Three Days after Prom
"On your left!" Pyrrha called as she passed Jaune for the umpteenth time.
Jaune rolled his eyes and continued his jog, sweat staining his tight, white t-shirt. His short, black athletic shorts fluttered with each step he took and his chest heaved with effort. Despite his slim, muscular build, he was still, very much a slouch, and the level of physical activity demanded of him by Pyrrha was inhuman.
He watched his new girlfriend jog away, his eyes on her swaying hips. Then again, at least he got a good view every time she passed him. Jaune narrowed his eyes. How dare she look so good, coated in sweat, long maroon hair in a ponytail, a slim maroon shirt and skin-tight, black track shorts fitting tight against her…very curvaceous body.
That's when Jaune realized she knew he was watching her. Pyrrha snatched her water bottle from its spot alongside the track and dumped the remnants of its contents over her face, water pouring down her throat and over her shirt, causing the material to highlight her features even more.
Jaune flushed red and Pyrrha laughed softly as she slowed her pace, allowing Jaune to catch up.
"Come on, Jaune! You need to pick up the pace!"
"Easy for you to say, Pyrrha," Jaune panted, "you're all…like that," he gestured to her, "and I'm all like…this," he pointed to himself.
She put her hand on his shoulder and stopped him. Throughout the park, birds chirped and the blood red leaves of the everfall trees rustled in the soft wind. In the distance, Beacon Academy rose from the cliff side, watching over all of Vale. "Jaune," Pyrrha started.
"I know, I know…" Jaune sighed and shrugged Pyrrha's slender hand from its perch on his shoulder. He resumed his jog, leaving Pyrrha to sigh, and then smile as she remembered for the hundredth time that day what had happened during the dance just three days past.
Pyrrha quietly caught up to Jaune and grabbed his face, planting a big kiss on his lips before slapping his rear. His face flushed bright crimson and he whirled around, but Pyrrha was already dancing away from his arms and started sprinting off, rounding the corner of the reflection pool that played host to the pair's daily jogs.
Jaune squinted at her and growled, but Pyrrha's melodic laughter only echoed around the nearly empty park. This early in the morning, Jaune had decided, was not a place, but an emotion. Nora had slapped him over the head for saying that.
Setting his shoulders back, the warrior pushed himself harder, determined to catch up to the laughter and the swaying ponytail that taunted him.
She was fast. Of course, he already knew this, but it was somewhat different when he was the one trying to catch up to her. Jaune pushed forward with new determination and his legs picked up speed. He ignored the throbbing ache that began to form in his feet and thighs, pushing past the threshold his body had set. The only way to get stronger was to break the limits.
Almost dancing in front of him, Pyrrha was soon within reach. Jaune reached out and snagged the back of her shirt, halting her momentum and bringing it colliding into his own. The pair tumbled to the ground, Pyrrha landing on Jaune's prostrated form with a soft oof. Jaune groaned and the redhead quickly scooted off of him, kneeling at his side to make sure he was okay. When she rolled him over to his back, she saw a huge smile plastered across his face. He began to laugh and reached out, pulling her down on top of him and wrapping his arms around her.
"Hey…" he panted, "I'm getting…faster…almost as fast…as you."
She giggled at that. "I surely hope so, Jaune. One of these days, I'll take you to my favorite place. But," she amended, "only if you can beat me fair and square."
"So, never?"
They dissolved back into laughter and Pyrrha found her head on his chest, listening to his wildly thumping heart.
"Concentrate, Jaune! This is basic aurology. Using your soul as a shield should be second nature to a hunter or huntress. You've the capacity for a strong shield, the strongest I've ever encountered. You have the potential for greatness, Jaune. Now! Shields! Up!"
Pyrrha came at him hard and fast and without mercy. She knew his limits better than anyone and she pushed him past them. No more closed eyes, no more wild sword swings—this time he would fight with skill and with strength, not by luck.
The shield was hurtling toward his head, guided by aura energy. Jaune stood his ground, hefting his own shield. The round buckler bounced off of his own kite shield and ricocheted back towards its owner. Next came the gladius, slashing ferociously, only stopped by Jaune's longsword. Several resounding slices came next, all blocked by only slight shifts in Jaune's stance. He was improving.
Next, Jaune decided to mix things up. After all, unpredictability was key in battle. He twirled his sword into a reverse grip and countered Pyrrha's renewed assault with his own slashes. As she always taught, the only difference between a block and a strike was location. Thus, Jaune began blocking with his sword and striking with his shield, maintaining his unpredictable fighting style for a few minutes until his hand slipped and Pyrrha knocked his sword away.
