A/N: Ugh. Please let me know what you guys think about this chapter. Let me tell you, this one is probably the hardest chapter I've done yet. I don't know what I was thinking, trying to set up a one-sided dialogue like this one. Just… review. And enjoy, if y'all can.
On that note though, I don't usually like to ruffle my own feathers but damn, this is one of my betters stories. It's already a third of the way to my highest followed one so, yay me! XD
Guest: Hey, no need to thank me. I'm writing this for myself. XD
D: Uh. Thank you? I guess?
Guest: Whaddya mean by 'set the setting'? 'Cause I don't really think detailing the bar is all that important. Yet. :D
Nowadays, most doors in anyplace that dealt with customers had some sort of chime or sensor that would announce someone coming into the place.
The bar Jaune worked at was pretty old-fashioned though, so he only had to rely on the slight creaking of the hinges to know that someone had arrived. If the arriving person wasn't a loud, boisterous blonde who enjoyed her strawberry sunrises, and if Jaune had something that kept him occupied, he wouldn't notice the person until they were right at his bar counter, demanding a drink.
So when a petite girl stepped into the bar, making her way into a seat near Jaune without making a sound, the bartender didn't notice the customer at all, more preoccupied with something else on hand. It didn't help that there were next to no customers there at all, and anyone who was enjoying a pint decided to vacate the premises when they saw who came in.
It wasn't a surprise when Jaune finished the last sentence in his journal—it wasn't a diary, men write in journals—and snapped it shut, he made an undignified squawking noise while dropping the book onto the floor.
"Oh jeez, can you at least say something when you come in like that? Holy Dust, that scared me." Jaune gasped, a hand clutching his chest. The girl had an amused grin on her face, but answered with an unamused lift of the eyebrow, leaning onto the counter. Regaining his breath, Jaune wiped his forehead, smiling weakly at the figure in front of him.
"Sorry about that, today's been a little slow so I was just ah, never mind. Let me check up on the others before… I…" Jaune looked around to see the place deserted, the only thing making any noise besides him were the ceiling fans, rotating slowly above their heads. "Huh. They usually say something before they leave." Jaune frowned, before shrugging. "Well, at least they paid."
With no one else to serve but the half strawberry- half brunette- haired girl in front of him, Jaune smiled his bartender smile, greeting her.
"So then, the usual?"
The girl tilted her head, holding up one finger and pointing to the bar, before pointing to herself. Jaune nodded, pretty sure he understood what she was asking.
"You're wondering why I'd ask that if you've only been here once?" The girl nodded. Jaune shrugged carelessly, bringing up a large glass mug. "Let's just say I had a feeling. Besides," he said with a laugh, "I actually bought ice cream last week so that you wouldn't get upset like last time." The girl fell into an exaggerated girly pose, blinking rapidly while pretending to swoon. Jaune just chuckled again.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm sure." He said, taking out a metal ice cream scoop and running it over some water. While he was doing so, the girl peered over the counter by jumping, feet on the bar stool to look at the fallen journal with fascination. Jaune caught her looking and politely but firmly placed a hand on her shoulder, pushing her back down onto the stool.
"That's a little dangerous, miss. These bar stools haven't been in their prime since… well, they've never been in their prime." Jaune joked, stooping down to pick up the book, dusting it off and placing it behind the counter. The girl pointed at the book, silently asking a question. Jaune waved one hand dismissively, dropping two scoops of vanilla ice cream in.
"It's nothing. Just something to help me keep my mind occupied when there's down time." The girl didn't like that answer, reaching out to pick the journal up. Jaune lightly grabbed her hand, pushing it back, shaking his head patiently. With the other hand, he expertly popped open a bottle of vanilla vodka, pouring in about a shot's worth and placing it down. "It's a private book, sweetheart." The girl pouted, crossing her arms and swinging her legs, which only served to make her look adorable in Jaune's eyes.
Placing the mug under a dispenser, he pressed the button for it to deliver some vanilla root beer, grabbing a bottle of dark syrup and a cluster of red fruit, chopping them into halves. The girl tried to quickly grab the book again, but was stopped by Jaune's hands again, this time moving the book to the counter behind Jaune, placing it on a high shelf with all of the hard liquors.
