Chapter 06: Price for Peace
Later
"Well, that was a thing," the blonde knight yawned as he stretched out his arms. The other seven students nodded in agreement, and he smiled at them. "So, does anyone plan on doing anything for the weekend?" Jaune asked everyone. His team shrugged slightly, while Ruby's team looked a little off-putting.
"The team and I are going to… have an outing to work on our teamwork!" Ruby said as if she was trying to hide something.
Jaune noticed that the Roses' team cringed at their leader's cover-up and mentally shrugged. They had their secrets, and he had his. It wasn't his place to say anything. "I hope you all have fun then."
As RWBY walked off to their dorm, Pyrrha spoke up.
"Do you have anything planned for today, Jaune?" Pyrrha asked, and Jaune snapped back to his senses. He looked over to his partner and shrugged his shoulders.
"I have to go into Vale and pick something up from the room I was staying at." Pyrrha eyed him slightly, and he laughed. "No, no booze. Just some leftover supplies and whatnot." He then irked at a sudden realization. "I still have to check out of that place as well."
Nora looked a little irritated at her leader's antics.
"Really, Jaune?" she asked, putting her hands on her hips. "You just waltzed out and decided to come back without checking out?"
Jaune chuckled at his team. "To be fair, I was hungover at the time." He winced at the slight frowns from his teammates and decided to walk forward. "Anyways, since I can't go anywhere in Vale without you, when we leave is up to you." Pyrrha grinned a bit at this. "We can go now."
Nora was about to rejoice at the sudden outing before Ren grabbed the back of her collar. "As much as we would like to join you two, Nora still hasn't finished her paper on the great war. So, you two are on your own." Ren started to drag his reluctant partner back to their dorm. All the while, Nora was protesting. Unknown to the bomber and their leader, Ren gave Pyrrha a slight gesture towards Jaune, and the champion blushed. Ren chuckled to himself and continued with his partner.
"So, I guess we should get going," Jaune said as his partner nodded. They then headed off in the direction of the docks. The walk there was a bit awkward. Now that Jaune had thought about it, this was the first time he could talk to just her. Adding to the fact that he now knew she helped him in the Forever Fall and that she knew where he had been, not to mention the scars all over his body, he wasn't entirely sure how this day would go. The two boarded the nearest bullhead and sat on a nearby bench, still not saying a word.
Pyrrha studied him, eyeing him up and down. "You're usually going to the trashcan at this point," Jaune raised an eyebrow at this and let out a short laugh. You're not wrong," Jaune closed his eyes and folded his arms. "I've built up a little tolerance to the whole motion sickness. I still feel uneasy about whether there is turbulence or the ship is going too slow."
Pyrrha nodded at this but soon cocked her head slightly in confusion. "But you're fine if you're going fast?"
Jaune smirked a bit. Remembering all the times he zipped around at blinding speeds on the skylines. During his first few times getting the hang of the sky hook, he either nearly barfed his guts out or almost fell to his death. It wasn't until he escaped the burning zeppelin that the crazed zealot set on fire that he did it. He remembered diving head-first onto a skyline, and that's when he truly got the hang of it. Despite the death and destruction that happened in those moments, he couldn't help but smile at the fact that he pulled through in that intense moment. "Yup." He let out a short sigh as he felt his stomach churn. He opened one of his eyes and noticed Pyrrha acting off as if she was conflicted about something. "I haven't had the time to say this, but I want to say I'm sorry." She looked at him quizzically.
He scratched the back of his head before chuckling a bit. "Where to start exactly?"
She laughed while giving him a gentle smile. "Start with what's been bothering you the most."
He reciprocated the smile and leaned his head back against the wall behind them. "Well, for starters, saving my ass back at the Forever Fall."
Pyrrha winced a bit at his language.
He sighed a bit. "Sorry, vocab got a little vulgar when I was away."
It took her a few seconds, but she nodded.
"I shouldn't have said those things on the roof, and your helping against the Ursa only emphasizes that."
She said nothing as he decided to continue.
"Also, for up and leaving like that when I overheard you and Weiss talking about it. I don't know why I acted like that."
Pyrrha looked at his somewhat uncomfortable form and continued smiling at him.
"You were mad. You had the right to be."
