Chapter 26

BTW guys I have decided to postpone Jaye's backstory chapter until their fieldtrip to mount Glenn, since it's so much nicer of a setting to have it than the dormitory room.

'Hey Pyrrha.' The scraggly blond greeted, stepping through the double oak doors. The red-haired beauty turned to face him, her long locks swaying in the gentle breeze.

'Hello Jaune.' She replied stiffly, and he stepped closer to her tentatively. He raised his arms in an awkward gesture.

'You okay? I haven't seen you tonight.' He questioned, and Pyrrha turned away from briskly.

'Arrived late, I'm afraid.'

'…Well uh, you look really nice.'

'Thank you.'

'Your, uh, date isn't going to beat me up for saying that, is he?'

'I think you're safe for tonight.'

The two stood awkwardly by the balcony rail, Pyrrha gazing dejectedly at the fountain across her. Jaune cleared his throat nervously.

'So, where is the guy?' He asked, rubbing his hands together and smiling at her. Pyrrha glanced up at the sky, closing her eyes for a moment, before turning stoically to the dense blond.

'There is no guy.' She said, her voice cracking slightly, and Jaune froze in disbelief. Pyrrha glanced down at her shoes, her stoic expression broken, and a sad smile crested her pearly white features.

'Wh-what?' He stuttered, and Pyrrha shook her head.

'Nobody asked me.' She admitted, swinging her hands dejectedly. Jaune shuffled awkwardly, rubbing the back of his hand.

'But that's…you're Pyrrha Nikos!' He choked out disbelievingly, gesturing emphatically at her. 'How could nobody ask you?'

The red-haired girl turned away from him, slightly peeved, facing out over the balcony once more. She placed her hands on the railing, heaving a sigh.

'I've been blessed with incredible talents and opportunities. I'm constantly surrounded by love and praise.' She stated flatly, glancing back over her shoulder at the boy. Jaune stood quietly, rubbing his arm. 'But when you're placed on a pedestal like that for so long, you become separated from the people that put you there in the first place.'

She turned back to the blond, and Jaune sucked in a breath as he realized that she was crying. Tears welled in her vivid-green eyes, and Jaune reached a hand out to her. She stepped back out of his reach quietly, hugging her arm to her chest.

'Everyone assumes I'm too good for them; that I'm on a level they simply can't attain. It's become impossible to form any sort of meaningful relationship with people.' She spat, and Jaune noticed her grip tighten on her arm. He let his hand fall to his side, and Pyrrha raised her head, locking eyes with him.

'That's what I like about you.' She declared, waving a hand at the boy. 'When we met, you didn't even know my name. You treated me just like anyone else. And thanks to you, I've made friendships that will last a lifetime.'

Pyrrha gazed longingly at the boy, tears spilling down the corner of her eye. Jaune' breath caught in his throat as he mutedly watched her. Pyrrha turned away silently, facing the heavy, oppressive oak doors.

'I guess…you're the kind of guy I wish I was here with.' She murmured, starting forward towards the doors. 'Someone who just saw me for me.'

Jaune stared blankly at the rail as she walked away, passing between the looming doors. He shook himself out of his stupor, turning to face the girl.

'Uh–wait!' He started as he came face to face with a swirl of blue hair instead. He stared past the blue-haired boy, Neptune, watching as Pyrrha disappeared around the corner.

'Hey…uh…Jaune, right?'

Pyrrha walked silently down the hall, rubbing her eyes. She narrowed her eyes as she spotted someone leaning nonchalantly against the wall. As she got closer, she realized it was Jaye, tapping on his scroll with a slight smirk on his face. She paused as she reached him. The position he was in was close enough for him to have heard everything they'd said from the balcony; just far enough from the main hall that the music wouldn't have masked their voices.

'You should probably head in and touch up, your mascara's running a little.' Jaye commented, gesturing offhandedly at the women's bathroom across from him. Pyrrha narrowed her eyes, and Jaye smirked at her.

'You were listening, weren't you?' She asked quietly, and Jaye held up his hands in an "I don't know" gesture.

'Wasn't my fault you guys were talking so loud. I was just standing here minding my own business.' He said, shrugging, and Pyrrha raised an eyebrow. Jaye let his hand fall to his belt loop, returning to his scroll. His face turned serious.

