Do You Believe in Fairy Tales?

Chapter 9: Nora Valkyrie and Lie Ren

A RWBY Fanfic

How could two people be so different from each other, yet be so much the same? How could two people be so wrong from each other, yet be so right for each other? Yet here are two people that are polar opposites from each other and perfect together. Nora Valkyrie and Lie Ren, these two have been together for such a long time that the complement each other despite their differences. Nora is a vivacious, bubbly, orange haired bundle of energy that seems to never be still and hardly able to contain her love for life and a certain young man. Ren on the other hand is very composed, seemingly sedated, introverted person who doesn't say much, loves to meditate and is more apt to show what he has in mind than he would be able to verbalize. Two polar opposites that are the perfect evidence that opposites can attract each other. Although as Nora would say: "we aren't together-together."

The two of them had been together almost as long as they can remember. They "found" each other in unfortunate circumstances and they had been together ever since that time. Growing up in the same places with the same family that had taken them in with their kindness. And they had shared the same events together always taking care of each other as they had sworn to do together. And since then dark days had given way to brighter days that they shared and always looked forward to sharing.

As they grew they learned all the stories that were ever told. Ren remembered his mother and father telling many of these to him from a very young age. Nora, on the other hand, had spent so much time trying to survive that she never got to hear stories. But together the two learned to find solace in these stories as well as strength, determination, reason and character. The building blocks for their relationship and for their lives in general. The two of them thrived on the stories.

As they got older they still loved the stories and when things would get to be troublesome or were just going poorly for them they would always go to the stories. And they would find the things that they needed to get through whatever was bothering them. Ren would even begin to create stories to help Nora when she was down, she loved the stories he would tell her about heroes who overcame their problems and moved forward. And her favorite stories were the stories where the hero would fall in love with the heroine….and they would live happily ever after.

"Ren," Nora would ask, "Would you tell me the story of the Samurai and the princess?"

"Nora, haven't I already told you the story once today?" He would ask because he knew that this was her favorite story, and she had to hear it every day.

"Yeah, but you know that I love the way you tell the story. And I never get tired of hearing you tell me the story." She would say in a little charming voice and Ren would just roll his eyes and give a little sigh and start.

"Many long years ago there was a brave Samurai who was …." And he would retell the story as she listened and drifted off to see the story play out in her mind.

They would keep these stories going and would keep getting closer to each other as time kept moving. But even during the times when things were tough or when Nora was sad Ren would tell her a very special story that always lifted her spirit. One particular night Nora was very sad about how her life was and wondered where her family was and why they had given her up. Ren could sense these things were bothering her and he would remind her that she was not just his friend, or even his best friend but in fact she was one of the most important things she could ever be to him; she was his family.

Knowing how she felt he would start. "Nora?"

"Yeah, Ren?"

"You realize you are most important to me, right?"

"But I'm not reeaally your family. We aren't related."

"No we may not be blood relations. But, you have been with me ever since we found each other. And with all that we have been through together… I feel that you are even closer than my blood family."

"Ren, much as you or I may even feel like it, I still cannot feel good because I have no blood family. They abandoned me." And then she would start to feel the tears build in her eyes as her voice started to crack. "I must not be important or mean anything to anyone. They just left me."

"You are very important Nora!" Ren would always exclaim. She was always tearing herself apart for no good reason he figured. "Let me tell you a story about a little girl and a little boy."

"Oh. Is this going to be a true story? Or is this one of the old stories you are going to tell me?"

"How would you feel about a NEW and TRUE story?" He had just the story to make her feel better and hopefully let her know that she really was important; and to whom she was important.

"Al…alright. That might be nice."

And Ren started. "One time not so long ago. There was a little boy and a little girl. They had never met and they never knew who the other was."

"This sounds like a really depressing story already. Doesn't it get any better?" Nora said as she pouted. Tears still rolling down her cheeks as Ren came and sat close to her and put his arm around her shoulder.

"It does get better. Can I continue the story?"

"Yeah I suppose. I don't figure that it can make me feel any worse."

"Ok. The little girl had gorgeous orange hair and she was scared. But she knew that she had do whatever it would take to keep moving forward. Her family had left her and disappeared from her life, and this saddened her very much. And the little boy…"

"HEY! That sounds an awful like me!" Nora interrupted Ren.

"It's not you, but someone like you. Can I keep going?"

"Oh, yeah. Sorry. But it still sounds like me."

"The little boy was a cute boy with violet eyes and dark hair. He loved his family and they loved him. But he was still scared of the world around him, and he knew there was no way that he was ready to face it."

"That sounds vaguely like you Ren." She gave him a side glance. She was starting to have a feeling she knew who the people in this new and true story were.

"Anyway. One day the village they were living in had a major catastrophe, everything was in such terrible disarray. People were running scared or trying to resist. But all to no avail. The little boy was being taken by his father to safety when things went badly for the man. The little boy was left on his own and he was told to run away to get to safety. So being as scared as he was, he ran. The little boy found a place that he thought he might be safe, yet he was really scared and lonely and he cried because of what happened to his family." Ren tried to keep a slightly cheery tone to his voice but knew that he was getting teary eyed.

Nora knew that the story was about them. She felt how hard it was for Ren to keep telling the story, so she slid closer to the boy as he told the story. She wanted to let him know that she was there and cared about him as he told the story to her because he cared about her. "You don't have to finish this story, if you don't want to." She whispered to him

"I really have to finish this part of the story." He told her, even as tears ran down the side of his face. He felt her slide closer and he pulled her in tighter as they tried to comfort each other as they tended to do. "WE need to remember this story."

With tears and concern for this boy she simply nodded. With the tears coming to her eyes now she understood. "Ok. I'm listening."

"Well. The boy was still crying yet there was another sound that he could hear, louder than the terrifying noises around him. It was the soft cry of someone. Someone scared, lost and alone just as the boy felt. The boy remembered what his father had said about the worst action can be to take no action at all. So, looking from his hiding place the boy looked around and found the crying coming from the little girl with orange hair. So armed with the words of his father and his father's dagger he ran from his spot to the girl. They looked at each other and he felt the strength he had never felt before, he felt ready to take on the world. They promised to protect each other and keep each other safe. They left that village and moved forward together and he has never felt as scared as he did then because she was with him…"

"And she has never doubted she was worth more than the world because he was with her." Nora added to the story as they both started to have signs of knowing smiles on their faces.

"Does this story have a happy ending?" She would quietly ask as they sat close and let the tears fall till there were no more tears to fall.

"I hope so. I think it has a good start though. Don't you?" He asked in almost a whisper.

"I think it will have a great ending one day." She said, giving him a big bear hug. Still thinking it would be even greater if the little boy and the little orange haired girl got together-together.