He looked back at her and nodded a bit.
"I should have told you. That was for certain."
Jaune took a few moments to compose himself after the bullhead went through a little turbulence. "Despite that, it's no excuse for nearly stomping on your face when we fought."
She looked at him with confusion and saw a pained expression on his face.
"Some unwelcomed memories returned during the fight, and I lost them."
She stared at him for a few moments before letting out another sigh as the bullhead was about to land. "We both lost control during that fight, so I guess we're both to blame."
To her confusion, Jaune scoffed at this. "Wouldn't have lost it if I didn't piss you off." He said somewhat jokingly. "Those bruises are going to be there for weeks."
Pyrrha laughed a bit at his antics. "Even so, it was amazing to see such an improvement," Pyrrha said as she and Jaune got off the bullhead and walked into Vale. "I was surprised, to say the least."
He stuffed his hands into his pockets and nodded in response. "Well, my arsenal at the time wouldn't cut it back in Columbia. So, improvisation was the key to surviving," he said jokingly. His response was silence as he looked at his partner, who was showing concern for him. Jaune mentally sighed, knowing she had questions he didn't want to answer. "Sorry," he said in a kneejerk response.
"Will we ever know what happened?" she asked as they stopped on the sidewalk leading to the old motel.
Jaune looked back at her, noticing the stress and worry in her eyes. His only response was a nod.
Pyrrha took a few seconds to respond, but a small smile formed. She walked back to his side, and the two carried on.
"Y'know, I just realized I've yet to thank you."
Pyrrha looked at her leader quizzically, and he smiled at her. I know you were looking all over Vale for me." She blushed a bit at this, and he laughed wholeheartedly. "So, thanks for not giving up on me."
She smiled at him and jokingly elbowed him." You would have done the same for me, Ren, Nora, and even RWBY."
He smiled at this, but his smile turned into a grimace as he stopped.
"Jaune?" she asked.
He gestured to the building just ahead of them.
Pyrrha looked in that direction, and her eyes widened a bit.
"We're here," he grumbled as he walked by her. The two reached the motel room door, and Jaune put his hand out in front of his partner. "Could you wait here for a second? It's only a few things that I need to grab." Pyrrha eyed him, and he shrugged a bit.
Jaune entered the room, and he sighed a bit with stress. He saw the empty bottles of alcohol along the dresser and the occasional cigarette. He would admit that he hated the notion of smoking, but after discovering his Aura could handle the smoke in his lungs, he decided why not after all the shit he went through. Not to mention that his Aura also filtered out the nicotine so he could choose when to smoke or not. The added Eve and Salts were a boon. He was never truly addicted to it. He wished he could say that when it came to the bottle.
Jaune opened one of the bedside drawers, picked up a pack of cigarettes, and put one in his mouth. Knowing he didn't need a lighter, he smirked and snapped his fingers. A flicker of flame emerged, and he lit the little stick of stress relief. He took a few puffs until setting the cigarette down and crouched under his bed. He felt around for a second and smiled when he felt what he sought. With a tug, he pulled out a large suitcase of sorts. Some would say that it was more of a wooden crate. He blew off the dust, opened the crate, and smiled at the familiar belongings. He pulled out a holster and strapped it to his left side. The next belonging he pulled out was a massive revolver. He checked the chamber and made sure it was loaded before holstering it. As he dug further, he pulled out more ammo clips and bullets for his hand cannon. The next item he pulled out was a bottle of sorts. He swished it around and noticed that it was still full. He chuckled and uncorked the bronze bottle with a man riding a bucking horse for the cap. Sure, his Aura refilled his various Vigors gradually, but occasionally, a quick swig of any of the bottles would give him the boost he needed. Jaune felt the energy surge through him as he took a few swigs. In the meantime, he kept rummaging through his suitcase and picked up a few more things. Most of it was spare bullets and knives. Now that he didn't have Crocea Mors, he would have to improvise until he got or made a new weapon. In the meantime, his current arsenal would do.