'Think he'll realize?' He asked, not looking up from the screen. Pyrrha patted at her skirt silently, dusting off the impeccably clean surface.

'I didn't think you'd be bothered with something like this.'

'What makes you think I am?'

'You asked the question.'

'Just making conversation. Also it amuses me, seeing you two try so hard without ever understanding each other.'

'So this is all a game to you?'

'Pretty much.'

'What are you doing here anyway?'

'Can't a man stand where he wants to?'

'In front of the women's bathroom?' Pyrrha turned exasperatedly away from the condescending boy. She glanced at the bathroom door quietly, and Jaye cleared his throat.

'Yang's in there. I'm waiting for her.' He clarified, and Pyrrha turned back to him. She glared at him, before noticing the sympathetic look in his eyes. She bit her lip, and Jaye smiled reassuringly at her. She stepped closer to him, rubbing her arm.

'You understand, don't you?' She murmured, and Jaye cocked his head to the side inquisitively. Pyrrha breathed deeply, locking eyes with him, and Jaye stared back quietly.

'You understand what it's like, don't you? To be different? With all your skills and power, you must feel the same.' She grasped her skirt in her fists, bunching them up. 'You and me? We're isolated form everyone else. Even if we build relationships, friendships, no one else will truly understand us.'

Jaye looked away from the red-haired girl, returning his attention to his scroll. He went dangerously quiet, continuing to poke through the device. Pyrrha watched him quietly, and Jaye glanced back at her.

'You're going to wrinkle your dress you know.' He said flatly, and Pyrrha clenched her fists tighter, nearly tearing it. Tears welled up in her eyes, and she glared at the jaded boy silently.

'You understand, don't you?' She whispered, and Jaye stared at her incredulously, locking his scroll and letting his hand fall to his side. He pushed himself off the wall, approaching the girl, and Pyrrha backed away hesitantly.

'No. I don't' He muttered, his voice low, squaring up to her. Pyrrha stared at him, confused, and Jaye shoved his face into hers.

'I couldn't possibly understand what it's like to be in your shoes. I might be even more powerful than you are, but I could never understand you either.' He spat, and Pyrrha flinched away from him slightly. Jaye glared at her, his face contorting with anger, and Pyrrha suddenly found her shoes extremely interesting.

'Unlike you, I was never blessed; as far as I know, life has had it in for me ever since I was born.' He balled his hands into fists, nearly crushing his scroll. 'Do I have talent? Yeah. Do I have skill? Yeah. Was I born under good circumstances? Yeah. We started out the same. The difference between us? You got to keep it.'

Jaye turned away from her abruptly, placing a hand on the wall to steady himself. 'Unlike you, my life was turned inside out when I was young. Since then, I've had to fight, slog and bleed just to live and achieve like I have. You've been surrounded by love and praise, I've been surrounded by blood and pain. You and I can never understand each other.'

Pyrrha watched the boy quietly, mouth slightly agape, and Jaye punched the wall. He leaned against the deep red wallpaper, his shoes scuffing against the carpet, and breathed. He straightened up quickly, reigning in his anger, and Pyrrha finally let her dress go. Jaye turned back to her, rubbing his bruised knuckles.

'Sorry, I didn't mean to get angry.' He apologized, and Pyrrha shook her head silently. Jaye approached her, letting his hands fall to his sides.

'Either way, none of this ought to matter.' He said, and Pyrrha glanced at him. Jaye smiled reassuringly at her, placing his scroll back into his pocket. 'The truth is, you don't need people to understand you. You just need them to accept you. And as far as I can tell, they already have.'

Jaye turned away from her, just as Yang stepped out of the bathroom. She grinned widely at the boy, and waved at Pyrrha as she bounced over to them.

'Hey Pyrrha! You look beautiful!' She complimented, putting an arm around Jaye. Jaye responded in kind, squeezing the blonde around the waist, and Yang giggled.

'Stop it you. Enjoy the party Pyrrha! Oh, and don't forget that assignment we have on Monday!' Yang called as they left, waving at the red-haired girl over her shoulder. Pyrrha waved quietly, watching them leave. She felt a tap on her shoulder, and turned to see Ren and Nora standing behind her.

