Heya, remember when I started this with a 3k word chapter? Yeah...we're not there anymore.
Anyways, world's on fire, brain's on fire, Oscar, luckily, is not.
Hints of Rosegarden here if you want to take it that way. Or you could not take it that way, it's written for both to work. Also Arkos. Definitely some Arkos. I'm as surprised as you are that they came up.
Thunk.
Oscar sighed and leaned back on the bed until the back of his head met the wall. He rested the book he had been skimming on his lap and stared at the ceiling, fingers absentmindedly tracing the gold embossing of the title on the cover. He had only picked it up in the first place because it caught his eye and he wanted something to take his mind off the whirring thoughts about their plan to get to Atlas. Unfortunately, it didn't work, and for fifteen minutes his brain continued to focus on working out the logistics of stealing an Atlas airship instead of the words on the pages in front of him.
"So, do you have any thoughts on the plan?" he asked aloud. It was the last option he had, but he figured it was still to no avail. If Oz hadn't commented on the starting plan of them getting to Atlas by way of stealing an airship, it was unlikely he would comment now. He had hoped that maybe, just maybe if he was alone and the plan was crazy enough that Oz would have to interject.
"Heh, guess it isn't crazy enough to be worried over," Oscar chuckled, though it was more of a nervous titter than it was of amusement. Truth be told, he wasn't exactly looking forward to trying to steal from the world renowned military, and was looking even less forward to the prospect of getting caught. They might not have agreed with Qrow overall, but the man was most certainly correct when he said it could all go south very quickly, and then it'd get really ugly.
"Certainly if you thought it was a truly horrible idea, you'd at least tell me…?" he continued, trying to reason with himself more than anything. If it was truly not worth the risk, Oz would tell him right? If he truly thought they couldn't do it, that it'd just bring more trouble than it was worth, he'd stop them. If not for some sense of care for the group, then for preservation of his current host and the Relic. If it was truly impossible then…Oscar would've known by now. He wanted to believe that, he had to, really.
It seemed like their only option. That still didn't mean he had to feel good about it, no matter how rousing Ruby's speech was in the moment. It was crazy, risky, downright dangerous. Stealing an airship was going to be hard enough from the Argus base, but then managing to fly it to Atlas without getting caught for being a rogue ship? And then not being caught as a rogue ship once they landed in Atlas? And then getting to Ironwood without any of the rest of the Atlas military finding out about what they had done?
Really, the biggest part of their plan was actually pretty easy: don't get caught. Everything would be fine so long as they didn't get caught. Unfortunately that wasn't just going to require skill, but luck…and they weren't too great in the 'good luck' department.
Yet, everyone seemed for it as they continued to talk about it. Ruby encouraged Jaune to speak out and everything else was downhill…or uphill from there. They needed something to go off of, some sort of plan they could do instead of remaining stuck in Argus with limited time and no way to get out. Oscar understood that, he did. He hated feeling stuck just as much as the rest of them, especially after…well…everything they had just learned only days prior. He understood everyone's need to do something, but that didn't mean he wasn't worried that maybe they were being just a little rash. That maybe this plan was just a little too risky.
"But then, I guess it really can't be that crazy if you don't have anything to say…"
He trailed off and looked to the door when he heard a quiet knock echoing through the room. Ruby stood in the doorway, hand raised to continue knocking on the door and watching him with some hesitancy. "Is now a bad time?" she asked and scrunched her nose in confusion, "Are you uh…talking to yourself?"
Oscar laughed a little at that and shrugged, realizing that must be what it looked like to anyone else whenever he tried to talk to Oz. Or what it looked like when he was talking to Oz. Now…well, it wasn't wrong that he was talking to himself. "Kinda, I guess," he answered and waved at her to signal it was alright for her to come in. "I was hoping I could get Ozpin to talk about what we are planning for tomorrow," he explained.
"Oh!" she exclaimed. For a split second, hope flickered in her eyes, "Has he said anything?"
He smiled sadly and shook his head, "I don't think he's going to, not for a while anyways. It's hard to explain but…he's locked away pretty tight. I don't think he intends on coming out."
"Oh," she deflated and nodded. He could see the regret on her face and for the first time since Oz left, he wasn't sure if it was because she couldn't get Ozpin's advice or because of the events that transpired that caused him to lock himself away in the first place. After a moment, she smiled again and gave a small bob of her shoulders indicative of a shrug, "Well, that's not a bad thing right? At least the plan isn't so crazy he's coming back to warn us all or anything like that."
"That's what I was thinking," he agreed, "He'd come back if it was that bad, right?"
"He would, I think," Ruby nodded, "But I think maybe you'd know him better than I would by now."
Oscar frowned, "You've known him for longer."
"Yeah, but he's inside your head, silly," she pointed out, "Besides, aren't you two supposed to be similar souls? If it was really that crazy dangerous, would you come back to let us all know?"
