A/N: EDIT: Not a lot of feedback for this particular chapter. That's a real spirit breaker. Darn site glitches...
Working a double today. Barely got this chapter out in time. Its a three-parter now, hopefully with an early update if folks want that...?
Every review really does help, large or small...anything is better than nothing at all...T_T
Can anyone see this? Site glitches keep hiding new chapters and new stories alike for days on end.
Apologies for getting sick last week; but it made this chapter all the better for it; allowing to focus more in detail on things.
Still, here we go~! Part two banzai~!
As ever, the fate of this story depends on you, the reader. Your feedback determines the fate of this tale, and many others. I own no references, quotes, memes or themes! They're all tributes to legends far greater than me. I'm just a humble author trying to make his way in this wild world, one word at a time Time and feedback will determine if this remains a story. Simple as that. In other words...its up to YOU, the reader. Do let me know in the comments~!
Once more, hopefully I captured the feeling of a proper RWBY episode from ye olden days. I'll leave that to you, the reader, to determine.
Do tell me what you think!
It really does matter!
"Just how many children do you intend for him to have?!"
"Yes."
"Naruto, no. That's not a number and you know it."
"Isn't it? Make no mistake, we're still gonna punish him in three days, but letting him work his way through this? That's a different discipline all its own. He wanted to go out and experience the world, Juniper. Now he has. Surprise surprise, strength, kindness, and good looks win hearts. Our boy has all three. That's rare in this age. Is it any wonder this happened? Unfortunately, he's also dense as a brick. I'm pretty sure Nikos has jumped him by now, and I wouldn't be surprised if more followed in her footsteps, to say nothing of the Schnee...
"Yes...well...if he has your stamina...I pity that poor girl. Or should I say girls?"
"See? There WAS a reason I didn't want to let him out of Ansel until he was ready, ya know...! But hey, we're in Vale. Not like he can attract anymore attention here...right?"
"Dear husband, I adore and treasure you beyond words, but you've just jinxed us."
"Who, me? Nah. What's the worst that could happen?"
"Twenty grandbabies? Maybe thirty?
"Salem, no. Not that many."
"SALEM YES!"
~Naruto and the Family.
Just a Little Love (Part II)
Warmth.
Jaune Arc awoke to that overwhelming sensation of pure contentment; accompanied by a pleasant soreness, encompassing his entire body beneath a great many blankets.
It felt...pretty damn good, all things considered.
Now, where in blazes was he?
And why couldn't he see?
Blinking once, he made to move his right arm, only to find it strangely stuck. Half asleep as he was, he didn't even think to question it and settled for his left hand.
Scrubbing his eyes, he yawned once and belatedly blinked away the blurriness of a bleary sleep to squint up at his surroundings as best he could.
Alright, he recognized the ceiling of his dorm, if nothing else. That was a good sign, surely.
...had the ceiling fan always been broken, though?
.
..
...or the bed so close to the ground?
'Alright, Jaune. Just calm down. There's probably a perfectly rational reason for this.'
Exhibg sharply through his nose, he paused to take stock of himself and the situation.
His right arm wasn't simply stuck, it had gone well and truly numb, all pins and needles; yet when he turned his head to seek the source, so too did he find himself stricken. Blue eyes bulged in disbelief.
Rather obvious why, really.
Because you see, Pyrrha Nikos was resting peacefully against him and he noticed several things about his partner in that instant; for one, she was all but spooning her body into his, long red hair tickling his chest as she cluched his arm between her breasts, bare shoulders peeking out the blankets.
Jaune steeled himself and lifted said blankets with his free hand.
She wasn't wearing any clothes beneath.
Neither was he, for that matter.
Well, that explained things. Quite a few things, really. Many noisy, visceral things. Stunned, he let the blanket fall, persevering what little remained of their modesty. Last night wasn't a dream, then. Or was it?! He pinched his cheek just to be sure and nearly yelped as his aura crackled angrily.
Pain! Very awake! This was real!
Pyrrha mumbled something in her sleep and snuggled up to him, latching on like a limpet. Apparently, she liked to cuddle. Who knew? She was rather good at it too, clinging on tight to his arm, head nestled against his chest, one leg twined lazily within his. She fit perfectly against him, as though she were meant to be there.
As if she belonged there.
His heart hitched and his throat closed, momentarily choked with emotion. His free arm betrayed him spectacularly and held Pyrrha close, which in turn caused her to cuddlecloser still in her sleep, leaving her pressed perilously close against him. She murmured under her breath again, and this time he heard it.
"Don't go...
Ack! Right in the feels!
...I'm not going anywhere, Pyr." he finally managed to extricate his arm from her grasp and use it to loop around her waist, uncertain if she could even hear him. "I'm staying right here."
Kurama tutted in his head. "And now he gets it!"
Maybe he did...was this what love felt like?
Still, curiosity nagged at him like a persistent child, demanding his attention.
Against his better judgement, he raised his gaze to survey the room...only to sigh at what he found there.
