Butterflies (New)
Butterflies
Jaune ran.
He was not running particularly fast, moving at a kind of brisk jog, but then he didn't have any occasion to run away from anything either. He was just taking a run around the Beacon campus to…
Well, maybe he couldn't quite have said what he was doing, beyond killing time while Pyrrha got ready. He'd hoped that going for a run would settle his nerves, but he couldn't really say that it had.
At some point, he would have to go back to the dorm room. Pyrrha would be there, looking as gorgeous as ever — more, maybe; her exact words had been 'I need to make an especial effort, after all' — and then they would gather their bags and head down to the train station, and then they would get a train, obviously.
A train to Alba Longa.
A train to his home.
He was going to be bringing Pyrrha to his home.
And today, he wasn't sure if there was anything he wanted less.
It had seemed so easy at the time, such a simple decision to make. Pyrrha wanted to come with him to his home, she wanted to meet his family, and if he was being honest, he wanted the moral support. It had seemed easy, then, to consent to her coming, but now, he wasn't sure if he wanted her to come.
He wasn't sure if he wanted to go himself.
And yet, he couldn't tell her why he didn't want her with him. She was excited for this, and he didn't want to hurt her feelings.
He didn't want to go alone either.
And so, he jogged around the campus, unsure of what to say or what to do, kind of wishing he'd never called his mom or…
Well, no, that wasn't quite true; he was glad that he … it had been the right thing to do, to call her before they set off for Mountain Glenn; agreeing to come home for his Dad's birthday … that had probably been the right thing, too.
Even if it didn't feel like it right now.
And so, Jaune ran, while thoughts whirled faster than his feet around his head and butterflies played in his stomach.
The grounds round which he jogged were pretty much deserted, although as he passed the cliffs, he did see Trixie and Starlight — two of Blake's Atlesian friends — standing, armed, near the cliff edge. They waved to him as he ran past. Aside from that, he was alone. A lot of people had gone home, and those that had not were not around, either sleeping in, or else they'd got up earlier and headed out already. As he approached the farm, he was completely alone with his—
"On your left!"
There was a flash of red, and a trail of rose petals drifting lazily down towards the ground as Jaune felt himself struck on the side by a shockwave like the wake of an onrushing airship. He spun, or else he was spun, the world seeming to spin around him in turn, the thoughts momentarily disappearing from his head, aside from the thought that he was losing his balance.
He hit the ground with a soft thump and a softer groan.
There was a whooshing sound, and more rose petals fell around him as Ruby rushed back to his side.
"Sorry, Jaune," she said sheepishly, a wincing look upon her face, smiling awkwardly out of half her mouth, hands clasped behind her back. "I didn't mean to do that."
Jaune sighed. "It's okay."
Ruby held out one hand to help him up.
Jaune took it and scrambled upright until he was looking down on her once more.
"You know, you don't want to run around too fast," Ruby told him. "You'll work up a sweat, and you'll be all sticky when you get to your folks place."
Jaune let out a little nervous laugh. "I think I'll probably be sweating anyway by the time I get back there. Might as well get some exercise out of it."
Ruby looked up at him. Her silver eyes seemed especially bright today; perhaps it was the way the light was falling on them. "You want to talk about it?"
"I…" Jaune hesitated. "No, it's fine. I don't want to bother you."
He started to turn away, but as he turned, Ruby reached out and took hold of his arm with both hands.
"Good thing you're not bothering me then, isn't it?" Ruby said, a slight smile upon her face.
Jaune looked down at her for a moment, and then he smiled himself. "Thanks," he said.
They walked the rest of the way towards the farm, Ruby still holding on to his arm with both hands, and settled down in front of the chicken coop.
They sat side by side, watching the chickens cluck and peck at the earth and strut up and down. Or rather, Jaune watched, while Ruby looked up at Jaune expectantly. She didn't say anything, she didn't push him, she just… waited.
Jaune clasped his hands together between his knees. "I'm nervous, Ruby."
"I kind of figured," Ruby muttered. "What about?"
