The Fall Project
From Ashes
Dancing in the Dark
For Yang, school had been increasingly more dull the past few weeks. With the whole trouble with Roman Torchwick and the White Fang, and after punching an Atlesian Paladin into oblivion, everything else just seemed to fall to the wayside.
The one thing to look forward to was the Beacon Dance. Team CFVY was supposed to be in charge of organizing the event but they were stuck in their last mission, so the task fell to Team RWBY. Yang thew her focus into decorations and such, a welcoming distraction from school.
Occasionally she would watch as a group of starry-eyed girls would swarm Nova in a hope that he would ask one of them to the dance. He politely declined them all no matter what they tried, and for one particularly large group, he decided to give them a show.
With a snap of his finger a small flame lit, suspended above his palm. He took a deep breath and blew into the flame, spewing out hundreds of fiery leaves that danced through the air around them. The group was awed by the work of his semblance, and one girl reached for one as it came close, but shied away as it grew and changed into something different. A fiery bird flapped its wings to remain in the air, then flew around in circles above them.
Many of the leaves combined, forming an entire flock of blazing winged creatures that encircled the awestruck group of young huntresses. One of the birds spun rapidly through the air, then approached Yang. She raised an eyebrow at Nova, who remained intently focused on controlling the flock.
The bird stayed in front of her so she reached out to it, and was surprised when it landed on her finger and cocked its head to the side. Somehow, Nova's fire didn't burn her, and felt like warm water over her hand. The bird spread it's wings wide, and the flames bloomed as the bird lost its form, turning into a ball of flame in her palm.
The shape shifted again, stopping in the form of a heart that burned with bright golden fire. Her symbol. She looked back up at Nova, who was staring directly at her. Before she could act on anything, he lifted his hands, making the flock speed into the sky and fizzle out.
When she looked down into her palm, she found it empty, but could still feel the warmth. Nova moved past the crowd of disappointed huntresses and continued on his way as if nothing had occurred. Yang couldn't help but smile, knowing that she had the best chance out of all of them. Unfortunately, time was running out as the day of the dance approached rapidly.
She missed her chance.
The morning before the Beacon dance, Nova left on a mission assigned to him by Professor Ozpin. He had been tasked to help Team CFVY get out of the hellhole they had dug themselves into, but he had to follow a few rules.
Ozpin decided this would be the perfect test for Nova's progress in controlling his semblance, so he instructed the boy to leave his swords behind. His only resource would be his semblance, and if he didn't require backup, then he would pass his 'final exam.'
Yang managed to chase him down just before he boarded the Bullhead, and she was clearly upset, "Why didn't you tell me you weren't going to the dance?! You could've at least let me know instead of leaving me in the dark!"
He didn't expect her upset reaction, but tried to explain anyway, "Yang, I appreciate it, but do you really think someone like me," he said, pointing at his mask, "would belong at a dance?"
Yang pursed her lips, "Fine. Go do what you want." She whirled around and stomped away, frustrated that he never even considered the dance an option. Never considered her an option.
He sighed, then handed his swords over to Cade to take care of. The Bullhead lifted off the ground and sped to the north, disappearing over the snowy mountain peaks.
Cadence strode through the ballroom, and saw every dancing couple as a slap to the face because of his own 'single' status. He did ask a handful of potential dates as the day came closer, but was declined every time.
The twins pushed him into going anyway, and told him to try and find a willing dance partner, or to just enjoy the night as he may with the twins. Unfortunately, within the first ten minutes, the brothers separated with dates of their own, leaving Cade alone once again. So now he sauntered his way around the ballroom, hopelessly searching for someone to spend the lonely night with.
Not long after he began searching he found her.
She was a tiny girl, easily the smallest person at the dance. Her brown hair was long and straightened, pulled back by a pink headband adorned with a pink rose just above her left ear. Her modest dress was pure white with light pink ribbons around the waist and short-sleeved cuffs.
Her arms were crossed and her brow was furrowed, and her bottom lip was stuck in a pout. In his eyes, she was the walking definition of adorable.