Their dorm was even more of a mess than before, clothes lay madly strewn about without a care in the world, some of them beyond repair. There was a great gaping hole in the ceiling alongside a decidedly human-shaped dent in the right wall where someone had been pushed against it, then pinned, and there hanging from the bed post...
.
..
...huh. Black lace. Neat.
Last night was a carnal blur, he could barely remember, most of what happened. They'd gone wild.
The bedframe was also very much broken beneath them, he could tell, considering how close they were to the floor. A cursory glance down at his chest and neck allowed him to notice a number of There were a number of bite marks on his chest. Hickeys all, the sight of a witch sent blood rushing to an entire different part of it's anatomy. He should probably wear a scar today, just to be safe.
Pyrrha dug her nails into him -ow!- enough to make his aura flare.
Content, he gazed at the ceiling, hands clasped behind his head.
she looked peaceful. He couldn't think of a better word for it.
In conclusion!
'Wow. I had sex.'
And then, as the reality of the situation, said in:
'Oh Gods, I had sex.'
Mom was gonna kill him.
Dad, well, he would probably laugh.
Had they used protection...? He couldn't recall. Probably...not, in all likelihood.
Double urk.
It would be fine, right? Yeah, sure. No worries. He was an Arc. His luck wasn't that bad...
.
..
...or was it?
A humming noise drew his ear; against all odds his Scroll lay open nearby, strewn on the floor, just out of reach. And there, on the screen, politely informing him of his negligence:
Five missed messages. Three missed calls. One voicemail.
He gulped. 'Aw, crap. Amber. Qrow!'
"Don't forget Winter ...
As if he could!
Memory of the smoldering Schnee was carved deep in the darkest recesses of his mind.
"I love you. Marry me. We'll have strong children."
What kinda proposal was that, oi?!
Still, he couldn't reach his phone without getting up. How annoying. His eyes narrowed and a quick yank of chakra remedied that problem, hauling it into his hand. He balked for a moment, only to hum in silent satisfaction at his success. Neat. Had he always been able to do that? If so, why hadn't he thought of something like this earlier?
Just grab it with his chakra, push and pull at will.
So simple!
Kurama guffawed openly in his head. "Do you have any idea what you just did?"
No, and he didn't care to ask at the moment, frankly. Still too sleepy.
"Look at your reflection sometime. You might be surprised."
'Okay...?'
Fumbling for his scroll, he was only mildly surprised to find that several of said missed messages came from Amber. There was even the odd question from Qrow asking if he'd gotten his "bits" frozen off, whatever that meant. When they had gotten ahold of his number was beyond him. Was this Ozpin's doing? Had the old Headmaster put them up to this? Or was Qrow seriously that sneaky? It could've been any number of things. The latest had been sent only a few minutes ago.
"Jaune! Where are you?! Are you alive?!
Never felt better! But he couldn't go and say that now, could he? Guilt kicked at his chest until he thumbed out a quick message of his own.
"Alive. How about you?"
Her response came through almost immediately: "Goodwitch got me; stuck in detention. She's a scary bitch. Saaaave meeee...
He almost laughed despite himself, but that would've awoken Pyrrha. "Sorry, but even I'm afraid of Miss Glynda...
A smiley-face emoji, and then came the question he was dreading. "Where are you? Did the Schnee get you?"
...places." His face warmed as he typed out a response. "Guess you could say I escaped?"
"Good! Don't let that icy manstealer bitch get her claws in you!"
His head tilted. "...manstealer?"
A moment of long silenced followed, so long in fact, that he feared Amber had given up entirely.
And then: "I need to up my training to stand a chance against her. Are you free tonight?"
Pyrrha stirred against him and he instantly winced. "Not tonight. Maybe tomorrow?"
"Its a date, then! Gotta go! Goodwitch is glaring at me!"
His scroll went silent, leaving him to simmer.
Kurama cut into his dour thoughts akin to a surgeon with a scalpel. "Use your time wisely. You only have three days."
As if he needed reminding!
Three days.
Naruto Arc's voice stabbed through his mind, a stark reminder of his fate;
Dad was a mountain, one he had yet to surmount. Mom was the wind, a terrifying gale that flattened all before her; that was before she brought out her sword and semblance. She'd taught him everything he knew, but he knew she'd not taught him everything she knew. In three days they -likely the both of them- would come for him. He could hide away in Beacon like a coward or be brave and find a nice secluded spot somewhere outside Vale's walls; regardless, it didn't change the facts. He was living on a timer.
Three days. Seventy-two hours. Screw the minutes, he could feel the seconds ticking down, heralding his doom.
Could he find some way to beat him and mom by then?
In a fair, fierce fight? Not bloody likely. Nope.
But did he absolutely have to fight fair?
The thought gave Jaune pause.
Mom may have drilled honor and chivalry into him, but Dad was always telling him to look beneath the beneath or something along those lines, right?
Come to think of it, they could've dragged him back to Ansel by now; Salem's interruption had been a prime opportunity.
But they hadn't.