He paused for a moment and thought, not about the answer to her question, but the point she made with it. She was right, they were supposed to be similar souls, so what he would do likely meant Ozpin would do it too. Not always, definitely not always, but enough, especially something like this when it was about safety and completing their mission. "Yes, I would," Oscar nodded.
"See, then there's probably nothing to worry about!"
He studied her for a moment, swaying from side to side and picking at her sleeve. He didn't fail to notice her high-pitched emphasis on the word 'probably' either. "Ruby?" he asked and she hummed in response, "Are you nervous about tomorrow?"
"Maybe a little…" she trailed off, "I mean…I know what I said downstairs before dinner but it's the military! These aren't Grimm, they're thinking people and the Atlas military is scary good and if we get caught we'll be in huge trouble!" There it was again, the need to not get caught. She looked at her sleeve some more, pinching and rubbing the fabric between her fingers. "But I don't know what else we can do. It could take too long to get a message to Ironwood and I promised Weiss we wouldn't leave her alone!" she said and turned her attention to him.
Oscar recognized her unasked question, if he thought there was anything else they could do. Any different path they could take to get to Atlas. But she just voiced the exact same thoughts that had been running through his mind the last half hour or so and he couldn't come up with anything better either. Not in the timeframe they needed to get to Atlas, at least. It was nice to be on the same page, but it sounded like Ruby needed to get it off her chest and have someone confirm to her that it was their best option. Not that it really mattered if it was their best option or not at this point. It was what they all had agreed to do, it was unlikely anyone else would go back on it now. And if Ozpin wasn't speaking up to stop them, then… "So all we need to do is focus on not getting caught?"
"Yeah," Ruby agreed, though it wasn't very convincing.
"I think we've worked with worse before," he shrugged, "An impromptu fight on top of a speeding train just being the latest in a string of bad situations." He had told himself that countless times in the past half hour, but he felt more convinced about it when he spoke the words aloud, to Ruby. All they needed to do was not get caught, that was easy in comparison to some of the things they'd pulled off.
"Heh, yeah, I guess you're right," she agreed again. Now she sounded a little more like herself, a little more confident in what they had to do. Her silver eyes narrowed a little as she looked at him, as if she just remembered something, and she added, "You did pretty good up there on that train you know. You helped us a lot. I'm sure now with the combat jacket nothing will be able to stop you now. We definitely won't get caught."
He laughed, surprised by the compliment and her confident, if not teasing, declaration, "I don't know about nothing but…thanks, that's what I was hoping for. I want to be more of a help, though I think you'll be more of a help leading the charge than me and my jacket."
"How about we both agree to do our best and help out?" Ruby asked and smiled at him again, and this time it felt more real. It reached her eyes, at least. But it quickly fell as she scoffed at herself, obviously realizing something, "Here you are comforting me when I came up here to check on you."
Oh, Oscar really didn't want to go back to this. He hadn't intended it, but it the shopping excursion he went on earlier to try and calm the raging tides of his emotions had caused a ruckus with the rest of the group. Weiss, Blake, and Yang noticed his absence once they returned from their grocery shopping, and both of the teams spent the rest of the day—up until dinner—out searching for him. Looking back, he felt a little guilty for not notifying someone before he left, but in that moment he was in no state to speak to anyone, let alone consider the ramifications of if he went "missing" for a few hours.
Honestly, he was surprised anyone even noticed his absence, and he was admittedly pleased to know they did.
Still, the ensuing apologies and compliments were getting to be too much. When Jaune started it on the porch by apologizing, he had told the other boy it wasn't necessary, and he meant it. He understood why JNR acted as they did, the same way he understood RWBY and Qrow's reactions in the mountains. He almost joked that at least Jaune hadn't actually punched him (which was more of a half-joke and a half-serious form of gratitude), but the look in Jaune's blue eyes told him that somebody had already informed him of what Qrow had done and now was definitely not the time for jokes.
Oscar had thought—hoped, really—that would be the end of it and they could all move on from that lapse in the afternoon. But the apologies kept coming through the first half of dinner, and when he practically pleaded with them to stop apologizing and insisting he was alright, they switched to the compliments. First it was the jacket, which was at least acceptable because it was a nice jacket, but then it turned to the food, and he knew they were lies because he burned the casserole and it wasn't as great as it could've been.
He knew they felt bad about what happened, especially Jaune, Nora, and Ren, but the attention quickly became almost as overwhelming as their anger from that afternoon. If he were honest, once dinner was finished and everything was cleaned up, he initially excused himself and went upstairs to get away from it and the rest of them for a bit. Only then did he start thinking about the plans for tomorrow and start to worry. He thought he would have had a little more time to himself before someone potentially found him again, but apparently that time was up.
"I told you all I'm fine, I mean it," Oscar said for what felt like the thousandth time that night, "I understand why the fight happened. Tensions were already running high and Oz and Jinn didn't exactly help that."
