The Interruption of Professor Lionheart
There was a knock on the door.
"Who is it?" Jaune asked, a slight touch of nervousness in his voice. He had just gotten up, without even time to shower yet, which might present him with difficulties, depending on who it was who wanted to see him. In the first place, there were some people he was comfortable seeing him in his onesie, and some people – like Pyrrha's mother, for example – he wasn't, and in the second place, he didn't want to greet Pyrrha's mother with morning breath, and… okay, it was mostly just Lady Nikos who would be a problem at his door. Partly because, although she hadn't actually said anything to him since last night, she'd managed to say a lot with a look.
It was one of the things that had kept him awake last night, warring with the other, altogether more pleasant things that had kept him awake last night: the light in a pair of vivid green eyes and the remembered feeling of a pair of lips against his cheek.
"I had a great time with you tonight, Jaune."
"It's Sunset," came the reply from the other side of the door. "You know, it's terrible manners to keep a lady waiting on the other side of the door, in Mistral or anywhere else."
A braver man than Jaune Arc might have asked when Sunset Shimmer became a lady. Since Jaune was not blessed with that particular kind of foolhardy courage, and Sunset had already seen him dressed for bed, he padded across the guest room in his bunny slippers and opened the door.
Sunset was also still in her pyjamas, although she had thrown a plain dark hoodie on over the top. "Morning."
"Good morning," Jaune replied uncertainly. "You're… very early."
"I need a word," Sunset said. "Can I come in?"
"Uh… yeah, sure," Jaune said, retreating inside the guest room to admit Sunset. His room was pretty much the same as hers – it was on the same corridor, on the same floor of the house, the same shape and size – just with slight variations like a different tapestry on the wall. Jaune shut the door behind Sunset as she strode in, walking across the floor in her bare feet, approaching the curtains leading out onto the balcony.
"Last night was something, wasn't it?" she asked.
"I guess," Jaune agreed. "At least Ruby had a good time."
Sunset turned around to look at him. "I think we all had a good time, in the end, in different ways. Ruby and I each made a new friend, and you…" Her eyes narrowed.
Jaune found himself swallowed. "And I… what?"
"That's for you to tell me, isn't it?" Sunset said sharply. "What happened last night?"
Jaune was silent for a moment. He wasn't entirely sure where to start. What had happened last night? Nothing, really, and yet… and yet, at the same time, it felt as though a great deal had happened. He sat down on the bed, feeling the mattress crumple beneath him. "Pyrrha… she was lonely," he said softly.
Sunset folded her arms. "Lonely? The way Pyrrha tells it she's always been lonely."
"Yeah, but I thought that was like a… a metaphor," Jaune said, looking down at his hands in front of him. "I didn't think that she'd actually be all alone in the middle of this party."
"All alone," Sunset repeated. "That doesn't make any sense; where were the hangers on? I know that she struggled to make friends, but she's still Pyrrha Nikos! Just look at the way everyone reacts to her out on the street."
"I know," Jaune replied. "But… I think it must be different out on the street and in the palaces of… well, people like Pyrrha's mom." He looked up to see surprise on Sunset's face. That, in turn, surprised Jaune, because Sunset seemed so worldly and experienced, at least compared to him. He had thought that she might get this, that she might understand what was going on with Pyrrha, but apparently not. "You… it wasn't like that in the palace that you grew up in?"
"Quite the opposite," Sunset answered. "If you were in Pyrrha's position, you were never short of a sycophant. I mean, Pyrrha wouldn't want one if she had one, but at the same time… it surprises me that they weren't hanging around anyway. Hangers on, in my experience, never tell you 'no,' but they rarely take 'no' for an answer either. She was all alone?"
"All alone," Jaune confirmed. "She looked so… I couldn't just leave her that way. Pyrrha… she deserves better than that."
Sunset's expression was hard to read. She looked at him, but her look gave nothing away. "How do you mean?"
"Come on, Sunset, you know what I mean," Jaune said.
"No, I don't," Sunset said calmly. "Not unless you tell me."