'Why the long face? This is a PARTY PYRRHA!' The pink-clad girl yelled, pumping a fist into the air. Ren on the other hand, took a much milder, and more observant approach, and asked Pyrrha how she was doing.

'I'm fine.' She replied, smiling at her concerned teammate. 'Just a little tired.'

Ren raised an eyebrow, but Pyrrha shook her head, smiling.

'It's nothing, Ren. I'm fine.' She smiled at her two teammates. She glanced across their concerned faces, and her face genuinely lit up for the first time that night. 'As long as I'm with you guys, I'm more than fine. Come on, let's go back to the ballroom.'

'So what'd you talk about?' Jaye shrugged as the two made their way back to the ballroom. Yang tugged on his arm insistently, and he chuckled.

'Nothing much. Just some fundamental issues about human understanding and acceptance.' He replied, and grinned at the confused and annoyed look Yang gave him. The two stopped at the balcony overlooking the dance floor, where Ruby already stood watching the dancers with a satisfied smile on her face.

'You know, I think we really needed this.' Yang declared, and Ruby nodded vigorously.

'Yeah, and you did a great job planning it too.' Ruby told the blonde, and Yang looped an arm over her neck.

'Awww, thanks!' She grinned, and Ruby wiggled her arms rapidly, trying to escape. 'It wasn't all me though, Weiss did a lot too.'

The three teammates grinned at each other, sharing a brief moment of peace. Yang glanced over at Jaye, and he squeezed her hand gently.

'Tomorrow it's back to work.' Yang sighed gently, gazing down at the dancers as they twirled. Jaye groaned audibly at the thought, and dropped his head onto the railing. Yang giggled at the sullen boy, running her fingers through his hair.

'And you're going to have to account for the three days' worth of lessons you skipped.' Ruby reminded, shoving a finger into his face. Jaye's face fell as he thought of all the explaining he was going to have to do, and he slapped his head into the banister again.

'Screw that. Just kill me now.' He groaned, and Ruby laughed. She returned her gaze to the dance floor, watching them twirl dreamily.

'Well, I'm sure we can handle whatever gets thrown at us.' She declared, peering curiously at the floor as laughter emanated from amongst the crowd. Her face turned to a look of mild surprise as she located the source of the laughter. 'Except for that.'

Jaune pushed his way through the crowd of laughing people slowly, finally coming to a stop behind Pyrrha. The red-haired, gold-crowned girl turned to face him, a look of shock cresting her features.

'Jaune–?' She murmured, a smile creeping onto her face. Jaune stood, decked out in a gorgeous white dress with a blue sash tied into a ribbon around the waist, in the middle of the ballroom. He grinned widely at her, and the red-haired girl could do nothing but stare.

'Eh, a promise is a promise' He declared, shrugging. Pyrrha stared at him for a moment, before slowly beginning to giggle. She placed a hand over her mouth as peals of laughter poured out of her with increasing intensity.

'Jaune–! You didn't have to!' She choked out, and Jaune rolled his eyes.

'Hey, an Arc never goes back on his word.' He declared, holding out a hand to her. 'Now, do you want to stand there and laugh at me, or do you want to dance?'

'I would love to dance!'

'So what made you change your mind?' Neptune pulled his eyes away from the scene unfolding on the dance floor, turning to the heiress sitting next to him.

'You said you were embarrassed at first, what made you come talk to me?' She asked again, and Neptune chuckled.

'You're looking at him.' He said. Weiss followed his gaze to the blond, dress-clad boy shaking his tail on the dance floor. Her lips parted slightly at the unexpected confession, watching the blond dance with the ecstatic Pyrrha. Neptune smiled.

'You've got some good friends looking out for you.'

Emerald and Mercury stood quietly, overlooking the scene from the balconies above. They smirked at each other in amusement, and Emerald spoke quietly into an earpiece.

'It appears all the dancers have partners.' She said, speaking quietly into the hidden microphone.

'How long do I have?' A staticky voice came over the radio, and Mercury leaned against the balcony rail.

'We should probably be home by midnight, to be safe.' He muttered, and Cinder, on the other end of the radio, touched a finger to her ear.

'I'll keep my eye on the clock.' She affirmed, adjusting the mask covering her eyes. She leapt across the dormitory roofs, landing silently on the tiles. Reaching the peak of the roof, she vaulted over the edge, sliding down the other side. Hitting the gutter, she latched on to the drainage pipe, sliding down to the ground level.

