This story certainly received more attention than I thought it would so thank you for that. I apologize in advance if this story ends up falling apart. I did receive a few nice comments on the first chapter as well; thank you to those who left those comments.
Onto the story, we have Chapter 2 here. Hope you like it. I'm not good at writing dialogue so if you can make it through that you're a better Buzz than I am.
Jaune rounded the front of the bar top. He stayed quiet for a moment, kept his distance from the woman who rather abruptly came into his establishment. He wasn't sure if she even noticed him. While she continued to look outside Jaune studied the woman. She was about his height, maybe a little shorter than him; looked to be around his age as well. She wore a long-sleeved shirt with red and gold stripes across it, a pair of black pants, short dark red boots, and a long brown strapped bag hung at her side. Her hair was brushed back into a high ponytail. From the angle he guessed she had greens eyes that seemed to be darting back and forth. She was panting somewhat heavily and had an expression that appeared to be a mix of worry, tired, and possibly relieved.
Jaune felt he had stayed quiet long enough. This woman could be in trouble and he wanted to make sure she was okay.
"Excuse me?" Jaune asked.
The woman at the door jumped. She snapped her head to where she heard the voice. Fully able to see her face now, Jaune was slightly taken aback. His assumption of her green eyes was correct but failed to initially guess that they were so vibrant.
"Hello! I-I'm so sorry! I did not mean to come in so rudely. I saw the lights were on and I just ran in. I, uh…. may I use your restroom? I-if that's okay with you?"
The woman's words came out in a flustered, quick manner despite seeming out of breath. Her faced was flushed as well. Though whether it was due to breathlessness, embarrassment, or both Jaune couldn't tell. The blonde owner had seen a lot in his time at the Crocea Mors but nothing quite like this.
"Um, sure? Sure. The restroom is just off to the side there." Jaune pointed over to his right side where the restroom doors were nestled between the side of the bar top and the party room.
"Th-thank you. Sorry again!"
The woman hurriedly walked over to the restroom door, opening and closing it in one swift motion. Jaune scratched his head in confusion.
"What just happened?" the young man thought to himself.
Something didn't seem right. He approached the window adjacent to the door and with a quick peek out Jaune saw that no one was on the streets in front of or across the street from him. He stepped away from the window and looked at the door. Though he didn't know what the woman was up to, if anything, Jaune made the decision to lock the top lock of the door for if anyone unsavory tried to come in. He didn't want to frighten her but wanted to make sure he was safe. Behind him he heard the distinct sound of the restroom sink running. Although still on edge Jaune wanted to believe the woman meant no harm. He returned behind the bar to the same spot only minutes ago he was cleaning glasses. While the Arc family never had too much trouble with those who wanted to cause harm to them there did lay a metal baseball bat that had long be kept on the top rung to get rid of any would be crooks. Jaune always wished they had a sword for defense but knew buying one would be impractical. Hoping he didn't need to use the bat Jaune left it where it was. He heard the restroom door open and turned to look in that direction. The woman quickly found where Jaune was and produced a sheepish smile. Wanting to not cause much alarm to her Jaune decided the friendly approach would be best.
"Would you like some water?"
The woman's eyes widened with surprise.
"Oh, uh, yes. That would be lovely, thank you. If it's not a problem."
"Not a problem at all." Jaune remarked.
The blonde reached down and grabbed the last glass he had cleaned while the woman sat in one of the two stools that had not yet been stacked directly in front of him. Always making it a point to show the customer how the drink was being made Jaune presented the glass in front of her. Eyebrow raised in confusion; the woman looked at the glass. Jaune then presented the nozzle that held the cold water. He sprayed until the glass was full. Grabbing a coaster and placing the water down Jaune slid the glass over to the red head.
"Here you are."
"Thank you."
The woman took the glass shyly but that didn't stop the water from being drank in no time flat. Once the glass was placed down Jaune refilled it. The woman grabbed the glass once more, slowly sipping it this time. The woman appeared to have calmed down so Jaune figured now would be a good time to get some answers.
"Ma'am, are you okay? You ran in here awfully fast. Do you need help with something?"
Green eyes looked up at him, a nervousness behind them.
"No, I'm okay. I was just…. There were some people outside. They didn't look very friendly. I decided to get away from them was all."
Jaunes eyes widened. "She was being followed!" A young woman being followed alone at night wasn't unheard of, even over in this area.
"Hey, it's okay, I understand." Jaune told the woman.
"You do?" she asked with surprise.
"Yes." he responded as he crouched down a bit. "I'll take care of whoever was following you, you're safe here."
Jaune stood back up with the bat. He heard a gasp from the woman but continued to move towards the front door. No one was going to harass anyone, not on his watch.
"Wait!" The woman shouted. She had jumped out of her seat and grabbed Jaunes arm stopping him in his tracks. He looked back at her.
"You don't have to that! No one was following me! I-I was just startled by someone on the street and rushed in here. That's all. Please, there's no need for violence."
Jaune studied her. He looked into her eyes and saw sternness behind them. He winced when he felt a spike of pain in his arm. He looked down to the spot where she grabbed him. A pain was starting to swell up where he was being held. He hadn't noticed when she first arrived but even with the long clothes on, he could see some define muscle. If she had been in any real trouble it looked like she could have handled it.
Jaune nodded to her. "Okay. I won't. Sorry about that."
He lowered the bat. She released his grip on his arm, thankful for that as it was starting to hurt. He scratched the back of his head while giving her an embarrassed smile.
"I guess I got carried away there. You wouldn't be the first woman to be hiding from a stalker or harasser here."
The woman sighed. "I apologize. I should have told you that wasn't the case. I've been quite the bother tonight."