"Yeah but, just because you understand doesn't mean you can't be mad," Ruby argued. She paused and walked over to him, taking a seat on the empty part of the bed next to him. "You're allowed to be mad at us, you know," she added, watching him almost a little too earnestly.
He chuckled, both out of a bit of nervousness and finding some humor in it, "Why? Do you want me to be mad at you all?"
"No…well…no, but—" Her nose scrunched up in confusion again as she tried to phrase whatever it was she wanted to say. "—It's weird if you don't feel anything about it. You shouldn't bottle your feelings for everyone else's sake."
Oscar met her eyes for a few moments, a funny, knowing feeling twisting in his stomach. She was speaking from experience, wasn't she? Ruby was always the one to keep herself together and pull the rest of the group forward, no matter what she was facing or feeling at the time. That night in Haven rang through his mind again like a bell. "I am scared. But not just for me." When she admitted it to him that night, he had gotten just a glimpse of the fear and the hurt she must have gone through the night Beacon fell, the night she lost her friends and the better part of her innocence towards the world. And there had only been more piled on since. Yet she kept moving forward.
He wanted to say something, to comment on the sheer irony of her acknowledging him swallowing his feelings while she was doing the exact same thing. He wanted to tell her she didn't have to do it either, that her friends were there for her just as much as she was going to say they were there for him. Perhaps he already had in his eyes, because the look she was giving him was almost unreadable. Concern, definitely, but behind that was something else, something almost seemingly asking him not to say it rested in her silver eyes. So instead he sighed and looked to his lap, the red book still sitting there. "I'd be lying if I said it didn't hurt," he said, the words coming from his lips before he really thought about them. That's what she had said that night in Haven too, wasn't it?
Oscar sighed again and tore his gaze away from the book to look back at her. "I know you guys knew Ozpin before you knew me, and I know he's the one with all the information and the one who…lied to you, in a way—" He wasn't as content on that word, 'lied,' as he had been a few days ago. Ozpin hadn't lied…and given the reactions from everyone else, he was could understand why Ozpin did what he did. He didn't agree, but he understood. "—Kept the truth from you, anyways. And I know he lives in my head now but…" he trailed off and stared at her. Hazel eyes imploring silver ones. "I'm not him. I won't be him. I, Oscar Pine, came before Oz reincarnated, and I'm still here after. So hearing that maybe Oz was here disguised as me, maybe I…we were one of the bad guys, being punished as if I was him…"
He trailed off again when he felt one of her hands grip his own. He looked down to their clasped hands and then back up to find Ruby smiling at him. "Oscar, I told you after Jinn that you wouldn't become him, that you are your own person. I meant it," she said emphatically. She squeezed his hand again and her smile brightened, "I still mean it. You're Oscar Pine."
Despite himself, he felt himself smiling back at her. "I know, I know," he nodded, and the smile slipped a little, "But it hasn't felt like that the past couple of days."
"I'm sorry," Ruby frowned, "For the mountains, especially. I don't think anyone has apologized for that yet, but we should have. And for today, too."
"It's okay, it's not like it's only your fault." Or her fault at all, really. Ruby had been the only person who hadn't gotten upset and rounded on him, physically or verbally. If anything, she'd been the only person there for him after both incidents. "I realize tensions are high, and as I said, I know you haven't known me as long as Ozpin. You guys have never known me without Ozpin, so I get where it's coming from." His earlier declaration swirled in his mind, that they would see him now. That he would make them see him now, that he would be a little more confident, a little prouder in who he was as a person. As Oscar. "And I know how I'm going to fix that," he announced and overconfidently straightened out his jacket, "From this day forward you're all going to know the real Oscar Pine."
Ruby raised a brow and tried to stifle a giggle at his performance. "Is the real Oscar Pine the one who burns casseroles and almost trips taking too many dishes to the sink?" she teases.
"Hey! I'll have you know I'm an excellent cook!" Oscar responded indignantly, though a laugh of his own bubbled up in his throat, "The dishes are another matter…but I'll prove my cooking to you next time. And more, all of it. All of me and who I really am."
"I'll look forward to it," she giggled. After a moment, she cleared her throat and grew more serious, but the smile didn't leave her face, "Really, I do. I can't wait to know 'the real' Oscar Pine."
He nodded with a grin, "Good, I can't wait either." With the proclamation, he felt something in him solidify and then lighten, as if another weight had been lifted from him. He truly had felt better once he came to this conclusion to reintroduce himself earlier, but hearing someone—Ruby—state that she was looking forward to it too felt…great. Beyond great. It eased a worry he didn't even really know he had regarding them accepting him as he was now, without Ozpin. Just Oscar. Hearing her say they would, or she would at least, removed any lingering doubt he had.
"So you're okay, really?"
Ruby pulled him from his thoughts and the comfortable silence they had fallen into. Oscar nodded again and flashed her another grin, "I'm okay, really." He looked back down at the book and shrugged, "I just wanted a moment to breathe after the…uh…onslaught…of apologies."