Instead they'd given him a chance. Several chances, actually. Why? His parents weren't stupid; on the contrary, they were frightfully clever. Mom more than most. Was this an opportunity? Did they want him to win? Or barring that, stop acting like a swordsman and think outside of the box? He had other allies, didn't he? Friends? Comrades; people to protect, those who didn't want to see him go, folks who would jump at the chance to defend him, and he them.
What was the saying? Quality is nice, but quantity had a quality all its own...
Winter was a Maiden. Amber, too. Dad had decked the former with one hand, and laid him out with another, but what if he brought more to the battle? Team RWBY. Team JNPR. Didn't that Velvet girl have a team of their own? And they were upper years, weren't they? They had to be strong. Coco had a minigun for crying out loud! He'd seen her shred her adversary's aura in spars.
Alone, none of them would make a difference, but if he brought more, then through more atop that...maybe miss Goodwitch, even? She kinda looked like Mom. There was some resemblance there, relation, maybe. Did Juniper have any siblings? She'd never mentioned them, but...
.
..
...his mind began to whir, thoughts and plans clicking into place until a grin split his face.
There comes a time when a man must fight, even knowing that he may lose. But maybe -just maybe!- he didn't have to win. Maybe he could make victory so unpalatable -so wretchedly awful- that Dad and Mom wouldn't want it. They were good people. Scary, but good, even if Dad pretended he wasn't a hero anymore...
And then, of course, there was his trump card.
If he used that he might be able to turn the tables, if only for a minute.
Kurama praised him for planning. "Now you're thinking like a shinobi. Its about damn time. Maybe if you'd utilized this sort of strategy before leaving, you wouldn't have half the problems you do now."
Maybe so. Granted, he knew this entire scenario his fault; that he was the catalyst for all of the chaos that had followed in his wake. And he was sorry for hurting his family. He'd say it as many times as need be. And many more still thereafter. But he couldn't be like his sisters. He had to go his own way. If he didn't, he'd just come to resent everything; them, Mom...even Dad...
Dad had sat him on his knee and told him his war stories; he knew full what hatred did to the hearts of men and women alike.
He couldn't become one of those; no, he refused. Not another Madara. Not another Orochimaru. Not another Sasuke.
But they were good guys once upon a time too, weren't they?
Each of them had been strong, each of them had done as they were told, each of them had bottled everything until they'd finally snapped. Maybe that wasn't the lesson Dad was trying to impart, but it was the one he had taken to heart.
He wouldn't be like them. Never. Even if it meant fighting his family for a little bit.
Flicking through his scroll, he answered a few questions form Qrow, whom he reassured that, yes, he still had his bits intact.
Wait. Qrow was Yang and Ruby's uncle. A seasoned Huntsman; one whom he got on alright with.
He pressed his hands together, considering.
Three days, dad said. It would be just after the Dance, right? He wasn't too concerned about that event. Probably not important; wasn't like he had any plans to go or anything.
Alright. Three days was plenty of time to train up and gather his allies.
His scroll chimed again, reminding him of the missed voicemail.
It was from Winter, natrually
Not big surprise.
"Jaune Arc." her voice was crisp and cool, only to falter a heartbeat later into an almost anxious babble. "I trust you are well? No, of course you are. You're strong. You'd be nothing less. I rather enjoyed our battle and am recovering from my injuries as well and...and...and...
An awkward pause followed as she struggled to gather her thoughts.
...nice weather we're having? No!" An angry growl cut through her words; not the snarl of a Grimm, but that of a frustrated sound of a young woman who didn't know what to say; he had seven sisters. He knew it all too well by now. "Why is this so difficult? It shouldn't be. I'm a Schnee. Schnees always excel! Just talk to him!"
Had she been in the room with him, Jaune might've laughed; as things were, he covered his mouth with one hand regardless.
"Ah, no!" Winter's voice piqued with girlish panic a moment later as she realized her plight. "Its still recording?! Ahem!" he could just imagine her coughing into a fist. "I understand Beacon is holding their annual dance quite soon. As head of security for Atlas, I have secured permission from General Ironwood to attend. I expect to see you there as well. I also wish to introduce you to Mother at your earliest convenience. She
Do not ask about Father.
Sincerely yours,
Winter Schnee."
His scroll chimed, heralding the end of the lengthy message, to which he closed it down with a sigh. "What to do with her...?"
And meet her mother? Alright. That was a bridge he'd have to cross sooner or later.
Surely Mrs. Schnee couldn't be that bad, right?
Despite everything he really didn't...dislike Winter per se. On the contrary, the Maiden actually made him exert himself for once; he could count those who had made him do so on less than five fingers. She was also...incredibly forward and he didn't know to deal with that. Or her, for that matter.
Well, he could think of one way, but it felt...well, he wasn't sure how it felt.
Pyrrha hummed against his chest, still sound asleep and in no hurry to awaken anytime soon. Judging by the smile on her face, she was having sweet dreams. Absently, he found himself stroking her back. She made a pleased noise in her sleep and clung to him tighter.
Dreams were often so much better than reality, weren't they? Dreams were peaceful. Dream were safe.
Nobody could hurt you in your dreams; not even yourself.
