Greetings, everyone. It is the week before my last finals week, and my life has been a living hell as a result! It seems that the profs think it's a great idea to give a ton of assignments with due dates right before finals. Thankfully, I have a backlog for this fic, allowing me to post updates even if crap like this gets in the way of my writing. This is a shorter chapter that focuses more on Ren and Nora. Enjoy!
"Couldn't I cut this up to make it look like a tunic?" Nora asked, holding up a hot pink blouse.
"I don't think Vikings wore bright pink, Nora," Jaune said as he peered through the racks. After postponing the trip multiple times, he had finally gotten around to taking Ren, Nora, and Pyrrha to Goodwill to show them how to find discount costume supplies. "We want to be at least somewhat authentic."
Nora pouted. "A Viking wouldn't care what people thought of her wearing pink," she muttered, but put the blouse back anyway.
"Try red or burgundy," Ren suggested. "That's close."
"What's burgundy again?"
"It's like a dark reddish-purple."
Pyrrha was looking through a rack of black yoga pants, trying to find something that didn't have any brand prints on them. She found a loose pair of dark swish pants, which she put over her arm before walking over to the belts. "It's too bad that none of the shoes work."
"We can try Walmart at some point," Jaune suggested. "I generally avoid buying used shoes, anyway." He eyed the belts. "This leather one could work." He pointed to a plain brown leather belt with an older-looking buckle.
Pyrrha took the belt and examined it. "This looks good. I want to be able to put one of Barty's dragon scale keychains on it." She was referring to scalemail keychains that Barty made and sold in his spare time. They looked like simple lines of dragon scales in various colored metals.
"I have a silver and gold one if you want to use it," Jaune offered. "I don't really wear it with my costume."
"Thanks, but I think I'll buy one of my own. Red and gold will go better with my character's color scheme. Besides, I want to support Barty."
"That's mainly why I bought mine," Jaune admitted. "Though, it does look pretty cool. Maybe I'll create a dragonslayer character who wears it."
"Or wear it to a Renaissance Festival. Are there any in the area?"
"Oh, yeah! There's one in spring that I go to with my family and Ruby's family every year. I'll let you know when it is if you wanna come with," Jaune said eagerly. "There are weapon stands, jousting, and garb shops. The food is amazing."
"That sounds fun. I've never been to one before," Pyrrha said, smiling at how excited Jaune was. "Is it true that they sell whole turkey legs?"
"Yeah, but no one can ever finish one."
"I could!" Nora chirped, popping up from behind another stand, holding a loose burgundy shirt. "How's this, Jaune?"
Jaune eyed the shirt before nodding. "Perfect. If you make an emblem for yourself, you could easily paint it on the front with fabric paint."
"Ooh! Good idea." Nora looked over her shoulder. "Find anything, 'Lotus Boy?'"
"That will never catch on!" Ren called back. "And not yet." He was looking through the green shirts.
"What are you doing for your character?" Jaune asked. "Ninja? Rogue? Warrior?"
"I was thinking of being a rogue. I like using daggers," Ren replied.
"Hm. Maybe you could wear on open leather vest like Sun," Nora murmured, tapping her chin as her eyes glittered. She was only partially teasing.
"No," Ren said flatly. "Unlike my roommate, I fight with my shirt on."
"You're no fun." Nora pouted.
They left a little while later, once Ren had found a dark green shirt that could pass for a tunic. "Ah, the improvised Goodwill tunics," Jaune declared. "We truly are poor college students."
"We should wear them around campus," Nora said, bouncing up and down. "We could start a fashion statement!"
"Well, Jaune and I already wear our garb at the coffee shop," Pyrrha said, shrugging her shoulders. "No one seems to care."
She slipped her hand into Jaune's as they walked, squeezing it gently. Ever since their mutual confession a few days ago, the act felt so natural. She always glanced at his face whenever she took his hand, enjoying the way his eyes gained a happy light and the way his lips quirked upward, almost like an instinctive response to her touch.
Jaune smiled at the warmth of Pyrrha's hand in his. Lame as it was, he felt practically giddy whenever she did something like that, whether it was a touch to his arm or a quick kiss goodbye on the cheek. "At least we're set for Halloween."
Pyrrha tilted her head. "Is it that close already?" Now that he mentions it, it is near the end of October. Being in college did weird things to a person's sense of time. In high school and all previous years, holidays were raved about weeks in advance. In college, focus was mainly on finishing assignments. The only sign of the upcoming events came in the convenience stores and craft shops, as well as the arrival of the seasonal Halloween and costume shops. In a haze of assignments and Dag practice, it was easy to forget.
"We should all go to the costume shops on Saturday before Dag!" Nora bounced up and down. "And we need to go Trick-Or-Treating together."
Ren raised an eyebrow. "Do people look favorably on college students doing that?"
"They shouldn't mind," Pyrrha said. "I mean, I think we of all people deserve free candy."
"Totally!" Jaune replied, secretly glad that he wasn't the only one planning on going Trick-Or-Treating. "People in the area don't really care. Our house gets college students all the time and I always go out with Ruby. Yang went till she turned eighteen. After that, she started hitting the local dance clubs instead."
"That sounds fun too!" Nora's eyes glittered as she hugged Ren's arm. "Ren, we should totally go dancing this week!"
"We'll see what our assignments are," Ren said with a patient smile. "You still have a few midterms to study for."
"Ugh! Don't remind me."