"Okay okay, I get it, I'll stop now," Ruby chuckled and put her hands up as a sign of defeat, "So what did you come up here to do to escape us and all our apologizing?" There was a pregnant pause as she followed his gaze down to the red cover of the book in his lap and then she made a small, startled noise when he moved his hands to reveal the cover. "The Girl in the Tower huh?" she asked, and this time her chuckle was weary, almost sad, "That used to be one of my favorites as a kid. I always wanted to be the knight, slaying monsters and rescuing the princess in the tower." Her hand reached out in question towards the book and he willingly handed it to her.
Oscar watched as she traced her fingers over the title, the same way he had done when he first grabbed the book off the shelf. A heavy sigh escaped her lips as she flipped it open and leafed through the first few pages of the story, "It was one of the many that made me want to become a Huntress."
When Ruby didn't say anything else, he nodded in agreement and understanding. "It was one of my favorites too," he admitted. Surely it had to be here as one of many fairytales Terra and Saphron read to Adrien, every kid knew the story. It being one of his favorites was what had initially drawn him to it when he had entered the guest room, he hadn't even pieced together everything else until he read the title out loud to himself. Between the initial shock from Jinn and everything that had followed suit, he hadn't really had much time to consider how learning Salem and Oz's story really related to the story he asked his aunt to read him every night before bed when he was little.
"When I grew older, I related to the princess a bit," Oscar continued, "I always knew I wanted to be more than just a farmhand, but there were some days where it felt like I would be stuck on the farm forever. I hoped someone would come along, maybe not a knight, but someone would see me and be able to point me to a path different than the life I had." He was young and optimistic, hoping for some sign that he should go and join one of the academies or travel to the heart of Mistral and start a life in the city. Wishing for a life beyond caring for crops and tending to animals.
Well, he got his wish.
"Now, though…" he trailed off with a frown. Now what? Now he was hundreds of miles from his home with a whole slew of new information and new responsibilities and a completely different outlook on life. Now he knew the princess he had related to for so long was actually a traumatized woman hellbent on destroying humanity. Now he was the knight in the story.
"Now it's all complicated?" Ruby offered.
"Yeah," he said, letting out a long breath. He watched as Ruby finished leafing through the last few pages of the book, knowing what was coming before she even landed on the last page. When she did, there on the bottom, 'Happily Ever After' was scrawled out in overly fancy font.
"I wish the story really had ended there with their happily ever after." It would mean the current situation never had to come to be. Everyone could just be kids, Huntsmen and Huntresses in training. He could go ahead and be whatever he wanted.
And Oz…he felt the echoing pangs of sympathy every time he thought about it. Maybe Oz would have finally had some peace.
"I think we've all learned it's never that simple." Nothing ever was, was it? Despite the seriousness of her comment, he could hear the note of hope in Ruby's voice. The hope that had become increasingly prominent these past couple of weeks, even in the face of everything. That hope that saved Haven, that got them out of the mountains after all seemed lost, out of Brunswick Farms and away from the Apathy, and brought them to a new plan tomorrow to get themselves to Haven. He had grown to trust and rely on that hope—on her—a lot of late, to catch him when he started to spiral like he did. It was nice to have, even with the small bit of guilt at not being able to return it just yet. He'd get there though, he would. He wanted to develop that unwavering faith for himself.
He wanted to be there for her, like she was for him and everyone else.
"So we'll just have to make sure to make our own," Ruby concluded with an extra hint of resolve. He didn't doubt that she meant it, and looking at her, it actually seemed obtainable.
"We'll get there," Oscar found himself agreeing. And despite not knowing how, or what they would need to do, or what a happily ever after even looked like for them now, he found himself believing it. They'd get there somehow, they had to. They didn't have the option of failure. "I don't know what it is yet," he muttered, looking at the book, eyes tracing over the letters of 'Happily Ever After', "But we'll get there."
"We will," she agreed, and his eyes moved from the book page to meet hers, "I'm glad you agree."
Oscar returned her soft smile and nodded slightly. There wasn't a doubt in his mind that Ruby believed in the group's happy ending. It was nice to see that even if there were still things with which she struggled over, things he one day wished to help with, she truly believed they would get there one way or another. It was reassuring, and if he were being completely honest…hope looked pretty on her.
They both startled when there was another knock on the door, jolted out of their silent promise to achieve a happily ever after for everyone, and he looked to the source of the sound to find Jaune standing awkwardly in the doorway, not unlike Ruby was minutes prior. "Uh, hi," Jaune started, looking at Oscar for a second and then shifting to Ruby before his eyes nervously darted around them room, "Am I interrupting?"
He and Ruby looked at each other before he shook his head. "Nothing that can't be continued later, I don't think," Oscar said and smiled, trying to be as disarming as possible. Aside from apologizing, Jaune had been nervously skittering around him and avoiding him all evening. It had admittedly set him on edge a little bit, and he really wanted to show Jaune that he wasn't mad. "Is something wrong?"