Kurama noticed his inner thoughts. "Jaune...
"M'fine, Kurama." he sniffed once brushed a hand across his eyes and sighed sighed, running four fingers through his hair. "It just feels like everything's...coming to an end soon, you know? And I'm not ready." a small, broken laugh tumbled out of him. "There's still so much more I wanted to do...
His hands were trembling. Blast it all. He brought one hand over his eyes, hastily drying them before the tears could fall.
Pyrrha stirred ever so slightly beneath him, but her eyes remained shut. Sleep truly was bliss.
"I don't want to go."
"Nonsense. The only one who decides when this ends is you. Steel yourself."
...the old fox was right. Maybe he was being selfish, but he didn't wanna wake his partner just yet. He'd made her cry after all, through no fault but his own. Not Mom, not Dad, not even Winter...but him. For that, he must atone. For that, he'd make a promise. For that, he wouldn't screw up a second time.
Never again.
Maybe trying to cling to everything -to everyone!- made him a coward. He...didn't like the idea hurting people, or breaking hearts. It wasn't something he took pleasure in. Fighting was all well and good when he knew an adversary could take a beating -and frankly most of the students here could- but wounds of the heart ran much deeper, as he well knew. Was it so wrong, then?
To be selfish? To lay here a little while longer? To simply preserve the peace and cherish it for what it was?
He already knew his answer, didn't he?
...I need to be better.'
Not just a better person, ot even a better Leader, but st everything. Team JNPR sparred nearly every other night -when he wasn't sparring on the rooftops with Pyrrha- and they'd grown stronger for it, but with Doomsday fast approaching and his Parents with it, he needed to ascertain how strong. And soon. If he was going to pit himself and his allies against his family, then he had to be sure absolutely sure this would work...
Time to face the music, then.
He gave poor Pyrrha a gentle shake.
Almost immediately, she opened her eyes.
Suspiciously so. Had she been awake all this time? Could he even prove it? Did he want to? In the end he decided to abstain, staring silently as his partner -both figuratively and literally now he supposed, yawned once and stretched against him, arching her back like a cat. Thus content, she sat up atop his lap and the blankets fell with her, pooling around her backside.
"Good morning, Jaune." though she hid another yawn behind her hand, it did nothing to hide her smug smile. "Am I still dreaming?"
He raised a finger to warn her. "Actually-
She shushed him. "Shhhhh...
Too late.
Pyrrha captured his lips with hers before he could hope to respond, leaving his body reeling in a long, lingering kiss that left him gasping for air. From there she drew back to nuzzle her nose against his, press her forehead to his own and lazily loop both her arms around his neck, hands linking just shy of his shoulders.
Her breath was warm on his face, lips just shy of his own, green-eyes half lidded with intent. "I don't want to wake up just yet."
Danger!
His addled mind managed four frazzled words. "You already are, though...?"
"...I am?" her eyes opened, widened in comprehension as she beheld the sunlight peeking through the window. Craning her neck back, she idly regarded the shattered state of the room, their clothes strewn about like so many trophies of war.
Realization dawned.
He saw it in her eyes; and in her face as well; because she went redder than Ruby's cloak.
Pyrrha jolted back with a yelp as though she'd been burned, one arm over her breasts. "I'm sorry!"
"Whoa, hey!" he reached out for her hands and gently peeled them away before she could bolt. "Easy, there! You don't have anything to be sorry about!
She blinked quickly, panic fading from her face as she let him pry her hands down. "Then last night...?
"Actually happened, yeah." He kept his gaze locked with hers, not daring to release her hands for fear she'd flee. "If anyone should be sayin' sorry, it should be me, I mean, I made you cry...
She bit her lip. "And last night...?"
Again with that? Ohhh so that's what she was after.
"Was good." He slumped back in bed, unable to hide a decidedly dopey grin. "Very good."
Pyrrha's face flamed to match her hair all over again. He liked it. She seemed more honest this way. They were still, the both of them, fumbling over words, but maybe that was fine; this was a learning experience for both of them. Sure enough, at length, Pyrrha's posture relaxed as her gaze softened; only to narrow in a way that had nothing to do with anger or anxiety whatsoever. "In that case...
Blushing, she laid back down atop him snuggled into his chest.
Jaune flushed as well. Concern was the cousin of anxiety and right now he felt both!
"What I said earlier...just how much of that did you hear?"
Pyrrha paused. "I don't know what you mean."
Maybe she did. Maybe she didn't. He hadn't the heart to call her out on it. Instead, he chose a different avenue of attack.
"Pyrrha?"
"Yes, Jaune?" She stared up at him with her wide, green eyes, trusting him implicitly. "what is it?"
He felt dirty for even asking, but...
"if I said I needed help with dealing with my parents, would you-
"Yes!" She latched onto his hands before he could even finish and held tight. "whatever you need!"
"Just like that?!"
Just like that. She granted him a limpid smile. "We're partners, aren't we? Your battle is my battle."
"You make it sound so simple...
"Because it is."