Jaune hesitated for a moment. "I have seven sisters, and all but one of them is older than me," he said. "My oldest sister, Rouge, was too old; she was already a teenager by the time I started crawling; she was getting married by the time I started to talk … I was the flower boy at her wedding."
Ruby frowned slightly. "Isn't it supposed to be a flower girl?"
Jaune didn't answer her directly; instead, he went on, "But the rest of my sisters … they were old enough to 'play' with me and not old enough to care what I thought about it. I was their dress-up doll; I was where they experimented with new hairstyles; I did basically whatever they wanted me to do, always. That's just how it was for me growing up."
"You're making me feel pretty grateful to Yang right now," Ruby said softly.
Jaune chuckled. "Maybe you should be," he said. He paused for a moment. "Nobody wanted me to go to Beacon. Not my parents, not my sisters. They said that I wouldn't be able to handle it, that I'd only get myself killed, that I didn't have what it took. That's why I had to forge transcripts to get in, because there was no way I could take the equivalency tests, let alone go to a combat school. So I got the forged transcripts, and I begged a family friend to let me use their computer for the headmaster's interview, and in the end, I snuck out of the house in the middle of the night and stole Crocea Mors from off the wall … and then I broke it." He bowed his head. "What am I supposed to say to them when I get back?"
"Tell them they were wrong," Ruby said, as though it was the simplest thing in the world. "Tell them that you saved my life, that I'd be dead if it wasn't for you, that Sunset would be dead if it wasn't for you. Tell them that you broke the sword defending your partner in battle, doing exactly what a huntsman should do."
She paused for a moment. "Maybe you're not the best fighter on our team, or in our year, but you've got the heart of a huntsman, Jaune, you've proven that over and over again." She grinned. "Maybe tell your family that you'd have the skill of a huntsman too if they'd actually let you train before you got to Beacon."
This time, Jaune's laughter, when it came, possessed a slightly nervous quality to it. "I don't know if I'm that brave."
"You're brave enough to charge Cinder, but not brave enough to tell your parents the truth?" Ruby asked, a slightly teasing note in her voice.
"Cinder could only kill me," Jaune declared. "My family…" He trailed off. "And then there's Pyrrha."
"Shouldn't you be talking to her about some of this stuff?" Ruby asked. "I mean, she is your girlfriend."
"Probably," Jaune admitted. "And it's not that I couldn't just … well, maybe I couldn't talk to her about all of it. When she offered to come with me, I accepted because I wanted her there, and I still do, but … what if they're mean to her, what if they don't like her, what if they … I don't want to take her to my home only to be treated the way that … the way that her mom treated me. It wasn't fun, and I don't want that to happen to her. I don't want her to think that I set this up as some sort of payback—"
"Pyrrha would never think that," Ruby exclaimed. "Pyrrha knows you better than that, Jaune. She knows the way you feel about her. And besides, why wouldn't they like her? Everyone loves Pyrrha."
"Because she's from Beacon? Because she's not from around there?" Jaune suggested. "The truth is — and this is something I definitely can't talk to Pyrrha about — that if they don't not like her, it might be even worse; what if…" He glanced down at Ruby. "What if she finds someone better than me?"
"What?!" Ruby cried. "What are you talking about?"
A frown crinkled Jaune's features. "Ruby, where I come from … men are men, you know? They're farmers, they're shepherds, they tame horses and hunt game." He paused for a moment. "I wanted so badly to be one of them. But I wasn't. I couldn't tame a horse, I couldn't ride a bull, I couldn't track a deer through the forest. One guy gave me a rabbit to kill and skin once, and I … I couldn't do it; I had to let it go."
"I'm glad you did," Ruby said. "Why would you want to kill a poor defenceless bunny?"
"Because it would have made me a man?" Jaune suggested. "I was always stuck with my sisters, or else I hung out with girls like Miranda; and it didn't matter that some of my sisters were as tough as any man in town, it still … it made me a girl to them."
"There's nothing wrong with being a girl," Ruby pointed out.
"I know," Jaune said quickly. "But that doesn't make it any easier to be the outcast, to be told that you have the wrong friends, that you're not doing it right.