"Sorry miss. That's off the menu." Jaune said, a little more sternly this time, but still with a smile. The girl threw her hands up in exasperation, amusing Jaune. With a healthy topping of chocolate syrup on the ice cream, Jaune plopped a few slices of strawberries into the drink, placing it in front of the girl.
"This however, is on the menu, and something way more delicious. An adult root beer float," Jaune winked at her. "Neapolitan style." With a grumpy nod of thanks, the girl quickly pulsed her hands back and forth, sign language for the word 'whatever'. Jaune raised an eyebrow.
"You know, for someone who's mute, you've got quite an attitude." Jaune said teasingly, nodding at her hands. "I was expecting a 'thank-you', not a 'whatever'." The girl blinked in surprise, the drink centimeters from her lips. Placing the mug back down, her hands moved in a flurry, asking him if he knew sign language. Jaune rolled his eyes, hands settling on the counter.
"No. I don't know sign language. I'm actually just reading your mind right now." He said dryly. The girl frowned, before signing again with her hands, telling him that he was being very funny. She grabbed onto the mug and took a large swig of it, almost emptying half of the glass.
"I am pretty funny, thanks." Jaune shot back idly, looking at her put away the adult-sized drink. "You know, for someone so small, you really can put those away." The dichromatic girl grinned with pride, pumping her fist energetically before finishing the drink with one last gulp, licking off the ice cream that was stuck around her mouth. She held out the drink innocently, eyes wide. Taking the mug away from her, Jaune saw another flurry of hand gestures, asking him how he knew sign language. Jaune snorted, making the drink a little faster than the first time now that he had all of the materials on hand.
"I had a big family. Seven sisters—yes, I know, active parents and whatnot—and some of them were bound to have… problems." Jaune shrugged, placing the drink in front of the girl. "I uh, had a sister who was mute. Learned enough sign language to keep her happy. I admit I brush up on it because…" Jaune shrugged again. "I dunno. Guess it reminds me of her." The girl tilted her head to the side inquisitively, about to ask what happened to her before Jaune shoved the drink into her hands, forcing a grin.
"Never mind that, now that I know you know sign language, what's your name miss? I didn't catch it the first time you came here." The girl sipped on this drink a little slower than before, placing it down and slowly doing three hand signals, spelling out her name.
"N… E… O… Neo, huh?" Jaune looked up and down at the girl, lips quirking into a smile. "I think that might suit you a little." The girl didn't even bother answering the understatement, deigning to take another sip of the mug.
"Well, it's nice meeting you Neo. I hope you like your drink." Neo thought about it for a second, before replying.
It's certainly better than the company, Came the snarky answer. Jaune choked back a laugh, shaking his head.
"I'm going to take that as a compliment." Jaune glanced over at the empty tables, drinks and other things still littering the place. "Well, if my talking to you is so bad, I hope you don't mind me taking care of the mess on some of the tables." Jaune shook his head. "They certainly left in a hurry."
Neo drank obediently, waiting for Jaune to turn his back before athletically pouncing onto the countertop and grabbing the journal, slipping back into her seat and cracking it open, eyes scanning the pages with glee. She read through the latest entry.
You know, bartending isn't the worst job in the world. I make some good friends, hear interesting stories… and when I don't wanna think about my life, I've got free drinks. All in all a good deal. It's weird how open some people are to me, as if I've always known them.
The other day, the General of Atlas decided to pay me a visit, along with Mr. Branwen. They challenged each other to a drinking contest and I probably made as much money from them as I did that evening with all the other customers. Man those Hunters can drink.
And boy, when they get enough alcohol in them, they sure can talk. Told me about some weird things, like how 'fairy tales were real' and all that sort. There were some other things that I wish I knew before. Before everything happened.
Maybe if I had known what they had known, things might've changed. Maybe—
Neo grew bored, uncaring of the latest passage and quickly flipped through the pages some more, trying to find something interesting to read. Spotting a long lengthy passage that looked like there were ink smears, Neo settled herself into the bar stool, trying to decipher the messy handwriting.
I failed. I failed myself, my expectations, my goals… and my family.
There was so much I could've done. So much. But I hid like a little coward and ran when I had the chance, not even bothering to look back.
I should've stayed. I should've done something.