As though emboldened by that very thought, she dipped in to kiss him deeply and it was...well, wonderful sounded too tame a word, but it was the best he could think of, and over all too soon.
She laid her head on his chest with a pleased sigh. "Weiss will be furious, though..."
"Riiiiiight." Kurama drawled the word, "Forgot all about the smaller Schnee. This'll get her panties in a twist...
His brow furrowed. "Why? What does she have to do with this?"
Pyrrha laughed; it was a smug, satisfied sound wholly devoid of tension. "Nope. You can figure that out for yourself, Jaune."
He scowled at her, unable to ignore the uncomfortable implication. "Hey! Nope is Ruby's line."
"Is it?" she giggled as she rolled over to smile serenely up at him, laying her back against his chest, uncaring for her nakedness, nor the blankets barely preserving her modesty. "Nope, nope."
'Don't stare at her breasts. That's rude. Bad Jaune!'
Was this what it felt like to be love drunk? It wasn't a bad feeling. "Don't you start that again-
"Nope, nope, nope~!" She finished with a triumphant laugh and an impish grin.
"Are you sure you're not drunk? "He laughed a little himself, infected by her laughter; maybe she'd swiped Qrow's flask when he wasn't looking. "You're acting drunk."
"Not at all." Here at last, her smile simmered with some small sadness. "Just savoring the moment while I can. Consider it the calm before the storm, if you will."
Reaching up, she took his face in her hands and drew him down into a long, lingering kiss. He yielded to her willingly with a sigh, unable to hold her properly in her current position yet unwilling to push her away either as she ground herself against him.
Gods, he wanted her again already. Was that normal? Probably not; screw being normal, then.
"Maybe I can't have you all to myself." Her thumbs stroked his face, trailing over his cheekbones. "I'm starting to realize that, now. You've attracted far too much attention to yourself. "I'll have to fight for you; might even lose you altogether, if I'm not careful.
"Pyrrha-
She pressed a finger to his lips, silencing him, green eyes gleaming like balefire. "But I was first."
He couldn't quite hide his smile at that. "You definitely were."
Her eyes widened a moment later as he realized those words could be taken another way, but Pyrrha wasn't finished with him.
"I was also your second, third, and fourth." She rolled over him, sprawling atop his chest with a laugh, breasts pushing into his pectorals. "So there. I win. Victory for Pyrrha." a hand came up to stroke his cheek again, and this time he was able to grasp it, holding her fingers against his face before the ravishing redhead could escape again. "You're stuck with me now, I hope you realized that." Sitting up, she tossed her head and planted both hands atop his shoulders, holding on tight. "No one can change that. Not Velvet, Blake, Yang, and certainly not Weiss."
A strange, foreign feeling stirred in his chest; to which his lips pursed in a frown. "Why do you keep mentioning Weiss...?"
"Honestly?" She huffed a little, but said huffiness didn't prevent her from snatching another kiss from him. "Because, she's unworthy of you." her nose nuzzled his for a moment before she drew away, luxuriating in his lap as she ranted at him. "She's always demanding a rematch, always badmouthing you, and almost always hostile whenever you try and talk to her. You've been a perfect gentleman to her in nearly every encounter, but she just won't accept her place."
A blond brow rose. "...dare I ask where that place is?"
"Isn't that obvious?" Pyrrha crossed both arms over her bosom. "Beneath you, of course. She's a bitch."
Jaune choked on his spit! "Pyrrha...?!"
"I'm sorry!" she flushed and flailed her arms, realizing the gravitas of her own words. "I didn't mean it like that!"
He wanted to agree, but something stopped him. "I'm starting to think that's just how Schnees are."
Pyrrha blinked, so quickly that he nearly missed it outright. "I beg your pardon?
How best to explain it? "Winter...when I fought her, she wasn't right in the head." it was all too easy to recall just how fiercely she'd fought, her raging battle lust, the complete and utter refusal to say down when she was losing their bought. "She took hits she had no business taking and kept coming back for more. In a way, she was like Weiss, refusing to admit defeat until I made her. A normal person would've given up after I broke their ribs. Winter didn't, and I don't think Weiss would either, if it came to that. Maybe its the environment they were raised in. I've heard awful things about Jacques Schnee. Guy doesn't sound like a good father; it couldn't be easy, living with him...
...perhaps." Pyrrha stared at him for another long moment, green eyes intent. "Come to think of it, Winter kissed you too, didn't she?
How did she-oh, right; there had been news crews aplenty, hadn't there; that scroll footage was probably all over the net now.
Moreover! He knew that look! "Pyrrha, no." he took ahold of her hands. "Whatever you're thinking, don't. She's strong."
Her gaze gleamed, not with anger this time, but excitement. "She's a match for me, then?"
"No." His frank answer caused her to balk. "She's stronger. Much stronger."
She sulked unhappily. "Stupid Schnee Semblance...
Sure, lets call it that. Pyrrha might know the truth of Salem and the Grimm now, but he didn't feel comfortable revealing the matter of the Maidens to her just yet. Four people with fantastic power? Women able to bend the very elements to their whims at any given moment? Magic that could conjure foul floods, savage snowstorms, and terrible tornadoes at a whim?
