The shattered moon hung within the sky, it's light radiating all across the city of Vale, bathing the streets within its lunar glow. The city itself was bustling to an almost irritating degree; cars honked constantly, chatter was immediate in all directions, and children screamed within the arms of their parents. The scent within the city gave off a mixed essence; the various sweet scents of bakeries and bread smelling hot dog stands mixing with the foul smell of alleyways and dumpsters. This situation was not one she was overly fond of, people crowded within the streets like this made her instincts uneasy, yet she knew no danger would come to her as of yet.
Emerald and Mercury flanked her sides, the two constantly watched their vicinity with felicitous attention. They were trained well despite their constant bickering and unsuitable personalities, she could trust them to get the job done in the majority of circumstances. Even then… she wouldn't have as much use for them soon, after she acquired the rest of the maiden powers.
Don't get greedy… her mind reminded her, Amber had the full might of the maiden powers and was still not powerful enough to take the three of them together. While she was confident that she was already someone of a higher caliber than Amber with half of the power, Amber was powerful in her own right; and losing to three skilled opponents due to her reliance on the power and lack of suitable skill was certainly something she should take note of.
Do not let arrogance be your downfall again…
She sighed, and shut her amber eyes for a moment as she rounded the corner of a nearby alleyway. Immediately the clamour of the city began to dwindle, and the scent progressively became more and more foul the further west they walked.
"Ugh." Mercury whined, "Why do they have to pick such shitty meeting spots?"
"Quiet down." Emerald hissed, resulting in another snide remark from Mercury. Not long after the two were once again trading verbal blows. She bit back the immense desire to blast the two back for earning her ire at a time like this, yet she managed to reel her fire in, a sound of displeasure leaving her lips.
"Children." She stated, and all sounds of chatter would cease. Her lips curled at this. "We have matters to attend to here," she continued, not turning back to face them. "I advise you both keep that in mind."
She didn't hear a response, but she did hear them nervously shuffling at her sides. Good, ruling by fear didn't inspire the greatest amount of comradery, but it meant the chance of betrayal was low; for they'd fear the imminent consequences in doing so.
Even then; she could understand their displeasure even if she did not actively voice it. Another meeting with Adam; this time they'd be doing it face to face. Discussing their immediate actions and what they'd be doing. Admittedly she wished she had a better hold over the male; intimidating him into submission even more would only lead to a battle, one she was confident she would win in, yet… one that would solve nothing. Should she kill Adam, the White Fang would immediately turn on her, and while they were immensely incompetent, their numbers were something immensely useful to their goals. Should Adam die they'd simply be weak minded beasts no better than the Grimm, except they could potentially ruin her plans by doing something idiotic, something that would lead to her goals taking a downfall.
She shook her head clear of these thoughts as she neared their designated meeting area. She would simply need to swallow her pride… for now, and when the time came, and their partnership had its terms fulfilled?
Well, she saw no use in keeping the little bull alive.
Nearing the small warehouse they had picked out, her amber eyes located several White Fang grunts near the edges of the warehouse; while another two stood at the entryway, gesturing for them to enter. Normally such a method of entry wasn't something she ultimately trusted, but Adam knew better than to attack. If he had dared insult her in such a way, then she'd have Emerald and Mercury force his men to watch her melt the horns sitting on his head.
Upon entering the warehouse, her nose immediately scrunched up in disgust at the abhorrent smell. She knew they must've just picked whatever was best for secrecy- yet the scent of sewers clogging her senses during a meeting wasn't something particularly pleasurable. She could practically taste it upon her tongue.
Adam was positioned at the center of the rundown warehouse, his tall figure stood with a straightened back, lips pulled back into a thin, neutral expression, while his hand hung loosely across the katana that sat upon his waist. In another life he could have perhaps been attractive, yet to her he simply seemed… pretentious in a way. As if he was putting on a brave face for his men to see, and if this was his method of doing so, then he should realize he wasn't nearly as intimidating as he wished he seemed.
"Adam." She greeted with a mirthful tone, keeping her movements at a slow pace, yet swishing like calm waves. She wasn't attempting to use her tantalizing figure to seduce the man-she didn't think he had a bone in his body for women that wasn't directed towards an unhealthy obsession upon a specific girl- yet such movements would put his men off guard, leaving them more susceptible to an all too easy attack should the situation call for it.