He downed the last of his punch and took a quick breath to get his nerves in order, then walked coolly over to the girl. "Hello," he said with a smile, trying to act cheerful.
What he received was a huff from the young woman, followed by a backhanded wave to tell him off. He let out a quick sigh, "Not even going to give me a chance, huh?"
She gave him a sideways glance, showing her light pink eyes, and shrugged. Moving forward, Cade tried to get her to loosen up, "I take it you were strong-armed into coming to the dance tonight?" Her head bobbed up and down in the affirmative, and she pouted again. "Well if it makes any difference, you are far too pretty to be here alone." The young woman blushed and stuck her tongue out at Cade, then stubbornly turned her head away from him.
Persistent as always, he gave it one last effort, "You know, I wasn't really looking forward to being here either," he said, and she raised an eyebrow as he continued, "but just because we're somewhere we don't want to be doesn't mean we can't enjoy it." He offered his hand, "All you have to do is take a chance."
The girl stared at him for a few moments, then broke into a fit of high-pitched giggles. Just as he was about to turn away, defeated, she took his hand and pulled him quickly to the dance floor, a sly grin at the corners of her lips. Her eyebrow raised expectantly, waiting for him to make the first move.
The song was slow, so he took a formal approach by giving a polite bow, and she responded with a curtsy. He took one of her hands in his, and put his other on her waist. They took a carefree attitude, comically mimicking old classical dances as they waltzed across the ballroom floor.
He noted that she didn't talk much, resorting mostly to animated facial expressions along with her small giggles and laughs. Before long the music changed to something a bit more lively, and the unusual pair started laughing at each others' awful dance moves.
They stayed together throughout the night, having a surprisingly good time with just a random stranger.
Yang wasn't having a good day.
Far too many teenage boys had tried hitting on her that evening, and not a single one of them caught her attention. They were all open books to her. No dirty secrets to uncover, no broken past for her to put back together, no real challenge.
Fed up with all the ridiculousness, she stomped her way to a secluded corner to be alone for a bit. She crossed her arms, leaning against the wall to take her time thinking of what to do with the night.
"Looking for someone?" She looked up to see a tall, green-haired boy that looked old enough to be a senior at one of the other combat schools.
Yang didn't feel like talking to another stupid kid, so she lashed at him with venom laced in her voice, "What gave you that idea?"
He pursed his lips, "You're wearing a look I'm all too familiar with."
"What do you mean?" she asked, curiosity getting the best of her.
"Well, you look like a lost puppy, and by that I mean you look like you miss someone," he said, reading her like an open book.
"Yeah," she sighed, "the guy I wanted to come to the dance with isn't the most… social person."
He chuckled and nodded, "I know what that's like."
Yang shook her head, wanting to get to the point, "Can I help you in some way?"
The boy shrugged, "Hopefully. I'm looking for my fiance. A few months ago she went missing, and I've been looking for her."
She raised an eyebrow, "Did she run away?"
"No no, we barely ever argued, and she wouldn't just vanish without saying something, not unless it was critically important. Someone tipped me saying that you like to make a lot of friends, so I was hoping you met her somewhere."
"Okay," Yang said, unfolding her crossed arms. "I meet a lot of people, what did she look like?" She didn't mean to sound like a shady information dealer, that's just the way the words came out.
The boy thought for a moment to come up with a fitting description, then released a breath he was holding, "Her name is Amber. She's around average height and fairly tan skinned with brown eyes and hair that she keeps shoulder length, and just under her left eye is a beauty mark. She has a decent sense of humor, but she's more of an intellectual, always reading or studying something. She's always been kind and caring, ready to help anyone in need she comes across. She graduated from Beacon last year, and we've been dating since day one, but a few months ago..." He trailed off and sighed. "She went for a horse ride and never came back."
Yang sympathized with him, losing someone special can be extremely hard to deal with, but she didn't have good news for him, "Sorry, but I haven't seen anyone like that."