"When I was twelve, I was out with my Dad, and we saw this horse, this magnificent horse with a star on its forehead, being taken away towards the train station. No one could tame it, you see, it was completely wild, and since it was no use, it was being sent to the knackers yard. I begged Dad to let me try and ride it, and he told me that if I could, he'd buy me the horse. I could see it all so clearly in my head, how I'd finally win everyone's respect, prove that I wasn't what they thought I was." He hesitated. "It threw me off about ten feet across the market square. And the worst part wasn't the way that everyone laughed at me for weeks — although that wasn't great — but how disappointed Dad looked afterwards. He didn't say anything but … I could tell."
There was a moment of silence between them, a silence broken only by the clucking of the chickens as they greedily gobbled up the feed spread out before them.
"I think," he admitted, "I think that part of the reason why I wanted to come to Beacon so badly was that I wanted to prove that I could do this thing that my Dad and my grandfather had done, that Arc men do, even if I couldn't do anything else. And I know that's why I didn't want Pyrrha's help at first, because … it would feel like nothing had changed, that I was still doing it wrong." He gave a chuckle laced with bitterness. "Stupid, huh?"
"I'm sorry, Jaune," Ruby said, placing a hand upon his elbow. "That doesn't sound great, having to grow up like that, but … I don't see what this has to do with Pyrrha."
"Isn't it obvious?" Jaune asked. "What if we get back to my place and—?"
"Your sisters show her embarrassing photos of you?"
"No! Oh God, I hadn't even thought about that," Jaune groaned.
"Sorry."
"I meant," Jaune said, "What if we get there, and Pyrrha finds herself a real man, with muscles like tree trunks and legs like stone and a jaw you could cast iron on? The kind of man that I could never be."
Again, a silence fell between them. Jaune looked away. He could see it in his mind's eye as clearly as he could see the chickens and their coop in front of him: Pyrrha, hanging on one of the enormous arms of Red Beauregard or Duck Robertson, walking away, her red sash trailing after her, leaving him behind.
The silence was shattered by Ruby sniggering, covering her mouth as she tried to hold back the giggles.
"Hey!" Jaune cried. "Ruby, I'm serious!"
"I know," Ruby said, in between chuckles. "That's what makes it so funny!" She took a deep breath, and then another, seeming to calm down a little. "Come on, Jaune, do you really not know Pyrrha at all?"
"I know I don't deserve her," Jaune said. "And Sunset says that deserving doesn't matter when it comes to love, but—"
"Sunset's wrong!" Ruby cried, shooting to her feet. "I mean, okay, she's actually right about this, which is kind of funny, considering how often she's wrong about stuff, but the point is … the point is that you're amazing, and you absolutely deserve Pyrrha. You're brave and smart and sweet and kind, and if your family and everyone in your stupid village can't see that, then they're just idiots, and they're the ones who don't deserve you!" Ruby's hands were balled into fists, and she held them up in front of her face as though she wanted to hit someone.
"Ruby—" Jaune began.
"But at the same time," Ruby went on loudly, cutting him off, "you are also a really huge idiot! Don't you think that if Pyrrha wanted some big guy, some manly guy, she'd be dating Cardin instead of you? Actually, no, forget Cardin; look at this."
She got out her scroll, and Jaune watched for a moment as she flicked through it, swiping her forefinger across the screen, until she showed him a photograph of an imposing looking man, tall and broad-shouldered and muscular, with long dark hair ending in red tips like embers burning amidst coal.
Jaune's eyes widened a little bit. "Who's that?"
"That's Juturna's brother," Ruby explained.
Jaune blinked. "You mean the—"
"The one Pyrrha's mom wanted her to marry, yeah," Ruby agreed. "But she chose you instead. Because she doesn't want a tough guy any more than she wants a rich guy. She wants a good guy, and there's no better guy than you."
Jaune hesitated for a moment "You think so?"
Ruby grinned. "I know so."