"Cinder." He grunted without a nod, the hand upon his weapon would raise, now crossed over his chest. It was guarded, clearly. Yet the loose positioning of his arms made it easy for him to attack should the need arise.
"I trust things have been kept up to standard on your end?" She asked, causing his eyes to narrow through his face mask. He seemed displeased by her choice of wording, as he nodded.
"We are. Despite Torchwick being arrested we never needed him." He spoke, a bit of bite to his tone. "We have managed to continue the dust robberies. By the time the festival arrives, we will have more than the required amount of dust."
Good. Things were going well then, she was worried they would have fallen out of order with Roman gone.
"Of course…" he continued, squaring his shoulders. "We never would have taken the loss at Mountain Glenn had you informed us of Beacon interfering. I lost a lot of men that day, valuable men."
He was angry, that much she could tell. While she wanted to tell him to mind his tone, it was better to go with the manipulative route, she needed her goals met, having the little bull be irritated wouldn't aid her.
"I understand, Adam." She stated, spoken with a voice far more diplomatic than she would have wished. "-Yet we must keep our roles in Beacon hidden, we had no way of knowing their mission in time, and it would have been suspicious."
"That isn't good enough." He practically growled, and her temper flared.
Had he forgotten how this little relationship started? He would either gain resources, or he would gain death. The fact that he gained a backbone in a short span of time irritated her, perhaps he knew how important the White Fang was to the plan now? After then meeting with Hazel and learning of Salem's existence, he would only gain more confidence, and as such he saw himself above his station.
Her fingers curled into stiffening fists, knuckles whitening as her anger flared volcanically from within her core. Amber eyes would brighten into a glowing shade reminiscent of piercing sunlight as she stared the tall man down.
"Speak to me in such a way again Adam, and you will lose much more than just your men." She spat with a venomous tone, the male met her hard glare with his own- but would begrudgingly back off, a huff escaping his lips as he turned away. She could see that his body language was aggressive- highly so, Emerald and Mercury were both in their own stances; ready for combat.
Yet she knew it would not be necessary.
Adam backed off with angry, shaking fists, a steady sigh leaving him.
"We have what you wanted, is there anything else?"
"Oh, yes. One more thing…" She paused, causing his gaze to narrow in suspicion.
"I need you to keep my subordinates with you for two weeks. During the school break period."
It wasn't ideal, that much was certain. Yet Beacon had decided to prepare something rather… special. After 'The Breach' and the subsequent explosion that followed, many students were in low spirits and had lost families or loved ones. Due to the dance having already occurred, there wouldn't be much to alleviate the children. Beacon's solution was to set up a festival and dance of sorts within the school, exclusively for the students who didn't have families to go to during the mid break. She couldn't risk looking even remotely suspicious by having her entire team stay in Beacon, as such, Emerald and Mercury were to both stay with their families until the break had subsequently ended. While she was unfortunately made to attend the festival. It doubled as an added method of spying on the White Fang though, and while she doubted Adam would reveal anything in front of them, it paid to cover all grounds.
She didn't expect either of them to enjoy the experience, and by the looks of it; neither did Adam.
He looked annoyed, if the way his shoulders had become even further rigid was anything to go by. His entire body language screamed that of a caged animal. For a moment she prepared herself for battle; as he seemed to contemplate it as well.
In the end, the tension left him in a huff, as the redhead would eventually nod his head.
"Very well. They'll have a room."
"Thank you, Adam." She smiled, one so clearly fake she hadn't even tried to look convincing.
"However-" he continued, rounding to the two. "When they are with the Fang, they are to follow my orders. Should they refute or not listen to me, then the deal is off."
"I accept these terms." She stated easily, she could briefly hear Mercury mumble some choice words beneath his breath about bulls or something of the sort, but she ignored it.
This was not ideal for her, but most definitely not ideal for the White Fang either. Adam wasn't someone completely under her control, at least not yet… She hoped she would not have to kill him before the fall of Beacon.
Whatever happened, it would matter not what he decided to do-
"Thank you Adam, I'll be taking my leave."
-because she would kill him, no matter what happened in the end.