Jaune laughed "You're not the worst person this bar has ever seen, believe me, so don't apologize. Makes it a bit lively in here you know. Not like anything is going on right now anyway." He pointed back to the bar. "You can stay here for a few minutes though if you need to."
"Oh! Yes, it would be nice to sit for a bit. You're sure it's okay?"
"Positive!"
The two walked back over to the bar. Jaune returned the bat to its home. While still a bit concerned if there was more to the woman's story, he was glad she wasn't in danger. As she sat back down Jaune realized he hadn't given his name. He held out his hand.
"I'm Jaune Arc by the way. Owner of this bar. What's your name?"
The woman, after finishing the rest of her water, returned the gesture and shook his hand. "My name is Pyr… Penny! My name is Penny."
The young man found the response odd but didn't comment on it.
"Okay, what brings you out tonight Penny? Enjoying a night out before the games tomorrow?"
She chuckled uneasily at the question. "Something like that… I needed some time for myself. I haven't been over to this side of Vale before so I wanted to explore, take in the sights. It is quite nice over here at night. There's not too much congestion so you can really see all great décor and nature around here. It's lovely."
A genuine smile made its way onto her face as she spoke. It was a pretty smile, Jaune noted.
"So you're not from around here?"
Penny's smile faltered a bit. "Correct. I'm from…" she trailed off as if contemplating what to say next. "I'm from Mistral!" she stated with confidence. "I live in a town called Argus."
"Very nice!" Jaune remarked. "I've lived my whole life here in Vale. I have visited Mistral before. My sister Saphron moved to Argus with her wife. One of the nicest towns I've seen. Who would have thought someone from Argus would be here in my bar right now! Small world!"
The red-haired woman snickered at the remark. "Oh yes, and what are the odds I'd run into someone who has family in my hometown! It is lovely place." Penny sighed dreamily. She opened her mouth to speak again but paused, as if in thought once more, and stared into Jaunes eyes. He felt she was studying him. Seemingly content with whatever she found she continued.
"I have been thinking recently about moving to Vale. It's part of the reason I went exploring tonight."
"Oh okay. Well if you have any questions about the area, I'd be more than happy to help you." Jaune began to pretend like he was dusting off his shoulders. "I'm an expert of the area. If you want to know where the best pizza place is or where the best game store is, well, heh, I'm your guy!" He put on a mock smug look and pointed to himself with his thumb.
"If I need help, I'll be sure to ask you where those utmost refined places are." Penny said between bouts of laughter. Jaune laughed alongside her. He thought to himself how nice this was. Besides his friends he hadn't had a good laugh, or even a good conversation, like this in a while. The laughter died down and Penny wiped a tear from here eye. She smiled at him.
"So, Mr. Arc…"
"Please! Call me Jaune."
"Okay, Jaune. Can you tell me about yourself?"
Jaune was surprised by her question. He didn't mind sharing his stories. He was quite use to it now with working at Crocea Mors. Working at a place like this really helps you break out of your shell. Penny seemed much more comfortable now than when she first arrived. He was feeling comfortable too so why not indulge. The young man began to tell his tales. He mentioned his large family, his times working at the bar before becoming the owner, along with some of the stories from when he was in school. Penny engaged in his stories, laughing or commenting on his misadventures. She didn't provide much information about herself but Jaune was fine with taking the stage for storytelling. Eventually, Jaune looked over at the clock and saw it was nearing midnight. He didn't intend to be out this late but at least it was for a good reason. Penny noticed the time too.
"Oh dear, it's almost midnight. I'm sorry for keeping you." she said.
"Eh, I've been here later than this. No worries. I should be the one apologizing. I've just been rambling to you." Jaune said.
"Now don't apologize yourself. It was lovely to chat with you." She smiled at him with her statement. Another genuine smile that brought some warmth to the young man.
"Well, guess we should wrap this up! Let me put away your glass and these stools. I should be set after that."
"Please, allow me to get the stools."
Jaune nodded and thanked her. He cleaned her glass and stored it away. Penny stacked the stools up and made sure she had everything on her person. As she did this she reached into her bag and to check her scroll. As this was done, Jaune noticed a frown appear on her face.
"Everything okay?" Jaune asked.
"Huh? Oh yes! Just late is all." Penny replied.
Jaune hummed in agreement. He rounded the bar top and stood next to Penny, ready to usher them both out when he remembered something.
"Oh hey! I need to check the weather quick. I want to see what it will be like tomorrow; help me figure out what I can even do tomorrow."
Penny shook her head and mumbled something about it being sunny while tapping away on her scroll. Jaune reached behind the bar and grabbed the remote. He turned the T.V. on with a click. The first thing on was a news channel which was displaying the weather as well. The weather was scrolling by at the bottom while the news anchor spoke about competitors in the tournament tomorrow; information Jaune tuned out. The young owner kept his eyes on the bottom of the screen until it displayed the weather for his side of town. "Sunny with no chance of rain. Great! Maybe I'll go on a jog since the streets will be clear." He thought to himself.
As he looked back down at the remote to turn the T.V. off Jaune heard a gasp from behind him. Confused, he looked over to see Penny wide-eyed with her hand over her mouth. Jaune followed her line of sight to the T.V. screen. On screen was the same news anchor talking about the tournament competitors yet this time the screen was accompanied by a picture of Penny. Jaune tuned into what the news anchor was saying.
"…and having won multiple gold medals in the past the one to watch out for tomorrow, the woman nicknamed the Champion of Mistral, Pyrrha Nikos!"
Jaune stared at the T.V. in confusion. "Pyrrha…?"
The woman quickly grabbed the remote from Jaunes hand, turned the T.V. off, and slammed the remote down on the bar top. Jaune reeled back in surprise at this action. As Penny (Pyrrha?) looked at him he saw the same worried look she had on when she first arrived.