From where she was, Blake could see that the attackers – she didn't know who they were just yet, but she was determined to find out – were circling the area, using the unarmed and defenceless VIPs and civilians to force the Huntsmen to stand down.
She scowled. Their progress was slow, but she and Pyrrha still needed to get out quick while they were unnoticed. It seemed that being in a dark and far away edge of the room had its advantages in the end.
"We need to move." Blake whispered to Pyrrha beside her. It wasn't that they couldn't fight them – but with so many non-Huntsmen here, an open fight was a problem. And considering their VIP statuses as well…
She heard a rustle of Pyrrha's nod, and they both swiftly scooted back and headed to the exit by their table's side.
Blake kept watch as Pyrrha grabbed the door and pulled it to open. But alas,
Clnk!
"Locked." Pyrrha cursed. Her hands letting out a dark glow, Pyrrha used her Semblance Polarity and forcefully bent the door's metal.
Grrrrkkkk!
"Let's hope no one heard that." Pyrrha whispered. Tapping Blake's shoulder, Pyrrha quickly opened the door and rushed through it alongside her childhood friend; and thankfully, the exit corridor was still free of attackers.
Pyrrha turned around and bent the doors back in place, making sure it was locked permanently. However, her luck ran out when she could hear a shout of warning from the back of the door.
"Hey! Looks like something weird's going on over there!"
"Damn, they must've heard us." Pyrrha whispered. She and Blake quickly dashed away and deeper into the exit hallways, going wherever it led them. "Any ideas on where to go, Blake?"
"We need to circle back. I'm not leaving Weiss behind."Blake said.
Pyrrha rolled her eyes, but relented nonetheless. "And how do you suppose we'd do that?"
"There's a second level to the hall. It overlooks the level we're on now. If we can get there, then we can scope out what the enemy can do."
Pyrrha nodded. "That's well and good, but…"
"What is it?"
"Where are we going to get our weapons? We turned them in at the reception, remember?"
To this, Blake raised an eyebrow. "What're you talking about?" She pulled out Gambol Shroud from her back pocket, and with a playful smirk teased Pyrrha, "I've got mine right here. You're telling me you don't?"
Pyrrha cursed. "Of course you didn't trust security. Of course."
Blake smothered a laugh. That laugh died, however, when they heard another set of footsteps approaching. Pyrrha slowed down slightly to let Blake take the lead.
As they had expected, they rounded a corner and came upon a patrolling attacker. The criminal had quickly tensed up and lifted his rifle. "INTRUDER-!"
Fwip! Blake quickly lashed out Gambol Shroud's rope and let it tie itself around the criminal's lips. The enemy's scream silenced, Blake pulled and sent him towards her friend.
"HYAH!" Pyrrha lashed out her leg and kicked the man square in the stomach. Blake loosened her grip and Pyrrha drove her leg and the man still attached to it down to the ground.
Slam! Crack!
"U-Ugh…" With a grunt, the man's eyes rolled to the back of his head; passed out. Pyrrha rolled her feet and opened her arms. With another pull if polarity, she took the man's rifle, knives, and magazines away from him and into pockets in her dress.
Pyrrha checked the gun's chambers, magazines, and examined the knife. "Should be good enough." She muttered, turning to Blake. "Picking up anything else, Blake?"
Blake's cat ears twitched. "They're trying to open the door you locked, but the road up ahead and up top is clear. At least, it should be." Blake then frowned, "But still…"
"What is it?" Pyrrha saw Blake's frown deepen and felt her stomach drop with worry. "What is it, Blake?"
"I know these voices." Blake said withs sadness and disappointment. In the enemy or herself, she didn't know. "These are White Fang, Pyrrha. I- I failed…."
Pyrrha breathed out, and then immediately put a hand on Blake's shoulder to comfort her. "We can think about that later. We've got to get this people to safety. Sun's counting on you too, isn't he?"
"Yeah… yeah, you're right." Blake shook her worry off and her eyes sharpened with newfound determination. "Come on, let's get up."
"I'm with you." Together, the two climbed the stairs and entered the second level – a hall-wide balcony towards the first floor.
They took cover in the dark edges of the room, just in case anyone were to see them. "What do you see?" Pyrrha asked.
"30 guys. Half armed with rifles, the others with club and pistols." Blake squinted. "They don't look like they're Huntsmen-trained, but from their uniforms I'm positive they have Aura."