/-/
Beacon had been everything she hoped it would be, and more. She came to Vale expecting the worst; to be recognized, to be praised and seen as some idolized huntress, one who could never be approached by anyone. To be alone, and to have a partner that saw her as more an object or idea than an actual person. Yet her hopes had been stronger, she hoped to find friends, to find people who could stand by her side against the forces of Grimm, fight with her and laugh with her. She wanted friends and comrades- not fans. She gained that- that and so much more. She gained friends, allies, and…
She blushed, and shook her head to clear off those thoughts. Against what she had hoped; today wouldn't exactly be a happy day. Their break officially began tomorrow, with many students leaving Beacon today or the day prior. They had already bid their goodbyes to team RWBY, minus the B- she would apparently be staying around- and a few other friends they had made at their time within Beacon.
Now, it was time they bid their goodbyes to her. Her parents had been adamant she returned to Mistral for the break.
Jaune would apparently be staying in Beacon for the break, while Ren and Nora didn't exactly have a home to go back to. She knew she was lucky- that many students didn't have families to go back to, that she should be happy she had a place to visit in the first place.
Yet… she wasn't.
This team felt like her family, despite only knowing them for half a year, they were fast friends and trusted one another immensely. Nora seemed to immediately pull them all together and see them as one big family, and while the idea was a little funny at first, she couldn't help but smile at it, because she agreed.
She and her team approached the Bullhead landing dock. Emerald eyes scanning the scene of around twenty or so students shuffling within the large airship. Beacon had actually offered students free flights to their respective kingdoms; another thing she assumed was more than likely due to the breach. Not many were actually from Mistral as it seemed, which made sense… Mistral had Haven, as such there was no point in travelling all the way to Vale for schooling.
At least, that's what most students thought.
Her thoughts were quickly interrupted a moment later, as a torpedo of pure muscle and pancakes rammed into her back, the short figure wrapped her arms around Pyrrha's torso, clutching her in a death grip. "Nooooooo! Don't go, Pyrrha!"
The redhead sighed, a gentle smile forming across her lips as she laid a hand upon her friend's forearm, she looked over her shoulder, though only had the ability to see a slight amount of Nora's body. "It's okay Nora, I'll only be gone for a week and a half. I won't be gone forever."
The words didn't seem to have much effect though, because the girl shook her head against Pyrrha's back, words muffled within her clothing.
She… really did like this team, and it was times like these that showed just how much they really did care about her.
Ren tossed her an apologetic look, placing a small hand upon Nora's shoulder as he attempted -and failed- to detach the girl from her body.
"Nora…" He sighed. "Pyrrha can't be late, and her flight leaves in two minutes. I'm sure her parents miss her very much, we shouldn't hold her back like this."
The girl merely whimpered in response, which finally caused their team leader to step up, a small, reassuring smile on his face.
"Hey Nora, Pyrrha will still have a few days with us when she's back anyway you know, we'll be able to spend lots of time with her then. How about we go to the arcade? As a team?"
That seemed to quiet her down somewhat, the once hyperactive girl peeking with one eye towards the two men of her team.
"Really?"
"Yep!" He spoke with a cheer, while Ren ran a hand up her shoulder in a comforting manner.
"I'll make you some pancakes when we get back inside. And then we'll hunt Grimm within the Emerald Forest later."
"I...O-okay.."
That seemed to have finally done the trick. She had to admit she was rather surprised by the reaction, though it did make perfect sense; Nora was an orphan. Pyrrha had been blessed to be born within a decently stable family, while Nora never had anyone besides Ren. This was her first real family, and to have any of them absent for even some time would result in conflicting emotions for their team's hammer wielder.
Nora stepped back, before immediately pulling Pyrrha into a tight hug once she turned around. She patted her back before releasing the girl and stepping towards Ren. Their team's gunman had a much more muted reaction, but she did notice the hint of emotion laced behind those bright, pink eyes. He pulled her into a hug, one she quickly returned as the two spared a few words. He released her a few seconds later, before she then stepped towards the final member of their team.
...and her guts seemed to twist.
She internally berated herself. Despite having been without a single loss in multiple tournaments, and despite being hailed as some grand prodigy, she still struggled with… with this, with him.
He gave her a bright, comforting smile. One that ignited her stomach into an eruption of butterflies. She felt her eyes instinctively shoot down, as her hands nervously knotted in front of her. "Y-you should… slow down with training while on break, you've worked incredibly hard already. You deserve a break, Jaune."