Jaune stared up at her in disbelief. Why was Sunset acting this way? "It's… it's Pyrrha!" he cried. "She's so generous and loyal and kind and… she deserves better than she has. The way… the way that she explained it, it's like… did you ever read that copy of that book she brought you?"
"The Mistraliad?"
"Yeah, is there something in there about always being the best?"
Sunset nodded. "It has seemed to me as I read that a great many of the characters care more about being the best – or being seen or perceived to be the best, at least – than they do about actually winning the war in which they are engaged. To the extent that they screw one another over sometimes, to the detriment of their cause, rather than let a rival gain the advantage in glory over them."
"That… that makes sense," Jaune muttered. "The way that Pyrrha put it, they all have to try and be the best but… but if someone actually is the best, like Pyrrha, then-"
"Then everyone around them resents the fact, for they are made small by the comparison," Sunset muttered. She ran one hand through her hair. "A whole city full of people as petty as me."
"Maybe not a city full, but it seems to be most of the…" Jaune trailed off, struggling to find the right word.
"The elite?" Sunset suggested.
"How can they deserve to be called that when they behave that way?" Jaune demanded. "How could anyone bring themselves to hate Pyrrha?"
"I did," Sunset reminded him.
Jaune winced. "Yeah. Right. I, um-"
"No, it's fine, don't worry about it. I'm aware of how stupid I was," Sunset assured him. She paused. "When someone has what you want, then whether or not they actually want it can become irrelevant to how much it fills you with jealousy to see them have it. In fact, it can make things worse, because to their sin of possession is compounded the bonus of ingratitude, of not appreciating that which you want so much but which means nothing to them. The people of this city – the ordinary people – love Pyrrha; their eyes turn towards her like flowers towards the sun. It must eat her fellow notables, the sons and daughters of the great families here, that they don't command the same devotion. But leave that, for now."
"Leave it?" Jaune said.
"There's nothing we can do to change people's minds," Sunset explained. "I'm more interested in what happened between the two of you last night. You saw her alone; you couldn't bear the sight, so you approached her."
"Yeah," Jaune agreed. "She looked so… so sad, you know?"
Sunset sighed dispiritedly. "Pyrrha… she has a lordly melancholy in her."
Jaune wasn't sure what was so lordly about it, but he didn't ask Sunset to explain; he just continued, "I had to go over to her. I had to find out what was going on. That was when she explained it."
Sunset nodded. "And then what?"
"I…" Jaune chuckled nervously. "It sounds kind of stupid now, but… I offered to take her somewhere."
"Where?" Sunset asked.
"I… hadn't thought that far yet," Jaune admitted, "and then her mom showed up, and we came back." He hesitated, unsure of whether he ought to add the last bit.
"What?" Sunset demanded. "What are you hiding?"
Jaune looked down. A smile spread across his face. "She kissed me goodnight," he said, "at the door to her room."
Sunset's eyebrows rose. "Really?"
"On the cheek," Jaune added quickly. "But still…"
Jaune felt, rather than saw, Sunset sit down on the bed beside him. "What do you think about Pyrrha?" she asked. "What do you feel about her?"
"Pyrrha… Pyrrha is…" Jaune hesitated, thinking it over and trying to organise his thoughts. "Pyrrha's wonderful," he declared. "She's a… I… I'm honoured to be a part of her life. But she deserves better than me."
"How do you mean?" Sunset asked.
"I mean, come on, look around," Jaune said. "She's a princess. Why does a girl like her waste her time with a guy like me? Why would she?"
Sunset sighed. "You may well ask," she growled, sounding vexed about something. "So what are you going to do now?"
"What do you mean?"
"What do you think I mean? Are you going to do anything?" Sunset demanded.
"I'm going to be there for her; does that count?"
Sunset rolled her eyes. "Give me strength," she muttered. "Listen, Jaune… do you think that, in the course of ordinary circumstances, I would have lowered myself to the level of a guy like Flash Sentry?"
"Uh…" Jaune hesitated. "I hadn't really thought about it," he admitted. "He seems like a decent guy."