A sigh of relief emerged from out of Jaune's mouth. He allowed himself a slight smile in turn. "Thanks, Ruby. I guess that last part does sound kind of stupid, doesn't it?"
"A little bit, yeah," Ruby agreed.
"I just … I love her so much, you know?"
"Yeah," Ruby said, nodding, "I know."
"And I guess I can't stop thinking, worrying, that one day, she'll wake up and realise that she could do so much better than me."
"You should talk to her about this," Ruby suggested. "She might laugh at some of it — and you deserve it — but I think she'll also be able to tell you that you've got nothing to worry about."
"You're right," Jaune said. "Thanks, Ruby."
"What are friends for, right?"
"Right," Jaune agreed. "So what are you doing out here?"
"Huh?"
"Before you started listening to all my problems," Jaune prompted. "What brought you out here in the first place?"
Ruby looked down at her booted feet, clasping her hands together in front of her. "It doesn't matter," she murmured.
Jaune held out one hand to her. "What are friends for?"
Ruby hesitated, then, gently, slowly, she placed her small hand in the palm of his and let him pull her back onto the bench.
She leaned on him, resting her head upon his shoulder. "I guess … I'm a little worried too."
Jaune looked at her, as best he could with her leaning against him the way she was. "Worried about what?"
"Professor Ozpin wants to talk to me today," Ruby explained. "He's going to tell me about Mom, just like he promised he would before we went to Mountain Glenn."
"That sounds great," Jaune declared. "I mean, isn't that what you wanted?"
"It was," Ruby said. "It is. I want to know everything about her, what she was like and what she did and … and everything. But … I'm a bit worried that…" She trailed off.
Jaune didn't say anything. He knew that there was more to come; he knew that more would come; he just had to let it, patiently.
And so, he waited, letting Ruby lean on him, taking her time.
He waited, and eventually, she said, "Dad never talks about her. About Mom. I guess it hurts too much. Uncle Qrow never said much either. The only person who would talk to me about Mom was Yang. When I was a kid, she used to tell me all these stories about the adventures Mom had, the monsters she defeated, the people she saved, how much of a hero she was. I think … I'm pretty sure Yang made most of those stories up, maybe all of them. But they were really wonderful stories, and—"
"And you're afraid the reality won't live up to them?" Jaune guessed.
"I guess … I guess so," Ruby murmured.
Jaune put his arm around Ruby squeezing her shoulder with one hand. "I get it. Well, I don't get it, but I can imagine. But at the same time, I don't think you have anything to worry about."
"No?" Ruby asked. "Why not?"
"Because she was your mom," Jaune told her. "And I'm sure she must have been pretty darn special to have a daughter as amazing as you."
Ruby giggled and burrowed a little closer into his side. "Thanks, Jaune."
"And seriously," Jaune added, "from what you've told us about your mom's diary, about the things she did … she sounds like she was plenty amazing, even by the time she was our age. I don't think you have anything to worry about, in terms of living up to your expectations."
Ruby was silent for a moment. "Now I'm the one who feels stupid."
"No, I'm pretty sure that's still me," Jaune assured her. "I should probably get back now. I don't want to keep Pyrrha waiting, once she's ready."
"How do I look?" Pyrrha asked, anxiety making her sound slightly breathless to Sunset's ears.
Sunset leaned back on her chair, pushing off the wall until it was balancing upon its rear legs. Her eyebrows rose appreciatively. "You look … stunning," she said.
Pyrrha sighed with relief. "Thank you, Sunset, that … that's very good to hear."
Pyrrha was dressed in a gown of green and black. The black was on the bodice, which had a v-shaped neckline and short sleeves stopping only a little below the shoulders, leaving her arms bare to the world, although Pyrrha still wore her golden armband on her right arm. The skirt, meanwhile, was an emerald green that matched her eyes, full and floor length, almost a gown, concealing her feet from view and spreading out around her. Green too was the short cape she wore wrapped around her shoulders, covering her neck and some of her chest but only reaching down just below her waist behind her. A belt of gold clinched tightly around her waist, while matching golden bracers, long and etched with swirling patterns, bound about her wrists and forearms. Her hair was worn in its habitual ponytail, her circlet golden 'bout her brow, covered up slightly by her bangs, with the golden chains and their teal drops descending upon either side. The absence of her usual gloves revealed that Pyrrha had painted her fingernails as golden as her circlet for the occasion.