He really did. They trained together four to five days a week for five to six hours each day. He really was incredibly determined to better himself, and while it was true that it was significantly easier to improve the less skilled you were, it was also true that she had never quite seen someone as determined or as eager to improve as he was, or even as honest with it as him.
He laughed, and the melodic tone made her feel warm.
"I'll take a break, I promise. Though I'll still probably be training with Cinder maybe once or twice during the break."
The emotion suddenly took a downward spiral…
She wasn't jealous of the girl… or at least that's what she told herself. She was immensely proud of the boy for managing to save a life the way he had, even more proud that he had done so once again after aiding Cardin in Forever Fall. Nor did she mind that the two trained together, she didn't care that he occasionally did train with Ruby or Yang either.
...it was simply… the frequency.
They trained two to three times a week, generally in the early afternoons and without the same length of time as her sessions on the rooftop. The sheer amount of time simply felt a bit much for her… considering the girl wasn't his partner. Nor did she even go to the same school as Jaune.
Though she bit those emotions down. She still trained with him significantly more, and spent time with him significantly more. She… had no right to feel the way she did.
So she simply smiled and nodded at the boy, who bid her an earnest grin.
"I'm gonna miss you, Pyr."
She smiled back, ignoring the tug at her heart as she stepped forward and pulled the blond into a tight embrace. He went stiff in surprise within her arms for a moment, before his arms would rise, wrapping around her torso. She ignored the butterflies in her stomach, and she ignored Nora's wiggling eyebrows as she gradually released him and took a step back, giving her partner and team leader a bright smile.
"As will I, Jaune. I can't wait to see you...you all again, once I return."
She ignored Nora's sigh, and instead turned towards the bullhead. Every step towards it weighed on her, but she ultimately bit down the feelings within her gut and stepped inside of the ship, turning to give her team one last smile.
She couldn't wait to be back, and she couldn't wait to finally show Jaune that she could be more than what she already was.
/-/
It had been a few days since sixty percent of Beacon departed to see their families. The halls were much more scarce, and the overall atmosphere was much less lively and bright than it once was.
That is… until today.
The Beacon break festival was at full swing. Despite a majority of the student body having already left, many still remained within Beacon, at least enough that the 'festival' really did feel like a full blown carnival. The halls of Beacon were decorated to the brim, with various colours that matched the fall season perfectly. Various carnival esque stands were everywhere to be seen, from the main courtyard towards the various halls within the school. All the while they decided to use the meeting hall for a dance to take place.
It was… awesome. He was genuinely surprised that the student volunteers and teachers had managed to create this in just a short three days, though… considering Ms. Goodwitch was involved…
Well, there was very little that woman couldn't do.
Team JNR had even somehow managed to coax Blake-the only remaining member of her team- to join them in the festive activities.
...it was even harder than they expected.
Despite the near half hour of trying, the girl had eventually accepted. Much to their-mostly Nora's- glee.
Though, the festival was not completely perfect.
He bit back a groan of annoyance as the third ring he threw bounced off their intended targets. Frustration building up as the man who worked the stands let out a bellowing laugh.
"Oh so close my boy! Buy another and I'm sure you'll get it, it only takes a little bit of grit, determination, and intellect. Though I suppose not all can have such traits like I…"
His brow twitched. Finding out that Professor Port was watching over the ring toss had been amusing at first. Now? Well now he just wanted to try and score the rings through the man's bushy moustache, as impossible as that would be.
"He can't." A third voice rang out, Blake stood with her arms crossed, watching the exchange with little interest, her yellow gaze as aloof as it always was.
"Gee, thanks for the moral support…"
"No, I mean you literally can't. The targets are clearly rigged, it's impossible to get them in."
His blood ran hot. In all his years of living, in all of his days as a teenager… there was one thing he respected the least…
Carnival stand scammers.
He has lost far too much money attempting to win his sisters prizes for those jerks. The fact that his own teacher was punking him of his money only made it worse.
The round man chuckled nervously, rubbing his thick neck with a sheepish smile.