At the entrance of the ballroom, Ruby stood, glaring defiantly at the spot where the black-clad, masked figure had disappeared over the rooftops.

Emerald pushed herself off the rail, adjusting her dress. The pair made their way quietly to the stairs, making for the dance floor. As they reached the stairs, Mercury caught Jaye staring at them from the corner of his eye. Locking gazes with the boy, he touched a finger to his forehead as a manner of greeting, and smirked as Jaye narrowed his eyes in suspicion. Unabashed, the two made their way down to the dance floor, stopping by the punch bowl for refreshments.

Mercury glanced back up at the balcony, where Jaye continued to watch the pair intently, and he took Emerald by the hand, leading her to the dance floor. Pulling her close to him, they swayed in unison to the music, and Jaye finally pulled his eyes away from them. He made a mental note to look into them.

Just in case.

'Hello?' The raven-haired girl called, stepping out of the lift of the CCT. She brandished Crescent Rose in front of her, looking about warily for signs of an intruder. She stumbled, catching herself as she tripped over her heels. She glared at the offending footwear angrily, stomping her feet in frustration.

'Is anyone there?' She called, pacing to the center of the room. Behind a terminal set, Cinder crouched silently, peering around the edge of the table at the young girl. Ruby glanced across the terminals. 'Hello?'

Cinder rose slowly, her head rising up above the cover of the table, and Ruby started slightly at the sight. She raised the sniper-scythe protectively in front of herself, assessing the masked, black-suited figure.

'Excuse me.' She called innocently, as Cinder stepped around the table. The mask obscuring her features, she noticed that the girl showed no sign of recognition, and internally heaved a sigh of relief. Ruby narrowed her eyes slightly. 'You know, it's not a masquerade party, so why don't you take off that–'

Cinder flung a cylinder of dust across her, cutting the girl off, and crystallizing them into glass projectiles. Flicking her arm, she sent them flying towards the girl. Ruby spun her scythe, deflecting the projectiles. Slamming the point of the curved blade into the ground, she fired back several high-caliber rifle rounds. The masked woman deflected them effortlessly, spinning on the spot and forming two black swords. Ripping her scythe out of the ground, Ruby dashed forward, slashing at the intruder. Cinder backflipped out of the way, slamming the hilts of her swords together into a bow. Forming three arrows, she fired them at the girl, exploding on contact. Ruby jumped backwards, nearly getting caught in the blast.

She slammed her scythe into the ground to halt her movement, glaring back at the masked woman. The elevator doors opened behind her, and she glanced back at the new entry. Utilizing the momentary distraction to her advantage, Cinder shot upwards and through the glass panels, escaping the CCT. She slid down the side of the tower, using her swords to slow her fall. Reaching the ground, she darted for the ballroom, entering through a backdoor. As she stepped through, she quickly used her scroll to change into a long, black, backless dress with a dark grey ribbon trailing from the waist, and bicep high gloves and high heels. Shedding the mask, she pushed her way into the ballroom. Barely a moment after her, several guards burst into the room, chasing her. Ignoring their panicked entry, she slipped calmly into the throng of dancers in the ballroom, passing between them quietly until she found her two associates.

Mercury and Emerald waltzed quietly with each other, seemingly oblivious to her arrival. Taking a moment to compose herself, Cinder tapped on the dark-skinned girl's shoulder.

'Mind if I cut in?' She asked, a satisfied smile on her face, and Emerald stepped out for the way for her. Stepping into Mercury's arms, she wrapped an arm around his neck, placing her other hand on his chest. Smiling at him, she gazed into his eyes, and he smiled right back.

'And how's your night been?' He asked, and Cinder tilted her head sultrily.

'A little more…exciting than expected.' She replied, and Mercury smirked sarcastically.

'Should we be worried?'

'Hardly. They'll be scratching their heads long after we've finished what we came here for.'

'So then, what now?' Cinder smiled at the silver-haired boy's question.

'Enjoy the rest of the night.' She replied, raising her eyebrows with a knowing look. Mercury smiled back assuredly, and she pulled him ever so slightly closer to her.

'After all, it is a party.'

And we're done here. Coming soon will be Jaye's backstory chapter, so hold tight for it!