He stopped, though, as he encountered something that sent a pain in his heart. A picture. It was old, and it looked withered. There was no color, and he couldn't help but grit his teeth at the sight of it. He fully sat down and rested his back on the side of the bed while drinking the rest of the Bucking Bronco while looking at the picture. It was a picture of him. Behind him was a massive tower that Remnant had never seen before. 'I think she called it the Eifel Tower,' he said. What made him down the bottle even faster, even if it didn't contain any alcohol, was the woman that was in front of him. He wrapped his arms around her waist and his head resting over her shoulder. He didn't need the color to remember how the blue popped on her and how the contrasting white only made her look more amazing. What made him feel hurt the most were the smiles they had on their faces. They had just escaped hell in the sky, and they were happy. Happier than ever, and no one could take that away from them. At least, that's what he thought.
"Jaune?" he heard Pyrrha say. What made him do a spit-take was that she was inside the room, looking at all the empty bottles and noticing that he had a bottle in his mouth.
She was pissed.
She stormed out of the room and slammed the door behind her. "Son of a bitch!" he muttered before grabbing the key card to the room and took off after her. he saw that she was quickly making her way across the abandoned parking lot. He hopped over the railing and landed solidly.
"Pyrrha!" he shouted as he approached. He kept shouting her name as he approached. "It's not—" he was cut off when she quickly turned back to him, anger and tears forming in her eyes.
"Not what it looks like!?" she assumed the end of his comment and walked towards him. Then what was that?! Cause from what I could see, you were trying to sneak another drink!"
Jaune would be lying if he said that didn't hurt a bit. The two stood for a few moments before Pyrrha turned around. "I have to report this to Ozpin," she said coldly.
"It's not-"
She continued to walk across the parking lot, anger apparent to her all the while, thinking how she could be so stupid as to let Jaune go in alone. She felt stupid for thinking that.
THWOOM!
Before Pyrrha could even comprehend that noise, she felt herself shoot off the ground and be suspended in the air. The sudden jolt made all her blood rush to her head, and she couldn't get a grasp on her surroundings due to spinning slowly out of control. What she noticed was that the ground below her was cracked to hell and that there was some sort of bronze energy floating all around her.
After a few seconds, the energy ceased to exist, and she plummeted to the ground. Pyrrha fell onto the black asphalt with a loud thud. Her coughing and look of confusion were apparent. She darted her head all around her and noticed nothing unusual. That was until she saw her partner.
Jaune had his hand held out as if he was pushing something. The look on his face was conflicted, but that wasn't the thing that stood out. What stood out was that his hand looked as if it was fractured. Cracks and fissures interlaced his hand while the energy she saw around her condensed all over him. She didn't know what to say. What could she say? Before she could even mutter a word, he slowly approached her. Jaune was a foot away from her now, and he held his hand for her to grab. The cracks soon dissipated, and the energy was no more.
"That wasn't alcohol," Jaune said softly yet almost flatly.
"What did you just do?" Pyrrha looked at him with shock in her eyes.
"I changed more than I like to admit. There's not a lot I feel comfortable talking about."
"What can you tell me?"
He sighed. "If I'm gonna do this, it stays within our team, and you don't interrupt me. Can you do that?"
What made Pyrrha feel a bit more shocked was that he wasn't sounding demanding. He sounded a bit like he was pleading for time. Pyrrha looked up at him briefly before taking his hand and nodded.
Jaune and Pyrrha waited patiently in a nearby park for the rest of their team. Their scrolls read that it was about two in the afternoon, and Jaune was resting on a park bench with his legs stretched out. His hands were in his pockets as he let out slow breaths. He was on the border of sleeping when he cracked open one of his eyes to see Pyrrha sitting across from him. She was across the sidewalk, and he noticed her intense look full of concern. Jaune internally groaned at this. For one day, just one day, could he not have to deal with people poking at his privacy. Sadly, this was not the case, as the two had been silent since the incident in the parking lot. The problem was that he couldn't understand how Pyrrha was feeling. It was as if she had put up a wall all around her so no one could tell her thoughts. Jaune winced as memories of similar actions that 'she' also used on him. Despite the pain in his heart and mind, he couldn't help but realize the similarity between Pyrrha and her.
"Sorry, we were a little late."
Jaune's head perked up when he saw Nora and Ren walk up to them. Jaune smiled in return and brushed off Ren's apology.
"No worries," Jaune said as he and Pyrrha made their way to the rest of their team.