"Ah...heh...heh...I suppose not everyone can withstand the odds of the impossible…"
He angrily stomped away, being followed by the others as a huff left his lips. They had been wandering around the stalls for the past hour or so. He had somehow miraculously not won a single game as of yet, Ren managed to win at a dart throwing stand, Nora won a pie eating contest, and even Blake had won first at something.
"There there Jauney…" A hand pat his shoulder, Nora's broad grin and teal coloured eyes playful as she tried her best to display some level of comfort for her leader. "I'm sure you'll win something!"
Despite not sharing the same enthusiasm as the orange haired girl, he did appreciate her optimism. That was always something he could count on; no matter the situation, Nora would be there to give him some encouraging words. Even Ren tossed him a little nod. Though he did send Blake a dry look. "Why didn't you tell me the game was rigged?" He asked with some exasperation, despite the girl not being part of his team, he figured she would've been nice enough to at least prevent him from blowing his Lien.
"I thought you knew." She responded, dragging her eyes away from a nearby stand to meet his eyes. "It was rather obvious. I figured you'd know after the second toss, and after you didn't I told you."
He groaned, clutching his head as a vein threatened to pop from his temple. It was enough that he lost his money to these games, but now he had also managed to lose his dignity. "You know, why do we even have to pay for the games? Shouldn't Beacon like- have all this be free? Since it's supposed to be a festival that celebrates what we did?"
Ren blinked at this, eyes lowering in thought, before he then nodded his head a few moments later. "I do suppose that line of thinking makes sense…" He began, words spoken with a slow drag, as if he had been attempting to solve a math equation. "Though perhaps they simply needed a better method of funding this?"
"They want our money." Blake stated cynically, shrugging her shoulders when he glanced at her with a quizzical look. "It's true, they probably don't know Port rigged his game- but they definitely knew they could make something off of this."
"But why?!" He exclaimed, the frustration of the situation getting to the blond. "-I mean it's Beacon! Shouldn't they have enough for this type of thing? I mean I get the weapons and coffee budget are expensive-"
"Coffee?"
"Oobleck, Ozpin." He responded, as if those two words explained everything. "But seriously- they should have more than enough for all of this."
"Just do something you're good at and that doesn't spend much of your Lien." Blake answered, causing him to pause for a moment.
As if to answer all of his prayers, the blondes' eyes would spot the large building which contained the dance area the school was using. Despite the activity not quite being as manly as he would have liked it to be, it was something he did thoroughly enjoy, and- most importantly, something he was actually good at.
He grinned to himself, immediately turning on his heel towards the direction of the dance. Only to suddenly halt with a yelp as he was pulled back by his collar.
"Oh no you don't Mister!" Nora exclaimed, a devious look settling behind those bright coloured eyes, one that made him feel true fear unlike no other. "We still have to try the foam sword fights! C'mon fearless leader! I want to see if you've improved!"
...May the Gods save him.
/-/
After the brutal bartering from Nora, team JNRB made their way into the large, upstairs area that housed the dance. It was starkly reminiscent of the dance that was held a few weeks prior, though with the colours being replaced by various shades of orange, yellow, white, and pink. It gave off an incredibly warm vibe, as if he had been walking through a forest in the middle of autumn. He found himself enjoying the color contrast and how it clashed with everything around them.
Several people danced together at the center of the dance floor, unlike The Beacon dance; which was much more formal, this was an immense mash up of both styles and personalities, and he had to admit… he wasn't sure how he felt about it, seeing a couple grind against one another while also seeing another perform classical was enough to give him whiplash.
They saw several familiar faces upon entering, and it didn't take long for Sun to pop out of nowhere and immediately try to snag Blake's attention. He had to admit- even he felt bad about how cold she was, though she likely did it naturally rather than out of spite like Weiss.
Oh Gods, he hoped he didn't look this pathetic…
Neptune was there too, and the azure haired boy made sure to greet him eagerly, even bestowing upon him the iconic union of the fist bump. While they definitely weren't close friends or anything, having helped the transfer student with Weiss seemed to be more than enough to gain his appreciation. Jaune was just glad he was over her. She hadn't been something serious, a simple puppy crush that he too eagerly pursuited.
...His mother always did say he wore his heart on his sleeve.