She might go out and try to find such power for herself; if only to even the playing field.
It was entirely possible, too; Amber was the Fall Maiden, Winter...well, the Winter Maiden of course, but that left Summer and Spring unaccounted for. Ozpin -or should he say Ozma?- had made mention of them in passing after he tended to Amber; one was in Vacuo, the other lost in Mistral. Both far from here.
Then again, no one had known Winter was a Maiden until she revealed herself, either. Given his luck-
"I don't want to talk about Schnees anymore."
Pyyrha sat up suddenly, and this time, the blankets flowed off her bare backside like so much water. She arched her back but a little, baring herself to him, granting him a good long look at her body, knowing full well the effect she was having on him. A small, shy smile tugged at the corner of her mouth, contrasting nicely with the pink flush in her cheeks.
"Do we have to get up, yet?" she idly tucked a stray strand of scarlet hair behind one ear without any care. "We still have a little time before breakfast...
Her words stirred something him and for once, he didn't fight his baser instincts. His hands settled on her hindquarters, holding her close as she pressed her forehead to his. Without warning she locked both legs around his waist and flipped him over, forcing him to pin her against the battered mattress.
Pyrrha grinned up at him, breathlessly unrepentant. "You certainly have a lot of stamina."
He grinned. She had no idea. "So...round five?"
She laughed. "You're impossible~!"
Yup. That settled it.
Sex was the best.
(.0.0.0.)
Prison was boring!
Completely! Utterly!
Boooooooorrrrrrrriiiiing!
Neopolitan, or Neo as she preferred these days-formerly Trivia Vanille of the now very much deceased Vanille family-slumped back in her cot, clasped both hands behind her head, and heaved a sullen sigh. The same as the last, the same sigh she'd been sighing since her incarceration.
Truly there could be no greater torture than this!
Had she a voice she would've snarled at the ceiling; instead she could only sulk silently and kick at the wall with her heels.
That got a reaction, albeit not at all the one she wished for.
A shadow fell over her, followed by a brusque voice just out of sight of her cell. Her guard was less than pleased by her behavior, it seemed
"Keep it down in there, runt!"
Let it be known that while Neo couldn't speak, she could hiss. She was not short! She was fun-sized, thank you very much! There was a difference! Short girls were best girls!
A heavy black baton rose to rattle the bars of her cell. "What was that, midget?!"
Note to self, kill that guard first after she got out and rescued Roman.
Because the bastards had him in here somewhere, but she didn't know where, which was the problem; one that prevented her from just escaping outright and carving bloody havoc through all of Vale. That, and for all her semblance and skills, she couldn't handle three teams of Huntsmen crashing down on her head.
Not yet.
Say what you would about the old-fuddy-duddy Headmaster of Beacon, but he was a clever prick. He knew her greatest weakness. The second she tried using her aura or even the slightest smidgen of her semblance, an alarm would go off. Said alarm must've been keyed to his scroll; because the last time she attempted to escape he'd dome down to stop her himself.
She'd since managed to get ahold of a little bit of metal and sharpen it into a shiv since. Flimsy thing. Probably good for one quick stab before it broke.
Useful against an unprepared guard, maybe, but not a Huntsman.
Stifling her murderous tendencies for the time being, she flipped the fool guard off and rolled over with a huff, refrained from antagonizing him further. Using her semblance was mighty tempting, but she knew that was a bad idea; after all, she'd learned her lesson once already. Solitary confinement sucked; she had no intention of revisiting that padded cell.
Better to stay here, where she at least had a bed and food...
.
..
...even if she was bored out of her skull.
Counting cobwebs worked for awhile...until didn't.
Gnawing at her lower lip, she thrashed upright and flung her arms up into the air!
She hated this place with its lumpy bed, hated being without Roman, but most of all she hated these ugly orange prison fatigues they'd crammed her into.
Alright, maybe crammed wasn't the right word. Her present attire was several sizes too big for her; as such, she'd been forced to make do by tearing strips out of them and using them as interchangeable belts to hold this getup...well, up. So she bared her midriff as a result and didn't have sleeves, so what? She rocked this shit as best she could given the circumstances.
Vale liked their colors; even prisoners had to wear bright clothes. Blech.
Give her her pinks and whites and blacks an browns any day!
Orange was a crime, said she! A crime against fashion!
Ah, but she digressed, back to the matter of her incarceration. She'd seen her fair share of prisons like these, yet never for very long; because she always, always, always broke out. Even now, she could escape at any given time, but she didn't know which cell they had Roman in which...handicapped things a little, He might be a dumb-dumb, but he was her dumb-dumb. The closest thing to a father figure she had these days. Even if he was a flamboyant idiot. If anyone laid a hand on his head, the hand came off. Along with their elbow and shoulder besides. It was the principle of the matter. One had to send a message. Written in blood.
My property. My stuff. Don't touch!
Or so things had been.
Was he even alive?
