(Just a little closure.)
When he woke up in the morning,Jaune's mind was in a surreal state. He wanted to sleep a bit more, stop thinking and rest on his bed. It was the flashback from yesterday's event that made him snap out of it. He sat up up from the bed, finding himself the only one still sleeping. "Guess my team's busy." As Jaune pulled off the covers, he glanced at his nightstandto find a note, a small note in dark ink telling him not to forget, signed by Blake Belladonna.
Part of him regrets bringing up that book. Another part of him seemed to have a small hint of intrigue. Did he thought yesterday was fun? His thoughts are clearer now not being stuck in the moment. Did he want to be remembered as a actor to them? Not really, he came to Beacon Academy to fulfill his goal as a huntsman. This made him focus on another point. What does this entail, a little fun inside joke he'll make with team RWBY? Not to be known as a man breaking promises, he'll have to see for himself..
After under-going his morning routine, Jaune walked out of his room and politely knocked on the door across from his. After the third knock, he heard a familiar voice on the other end reply "It's open." A bit of anxiety welled up for a second of what may or may not happen but again, his head was in the gutter. Taking a deep breath, Jaune opened the dorm room, to reveal only Blake in her casual outfit when not fitted in the school uniform. Ninjas of Love was held in her hands, the same erotica book bringing them together and her showing no attempts to hide.
"Looks like you didn't forget" she said with a soft smile on her lips, putting the book aside.
"Kinda hard to forget honestly." Jaune sheepishly chuckled and rubbed the back of his head.
"Also hard to forget when my dorm neighbor has very strong acting skills and can get in-character" she mused to him, which made him silent, but noit upset on her assumptions. Out of curiosity, Jaune needed to know something.
"How did everyone react after...you know, including Weiss if she caught wind of the book"
"Weiss hasn't found out and we all would like to keep it that way."
"As much as I'd like to see her reaction, the aftermath wouldn't be fun" His little joke and self-realization of a prude Weiss finding such filth brought a small giggle from Blake.
"That's good, I don't think we would ever hear the end of her displeasure." As the topic died down, Jaune reminded himself why he's in this room in the first place.
"So, um, you said you wanted to re-enact the scenes?" Somehow this didn't cause the faunus girl to flinch or blush but rather nod in approval.
"Yeah, I want to play the lead and see what it's like to be the main character, if it's okay with you. And I promise we won't get interrupted."
"Promise?" Did Blake somehow worked magic to have her team not show up?
"They're busy in Vale shopping at the districts, they'll be gone for a couple hours." She hid the small tinge of embarrassment in shoeing away her partners tom have some alone time with a guy and Jaune couldn't connect the pieces. Not from his lack of sensing the mood, but believing such a ludicrous outcome would never happen.
"Oh, I guess that's good then. Won't have a repeat of yesterday." He chuckled, scratching the back of his head sheepishly.
"Would yoju like me to start from the top?"
""Yeah, please, I'll follow your lead."
Ivy was glancing out to the ocean in front of her, the sand softening her heavy feet and troubled thoughts. She was a short walk away from her clan, the same clan who took her in as one of their own but right now she needed space.
It's been two months already, when Cloud stepped into her life. He guided her, helped her, made her stronger but her heart couldn't see this as kindness. No, her heart kept walls up to protect herself, to not be attached to anyone in fear she becomes dependent on another person. Only when she's by herself does she feel at home, regardless of the gratitude extended by this clan.
To think no one else hasn't kept tabs on her behaviour would be foolish. Her ears picked up the sounds of footsteps and she turned in defense, ready to attack if they were an enemy. Her initial assumptions were wrong, as the man who allowed her into the village had followed her out here. Calm, mysterious, and filled with an aura of maturity, he balanced out the rash, abrasive and sometimes bratty Ivy who doesn't know what's good for her.
"Enjoying the view" he asked, and all he received was a glare and a huff, making him only smile to disarm any sense of a threat between them. Yes, they worked together, but is it any reason to maintain this attitude? He doesn't believe so.
"Just leave me alone" she told him, turning around to look out at the lake and away from Cloud. Cloud took two steps towards her, causing her to reflexively unsheathe her katana to him. "I'm warning you" she started, until seeing he only continued to walk until he stood in front of the katana, unwavering in his gentle aura but her grip remained firm.
"Mind if I just stay here then, or is this enough to hurt you?" His chest was mere inches from the tip of her katana, while he was defenseless to any potential strike from her.
"..."
"I came out here tonight cause I saw you head out, troubled. It does no one any good to have a heavy mind, worser yet when by yourself. Having no one else to talk leads to a downward spiral"
"So what, you want to play my therapist?"
"I didn't say that, just think of me as a friend, someone you can trust." The word trust only brought scrutiny and her hands gripping the blade tighter in her hands, letting the tip rest on his chest now.
"What do you know about trust? Letting a stranger into your village and thinking they won't back stab you the first chance they get?"
