The morning came far too early for Jaune. He had managed to get back into the hotel at around half three in the morning, and so his sleep had been limited to about four and a half hours. He once again thanked his luck for having deep aura reserves - dealing with the aches and pains of a night of espionage wouldn't have improved his situation at all.
He yawned mightily as he sat up. Light streamed between the room's curtains, lighting on the two single beds with chests of drawers at their ends. A door to the side of the room housed a shower and bathroom, and also ended the list of the room's features. The hotel was a far cry from Beacon's lustre, but it was close to the shopping district and it was affordable, so that was that. Jaune swung his legs out of bed, registering that Ren was also stirring, and tried to remember what had woken him up...
"It's morning! It's morning! It's morning~!". Ah yes. The single greatest nemesis to sleep since the discovery of caffeine.
"Good morning to you, too, Nora." called Jaune, who had managed to retrieve a towel and change of clothes from his bag, careful not to disturb the black-wrapped bundle therein, and was heading for a morning shower. He normally showered in the evenings, but he could hardly walk around with his team carrying the detritus of a night spent roof-hopping.
He could hear Nora and Ren talking around the door-frame as he returned to the glorious land of cleanliness, and he walked out of the bathroom fully dressed, rubbing his hair to get rid of the remaining moisture. Ren had apparently been dressed for a while, and since Jaune was decent, he opened the door to admit his partner.
While Nora made sure that Ren was really, really awake, Jaune tied the laces on his trainers, swallowing another yawn. He'd gone with a simple set of jeans, a white t-shirt emblazoned with his family crest on the back, and a black zip-up hoodie. Crocea Mors hung from its place at his belt; Beacon students were given licenses which stated the legality of the weapons they carried, so even Nora carrying Magnhild around town was fairly normal by Vale standards. He rescued Ren from Nora's attempts to elevate him to an entirely new plane of 'awake' by offering the incentive of breakfast, and moved out of the room.
Ren locked it behind them, and Jaune registered that there was no sign of Pyrrha. The duo found her down in the hotel's dining area, recently joined by Nora, having apparently decided to grab them a table in case it became more difficult later on. As the team's male contingent took their seats, a waitress moved over to them, scroll waiting to take their drink orders. Four calls of "Coffee!" with various degrees of enthusiasm and longing sent her on her way, leaving the four team mates to sit in silence.
Jaune made the decision to break that silence, looking around at his team. "So, the day is ours until the last Bullhead back to Beacon, which is at eight o'clock. Twelve hours in Vale, guys. What do you want to do first?" The silence continued a moment longer, until Pyrrha answered.
"I was thinking we could drop by Tukson's Book Trade. The latest in a series I've been reading just came out, and according to my scroll, the store has a great history of keeping its stock up to date." Jaune nodded happily, relieved that it wasn't up to him to suggest the entire day's events.
"Alright, Tukson's Book Trade, sounds good. So, Ren, is there anywhere you want to go?"
The martial artist, who had been scanning the table's menu, turned to face the blonde. "Hmm. Well, I don't know the town very well...but I have heard good things about a supplies store on the main street. It's supposed to carry a pretty wide variety of weapon modifications, tools, special ammo and the like." That made two places to visit. Jaune turned to look at Nora, who was holding her chin in her hand, eyes closed in a classic thinking posture.
Jaune awaited her decision in silence. Seconds passed, until Nora's brow creased and her eyes flew upon in typical 'EUREKA!' fashion. "Oh, I have a great idea! Let's go to the arcade!" Jaune blinked; he hadn't even known Vale had an arcade.
"Alright then; Tukson's Book Trade, the supplies trader on main street, and the arcade. Sounds like a day." Nods of agreement came from around the table, and the coffee arrived with great timing. Orders were placed for breakfast, and as the coffee burned through the sleep-fog that Jaune, Ren and, to a lesser degree, Pyrrha were feeling, the conversation became much more animated. Ren and Pyrrha still weren't speaking to each other as often or as fluently as they did with Jaune and Nora...but Jaune thought that the change of setting was helping. I guess time will tell, he thought to himself.