"Was there ever really a doubt?" Sunset asked. She let her chair rock back onto four legs before she stood up. "Twirl for me; let me see the whole thing."
Pyrrha smiled a little as she spun on her toe, skirt and cape alike swirling around her like water in a whirling current. Her ponytail flew out behind her, almost hitting Sunset in the face, and Sunset could not help but be amused at the way that Pyrrha seemed to instinctively throw out her arms gracefully on either side of her.
"I repeat," Sunset said, "was there ever a doubt?"
Pyrrha stopped twirling, coming to a stop facing Sunset once more. "You do like it then?"
Sunset nodded. "I do," she confirmed, smiling fondly at Pyrrha's anxiousness.
Pyrrha nodded. "And you think it will do?"
"‘Will do’?" Sunset repeated. "Well, I mean…"
Pyrrha frowned beneath her circlet. "What's the matter?"
Sunset shrugged. "Do you think it might be a bit much?"
Pyrrha's face fell. "Do you think it's too much?"
"It doesn't matter what I think, does it?" Sunset asked. "But you've seen how Jaune dresses."
"That's rather unfair, Sunset," Pyrrha said reproachfully.
"Is it?" Sunset asked. "Is it really? He wears a breakfast cereal hoodie."
"How would you like it if someone were to look at you in that leather jacket and judge you incapable of dressing up?" Pyrrha responded.
"A good point, well made," Sunset acknowledged.
Pyrrha reached out and gripped the edge of her cape with one hand. "It's his family," she said. "Jaune is taking me to meet his family, and for his father's birthday celebrations. Do you know what that means?" A flush of colour rose to her cheeks as she answered her own question, glancing away from Sunset as she murmured, "It means that he could imagine making me a part of his family one day."
Sunset said nothing; she just smiled at her, the peerless warrior who now blushed so shyly and spoke so softly.
Pyrrha looked back up at Sunset. "That's not something I take lightly," she declared. "And I won't have Jaune think that I take it lightly either."
"I never suggested that you should," Sunset said quietly as she drifted across the dorm room to where Pyrrha's case sat upon Pyrrha's bed. One of Pyrrha's cases anyway; Miló, Akoúo̱, and all her armour were in a separate case on the floor; Pyrrha was taking them just in case they were needed.
Her main case, the one on the bed, was large and hard — it had a solid, plastic surface — and beige in colour, with four wheels on the bottom and a black handle on a metal pole sticking out the top.
It was also full of dresses.
Sunset folded her arms. "So how many balls are you planning on attending at Jaune's home in the sticks? I mean, I know I'm following you out there to research Jaune's heritage, but I'm not expecting to find any actual noblemen."
Pyrrha let out a little nervous titter. "I'm not really a t-shirt and jeans kind of girl," she said apologetically. "I don't want to pretend to someone I'm not. I want to be myself, but my very best self, in as much as I possess a self. And besides I … I want to make the best possible impression on Jaune's family." Her chest rose and fell as she took a deep breath. "If they don't like me, then I … I don't want to force Jaune to choose between me or his family."
"You did," Sunset pointed out.
"Yes, and it was … easier than it should have been to choose, but that is no reason for me to seek to put Jaune through the same thing." Pyrrha looked at Sunset. "I want them to approve of me, to find me a … a suitable match for their son. Is that so wrong?"
"If I search this room, am I going to find a notebook with 'Mrs. Pyrrha Arc' written over and over again in beautiful cursive handwriting?" Sunset asked.
Pyrrha chuckled. "No," she said. "Not least because Jaune will probably have to take my name since I'm the—"
"Sole heir to the noble House of Nikos, of course," Sunset murmured.
"But," Pyrrha continued, "that aside … would you judge me terribly if you did find such a thing?"