Before he could wind up too deep within his own thoughts however, his attention would snap towards someone he had most definitely not expect to attend the dance. It just didn't seem like her style, though there was no mistaking it; that was most definitely Cinder. She looked beautiful as always, wearing a bright orange dress that extended just to the end of her ivory thighs. The ends of the dress were uneven and rounded, causing slight rippling effects that reminded him of fire whenever she moved. That look within her eye told him she was annoyed about something but was trying to hide it, yet the sharp look only made her amber gaze stand out more.
She was breathtaking, even more so than others here at Beacon.
Go talk to her… His mind urged, yet his feet felt like stone, soles glued to the ground as he found himself unable to approach her. He couldn't for the life of him understand why, this was Cinder; the person he's been training with for hundreds of hours by now, the one who had beaten him senseless and made him very familiar with what the ground tasted like.
Okay, so those are all good reasons not to walk up to her. Yet he knew she was more than that when she wanted to be.
Seeming to have sensed his inner turmoil, the blond felt a sudden elbow collide with his ribs, the air being knocked out of him as he grasped his knees for support. With a look of confusion and utter betrayal, he sent Nora a confused look.
"Sorry!" The girl bellowed innocently, a large grin forming on her lips. "-that was supposed to be a nudge. Anyway-! Whatcha doing? Standing around and staring isn't the best way to talk to someone."
Heat ran through his cheeks, turning his skin a beet red shade rivalling Pyrrha's hair. "I'm not staring! I just noticed Cinder. I… I'm not sure why she's here, she doesn't really seem like the type of person to attend these types of things." He frowned, racking his brain on all he knew regarding Cinder to try and answer the anomaly. In the end he could not quite come up with anything that made sense. She didn't even look happy to be here…
Nora seemed to frown for a few moments, though that expression soon changed as a mischief filled glint took hold over her eyes. He stifled back a sound of displeasure as Nora excitedly struck his arm. "I've got an idea! Go over there and ask her to dance!"
He blinked, once, twice, and finally a third time.
"No."
"Aw come on!"
"She'll kill me for even thinking about it! She...she's scary… even scarier than Goodwitch sometimes!"
The ginger rolled her eyes and waved him off. "Don't me such a wuss! She's already fought you before hasn't she? It's not like it'll be any worse than when you two actually fought."
That… was true, even then the whole thing just felt wrong. Like he was doing something he should never consider in the first place. Did she have a boyfriend back in Haven? No… she would have probably mentioned it by now, did she dislike him? No… she's made it clear that they're on good terms.
Then… What was it?
Finding no clear answer, he relented with a loud sigh, hunching his shoulders in defeat.
"Fine…"
"All right! You go get her fearless leader! Erm...fearful leader!"
He simply ignored her and stalked forwards, body language mirroring that of an inmate about to overlook his hearing.
He was so doomed.
/-/
She wore a bright, wide smile on her lips as she watched her team leader walk off. She had done well… the start of her plans going off without any issues.
She could feel Ren watching her with curious, maybe even confused eyes. Shifting her gaze to meet his own, she tilted her head in a silent question. The black haired boy sighed, shutting his eyes as he lowered his head. She knew that look- it was the 'Renny thinking look'. When he had something to say but was trying to figure out just how to properly say it.
"I'm...a little confused, don't you want Jaune to enter a relationship with Pyrrha?"
She nodded her head.
Ren blinked, fixating her with an expression that almost seemed bewildered. "Then...why…?"
"Oh Renny...you have much to learn in the art of war, but fear not...for General Nora has the answers you seek!"
She ignored his sigh and continued with a broad grin. "So, Jaune goes to Cinder, Jaune gets rejected by Cinder, and then BOOM!" She throws her hands into the air. "-Pyrrha comes back and gives him a strong shoulder. Now I know what you're thinking… 'but Nora! The same thing happened with Weiss'. Well yes, but this time it won't fail. Because I'll simply force her to do better!"
For several seconds, Ren said nothing, merely watching his teammate with a gaze of pure defeat. Finally he sighed, shaking his head. "ignoring the clear emotion manipulation-"
"-Persuasion!"
-"manipulation" Ren reaffirmed. "Your plan lacks a clear pathway; what if Cinder does agree to dance with him? Or even wish to go farther?"
Nora didn't think that would happen. It wasn't even because she thought their leader didn't have it in him, she simply didn't think this Cinder lady was the romance type. Sure she seemed nice enough whenever speaking to people in class, but when training with Jaune she looked so…heated. Part of her wondered which one was the real Cinder, but even then- the girl was from Haven, a long distance relationship like that could never work.
