Moonlight

The sound of Pyrrha's voice played in a loop in Jaune's heart as if it was a song repeating over and over again from a scratched record. His hands were sweaty and clammy, thick beads of sweat drenching his forehead as his too-long hair clung to his eyes. It had been raining earlier, but he had ignored it, just focusing on Pyrrha's words, which his body was now punishing him for.

He shivered, drenched in sweat and water, making it hard for him to stay warm. His arms felt heavy, his muscles sluggish as if they had been turned to lead. He kept his form up for as long as he could, ignoring his exhaustion as he clung to Pyrrha's words like they were a lifeline before his blade fell out of his hands, too weak to hold it any longer.

It hit the ground with a thud, followed by a louder thud as Jaune's knees were too weak to hold him up any longer, sending the blonde falling to the ground, unable to get up, panting as tears mixed in with the sweat on his face.

His body shook. Part of him wanted to think that his exhaustion was the cause, but he couldn't lie to himself as he panted, feeling sick.

When he heard twigs snap and crunch under footsteps, his heart raced. He tried to pull himself back onto his feet, worried that a Grimm had noticed his emotions and was about to finish him off. His hopes weren't high. His legs still didn't feel like they could hold him– how he would be able to hold onto a sword, he didn't know.

"It's just me." A familiar voice called out to him, making him look up to see Ruby, a sad look on her face as she looked at him, carrying a pack of biscuits and a thermos in her hands.

"Ruby, what are you doing here? It's late." Jaune asked her, forcing himself to sit up as he looked at her.

"I could ask you the same thing." She told him, a small smile on her face as she walked over to him before she sat down next to him.

"I was just doing some training." He admitted to her with a sigh, his shaky arms hugging his legs to his sides.

"Yeah, I can see that." She told him, before opening up the thermos and taking out two small plastic cups as the smell of chocolate filled their senses.

"I figured that you could use a break, so I brought some cookies and hot chocolate." She told him, making him sigh. He was about to turn her down, but she had a certain look on her face that told him that she wouldn't take no for an answer. The fact that she was already pouring the hot chocolate into two cups confirmed that for him.

"Thanks, Ruby. I guess a small break won't hurt." He murmured to her, giving in when she passed him a cup, the hot drink helping to warm his body.

"You're right. It won't hurt. Although with how you're acting, I'm starting to think you want it to." She couldn't help but frown, catching him off guard.

"Is there something wrong?" He asked, making her sigh before she leaned forward, letting her head rest against his shoulder.

"I'm worried about you Jaune. You train at night until you can barely move and you look so exhausted in the morning." She told him, her hand gently gripping his, giving him a worried squeeze. She decided against mentioning the scroll recording that he kept playing, not sure what to say as her silver eyes looked up at him.

"But Ruby, I need to get better, I need to train." He quickly defended, looking back at the woman before he shook his head adamantly. "I'm not going to stand there and let myself be a burden to you all again. I am done being a screw up who can't do any good." He continued to talk, making her frown before she shook her head.

"You are not a screw up Jaune. You have never, not once, been a burden." She assured him adamantly, as if she was offended at the thought. "You're my best friend, and you are so important to me; you're important to all of us." She told him, her silver eyes looking into his, refusing to back down. "If you want to get better at fighting, then you can't do that alone, you need help. I would be more than happy to train with you always." She promised him, unable to help but smile as she looked away from him at the ground, a slight flush on her face. "Jaune, ever since we first met, you've always been so kind and sweet to me that my heart races every time I see you. It hurts seeing you like this. I know it's selfish, but please stop doing this. If you won't stop for yourself, then stop for me." The words came out of her mouth before she could stop them, making her blush more deeply as she realised the fact that she had just confessed to him.

Unable to look at him, she waited in silence for his answer. She got tenser and tenser as she waited, hearing no response, afraid that she had said something wrong.

When she felt his head fall on top of her shoulder, she almost jumped out of surprise before she turned to face him, unable to help but smile when she heard him start to snore. "Well, as long as you're sleeping." She smiled gently, sliding him off of her shoulder to make him lie on her lap instead, her fingers running through his hair absentmindedly.