Disclaimer: Of course I don't own RWBY, its characters, or the franchise. That's all Rooster Teeth~
Story: Where James found himself with a penpal and writing back, and ended up with a strange kind of friendship that he was actually enjoying. If he found himself a Romeo, he supposed he could deal with being 'Juliet'.
Set as crack!AU (sometimes taken serious?), in which Ruby and Ironwood somehow become penpals before main series start and related to my other RWBY fic "Team RAMEN!"
Spoilers: Probably.
Warnings: Age disparity, maybe future situations if this is continued. Crack humor in abundance and absurdity rampant –probably OOC. Tons of fluff, though be warned of depressive moments because of undiagnosed depressive characters.
Pairings: Ruby/James Ironwood; IronRose pre-relationship.

The R&J Exchange
Chapter Three: Formal and Casual

Cradling his coffee cup, he sat in his home and ignored the weather outside. It was storming out and he was admittedly thankful he hadn't gone into headquarters or the academy, and had decided to work from home today. His gut feeling telling him to do so saved him a long, exhaustive, freezing trip and being stuck there for who knows how long.

Flipping through his mail he'd had forwarded to him, he wondered if he'd get a reply from 'that person' today. Due to the distance between Atlas and Vale, it would take at least two weeks for his letter to get to them and for their replies to come back. It should be around that time that he should get a reply…

Finding said letter, he surprisingly found himself with a small grin as he took it and opened it up.

Fall Greetings, J!

How are you? It's getting quite cold here! In Patch, the weather is usually really extreme —either extreme cold or extreme hot! I'm happy when we have nice weather.

For that bank account, could you really? Wow, that's very sweet and kind of you, J! I don't know what to say. I'm really appreciative though. And like you said before, Specialist Schnee contacted me and set up an agreement from before, so I attached the rest of the designs, along with my signatures on the contract she sent.

I am fond of scythes, though I like sniper rifles. Weapons in general make me happy though.

Dacquoise? I've never heard of it! I'll have to see if I can find somewhere around here or over in the city if somewhere sells it, so I can try it. If I find any places, I'll send you the recommendations!

If you don't mind me asking, are you he/him, she/her, they/them, something else? I'm a girl attending Signal, with an older sister. Any family?

Take care, J!

R

James choked on his coffee a bit at the end, caught off guard by the sudden inclusion of personal information. He hadn't expected her (Her —so he was talking to a her) to tell him so much about herself and he also was surprised to be asked about himself. Well, she'd already asked questions of him, but it was getting a little more personal and he wasn't sure how he should respond.

There was also that, unlike the previous two letters, this one had discarded any form of formality and there was barely any talk of business of any sort —it was penned like…like he was a penpal she was familiar writing to.

A…penpal.

The idea wasn't balking to him and he admitted he was already enjoying writing to her. He guessed perhaps it wouldn't be so bad to continue on like this. He had been curious about this weapon designer in the first place and already he was fond of their letters.

She was young though —definitely younger than him, attending Signal and all. Should he be communicating with a student, a young girl like this?

Well, then again, it was all innocent and he shouldn't feel guilty or upset at all. Plus, it had started out through proper means and had been about business. It was just becoming much more friendly now after all.

Much more confident and having decided on continuing the correspondence beyond the concluding weapon designs deal, he put down his coffee and retrieved paper and pen to write back.

Greetings to you too, R,

I've never been to Patch, but I can imagine the conditions. It's currently storming outside —I'm writing from home and gladly beside a roaring fire. Weather's usually cold here in Atlas anyway though. Just not as bad usually.

Done and done. I'll send the details to you next letter and will forward your letter to Specialist Schnee the next time I see her.

Scythes, huh? Interesting choice. Not many people can handle or actually look into those. As for a sniper rifle —ever personally handled one? Given your attendance in Signal, you must be training to be a Huntress and must've already learned to handle different weapons. And since you like weapons so much, can I guess you probably try to learn to wield as many as you can?

Dacquoise is a dessert cake, with layers and layers of delicious almond and hazelnut meringue. Usually there is buttercream or whipped cream on a buttery biscuit base —I prefer buttercream, since I'm not much for whipped. The next time I'm in Vale, I'll gladly check those recommendations out. If you're ever here in Atlas, try the dacquoise in TasteAtlas. It's where I usually order it from.

I'm a male living in Atlas, probably older than you. No family though. Never had any siblings and my parents have long passed away. I'm not much for friends either, honestly, aside from under a handful I consider friends. I'm more of the acquaintance type —I'm rather overly formal and serious most times, so don't mind my formal tone in these letters. It's just how I am, so feel free to keep being casual with me. I rather like it. People aren't so casual with me.

Respectfully,

J

P.S. Is red your favorite color? I noticed you use red ink. Blue is mine. Should I use blue ink then?

James chuckled to himself as he then took a look at the attached full weapon designs (leaving Winter's letter aside), thinking he'd maybe gone overboard to himself with his reply letter. A tiny niggling feeling made him aware of the unease of unintentionally confiding so much, but it was a letter and it wasn't too personal. At least he thought so.

He wondered what she'd say back though. He guessed he'd find out in two weeks, but…

Maybe two weeks was too long to wait for a reply. He could speed it up and make sure it gets to her in days. He was General of Atlas and could easily pull some strings. Their letters could be exchanged in a matter of days.

James didn't usually use his status for such frivolous things, but he found himself enjoying having a penpal all of a sudden.

Started 12/29/20 – Completed 12/30/20

A/n: The fact that this, with its short chapters, chosen characters and implied relationship, and strange plot has any interest in it at all is utterly wonderful. Thanks, guys ;-; Hope you keep reading and enjoying!