Sunset grinned. "I might mock you for it, but fondly, always fondly. If I were too inclined to judgement, I would have to judge you for the fact that you said 'Jaune will' take your name, not ‘Jaune might’ or ‘Jaune would.’"
"Yes, I … I suppose I did," Pyrrha admitted, covering her mouth with one hand as a little laugh escaped.
"I love him," she whispered, as though it were a great secret she were confessing and not the most obvious thing in all of Remnant. "And he … he finds me fit to meet his parents."
The smile faded from Pyrrha's face as she turned away from Sunset, her skirt flowing around her.
"Sunset," she said, "how old do you think Ruby's mother was when she died?"
Sunset frowned. "I … I don't know."
"Neither do I," Pyrrha said. "But I … have gotten the impression that she died young."
"You're not going to die," Sunset declared.
"We are on a perilous road, Sunset, the same road that Team Stark walked before us," Pyrrha said. "Their letters below ours are a reminder that they too faced perils greater than those endured by other huntsmen and huntresses … and of the fate that awaited them at the end of that road."
"You will not die," Sunset insisted.
"We will all die one day, Sunset."
"Not yet, not in battle, not so young."
"You cannot guarantee that," Pyrrha said, whirling to face her. "Is it so wrong that, knowing what may be demanded of me, knowing that I may not live to see our graduation that I should seek to… to take Jaune by the hand and say to all the world that he is mine and I am his?"
Sunset was silent for a moment. "I … I do not like the tenor of your thoughts," she muttered. "And would you would not conjure up such gloomy, melancholy thoughts like dark clouds marring your gay apparel." She ran one hand through her fiery hair. "But, since you do so … your logic cannot be doubted, strange though it may be to me. We ponies … we do not feel time or fate breathe so upon our necks. Have you spoken to Jaune about this?"
"No," Pyrrha said softly. "No, I have not."
"Don't you think you should, or he'll be very surprised when he gets to the registrar's?" Sunset said. "In all seriousness, he may not have thought this through as you have."
"No," Pyrrha agreed. "But … there is time yet."
"Not what you said a moment ago."
"I haven't met his parents yet, received their approval and, I hope, their blessing," Pyrrha pointed out. "I couldn't possibly broach the subject until then. It would be highly, improperly presumptuous of me, not to mention disrespectful." She sighed. "What am I going to do if they don't like me, Sunset?"
"Then," Sunset found that she could not restrain a laugh. "Then fetch the rarest flower from the highest mountain and bring it to their door. Then vanquish every rival suitor in single combat. Then fetch them monsters of such size and strength that they quail and beg you take them away again. Do the labours if you must. You are a hero sprung out of the tales of old, if any are, the evenstar of an age gone by? Then prove yourself. Do what you have to do and don't take no for an answer."
Pyrrha chuckled. "Not quite the answer I expected, although from you, I probably should have."
"Is there anything you would not do for love?" Sunset asked.
"Nothing wicked," Pyrrha replied. "But that aside … all courses are open to me."
Sunset's smile faltered momentarily, and she felt almost relieved to hear the knock on the door.
"Pyrrha?" Jaune called from the other side. "Can I come in?"
Pyrrha started for the door, but Sunset held up a hand to stay her where she was.
"Talk to him," Sunset urged in a whisper as she walked towards the door in Pyrrha's place.
"I will," Pyrrha promised quietly.
Sunset opened the door, gesturing with one hand for Jaune to enter. "Good morning, sir," she said in a tone that was dry and yet at the same time affected stuffy.
Jaune walked in, Ruby following close behind. Both of them gave Sunset a funny glance as though they didn't understand the bit.
But when Jaune turned his gaze on Pyrrha, he stopped in his tracks.
He stared at her, his mouth forming an O from which only a single sound emerged. "Wow."
Once more, Pyrrha reached for the hem of her cape with one hand, even as she placed her hand upon her heart, her fingertips resting gently upon her skin. "It's not too much, then?"
"I don't care if it is," Jaune said, closing the distance between them. "You look beautiful."
Pyrrha smiled but bowed her head, turning her eyes demurely downwards and away from him.