Nora almost immediately noticed Pyrrha's troubled behavior and gave the champion a questioning glance. "Are you okay, Pyrrha?" Nora asked, her concern evident in her voice.
Jaune looked at both of them and smiled reassuringly. "She's going to be alright. Some stuff happened. I think it would be better if we were all here so I only have to talk about it once." Before anyone could say anything, Jaune eyed them all. "Just remember what Ozpin said. Don't pry. If I'm not ready, I'm not ready."
Ren looked at his leader with confusion.
Jaune sighed a bit as he walked past the three. "C'mon," he said while gesturing for them to follow.
Ren and Nora looked to Pyrrha for answers, and the champion only nodded at their leader's request.
The four of them walked for about twenty minutes before Jaune stopped in his tracks, and his team could see him smile a bit as he looked up at the establishment before him. The three of them immediately dawned on looks of sternness and concern as they realized that this lounge served alcohol. Jaune didn't see their looks as he headed straight into the establishment without hesitation. The rest of the team looked at each other and reluctantly entered.
Burgundy was the basis of the lounge the three entered, and the mahogany tables and bar on the far side of the room clashed pretty well. The stale scent of cigarettes invaded their nostrils, and Nora resisted the urge to gag at this. Pyrrha had a disapproving look on her face. Ren remained neutral as he looked out to see a few people at the tables, idly talking and smoking the occasional cigarette. He spotted Jaune sitting by himself at a booth at the far side of the lounge. Ren noticed that Pyrrha's eyes slightly widened, and as the ninja looked over to Jaune, he discovered why. Their leader took a quick puff from a lit cigarette and quickly smashed it on the ashtray provided on the table. The blonde looked up and smiled when he saw his team. He gestured for them to come sit, and they reluctantly complied. The three of them sat down, Nora sitting next to Jaune while Pyrrha and Ren sat across from him.
Jaune saw the look in his partner's eyes and mildly shrugged. Before anyone could say anything, a waiter came up to them.
"How can I-" the waiter's eyes widened before he smiled. "Ah! Mr. Arc! So glad to see you again!"
His three teammates were all confused beyond belief as they heard the waiter exclaim his joy at Jaune's presence. They looked to Jaune for some answers, and he ignored them, smiling back at the waiter.
"Rory. The best damn waiter this side of Remnant has to offer." Jaune chuckled a bit as the waiter became flustered at the compliment. "How did they like the stuff?" Jaune asked Rory while nudging his head towards the customers.
"They loved it. It attracted a few more patrons as well. I believe we have five more regulars now," Rory assumed as he put a thumb to his chin.
Jaune smirked a bit at this. "What did I say?" Jaune asked while shrugging. "That little recipe was an investment worth spending good lien on."
Rory nodded vigorously before the team could ask what he was talking about. "And in doing so, saving our business. My uncle is very grateful that you decided to sell us those bottles of wine."
Jaune leaned back a bit to see a burly man tending the bar, giving him a look of gratitude. Jaune smiled and nodded in response before turning back to Rory. "Everyone, this is Rory. Rory, this is my team: Ren, Nora, and Pyrrha," Jaune said while gesturing to each of them, who looked either confused or irritated by his antics. Jaune chuckled in response to this.
"Pleasure to meet you all," Rory said softly. "Anyways, do you need any more time, or do you all know what you're ordering?" Rory grew a little anxious at the flat stares he was receiving from Jaune's team.
"Water will be good for now," Jaune said, breaking the tension. All eyes were back on him, and Rory nodded before turning around and heading to other tables.
"Mind telling us what that was about?" Ren asked flatly
Jaune simply looked at his teammate. "When I just got back to Vale, I needed cash, and I had a few bottles from Columbia on me." Jaune noticed a glare coming from Pyrrha. "Vale has nothing close to what Columbia has when it comes to wine, so, for a few bottles and the recipe to make said whine, they gave me a hefty amount of lien."
"Which you then proceeded to spend on your hotel and cheaper booze," Pyrrha said while she folded her arms.
Ren and Nora looked to their leader for answers.
"Guilty," he said somewhat jokingly.
Pyrrha was about to respond but was interrupted by Rory.
