastplate. A white hairband rested in her golden locks. As Jaune finally moved his eyes down to meet her sparkling emerald ones, he noticed her glancing nervously to the side. The horrifying realization that he had been staring at her for far too long finally dawned on him. Oh god, she thought he was a creep, didn't she? He hadn't spoken a word and he'd already messed this up. Before he could say a word and somehow make himself look even creepier, Ruby swooped in to save the day.
"Nope, that seat is all yours. My name's Ruby, nice to meet you. What's your name?"
Jaune gulped as the angel descended to the seat next to his. "I'm Isabella. It's nice to meet you too Ruby." She smiled pleasantly at the girl and then turned to look at him. Oh no she's looking at me. Confidence, Jaune, all you need is confidence! "What's your name?"
"T-The name's Jaune Arc. Short, sweet, rolls off the tongue, ladies love it." Jaune cringed visibly as he heard his own voice crack at the end. Great confidence there, buddy. I bet she's real impressed. A look of confusion passed the girl's face for a brief moment before she gave him a beautiful smile filled with warmth.
"I'm sure they do, Jaune Arc."
Yup, she was definitely laughing at him in her head. He gave Isabella a brief sideway glance. But maybe this isn't so bad…
Ruby was lost in a very serious conundrum as she brushed her teeth. She was ecstatic that she had made not just one, but two new friends - in a single day! By herself! She knew her dad would be so proud, not to mention Yang, even if she would tease her over her first friend at Beacon being a boy. Speaking of Yang, Ruby would have to remember to have revenge for ditching her and going to hang out with a bunch of shadowy, mysterious-looking people. Yang was lucky to have come with her friends since she hadn't been moved ahead by two years. Which is why having met Isabella and Jaune should have been a good thing for Ruby. However, she wasn't sure what to feel about Isabella.
She liked Isabella; she was fun to talk to and her weapon sounded awesome. She had said that she had gauntlets, which sounded pretty similar to Yang's, but it was too early to make comparisons. It was a shame that their weapons had to be put away in their lockers before entering the canteen. What was the point of meeting new people if you couldn't meet their weapons? Either way, Ruby had taken a liking to Isabella and wouldn't mind being put on her team once Beacon started.
The problem wasn't really Isabella. It was more about the effect she had on Jaune. Isabella was pretty, incredibly so, even by the standards of Huntsmen and Huntresses. She was probably even prettier than Yang, so it shouldn't have been a surprise that when she had sat next to Jaune, he had become even more socially awkward than Ruby had been pre-Signal. Even Crescent Rose would have been a better talker than Jaune at that point. Plus, there were the not-so-subtle glances he had been giving Isabella which he'd tried so hard to be discreet about.
It's not that she liked Jaune! Not in that way at least. He was a friend, a really good one that she felt she could relate really well to. She was just worried that with Jaune head over heels for Isabella, he would start to ignore her and she'd be left with no friends. The thought made her sad.
Ruby rinsed her mouth out and let out a sigh as she made her way out of the bathroom and headed back towards the hall. It had been less than a week and she already missed her friends from Signal. She wondered if they missed her too. Ooh, I know! I'll write them a letter! I can't wait to tell them about Beacon.
Isabella, having changed into her pyjamas, sat down on top of her sleeping bag and pulled out her scroll. She had set herself up in the corner of the room and she could hear Ruby talking quite loudly with Weiss Schnee and a couple of other girls. She decided to ignore it and reply to the message Coco had sent earlier.
Hiya Coco. Thanks for your message! I was a complete nervous wreck before you sent that so I really appreciate it :D.
Her reply came so fast that it would have shocked Pyrrha if she hadn't been used to it by now.
No probs Izzy. How was your first day? Any new friends? Spotted any interesting specimen of the male variety?
"Izzy" rolled her eyes at Coco's ability to quickly derail any conversation into a discussion about looking good, or looking at people who look good. Despite herself, Pyrrha scanned the room anyway for anything to satisfy Coco. The older girl would have been disappointed if she didn't even bother to make an effort, after all. As her eyes roamed past the muscular boys who looked more comedic than impressive, she saw someone wearing a… onesie?
Was that Jaune?
Oh dear…
I'm afraid to say that the most interesting man in here is my new friend Jaune. He is currently wearing a baby blue onesie. He is a very precious child.
Pyrrha felt slightly guilty about talking about Jaune behind his back, but this was far too amusing to pass up. Plus if he felt no problem wearing it in a hall full of people, what was the problem in one more person knowing about his onesie?
A baby blue onesie? Oh my god I have got to see this. I'm not sure whether to call it totally uncool or totally adorable. Snap a pic for me please?
Pyrrha grimaced as she typed out her response. As amusing as it was, she didn't want to be laughing at Jaune behind his back so much. Taking a picture of him in his somewhat embarrassing attire would be very much pushing it, even if she felt unsure about her friendship with Jaune.
When Isabella had introduced herself in the canteen, she hadn't been expecting Jaune to look at her so intently. With the way that he had been acting, it was difficult to say whether the boy recognised her as Pyrrha Nikos or not. She had been so sure of her disguise, with the only remnant of her old self being her green eyes; the constant looks Jaune had given undid that confidence. He reminded her of the fans who would be so terribly excited to meet her, and when they did they would be far too nervous to talk with her properly. The fact that he hadn't confronted her about being in disguise suggested that he didn't know a thing, but it still left her feeling uneasy. She would have to keep a close eye on him…
I'm afraid I can't betray my friend that much Coco. If you want to see him in all his onesieness so much, then you can meet him yourself when you come to Beacon J.
Aww you're no fun. I gtg, Velvet looks like she's about to throw up all over the bartender. Sweet dreams, Izzy.
Pyrrha sighed. It sounded like Coco had dragged Velvet out to a bar again. She still remembered the first time Coco had taken her drinking. She'd found out that she was a lightweight the hard way; in other words, she had gone blackout drunk after the first glass and had woken up the next morning in Coco's bathtub clutching onto a bottle of whiskey with a vice grip.
That was something she never wanted to experience again.
As the argument in the room reached its climax, Pyrrha found herself mildly annoyed. The Schnee heiress had been bothering Ruby for most of the day it seemed and now she was preventing everyone from getting to sleep. Pyrrha didn't want to be judgemental, but Weiss Schnee seemed very…
Well, Coco would have described her as a stuck-up bitch.
Isabella wouldn't have disagreed.
More background info and more developments. And Jaune is thirsty for Pyrrha. I hope you guys look forward to how Jaune and Pyrrha will interact in this fic. I haven't got the entire game plan laid out yet but I've got a general idea of where I want to take this.