Blake turned to her friend – visual wasn't their only way of getting intel. "What about you? Pick up anything outside?"
Pyrrha lifted her hand and softly used Polarity to sense any moving metal outside of their room; a sense of any guns being held and moved around by the attackers. "I'm getting 10 people outside… and most of them are guarding the weapon storages. Damn."
"Hmph, that's that, then." Blake looked back down to the first floor, and more specifically to the stage. She could see a White Fang lieutenant standing tall and proud, rallying his troops while hefting his chainsaw threateningly against a gagged and Aura-cuffed Weiss.
For a split second, Blake saw Weiss' eyes shift to her – her, even from this range! – before going back down to the lieutenant. Blake felt her breath catch in her throat.
"Weiss knows we're here." Blake said in a whisper, "And I know she's going to give us an opening."
"What do you mean an opening?!" Pyrrha hissed back. "What about Sun?!"
Blake turned her vision to her husband, held hostage with Aura cuffs and a gun to his spine. But then, he too flitted his eyes towards her for just a second, giving her a curt nod of acknowledgement.
"Sun's good to go too." Blake whispered. Pyrrha let out a breath and shook off her doubts.
"Fine then. Just let me get one more check on the guys outside." Pyrrha closed her eyes and focused her Semblance as Blake focused down below.
Blake saw Weiss tap her foot haughtily, signalling her captor to come to her. The Lieutenant, ever the angry one, stomped over and ripped the gag from her mouth.
"What is it, Schnee?" Blake heard him sneer, "Got something to say? Or maybe… wanna start begging?"
Weiss scoffed. "Don't kid yourself. We have guards and other Huntsmen on their way. I assure you, everything you've done tonight will all be for naught."
"Stubborn bitch!" The Lieutenant slapped Weiss across the face, bruising her skin red and sending her to the floor.
Blake held her breath. "Not yet…"
Weiss smirked, even as the bruise reddened. "Honestly, who do you think you're fooling, saying you're doing this all for equality?"
Weiss got up to her own feet and taunted him further. "If this is all that the White Fang can do, if you think everyone here's going to bend over and follow everything you say…. then I suppose you really have fallen from grace."
"Shut up!" Beneath the mask, Blake just knew the Lieutenant's face was growing redder with each passing second. "You think just because you're buddy-buddy with Belladonna and Menagerie that the Faunus would forget the SDC's crimes just like that?! Cooperating with the enemy doesn't mean jack shit!"
"Oh, is that why it was so easy to drive you out of your own homeland?" Weiss rolled her eyes. "All of you are just so stubborn."
"FUCK YOU!" The Lieutenant had had enough – he ripped his chainsaw's cord and let it blare to life, grabbing Weiss with his free arm and then holding him down to the ground.
"You think you've got it all figured out, huh?! We never forgot what your kind put us through!" The Lieutenant yelled. "We were slaved in the mines of your father, and if we didn't he'd just toss us all out to the Grimm anyways! Your kind hid behind the necessity of Dust, innovation for connection and the threat of the Grimm to justify working us to death! We won't forget! NO MORE!"
RRRRRR! The chainsaw's revs accompanied the Lieutenant's declaration as he raised his chainsaw high.
Blake narrowed her eyes as her heart hammered against her chest. This was going to be close-!
Meanwhile, Pyrrha noticed an oddity in the number of guards stationed outside. Their numbers, their metals' movement seemed to be erratic – before suddenly coming dropping to a halt. "B-Blake. Something's happening outside… we might need to wait a first-!"
However, Blake didn't hear a word Pyrrha had said. She and everyone else in the gala's attention had turned to the main stage, all their attention drawn to what seemed like an execution. Whispers of horror and shock spread around the hostages, all unprepared for what seemed to be the night's bloodiest moment.
"You'll pay, Schnee!" The Lieutenant shouted. And in that very exact second, Weiss' eyes met Blake's own, blue eyes pressed to the ground meeting golden ones hidden amidst the shadows, and Blake knew this was her chance.
"Now's our chance." Blake whispered. She went from her prone position to a knee, Gambol Shroud ready. "I'm going."
"Wait! There's something going on outside -!"
Fwip! Blake tied Gambol Shroud's rope to a ceiling pipe and launched down, lunging straight for the lieutenant with a kick.