"Yeah, I figured," He sighed again, "In this day and age, who knows where she could be. I'm starting to think I should just accept the worst and move on."
"Don't be too quick to give up, you never know if she'll turn up," Yang said, not just trying to reassure him, but herself as well.
He smiled and nodded, "Thanks. So what's your guy like?"
She gave him a deadly glare, but decided to talk. After all, the chance of seeing this person again was slim to none, "He's… complicated."
"Complicated?" he questioned, then sat and listened patiently.
"He's been through a lot of terrible things, through no fault of his own. It's almost like the whole world is turning against him, but he hasn't done anything wrong," she explained. "Because of all that, he wears a mask and keeps to himself, not to mention that if you were to meet him he would probably come off as intense and socially awkward… But if you dig deep enough to get past all that, he is a good person. It just takes a bit of effort to uncover."
"Sounds high maintenance," he said with a smirk.
She burst out laughing, "Yeah, you hit the nail on the head right there. That's not all though, he'll do anything for his friends, but in a different way than you'd expect. He'll dig into the grit, and get his hands bloody to do what he believes he's right. On top of all that, he's probably the best fighter I've ever seen."
The young man nodded, then questioned further, "Have you ever seen his face?"
The Brawler bit her lip, a tint of red in her cheeks, "Yeah, but I'm not sure he actually wanted me to see. He made it sound more like an obligation..." she sighed, "I don't know, it just feels like every time he gets close to showing a deep emotion, he just backs off, even when I really push it. And trust me, I can push it. He never takes the next step, and I can't figure out what to do about it."
The boy thought about it for a moment, "Has he ever talked about how he feels about you?" She shook her head, so he tried to reassure her, "The mind of a man is very straightforward. Just tell him how you feel, and hopefully he feels the same." He glanced up as the midnight bells rang, and turned back to Yang. "I better get going. It was nice talking with you, and I hope everything goes well with your mysterious friend."
Yang gave a weak smile as the boy walked off, "Thanks, good luck finding your girl."
It didn't take long before Cade and his date were both in near-perfect sync with each other as they danced into the night. Her movements were fluid and graceful, and she showed a remarkable amount of coordination and balance. Raising his arm, Cade twirled the girl around and caught her with his outstretched hand, then pulled her back in as their movements flowed with the tempo of the song.
For a moment, the rest of the ballroom faded away, and each one entirely focused on the other as the music built into a crescendo. In the final notes of the song, she twisted and fell backwards, trusting Cade to catch her, and their eyes met.
His heart was pounding from the excitement and exertion of their dance, and he gave her a smile as he stood them up straight again, "See? I told you it could be fun." The girl excitedly bounced up and down, clapping her hands together in elation, "By the way, my name is Cadence Claret."
The pink-eyed girl bit her lip, then grabbed him by the tie and yanked him down to her level. He was caught completely by surprise when she pressed her lips against his, and for a fleeting moment, his mind went blank.
He snapped back into reality when he felt her hand reach into his front pocket. He pulled away immediately, with a look of astonished bewilderment as she snickered and teasingly waved his Scroll in his face. She tapped away on the device with masterful speed, then handed it back to him with a sly grin.
He looked down with a raised eyebrow to see what she had changed, and shining across the top of the screen were two words: New contact.
He looked back up to ask her why she gave him her number, but she completely vanished.
Meanwhile, she watched her new boy-toy from a distance as he walked away with a smile, recollecting the night's events. She wore a new disguise; green eyes and short black hair along with a glittering black dress, making sure that he wouldn't know it was her. He was right, she did have fun, and would certainly like to have more fun with someone of his... disposition.
"Hey Neo." She frowned and turned around to look at Emerald, who gave her a distasteful glare, "Stay focused." Neo stuck her tongue out at the green-haired woman, who was undoubtedly jealous that she didn't have the capacity to attract such attention.
At least now she had someone to entertain her until the Vytal festival comes around.