"Here's your water," he said as he set them down. "Anything else?" he asked, and Jaune pulled out a twenty-lien card and slid it across the table.
"Just some peace, please."
Rory knowingly nodded while pocketing the card and headed off once again. As he did this, Jaune took a sip of his water.
The four of them were silent for a few minutes while Jaune became more relaxed and, in doing so, undid his red sash around his neck. The silence continued till Jaune spoke up.
"I returned to Beacon for some semblance of normalcy." What his team did pick up on was his cold tone. "For the past day, it's been emotionally draining." He saw that the three of them were still silent and continued. "You heard earlier some of what I've been through. I just need time."
Pyrrha clenched her fists on the table. "It just hurts to see you like this and not be able to do anything."
Jaune soon took another sip of water while leaning back and folding his arms. "But you are. Just being in the presence of my team helps."
Pyrrha's glare didn't falter.
"I understand what you meant when you told me everyone needs help, Pyrrha."
Her furious expression turned to one of confusion, and Jaune cocked an eyebrow.
"The rooftop, where I told you about my transcripts?" Pyrrha realized what he was talking about, and her eyes widened.
"Whether I liked it or not, I understood it was okay to seek help, and I shouldn't have said those things to you."
Pyrrha was about to relax until she saw that Jaune's gaze hardened.
"However, at the end of the day, it is still a choice I alone have to make. Yes, I was taken. Yes, I killed. Yes, I developed a poor way of coping with it all."
Ren, Nora, and Pyrrha frowned at the reminder of his recent drinking. Jaune's hand was tightening around his glass. "The moment I came back, I wanted to be treated with some level of respect. I know you guys want answers, but I can't. You don't think I know you're only doing this because you care. That I don't care about you?" He then propped his elbow up. "If I didn't care about you guys, I wouldn't have returned to Vale."
Nora flinched.
"I fought tooth and nail to get back here in one piece! I had to care for myself for a month while an entire city wanted my head!" Every occupant in the establishment went silent, and all eyes were now on Jaune, who stood up from his seat and was now eyeing his team.
"Jau-" Pyrrha tried to say to calm him down but was met with a cold glare.
"I survived," Jaune said as he sat back in his seat.
The team noticed he was starting to calm down after taking more breaths.
For her life, Nora swore she saw Jaune's hands turn crimson as if they were burning, but they soon returned to their normal color.
"Maybe it would have been better if I died in that city."
Ren was about to object to this, but Jaune continued.
"I nearly sacrificed everything that I was. My morals. My innocence. My sanity. And this is my reward..." Jaune took a swig from his water and set it back down. He then got up and gestured for Nora to move so he could get out of the booth.
The bomber reluctantly complied.
Jaune placed another Lien card on the table. "Head back to the school or stay in Vale. I need some time to myself," Jaune ordered, and Pyrrha stood up. "But Ozpin-"
"Will not know of anything that happened today. Not the motel room, the lounge, or what happened in the parking lot. Please..."
Pyrrha followed her partner out of the establishment.
Jaune stopped and followed her gaze to his smoking hands. He chuckled to himself as he realized that he forgot to explain his little stunt in his angry rant. "Oh, right. I forgot to explain that."
"Was that your semblance?" she asked, and he turned around.
Ren and Nora caught up to Pyrrha.
Jaune chuckled a little louder. "You said before that Aura is the manifestation of our soul. It bears our burdens and shields our hearts. That our Semblance is a tangible projection of one's Aura. You were wrong in some regard. It felt like I was wearing away with each passing day in Columbia." He turned around. "I had to change. Adapt or die, whether I like it or not."
Before Pyrrha could say anything, Jaune sent her a glare, warning her that she was overstepping her boundaries and that he was having no more of it. "Like I said, take the day off or return to Beacon. I'll meet you there tonight." With nothing else to say, Jaune turned on his heel and headed further into Vale, leaving his team behind.
Pyrrha stood there for a few moments without saying a word. Nora and Ren remained silent as their leader's words replayed in their heads. Were they really that careless not to consider Jaune's feelings on all the hardships he endured to come back to them? To keep pushing him in uncomfortable positions? Looking back on the past day, they could all collectively agree that they didn't.
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AN: Special thanks to Jebest4781, Charles, and Seana!
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