SLAM! "AGH!" The Lieutenant went flying back, slamming against the stage's wall and Aura flashing to protect him – however he did still crumple to his knees.
"Get up!" Blake quickly brought Weiss back to her feet and shot her Aura cuffs off of her.
"Thanks." Weiss rubbed her wrist and sighed in relief as her Aura returned to her. However, their moment of respite was short lived; the other White Fang members had quickly gathered their bearings and re-aimed their weapons towards the two.
"Shit, it's the traitor!" One of the other higher-ranking members had shouted, "Come on, Shoot-!"
BANG BANG BANG!
"GUAGH!" The man fell to the ground as a bullet from the ceiling hit his head; protected by his Aura but still hurting like hell. Blake smirked; Pyrrha had covered her well, much to the rest of the Fang's dismay.
"WE'VE GOT ANOTHER ONE!" BANG BANG BANG BANG! "TAKE COVER!"
Blake tapped her friend's shoulder. "Come on, we've got work to do."
"Right." Weiss went behind her back and pulled out a thin and short rapier. It was no Myrtenaster, but it would get the job done.
Blake saw Sun already taking down several guards on his own; while he had no weapons of his own, he was proficient enough in martial arts to rarely use one, and to use theirs to free himself of his cuffs.
Weiss summoned ice blasts towards the incoming firing White Fang as Blake slipped away and freed the defenceless hostages; "Stay calm, stay together and find a spot to hide," She had instructed, "We'll tell you once the situations safe." She had directed them to a hidden spot behind the gala's stage, enough to keep them all together.
"Blake!" Blake heard a shout from Sun, and she turned and saw that he was engaging the lieutenant head on. "A little help here!"
"Got it!" Blake rushed in and engaged along with her husband, fighting side-by-side while trusting Weiss to fight the remaining Fang.
Pyrrha watched on in awe and envy – mostly envy – as Blake and Sun fought together. Their movements were so in sync, their attacks combined beautifully that she couldn't help but be reminded that she just wasn't at that level of compatibility with anyone.
Pyrrha shook her head – now wasn't the time! – and then, again, she felt the number of attackers outside of the gala drop; and she still didn't know what that really meant! Damn it, if Blake had only waited for one more second…!
Rather forcefully, Pyrrha kept her eye trained on the gala below and shot down those that got too far from comfort for Weiss. She subtly used her Semblance to redirect any fire aimed her way as she scored hit after hit. But the men just kept coming and she only had a limited number of bullets-!
BOOM! Pyrrha felt the foundations shake as another explosion rocked from the entrance yet again. She could barely hold on to her platform as the battle down below paused once more. She cast a quick scan using her Semblance and felt a three weapons quickly approaching the entrance – and one felt both comfortingly and worryingly similar.
'Jaune…?'
Blake, Sun, the Lieutenant, everyone stopped in their tracks as the door was blown off its hinges. Thick black smoke immediately filled the empty space, billowing in to the gala and keeping its caster unknown.
Weiss felt a smirk; she knew help would come soon, considering how important this event was. And yet, she wasn't yet informed of who exactly would come here – a quick glance at Sun and Blake showed that they didn't know as well. And judging from the White Fang Lieutenant's confused expression, he didn't have a lick of clue either.
Weiss turned back to the smoke, its tendrils licking her feet even as she was far from the entrance. She felt a slight rush of emotions inside of her – which then magically turned to calmness; a Semblance's effect she had come to experience before in Beacon.
Ah. So it was them.
And then, with a scream of vigour, Nora burst forth from the smoke with her hammer high in the air.
The Lieutenant paled. "Shit! It's their backup-!"
"SMAAAAAASH!" Nora yelled as she jumped and brought her hammer down to the ground with a bang, shaking the entire hall once more.
BOOM!
A veritable earthquake shook them all, both ally and enemy alike. Ren burst forth too from behind Nora, silent and swift with his dual SMGs StormFlower already firing at the disoriented enemy.
BRRT! BRRT!
"Let's do this!" Nora smiled wide and stepped in with her husband, swinging all that weren't already taken down by her husbands' shots. Her laughter echoed as she crushed bone after bone of her enemies.
But alas, not all her allies were strong enough to handle such an entrance. "Ugh… my ears…" Blake shook her head, dizzy and disoriented, and felt herself being supported by Sun. She looked at him and knew that he had felt the same, his Faunus features honed to be as sensitive as her.