The next day, Jaune noticed a change in Pyrrha. A glance in his direction from time to time, the subtle curl at the edges of her lips throughout the day, and the way she seemed to lean into him whenever they sat next to each other.
She had an air about her that seemed… happier than usual, as if suddenly the weight of the world had lifted from her shoulders. While he wasn't certain why she seemed so joyful, he was certainly happy for her.
It wasn't until deep into the evening that Team CFVY returned with Nova. Everyone knew about the team's predicament, and many came to see if they made it back safely when they heard the Bullhead was inbound. There was a tumult of voices on the landing pad as people chatted about their upcoming missions, but all went silent when someone called out that they could see the dropship.
Black smoke billowed from the engines, and everyone stared in anticipation as the craft slowly made its way to them. As it slowed to a hover at the edge of the platform, the engines sputtered and died, making the Bullhead slam onto the metal deck.
Large claw marks and burns littered the armor of the ship, and ice-blue coolant leaked from the engines. The cockpit glass was cracked in several places, and the pilot inside could be seen rapidly flipping switches and turning dials to deactivate the dropship.
The bay door opened manually by a hard shove from Yatsuhashi, who had a few bloody cuts on his arms and a gash across his chest. He immediately ducked his head back inside in order to help the others, and one by one, Team CFVY exited the vehicle.
Fox's left arm was in a makeshift splint, and he had to help Velvet off the Bullhead because of an injured leg. Next was Professor Port, who was supposed to be watching Nova to see if the boy passed his 'test.' The teacher walked with a limp, and his arm hung dead at his side because of a dislocated shoulder. He kept his cheerful attitude however, in order to ease the tension in the crowd.
Coco was by far the worst. Dried blood was caked to the side of her head, and Yatsu had to help her stand as she cautiously stepped from the Bullhead, bracing herself with a hand on the side of the machine. She shielded her eyes from sensitivity to light because of a bad concussion, and when she stumbled, Yatsu gently picked her up bridal-style to keep her from falling. Normally she would protest this action with unkempt fury, but this time she just closed her eyes and leaned her head against his chest, exhausted and in pain.
A medical team was standing by with a stretcher on hand, so Yatsu placed the team leader down and let the medics take care of her. Before they moved off, Fox waved Cade over to him, and spoke quietly, "You've got one hell of a friend there. If it weren't for him, we'd all be dead."
"It was nothing. Is he alright?" Cade asked, wondering along with the rest of the crowd on the landing, why Nova hadn't left the Bullhead yet.
The quiet boy nodded, "He took a hit from a Nevermore and his mask broke, so he doesn't want to come out."
Cade frowned and shook his head, then thanked the boy. He walked up to the craft alone, and had to wave the crowd back to keep them from charging inside. Nova sat in a corner, his golden eye softly glowing from the shadows. He held the two pieces of his mask in one hand, nervous about the crowd.
"Hey, Cade."
"Hey, Nova."
A long silence filled the bay of the dropship, and Cade tapped his fingers on the pommel of his sword, "It looks like you guys had a hard time, and I wanted you to know that you did a good job."
The stubbornly modest boy shook his head, "I do what I can, no different from anyone else."
He rolled his eyes, "Alright come on, let's go."
"I can't," Nova said plainly. "My mask broke, and there's too many people."
"So you've got stage fright?" Cade asked with a raised eyebrow.
A long pause followed as Nova thought to himself, and he whispered "You don't understand."
Cade let out an irritated sigh, "What, are you five years old? The entire school knows that you saved Pyrrha, and now they know about Team CFVY. No one is going to care what you look like behind the mask."
The swordsman glared at his team leader in silent frustration, but gave in on one condition, "No cameras." Knowing that the swordsman wouldn't budge otherwise, Cade left the Bullhead and informed everyone, and they respectfully complied. Nova tentatively left the craft to join up with his friends, nervously shifting his eyes at the crowd of people.
It was the first time Jaune had seen Nova unmasked, and to be quite honest, he wasn't surprised. It made sense that he would wear a mask because of scars, both physical or emotional. He turned to Pyrrha to ask her opinion, but she had completely vanished.
