A/N: Yes, the conversation is heavily inspired by the scene during Beacon's Vol. 2 dance. No, I didn't use it exactly- I already rewrote the dang thing once for Laws of Attraction, so no need to go through that again XD

Let me know what you think!

Thrown to the Wind

Xylographs

She softened. "I thought you were working tonight."

"I took the weekend off. Went costume shopping last night."

"Ah." After a moment of silence, she asked, "So, who're you supposed to be?"

The boy pointed to his left breast, the golden-emblazoned R catching the dim porchlight. "I'm Robin," he explained, a little mournful. "I wanted to be Batman, but I couldn't really pull it off."

She wanted to laugh, but… could she? She didn't know how to deal with this aftermath of Wednesday's encounter.

Still, it was Jaune, and his very presence set her heart on fire in ways no one else could. "Why's that?" She patted the ground, gesturing for Jaune to join her. He smiled gently, then complied, resting his elbows on his knees and hunching over.

"Well," he began wearily, as if setting up a grand story, "once upon a time, I thought I could pull off being Batman. I'm edgy! I'm tough!" She snorted behind her hand, and he waved away her doubts dismissively, still lost in his angst-ridden tale. "Unfortunately, I realized that although I could easily find the costume, I could never… become the costume."

"How so?" It was growing more and more difficult to keep a smirk off of her lips.

With all the grace and distress of a world-class actor, the boy fell back, splaying out dramatically on the steps behind him. "I just couldn't do the voice!"

Pyrrha couldn't help it- she laughed aloud at the blond's ridiculous pose, his blond hair peeking out from underneath the black hood. "It couldn't have been that bad," she teased.

He coughed, cleared his throat, and in a painfully-bad, husky voice, he murmured darkly, "I am Batman. I am the night. I am the darkness' worst fears come to life. My parents are dead." And then, he lurched upright, clutching his stomach and giggling fiercely. "I can't," he gasped in his normal register, "I just can't."

She chuckled, consoling him with a smile. "I, for one, haven't ever actually seen any Batman movies, so you're the best one in my book!" she beamed gently.

The boy sat upright, readjusting his hood and mask after wiping a mirthful tear from his eye. "Wait," he snorted, "does that mean you don't even know you who are?"

She shrugged. "Nora got the costume, told me how to wear it, and I listened. We do this every year."

Jaune gawped at her. "But you- you- you look amazing! It suits you perfectly. Your hair, the colour… The extra leaves are a nice touch. Seriously though, how do you not know who Poison Ivy is?"

She blushed, thankful for the dim lighting. "Well…" She glanced down, tugging the short wrap-around skirt farther down her vine-covered thighs. "I'm not really into superheroes normally? And thank you, I guess. It's a little chilly in this, though. Not very practical."

"I bet," the boy chuckled. Soon, Pyrrha felt a wash of warmth over her. Glancing up, she saw a very red-faced Robin, his cape draped across her shoulders. She beamed at him, tugging the cape around her. The vinyl wasn't very insulating, but it was a sweet gesture nonetheless.

Jaune sighed, running his hand through his hair. "I'm… not gonna get in trouble with your date for doing that, right?"

And at that, Pyrrha's face coloured, and she glanced down in shame. "…no one asked me."

He frowned. "But, what about that guy? Y'know, Mercury, or whatever?" He jabbed his thumb back at the door, where within the party continued to rage on. "I saw him inside when I peeked in. I would've thought-"

"Why would I go with him, Jaune?" she asked, pivoting to stare him down, utterly confused. "You do remember that he's not my friend, right?"

The blond shrunk back a bit. "Well, yes," he mumbled, "but he said… I don't know. You're Pyrrha Nikos, right? Guys must fall over themselves for you."

'Pyrrha Nikos' doesn't mean anything. I'm just… me.

She pulled her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms around them. A car drove by, its headlights blinding her momentarily, blending in with the glowing streetlights around them. Its engine pulsed at the same tempo as the dance music reverberating through the structure behind her, like one long lucid dream. It felt disorienting… and felt empowering.

"…wanted to go with you."

"What was that?" Jaune asked, leaning closer.

She cleared her throat, embarrassed. "I wanted to go with you." She then buried her face against her knees. It's done.

Jaune didn't respond. After a few minutes of silence from the boy, she dared to take a look. The blond's eyes were wide, transfixed on her figure, mouth hanging slightly agape in astonishment. She started for a moment, then shrunk back- what could she possibly say?

However, a moment passed, and something seemed to click in Jaune. His blue eyes sudden lit up, cheeks reddening profusely, and he stammered out, "W-w-wait. Hold up. Me?"

Mutely, she nodded.

"But- but- but-" and then, he hunched over, chuckling almost manically. "Oh my god, Ruby wasn't kidding. Oh my god." When he finally looked at her again, his expression was so open and sincere that she wanted to cry. "She told me that you- that I wasn't crazy, that you- oh my god." He looked utterly amazed.

She stood up, feeling shame well up within her. "I get it. You don't need to laugh," she whispered, passing him his cape. Instantly, she shivered, turning back to the door. "I'm heading back home."

"Wait!" The boy reached up, grabbing her hand. "I'll go with you."

Don't do this, Jaune. Don't get my hopes up. She drew in a shaky breath. "Why?" she muttered bitterly. "Go enjoy the party."

"But," the boy insisted, pulling her hand gently so that she looked him in the eyes, revealing all of his embarrassed, earnest sincerity, "I... got your message. Saph knocked some sense into me. Ruby told me to take work off this weekend. And... I'm sorry I freaked out. I shouldn't have." Voice catching in his throat, he added, "I came here for you-" He paused, ashamed, "-if you'll have me."

She stared at him, stupefied. "You… wanted to ask me?"

He shrugged, laughing awkwardly. "I guess we're both bad at this."

Her heart felt so full, it was about to burst. Jaune's okay with me.

For the first time, she didn't regret going to the party.