"Look alive," he told her, and he tilted his head to the Lieutenant in front of them – and since he was wearing a mask, he had recovered much faster than them both.
Blake grit her teeth as their enemy advanced to them with confidence in his stride, chainsaw revving again. She felt both herself and her husband tense; they needed to dodge this soon!
"Heh, not so tough are you now, traitor?" The Lieutenant smirked beneath his mask. "TAKE THIS!"
The chainsaw whirred to life and Blake saw it coming closer and closer. 'Not yet-!'
CLANG!
"H-huh?!" The Lieutenant suddenly felt his chainsaw stop mid-attack. And no matter how much he struggled against the sudden blockade, it just wouldn't budge. "Grrr!" He shifted his eye to look at his new opponent better – and saw a blonde hoodie-wearing knight holding his shield strong and firm.
"HYAH!" Jaune shouted and pushed the Lieutenant staggering back. With another yell, Jaune lurched forwards and swung at his opponent across the chest.
Slash! "Gah!" The Lieutenant flew back from the blow, Aura blocking most of the damage but unable to truly numb the pain and force.
Jaune turned to Blake and Sun. "You two alright?"
"Y-yeah. Thanks for the save." Blake gave a shaky nod and pulled herself and Sun back together. Blake raised an eyebrow at Jaune's condition, breathing heavily with sweat soaking his undershirt – it looked like he had come here not at full 100%. "You okay yourself?"
"Y-yeah. Just gotta catch my breath…" Jaune took a deep breath in. "Rushed here as soon as I heard – finished the whole mission early too."
"Ah." But that doesn't explain why he had come here; surely he must know that there were other Huntsmen than himself? Why did he have to go through all this trouble?
Blake was about to ask when Jaune's calm expression suddenly turned to worry. "Say, have you seen someone named-!"
"GRAHHH!"
"Damn!" Jaune cut his own question off and focused on the Lieutenant; he was rising back up and charging at him with new energy. Jaune flourished his sword and brought his shield up, "Take care of the others." He said firmly, "I've got some questions I wanna ask this guy."
"But-!"
"Do it!" Jaune insisted.
"…Alright." Blake withdrew along with her husband and swiftly came to aid in Weiss' sector.
The Lieutenant growled, "Bad move, human."
Jaune shrugged. "You're not the only one who's said that before…"
"Is that so, scum? Then let me be the last one!" The Lieutenant roared again and charged with his chainsaw lifted high. Jaune rolled to the side as the enemy brought the chainsaw down, hitting right where Jaune once was. Jaune grit his teeth and lunged with a downwards swing, right at the same time the Lieutenant brought his own chainsaw back up to intercept.
Clang! The two blades clashed, sparks flying as Jaune and the Lieutenant stared each other down in the blade lock.
And for Jaune, the reason for fighting was simple, one that was enough for him to rush from the other end of the Kingdom: 'I need to know what happened to Pyrrha!'
Chainsaw White Fang Lieutenant
Of the Valean White Fang
And up above, seeing everything unfold, Pyrrha found herself worried. 'He looks tired… can he really pull himself through?'
With roars, the two broke free and stepped through each other. The Lieutenant turned around and swung his chainsaw at Jaune's neck. Jaune blocked with his shield, staggering slightly from the blow.
"Grk!" 'Damn it! Not enough stamina…!' Jaune quickly ducked and let the chainsaw fly over him. He swiftly kicked is legs out and swept the Lieutenant's footing out from under him.
Trip! "Gah!" The Lieutenant fell on his back hard. Jaune yelled and brought his sword down on the enemy, but the Lieutenant proved surprisingly agile; he quickly rolled away and stood back up on his own two feet.
Jaune clicked his tongue and swiftly followed up at the enemy with a swing for his shoulder. The enemy blocked it with his chainsaw and twisted Jaune's grip around, slamming the chainsaw's blade straight at his armour.
RRRR!
"AH!" Jaune fell back from the blow, sparks flying and chinks of his armour breaking apart. He felt adrenaline being replaced with fatigue; the mission from earlier was finally taking its toll.
A roar from the Lieutenant, and Jaune's eyes went wide as the chainsaw came swinging at him. Jaune rolled to the side as the chainsaw hit where his head once was, but the Lieutenant didn't give up; he dragged his weapon along the floor, getting ever closer to Jaune's face-!
