Howdy folks, how's it going?
Another week, another chapter, and not much worth commenting on besides. At least not up here, might be something down at the bottom.
As always, huge shout out to Chaos Productions for his assistance.
And as always, I own neither RWBY nor LoL.
Now, without further ado, enjoy.
/
When Pyrrha finally made it back to her team's dorm room, only Jaune was present, going through some notes, probably the personal ones from his hobby. And she could easily guess he reason for that.
"Post-training pancake time?" She inquired absently. Every time was a good time for pancakes as far as Nora was concerned, but pancakes after training was a downright sacred rite for the hyperactive girl. Sometimes the fighter wondered if her fellow redhead's Semblance had some sort of effect on her metabolism.
Jaune blinked as he looked up at her, seemingly surprised that she had addressed him, which she supposed she couldn't fault him for, given how she had been avoiding contact for the last long while.
"Uh, yeah, pretty much." He replied lamely. It looked like he wanted to say more but had no idea what or how, pretty much like he'd been acting since she had become withdrawn.
Well, far be it from Pyrrha to question the incredibly convenient opportunity for a private discussion. It'd probably be best to rip the band-aid off now, while she was still emotional from her previous encounter, before she lost her nerve and started bottling everything up again.
"Jaune…" She started, sorting through everything in her mind. "I think we need to talk."
The boy's eyes widened at that, and he got up, turning to face her with his undivided attention.
"Yeah…?" He prompted, and Pyrrha breathed in, then out, steadying herself.
"I don't think it's a secret to anyone in this team, or any of the other two teams we interact with for that matter, that I have been… upset." She started, emerald eyes staring intently at her partner, searching. "I tried my best to be polite and subtle about it but, well, didn't really pan out, did it?"
Jaune winced slightly, and didn't quite meet her gaze, which by itself was already a response.
"Do you… know why I've been feeling upset?" She probed. A blind person could've figured it out in all likelihood, but Pyrrha felt she needed to hear it from him.
"…It's about Arslan, isn't it?" Her team leader, her friend, replied. "Because you liked me."
"…Yes. Because of that." The redhead admitted with a sigh, painful as it might be. "So you know. When did you figure it out?"
"Well… when you started acting off, after she arrived…" He confessed, looking as uncomfortable about all this as she felt, but he pressed on regardless. "It was… well, it was something of a surprise, to be honest. I… well, as you can see, I am kinda bad at picking up on these sorts of things…"
"Yeah, Arslan did say you can be a bit of an idiot about this stuff. On that much, I can agree with her." Pyrrha replied with slight smirk, and Jaune couldn't help but double take, uncertain which particular implication of that particular statement was the most worthy of attention right at that moment.
"Well… Pyrrha, may I ask a question?" He eventually said, to which the champion motioned him to go on, eyebrow raised in curiosity. "Why me? I mean, I'm just… I'm just a guy with a big passion for my hobby, nothing to write home about. A girl like you could get anyone she wanted, so… why me?"
The invincible girl smiled at the clueless question, a sardonic smile.
"The Invincible Girl, they called me." She eventually said, eyes looking out the room's window, at nothing in particular. "I love fighting. I am good at it. The best, even, if you'd hear the people talking about it. With every win, more and more people knew my name. The pedestal I was placed in kept getting higher and higher… pushing me further and further away from others. I became a symbol, an icon, something to fawn over, and I stopped being a person. Did you know that absolutely nobody has yet tried to ask me for the Ball? Everyone just assumes I am out of their league. For years now, everyone I've interacted with are either fans who don't know me, people who work to exploit my image, or sycophants seeking to get a share of the glory with a care for me. And I was starting to think that was my lot in life…"
Her eyes turned back towards the boy, her smile turning sad.
"And then you showed up. A guy who had no idea who I was, who didn't care when he found out. You were the first person outside of my family to treat me like a normal human being since I took to the tournament circuit. I felt like what I imagine someone lost in the desert would feel stumbling into an oasis. You weren't perfect, but nobody is, and I wasn't looking for perfection. It wasn't even love at first sight or anything of the sort you see written in books. But you just kept treating me the way I've wanted someone, anyone, to treat me for years, because you were simply being yourself, and one day I found myself imagining what it could be like, to try to take things further…"
A small, mirthless chuckle escaped her lips.
"…And then I find out that I never had a chance, because the one good man I've ever met was already taken."
"I had no idea that I was making such an impression…" The boy admitted, sounding positively floored.
"And that's why it worked, I suppose, not that it matters much." Pyrrha replied, looking at him with both amusement and sadness. "So Jaune, please tell me, what do you think of all this? What do you think of me?"
Silence fell upon the room for a while, as Jaune pondered how best to reply, and Pyrrha patiently waited.
"This is… all quite a shock. Pyrrha, you are a great person. You are kind, you are humble, sometimes it even feels like you are too nice for your own good, and you try really hard for those you care about. I count myself lucky to have you as a partner. As a friend…" He ultimately said, each word as genuine as he could make them.
"…But you don't see me the way I was beginning to see you." She finished for him, a statement more than a question, making him unable to meet her gaze once again.
