Dead man walking. Or at least that was how Jaune felt as he walked through the long and empty corridors of Junior's club.
It wasn't the job that made him nervous. On the contrary, over the past several days he had grown more accustomed to his designated roles in the club. More often than not he was plugged into the spot where he was needed most at the moment. Sometimes he cooked some meals. Sometimes he assisted with the restoration process. Sometimes he was just stuck doing all of the dirty jobs that no one else wanted to do. All in all he didn't mind it much. He had a place to stay and food to eat, and he didn't have to pay for any of it.
However that was not the real reason he was here. It was all a front. A cover. An excuse. He was hired to be muscle. Now came the time to see what he was made of.
Jaune could still hardly believe just how much the old apartment complex had to offer. The bottom half was a night club. The top floor had intact residential rooms. The place even had a gym. He had not been there yet, but that would all change soon enough. Junior had sent him there, informing Jaune that the twins were getting some training in. The man had told Jaune that it was time to test his skills. There would be no better opponents than one of the girls.
He remembered Junior's words from the other day well. If possible, fight Miltia. However, Jaune wondered if she would truly be a better opponent than Melanie. He didn't know what the longer-haired girl's weapons were, but he remembered the savage looking curved claws of Miltia all too well. Probably as long and sharp as a Nevermore's talons, he knew that they would be able to rend both his clothes and flesh with ease.
The thought was cast from his mind as he approached the door to the makeshift gym, and the faint sounds of combat could be heard from inside. With his heart thumping inside his chest he laid his hand on the handle. After a deep breath he pushed the door open and stepped inside.
It wasn't like any gym he had ever seen before. There were no weight machines, no benches, no equipment. It was simply an empty room with mats on the floor. A few full length mirrors adorned one of the walls, likely so that the girls would be able to ensure that they were in proper form while training. Other than this minor detail, it was a rather unimpressive place. It was the first time Jaune could remember having such a thought about the club since he had first arrived.
The room need not be impressive, however, as his eyes were drawn to the other two people inside it. Melanie and Miltia both stood near the center of the mats, neither wearing what he had come to learn were their favorite dresses, and instead opting to wear tight, nearly matching workout attire. The black pants each wore left little to the imagination in the curves department, while the white and red tank tops each girl wore respectively hugged their slender waists and modest busts flatteringly.
Jaune felt his mind beginning to wander and shook his head. Not now, brain, he mentally chastised. He closed his eyes for a brief moment and took another deep breath. Focus on the fight. Just the fight.
When his eyes opened again he saw the girls moving once more. Each strike was countered perfectly by her opponent. A punch from Miltia was blocked or sidestepped by her sister. A kick from Melanie was dodged in turn. Blow after blow was exchanged and not a single one was landed as each girl dodged and weaved out of the way of the strikes. In a way it was more like some sort of choreographed dance than it was a fight. An act that the two had worked at for years to be in perfect sync. There was a certain fluidity to the action that Jaune was certain he had only seen in action movies.
He finally got a look at what Melanie's weapon was, however. On her white knee-high boots were a pair of cruel looking blades, one attached to each heel. The way she fought with them, lifting her legs up high enough to be able to block and counter Miltia's own wrist-mounted claws, was amazing. The girl had flexibility for sure.
Looking down at his own blue jeans he suddenly felt overdressed. He did not have training attire like the two girls did. These were just his normal clothes. Ones which offered far less flexibility than the stretchy pants that the twins wore. He sincerely hoped that they would not be ruined in his upcoming spar.
After a couple of minutes of watching the action both girls finally relented. With some unspoken word the Malachite twins stepped back, lowering their weapons and allowing themselves a moment to catch their breath. Both looked tired, and both had a visible amount of sweat covering their arms and faces. Miltia turned and went over to grab one of the towels which lay on the mats near one of the walls.
Melanie meanwhile spun on her heels which saw her facing Jaune. Despite being visibly out of breath her eyes sparkled like gemstones, giving off a mischievous aura about herself in place of her usual smirk. "Like what you saw?" she asked suddenly.
He had to admit that he did. Their fight was more akin to a dance performance than actual combat. "Yeah. You two were amazing. I've never seen a fight like that before."
A small frown crossed the girl's lips before she sighed. "Not what I meant."
If Jaune didn't know any better he'd say that she sounded disappointed. "Huh? What are you talking about?"
"Ignore her," the voice of Miltia said as she approached him. She held a towel in both hands, gently dabbing and wiping the sweat from her neck and face. "So what's up?"
"Oh, right," Jaune said as he looked down to Crocea Mors strapped at his left hip. "Junior sent me here to get some training in. He thinks it'd be a good idea if I fight-"
"Dibs," Melanie said suddenly.