Jaune groaned as he thought about the upcoming tests. "These next few days are gonna suck, that's for sure. We may need to shorten this week's Pathfinder session."
"It'll be better once we start taking classes relating to our majors," Pyrrha assured him. "The general education courses are supposed to be the worst."
"Yeah. Our majors." Jaune laughed nervously. He still was having trouble figuring out a good major for himself. He liked playing games, but he wasn't sure about how to apply that to a major. Pyrrha had suggested a Business or Marketing major with a Fine Arts minor, so he could try and open up his own gaming store. That idea had a certain appeal. He just needed to talk to his advisor and figure out what he'd have to do for a degree of that nature.
"You'll figure something out. I'm sure of it." Pyrrha was confident of that much. She gave his hand another squeeze as they continued down the sidewalk downtown. As they walked, she glanced at Ren and Nora. Nora was still hugging her best friend's arm and Ren's face still held that small, tolerant smile. It occurred to Pyrrha that this looked very much like a double-date. They certainly would be cute together.
Once they got back to campus, Jaune and Pyrrha went off on their own, since they had a class within the next hour. Nora looked up at Ren. "Wanna come over and play some Skyrim?" She could tell that the walk back had tired him, so she offered him an option that would allow him to take a nap if he wanted to.
"Sure." Ren smiled, leaning on Nora a little as she continued to hold his arm. Since they were little, it almost seemed as if she was able to read his mind. They had bonded in elementary school, finding common ground in the fact that they were the only adopted children in their grade. On the outside, they seemed like an odd pair. Ren, however, couldn't imagine life without her. They were perfectly comfortable with each other and, despite their opposite personalities, never wanted the other to change.
When they got back to the dorm, Blake was reading in her bed. She glanced up as they came in. "Have fun at Goodwill?"
"Yep!" Nora chirped. "We got some improvised tunics. You should come with next time." It had taken time, but Blake had finally been convinced to join a few Dag battles. Sun asked about her frequently, according to Ren.
"I may just go to the costume store to find something," Blake murmured as she returned to her book.
Nora shrugged before opening her laptop and sitting down in a pile of blankets she had set up on the floor. Ren curled up next to her, his head coming to a rest on a pillow near her hip. She petted his hair softly as she waited for the laptop to boot up. "Hey, Blake. Mind if I play some Skyrim with the sound on?"
"Go ahead," Blake replied. "The background noise doesn't bother me as long as no one's screaming."
"Great." Nora had headphones, but didn't want to use them. Ren liked watching her play while he dozed.
As Nora started playing, Ren propped himself up on his elbows to look at the screen. "Are you doing the Dragonborn missions?"
"Yep," Nora murmured as she sent her character, an Orc fighter, through a cavern. "I hate those stupid Cthulu monsters."
"They are pretty annoying," Ren agreed. "But, at least you get to ride a dragon by the time the quest ends."
"Too bad the riding mechanics suck." Nora killed a cultist with a warhammer she had enchanted with electricity. "Jaune and Pyrrha are pretty cute, huh?"
"Mm hm," Ren agreed, letting his head rest on the pillow again. "I'm glad they finally figured things out." He tried to hide the touch of envy in his voice.
"Me too. I was starting to get legitimately stressed out wondering if they'd ever get together!" Nora said, shaking her head.
It's not fair, though. They only knew each other for a few months and were able to get together. I've known Ren for years, and am still too chicken to say anything. Maybe I'll talk to Pyrrha about it. She can keep a secret. She thought about asking Blake later on, but her quiet roomie didn't seem to have much to say on the subject of romance. Whenever Nora asked her how she felt about Sun, Blake would just shrug and say nothing. Nora did detect a slight blush on her cheeks sometimes, though.
"Do you want to wear our Dag costumes for Halloween?" Ren asked. "Since we're in college, we may have to hold off on more elaborate costumes for now."
"Yeah," Nora sighed. Normally, she liked to go all-out on Halloween. Her costume during the previous year had been a dwarf (including a fake beard and cardboard axe). Ren had been an elf, utilizing a pair of fake ears he had gotten at a Renaissance Festival. He didn't wear them at Dag, since the risk of them coming off and getting trampled in the mud was far too high. "It's probably for the best, unless we can get a job on campus or something."
"Just not at the dining hall," Ren said firmly.
"No kidding. Blech!" Nora made a face as she thought back to the horror stories Coco had told her. "I actually ATE there during orientation! If I had gotten sick, I probably could have sued and paid my tuition that way."
Ren chuckled. "I don't think it would have been that easy, Nora. There would have been no way to prove that the dining hall food had been the culprit."
"Hey, I don't need your logic!" Nora shot back, nudging Ren with her elbow. He merely rolled his eyes at her before resting on the pillow and scooting a little closer. She took her hand from the keyboard to brush his hair from his face. His breaths became deeper and more even within a few minutes. She felt a tender smile replacing her earlier grin as she continued to stroke his hair.
Her character had died in the game without her noticing. At that moment, she didn't care in the slightest.
So, on my profile is a poll. After I finish this fic and Mates for Life (yes, I am finishing that), I plan on starting another chapter project. The problem is deciding which one I will do first. That's where you guys come in! Feel free to vote on what you'd like to see from me next. I'll make my decision once I've finished my current projects.
Anyway, review but don't flame. You know the drill. I'll see you next week if finals don't kill me. Peace out!