"He is so far beneath me, it's not even funny," Sunset declared magisterially. "And yet… we are not matched according to our station or abilities; the power that binds us is more ethereal and capricious by far. But…do as you like, but don't hold back just because you feel less than her. It doesn't work that way." She stood up. "Also, I have very little doubt that Lady Nikos will want to speak to you at some point today, so let's see that bow again."
Jaune leapt to his feet. "Are you sure? You think that she'll want to talk?"
"I'm fairly certain of it," Sunset said.
Jaune felt as though he had been doused in cold water. "What do I say?"
"That depends," Sunset said.
"Depends on what?"
"On whether you intend to do anything," Sunset replied. "Do you want me to help you ask Lady Nikos for permission to date her daughter, or do you want me to help you explain that last night was perfectly innocent?"
"What would be the point of the first one?" Jaune demanded. "Pyrrha's going away… or staying here. The point is that at the end of the vacation, we'll be back at Beacon, and Pyrrha will be here."
"Not if I have anything to say about it," Sunset said. "Perhaps not if you said anything about it either."
Jaune frowned. "You want me to tell her not to go?"
"I think that if you asked her to stay with us, she would."
Jaune shook his head. "No, I couldn't do that."
"Why not?"
"Because it's not my choice," Jaune replied. "It's Pyrrha's, and if I asked her to do something that was against her wishes… she'd only regret it, and she'd be unhappy. I won't do that to her."
"You know that she's better off with us, as part of our team," Sunset said.
"It's still her choice," Jaune insisted.
"So what?" Sunset demanded. "Isn't part of being a friend, let alone anything else, helping your friend to make the right choices?" She clasped her hands together behind her head. "Pyrrha is a great warrior," she said, "and she has many virtues. She's also painfully naïve, overly sensitive, sheltered, and a half dozen other things that mean she shouldn't be allowed out on her own just yet. She needs this team just like the team needs her. And she needs someone to be the head to her good heart."
Jaune's brow furrowed. "Isn't that you?"
"She trusts you more than she trusts me; your words carry more weight," Sunset declared.
"All the more reason for me to be careful what I say to her," Jaune said. "I want Pyrrha to stay with us, more than anything, but… I won't stand in the way of her dreams, and neither should you."
Sunset exhaled through gritted teeth. "I wish I still had your fake transcripts so I could blackmail into doing what I wanted."
"You don't have them any more?"
"No, I burned them in a misplaced attack of conscience," Sunset admitted. "Anyway," she said, "once you decide what you want to say to Lady Nikos, then come to my room, and I'll help you say it."
"Right," Jaune agreed. "Thanks, for the help."
"I don't know why I bother, but you're welcome," Sunset grunted, as she crossed the room once more and walked out of the door. She shut it behind her more firmly than there was a need to.
Jaune stared at the closed door for a moment before his whole body slumped forwards.
"Jaune?"
Jaune jumped with a startled yelp. He turned around to see Ruby coming in through the arch leading onto the balcony, pushing aside the curtains that separated the room from the outside world.
"Ruby!" Jaune gasped. "How did you-?"
"It's not that big of a jump from my balcony to yours," Ruby explained, "and that goes for voices too… without a window, they carry a little."
"Oh," Jaune said. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to disturb you; it's just that Sunset-"
"Jaune," Ruby said, cutting him off. She pressed her fingers together, looking at them instead of at him. In her pyjamas, she looked even smaller than usual, short and slight and delicate. "Jaune," she repeated, "do you like Pyrrha?"
Jaune stared down at her. A part of him wondered why she was asking him this… a part of him thought that he might already know. "Ruby-"
"Do you?" she asked again. "Do you like Pyrrha?"