Jaune was taken aback. His head snapped back over to the other girl, who began walking to stand at her sister's side. "What?" he asked.
"I call dibs," she explained. "You and me. Right here, right now."
If I were you I'd try to get Miltia to be the one to spar. The words echoed in Jaune's mind. If he didn't act quickly then Junior's warning would be for nothing.
He looked back and forth between both girls for a moment. Miltia's own expression seemed neutral, her own eyes drawn to where her sister stood beside her. Melanie on the other hand had all of her attention focused entirely on him, her gleaming eyes looking as eager as he had ever seen them.
Deciding that he could not outright reject the proposition, Jaune attempted to work around it logically. "Sure, that sounds alright," he offered. He noticed how Melanie was still coated in a slick sheet of sweat, however. "But, uh, Miltia looks a little less tired. Don't you think it would be a good idea if-"
"Nope," Melanie grinned, cutting him off. "I'm fine."
Well so much for that.
Jaune looked back over to Miltia, who looked back at him this time. The girl gave a light shrug of her shoulders as if to say that there was nothing she could do about it. In reality it was the truth. Jaune had grown up in a household where his parents couldn't always be around to look after him and his siblings all the time. There were times when it was he and his sisters who made the rules and passed the laws. In his experience the process of calling dibs was one such law that few could challenge. He wondered if that also applied to the Malachite twins, or if Miltia simply did not care enough to challenge her sister's claim.
"Alright, if you say so," Jaune said reluctantly as he removed his sheathed blade from his belt. He moved over to one of the edges of the mats as he did so before turning back around to face the girls. "But really, if you need to take a rest before we do this that's fine with me."
Melanie twirled around to face him, a look of earnest appreciation on her face. "Aw, I'm touched that you care so much," she cooed. The look quickly vanished as her true feelings came out, however. "But like I said before, I'm fine."
Meanwhile Miltia had gone over to stand against one of the walls, her towel hung over her shoulders where she still occasionally used a corner of it on her forehead and neck. The long and vicious claws still adorned her wrists, and there was a part of Jaune that was thankful he would not have to face them. How bad could heel-mounted blades be, after all?
Across the room from him he saw Melanie begin to do a few stretches of her arms and legs. He decided that he would do the same, though in his current attire any stretching of his legs was out of the question. He really needed to go out and buy something light and loose if he was to do this on a regular basis.
"Don't go easy on me 'cause I'm such a pretty face," Melanie said. Jaune looked up to see one of her arms stretched across her chest, pinned down in place by the other. "I won't," she finished with a taunting smile.
Of that he was certain. In the past few days of his employment here he had learned that Melanie was always in the mood to mess with him. It was never cruel or harmful, outside of the one time she had gotten him drunk. In all honesty it was the same level of taunting and teasing that he would get from his older sisters. Except that the topics Melanie sometimes covered were the sorts he would never hear from his own blood.
"I'll keep that in mind," he replied, mirroring her own stretching pose. The action caused her eyes to narrow, as if he had just called her bluff in a poker game.
In response Melanie lifted a leg behind her body, bending the knee in the process and grabbing hold of the tip of her boot with her fingers. Her eyes remained locked on his the entire time, as if telling him to try and copy this pose too.
Jaune knew he could not. He didn't even care either. He was just too impressed by the way that she could not only bend like this, but that she could hold her balance as well. I've seen professional ice skaters less flexible than this! his mind screamed.
Likely satisfied that he would not be able to match her with that stretch, Melanie lowered her leg back to the ground before she spoke. "So I showed you mine," she said casually. "How about you show me yours?"
Jaune didn't know what she was talking about, but he couldn't help but think that it was some sort of sexual remark to try and fluster him. "Show you my what?" he asked carefully.
"Your weapon, duh," she explained as she pointed a finger down to the boot on the leg she had just stretched.
Oh. Well that was better than expected. He dared not show any sort of relief on his body or face that would tip her off to what he had truly thought.
Still holding the sheathed sword in his left hand, Jaune ripped Crocea Mors out of its scabbard with his right, the scraping sound of steel on steel filling the room. The blade lit up, gleaming as if it was freshly forged and polished in the bright light from the ceiling.
A moment later he pressed a button on the sheath to activate its true form, the sides fanning out to create a large and heavy heater shield. The twin golden crescents of the Arc family sigil adorned the white steel, giving off the faint aura of nobility and heroism from the boy who longed to be spoken of in the same way as his ancestors.
"Wow, it gets bigger when you push on it?" she asked, her tone not quite matching the question posed. If Melanie was impressed by the image or the transformation she didn't show it. "Compensating for something else?"
There it was, the innuendo he had been expecting. He didn't rise to the bait, however.
"I'll take that silence as a yes," she continued.