With the team fed, they made their way out into the city, the sun shining bright above them as the pavements bustled with life and people. JNPR moved through it toward the main street, which was home to the Book Trade as well as Ren's mystery weapon supply store. Pyrrha had apparently thought to memorise the Book Trade's position in the town, as she led them in their journey. She looked good today; the sunlight turned her hair into a coursing river of fire, and sporting a blouse and jeans along similar lines to Jaune's ensemble, she looked much more relaxed than in her uniform or battle-dress.
Though Miló was slung across her back, Akoúo̱ had been deemed too bulky to carry for a trip around town, and had thus been left at Beacon. Ren had stuck to his usual clothing, Stormflower up his sleeves, while Nora was wearing a skirt and blouse which was markedly similar to her usual hunting garb. Magnhild hung in its hammer form across her back, attracting curious glances as they moved down the street.
Jaune realised that he had been staring at his partner instead of where he was actually going, and he hurriedly transferred his gaze to the path in front of them...though he couldn't help but sneak glances at her. It was strange. He had always seen Pyrrha as beautiful – but it wasn't until he started thinking about her as more than a friend that the fact really seemed to drive itself home. Apparently, Jaune thought to himself, not even I can explain my own stupidity. What a surprise. He sighed to himself, but made sure to keep up with the others, even as he shot snarky comments at himself.
The book store came into view a minute later, and the group entered en-mass. It was quiet in there; the four of them were apparently the only customers at the moment. Jaune cast an eye around the room. Waist-high shelving units were scattered around, and full-sized shelves took up the entirety of the right and left hand walls. The wall directly in front of them hosted a counter and an open door, through which emanated the sound of rustling paper.
Pyrrha headed toward the counter, presumably in search of the owner, while Jaune broke off to examine the titles available – Ren and Nora were doing the same, although it was also possible that Nora was simply tailing Ren for...Nora reasons. He wasn't going to try and understand her reasoning. Down that way lay madness.
Jaune ran a finger across several spines on the higher shelves. Titles like Dust Through the Ages, The History of Faunus Rights and The Evolution of Aura informed him that the section he was currently browsing was largely historical, and he moved across the room to see if there was something more in-line with his tastes. He heard Pyrrha speaking and turned to the counter. The man behind it was massive; taller than Jaune and a good bit wider too, he was like a living wall. That must be Tuksen, Jaune surmised, keeping the corner of his eye on the counter out of habit, even as he pulled a book from the shelf to examine it.
His partner spoke to the proprietor for a few moments, and then the man nodded, moving back through the doorway which had admitted him. Pyrrha saw Jaune looking and gave him a quick thumbs-up, to which Jaune replied with a smile and a gesture of his own. He returned his attention to the book in his hands. Through the Fire and Flames: The Legend of Remnant's Greatest Swordsman was emblazoned in gold on the leather cover, which he now realised exhibited the classic signs of old age.
Intrigued, Jaune flipped the book open. Reading the first few pages, he realised that what he held was basically collated memoirs, pulled together into a coherent story. It was told from the perspective of a travelling companion who spent his days with a master swordsman, documenting his journey and his own training at the hand of the master.
Jaune flipped the book over, checking the back cover. Its price tag became evident, and he was surprised at the easily affordable value. He took the book over to the counter, where Pyrrha had just finished paying for a book which Tuksen would appear to have retrieved – presumably the one she had originally come from.
Jaune's partner stood off to the side and began to read the back even as the blonde himself held up the book to the towering figure over the counter. He took it from Jaune carefully, checked the price tag, and handed it back. "That'll be about 200 lien." Jaune laid the requisite amount on the counter, having used the short time between Pyrrha's purchase and his own to retrieve it from his wallet. The shop owner placed the money in the till, then nodded to the blonde, who moved out of the way. Ren and Nora were just behind him; the martial artist appeared to have found several books to his liking, while Nora had apparently found comics somewhere.
