A small commission someone requested. They wanted a small oneshot of Jaune x Emerald using my old fic 'Snow Thief' as the basis. If you're interested in a commission of your own, then please email me at storylover543 gmail . com

Emerald Sustrai was a thief. It was something she'd long since accepted. Growing up on the streets of Mistral with no parents to her name - even her last name was something she'd picked up for a con - her only choice was to steal or to die. No one would help a kid back there, and if they did, it was just to trick them so they could slap a collar around her neck. Or worse. She shuddered to even think about it.

So she stole and didn't trust anyone, not anymore. She'd made that mistake before. A few street urchins like her who'd banded together to try and eke out some sort of meager existence. She thought she could trust them. After all, they were just like her, right? Kids who wanted to survive against the monsters in the alleys. Back when she was ten, she thought she'd finally found a home.

She found out just how wrong she was when she woke up one day to them stealing all the loot she had. Even worse, they'd tipped off one of the Spiders so they could take her for one of their brothels and take out two birds with one stone. That was when she'd awakened her Semblance and the thug who came to get her saw nothing but air. She was too scared to think straight and just ran.

She never trusted anyone again after that. She didn't even find those bastards again, so she was only left feeling bitter. She'd spent the next few years doing the same thing. Steal what she could get, stay away from the gangs, and trust no one. She didn't do partners, didn't let herself be vulnerable in front of anyone ever again. She made sure that she'd never get stabbed in the back.

And then she met Jaune.

He was pathetic. A Beacon reject out on the streets who was getting the shit kicked out of him for failing to pick someone's pocket. Even with how hardened she was, she couldn't help but pity him. Not enough for it to be more than a passing thought, however. She was just about to leave when an idea came to her. She'd been taken advantage of before by someone offering solidarity, so why couldn't she do the same?

Whatever guilt she had was quickly squashed down. If he wasn't smart enough to see through it then he deserved whatever happened to him. So she came up to him and offered him a helping hand. She patched up his wounds, gave him a roof over his head, and even taught him some basics so he could actually pick some pockets. She figured he might as well make himself useful while she kept him around.

But then she made a mistake: she began to care about him. He was only ever supposed to be her fall guy if and when she ever got caught, but as days turned into weeks and he kept up that damned innocence of his. Anyone who lived the life they did either learned to stop being soft or they got swallowed up. Maybe she could blame herself for that. Jaune would've been chewed up and spat back out if she didn't cover for him.

Things changed when they got caught by Junior's pet enforcers. Xiong didn't like freelancers on his turf and the Malachites roughed up Jaune to try and get him to confess everything. She'd witnessed it and was torn on following through on her original plan when Jaune refused to bend. He claimed he didn't have a partner no matter how much the Malachites pressed. Impressive, considering he didn't even have Aura or knew Emerald was there watching and could've (theoretically) rescued him.

That was when things changed. She'd revealed herself and they made the deal to give them a protection fee in exchange for being allowed to stay. It was stupid and impractical, but seeing Jaune's smile of relief and how proud he sounded when he said that he didn't break made her laugh. He was an idiot, but he was her idiot.

The same thought ran through her head as she trudged back to their shared apartment. It was small and honestly pretty shitty, but she'd lived in worse. At least this didn't have holes all over the ceiling. Today wasn't a good day. Not a lot of marks today. She'd found a juicy one with a lot of lien, but she was obviously pregnant and even Emerald wasn't that shitty of a person.

Maybe she'd have to continue with her plan of nabbing something from that jewelry stall. Most of the stuff there was worthless, but their fence could find some sucker if she got something worthwhile.

"Em!" Jaune greeted her as soon as was through the door. The smell of fried food reached her nostrils and she stopped. Their diets most days consisted of whatever they could buy from the corner store, or if they were feeling really lucky some fast food. Nothing homecooked. Too much of a waste of time and lien.

It was why Emerald found herself frozen at the sight of Jaune in an apron and two plates filled with spaghetti and chicken. He looked silly with the blue and pink cloth wrapped around him. He didn't look like he belonged there.

"...Where the hell did you get that?" she asked stupidly.

"I made a really good haul today," Jaune beamed with pride, "There was this guy from the SDC talking down to some employees at the store he was shopping at about how his wallet was gone and he accused them of stealing it. I found it after some looking around and emptied all the money out. Then I tossed him the wallet." Emerald snorted, "Don't worry, I ran off before he could see my face."

"That explains the money, but why the food?"

"I just figured we could use something home-cooked. There's stuff here like pans and a grill but we never use it. Now's as good a time as any, right?"

"I guess..."

The two of them sat one another across the makeshift dinner table (which was way too rickety for her liking) and dug in. It was...nice. The food wasn't anything spectacular, but knowing Jaune made it somehow made it taste better.

She'd never had a home-cooked meal before. What hazy memories she had before ending up on the streets were of an orphanage where the kids were given canned goods and a can opener. Sometimes they'd burn it over a fire, but that was about it. Someone actually spending time and effort to make a meal just for her...

"Em, you alright?"

"Y-Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"

"Cause you're smiling like a loon and it's kinda creepy. Didn't even know you could do that."

"Ah, shut up." She rolled her eyes and kicked him under the table, thanking her luck that she made the choice she did all those months ago.