"Yes," he admitted, as much to himself as to Ruby. He'd been afraid to say it, to admit, to… to make it real, if that made any sense. But he did. He liked Pyrrha. He liked her a whole lot. She was… she was everything he could have desired, in a girl, in a partner, in… in every way. Admission made his voice hoarse. "But it doesn't matter," he added. "Because she would never-"
"Stop doing that!" Ruby shouted. "I asked you not to talk about yourself like that!" She took a deep breath. "You're not some loser, Jaune. You're not worthless, you're not… you're cute and sweet and kind and brave and, and you're always there for the people you care about. You're even there for people you don't know at all, like me on my first day at Beacon. You saved my life. You… I think you're pretty amazing Jaune, and if…" Ruby trailed off. "I think you're amazing."
Her head was bowed. Her hands were clasped nervously together in front of her. Jaune knelt and reached out to her, tucking his fingers underneath her chin and tilting it up so that she was looking at him. There were tears beginning to fall in her silver eyes, and they pricked his conscience like daggers. "I… I think you're pretty amazing too, Ruby. You're my friend, and you're important to me, and I don't know what I'd do without you, but… I just-"
"It's okay," Ruby whispered. "You don't have to say it." She smiled. "And I guess Pyrrha is kind of awesome," she admitted.
"Yeah," Jaune muttered. "And she'll be gone soon."
"There are scrolls," Ruby suggested. "You could call, or message. You could see each other on vacations. But if you like her, then… then go get her, okay?"
"Ruby," Jaune murmured, wondering how in Remnant he had managed to be so lucky in the people that he had fallen in with. How had he managed to be so blessed? He pulled Ruby into an embrace. "Thank you… and I'm sorry."
Ruby leapt the short – for a huntress – distance between the two balconies and trudged back into her room.
She wiped at her eyes with the back of her hand.
There was a loud crack and a flash of green light as Sunset appeared in the room, eliciting a gasp of surprise from Ruby.
"Are you okay?" Sunset asked.
Ruby took a deep breath. "Sunset? What are you-?"
"You know what you said about the noise carrying? Also applies to doors," Sunset pointed out.
"Right," Ruby said, softly and a little dispiritedly. "So… you heard… everything?"
Sunset nodded. She walked over to Ruby's bed and sat down upon it. "How are you doing?"
"I'm fine," Ruby said quickly.
Sunset sighed. "Ruby… take off the mask."
Ruby blinked. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"I'm talking about you don't have to be sweet Ruby Rose, cheerful Ruby Rose, smiling Ruby Rose all the time," Sunset said. "Not with me. I know that some of this stuff can hurt. Celestia knows I know how much it can hurt." She paused. "You were sweet on him, huh?"
Ruby nodded glumly.
"I didn't realise," Sunset murmured. "I… I won't pretend to understand why, but… I'm sorry that it turned out like this."
"It's…" Ruby began. "It's…" she stopped. She couldn't say it was okay because… because it didn't feel okay. Maybe it would. Maybe it would feel okay quickly. Maybe she'd forget all about this soon. But right now, after having just come from Jaune's room, she didn't feel okay. She had thought that they were… that they could be… but he preferred Pyrrha, just like he had preferred Weiss. Of course he preferred Pyrrha to her, of course he had preferred Weiss to her. They were beautiful and sophisticated and grown up and… and everything Ruby Rose wasn't.
Her eyes began to water.
Ruby felt Sunset's arms close around her. She felt her partner hold her close as Ruby rested her head on Sunset's shoulder.
"Oh, Ruby," Sunset whispered into her ear. "I'm sorry this had to happen to you so soon, I really am."
"Sunset?" Ruby said softly.
"Yeah?"
"You won't tell Pyrrha about this, will you?" Ruby asked. "It's not her fault, and I don't want this to spoil everything."
Sunset was silent for a moment. "You put me to shame," she said, speaking very softly. "I couldn't be this magnanimous in your position. I wasn't."
"I just want this to be a good time," Ruby murmured. "Especially if this is the last time we have together."
Jaune threw on his clothes and left the room to go and join Pyrrha for their training session. However, as soon as he actually left the guest room, he was accosted by one of the maids who served the Nikos household, who seemed to have been waiting for him outside the door.
She glared, stern-faced. "Lady Nikos would like a word with you, at once," she declared.