'Shit!' Jaune brought his sword up and blocked in a prone position, chainsaw teeth rattling against his family blade. Sparks landed near his eyes; and Jaune knew he couldn't keep this up forever.
In desperation, Jaune kicked his legs out straight to the knee of the Lieutenant. His enemy stumbled, the chainsaw's swing flying millimetres off his hair. Jaune quickly got up and made for an attack to the enemy's shoulder, but the Lieutenant had recovered quicker; he parried Jaune's attack just in time.
Clang!
"Tch." Jaune stepped back and went for another attack; but he knew he was getting slower. He swung at the enemy's hand, but it was blocked too. The Lieutenant yelled and parried Jaune's sword away, before responding with a heavy fist straight to Jaune's face.
"Guhhh!" Jaune skid back as his head snapped back too. He quickly shook away the dizziness and saw the Lieutenant going in for a low swing.
If this hit him, then Jaune knew his exhaustion would take hold again; his Aura would give out and he'd sustain heavy damage to his leg.
RRRRR!
'Jump!' Jaune jumped just in time to dodge the chainsaw's rolling teeth. With a roar, Jaune lashed his legs out mid-jump and kicked the Lieutenant square in the chest.
SLAM!
"Tch!" The Lieutenant staggered, and as Jaune landed, he could see the beginnings of frustration build up within his enemy.
Not like he himself wasn't getting that too, of course… but he knew he needed to use everything he had.
A lull ensued in the fight between the two, and Jaune took that moment as a chance to look around. The Whtie Fang's men were falling, the rest of his friends quickly wrapping up the fight.
And yet still, no sign of Pyrrha….
Jaune let out a steadying breath. Now, it was all up to him to finish his side.
Jaune looked back at the Lieutenant and could see the rage and anger building up in his stance and expression beneath the mask. Jaune figured it out – of course! 'He's been fighting Blake, Sun, and then his men are being taken down one by one too….'
His thoughts were completed when another bang! sounded from the ceiling. 'And there's that mystery sniper too…' the one that had been helping the others.
Jaune suppressed a smirk. 'I can use this.' He twirled his sword and held it in a reverse grip, taunting the Lieutenant to come at him.
The Lieutenant grit his teeth. "Why you..!"
"This is taking wayyy longer than I expected…And I've got dinner to make once I get home, y'know?" Jaune forced himself to bounce in his step. "So come on! Show me what you've got!"
"GRAAAHHH!" The Lieutenant charged at him again, chainsaw held high to cut Jaune in two. And this time, Jaune was prepared. He activated his Semblance and Amped his Aura for the coming theat.
"RAHH!" The Lieutenant swung his chainsaw down again and Jaune dodged to the side. Faster than the Lieutenant could react, Jaune stepped into his guard and swung his sword across his chest.
Slash! "AHH!" The Lieutenant stepped back from shock, but Jaune wasn't done. He slammed his shield right to the Lieutenant's face, disorienting him further. With his enemy dazed, Jaune swung his sword low across the Lieutenant's legs.
"Ah!" The Lieutenant almost lost his footing; almost. He recovered and swung at Jaune's waist. Jaune raised his shield and blocked the attack firm. With a yell, the Huntsman pushed the attack away and slammed his sword's pommel straight to the Lieutenant's gut.
SLAM!
"Ack!" The Lieutenant doubled over, his Aura flashing and signalling its near depletion. Jaune yelled and seized his chance, stepping forwards and swinging his sword once more clean across the enemy's chest.
"HYAH!" SLASH!
"AHHH!" The Lieutenant flew back, a shallow yet bleeding cut beginning to form; and with hat, Jaune knew he wouldn't be getting back up.
Jaune took a knee and used his sword to support himself. "Hah… Hah…" 'That took a lot more than expected… way too close…'
With a shake of his head, Jaune sheathed his sword and approached the downed Lieutenant. He heard fights finishing around him as well, and soon both Nora and Ren were by his side, looking over the defeated conspirator.
The Lieutenant sucked in a breath. "What… what're you lookin' at…?!"
"Nora." Jaune stated.
"Hm?"
"He's all yours."
"Gladly!" Nora took a knee next to the Lieutenant and gave him a wide, toothy smile – one that promised him pain. "So, mister, my friend here has some questions for you. Now, I think it's in your best interest to answer him honestly."
The Lieutenant growled, "And if I don'- ACK!"