"No, nothing's wrong," Jaune shook his head, "I just wanted to talk to you. Alone, if that's alright?"
"Oh…uh…sure?" Oscar shrugged. That wasn't exactly what he was expecting, if anything he had already been preparing to issue another round of confirmations that he was fine as Jaune gave what had to be his hundredth apology of the night. Truthfully, he wasn't sure what else they had to talk about.
"Okay, okay good," Jaune nodded to himself as if he had just cleared a massive hurdle, "I actually uh…wanted to show you something while we did. Do you mind if we walk?"
He looked to Ruby in confusion, wondering if maybe she knew what this could be about, but she just gave him a small shrug in return. "Yeah that's fine, it's not that late," he agreed, "I'll meet you outside in a minute?"
"Sure, sure," Jaune nodded again and after one uncomfortably long pause of not seeming to know what to do with himself, he turned around and headed downstairs.
Oscar waited until he heard footsteps going down the stairs before he turned back to Ruby again. "I guess I'll be seeing you tomorrow then?" he said, his confusion still coloring his voice. It wasn't too late, but he imagined by the time he and Jaune got back he would more than likely be going straight to bed.
"Yup!" she agreed with a smile, "Thanks for talking with me."
He laughed, knowing full well that he was the one who should've said that. "Thank you," he corrected and headed for the door. "Good night, Ruby," he bid her and threw a wave over his shoulder.
He heard a quiet "G'night" in return as he descended down the stairs. He took a quick look in the living room as he walked off the last step and made his way to the door. Weiss and Yang were sitting on the floor entertaining and cooing over Adrien, who appeared to be basking in all the attention he was receiving. Blake was on a nearby chair skimming a book, and voices from the kitchen told him Nora and Ren were in the kitchen talking with Terra and Saphron. None of them seemed to pay him any mind as he opened the front door and quietly shut it as he walked out.
Jaune was standing on the porch, leaning over the railing and looking up at the night sky in some sort of contemplation, the moon's light causing glints on the white and gold of his armor. He turned as Oscar came out and opened and closed his mouth a few times as if to say something. Words seemed to fail him though as he opted to keep his mouth shut and not say anything.
"I'm good to go, if you are," Oscar supplied for him. He had no idea where this was going to go, and Jaune's uncertainty was only putting him more on edge. He didn't think there was any danger per se, he was certain Jaune wouldn't do that after the events that had transpired earlier in the day, but he had a feeling whatever was coming was going to be uncomfortable. Jaune's actions confirmed it, really.
Jaune nodded silently and started walking away from the house, signaling for Oscar to follow him. Oscar sighed but obliged, hurrying after him out of the residential areas and towards the shopping district. Instinctively, he pulled his new jacket a little tighter around him against the cold. It wasn't the mountains by any means, but a chill certainly descended on Argus at night. The streets were much less busy at night too, which made sense. Only the last-minute customers were out on the streets, and even they were heading home after leaving the shops. It was different from what he had experienced earlier, but it was peaceful in its own right to be walking through a city going to sleep, path illuminated only by the occasional streetlight and the moon.
It would have been better still if there wasn't an air of mystery and awkwardness and nervousness between the two of them. Oscar wanted to break it, but for the most part he couldn't figure out how. He had a feeling it wouldn't be broken until they talked about…whatever they were going to talk about when they got to…wherever they were going. He sighed again and shook his head, maybe he could try and get some information at the least. Anything that could break the uneasy silence. "So…can I ask where we're going?" he asked.
"I found something when we were looking for you earlier," Jaune said and Oscar noted that wasn't an answer to the question he had asked. "It…made me realize some things. We're going to…this courtyard," he added as they turned the corner.
Oscar didn't push anymore as he followed after Jaune into said courtyard. With each step, the statue came closer and closer into view, her features starting to stand out. And with each step, he could feel his heart sinking lower and lower into his stomach. This…she was what Jaune wanted to show him? His mind spun with the possibilities of why Jaune wanted to bring him here, but it came up empty each time. Of all the things he was expecting, this was most certainly not one of them.
"Do you know who she is?" Jaune asked after a couple moments of admiring the memorial before them.
"Of course." He swallowed back a lump in his throat as he examined the statue. Standing tall, her head bowed, her hands gripping her shield, the moon illuminating her in the most striking of ways. "She's Pyrrha Nikos." Everyone in Mistral knew who she was, if not the world. She had been the kingdom's shining star. She was going to be one of the best Huntresses Remnant had ever seen, her death at Beacon was a tragedy. And now…here she was, standing almost as if the silent guardian of Argus. And here he was standing before her, unsure and growing more nervous as to why.
"Did Ozpin talk about her?"