Jaune frowned this time. Before he could comment though, a thought entered his mind. "Hold on a sec," he said before switching Crocea Mors into his left hand. With his free one he dug into the pocket of his jeans. After fishing out his scroll he gently tossed it over to the padded section of the floor where Miltia stood. It bounced a couple of times before it lay still and unharmed. The girl in black and red looked down at it uninterestedly for a moment before her gaze returned to him.
"Good call," Melanie said as she took a few steps forward. "I'd hate to have broken your scroll when you're just a poor little stray. Right, Miltia?"
"Whatever," the other girl replied sharply.
Jaune didn't quite know what to make of that exchange, but he knew that he had to keep his thoughts on the fight. He couldn't let himself become distracted. It was just a spar, and he was in no danger, but he was here to show what he could do. It would not make a good impression on Junior if he was to be taken out in a few seconds.
He advanced with his shield up, close to his chest and covering it along with the bottom portion of his face. In his right hand gripped Crocea Mors tightly, also held close to his body and tip pointed out toward Melanie. His body was slightly angled to the left, his feet spread shoulder width apart. It was the stance that his father had taught him so long ago.
It was odd facing off against an opponent who was unarmed. Or at least appeared to be unarmed. He had no doubt that the blades which adorned Melanie's heels were as sharp as his sword. However the fact that their use was in such a limited fashion made him think that he had a natural advantage. He knew that he could not think like this though. Being overconfident was the first step on the road to defeat.
Melanie's own unburdened arms were brought up in a classic fighting stance, protecting her torso and face from the threat of attacks. How she planned on using them in order to block or deflect the strikes of his blade was beyond him.
"So," she said casually as she inched closer towards him. "Is this what you thought it'd be like?"
His eyes were focused on her own. They glanced down to her hands and feet for split seconds at a time. At any part of her which could betray where she would attempt to strike from.
"Thought what would be like?" he replied. He squeezed the handle of Crocea Mors tighter for a moment before relaxing his grip.
"Beacon," she stated simply. The accompanying smile told him all he needed to know about her intent. "Training at a fancy huntsman school."
He didn't answer. How could he, even if he wanted to? In the end though, he knew what this was. She's trying to distract you, he told himself. Don't let her get inside your head.
Her foot flinched, and he reacted in kind with his shield. Seeing his reaction to her feint made Melanie grin as she backed off a step. "Did I hit a nerve?" she asked. "Or are you just shy during a fight? I know sometimes it's hard for a guy to perform under pressure."
Both. Though he wouldn't admit that she had indeed struck a nerve. As for the part about fighting, he had only had one proper fight in his life a couple of weeks ago. He could not remember the specifics of training with his father and if they had made small talk during it. Any speaking they might have done would have gone toward correcting Jaune's form or asking questions about a certain technique or exercise. Exchanging witty banter had not been part of the lesson plan.
The girl continued to shuffle slightly back and forth, side to side, as she slowly made her way towards him. Was this how she actually fought? Or was she merely toying with him?
Her eyes narrowed at him as they continued their dance. Not the same kind that she had had with Miltia only minutes earlier, but a subtle and graceful sequence of movements nonetheless. "It's like, rude not to answer someone when they ask you a question," she stated with a hint of annoyance in her voice.
He shot a breath through his nose. "Then maybe you should ask-"
In a flash her right foot moved, bringing her leg up high enough to strike him in his exposed temple. She would have succeeded had he not brought his shield up at the last possible second, the surprisingly strong and hard boot of the girl smashing into it and sending a painful vibration all the way down his arm.
The moment he lowered the shield to get a look at the girl his eyes widened. She was fast. Amazingly fast. Already Melanie was in the middle of her second attack, this time succeeding in hitting him in his now exposed left knee. The blow stung, and he could only imagine how bad it would have been had the bladed heel hit him instead of the top of her boot. He was sent staggering back regardless, his body and mind stunned at just how agile she was. How had someone actually gotten the better of both her and Miltia?
With a larger distance between the two of them now it appeared that Melanie had dropped her guard, her hands lowering to rest on her hips. "Is that all you've got, little huntsman?" she sneered. "I thought you wanted to be the big hero like your daddy."
Jaune inhaled sharply before letting it out slowly. Don't fall for that, he reminded himself. She's screwing with you again. He had already let her inside of his head once. The very act of speaking to her had caused him to lose focus. Even being a little bit off could make all the difference.
His eyes remained locked on her and his expression grim. She wanted to talk. She wanted him to talk. She wanted to tease and taunt him. She wanted to force him into making a mistake. Into giving her control. He was not about to do that.
Taking the initiative this time, Jaune crept forward, shield still up and blade ready to lash out. Melanie brought her hands back up in what was almost a boxing posture, moving ever so slightly as she bounced lightly on the tips of her feet. Her own face had lost its mask of arrogance as it was clear that she was not about to earn a similar reaction to what she had before. Yeah you'd better take this seriously. Let's see how you handle a little offense.