Through some light searching, Jaune discovered a receptacle full of plastic bags. "Excuse me, can we use these?" he called to the man-mountain currently serving his team mates. He glanced up toward Jaune for a moment, checking to see what he was referring to, and then turned back to checking the price tags on Ren's books.
"Yeah, go ahead." Jaune took three of them, handing one to Pyrrha and one to Ren whilst sliding his own book into the bag he had procured for himself.
The team congregated in the middle of the store before making their way to the door, calling their thanks to Tuksen as they went. Once they were back in the street, the team's collective attention fell to Ren. Nora's partner began scanning the length of the street in front of them. "I can't quite remember the name of the place...it's on this street somewhere, I know that much for sure. I'm going to say it's further on in this direction."
Ren moved off, much as Pyrrha had before, and the other three fell in line. As his dark haired friend swept his eyes across the store-fronts they were passing, Jaune turned to his partner. "So then Pyrrha, I take it he had the book you wanted?" The red head turned to him and smiled.
"Yes, yes he did."
"Well, that's good." Jaune subjected himself to an internal face-palm. That must be a new record for quickest awkward silence. He sighed quietly, and came to a decision.
He fell back a bit from Ren and Nora; a quizzical Pyrrha remained in step with him, as Jaune gathered his thoughts. "Alright...Pyrrha? Do you mind if I ask you about something?" His partner seemed even more intrigued as she shook her head.
"Not at all Jaune; what do you want to know?" Deep breath in, hold for a moment, exhale slowly.
"Well, I was just wondering why you and Ren don't seem to get along very well." It was out in the open now. Perhaps if he'd had Ren's experience or skill, he could have worked it out for himself, but Jaune had always been fond of the direct approach to most situations. He kept his eyes on his partner; he could tell that she was cycling through several emotions, but he wasn't sure which ones. He at least knew the one she settled on - resolution.
"I shouldn't be surprised that you noticed...well, it's tricky to explain." She paused to breath in and out, in much the same manner that Jaune had moments earlier. That was hardly unusual; she had taught him that particular exercise, after all. "Jaune, you remember that Weiss mentioned Sanctum and the Mistral Regional Tournament when we first met?"
The blonde nodded, and his partner continued. "Well, Sanctum is somewhat different from combat schools like Signal. The focus there is more on combat with other Huntsmen and Huntresses, rather than Grimm." That was news to Jaune. He hadn't attended a combat school himself, which greatly reduced his knowledge of them, but Pyrrha's description didn't quite fit with his mental image of the places. He turned the thought over in his mind as his partner continued.
"My victories in the Tournament were due in no small part to the amount of human-on-human combat that Sanctum teaches. It's also one of the reasons I tend to stand out at Beacon. Skilled as I might be, others in our year have the potential to be truly terrifying opponents if their training took that direction.".
Jaune sincerely doubted that the gap between Pyrrha and the rest of their year would be closed quite that easily, but since she obviously wasn't finished, he pushed that particular remark out of his head for use another day. "That kind of training tends to shape some aspects of a person's character. For me, I ended up with something of a competitive streak. I can't help but try and be the best - it's egotistical, but I just can't stand to be second to anyone in combat.". Yup, Jaune thought, complete dedication to being the best it's possible to be. That's a major character flaw, right there.
"I saw almost every variety of quirk that being a tournament fighter can bring out in a person during my time in Sanctum, which is why I can recognise that Ren is like me. Someone whose training was for dealing with people, not monsters." Jaune drew the parallels at that point, and didn't need Pyrrha to finish.
"I think I get it now. Because both of you have a competitive streak, you can't help but see the other as competition, instead of a team mate, right?" The red head nodded.
"Indeed. I know that it isn't good for our team as a whole, but I just can't help it."
Jaune sighed to himself. Why hadn't this come up before? Hadn't JNPR always gotten along just fine? Maybe the two of them had cleared it up on their own without Jaune noticing before, or perhaps he had simply been too obtuse to realise that two of his closest friends thought of each other as a hurdle to be overcome. Well, one way or another, he knew the issue he was facing now. That meant he should be able to do something about it. But how to forge a friendship between two people whose relationship lacked most of the foundations a friendship was built on...