"That is a possibility, I'm not going to deny coming to that conclusion, but from what I've seen, that's not who you are. I can't say I know you, because that's silly to assume so fast. If my words mean anything, I think you know what's right and wrong, but you can't be sure everyone has the same intentions." Cloud's assessment of Ivy was spot on, and it's why she's been so argumentative, disruptive. Having someone see her for what she is, and understand her, terrified her more than anything else. The weapon gently digging into his chest lost its force and began to lower down and what once was frustration burning in Ivy's eyes, was replaced by fear. She wouldn't speak, and he knew he had to, just for her.
"All I'm saying is, I think you need someone who accepts you and not try to pretend you are something you're not. I want to give you that chance Ivy, if you'll let me." Emotions were swirling inside the ninja wanting to run away this very second. Letting her guard down for someone else, to let someone into her heart and see her for who she is, was near impossible. She did that once and backfired. She closed herself off, vowing to not do it again. Yet, Cloud seemed to be the exception and someone who cared for her well-being. Her muscle memory wanted to just cut him down but her heart said otherwise. Dropping her weapon, she ran into his arms, hugging him tightly so he would know how he made her feel, how he made her heart beat with anxiety and also to stop herself from showing what she looked like underneath her mask.
This is where the scene should end, in Jaune's mind. The makeshift scene yesterday had been a few chapters ago when enacted with Yang. Ivy having joined recently, flirty, annoying but doing her best to deflect and be a nuisance. She proposed a kiss and Cloud played along for the ride, but when it got serious, he stopped it then and there. He knew his position as a leader and didn't want to abuse it. Honestly, Cloud sounded like a good man, a good role model if it wasn't for the content of Ninjas in Love and what lies ahead. Jaune felt that the tension and interactions were a bit cheesy, but his sister ended up getting the last laugh with the amount of copies sold.
In actuality, this scene they played still goes on, where Ivy, dropping her guard and concerns, plants a kiss on Cloud's lips without him getting a chance to prepare himself. This had planted the seed for the more adult oriented content down the road. Jaune was not a pervert and was mindful to respect others' boundaries.
So, it came to a surprise to him and only him when he felt soft lips pressed against his own and he had to re-focus to understand what was happening. His acting partner didn't get the memo of stopping and let the scene continue. Now, Jaune was very rational and was the first to break away, his hands coming up half in shock and half to stop her from going further. Blake looked confused, not knowing why he'd pull away, but it slowly started to dawn on her why he seemed apprehensive.
"Did I do something wrong" she says, not knowing why it would make him react like this.
"I didn't know we were going to keep going."
"I didn't want to break character and thought you wouldn't mind." A kiss, platonic or not was a problem for the blonde boy. He never kissed anyone, or was in a relationship. To have his first kiss like this threw him in a loop. Blake moved slightly closer, wanting to set the record straight. "It's harmless fun, and we're just acting out a scene from a book. If you want to stop, we could, but I was looking forward to playing Ivy and her mis-adventures." She gave a wry smile, doing her best to woo and have him at least hear her out and accept her request. Jaune wasn't the guy to say no if it wasn't going to be an issue, that, and the way Blake was waiting for an answer out of him made her look cute in his eyes. After much deliberating in his mind, Jaune sighed sheepishly.
"Let's continue." Blake couldn't contain her joy at his answer, flashing a smile and going back to the top.
"That's not what I had in mind when I wrote that book" said a female voice over the phone, bringing a chuckle from Jaune.
"I'm sure it wasn't and I didn't expect this at all Saphron." His older sister had written a novel that made her some good money on the side, but managed to land her brother his first kiss and supposedly more.
"I was bound to find out about this. You never enjoyed proofreading my works, so asking for what I've been writing lately raised a red flag. So, is she cute?"
"Saphron!"
"What? Your sister can't ask a question about an avid reader of hers who happens to be using my brother as a fill-in for her fantasies." Reddened and embarrassed at how accurate her words are, Jaune did his best to sound serious.
"She's not like that. We didn't do anything, we're just trying to be huntsman and graduate on time." While he couldn't see it, he can sense it, an all-knowing grin on the other end of the line.
"Whatever you say so. I'll let you two love-birds enjoy yourselves. Oh, and tell her to expect a new novel coming to stores in six weeks. It's my best yet." A soft giggle is heard and Jaune could only nod and imagine telling Blake about this. After a quick eye-roll and some grumbles, he agreed with her.
"Alright, I'll let her know. Bye."
"Bye Jaune!" He closed the call on his end and immediately his scroll started to buzz. It was messages sent by Blake. She asked if he was free to accompany her to the bookstore. There was some new releasees today and wanted him to accompany her. He's surprised no one caught on, except Yang for obvious reasons, why thet wo have gotten closer and were spending more time. From eating lunch, to reading new books, and.."that", it just seemed very out the blue
With a smile, he replied back that he didn't mind and would be free to meet with her now. Putting his scroll into his pocket, he exited his room to go do some shopping down at Vale.
As her younger brother hung up the phone, Saphron sighed and already started forming ideas. 'Hm, a faunus and a human falling in love. Sure does write itself, wonder why I didn't think about it?' Inspired by real life events, and taking inspiration, Saphron already started writing a rough draft, a quick little short story to gauge audience's reception and see if she should pursue it any further.
Besides, if she needs material or drama to pull from, she can always call Jaune for help.