Surprised by his missing partner, he looked over the crowd and caught the bright red of her long ponytail as she turned the corner. He subtly followed, and found her at the base of a stairway leading deeper into the academy. She was wide-eyed, and it looked as though all the color had drained from her face.
"Pyrrha? Are you alright?" he questioned, "You look like you've just seen a ghost."
Her head snapped in his direction, and she opened her mouth to speak, but the words refused to form. All she managed to do was shake her head. He started to feel worried for her. Was she that shaken up about Team CFVY? "If your worried about CFVY, don't be. They're in good hands."
"I-I-I can't say," she stammered, shaking her head.
Jaune then placed a hand on her shoulder, "Pyrrha, we've been through this. Just talk to me and you'll feel better, I promise."
Pyrrha stepped away from him, shaking her head again with a pained grimace, "No Jaune, I can't. I… need to be alone for this."
Jaune frowned, but nodded, "Okay. Let me know if I can help." She waited for him to leave, then she completely lost her composure. Her back scraped against the wall as she shrunk to the ground.
What was she supposed to do?
After getting patched up, Team CFVY was sent to the cafeteria for a much-needed feast. Chatter was sparse for a while, until Yang asked how they got into their predicament in the first place.
"We were doing fine at first," Coco started, and had a white bandage wrapped around her head, "But then a Giant Nevermore showed up out of nowhere and slammed into the cliffside, throwing huge boulders all over the place. I don't remember it but obviously I got hit in the head really hard."
Velvet looked at her partner with concern, but continued the tale, "After that it was impossible to leave without assistance, so we had to hold for as long as we could. We managed to get away from the Grim and hide in an outcropping that was easy to defend, but there was no way out."
"Yeah, but then Nova showed up," Coco chuckled, "So get this; the Bullhead hovers above us for just a few seconds, then this idiot leaps out of the side and dives face-first into a horde of bloodthirsty baddies!"
"Yeah, it wouldn't be the first time," Cade said, and everyone laughed.
"It get's better! He fights his way to us using his crazy fire magic, and then he walks up to us and says 'I heard you guys were in a tight spot.'" She said, trying to mimic Nova's much deeper voice. "Here I am, barely able to stand and blood leaking out of my head and I'm thinking, who is this kid?!"
They laughed and lifted their glasses in salute to the swordsman, who had a wide grin on his face. "So the Bullhead lands on the top of the cliff, and we have to climb all the way up to get on the damn thing. I'm out for the count, and Fox had a busted arm already, so the only one who could carry me was Yatsu. It took forever, and the entire time we're climbing, Grimm are right on our heels trying to follow us, and Nova is right below us, throwing huge waves of flames that took down the entire cliffside every time he waved his hand!"
Nova shook his head, "She's exaggerating, each wave could only knock off a small section at a time."
"Whatever dude, it was awesome. Anyway when we got to the top, the Nevermore came back and smacked the Bullhead around, and then it flew over to Nova and tried to bite his head off. His mask just snapped in two, and he gave the Nevermore a death-glare that could slay a Goliath, then he throws a ball of fire into its mouth, and the entire thing just explodes! It was awesome!"
Coco continued to tell the tale she wasn't even conscious for, while Pyrrha did what she could to try to keep herself from staring at… Him. It was truly unbelievable. Looking back, she realized that all the pieces fit together. The lost memory after the explosion, the similar fighting style, the familiarity with his own forgotten name.
Pyrrha had never been more at war with herself.
Jaune had been her shining knight for her time in Beacon, saving her from a pit of loneliness she had suffered from for years. After months of healing and detaching herself from her lost childhood friend, she had come to truly love Jaune, and her feelings for Milo faded.
So what was she supposed to do, knowing that Milo is alive? All this time he was right in front of her, hidden behind Nova's mask.
Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good.
-Romans 12:9
For those of you who don't know, Amber is the Fall Maiden.