Jaune's musings were caught short by a victorious "Hah!" and a delighted "Oh, yes!" from ahead, and he focussed on Ren and Nora as he came to a halt. The four of them were now standing outside a fairly large store front, the frosting in the glass spelling out that this was The Hunter's Workshop, and outlined the store's products as being Dust, weapons, weapon supplies, weapon accessories and ammunition.
"If I don't tell Ruby about this, and she finds out later, she will most definitely kill me." the blonde remarked as they pushed open the door. Looking around, he found what could only be described as heaven for weapon lovers. Every wall was hung with dozens of weapons, some multi-form, some simplistic, some ranged, some melee; between these masterpieces were racks of ammunition, ranging from simple ballistics to Dust rounds, and various equipment for taking care of the weapons. Whetstones, weapon solvent, machine oil, cloths, every variety of nut, washer, screw and bolt under the sun (or so it seemed to Jaune), screwdrivers, wrenches...this place would probably serve any mechanic in the city just as well as it would a huntsman.
One wall had noticeably less weapon paraphernalia than the others, if only because there had to be a counter somewhere. On the note of mechanics, behind said counter stood a woman in the typical engineering garb of oil-soaked overalls, replete with burn marks. The face to whom the overalls belonged was lightly tanned, and touches of soot were dotted around bored brown eyes. "Good afternoon, welcome to The Hunter's Workshop, the number one location for all things weapon related. How may I help you?"
The woman might not have been smoking, but with how languidly she spoke, Jaune could easily imagine a cigarette hanging from her lips as she spoke. "We're in town for the day from Beacon. My friend Ren here" Jaune laid a hand on said team mate's shoulder for context "found the store online, and we thought we'd swing by to check it out."
There was a moment's pause...then suddenly the woman scrambled from around the corner, moving much closer to the group. "Wait, you're all Beacon students?" The sudden change in attitude was jarring; the bored eyes were suddenly alight with excitement, and Jaune couldn't help but take a step back in the face of the mania burning there.
"Um, yes..." he replied slowly
"Oh, this is perfect! You wouldn't believe the number of people who only come in here for the mechanical supplies - sure it keeps me in business, but there's no challenge, there's no fun! But Beacon students? Oh, you guys always have such interesting weapons, and so many ideas – and I get four of you at once! Oh it must be my lucky day!"
Almost oblivious to the group who were the cause of her elation, the woman practically vibrated on the spot in excitement. Her auburn ponytail swayed behind her head, and Jaune idly wondered if this was going to end any time soon. He got his answer as the frantic energy suddenly ceased, and the woman coughed quietly into her fist.
"Anyway, I should introduce myself. My name's Venti." The rest of team JNPR introduced themselves, Ren's name having already been given. "Now then," Venti continued, moving back behind her counter, "how about you guys have a look around and tell me if you see anything you like, or if you have an idea for a weapon you want to run by me."
Ren and Nora split apart; the hammer-wielding huntress started running her fingers over a selection of Dust grenade rounds on display, whilst Ren seemed to be admiring a trigger assembly that seemed about the right size for Stormflower. Pyrrha was browsing through a wide selection of weapon-care equipment, including solvents and oils which might replace her own slightly dwindling supply. Having a transforming weapon offered great versatility in combat, and even when she was accustomed to it, it was pretty awesome - but it needed a lot of attention to ensure that the mechanisms stayed smooth.
Jaune, on the other hand, moved up to Venti's counter, unsheathing Crocea Mors' blade as he went. Holding it with one hand under the hilt and the other supporting the blade, he laid it on the wooden surface in front of her. A seasoned eye swept along the blade, noting the expertly maintained edge, the simple yet elegant craftsmanship, and obvious age.
"This is quite the piece you got here; one that has a long history to it, I would imagine?" Jaune nodded, laying his fingers on the blade's hilt again.