Crocea Mors stabbed outward, the strike being easily deflected as Melanie brought a bladed boot up, the sound of steel on steel ringing in his ears. But this had been Jaune's own feint, and a moment later he punched out with his shield, smashing into the arms which Melanie had brought up to guard her face. He hadn't hit his target, but the soft grunt which slipped from her lips was enough to let him know that it had at least made an impact. Aura or not, getting struck by blunt force would hurt at least a little bit.
The victory was short-lived however, as Melanie redoubled her efforts and went on the offensive once more. The girl unleashed a flurry of kicks, somehow managing to maintain her balance on one leg as she swung into him time and time again. The first few strikes made contact with his shield, Jaune having to work overtime in order to fend off each attempted blow. Then out of nowhere, as if she had been expecting him to become complacent in his defense, Melanie switched her leg of attack and struck at his sword arm. Jaune felt Melanie's blade scrape into his exposed flesh, and it was only because of his Aura that he was not sporting a six inch long gash on the top of his hand.
Jaune staggered backwards upon being struck so solidly, and decided he had to regroup. The assault had become quicker and fiercer by the moment. He knew that he had the advantage in protection thanks to his shield, and he knew that he had to use it to its fullest. To allow Melanie to control the pace of the fight was to play into her hands as much as giving into her taunting was. He had to slow things down.
As if on cue the girl opened her mouth once more. "Getting tired already?" she asked, noting how he had been the one to disengage from the spar. "We're just getting started."
The words would have been more effective had there not been a line of sweat coming down her forehead. That, and if her own breath had not been a little heavy in her words. Obviously it was a result of her earlier spar with Miltia, but still ammo he could use to counter her claim. He had grown up with seven sisters. He had experience in waging a war of words too.
"You're the one who's sweating," he nodded back to her. "You sure you don't need a break?"
That sly smirk of hers returned as she flipped a clump of her raven locks back over her shoulder with a flick of her hand. "Please, I've got stamina for days," she said confidently. Her head tilted slightly and her smile turned coy. "How about you, boy toy?"
More innuendo. More posturing. It would be so very satisfying to beat her here. As long as he played by his rules he believed he stood a chance.
Jaune moved in once more. He had to control the pace, and that meant being the one on offense. Make her react to his moves rather than the other way around. If he could do that then perhaps he could force her off balance and knock her to the ground. She relied on her legs for nearly all of her offense and defense. Getting her off her feet was the key to victory.
Each swipe and stab of Crocea Mors was met with a raised leg from the girl opposite him, but he was fine with this. If Melanie was defending that meant she could not attack. That gave him time and opportunity to spot a weakness. An opening. He would wipe that smug little smile off of her face once and for all.
He pushed in more and more, each step he took forcing her back little by little until they neared one of the walls. Soon she would have nowhere to go and it would all be over. Maybe he didn't even need to get her off her feet. Melanie's speed and agility would be of no use if she was backed into a corner, and his defense would be too solid for her to break through. Despite not landing a single hit on her in his sequence of attacks he still had the advantage. A war of attrition was one that he was bound to win simply by the virtue of his shield.
Jaune briefly glanced behind the girl, judging her current distance from the wall before his eyes locked onto her once more. "You're running out of room," he said, hoping to turn the tables on her. Maybe she would finally know what it was like to have her head messed with during a fight.
If Melanie was concerned she did not show it, nor did she spare a look behind her to confirm how close she was to the wall. Instead she kept her piercing green eyes focused on him. "Then do something about it," she shot back.
Very well. He had worked himself into an advantageous position and now it was time to end it.
One more thrust with his sword would be enough to send her crashing against the wall, pinning her in place and taking away all of her mobility. It was exactly what Jaune moved to do. Crocea Mors lashed out again, intent on striking the girl's torso, but it did not connect. Before it could Melanie fell backwards, seemingly losing her footing as Jaune had originally intended to happen. It was not the case, however.
Melanie had ducked out of the way of the strike, landing on her hands in a controlled fall backwards as Crocea Mors thrust into nothing but the air above her chest. At the same time a bladed heel swung upward, striking Jaune under his chin with the speed and fury of a thunderbolt. His head snapped backwards, and it took all of his strength and will not to fall back himself. Only for him it would have been an uncontrolled and unwanted fall.
Shaking his head clear, still dazed and trying to process what had just happened, Jaune saw how Melanie wasted no time in going on the offensive once more. Kick after kick slammed into him, and it was amazing how someone with such a tiny frame could produce so much power. He was losing now. His head still swam from the blow to his chin, and at the moment he could not bring his shield up in time in order to deflect even half of the blows. He had to do something. He had to get her away from him.