"…No. And for what is worth… I am sorry that I never noticed how you were feeling, that I never gave any indication one way or another before this whole thing started. I just… don't like talking about myself much. And I never saw something like this coming." He admitted awkwardly. "I'm sorry I hurt you."
…
…
…
Another long period of silence followed, as Pyrrha seemed to take in the words. Her sad smile was upon her face the whole time, and a shine came to her eyes, a shine that felt… resigned, but accepting.
"…And her?" She didn't elaborate. She didn't really need to.
"Arslan… Well, to be quite honest, Arslan and I had had something of a rough start. I will be the first to admit that." Jaune said, smiling fondly despite everything. "But once we got things sorted… Arslan was the first person my own age to ever believe in me. One of two people I knew at the time who saw me as worth something. She can be crass and more forward about it than I'd like, sure, but, sometimes, I feel like she believes in me more than even I believe in myself. And I suppose that, given what you just told me, that is a sentiment you can understand."
"Do you love her?"
"She's a part of my life, and despite appearances, I wouldn't trade it for the world." The boy replied. "We are teenagers, Pyrrha, I think seeing things in absolutes like that is a bit too much… but I am definitely interested. It's not perfect, but then, I wasn't looking for perfection. Heck, I wasn't looking at all, but it still found me."
Despite everything, Pyrrha couldn't help but giggle at that.
"I am sorry too." She then said, causing her partner to blink and stare uncomprehendingly. "Part of the reason I've been keeping my distance was… well, I felt ashamed. That I was feeling like this. That you were going through something awful, and all I could think of was how I wished I could've been the one that made you looked to for comfort, that I could be the shoulder you leaned on like you did with her. I felt awful, and feeling like was being selfish for thinking that just made me feel even worse. And I am sorry about that."
"…I don't think there is anything for you to apologize for, though." He replied gently. "Not for having feelings and emotions. That just sounds like a normal, human thing to me. And hey, you were the one saying you wanted normal, right?"
Pyrrha could only smile at that, a smile that was a little less sad. And Jaune smiled back, as the two partners, the two friends, seemed to reach an understanding.
"Jaune?"
"Yeah, Pyrrha?"
"Can I… hug you?" The redhead asked shyly, not quite meeting him gaze.
Jaune blinked at the question, then wordlessly replied with a smile as he held up his arms, inviting her forward, and the champion obliged. They embraced each other, her chin on his shoulder, as the redhead shut her eyes and imagined, for one last time, how things could have been in different circumstances.
"You'll always be my friend, Pyrrha. You know that, right?" He asked.
"Yes. I guess I can live with that. If you'll be my friend too." She replied amusedly, and Jaune smiled in relief.
It'd take some time, perhaps, but this friendship would get past this, now he was sure of it.
/
Meanwhile, in the next room over, Weiss was looking over to her team leader in mild confusion.
"Shouldn't you be staying behind after class for your extra sessions, Ruby?" The heiress inquired to the teen, who was sitting in her bed with her crow at her lap.
"Not today." The red-cloaked girl replied. "Jax busy. With Headmaster. Someone coming."
"What is that guy's deal, anyway?" Blake could not help but interject curiously. "I don't think I've ever seen a huntsman quite like him. Don't remember ever seeing him in the listings. Why is he doing training with you specifically?"
Ruby shrugged.
"Strong. Not afraid. Nobody else wants fight."
The Heiress and the faunus glanced at each other, and both shrugged, conceding the point. Weiss then opened her mouth to follow up… only to gasp as her gaze suddenly turned towards the window, and she rushed towards it, staring at something very intently, conversation all but forgotten.
Now the faunus and the red-cloaked girl glanced at each other, confused with the sudden shift in their team mate.
"Weiss…?" Ruby asked, as she got up and approached, trying to find what it was that had drawn the girl's attention, and immediately spotting it.
A ship was approaching Beacon. A sleek thing, thinner than a bullhead, with four wings in an x pattern, each with a blue ribbon fluttering from the tip.
"She's here…" Weiss whispered with uncharacteristic, unrestrained glee, before about turning and rushing out of the room.
Ruby blinked, her eyes fixed upon the ship for just a moment longer, before she too turned and followed.
/
"Ma'am, we're in the final stretch for Beacon." The pilot announced.
"…Very well, take her down." Winter Schnee commanded, looking out the ship's window towards the rapidly approaching academy.
Nobody in her escort noticed or thought to ask about how tightly the specialist was clenching her fists.
/
I have to admit, this chapter was kinda difficult to write. I kinda struggle to make emotional moments like this work, but I tried my best to write something that felt believable and natural. I suppose I can only let you all be the judges of whether it worked or not.
At any rate, it seems like this particular matter with team JNPR is mostly on the way to resolving itself, and the plot moves forward with the promise of a family reunion.
Be sure to leave a review letting me know what you thought.
Next time, a Schnee arrives, but before that in two weeks we got the next update to Beneath a Broken Moon, so look forward to that.
Cya all in the next one, stay safe and take care.