"Uh, okay," Jaune said. He wished that he'd been able to take a shower first – or maybe put on a different outfit – but it seemed as though he wasn't going to get the chance to do either of those things because the maid immediately turned and began to walk away. Jaune got the sense that he ought to follow her, and so, he hurried to catch up.
"So," he said, nervousness evident in his voice, "am I in trouble?"
"That's hardly my place to say," the maid declared, although her tone seemed to suggest that she certainly wished he were in trouble.
"Have I done something wrong?" Jaune asked.
The maid snorted out of her nostrils. "That is also not my place to say, Mister Arc."
Jaune got the distinct impression that she didn't like him very much; he also got the impression that there wasn't much point in trying to convince her that she'd gotten the wrong idea about anything. He ought to focus his energy on coming up with some way to mollify Lady Nikos. And without Sunset's help to prepare for this encounter.
He was not looking forward to this. Pyrrha's mother had already looked at him like he was garbage; how much worse would she perceive him now?
This was going to be terrible, wasn't it?
The maid brought Jaune to the door of Lady Nikos' study, which she opened for him. "Jaune Arc to see you, my lady."
Lady Nikos was sat behind the desk, reading something upon a larger than usual scroll. She was wearing a pair of reading glasses. "Thank you, Iris," she said. "That will be all. Come in, Mister Arc."
Jaune swallowed as he walked through the door. The study was a little smaller than the guest rooms – even discounting the en suite bathrooms there – and the walls were varnished wooden boards, with paintings of previous members of the Nikos family seeming to glare at him as he walked towards Lady Nikos' desk.
There was a sword sitting in front of her, and Jaune couldn't quite tear his eyes away from it.
Jaune bowed. "You wished to see me, my lady?" he asked, his voice trembling.
Lady Nikos took off her reading glasses and put them away in a case. A case which she shut with an audible snap. "Mister Arc," she said. She did not offer him a seat, although there was an empty one right in front of the desk. "Tell me about last night."
Jaune's throat and lips alike felt very dry, even as his armpits felt very damp. "I… I saw Pyrrha all alone. I thought… I thought that she could use a friend."
Lady Nikos glared at him. It was incredible how she could have the exact same eyes as Pyrrha, but at the same time so different: Pyrrha's eyes were so soft and so beautiful; her mother's eyes were hard, and sharp, and piercing. "A friend?" she repeated.
"Someone," Jaune said, his chest rising and falling, "someone to be there for her. Someone to care about her."
Lady Nikos' mouth twisted with distaste. "Choose your next words with great care, Mister Arc."
Jaune's eyes were wide. He felt as though he were on a train barrelling downhill with no brakes. "My lady," he said, trying to keep – or make – his voice calm, "do you realise that Pyrrha is hated for what she is?"
"Hatred is a strong word, Mister Arc; I would say 'resented,'" Lady Nikos replied, her tone becoming a little less irritated without in any way softening.
Jaune gasped. "You knew?"
"This city has been my home all my life, Mister Arc, I am well versed in the manners and attitudes of my own class in my own city," Lady Nikos declared. "I have been envied in my time, and I have been envious of others. It has been my aim that Pyrrha should be the envy of all and have no cause to envy others. And see the great fruit of my labours: my daughter is the pride of Mistral, the glory of our kingdom reborn, and when she triumphs in the Vytal Festival, then all others will be eclipsed by her in prestige and the love of the commons."
"If she competes in the Vytal Festival," Jaune muttered.
Lady Nikos' eyebrows rose. "And what, precisely, do you mean by that, Mister Arc?"
"Uh," Jaune hesitated. "Did Pyrrha not tell you, my lady?"
"Tell me what?"
"I'm not sure that it's my place to-"
"On the contrary, Mister Arc, it is not your place to refuse me in my own home," Lady Nikos said. "I am your host, you are my guest, and you will explain yourself to me, or you will find yourself somewhere to stay while you look for an airship home to Vale."
"Pyrrha… Pyrrha has been offered a position here in Mistral, with the Imperial Guard," Jaune confessed. I'm sorry, Pyrrha, but your mom is scary. "Lady Terri-Belle Thrax offered it to her. She's thinking of taking it. It would mean that she would be made a huntress and would stay here in Mistral instead of returning to Beacon."