Jaune reached up and touched her chin gently with his fingertips, tilting upwards so that their eyes met once again.
He cupped her cheek with his hand. Pyrrha smiled and closed her eyes and leaned into his palm as though she were trying to melt into it.
Her right hand rose, and she placed it atop his hand, holding it there that he might not withdraw it yet.
"Aww," Ruby cooed quietly from the back of the room.
Sunset watched them. There was no way Jaune's parents were going to dislike Pyrrha. Those two … just look at them. They had nothing to worry about.
She could practically hear the violins playing.
Jaune was the one who appeared to remember they were being watched first. His face went as red as Pyrrha's hair as he pulled his hand away.
"I— uh, I mean we should probably … we don't want to miss our train after all!" he yelped.
Pyrrha looked far less embarrassed about the whole thing. In fact, she didn't look embarrassed at all. In fact, judging by the way she brushed her fingertips against her own cheek where Jaune's hand had been, she mostly looked disappointed that it hadn't gone on longer.
Nevertheless, she said, "Yes, yes, I suppose we should be going. If there is a problem with the airship, we might…" She trailed off, absently closing and fastening up her case.
"I'll help you with that," Sunset said, levitating the suitcase off the bed. "You want to come see them off, Ruby?"
"Sure," Ruby said.
So they all headed down to the landing pads together, helping Jaune and Pyrrha with their luggage, and took one of the Skybuses down into Vale. From there, it was a walk through the streets to Gateway Station, with the wheels of Pyrrha's case rattling and rumbling a little as they dragged it behind them.
Gateway Station, the principal station for trains running north out of Vale, was an antique building, built out of old-fashioned red brick, with a great glass dome forming the ceiling. There was a statue of Professor Ozpin outside, celebrating none of his achievements as a huntsman or a headmaster but rather the fact that he had campaigned to save the historic dome from demolition some years ago. Said glass dome made the inside of the station rather hot, even as the days of summer waned, or at least, that was how it felt to Sunset as the sun beat down on them through the glass.
The trains here were about as old-fashioned as the glass dome: instead of electronic doors, they had manual locks that only opened from the outside, so that if you wanted to open them from the inside, you had to stick your hand out the window. The kind of trains you saw in old movies, or in Equestria.
Nevertheless, this was the kind of train that Jaune and Pyrrha were stuck with, and so, Sunset and Ruby watched them climb aboard, luggage and all, with all of the good wishes of their teammates accompanying them.
And then they stood on the platform and watched as the train huffed away, rattling and clanking as it went.
"I hope they're okay," Ruby said.
"Why wouldn't they be?" Sunset asked. "Is everything okay with Jaune?"
"Yeah," Ruby assured her. "Pretty much."
Sunset raised an eyebrow at that, but it was a little late now, and so she said, "What about you? How are you feeling?"
"Better," Ruby said. "Definitely better. I'm looking forward to it. I'm finally going to get the answers I've wanted, all of them."
Sunset nodded. "Hey, Ruby … you want to hang out after? My treat, your choice. It feels like…" Sunset stopped short of saying it felt like the least she could do.
Ruby looked up at her. "Really?"
"Yeah, really. Once you're done with Professor Ozpin and I'm done with Blake and Penny."
"I'd like that," Ruby said.
"Awesome," Sunset said. "Where do you want to go, any ideas?"
"Well, if you're paying…"
"Hang on, hang on; I'm not made of lien."
The train carriage looked a little worse for wear, not too surprising considering its apparent age. The seat cushions looked worn out, or going that way. They did not look particularly comfortable, nor — as Pyrrha sat down in the window seat, smoothing her cape out before she sat down and smoothing her skirt out after — did it feel particularly comfortable either. Still, it was undoubtedly better than standing all the way to Jaune's home.
Jaune sat down in the aisle seat beside her. He looked a little pale, and Pyrrha wondered whether he was suffering from motion sickness again.
Except the train hadn't started moving yet.