Faster than lightning Nora's hand flew and gripped the Lieutenant's throat, squeezing it just enough to make sure he could breathe. "Say that again?"
"A-ack!"
Jaune took his struggle – and his lack of a denial – as his cue. "Why'd you come here? Is any backup coming?"
"W-we didn't plan on any backup! This was all our crew!"
"Hm…" Jaune tapped his chin and asked for another question. "Why did you choose this gala? Any specific goals in mind?"
"W-we were getting tired of being told to just stand still! We thought that i-if we could just get the Schnee… Ah-!"
"Lighten up on the squeeze, Nora." Jaune advised. Nora sighed but did as she was told. "Last question," Jaune said, and he made sure to keep his eyes focused on the Lieutenant's own.
"There should be an attendee here, and I haven't seen her around. She has red hair, green eyes, wears a red dress and's about as tall as me."
Jaune's voice dropped into a growl as he put a foot on the Lieutenant's knee. "Where. Is. She?"
"Where. Is. She?"
Pyrrha felt her breath hitch as her mind connected all the dots. He did this, risked his life, all of this-! Because he had heard that she was in trouble.
Pyrrha felt her heart race and her cheeks burn red. 'Jaune…'
She felt compelled to just jump in there and hug him – alas, another part of her held her back, one that was rational.
She wanted to see how this would play out. And if she could take anything from it… after all, she wanted to give him something that she could use later on, didn't she?
"I- I don't know!" The Lieutenant gasped. "I never saw anyone like that here!"
"Liar." Jaune stressed. "She went here; I know she did. Now what did you do to her?!"
"I'm telling you I don't know a thing!" The Lieutenant desperately begged. He felt his throat get tighter and his knee being pressed and could do nothing but desperately claw away, to no avail. "N-n-no! Please! I swear I'm telling the truth!"
"…"
"Please."
"..Fine." Jaune backed off. "Let him go, Nora."
"Tch. Whatever you say, Fearless Leader." Nora backed off and let the Lieutenant go, but not without kicking him in the side one more time.
"So it's a bust?" Ren asked.
"No…" Jaune shook his head, "She's gotta be around here somewhere. They mentioned her being one of the hostages in the news…"
Pyrrha saw Jaune's emotions mix with worry and fear. She was once more tempted to jump down there, but Ren had beat her to it – he placed a calming hand on Jaune and subtly used his Semblance on his leader.
"It's going to be alright, Jaune." Ren said, "She's strong, remember?"
"I know… I just haven't gotten to know how much, y'know?" Pyrrha stopped herself from gasping. That was exactly what she wanted as well! "Maybe…"
Jaune trailed off, and Pyrrha realized something; him coming here, him searching for her, she was already at the step where he'd go through great lengths just for her. But then, why couldn't she feel it when it was just the two of them…?
But everyone's calmness was interrupted when a loud roar echoed across…
"RAAAAAGH!"
"Shit, he's still up?!" Jaune and his Team turned back to the Lieutenant, now on his knee and wielding a gun aimed straight between the blond knight's eyes.
Jaune froze, for some reason unable to move despite his training and experience. His Aura was practically nil now, this was going to hurt, he can't do anything-!
"DIE!"
BANG!
BANG!
"JAUNE!" "LEADER!"
The room was still as the shot zoomed for Jaune, the gun's muzzle flash as bright and blinding to Nora and Ren as the sun.
But then, all of a sudden, the bullet stopped mid-air; frozen straight in place. It hummed as its forces and energy were forcefully ceased, a black glow holding it firm in the air.
Jaune found himself slack-jawed. So did the Lieutenant.
But the Faunus' anger pushed him through any second thoughts caused by the occurrence. "Grrr! Take this!"
But alas, before his finger could squeeze the trigger, the gun in his hand glowed black as well. "H-huh?!" The gun shook, and then, all of a sudden-
BOOM!
"GAH!" The gun exploded in the Lieutenant's hand, sending shrapnel everywhere. "Aghhhh-!" and before he could do anything further-!
"Hah!" Slam! Pyrrha dropped down right at the Lieutenant's back, her heels crushing his bones and making sure he stayed in place.
"Hmph." With another stomp, Pyrrha forced the Lieutenant head's down to the pavement and made sure he was knocked out. "Tch, scum."