"Yes, it's been in my family for as long as I've been able to trace our records. And it's an awesome weapon...but I haven't been able to find anything about it which would earn the reputation it has in the history books. I was wondering if you could take a look at it, see if I'm missing something." This was something that had bothered Jaune a bit. In his time before going to Beacon, he had spent quite a lot of time in his family's quite extensive library, reading about the battles of his ancestors. Crocea Mors appeared in quite a lot of those stories, reaching back much further than just his great grandfather.
The weapon known as Crocea Mors had always been a sword and shield combination, but the only piece which had remained constant throughout the years was the sword. The shield had evolved and been upgraded over time, becoming the unfolding defence Jaune was familiar with during the Great War. But the sword had never once been replaced; in fact, in what Jaune felt sure was more than two centuries of family history, there was no mention of it ever being broken or lost, or of it failing in battle. He didn't really understand why. After all, it was a simple blade. True, he didn't have to take care of the edge very often...or, in fact, at all...but apart from that rather odd trait, it had never appeared as anything more than an antique with a deadly edge to it.
Venti gently ran her fingers along the blade, having first removed the oil and grease from her hands with a tissue from a box she always kept under the counter, right next to her self-defence piece (it had been three days in the making, and she affectionately named it 'Sakura Morningstar'. Her husband preferred to call it overkill.).
Her expert digits, despite the callouses born from hours practising her trade, found minute etches along the blade's length. Tracing them, she found that they led in straight lines down the blade, passing into the blade's hilt. A sneaking suspicion dawned, and holding the blade in both hands, Venti closed her eyes and started slowly applying pressure to the hilt in various ways; twisting the handle's grip, pressing down on the cross guard, feeling for any lack of resistance.
It took a minute, but she finally felt something begin to give when she tried twisting the top and bottom of the hilt in opposite directions. She immediately stopped, opening her eyes and holding the weapon out to Jaune hilt-first. "Okay, there's definitely something abnormal about your weapon there. I can feel some kind of etching on the blade, and it doesn't feel like battle damage; it's too regular. Also, when I tried twisting the hilt in different directions, there was some give - I bet that there's some aspect of that weapon which is triggered by manipulating the hilt like that. As awesome as it undoubtedly is, I'd like to ask that you not try it right in the middle of my highly explosive and not-insured-enough store."
The blonde nodded, awed that this woman had, in the space of under five minutes, figured out something about his weapon that he had been missing for more than a year. "How much do I owe you?" he asked, as he re-sheathed his sword. Venti thought about it for a moment.
"Well, since you're students, I'll keep it low. For a quick appraisal like that? 500 Lien, max." Jaune nodded, retrieving his wallet and the stated sum.
A few minutes and some exchanged Lien later, team JNPR left the store with backward waves and promises to return, emerging onto the pavement with various weapon modifications and munitions in hand. Jaune checked his scroll again. Midday, more or less. He looked back to his team. "So, who's up for lunch?" Three replies in the affirmative prompted Jaune to examine the area, his eyes lighting on a restaurant across the street.
With a gesture to follow, Jaune led the way.
One round of lunches later, Jaune examined his team as they sat around the table. Roughly seven hours of their trip remained - everyone seemed quite bright and chipper, especially compared to Jaune himself, who could feel the looming weight of the sleep he'd missed the night before. He glanced from Pyrrha to Ren, trying to gauge the situation with them.
He couldn't see any real difference between now and that morning, not that he'd really expected it. After all, though they had so far spent a good five straight hours in each others' company, they hadn't really done much in the way of interacting with each other...disregarding Jaune and Pyrrha's earlier conversation, that was.
No, Jaune needed to make their next stop count – his best chance to bridge the gap between Pyrrha and Ren was the arcade.
After the team had finished their respective coffees and paid for their meals, leaving their waitress a generous tip, they headed out once again. This time, however, they followed along behind Nora, who was probably approaching critical mass thanks to the mix of caffeine and video games in the near future. She somehow kept them moving in the right direction, while simultaneously moving back and forth to talk with Pyrrha and Ren. Only Nora could lead a group of people from behind them... Jaune thought wryly, shaking his head a bit.