Oscar sighed and hung his head, closing his eyes. The question didn't surprise him as much of the location, if they were here they were obviously going to talk about her. There was an obvious tension in Jaune's voice that he was struggling to keep control of, but Oscar didn't feel concerned over it. Not for himself, at least. He truly believed Jaune wouldn't bring him out here just to yell at him again, he was better than that. "Not explicitly, no," he answered honestly. They had never spoken about Pyrrha. The day after he found Qrow in that bar in Haven, the Huntsman told Oz everything else that happened at Beacon the night of its fall. He and Oz never spoke of it though, he just saw flashes of the red-haired girl and waves upon waves of guilt. He was almost knocked to his knees by the remorse the first time he met Ruby and JNR. JNR, the team missing their fourth.
"She's a heavy topic," Oscar added. He blew a long, slow breath out of his nose before opening his eyes to look at Jaune, "There is a lot of guilt there. Or…there was, anyways, when he was still here."
Jaune let out a noise that sounded akin to a laugh and nodded. Hearing it twisted something in Oscar's stomach. When the older boy blew out a breath of his own and looked at the statue, Oscar could see the tears in his eyes. "Her death is a heavy topic for all of us," Jaune said finally.
Oscar winced and looked away. Of course it was, he hadn't meant to imply otherwise. Damn, he should have chosen his words better, but when he opened his mouth to apologize, Jaune cut him off. "She was the first person to ever believe in me, you know," he said and walked over to the statue. He knelt down in front of it and brought his fingers to the plaque, running them over her name.
Silence fell over them, but instead of speaking, Oscar waited. It was clear Jaune was grappling with the memories and the words he wanted to say. They may be here a while, but he would get to what he wanted to say. And it was apparent this was something he needed to do, and probably had needed to do for a while.
"She was excited for me to be named our team leader, she thought I would be great, even when I couldn't understand how I had gotten it myself. I was in over my head, I knew that," Jaune shook his head with a sigh carrying a weight that could bring down buildings. After a painfully slow minute, he rose to his feet again. "When that became apparent to her, that I was in over my head, all she did was try to help. She trained me in private to help build my skills…and confidence."
Jaune's head turned to look at something, and Oscar peeked around to see a bouquet of lilies resting at her feet, as red as the flashes of hair he had in his—Oz's—memories. He was no expert, but his aunt did a lot of gardening on the farm, and he had seen her offer more than enough lilies to people who had a loved one pass to know they were a flower for mourning. He had never seen them in such a vibrant color before, usually the ones his aunt gave for funerals were white, but it was fitting for the person they were meant to honor. They immediately made anyone think of Pyrrha and her red hair, and then called to her own vibrancy and brilliant personality.
"Pyrrha saw the best in me, because she saw the best in everyone," Jaune continued, "She believed in the best of humanity, and fought for it with everything she had because she was the best of humanity," he said, and Oscar could see the tears starting to spill over from his eyes. He could hear the tremor in Jaune's voice and watched as he hung his head. "She was humanity's light."
That much was obvious in how much the group loved her. How Ruby mentioned her as being one of the reasons she kept moving forward, the way Nora and Ren spoke whenever they brought up any fond memory they had of her, in Weiss's blatant admiration and Yang's determination whenever she was mentioned, and even Blake's small smile whenever she listened to stories. And Jaune, standing here now, broken down over her memory and all they lost. Oscar took a step closer to him and reached up to rest a hand on his shoulder, attempting to comfort the boy who clearly needed it. "I never got the chance to meet Pyrrha personally, but everyone in Mistral adored her."
He thought back to every time he saw Pyrrha on the screen, either in interviews or in the middle of tournaments. Her smile, the way she carried herself, the way she fought, her words…everything was loved by the people of Mistral. He often heard people on the street talking about her, often even engaged in the conversations himself because she was…she was something special and the people recognized that. "We were all proud of her, many of us still are. It sounds silly coming from someone who never met her…talking about people who never met her, but…" Oscar trailed off, choosing his words carefully to explain what she inspired in them, in him, "She made us feel…safe, in our future, if she was going to be a Huntress. And she was a Huntress, through and through. She inspired us and made us feel like we could do anything. Even a plucky little farm boy like me."
Jaune looked at him out of the corner of his eye, and though the tears were still flowing, he was smiling. "Thank you," he nodded. It took a moment, but Jaune lifted his head again and wiped the tears from his eyes. He sniffed once and ruminated on the statue once more. "I'm sorry, I didn't bring you out here to say only that," Jaune said, "I told you already, but I brought you here because I found this memorial to her earlier when we were looking for you, and it made me realize some things. I've been a terrible leader for my team, and an even worse friend to everyone. And somehow, even still worse to you," he said and turned to face Oscar, "And…I am sorry. What I did to you today should have never happened."
Oscar closed his eyes and suppressed his urge to groan. They had already been over this, he had already accepted the apology. It wasn't even necessary, he understood why it happened and he already figured out how to make sure it never happened again. If this was all Jaune brought him out here to say, it seemed unnecessary. His next statement caught Oscar completely off-guard though.
"And I need you to know, you remind me a lot of her."