Lady Nikos scowled thunderously. "We will see about that," she growled. She took a deep breath and seemed to be making an effort to control herself. "Thank you, Mister Arc, for telling me this news. Now, to return to the question of last night, when I came upon you both, it seemed as though something was on the verge of occurring."
"Um, not really," Jaune replied. "We were just about to leave the party-"
"And go where?"
"We… weren't sure yet."
"Why?" Lady Nikos demanded.
"Because… because Pyrrha wasn't happy there, at the party," Jaune said. "I wanted to take her somewhere she'd be more comfortable."
"I see," Lady Nikos murmured. "You would say that you care about Pyrrha, Mister Arc?"
"Yes, ma'am," Jaune said. "I mean, yes, my lady. I care about her very much."
"I am sure that your actions seemed very kind to you, even noble, according to your Valish fashion," Lady Nikos said, "but you are not in Vale, but Mistral, and in spite of what instruction you have received – from Miss Shimmer, I presume – you do not know our ways. Just as I hope you did not know that Pyrrha is engaged to be married."
Jaune made a noise that was somewhere between a gasp and a whimper. "Pyrrha… Pyrrha's engaged? She never mentioned that."
"I cannot speak to Pyrrha's reasons for keeping silent, but the fact of the matter is she is engaged, to a wealthy prince of one of Mistral's oldest families, third in antique dignity only behind the houses of Thrax and Nikos and richer, I may say, than my own family. They will be married… at some point after Pyrrha graduates from Beacon."
"Is he a good man, my lady?" Jaune asked.
"Excuse me?"
"You've told me that he's a rich man, and from a family like yours, but is he a good man?" Jaune repeated. "Is he a kind man?"
"He is the best man in all Mistral, Mister Arc," Lady Nikos declared. "Unfortunately, he could not be at last night's event, but if he had, I have no doubt he would have comforted Pyrrha in her loneliness. Just as I am sure that you have no intent to expose Pyrrha to scandal with your conduct."
"Of course not," Jaune said. "I would never do anything to hurt Pyrrha."
"I am glad to hear it, Mister Arc," Lady Nikos said. "I do not blame you for your foreign impulses. I merely ask that you bear a few facts in mind in future."
"I… of course, my lady."
"That will be all, Mister Arc."
Jaune bowed again. As he left the study, he felt… he wasn't really sure what he felt. He supposed that he ought to feel something. Hurt? Disappointed? But what grounds did he have to feel either of those things? He and Pyrrha were still exactly what they had been before: partners and friends. She hadn't told him she was engaged, but then, she wasn't obliged to share every single detail of her life with him, nor he with her; she hadn't promised him anything… The memory of that kiss, and the look in her eyes as she bade him goodnight, flashed into Jaune's mind as she shut the study door. But that had been just a kiss on the cheek, a goodnight kiss, a thank you for being there for her, for being a supportive friend. If he had read anything into it, then… then that was his mistake, not Pyrrha's.
He had told Sunset that he was going to be there for Pyrrha, and an Arc never went back on his word.
And so, he went back to his room, grabbed Crocea Mors, and headed down to the dojo to join Pyrrha for their session.
She was waiting for him there and greeted him with a smile that was nothing less than radiant. "Good morning, Jaune. Are you ready?"
If he might not get to see that smile again after this vacation, then he wasn't about to ruin it by demanding to know why she hadn't told him she was engaged or anything like that. She had given him so much already; he had no right to ask for any more.
And honestly? She's kind of out of my league.
I just hope she's happy with this guy, whoever he is.
"I'm ready," he said, and drew his sword.
The next day passed oddly, as far as Sunset was concerned; mostly because of how little oddness there was.
She would have expected far more drama out of this situation. She would have expected some drama out of this situation. And yet, as Pyrrha showed them around the Imperial Gardens, the largest and most splendid public park in all of Mistral, you could have been forgiven for thinking that Ruby hadn't just confessed her feelings to Jaune only to get shot down, or that Jaune hadn't just discovered his feelings for Pyrrha. There was no trace of resentment, there wasn't even any awkwardness, unless – like Sunset – you thought it was a little awkward how gosh-darn nice everybody was being.