Her heart raced in her chest as she felt a rare moment of anger. That was out of order, she knew; first rule of wearing her mask was to never let her true emotions slip, be it happiness or anger or relief. But now, she couldn't even answer shy she did that – she knew there were a thousand and one ways of handling that matter more discreetly, so why did she do it so flashily-
"PYRRHA!" She heard her husband scream and looked up. He was rushing towards her, his steps urgent and his smile wide and relieved.
Pyrrha felt her heart grow with both giddiness, embarrassment, and… anger? Damn it, why couldn't she have controlled herself?!
"Pyrrha, I'm so glad you're okay!" He rushed towards her, and she could just see how worried he had been. "I've been looking all over for you-!"
Aaaand immediately Pyrrha's emotions once more took control – her mask burned away until there was nothing left. She lifted her hand and used Polarity on Jaune's breastplate armour, stopping him in place.
"W-whoa!" Jaune's arms flailed about as control was wrestled away from him. And then, he yelped as he was dragged forcefully to Pyrrha face-to-face.
"You have some explaining to do, mister." Pyrrha said. Her face's distance closeness couldn't be described in inches anymore, and Jaune gulped as he began to sweat.
"U-uhhh, what do you mean, Pyrrha?"
"You told me you couldn't come!" Pyrrha shouted, "But now here you are, coming in to save the day. What gives?!"
"W-well, I really did have a mission!" Jaune desperately begged. His face was burning red as Pyrrha got closer and closer – and he couldn't even move away! "I thought you were in danger!"
"And for that, thank you." Pyrrha said, "But that still didn't explain how reckless you were!"
"U-uhm…"
"What do you think would've happened if I didn't stop that bullet, huh?" Pyrrha said, "Do you have any idea? Huh, well do you?!"
"A-ah, so that was you?" Jaune didn't get why Pyrrha was so angry, but he could take a guess. He laughed nervously, "I… I guess I would've had a lot of hospital bills…"
"Hmph! You're damn right!" Pyrrha dragged him closer, their noses almost touching and Jaune's brain short-circuited. Tooclosetooclosetooclose! He felt his chest tapped by Pyrrha's finger and his thoughts exploded. 'G-guh….'
Pyrrha scowled as her final statement came out. "You. Owe. Me. Okay?"
"O-okay…"
"Good… good." Pyrrha sighed and let go of her Semblance. Jaune staggered to his knees as his mind tried to reboot.
Jaune managed to get out a few words, "Pyrrha-." However, it was immediately interrupted when he felt himself being wrapped in a hug, tight and with Pyrrha's face buried in his neck.
"I was so worried." She whispered, muffled against his skin. "You idiot…"
Jaune's face softened as he soothed her back. "Hey now, it's okay." He pat her calmly, "Tell you what, since I owe you, how about we eat out tonight? We can go anywhere you'd like."
"No, not that."
"Okay, okay. Then what do you want to do?"
"Training." Pyrrha answered simply.
"Training?" Jaune echoed.
Pyrrha pulled away and looked at him up and down, burying her red cheeks. She had hugged him, she hugged him! Her heart was giddy just from thinking it!
Pyrrha forcefully coughed to her hands; she needed to calm down. "Your form could use some work. You need to be firmer and faster when attacking." She said sternly, "And we need to get you an option for ranged combat."
Jaune raised an eyebrow. "You're doing this all for me? Isn't it… a bit time-consuming-?"
"Shut it." Pyrrha firmly said. "You owe me, mister. And if you want to pay me back, then you better listen and do everything I say. And besides," Pyrrha flashed him a sly smile, "I thought an Arc never breaks his word?"
Damn, she got him there! But in this instant, Jane realized something – she wanted him to follow her. This was all her ploy!
And judging from how Pyrrha's eyes shone softly, she knew he knew as well!
Once more, their game began!
It was true that he'd never break his word, that didn't mean that he'd just let her trample all over him!
And besides, he was the one who came all this way, and he's probably one that's the most tired too! Didn't matter if his teammates were alright, he went through a lot too, you know! His pride flared again. She was the one who was supposed to fall for him, dammit!
"I don't," Jaune responded – and now he too was smirking in kind. "I owe you, that's true. But since I'm the one that's going to do it, don't you think I get to have some say in how it's going to be?"
"Ah ah ah, do you trust me that little? After coming all this way, Jaune?" Pyrrha smiled – it held nothing but traps, Jaune knew! "I've won multiple championships, you know. Or do you really think you have no need for me?"
