A/N: Aaaaand, we're back! Happy New Year, everyone: I hope you had a good time? Here's to a strong beginning!
Thank you for reading, and please enjoy chapter twenty-six.
Snow fell steadily outside the window, blanketing Vale in icy white, while Jaune set the small platter of food for his team. Nora had politely yet firmly kicked him out of his room this morning to snuggle in with Ren, as she was wont to do, so he had gone downstairs to prepare a meal for his team. Nothing fancy, compared to Ren's work: some toast and scrambled eggs, what cuts of fruit he could find, and a pot of tea. He arms and shoulder ached from extended use, his back sore from combat, and his legs were still aching from a hard hit, but he could manage carrying up breakfast. After their first mission, JNPR had quickly sought out another. And another. And another.
Six jobs in two weeks, going wherever they were needed and not likely to be seen; thankfully, they hadn't collapsed a building on themselves again. The team was able to move through their formations as easily as breathing, Pyrrha and Nora had worked out a proper routine for their grenadier's power up, and Pyrrha had tested her powers on new levels regularly. Seeing Pyrrha with what had to be a literal ton of debris spinning around her, killing Grimm by firing concrete and rebar at them was terrifying. But they had to get stronger, didn't they? Vale might have been getter safer day by day, but Beacon was still overwhelmed, that giant frozen dragon bringing more Grimm each day.
The tray clattered lightly as he moved down to the hall JNPR's rooms were in. Poking his head into his own room, he easily spotted the Ren nearly falling out of bed, Nora practically glued to his back: both sleeping peacefully. Quietly, he unloaded two plates for them and a drink for Ren, then shut the door, turning to Nora and Pyrrha's room.
He'd expected to find his girlfriend enjoying their day off, sleeping somewhere beneath a small mountain of blankets. Instead, he found her curled up with her scroll, inside a small mountain of blankets. He knocked on the frame, and Pyrrha set the screen down, smiling at him. "Good morning, Jaune."
Jaune moved to sit on Nora's bed, but Pyrrha shuffled to the side, patting hers, so he left the tray on the bedside table and dropped down next to her. Still surrounded by her blankets, she settled against his side, while he wrapped an arm her, and returned to her scroll. "What're you reading?" He asked, grabbing a mug with his free hand.
"A news report from Mistral. Everything's still so delayed, but it seems there's still more trouble-", she accepted the mug he offered her, "thank you, it seems like there's still a good deal of trouble back home. Mother said not to worry, but there's still been no good news." She sipped the mug, the worry in her face soothed away by the warmth and taste. Jaune grabbed his own cup, and tried to consider the situation.
"Well, Weiss' sister left for Mistral, and Blanche told me yesterday some Mistrali Hunters have gone home, too. I can't think the situation in Mistral is worse than here, but they're getting backup. I know you're worried, but it'll be fine." Pyrrha hummed next to him, still scanning the scroll. He decided to not let the troubles past this room bother him, so he settled back against the headboard.
They drank in silence for a while, until Pyrrha let out a tired sigh and set the scroll down. Jaune saw a flash of the headline she'd reached: "Pyrrha Parties". Before she could let the mood spoil, Jaune had already hefted over the breakfast plates, settling the platter on his lap beside her. The frustrated frown slid away, her warming smile returning. "Thank you again, Jaune."
"Any time, Pyr, but let's dig in before it gets too cold." Pyrrha shimmied a hair farther from her cocoon of blankets, to better eat, and they took up the meal.
"Any word from home? How is everyone in Bar?" Pyrrha asked, crunching into her jam and toast. Jaune flashed her a prideful little grin, and fished his own scroll free, pulling up the news he'd been planning to give the whole team.
"Verte sent me this after we finished talking last night." Pyrrha looked at the picture on his scroll for a moment, then back at him, the significance not quite setting in. The picture was of the Arc crest with a sword, Crocea Mors actually, interposed atop it, giving the appearance of wings. "It's Verte's emblem: been working on it for a while now."