Pyrrha was happy. She might even have been happier than Sunset had ever seen her before. At times, she even started humming to herself as she led them between the flower beds where colourful chrysanthemums grew or showed them the ponds where the koi carp swam. Jaune, too, looked happy, but there was nothing about the way they interacted to indicate – to Sunset, at least – that they were dating now. They didn't kiss; they didn't even hold hands. And Ruby… Ruby had put her mask back on; she was as happy as if she'd just gotten a new puppy to take care of.
It was a good day. The gardens were quite lovely, Sunset had to admit; once more, she was reminded of home and of the gardens that lay around Celestia's palace. The flower beds were a riot of colour, the trees were laden with blossoms that looked about to fall, and in the garden dwelt many birds of exotic colour that sang melodically amidst the trees and bushes. It was a beautiful garden in the midst of what Sunset had found after a few days here to be a city that was as beautiful up close as it was on the aerial approach. Up close, a few of the imperfections might be more visible, but overall, Sunset had no qualms about saying that she preferred this place to Vale or Atlas, and not just because it reminded her of home.
The air was cleaner here. It did not stick in her nostrils as it sometimes did elsewhere.
If she had to choose a place to live, she would probably choose Mistral. It was definitely something to think about after she graduated.
Yes, it was a good day: the sights were beautiful, the sweets were delicious, the sun was bright, the weather was fine… Sunset just wished that everyone would stop being so incredibly, disconcertingly nice for a moment; it wasn't right. She hadn't been able to so much as look at Flash for a week after he broke her heart, and yet with Ruby, it was as though nothing had happened.
How is it that all of these people are so… so… so nice?
They returned to the Nikos house shortly before darkness fell. Lady Nikos joined them for dinner but said very little, even to Pyrrha. Nobody had much to say to her either, and the meal passed in, to a great extent, silence. Dessert was almost concluded when a maid scurried into the ornately decorated dining hall.
"Begging your pardon, m'lady, but Professor Lionheart is at the gate. Says that he must speak with you and Lady Pyrrha. Says it's very urgent."
Lady Nikos snorted. "Very well, show him in. Pyrrha, attend me."
Forgotten as Lady Nikos rose from the table and swept Pyrrha up with her, Sunset got up herself and motioned for Jaune and Ruby to do the same. They followed Lady Nikos and Pyrrha, and if either of the two noticed the other Sapphires trailing behind, neither of them said anything about it. If Professor Lionheart wanted a private meeting, then he would no doubt say so.
As it turned out, he did not say so. In fact, as Lady Nikos and her guests met him in the hall, he immediately began to speak. "Lady Hippolyta, thank you for seeing me," he said, putting one hand upon his heart and gesturing imploringly with the other. "This is a terrible business, and terribly urgent besides."
"What business, Leo?" Lady Nikos demanded. "What is this about?"
"A grimm, in the mountains to the east," Professor Lionheart declared. "Several shepherds and their families have been killed, cottages destroyed, herds scattered."
"A solitary grimm, so close to the city?" Pyrrha asked. "Are you sure there aren't more of them?"
"I pray not," Professor Lionheart declared. "Nothing is certain, but it seems incredible that a pack or worse could approach so near to Mistral without being spotted before now."
"It seems a little strange that even one could get so close," Jaune muttered.
Professor Lionheart ignored him, if he even heard what Jaune had just said. "I am sure you can understand that the Steward and the Council wish this dealt with as a matter of urgency, and so, Pyrrha, I ask you on behalf of Mistral: will you hunt down this creature and bring its depredations to an end?"
Sunset's eyebrows rose so high they almost disappeared under her hair. Sure, Pyrrha was good - great even - but in all of Mistral, there wasn't one pro-huntsman they could tap to hunt down one single grimm? She knew that there were a lot of demands upon them at present, but really, not a one?"