Even then… the all powerful Nora had a contingency.
"Easy! Weiss was never really in the game to get with Jaune. Jaune liked her, and she...didn't. Pyrrha never really had to worry about Weiss. Now though? We have a real competition on our hands! And Pyrrha's warrior spirit will transform her into an unbeatable foe in love and war!"
"...don't you think you're being a little dramatic about this?"
"Have some faith Renny, when have I ever led us astray?" She asked, placing a hand over his lips when he opened them to answer.
This plan would work. She just knew it.
/-/
He was doomed. Absolutely doomed.
Cinder would flatten him, that was something he knew would happen. She could be so intense at times.
He paused for a moment. When had he first become afraid of Cinder? When they first met he simply felt rather uneasy about her. Yet there wasn't much to go off of, she was the alluring and beautiful yet distant exchange student. She was polite, and not in a way like Pyrrha was, she seemed more annoyed than awkward when in conversations with people. He had felt uneasy about her since they first met, but that was because he thought she was angry about something or the other. After that? He didn't really feel anything resembling fear.
His eyes widened. He could just about pinpoint when Cinder truly became a force of nature for him. Just before his fight with Cardin; after he had managed to bait Cinder into getting struck by his sword. Before that their spars were rather one note, he'd fight her, she'd casually dismantle him, before then explaining what he did wrong.
That day though? She became involved. He had been positively stomped into the ground, and from that day forwards, the murderous look in her eye was carved into his memory.
He exhaled and shook his head. There was no point in thinking about that now, Cinder wasn't always like that, she wasn't always angry. There were times she had been supportive, or even kind. As of late she's seemed much more open, her words didn't carry the same flowery language or suggestive lines, instead they seemed… genuine.
It was that thought that urged him forwards.
He found the raven haired student near the edge of the hall, and while the music still boomed with a resounding force, it was noticeably more muted, less deafening. He was thankful for that; it would make it easier to talk to her that way. She stood near a table where a bowl of punch sat, a disgusted expression forming across her features after she had taken a sip from her red, plastic cup.
She noticed him approaching just before he arrived, a somewhat surprised expression forming across her features as she turned to him. "Jaune?" She asked rhetorically. "I didn't expect to see you here…" She paused, her eyes moving across his body in a way that would have normally made him blush. "I see you chose not to wear a dress this time around."
"I-I lost a bet!" He responded with reddened cheeks. Part of him was surprised she actually even knew about that whole thing, then again he had put on a dress in the middle of the dance floor in front of everyone. It would've been hard not to notice.
...not to mention his skills were amazing.
"Anyway…" He groaned at her mirthful smirk. "-I didn't really expect to see you here, where's your team?"
"I didn't expect to come here either…" She said with a dry tone, he guessed this wasn't really her scene. "As for my team, they've returned to Mistral, to see their families."
To see their families huh? Then why hadn't she gone with them?
Could it be that Cinder didn't have a family to go back to? Or that she simply had a terrible relationship with them? She wasn't really one who enjoyed talking about them, so he supposed it would make sense if they're a bit of a sour subject, but…
Was she hurting? Did she put on a brave face if they really were all gone? It was possible she didn't really like the dance and just decided to come here because she wanted her mind distracted? He did that sometimes, whenever he felt bad and just did things for the sake of not having his mind wander to darker topics.
If that was the case… then as a friend he needed to do something to help, anything.
"Don't drink any of the punch, by the way." She said with a sigh, placing the cup down. "It tastes awful. And someone decided to spike it too, spike it in a way that made it worse.
He winced, that happened during the last dance as well. He didn't really think it was much of a problem at first.
Until Nora got drunk.
It didn't become noticeable at first, until the team had finally made it back to their room, and Nora tried to quite literally eat a lamp because she wanted to see how strong she got.
Okayyyy...definitely not letting Nora anywhere near the punch. Slipping his scroll out of his pocket to send a quick text to Ren, he gave Cinder a warm smile. "Are you liking this though? I mean- are you enjoying the festival?" He hoped it would distract her at least a little, even if her team wasn't with her.