She knew Arc hadn't killed him, but who knew what these Valean bastards might've done to her dumb-dumb if she waited much longer?
The Headmaster and the Good "General" had already tried to interrogate her once already, for all the good it did her.
Roman wasn't as strong as her. Not as study. He wasn't a killer, not like her.
There had been a time when she thought Cinder -nasty fire bitch- might take exception to their capture and try to spring them, but that rescue never came. Now there was no word from her or anyone in White Fang, and there hadn't been for ages. They'd been cast adrift, been forgotten left abandoned.
All because of Blazing Blond Bastard.
Here at last, a small smile plucked at the corner of her mouth as she flopped back onto her cot. Jaune Arc was...a bit of an enigma to her, in all honesty. He could've killed Roman. Probably should have, in all honesty. But he hadn't. He got points for that. He got more for knocking her about, up, down, left, right and sideways during that fight at the docks. It had been a long while since she'd lost a bout like that; let alone been beaten into unconsciousness.
In conclusion! Perfect ten!
What?! She had a thing for the strong silent types, and she loved a guy that could kick her ass!
She'd be sure to show him some proper appreciation once she flew the coop.
After that, weeeeell...they could do things the easy way or the hard way.
Neo liked the hard way. The VERY hard way...
.
..
...heh.
Just thinking about it made her toes curl.
A distant clamor caught her ear; she listened halfheartedly as the sound of raised voices and shouts in the distance. The harsh crack of a gunshot filled the cellblock, followed by a meaty crunch. Neo sat up, mildly intrigued by the chaos. Was this a rescue, or a prison break? Either one sounded interesting and frankly anything was better than staying here.
Not a moment later, all the lights in the cell block went out. The prison's backup generator kicked in almost immediately, bathing the room in ruddy red light; what little it provided proved poor indeed. Above her the once alert cameras drooped and died, gone lifeless in the limited power. Seemed someone was camera shy...
Across the cellblock, a door was summarily kicked down.
Neo noticed, naturally.
"...?"
Times like these really made her wish she could talk.
Was that Cinder? Had she come to spring them?
The lights went out again; then returned.
A giant gazed back at her through the bars, bearded face inches from her own.
Neo sprang back with a jolt, hissing like a startled cat.
Nope! Not Cinder! Definitely not Cinder!
Well, unless Cinder had been hitting the gym, grown a beard, and a few feet with a mountain of muscle besides.
Unlikely.
Aura sparked as someone shot him in the back.
"You, there!" the guard from before hallooed suddenly, distracting them both. "Freeze!"
The giant grunted in annoyance. "I could say the same of you."
Another round glanced off his back. Hands in the air! I won't ask again!"
"No one had to die today...
The big bruiser whirled with a speed bellying his bulk, grabbed Neo's guard by the face, dragged him into the air and squeezed. A muffled scream choked itself out against his palms. Neo didn't seem them die-too short!-but she heard the wet, meaty plop that followed as he crushed their face in his hands, and the splat that followed when he dropped their corpse to the ground.
His task complete, he pivoted to face her once more.
Big and fast. Quicker than he had any right to be. Maybe enough to catch her if she made a break for it.
She was still dwelling on that when the giant reached in, grabbed the bars of her cell and tore the door clean off its hinges.
He held out a hand to her. It did not feel like a request; not when he was blocking her way out.
Neo's face went white.
"...!"
"Now, now, Hazel," a new voice chimed, "Don't go scaring the poor girl half to death. I need her alive."
The giant paused, and relented with an annoyed sigh. "As you say...
"I do say!" A hand waved him aside like the hired help he was. "Stop making this difficult and step aside."
Hazel, then. That was the bruiser's name. What manner of monster held his leash?
She soon had her answer.
A merry man with wild white hair and an equally busy mustache swaggered in behind the brute, both eyes seeming perpetually closed for reasons she couldn't wholly understand. Despite that -and his girth!- the portly fellow deftly navigated his way around the crimson cadaver, slipped through the bars between her and Hazel -how?!- and stopped just short of her.
"Hello, my dear! A pleasure to meet you! You may call me Port."
As in Professor Peter Port? Of Beacon?! What was a goody two shoes like him doing in a place like this?
At a glance, Neo almost fell for the facade of this foolish fop; he looked harmless enough, like some kindly old grandpa who'd gotten lost on his way home. Not her. She knew better. He had the gait of a killer. Although his eyes remained steadfastly closed, his footsteps didn't make any sound. And his smile...there was something wrong with it. Damn thing was too wide, too happy, too hungry...
Either this "Port" guy was a monster, or Beacon had a bad case of imposter syndrome.
She shivered.
Look, she'd be the first to admit she had a body count, and theat fire bitch was worse, but this bastard...?
This guy made Cinder Fall's look like a measly little ember, some silly little schoolgirl plotting world domination.
Her savior paused, considering her mulish expression and the distance between them and sketched a bow as low as his mighty gut would allow.
"You are Neopolitan, I presume?" Neo stifled a faux yawn behind her hand, trying to feign disinterest; but that "yawn" died an ugly death at what he said next. "Or would you prefer Trivia Vanille?"