With no sense of self-preservation he lashed out with his shield once more. In doing so he had exposed himself to attack, and Melanie took the opportunity to exploit the opening and delivered another staggering kick into his midsection. It expelled the air from his lungs, and the hit would have forced most people to abandon their own attack. However Jaune's arm was already in motion. His shield swung up and sideways, the top edge of it connecting with the girl's face. The cry of pain it elicited from her was an unusual and unsatisfying sound to hear. But it had done the trick, and Melanie backed off despite having the clear advantage over him.
She brought a hand up to her face before looking down at it to check for any blood. When she saw none she glared up at him. "I can't believe you just hit a girl like that."
Jaune opened his mouth to speak but nothing came out. His shoulders slumped slightly at the girl's words. His sword and shield lowered as he looked at her. "I-"
He never had a chance to finish his thought as Melanie's leg moved and twisted. Her comment had thrown him off guard. Not for long, but long enough. The next thing he knew was his head hitting the mat with a dull thud, and his vision was filled with nothing but the ceiling.
Well, that happened.
Miltia stood leaning against the wall, her arms crossed over her chest, as she witnessed Jaune falling down in a crumpled heap. He hit the floor like a sack of potatoes, his grip on his sword and shield gone as they too clattered next to him on the mats.
It had been over in an instant. The sudden roundhouse kick Melanie had sent into the side of Jaune's head made Miltia wince the moment it connected. The audible crack of boot on skull had filled the room. It would be a hard and painful reminder to him about not letting his guard down.
Miltia walked over closer to the action as Melanie bent down before straddling Jaune's waist. The girl grabbed Jaune by the front of his hoodie to lift his head up slightly.
He was still breathing. That was good. Miltia never doubted for a moment that he was still alive, but seeing it was still a relief after the boot to the side of the head that he had just taken. He was also still apparently conscious. Maybe he did have some stamina after all.
Melanie was still panting hard from the physical exertion at she loomed over Jaune. "What the fuck did I tell you the night we first met?"
Jaune blinked hard, his teeth grit together as he struggled to gather his thoughts. He didn't respond with words, only pained gasps and breaths as he brought a hand up to rub his head.
"I'm not your damsel in distress," she answered for him when it was clear that he was not about to do so. She glared down at him still, not moving from atop his lap as if to make a point. To show her power. Her dominance. "You think just 'cause I'm a girl that I can't take a hit? I've fought other blonde bitches who were a lot tougher than you."
Miltia frowned at the mention of the girl from a couple of weeks ago. However what Melanie had said was true. The chick with the fiery hair was a lot tougher than Jaune was. Even then she and her sister had gotten back up. It would take a lot more than that to keep Melanie and Miltia Malachite down.
"I'm not some fucking weakling," Melanie continued. There was anger in her voice. She held onto his hoodie in a tight grip. "So don't treat me like one!"
"Melanie," Miltia hissed.
The girl in question looked over to see her sister standing a few feet away. Miltia's hands were on her hips as she looked down at the pair of combatants, a look of clear displeasure on her face.
Melanie shook her head softly. "Whatever," she said as her tone softened.
Long seconds of silence passed, and Jaune himself made no attempts to try and remove the offending girl from his body. He was likely still trying to unscramble his brain from the savage blow it had just suffered. It truly was remarkable he was not out cold.
With one hand occupying his hoodie, Melanie used the other to lightly tap Jaune's cheek a few times in order to try and gain his attention. "You still with me?" she asked.
Jaune nodded slightly, his eyes closed and teeth still slightly clenched. "Yeah," he managed to get out.
"Good." Melanie lowered her head a little more, her tone lowering in turn as she spoke to him. "Lesson one, my little huntsman. There's no such thing as a fair fight."
This had been a prime example of such a lesson. Aside from the obvious taunting and mind games, Melanie had preyed on his values. He was an idealistic boy with dreams of becoming a huntsman. There may have been some misguided sense of honor and duty in his mind when it came to the job, but out on the streets no such thing existed.
Apparently Jaune knew that now as he nodded in response to the statement. "Yeah," he agreed. "I got it."
"You don't give a fuck whether it's a guy or a girl," she continued. "It doesn't matter who you're fighting. You fight to win or else you're going to die. You do whatever it takes. Got it?"
He nodded once more. "Yeah."
"I could kill you right now and what could you do to stop me? Nothing. All because I told you that you hit a girl. Like that even fucking matters."
It was a harsh lesson. It was a harsh way of putting it too, but the fact of the matter was that Melanie could indeed kill Jaune where he lay right now. He was disarmed, injured, and in a position of severe disadvantage compared to the girl who sat above him.