"What?" Oscar's eyes popped open in disbelief. Had he just heard correctly? He reminded Jaune of Pyrrha? There was no way, that didn't make any sense at all. She was a great warrior, a better Huntress, and an inspiring person while he…could just barely hold his own in a fight. He had questions and doubts and fears for what was to come. How could Jaune look at him and see even a glimpse of Pyrrha? "I…I don't know if you've noticed, Jaune, but I can barely hold this cane properly in battle," Oscar chuckled nervously and patted at the weapon clipped to his belt, "I'm nowhere close to Pyrrha's caliber."
Jaune shrugged, "In fighting, maybe, but who knows what time will bring? You've already improved drastically from when we first met you. But that isn't what I meant." He glanced at the statue again, a small smile tugging at his lips, "You were going to tell me you'd already forgiven me again when I apologized, weren't you?" When Oscar frowned and relented with a nod, he continued, "That's something she'd do. Pyrrha never held grudges, even for the people who wronged her. If you apologized, she forgave you, no questions asked. Because she believed in the best in people, and the best in humanity," his smile grew a little wider, "And so do you, Oscar."
Oscar shifted uncomfortably from foot to foot, trying to think of some response that would counteract what Jaune just told him. "I…well…" he stammered, still nothing coming to mind. He looked up at the statue looming over them. She believed in the best of humanity because she was the best of humanity. He didn't know just how far he believed that about himself but…perhaps. He always wanted to believe he could see the best in people, the best in humanity. He knew it was there, it had to be, he had seen too much good for it not to be…and he needed a reason to keep moving forward. "…Yeah, I guess maybe I do," he finally agreed, coming up with nothing to argue against it.
"You do, I don't have to guess," Jaune corrected, "You wouldn't have forgiven me quite so quickly if you didn't. You shouldn't have. I know this isn't any easier for you than it is for the rest of us. It's probably harder, and I'm sure I haven't been making it any better."
Oscar bit the inside of his cheek, unsure of what to say. Of course this wasn't easy. He was an unskilled farmhand thrust into saving the fate of the world. He was scared, he had doubts, and the isolation from the only group that could possibly help or understand only made everything worse. But it wasn't any easier for anyone else. They all had their burdens to wrestle, he knew that. "It's not easy," Oscar admitted, unable to shake he was stating the other half of what he had told Ruby in the guest room, "But it's not going to be easy, I've accepted that now. I'm…well…I'm terrified, I think we all are, but if this is my fate, I intend to make the best of it and do the most I can. What else can I do but that?"
"Destiny," Jaune muttered and huffed a laugh. Oscar looked to him in question, but he didn't explain anything more. Instead, he stared up at Pyrrha's statue, reminiscent and so very fond. "I told Nora and Ren this, I think when Pyrrha went to fight Cinder, she knew there was a chance she wouldn't come back. I think she was scared, and sad, but she knew what she had to do. Despite everything, she had a duty, a destiny in her own mind," Jaune said. He glanced at Oscar, "Does that sound familiar?"
Oscar averted his gaze, understanding his implication and face heating with the praise. Jaune wasn't just saying that as an apology, was he? He really did want to stress the similarities he saw between Pyrrha and a farm boy in well over his head. His full attention turned to the statue, eyes scanning over it and taking in the depiction of Pyrrha's humbled, silent stoicism. He studied the angle of her bowed head, the shape of her closed eyes and calm face, the grip her hand had on her shield, and the moonlight that bounced across her features. The beauty and lifelike nature of it made him feel like another presence was with them…almost as if Pyrrha was there herself.
The statue really was a testament to her.
"It's an honor to hear you think I could stand in comparison to her," Oscar said finally, choosing not to try and argue Jaune's belief. He couldn't when he practically had his own words repeated back to him, and besides, who was he to decide what Jaune believed? And he truly meant it was an honor, coming from Jaune he knew the weight of those words. Yet, he turned his attention from the statue to his own hands and flexed and clenched them a few times before looking up at Jaune, "But…I already have one massive legacy to fulfill. I don't know if I could handle two."
Jaune frowned and watched as Oscar flexed his hands a few more times. "I know," he nodded, "That isn't…quite what I meant either." He took a deep breath in and let it out slowly before continuing, "There was a lot of lead up to the Fall of Beacon. I knew something was wrong with Pyrrha, but I couldn't figure out what. I said a lot of things wrong, probably everything wrong by the way she reacted, but I didn't know what was happening, and she didn't tell me—"
Oscar grimaced. Jaune had probably figured it out by now, but he had little doubt the choice to become the Fall Maiden was what plagued Pyrrha. The reason he felt so much guilt coming from Ozpin when he first met the two teams from Beacon, having had to put the weight of the world on a girl who hadn't even reached adulthood. The shock and secrecy of it all probably forced her to feel like it had to remain a secret. It probably made her feel alone and like she couldn't turn to anyone, even if she wanted to, because who would believe her if she did? Magic and mystery and saving the world, that was the stuff of fairytales…not reality.