"Her… emblem?" Pyrrha asked, still lost. He nodded again, then pointed to the pin resting on Pyrrha's dresser.
"Yeah, her emblem. She'll need one for Signal." He let it sink in.
"Signal? Signal… Academy? She got it? SHE GOT IN!" Half-eaten breakfast forgotten, Pyrrha threw herself at him laughing, arms wrapping around him and squeezing. His head hit the headboard, but Jaune was too busy laughing with her, enjoying the moment. "She's going to Signal, Jaune?"
He smiled harder, "They're moving to Patch in the Spring, Verte and Rose."
"Rose, too? That's wonderful, Jaune! What's Rose's emblem, does she have it?"
"I'll need my arms back to find it, Pyr." She let go of him, anxiously waiting for him. He scrolled through the message quickly to pull up the next picture: the shield of Crocea Mors, with the Arc crest in red. Pyrrha was vibrating in place, gushing over the news.
"I'm so excited for them!" She cheered, dragging him into another hug. He dropped his scroll, pulling her in tighter, kissing the top of her head.
"So am I. I'm so proud of both of them." He was envious, too; his parents hadn't let him attend a combat school. In the end, he'd found a way around that, and now he wouldn't trade his life for anything. No, if his own success could let his sisters follow in his footsteps, he would be happy for them. The plates lifted off the bed then, black auras carrying them to the table. He looked down from the top of Pyrrha's head to her face.
Pyrrha, blankets pushed off in the excitement, was still wearing the loose green tank top and flowing pants she normally wore to bed. Her head was resting on his chest, sprawled atop him. He noticed one of the top's straps had fallen down her arm, and he found it very hard to look away from that. Pyrrha pushed herself up on her elbows, her face inching closer to his. "Jaune." She said in a low voice, bottomless green eyes watching him. His hands worked their way onto her waist, and he leaned down to capture her lips. His grip tightened.
"We should celebrate." He said hurriedly, breaking from the kiss for just a moment, as Pyrrha came to rest on his lap. Her lithe arms snaked around his neck, her strong grip settling into his hair.
"I agree." She whispered in a voice that sent his blood racing. She pressed close, and Jaune's hands moved up her back. Words were beyond them as their lips met again, Jaune feeling Pyr's tongue push past his lips, her hips beginning to slowly grind against his. He moaned, overwhelmed by the sensations, and Pyrrha returned the feeling as he pressed her closer. "Jaune." She said again, in a low, heavy voice, so different from her normally measured tones.
Her arms left his neck and back, and Jaune watched, transfixed, as she drew one from the half-fallen strap. Her loose shirt draped down, barely obscuring her chest. She took hold of the other strap, and paused: she smiled at him wickedly.
"Please." He begged her, unable to contain the raw emotion in his voice. Those emerald eyes danced with fire, and she slid her arm free from the final strap.
She caught her shirt just as it began to fall, holding it against her chest, savoring the emotion playing across Jaune's face. She'd wanted his heart for months, wanted to feel his love, but a part of her had wanted something… more. Now that the former had been taken, she knew the latter would follow eventually. The hunger in Jaune's ocean blue eyes told her he returned the sentiment. Behind her, she could feel something pressing her rear as well, and she knew it was not Crocea Mors.
There was a hard knock on the door, and her mother's voice called, "Pyrrha?" Her racing heart galloped faster, but to an entirely different beat. Jaune's eyes, half-lidded and deep, became bug-eyed in terror quick as lightning, no doubt as her own did the same. She swung herself off Jaune, jabbing her hand back into her sleeve. Jaune silently leapt from the bed, his head whipping side to side in panic.
Pyrrha buried herself back in her blankets, and whispered to Jaune: "I'm sorry!" Before he could respond, Akouo flew from her desk to his chest, lifting him from the ground and securing him against the ceiling.
"Pyrrha? Are you up, dear?" her mother asked again. Pyrrha had wrapped herself in her blankets, and Jaune had, despite his confusion, braced his arms and legs against the corners of the walls and ceiling.