"But you're really going out of your way here, aren't you?" Jaune laughed, "You must really think I'm something special!"
"Hmph! I just see a problem, Jaune, and that's something I want to fix." Pyrrha tilted her head ever so slightly upwards; to most it would seem like she was being haughty. "And it won't take much of my time, I assure you – I'm confident our trainings can be quick and effective. Besides, you told me that you'd make up for not coming here this morning, didn't you Jaune?"
'She remembered that too!' Jaune bit down his tongue. Well, there went that. But he wasn't going to back down just yet! "Then I suppose I'll bite. But then, you have to do something for me too."
Pyrrha raised an eyebrow. "And that would be…?"
"That you and I start taking missions together." Jaune stated. Before Pyrrha could object, Jaune explained. "We've been taking missions separately; if we hadn't then this split might've never happened. I want to make sure that we have a synced schedule so that this doesn't happen again."
Pyrrha flet her breath hitch in excitement, yet she knew this was a trap! It had to be, everyone had wanted her skills, and even though Jaune was different, she wouldn't bow down and tell him that she'd follow him around the world if he just asked! He was the one who was supposed to, not her!
"So you're looking to bring me along, huh?" Pyrrha tapped her chin with her index finger, "You're saying that you need my help that much?"
"It's just ideal, is all." Jaune waved a hand. "Not that big a deal…"
Pyrrha smirked and took a sly stride forwards. "Ah ah ah, so you're saying that I'm your ideal partner now, right?"
Pyrrha was getting closer and Jaune's brain short circuited. W-wait, what was he going to answer with? Nonono, she was getting too close! "N-no, that's not…"
But Pyrrha was getting closer and Jaune found himself frozen in place; only this time, there was no magnetism involved.
"Let's see here, you came alllll~ this way just for me, you were willing to interrogate the enemy for me, and then you agreed that you owed and needed to train with someone like me…" Pyrrha giggled as she finally stepped close to Jaune again, "I guess I really am ideal now, huh?"
"W-well…" Jaune looked away, blushing red.
Pyrrha giggled, "It's okay. I'll be your partner from now on. But still, everything's on you now, Jaune. You asked me to be there, didn't you?"
"W-well, I didn't-!"
Tap!
Pyrrha flicked Jaune's nose and giggled. "How cute."
And Jaune's brain crashed. He had lost.
'NOOOOOOO!'
Results of tonight's battle:
Pyrrha's Victory!
Off to the side, Ren and Nora stood with side-by-side. One with confusion in her face, and the other pinching his nose.
"What are they doing, Ren?" Nora whispered. "Can't they just admit-."
Ren sighed deeply, his patience long since ran out. "No. No they can't."
Far away, just behind the curtains of the gala, Weiss peeked slack-jawed while gripping the curtains tight. Those two… Pyrrha and him-?!
Her grip tightened and the curtains began to rip. She had heard that the dunce got married, and to be honest she pitied the woman who got paired with his denseness so she didn't bother figuring out who it was. After all, the idiot only stopped going after her in their 4th year after constant rejections; he was just that dense! So she never thought much of his prospective love life.
But then how the hell did he end up with Pyrrha?! She had tried to get close to her for ages, ages, even just as friends! And now, Jaune just got her without trying at all?!
Weiss puffed her cheeks. How did Jaune, of all people, get so lucky?! She refused to accept this!
"Blake….? Blaaaakee~" Sun waved a hand in front of her – her eyes were transfixed on the bickering (is it really bickering?) couple in front of her. She- she never thought that it would be him and her…
The son of a storied line of Huntsmen who was nothing more than average, and a prodigy that made her own name… a closeted and guarded yet kind soul and an honest heart that was too dense to care…
Blake's mind began to drift right as Sun began to shake his head and sighed. "Off thinking about your books again, huh…?"
Blake reflexively replied with a 'shut up', even though she knew it was true! It hit her like a truck on how exactly Pyrrha was acting, why she couldn't outright admit that she liked him even when they were living under the same damn roof! She was just too proud to admit it, and it seemed that Jaune was too!
It was something straight out of her favourite novels! And they were literature no matter how much the others said otherwise!
Blake shook her head as her hands itched. Oh how she wished she had brought her notepad with her….
Sun sighed as he recognized the longing look in Blake's eyes. "Thinking of stories again…?"
Thoughts? Read and review!
See you next time!
Next Chapter: April 5