That was something Oscar knew all too well.
"—And then the night of Beacon's fall. She made her choice, I saw what Ozpin wanted to do and I watched it fail as Cinder came in. And then Pyrrha went off to fight her alone, she forced me out of the situation so I couldn't help. No one could help and—" Jaune fell silent for a few moments, grappling with the words. Oscar could see the tears threatening to spill again, but he kept his composure this time. "—I think she knew she wasn't going to come back, but she felt it was her duty," he repeated and his eyes went to the ground. He looked tired, resigned to what happened, "I just wish she didn't feel like she had to burden it alone."
Jaune stood in silence, looking down and running his hand over the ends of the red sash he wore around his waist. Oscar didn't know where it was from, but he could take a guess. He let out a long breath, and when he ultimately looked up again, he stared at Oscar with an intensity the boy wasn't sure he had ever seen in him. "And I don't want it to happen again, to anyone else, ever."
Oscar blinked, only capable of looking at him in confusion as he tried to parse what Jaune meant, "I don't think anyone feels like they can't come to you."
"Maybe not, I could be overthinking it all," Jaune agreed with a half-hearted shrug, "But I want to make sure it's known. I want to talk to everyone, but Team RWBY and Nora and Ren have known me longer. And I haven't been nearly as bad to them." He paused and took a step closer to Oscar, placing a hand on his shoulder and forcing them to lock eyes, "I know my actions haven't proven it, but I want to be there for you too, like I want to be for all of them. Like I wish I could have been for Pyrrha. I may have problems with Ozpin but you…you aren't him, Oscar. I know that, and you deserve a much better friend out of me than I've been."
You aren't him.
Oscar's eyes widened a little at the words, and he couldn't deny a sense giddiness wash over him at hearing the sentence he had been repeating to himself all day come from yet another person. He wouldn't say it, but it was validating. This was what he needed, not the apologies. An acknowledgement that he, Oscar, was there and he existed and he mattered. Ruby had already given it to him, but this was different. He had never doubted her. He had never necessarily doubted Jaune either, but only one of them had slammed him into a wall and disregarded his existence. This meant more than a sorry ever could to him.
"I think…I'd like that a lot," he smiled, "All I've wanted is to be friends."
"I'm glad to hear you say that," Jaune said and released a large breath of relief. Hope was evident in his eyes as he asked, "So is it okay if we start over?"
"Maybe not a start over," Oscar said, smile growing brighter as a better idea started coming to his mind, "I don't want to start over. I want to continue on, move on and grow."
Jaune stared at him for a moment, as if processing what he said, and then chuckled, "Alright, Oscar Pine, whatever you want. We'll continue on and grow," he agreed, "And I promise I'll stick by your side no matter what from now on. As your friend."
As your friend. It sounded so nice to finally have. "And I'll stick by yours, as your friend," Oscar returned.
After an additional moment of silence, Jaune smiled and dropped his hand from Oscar's shoulder, "So, are we okay?"
Oscar chuckled, somewhat amused it even needed to be asked, "We're okay."
"Good, great," Jaune breathed, "Because we should probably be heading back now." He looked around at the silent town and night sky before giving a sheepish grin, "I didn't mean to be quite this long, sorry."
Oscar laughed but waved him off. It was fine, if anything he was glad it took that long. This was obviously something Jaune had on his chest for a long time and needed to discuss, and if he were being honest, he needed it too. It was good to have Jaune's side to understand where some of his feelings were coming from and, more than anything it was nice to hear that confirmation. To hear Jaune say he wasn't Ozpin and that he wanted to be friends. It hadn't been weighing on him per se, but Oscar felt lighter regardless. He wanted them to see him for who he was and now…they were. Ruby and Jaune confirmed it.
Both he and Jaune gave one last lingering gaze at the statue, him out of respect and Jaune out of a mix of emotions he couldn't identify, and turned to head back to the Cotta-Arc residence. As they walked, Jaune started talking to him about more menial things, like Nora's antics he missed when he went upstairs. Though he was paying attention, Oscar couldn't shake the lingering sense of…something. He couldn't quite identify it, it didn't feel like someone watching him necessarily, but like another presence was there. Like when he was closely examining the memorial in thought.
The wind picked up a bit and a few autumn leaves rose from the ground and blew past his face. On instinct, he turned to watch them and his gaze fell upon Pyrrha's statue, growing smaller as they continued walking away. He quickly turned back, a small smile on his face as he half-listened to Jaune explaining the insane block tower Nora built for Adrien.
"Thank you," he thought, almost compelled to say it. It was silly, but if Pyrrha really was out there somewhere, if she could hear him somehow, he wanted her to know.
"They'll be okay. We'll be okay. We'll reach our happily ever after, one way or another. I promise."
Hope I did Jaune well, because I definitely didn't take the time to research him as much as I do some others since he was sort of a surprise.
Anyways, onward and upward.
~Stormy