"Yes, sorry." Pyrrha said, trying to force the terror out of her voice. With another mental flick, she opened the door, and her mother stepped through. She was garbed for a long day out, in a red-black jacket that obscured the armor she wore beneath. Molossus, the rifle Pyrrha had designed Milo on, hung from her shoulder; Thetis was heading for a mission then. "Mother, I don't believe I've been less happy to see someone ever before." A desperate portion of her mind complained.
"Are you well, dear?" Thetis asked, pulling a chair from the desk as she sat at the foot of the bed. She did not look up to see her daughter's boyfriend dangling from the ceiling.
"Just a little warm." Pyrrha piped, trying to keep her cool, and failing. "Is something wrong?" Her mother frowned at her, but shook herself briefly.
"I wanted… to apologize, dear. Ever since the dinner with Jaune's father, I've been abominable." Pyrrha blinked very slowly, trying to understand the words she was hearing. Thetis Nikos apologizing? "It was unfair of me to put blame for that debacle on anyone beyond myself, and then I refused to admit I was wrong. I shouted at Jaune! I'm a woman full-grown, there's no excuse for me to lose my temper like that."
"This isn't real, I'm having some kind of hallucination" Pyrrha pondered. Her eyes flicked to Jaune again, who looked to engrossed in fear to really process what her mother was saying. "Its… alright, mother. He understands." Thetis shook her head stolidly, though.
"It's not alright, Pyrrha. I need to apologize to him as well, for my behavior: do you know where I can find him?"
"Don't look at him, don't look at him, don't look at him." Pyrrha's mind screamed at her. Instead, she looked to the side, away from Jaune, as if in thought. "I think he went out already? He dropped off breakfast for a moment." She gestured to the food, hoping it would support her deception. "If you don't catch him, I'll send him your way?" Her mother hummed an agreement, leaning back in her chair.
"I also wanted to talk to you about home." She had Pyrrha's attention again. She'd been hearing about Mistral's troubles at every corner since she came to Vale, but always with the assurance the Kingdom could handle it. Thetis shifted Molossus on her shoulder, watching her boots. "I'm considering going home soon."
"Y-You are?" Where would JNPR go? What would it mean for them? There was no possible way this was actually happening, this was all just too much at once. This was some kind of disturbed dream, surely! Her mother, unaware of Pyrrha's racing mind, continued on.
"I came out of retirement because a neighboring kingdom was struggling and Mistral was in a tight spot. Now, it's Vale with the lesser problem, and Mistral the greater. Its hard to keep in touch back home, but I've not heard good things."
"Do you know when you're returning?" Pyrrha asked, starting to numb from the news. Her mother shrugged.
"Perhaps a month? I've obligations in Vale I cannot simply drop, after all. I will be going soon, however. This house is paid through until spring, though, so your friends can stay here instead of in the student barracks."
"Thank you, Mother, I was worried about… wait. My team?" She had a suspicion, but she wanted to hear it aloud.
"Well, dear, I wanted you to return with me. Mistral needs us, we should go back. I can't make your friends leave Vale, I can't really make you do it either, but I assume you would want to go home?"
"I hadn't… I'd not…" She trailed off, unsure how to responds properly. Of course, she'd worried for Mistral, but Beacon! Her friends were here, and her school was as much home as her beleaguered kingdom. She felt an odd shifting in her powers, and she surreptitiously looked back to Jaune. Her boyfriend was adjusting Akouo, pushing and sliding the shield as it no doubt pressed uncomfortable into his stomach.
"You don't need to make a decision now." Her mother said gently drawing her back to the conversation. "You have time to let them know. Maybe they'll all want to come, and you can show them Mistral? I've a patrol in the south for most of the day, but do you have another mission? Jaune's been running you all ragged."
'No, no we're taking a break for the next few days." Even Pyrrha had been feeling the aches of their frequent missions. In all the… excitement… of the previous minutes, she'd momentarily forgotten how much how much her arms and back hurt.
"Well, maybe you should have a talk with them about this?" Her mother rose, smiling warmly, if nervously, at her. "Sleep well, Pyrrha."