They reached the arcade after about ten minutes, and stood in a line to examine it. It was a long, low building, with most of the outer wall facing the street being made of glass to reveal the games within. Nora almost blurred as she moved to the door, and Jaune worried for a moment that she might rip it off its hinges instead of opening it. Thankfully it would appear that today was going to be uneventful in regards to property damage, as she simply pulled it open and moved inside. The rest of the team followed at a somewhat more sedate pace, and scanned the room like a trio of owls once they had done so.
Games. Games upon games upon games stretched away into the building. Some of them were tall machines with joysticks and buttons, others held plastic firearms, still more offered the chance to release some pent-up aggression through the age old tradition of beating up machinery, and a few even catered to the sportier types with throwing games.
Jaune wondered what he would go on first, and heard a hearty laugh split the air as Nora slid a few coins into a Whack-a-Grimm machine. Shuddering slightly in sympathy for the poor technology which didn't know the horrors that awaited it, Jaune moved on to the next row of machines, finding one titled Atlas One vs Space-Grimm. Recalling a certain conversation in the dining hall a week earlier, Jaune found his interest piqued.
He inserted a few cents, and laid his left hand on the two buttons as his right took hold of the joystick. The screen flashed into life, revealing a pixelated ship and a rolling backdrop of space. A countdown from three began, and as soon as it reached zero, enemies flooded the screen in front of Jaune's ship. The sudden onslaught caught him unaware, and though they tried valiantly, the crew of the Atlas One met their fiery demise at the hands of what Jaune thought was a Nevermore wearing a fish bowl on its head. Frowning slightly, Jaune slid more coins into the machine and leaned forward.
He was a huntsman in training with a year's worth of reflex training; he was Jaune Arc, son of Cornelius Arc, son of Jebediah Arc, son of Ronan Arc; he was Pyrrha Nikos' sparring partner. How hard could a video game be in comparison to that?
Apparently, a video game could be really freaking difficult. Jaune panted slightly as he wiped sweat from his brow. He'd lasted ten minutes into the game that time before succumbing to fatigue, as his fingers could no longer tap fast enough to keep the screen clear enough for flight. Deciding that he'd probably give himself a heart attack if he kept on like this (which would actually be an impressive feat for someone with an aura pool as large as his), Jaune moved away from his nemesis of the past - he checked his scroll – four hours, apparently. He didn't know where all that time had gone...though he suspected it was to the same empty void which had swallowed all of his change.
He started to do a circuit of the arcade in search of his team.
He found Nora had moved on to almost the last Whack-a-Grimm machine in the line, and a quick glance at the other machines showed that, once again, Nora's prodigious ability to hammer things into oblivion had reached new heights; the machines' score counters were stuck on "9999". She was gleefully laying into the rising Ursa figures with what appeared to be a hammer in the shape of another Ursa, her ever-present grin manic in its intensity.
Shuddering slightly, Jaune decided that she was probably not in need of companionship right now, and he slowly backed away around the corner. He found Pyrrha in the shoot-em-up area. She was currently in the middle of teaching the computer the true definition of 'defeat', as every target was destroyed with pin-point accuracy.
The corner of the screen told Jaune that his partner had been on this particular machine for the past twenty minutes...and that whoever designed these games hadn't accounted for the kind of skill level presented by Pyrrha Nikos, the evidence for this being another maxed-out score counter. He reached out and gently tapped her on the shoulder in an attempt not to startle her. It didn't quite work as planned, she spun on the spot, still holding the plastic pistol, and proceeded to point it in Jaune's direction and pull the trigger multiple times.
Her eyes seemed strangely glazed over, and Jaune shifted from amused to mildly panicked. "Pyrrha? Pyrrha, can you hear me?" He moved over to his partner and waved his right hand in front of her eyes while delicately retrieving the game controller from her right hand with his left, then taking it in his own. After a moment, he thought she seemed to be getting back into focus, so he took a step back.
