A/N: I'm quite proud that this is 900 words, rather than pushing the 1000-word limit.
Halfway through the story. Let me know what you think!
Thrown to the Wind
Momentum
She bristled at the name. Miss Invincible. She hated that moniker, given to her by a school paper after one particularly-successful track meet in her first year. "Thanks." The words were steely, echoing through the air as he walked away, leaving an awkward silence between her and Jaune.
Finally, he muttered, "Friend of yours?"
She chuckled emotionlessly. "Not particularly. He lives in my dorms, though."
Jaune's face screwed up in distaste. "So he's near Ruby and everyone, too?"
Pyrrha ran her hand through hair tiredly. It had finally dried completely after her post-practice shower, so she pulled her hairband off her wrist and began running her fingers through her hair, gathering up the long strands tiredly. "He is," she explained. "He's not very close with anyone there, though. He sticks with his friends, usually."
"So why did he find you today?"
The girl shrugged, smoothing and arranging her bangs over her forehead. "I don't know," she admitted. "He's always just been weirdly friendly to me."
"Didn't look very friendly to me," the blond muttered under his breath, and her heart soared at the care and concern in his voice.
His frustration didn't last, though. She glanced up, catching blue eyes fixate upon the waist-length crimson strands which spilled over her shoulders before they quickly glanced away, and she felt her face heat up once more. Clumsy at the sudden attention, she pulled her hair tight into a ponytail and let it fall over one shoulder, leaning back against the tree once more.
After a few moments of quiet eating (aside from Jaune's meek crunching of cereal, of course) she murmured, "So you won't tell me about the eye?"
"It's no big deal."
She sighed. "Okay. When do you go to work?"
"I still have… thirty minutes before I should head out."
They ate for a few more minutes, until Pyrrha's glass container was emptied of greens and Jaune's fingers hit the bottom of his bag. Then, the girl picked up her textbook once more, focusing on her readings while the boy pulled out his phone, unwinding with a mobile game.
Finally, it was time for both of them to leave. She stood up, stretching her stiff muscles quickly. "By the way," she chimed, "I can't drop by this Friday."
Jaune slung his bag over his shoulder, frowning. "Why, what's going on?"
She smiled, stomach fluttering as she saw a hint of reluctance in his eyes. He's worried! He wants me to come visit! "It's nothing! I have a meet on Saturday, that's all."
Immediately, his face relaxed, and he grinned. "That's so cool. You've gotta rest up then, huh?"
She beamed. "Of course."
The blond stretched as well, wincing as his back cracked slightly. "I'm sure you'll be amazing," he murmured.
Pyrrha blushed, clutching her textbook to her chest. Although she had heard those words hundreds of times before, hearing Jaune encourage her suddenly made the words ring so much more earnestly in her heart. "I'll do my best," she replied, shyly smiling at him.
He grinned back, then tucked his hands into his pockets and began jogging away. "I've got to get to work," he called. "Will you be here tomorrow?"
Hope rose in her throat, effectively cutting out all sound. She quickly nodded, and he flashed her a thumbs-up before turning the corner. In his absence, she squeezed the textbook tight, practically floating on air until she was suddenly seated in her History of Menagerie class. Whipping out her phone, she messaged Nora about the hour's events.
Dude. You have an in, the girl messaged back.
Pyrrha nearly squealed, her excitement carrying her through the rest of the day, leaving her uncharacteristically joyful and bright to everyone around her.
That joy didn't fade all week. True to his word, Jaune was there the next day, stumbling into the little nook after a long morning of classes. "Five hours in a row should be illegal," he groaned as he crumpled against the oak tree.
Pyrrha merely smiled, pulling out a second box of lunch for him to eat which she had gotten from the dining hall that morning. The boy blinked at her, grinned, and kept his cereal in his bag for the day.
They settled into that routine with such ease, it was if they had been friends all their lives. Soon, Jaune was bringing his homework to the meetings, and by the end of the week, Jaune was spell-checking her papers while she was editing his story drafts. It was simple and sweet and perfect. Even finding out that Jaune was working the night of Neon's party wasn't enough to bring her down. Even when Mercury walked up to her and asked her slyly whether she was going alone or not, she didn't care. It would just be another party third-wheeling with Nora and Ren, and she was okay with that.
She'd just visit the blond the next evening, anyways.
And that Saturday night, when she walked into the convenience store bare-faced and freshly showered, she was ecstatic. Glynda was utterly pleased with their entire team's performance, and her teammates were overjoyed with their cumulative victories, piling up to represent Beacon the best they could. She pulled out her little medal without ever worrying about how Jaune would look at her. She knew that he'd see it and glow with pride, and that was exactly what he did.