I couldn't even keep my promise with my family, Dust, I couldn't even get into Beacon.
What kind of life can I live now? I ruined the family name, I broke my promise, I couldn't even—
A hand slammed down onto the book, wrenching it away from Neo's grasp. The petite girl started to protest, eyes filled with indignation of having something pulled away from her, ready to teach whoever did that a lesson.
Anything she would've done quickly died as she saw Jaune standing in front of her, eyes blazing with rage.
When any creature is faced with an unknown that they can't comprehend, there are usually two choices left to them. Either to try and comprehend the situation, understand what's happening and turn to the two most useful actions known for survival: fight or flight. This was the mode that Neo had been trained in, something she cultivated for years on end, something that was so instinctual that she was feared for the fact that when faced down by her, you were either going to get a blade in between the ribs, or she would disappear from your sight, never to be seen again. Until she decided to stick a blade in between your ribs.
There was another mode, something that Neo had always thought was for the civilians of Remnant, a mode that was for the weak, for someone unproven to the wilds of the streets. When faced with the enormity of a situation, almost always literally on the line between life and death, the person would freeze, their mind acknowledging that fight or flight would do nothing. Neo didn't believe that. She always thought that no matter what happened, those two choices would always pull her through.
Yet, when she looked at the bartender, a kid barely old enough to drink, his weapon of choice his words, his armor a smile, Neo stood stock still, frozen by the sight of an almost animalistic rage. Her spine tingled and her mind screamed that she needed to run, she needed to run now, but her body not obeying the command. It should've been silly, being afraid of Jaune. All he had in one hand was a glass mug, a rag hanging from one of his fingers, and the other hand holding onto his book, trapping one of her hands.
His grip was firm, but it wasn't something a trained Huntress (or ex-Huntress, she guessed) would have trouble lifting. But Neo couldn't even gather the will to try. All she could do, and was doing, was staring at the stony faced Jaune, and swallowing hard, hoping that she wouldn't die from this encounter.
"Don't. Touch. My. Journal." Jaune said, his tone of voice not angry. Calm. Collected. Even.
It only made Neo fear him a little more. Jaune didn't move, and Neo did the same, until she realized that he was waiting for her to answer, which she finally did with a shaky nod. Satisfied with that, Jaune quite deliberately placed the journal on the counter, within arm's reach from where Neo was. He turned his back to her and took some time to place the glasses that he had gathered into a nearby sink, washing them out thoroughly.
Neo placed her hands on her lap, eyes shifting from the journal to the owner of the journal, but not even thinking about touching the item, even when it was so close. When Jaune turned around, Neo had the mug of float up to her lips, the rim covering her sight. When she finished the contents of the mug, which she did slowly, convincing herself to enjoy the flavors, she was greeted by the sight of a slightly abashed Jaune, rubbing the back of his neck.
"I'm sorry for the outburst," Jaune said meekly, grabbing the empty mug. "It was unprofessional of me. Have those two on the house." Neo blinked, confused again by the display. With a hesitant nod, Neo hopped off the bar stool, eyes still trained on the bartender, who gave a soft, but sad smile.
"I'm sorry if I frightened you." Jaune whispered, hands white as he gripped them both into fists behind the counter. Neo shook her head. No. She wasn't scared of this… this boy. That wasn't the case at all.
She respected him.
After all, how many people could make Neo, someone who's reputation literally cleared bars, freeze up?
Very few, and even fewer who were still alive.
Neo decided that now was a good time to retreat, nodding at the boy. Jaune waved with one hand, trying his best to stay upbeat.
"I hope to see you again." He said, fake cheerfulness injected into every word. He had scared of a customer. Great. Another thing added to the long list of things he despised about himself.
Neo didn't pick any of this internal monologue up of course, only seeing a kind smile, even though she had seemingly violated something so personal of his. Her eyes looked towards the lone figure in the empty room, before looking back up at the small book—the small journal, that was sitting beside him.
She nodded, and literally disappeared, the air around her shattering into pieces and leaving Jaune alone, desolate and empty. He turned to find something else to keep himself busy, something to keep his mind of his latest blunder.
Although, when Neo decided to visit him again, his shoulders seem to lift, if only a little bit.
It would be enough for now.