Sunset kept silent, but Lady Nikos proved more than willing to air the question that Sunset had been content to think. "My daughter is a student, here to rest," she said. "Where are your huntsmen and your huntresses? Where is the Imperial Guard?"
"Scattered throughout the length and breadth of our territory," Professor Lionheart replied. "With so many of these bands of grimm lurking throughout the land, menacing the towns and villages, the huntsmen of Mistral have been scattered throughout Anima to battle them. Even the Imperial Guard have been pressed into service. Lady Terri-Belle has not yet returned from Higanbana, Ladies Shining Light and Blonn Di are still at Ajisai, and Lady Swift Foot is but a child. The teachers and students have gone home for the vacation. In all of the city, there is not one huntsmen I can call upon."
"And so, because between you and Lady Terri-Belle the defences of Mistral have been sorely mismanaged, you must come into my house and beseech my daughter to rescue Mistral and yourself from the consequences of your folly?" Lady Nikos demanded.
"I will do it," Pyrrha said, her voice soft and strangely calm. "Professor, you may tell the Council and the Lord Steward that I accept their charge. For the good of Mistral, I will undertake this hunt."
Professor Lionheart breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Pyrrha. I'm certain that the Champion of Mistral, our pride reborn, will have no difficulty in ridding us of this beast. I would go myself, but-"
"But you are a coward; I know that well without reminding," Lady Nikos said acidly. "And yet it seems your incompetence plumbs depths that I had not conceived of if you have left us so exposed that my daughter alone is all that stands between our city and the darkness."
"Not alone," Sunset said. "She will not go alone."
"Indeed," Professor Lionheart. "Young Cinder, the only student remaining at Haven, has volunteered to join her."
Sunset frowned, wondering if she hadn't made herself entirely clear. I didn't want to be so dramatic I obscured the point. "I was actually talking about me, Ruby, and Jaune going with Pyrrha," she glanced at Jaune, and then at Ruby. "You two got that, right? You understood that I meant the three of us were going to go with Pyrrha."
"Yeah, I got it," Jaune said with a nod. "I mean, it's not as if we were just going to sit around and wait for Pyrrha to come back, right?"
"Even if we're on vacation, we're still huntsmen," Ruby said. "We're with you all the way, Pyrrha."
"Thank you," Pyrrha said warmly. "I'm sorry to have to turn this into a working vacation, but… I will be glad to have you by my side."
"Don't worry, Professor," Ruby said. "We've got this together."
"I am delighted to hear it," Professor Lionheart declared. "Nevertheless, I would commend Miss Fall to you both; she is a most skilled young huntress, and an extra hand will do no harm. You may even have need of a fifth if the grimm turns out to be particularly dangerous."
"I would not want to put Mistral in danger by being too proud to accept aid when it was offered," Pyrrha said. "Sunset, what do you think?"
"This is your city in danger," Sunset said. "If it's fine by you, it's fine by us. The more the merrier, right?"
"And I, too, shall go with you," Lady Nikos declared.
"Mother?"
"It has been too long since I saw you fight," Lady Nikos said. "Your companions, I have not seen fight at all, a lack that I am offered the opportunity to correct."
"Lady Hippolyta-" Professor Lionheart began.
"Will it be said that we of Mistral refused to raise arms in defence of our own city and our land?" Lady Nikos demanded. "That we left our defence wholly in the hands of children, and outsider children what is more? I have made my decision, and neither you nor the Lord Steward himself could persuade me otherwise." She fell silent, if only for a moment, before she looked at Sunset. "Miss Shimmer, I believe it is for you to give the commands."
"Indeed, my lady," Sunset said, bowing her head out of gratitude that Lady Nikos had not tried to usurp first place away from her. "Professor, can you tell Cinder to meet us here ten minutes before first light and have an airship standing by for us then?"
"I will see it done, Miss Shimmer," Professor Lionheart promised.
"Thank you, Professor," Sunset said. "I want everyone in the dojo now for a weapons check. Once that's completed, then we should all get some rest. We leave at dawn."