His partner blinked a few times, then turned to look at him. "Jaune? Oh. Um...oh Monty this is embarrassing..." Pyrrha's face was turning as red as her hair, and she shuffled in place. Seeking to put her at ease, Jaune tried changing the atmosphere a bit.
"So...I take it you're really into video games?" He got a stifled giggle in reply, and his partner turned back to him in a slightly more composed state.
"I suppose that's one way of looking at it. You remember I told you about my training being largely about dealing with other Huntsmen and Huntresses? Well, Sanctum had a simulator room that was like a more advanced version of this, which is where I learned a lot of my shooting. I guess I kind of slipped into old habits."
Jaune couldn't help but laugh, and after a moment, Pyrrha joined in. "Pyrrha, I swear one day I will find something that you can't do to perfection. Even if you're perfect at it the next day, Monty as my witness, I will find something."
Pyrrha raised an eyebrow. "Is that a challenge, Jaune?"
Jaune did his best to imitate her action. "I don't know, miss Nikos; is it a challenge?"
The two ended up looking each other in the eye, each within arm's reach of the other. It took Jaune a moment to become cognisant of that fact, but as soon as he did, he felt a blush rushing toward his face as he took a step back. His movement seemed to jar Pyrrha out of the moment as well, and she took a similar step back.
"Um. Well. Anyway, how about we go and find Ren?" suggested Jaune, putting on his best jovial tone. From the look on Pyrrha's face, though, he might have come across a little bit insane.
"Yes. Yes, let's go find Ren." Jaune moved first, continuing on his circuitous route in search of his friend. The red-haired warrior followed along beside him and, as they rounded the next bend, they found that Nora had finally conquered the last vestige of the arcade's resistance. She was happily mumbling something about being "the queen of the hammer castle", but she fell into step with Jaune and Pyrrha as they went by.
As it turned out, Ren was tucked well into the back of the room, and his hand was resting on the rail of a machine which Jaune didn't recognise for a moment. However, scattered childhood memories finally offered up an exact match. "Is that...a DDR machine?!" asked Jaune and Pyrrha, at almost exactly the same time. Apparently startled out of whatever state of mind he had been occupying, the martial artist turned to see that his team mates had apparently discovered him.
"Yes, it is." he replied. For some reason, Ren seemed hesitant to step up onto the platform. Jaune moved forward, also running a hand along the rail. "I didn't know these things were still around...does it still work, I wonder?" he asked aloud, and Nora moved forward, presenting him with a handful of cents. He in turn slotted several of them into the machine, and the familiar lights began to dance beneath its floor.
DDR machines, named for the game they were designed to host (Dance Dance Remnant), had been a major part of gaming culture for several years, Jaune recalled. However, they had faded out of style, and the few of them which still existed were supposedly held by private collectors...except, apparently, this one. As the menu prompted the player to choose a song, a flash of inspiration struck Jaune. He took a step back, placing him just behind both Pyrrha and Ren. He then placed a hand on each of their backs, and pushed forward just enough to get them on to the game's dance floor. "How about you guys have a go at this? I mean, since you're the most agile here.". The two turned to look at him. Pyrrha looked somewhere between pleased, nervous and determined. Ren was completely unreadable though.
The machine registered the two players, and Pyrrha selected one of the classics: YMCA, a hit single from one of the more...media-friendly Huntsman teams to graduate from Beacon, had been a part of popular culture since before Jaune's generation, and thus its place on the DDR had been cemented. As the familiar music ratcheted up, Ren was still standing completely still. Jaune thought for a moment that this was going to be a one-sided battle...until it came to make the first moves.
Pyrrha was good. Excellent even, as her natural sense of rhythm and graceful movements landed largely perfect scores with a few 'great!'s. Ren, though...Ren was a demon. A DDR demon. He never put a foot out of place, he was never even a microsecond off the beat - his every movement was inarguably flawless.
The song went on for two minutes, and the two dancers came to a halt; both were breathing hard, as one of the DDR's attractions was how its dances gained speed and complexity the better you were doing. The screen revealed the scores. Player 1, Pyrrha, had hit 97% of the moves...Ren had reached a seemingly impossible 100% score, and had reportedly been hitting three steps a second.