"Good luck, mother." Thetis picked up the plates, what little remaining of their breakfasts having been forgotten in their rush. Her blush flared back to life, thinking that her mother had been seconds away from catching them. There was a soft thump in Jaune's corner, and Pyrrha whipped her head towards it. Jaune's hand was outstretched, his scroll lying on the ground beneath him. Her mother was straightening with the tray, and Pyrrha knew she'd heard. She lashed out with her mind, seizing his scroll and launching it towards herself.
She caught it, shoved the scroll under her blankets, and did her best to appear innocent as Thetis faced the noise. Her mother eyed the empty space of carpet for a moment. "Is everything well, mother?"
"Did… did you hear something?" She asked hesitantly.
"I… ah… think that may have been Ren and Nora: she went over to check on him earlier." Hopefully, her mother didn't know that particular corner was a closet.
"Hmm. Oh well, good morning, dearest." Thetis closed the door beneath them, and both she and Jaune seemed to hold their breath another moment.
"Pyrrha", Jaune croaked, "Drop Akouo."
"What?"
"Drop. Akouo." His voice was stern yet curious. Following his instructions, she released her shield, letting it settle beside Milo. Jaune remained on the ceiling. She stared in utter confusion as Jaune pulled his legs from the walls, and did not fall. He looked incredibly nauseous, but fascinated by what was happening. "Now. Drop me."
His words didn't make any sense, until she noticed the dark sheen along his chest and stomach, a haze that seemed reminiscent of her semblance. She focused her mind and realized she was still using it, she was holding Jaune up! Her surprise, of course, snapped the control, and Jaune fell to the floor with a much louder thud. "I'm sorry!" She squeaked, jumping from bed and rushing to him.
"Jaune, are you alright? Are you hurt, I had no idea I could do that? I thought I was just holding you up with Akouo and I was just so worried mother would spot you or that'd you'd slip or-" Jaune interrupted her by kissing her lightly on the lips. He seemed to take a great deal of joy in that particular tactic.
Not that she minded.
"I'm okay, Pyrrha. It felt really weird, but I'm fine." She helped him to his feet, and the young couple sat back down on the foot of the bed. His color was returning to normal, but he was still watching his stomach with suspicion, as if he expected it to betray him. "So…" He trailed off.
Pyrrha could imagine his thoughts all too well. "So, do you want to take your shirt off again, or do you want to talk about leaving for Mistral?" Not for the first time, she cursed her poor timing. There had been an energy to their actions, a mood now gone. Oh no, was she going to use the "I'm not in the mood" line on him? "I… I think we should put off our earlier activities." Jaune let out a quiet, almost defeated sigh. "But I don't know if I want to leave for Mistral."
Not to let himself stay down, Jaune sat up straight. "I think it'd be better for the team to stay in Vale. We don't know what's out there waiting for us, and we have people here to watch our backs." Pyrrha wasn't as sure as Jaune, but as her mother said, they didn't need to decide now.
"Let's go tell Ren and Nora about your sisters. I'm sure they'll be thrilled." She took his hand, pulling him to his feet, and headed for the door. Jaune came along, but he stopped her at the adjoining door.
"Have I said that I love you?" She froze in place. Jaune was watching her carefully, his deep eyes fixed on her. She found it very hard to speak, all of a sudden.
"N-Not in so many words…" She stammered, suddenly nervous. He'd almost said it, once before, and his actions always spoke louder. He squeezed her hand for a moment, not looking away.
"Because I do love you, Pyrrha." Not releasing her grip, she stepped close, keeping her eyes on him.
"I love you too, Jaune." She let all her anxiety drift away, knowing that she could handle anything, so long as the two of them were together. She smiled, he smiled back, and she leaned up just a tad to peck him on the lips. Nothing as passionate as early, just something to seal their words to one another.
She opened the door, and the two went to tell their teammates about the latest news from Bar.
Post: By the by, if any of you are curious as to what Verte was showing Nora when JNPR left Bar, it was an early sketch of her emblem.