Suddenly, his eyes widened in realization. He grinned and snatched his sword from its resting position on the floor of the gym. Pyrrha readied her weapons, raising an eyebrow. However, she said nothing as she prepared for another bout.
Jaune readied himself, the new logic clicking into place. As Pyrrha's gladius hurtled down for an overhead strike, Jaune tossed his weapon and shield aside. Pyrrha realized, too late, what he was doing, and the blow connected.
Sparks flew and a white flash filled the gym, startling some of the other sparring students. As the flare died down, Pyrrha opened her flinching eyes and stared in wonder at Jaune, who was coated in a pale white light. Pyrrha's gladius rested on his shoulder and nary was a wound inflicted upon him. He laughed and rolled his shoulders.
"Yep. That'd do it alright."
"Jaune…" Pyrrha's downcast gaze was suddenly aimed at him and her ferocity took him aback. He stepped back as a punch landed squarely on his other shoulder. The blow had barely connected when Pyrrha grabbed him with the same hand and pulled him to her. "Don't do that ever again."
"Relax, Pyr, I had it under control. Finally."
His arms found themselves around her and he comforted her.
"I won't do it again, promise."
"Good. That was foolish and reckless and what were you thinking?"
"Just had a hunch, and I was right."
"A hunch?" She pulled back and looked into his sapphire eyes. "What was this hunch of yours?"
"Nah, I gotta keep some secrets for myself." Jaune grinned and patted her shoulder.
"If you insist, team leader," was her chilled response. "I think that's enough for today." She turned and grabbed her weapons, holstering them on her back.
As she walked away, Jaune called from behind her, "Hey, meet me at A Simple Wok, okay? My treat."
Pyrrha's icy fear and cold anger melted away and she nodded. "Okay, Jaune. I'll see you there."
"Alright, spill. Why were you so mad at me earlier?" Jaune said through a mouthful of lo mein.
Pyrrha swallowed her bite pointedly before answering, "You scared me."
"I scared you? The great Pyrrha?" Jaune laughed and swirled another bunch of noodles around his fork.
Pyrrha set her chopsticks down and turned to Jaune, her eyes down and face red. "Yes. I was scared. When I spar, I take it seriously. Sometimes too seriously. I lose myself in the heat of battle with a worthy foe and I forget where I am. You disarmed too quickly for me to do anything—"
"That was the idea," Jaune interrupted.
"—and it scared me. I thought I'd hurt you. Or worse."
Jaune took a moment, his eyes lost in thought, then replied, "I don't think you would've. You'd never hurt a teammate."
"You don't know that, Jaune. Back at Sanctum…the trials there, the tournaments? They paired us off. The first year, I was paired with a skilled young woman, named Terra. She and I battled back to back through the ranks. In the end, however, there can only be one winner, and I struck her down in the final round before dealing with our opponents by myself. The following years, I solidified a brutal reputation, and often, I'd partner with unsavory individuals. People who would use their hunting skills for war or for worse. These people usually tried to betray me first, but I always won. Always.
Never a day goes by where I don't think of Terra and what I did to her. She dropped out of hunting school, disappeared. I betrayed my only friend, and for what? Glory? Honor? There is not glory or honor in combat. There is a winner and there is a loser. And I promised myself I'd always win no matter what."
Pyrrha threw back her sake and rested her head on the table as Jaune processed the new information.
"Is that why you moved here? To Vale?" he asked.
She nodded, her head still against the counter.
"Well, you've got a new start then. Three teammates, one of whom is your boyfriend, who trust you with their lives. I mean, you trust me, even though I've never been to a real training school. So stop worrying about it, okay?" His eyes sparkled in the midday sun and Pyrrha couldn't help herself but to smile at his awkward charm.
"As you say, Jaune."
"Now come on. A toast—to new beginnings. For both of us."
He raised his sake cup and she replied in kind. The small glasses clinked together and Pyrrha smiled.
Author's Note: This was supposed to be released...how many days ago? Ugh. I need to stop making deadlines because I can never get things finished in time. For those of you who don't know, I stabbed myself in the arm with a sword during a training exercise. This chapter was my physical therapy for today, so please forgive any spelling errors and whatnots.
For the future of S/S, I am trying to get things organized and myself motivated to write more chapters, however, my depression has reared its head with a new ferocity and I may actually end up trying to get medication for it and possibly start seeing a therapist. To those of you who've stuck around this long, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Know that I will continue to write S/S and ITM until I see my goal of Part III's conclusion. Just know that chapters my be spaced out even more so than they are. I'd LIKE to publish once a week, but I know that may not always be possible.
That said, thank you all so much for the support I've gotten and the support I know I'll continue to receive. You guys are the best. Seriously.
-Keep Moving Forward-