It had taken a little while, but Jaune pushed himself up with his arms, his head and torso slightly up now as he looked to the girl still pinning him to the ground. "I got it," he said, a little more authority in his voice this time, confirming that he was indeed beginning to come to his senses. "You think you could get off me now?"
Melanie brought her face closer to his. "What's wrong? Being this close to a girl make you uncomfortable?"
"No."
A few seconds of silence passed between the two before a small smile formed on the girl's lips. "Huh, look at that. It really does get bigger when you push on it."
Melanie stood up, using his chest to push off of with her hands as she did so. Jaune continued lying on the floor for another moment before picking himself up. His stance was a little wobbly at first, but he found his balance soon enough.
After grabbing a towel the elder Malachite turned to look at her sister. "You want a go with him next?" she asked. "He didn't last very long with me."
Miltia scoffed. "Please. As if I want your sloppy seconds."
Her sister shrugged. "Suit yourself."
It wouldn't have been worth it even if it wasn't Melanie who he had just finished fighting. She didn't know what his Aura level was at right now, but after taking so many hits from Melanie, including two particularly harsh ones, she had to imagine that it was low. The last thing she wanted to do now was actually injure the boy. Not when this was supposed to be a controlled training exercise.
Jaune was collecting his equipment now. The shield he had used fairly effectively in combat shrunk back down into a scabbard and was soon once more home to the elegant looking blade he used as his primary weapon. It was interesting. The weapon bore more similarities to the blades that she and her sister used rather than what she thought was the stereotypical weapons of a huntsman. Miltia frowned at the thought. He's not a huntsman, she reminded herself. And he never will be.
Junior was the only huntsman she had ever truly known, and from what he had told her they pretty much all used some sort of dual-purpose weapon that had both ranged and close quarters combat abilities. However as a girl who used a pair of claws she was not about to say that a simple sword was ineffective. Sometimes keeping things simple was the best way of doing them.
Miltia walked over closer to Jaune when she saw that he had brought a hand up to his left temple once more. While she had never been on the receiving end of one of Melanie's high kicks she could imagine what it must have felt like. "You alright?" she asked.
Jaune nodded, a small and disarming smile on his lips as he looked at her. "Yeah," he said, his voice still not entirely free of pain. "Thanks."
"You did good," she continued. Maybe the outcome hadn't been ideal, but he had lasted longer than any of Junior's goons would have. At least that was something. "Me and Melanie have been doing this for years. You shouldn't feel bad."
A soft chuckle slipped through his lips. "Yeah, tell that to my skull."
At least the blow hadn't damaged his sense of humor. That was good.
Miltia smiled as well, her eyes drifting away from him as she looked over to the side. "At least you learned something. That's like, important and stuff."
He nodded again, the smile still present. "Yeah..." He sighed, running a hand through unkempt blonde hair before looking down to his feet. "I think I'm gonna go grab a shower now. Getting my butt kicked around on the floor got me kinda dirty." He paused as he sniffed for dramatic effect. "And smelly."
She didn't want to confirm or deny the statement he had made, so she merely nodded in acknowledgement. "Go for it."
He left the room, once more leaving her and Melanie alone. The girl in black and white was still busy wiping her face clear of the sweat which had accumulated on it after two fights.
Miltia turned to her twin, walking closer to her as she spoke. "You were kinda hard on him."
Melanie looked up, a slight smirk gracing her lips. "Actually he was the one getting hard on me at the end."
Green eyes narrowed at the teasing words. Ones which had ignored her point entirely. "That's not what I meant."
The older twin waved a hand flippantly in response. "Relax, Mil," she said. "Your poor little baby bird came out fine. It's not like I broke his jaw or whatever."
Again with the injured animal comparison. Hard green eyes remained locked on their counterparts, not flinching where most others might have. "I'm talking about what you said after the fight."
The mention of the blonde girl. The insistence that Melanie herself was not weak. She didn't even need to be Melanie's twin to understand why she had said what she had. Or what she was feeling inside.
Melanie's eyes narrowed in turn this time. "So what? He needs to learn what it's like to live in our world if he wants to survive."
She had ignored what Miltia was getting at, but her words were still true nonetheless. Jaune couldn't be in this line of work if he showed weakness to someone out of some stupid sense of chivalry. Melanie had told him as much before the fight had begun. That he shouldn't go easy on her because she's such a pretty face. The words were a taunt on the surface, but they carried far greater weight behind them.
With a soft sigh Miltia had no option but to concede the point. "Whatever," she said, not arguing with her twin.
Melanie pressed onward though. "You said he was too innocent for what we do. You want him to end up dead?"
Of course not. It was a stupid question. One where there was only one answer. One where said answer would justify being hard on Jaune. Training him. Changing him. Taking away that kindness and innocence that he showed when he cooked for them. The way he spoke with them and treated them like the ladies he saw them as rather than the criminals that they were. All for his benefit. For his survival.