Jaune and Pyrrha both stared at him in disbelief, but Nora was frowning slightly. "Renny, you've gotten slow. I told you to keep up your practice, didn't I?"
Jaune turned his head to look at Ren's partner. "Slow?" he managed to ask quietly. Nora nodded.
"Yeah; back in his prime, Ren could manage something like seven steps a second."
Jaune wasn't sure how to process that input, so he decided that he'd take a seat leaning against a nearby Huntsman x Huntsman machine. Pyrrha had the opposite reaction however. A smile spread across her face as she turned to face Ren with renewed vigour.
"Another match, Ren? Unless, of course, you're too tired?" Pink eyes flashed beneath darker hair as Ren assumed his full height, like some strange plant unfurling under sunlight.
"Tired? Oh, I'm just getting started, Pyrrha." Jaune's ears perked up. Pyrrha? Up until now, Ren had generally only referred to her as 'that Nikos girl' or similarly indirect phrases. He smiled to himself as more cents made their way into the machine, and a new song started to play. I guess my sisters were right about the power of dance, he mused, as the rapid-fire tapping began once again.
By the time Ren and Pyrrha were forced to admit defeat in the face of overwhelming exhaustion, the sun was making its final descent on the horizon. Jaune had been keeping an eye on his scroll. "We have forty minutes until the Bullhead leaves. Come on, we can rest at the station." He got to his feet and accompanied Pyrrha as she made her way toward the entrance, taking reserved steps on her aching feet.
Jaune was carrying her bag, containing the cleaning supplies and book she had purchased earlier, alongside his own. Nora did the same for her partner, and together the four of them made their slow way to the Vale Airport. The Bullhead would be arriving in about ten minutes, so Jaune left his team resting on a bench as he went and purchased some drinks for them. He eyed his wallet's contents before returning it to his pockets. He'd had to turn a pretty decent part of his budget for that month into change to finance Pyrrha and Ren's dance-off, but seeing the two of them sitting side by side in such a relaxed manner, he felt it was worth every penny.
He returned to his team, distributing icy cold waters to uniform delight. This part of the station was open to the air, and the four watched the sun paint the sky a burned orange as a companionable silence settled over them. Jaune tilted his drink back to finish it, and even though the previous night's mission had failed, he still felt that this trip had been well worth it.
Team JNPR is back in business, he thought to himself. As the Bullhead came into view, and the four friends stood to make their way over, Jaune yawned massively, stretching his arm out. He felt something against his side, and as his eyes opened he realised that he had ended up standing directly next to Pyrrha. His arm was now stretched at a diagonal to her shoulders, as if positioned to drape itself there.
He froze instantly, realising that his partner had as well. They stayed like that for a moment, then Jaune carefully lowered his arm to his side. He found that he didn't really want to move, though. Apparently his partner didn't either, as she simply stood there with him for a moment longer.
"We...we should probably get on the Bullhead. Need to study for that test on Monday, after all." Jaune spoke, though it was reluctantly.
"Yes...yes, of course, we should go." They stayed for just a moment longer, before the partners strode forward together, moving apart just enough to let their arms swing as they headed back to their transport and, a few minutes later, home.
Author's Note
Oooooh myyyyy goooooood, that's a new record for chapter length set. Well, I have to admit that this was not what I expected to happen when I started writing a weekend in Vale for JNPR. How is it that I managed to get more out of this than the entire Emerald Forest arc? We may never know. At first writing, this chapter identified the store owner as Coco's mother...since my editor-in-chief and my own far more wakeful mind have been beating me up over that particular idea, it has been revised. OCs, now that I think about it, need to be used sparingly.
The idea for the DDR scene came from this a comic by AtsusaKaneytza, so thanks to them for creating that so I can draw inspiration from *cough* steal *cough* your joke.
I hope you've enjoyed reading this even partially as much as I've enjoyed writing it. If you have any comments or criticism then please leave it as a review, and I'll be sure to get back to you. Enjoy your day!