She stilled; and in the confusion that followed, horror dawned.
That name; she'd cast it aside long ago.
No one should know that name...!
"Surprised?" the jolly man stroke his mustache with a merry titter. "I had dealings with your father before his...rather fiery end. Pity he got too greedy. That's business, I suppose."
Neo's hand shot into the air.
Port-if this was indeed Port-laughed merrily, his mighty mustache quivering atop his lips like some great fuzzy caterpillar. "I'm sure you have questions, but now is hardly the time. This place will be blown sky-high in a matter of minutes.
It would?!
Hazel grunted in annoyance, perhaps sens. "We're setting her loose? I'd thought Torchwik was the prize."
"We'll fetch him soon enough," Port reassured him woth a merry titter. "Our new friend wouldn't be of much use without her precious father figure now, would she? Why, she'd he positively distraught...
Neo tensed, clutching her shiv behind her back.
Port exhaled softly.
"My dear," he opened his eyes as he spoke, revealing unnaturally bright slits, "I wouldn't recommend that course of action."
Her own mismatching orbs flickered, briefly changing color before she caught herself. Few could make her feel fear these days; even less without desire. She didn't like it.
"Surprised?" Port chuckled. "Don't be. I'm presently the most intelligent, capable person on this miserable little planet, bar none."
Neo tilted her head, mildly incredulous.
Port boomed another belly laugh and clapped her on thr back, nearly sending her sprawling. "Come now, don't make such a face! I'm not playing God. All this time, I've been playing human."
Was he insane? He sounded insane. Almost as bad as the fire bitch.
"And you, my dear," he prattled on, oblivious to her dismay, "will have the singular joy of aiding me in my efforts. Do this, and I'll set your friend free. Why, I'll even secure your clothes and weapon for you at that."
Neo perked up at that, only to hesitate at the last. If something was too good to be true...it usually was.
She knew his type. He wanted something from her.
"Haha! You are a sharp little thing, aren't you?"
Sure enough...
Port opened his eyes.
"All I need is a small favor...
Neo stomped a foot and granted him a decidedly dour glare.
"Ahem." he coughed into a fist, somewhat abashed. "That wasn't a joke about your height, I swear...
A/N: Oh lord, "Port" just set Neo loose~!
Meanwhile, Cinder and Adam are still sulking like brats they are.
Someone of you have guessed at who "Port" is, and what his endgame is. Bravor to you.
Next chapter title should be something along the lines of: Just a little Dance.
Then we have the Schnees and the Vytal Festivaaaal~! Looking forward to properly introducing teams NDGO, FNKI, ABRN, SSSN, BRNZ and the like~! And let us not forget Ciel~! She has a starring role in Far From Home, but its oh-so-nice working with characters who are essentially a blank slate!
As ever, these glorious misunderstandings remain glorious. Are we going for the single route, or the harem ending? I suppose that depends on you, the reader. We're not quite done with the story yet, we still have a bit more to go, not to mention the other continents, Lionheart, the Crown, and the like, to say nothing of the Brother Gods and WHO THE HELL IS PORT?! Why haven't we heard a peep from Oobleck either?
Or we could just end this after the imminent attack on Beacon.
Your choice! Find out next time, on Practice Makes Perfect!
Once again, reviews are my fuel. Without them I simply cannot write.
So in the Immortal Words of Atlas...Review...Would You Kindly?
Next chapter will be bonkers.
Everyone's gonna laugh~!
(Preview!)
Jaune dove into the fray.
x
Naruto considered his watch. "Two days left...
x
You again?!
Neo waved merrily.
...what do you want."
She bounced in place on her heels, pointing past him.
...Ice cream? Seriously? You're a wanted criminal!
x
"Pssst! You awake?"
He certainly was now.
Against his better judgement, he creaked an eye open.
"Hey, sparky. You wanna do something we're not supposed to?"
He eyed her warily, eyes glowing in the gloom. What are you up to?
Shhhh! She shushed him and held up a finger, silencing his protest. "Not so loud...
x
"Child, where in blazes have you been?"
She smiled. "Learning things."
...dare I ask what?
x
Tyrian pounced!
x
Salem perked up. Great grandbabies?"
Now it was Saphron's turn to flush.
Terra and I might adopt if we can't have a child, actually.
Still counts!
x
The Hound cocked its head. "Friend?"
Zwei mirrored him, tongue lolling out his mouth as he panted happily.
"No!" Ruby flung up her arms. "No friends! This is not happening! Zwei you get back here right now-ACK?!
The Hound licked her, cutting her off. "Gah! Bad doggy! Down!"
The Grimm barked and licked her again.
"Noooooo!"
x
Oh, gods.
That dress.
And her hair.
She looked...beautiful didn't even begin to describe her.
She held out her hand to him and smiled. "Shall we dance?"
Jaune hesitated. "This isn't a trap, is it?"
"Take my hand, Arc."
EDIT: Hope you enjoyed this! Have a great day and may it be filled with lots of luck!
Warm regards,
~Nz.