Where would that leave him then? He wouldn't be the boy who stumbled into their club and helped her and Melanie back to their feet out of the goodness of his heart. He wouldn't be the same boy who had bandaged her hand for no other reason than she was bleeding. He'd just be another criminal. Another scumbag. Another one of Junior's men.
"Whatever," Miltia repeated.
She knew Melanie had a point. She knew that Melanie knew as well. There was nothing more that could be said.
The buzzing sound which filled her ears brought a formal end to the conversation. Looking around for the source of the sound, Miltia saw that Melanie had the same reaction.
"It's not mine," Melanie said, patting the sides of her pants for effect to show there was nothing in her pockets. "Yours?"
Miltia shook her head. "Nope."
A look of realization formed on her sister's face. She looked over to the mats next to one of the walls. "His scroll?"
The younger twin shrugged. "Must be. Unless he found one of your toys lying around and brought it with."
Melanie's face twisted in anger at the barb. "Shut up," she snarled. Her expression softened quickly afterward, a glint of inspiration in her bright emerald eyes. "And don't even try to tell me that it wouldn't be hot if he were into that kind of thing."
Right now Miltia didn't particularly care to think about what kind of perverted activities that Melanie was imagining that Jaune did in his private time. Instead she stepped over to the mat where he had tossed his scroll and picked it up. Sure enough, it vibrated in her hand, and its screen was lit up with an incoming call.
Melanie moved to stand near her sister, arms folded over her chest. "So who is it, his mom?" she asked teasingly.
Miltia shook her head. "Someone named Ruby Rose."
"Ooh, who's Ruby Rose?" Melanie cooed. "You think boy toy's getting some action on the side? Maybe he's not so innocent after all."
Could he be? His last name was Arc, so it obviously wasn't one of those sisters he had mentioned before. Either way it wasn't any of her business. What he did on his own time, whether it was playing with Melanie's... personal items or having some fun with Ruby Rose was simply none of her business.
Melanie reached out and attempted to grab the scroll. "Come on. Gimmie," she said as a hand grasped open and closed.
Extending an arm to hold her eager sister back, Miltia held the scroll away from her. "We really shouldn't."
The longer-haired girl ceased her attempts at trying to take the scroll by force, but a hand remained on her sister's shoulder as she spoke. "Come on, Miltia," she said. "Don't tell me you're not totally wondering who she is."
She wasn't. She absolutely wasn't. It was none of her business.
"You want to protect him right?" Melanie continued. "What if this Ruby chick is some total slut bag? What if she ends up giving Jaune a disease? It's like, our job to look after him, remember?"
That was priceless coming from the girl who had just smashed his brains in. She knew Melanie was just being nosy. However...
Some tiny twinge of curiosity had been sparked inside of her now as well. Who was Ruby? What was her relationship with him? Why hadn't he ever mentioned her before? Was he hiding her existence from them? If she was important to him shouldn't he have talked about her like he had his parents and sisters?
Still, she could not betray his trust like this. But she knew someone who could. She handed the scroll over to Melanie. Not out of curiosity or jealousy, but out of concern for his well-being. Melanie was right. What kind of name was Ruby Rose anyway? It sounded like an adult entertainer's name. If some skank was trying to-
Her train of thought was cut off when Melanie finally answered the call. "Hey, you've reached Jaune's pants," the girl said happily.
Miltia's brow furrowed as she mouthed a questioning word to her sister.
Melanie brought the scroll down, covering the bottom portion with a hand to try and prevent the other girl from hearing her. "People usually keep their scrolls in their pants," she explained.
Her explanation did nothing to erase Miltia's questioning stare.
The silence only caused Melanie to roll her eyes as she continued. "It was a joke. Get it?"
"Not a very good one."
"Whatever. You suck."
"Says the one with the sucky jokes," Miltia countered.
"Um, I'm still here just so you know," a third voice said.
Both girls looked down to the scroll that Melanie had been keeping at waist level. Only then did they realize that it was a video call, and that the image of a young girl with red and black hair filled the screen.
Melanie brought the device back up, holding it sideways in front of her so that she could get a clear look at the girl. Miltia hovered near her to do the same.
Ruby Rose was indeed a young girl. Younger than them, and certainly younger than Jaune. A pair of silver eyes stared back at them nervously, making it apparent that she was not comfortable with who had answered her scroll call in the place of Jaune.
Melanie had no such issues, however, and smiled as if she was speaking to a friend she had not seen in ages. "So what's up?" she asked casually.
Such familiar behavior clearly didn't sit well with Ruby if the way she fidgeted was any indication. "Is, um, is Jaune there?"
Her voice was so soft and meek. Miltia wouldn't have even needed to see her face to tell how uncomfortable she was in this conversation right now. However the added visual bonus would only spur Melanie on further.