"It's… nice." She said, and those two short words were enough for him to know she was lying through her teeth, even someone as dense as he could see that quite clearly.
So he did the only thing he could, what he originally intended to do.
Forcing the nerves that threatened to overflow within his chest like an erupting flood, he bit back all of his anxiousness and instead attempted to form a confident look across his features. The male would then raise a hand that was formerly at his side, reaching towards her as a smile was pressed across his lips
"Would you like to dance with me, Cinder?"
The reaction was instantaneous, the strong mask that she wore across her face would slip, as an expression of genuine surprise shaped across her features like water into a bottle. Then-just as quickly as her surprise showed- the expression would leave, instead a simple raised brow in its place.
"You...wish to dance with me?"
Her voice was spoken with curiosity more so than surprise, though he could tell it was something she didn't expect even if she hadn't showed too much of a vocal reaction. Even so, the manner in which she looked at him caused his once confident features to crumble, a look of uncertainty crossing his face as his eyes would break away from her own.
"Y-yeah…" He agreed, rubbing at the back of his neck. "I mean, it's something that I really enjoy. And since neither of us are doing much, well, I figured we could do this?"
She didn't speak for several moments, causing him to raise his eyes back up to her own. Her candle-like eyes watched him closely, as if she was looking past his sapphire shaded gaze and into his very soul. She always had that look to her- one that was filled with intelligence, and despite her usually stoic words- passion. Able to easily snap towards emotions of motivation when speaking about things such as combat, or a raw fire whenever she looked displeased with something.
...he had been at the receiving end of both gazes many times by now.
Even still, he took her silence as an answer enough. Forcing away the disappointment that made its way up his core, he forced a smile across his lips and stepped back. "It's ah- Fine. Don't worry about it, I'll just-"
"Jaune." She interrupted. "I'll dance with you."
He blinked his eyes open in surprise, gazing at her with a wide gaze. "Really?"
"Yes." She stated, as a coy smirk formed across her rosey lips. "That is...if you think you can stop your clumsy feet from stepping on mine. You'll find that I'm not the most… forgiving dance partner. Then again- I suppose you're more than aware of that by now."
He forced the nervousness that raised back up aside, instead giving her a sheepish laugh.
"Heh, well. I'm not as bad at dancing as I am at fighting." At her dubious look, he raised his hands in surrender. "Arc's promise!"
"Well shall see, then." She spoke, lowering her hands to his own as their fingers met. He immediately forced away the thought about how warm her hands felt, or how small they were within his own. He simply smiled back, pulling her towards his embrace. Where he tried to ignore how his body ignited into warmth, or how his cheeks reddened into the shade of roses.
Ding Ding, well that's all folks. I have to say this was probably the hardest chapter to write yet, took a lot of conflicting things for me, and a lot of advice from others so I could decide on proper pacing. To all my friends reading this; I truly apologize for asking so many questions lmao.
But quite a chapter huh? Some Adam/Cinder conflict, with both quite clearly having plans that involve the removal of one another, the festival coming to a swing, and Jaune asking cinder to dance, which will of course be in the next chapter.
I've been watching RWBY in order to best get a taste of certain things, and I gotta say; while I do like the idea of Cinders backstory, I absolutely hated their execution. It was literally told in like 5 fucking minutes and with no respect to her, they literally showed nearly nothing of her personality (which of course makes my job a little more difficult.)
Rant aside, I'm trying my best to have this go at a pace that's slow but not too slow, I want something that makes at the very least some sense in characterization and fits the characters I am writing, along with of course having this be a character driven story with a brewing plot point in the background.
As for what some commenters have asked; Cinder is not and will not be using her semblance against Jaune for three clear reasons; 1. It's completely unnecessary, she doesn't need to when fighting him. 2. It's a trail leading to her, same reason she doesn't use midnight, and finally 3. That's not the point of their training. The point is to improve jaunes skill.
As for Jaune, I actually do already have a plan as to how and when he unlocks/uses his semblance. Though he may accidentally use it once or twice before that.
And finally; your comments are my lifeline for continuing this lmao, all the kinds words and criticisms help me push forward with this when I can. So any comments are appreciated, and I thank you for all the comments you all have left.
Until next time!
One quick thing, this fic was suppose to update last week, but due to an immensely busy week plus needing to catch a flight, I postponed it to this week