"Nope, sorry," her sister said calmly. "He's in the shower right now."
Ruby blinked. "T-the shower?"
Miltia sighed inwardly. Give Melanie a hint of weakness and she would be all over it like a shark smelling blood. Jaune was beginning to learn this and thus tried to take steps in order to prevent it. Ruby on the other hand had no such defense.
"Yeah," she continued. "I just got done with a little one on one action with him, and he was like, totally covered in sweat." The smile on her sister's face said as much as her words did right now. "Said he needed to take a shower 'cause he was just so dirty."
Ruby's eyes were wide now. For obvious reasons. Even if what Melanie said hadn't been a lie, she had purposefully phrased it to garner the exact kind of reaction that she was getting from the other girl.
"I- I, um," the redhead stuttered, not quite knowing how to respond to Melanie's bold implication.
Melanie put an arm around her sister's shoulder and pulled her close. "He's actually got pretty good stamina, I gotta admit. Me and my sister here are gonna help get him in better shape too, if you know what I mean," she said with a wink.
This poor girl. Miltia didn't know what her relationship with Jaune was, but if her reaction was anything to go by then it wasn't any kind of girlfriend or lover. This realization turned out to be surprisingly comforting. There was no anger or jealousy in Ruby's eyes or voice. If it wasn't for the different surname then Miltia might have thought that she was indeed one of his sisters.
"...I," Ruby squeaked, her voice coming close to hitting a falsetto note as she looked around, her eyes focusing on anything but her scroll right now.
"But we could like, totally take a message and give it to Jaune when he's all clean, if you want."
There was no way Ruby would do that now. The last thing she wanted to do was continue this conversation, much less give the two of them any kind of information to pass onto Jaune.
"Sorry I gotta go now bye!" Ruby said so quickly that the words were nearly unintelligible.
With that the scroll's screen went black once more. Melanie stared down at it for a moment longer before laughter burst from her lips. Her arm relaxed around Miltia's shoulders, and the younger twin pulled away from her sister's embrace.
"That was totally awesome," Melanie exclaimed. "Tell me that wasn't totally worth it."
It had been worth it, in a way. Not that she would ever admit that to her sister.
"Jaune's gonna kill you," Miltia chose to say instead.
"Me? You mean he's gonna kill us."
"Us? I didn't do anything."
"No, but you were totes on the screen with me," Melanie explained. "So when Ruby tells Jaune about what happened you think she's gonna say it was one or two girls?"
Miltia's eyes narrowed. Had that been why Melanie pulled her into the conversation? "Bitch."
The insult only caused Melanie to laugh louder. She brought a hand up and slapped it on her sister's shoulder. "Oh come on, don't be mad," she said. "It'll give you two something else to talk about. You can be all, 'Oh Jaune I'm so sorry for what happened. I'll do anything to make it up to you'."
The snickering which followed only increased Miltia's frustration. "You so need to stop laughing at your own jokes."
"Bitch, I'm funny."
"Said no one about you ever."
"Whatever. At least now we know that Ruby Rose is just some kid. Some really fucking shy one too."
Just some kid indeed, and not one in any sort of relationship with Jaune.
Still, Miltia wondered what would happen as a result of this. It was true that what Melanie had done had just been an innocent prank, but they had only known Jaune for a couple of weeks. Were they close enough yet that he would just laugh this off with them as some innocent fun?
Time would tell. Perhaps she would attempt to do some sort of damage control after he got out of the shower. Maybe even assist him in the kitchen sometime as he prepared dinner. It would give her a good opportunity to speak with him in private without her obnoxious twin at her side.
It would also be a chance to give him some ideas about what he could prepare. Something with chocolate in it, perhaps. As much as she enjoyed the breakfasts he made, she missed her chocolate. Her donuts. Her pumpkin spice. But mostly the chocolate. It had been far too long since she had had any.
In any case she needed a shower as well. The spar with Melanie had left her filthy just as it had Jaune. A nice warm shower would give her time to think about what she was going to say to him and how she was going to explain what Melanie did. Things would work out. She truly believed they would. He was far too kind a person to hold this against them for long.
At least, he was a kind person for now.
Author's Note: I know this story's been getting updated a lot more frequently than Letters to Winter lately, but I'm just feelings this one more at the moment. I truly do feel bad, but I have to strike while the iron's hot. If I were to try and force something for the other story I have my fears that the product wouldn't be as good as it could be, and I don't want to do that to you guys. I'd much rather take a little longer and put out something of better quality.
In any case I hope you enjoyed this latest chapter. It was fun to write, and hopefully it was fun to read. As always questions, comments or concerns are greatly appreciated. And as always thank you to everyone for reading and reviewing. Your continued support means so much to me.