As Pyrrha thought that, the train lurched into motion, moving off from the platform with a thud and a shudder and a rumble. The whole carriage vibrated, and the rattle of the wheels upon the track was audible as the train rolled northwards out of the station.
"Jaune?" Pyrrha asked, placing a hand on his arm. "Is everything alright? Are you feeling ill?"
"No," Jaune said at once. "No, I…" He looked at her. "Are you wearing perfume?"
She was, as it happened; she was wearing the new scent from Imperial Fragrance. It wasn't something that she would have normally worn — some might have said that using scented shampoo was bad enough — but given the circumstances, she hadn't seen any harm in it.
No harm and possibly something to gain.
It was funny; she'd hoped that he would notice, but now that he had noticed, she wasn't sure what to say.
"Uh, yes," Pyrrha said. "Just something I thought I'd try out." She did not ask if he liked it, even as she rather badly wanted to know.
Jaune sniffed. "Jasmine?"
"That's one of the scents I think, yes," Pyrrha murmured.
Jaune smiled. "It smells good on you; it goes with the smell of your hair."
"That's good to know!" Pyrrha said. It was especially good to know, because she'd chosen it very deliberately to complement her hair scent.
He liked it. That was good, that was wonderful, but Pyrrha wasn't sure how or if she ought to say so, especially since it looked as though Jaune had things on his mind.
For that matter, Pyrrha had things on her mind too, like the question of how she would be received amongst Jaune's family.
"I have something to tell you," Jaune and Pyrrha both said to one another simultaneously.
Pyrrha covered her mouth with one hand as she giggled. "Please, you first."
"No, ladies first," Jaune replied. "I insist."
Pyrrha half felt that, as the gentleman, he should have gone first and spared her the awkwardness, but nevertheless, she said, "I … I'm overjoyed that you want me to come with you on this family visit, really, I am. But at the same time … I'm a little nervous."
Jaune twisted round in his seat so that he was more facing her. "Nervous about what?"
"Nervous about … about meeting your family," Pyrha admitted. "About what happens if … if they don't like me. If they don't approve of me."
Pyrrha had to admit, if only to herself, that the silence with which Jaune received her pronouncement was not very encouraging.
"That … that's kind of what I wanted to talk to you about," Jaune confessed. "I can't … I don't know how they'll react, how they'll … I can't guarantee that they'll treat you the way that you deserve to be treated. People back home … they don't all like outsiders."
It was not the reassurance that she might have hoped for, but at least he had been honest with her instead of insisting that everything would be fine right up until it wasn't. She could prepare herself now, instead of expecting smiles right up until she was met with knives.
Of course, it did lend far more weight to her other concern, that Jaune might be forced to choose between his family and her.
"I … I see," she said softly. "Jaune … if it comes down to it than I—"
"My choice is you," Jaune said.
Pyrrha's eyes widened. "Jaune?"
"If I have to choose, if they make me choose, my choice will be you," Jaune declared. "How can I do anything else, when you've always believed in me and been there for me instead of…?"
"Jaune," Pyrrha whispered, and in her tone was mingled with the immense joy that she felt at him saying this to her and the immense sadness she felt that it might be necessary. "You don't have to … this is your family."
"Yes," Jaune agreed. "My family, and so, my choice."
Pyrrha nodded. "Of course. You've thought about this?"
"A little," Jaune confessed. "Although, to be honest, I was more worried that you'd leave me for one of the better-looking guys back home." He grinned sheepishly.
Pyrrha suspected that he had made that up in order to lighten the mood, but she appreciated the effort and laughed anyway.
"Jaune!" She cried. "That is the most ridiculous thing…" She slipped her hand through his arm, then took his hand, intertwining her fingers with his own. "You don't … you will never have to … it is you, you now and always, I am suited in love and life. Though Mistral and the good fight will always have a claim upon my body, my heart and soul belong to you now." She squeezed his hand. "And if your parents don't like me or think that I'm not good enough for you, well, then I'll just have to prove them wrong! I'll do whatever it takes, because I am … because I'm with you, and you're with me, and whatever is waiting for us, we'll face it together."
Jaune put his other hand over hers.
"We'll face it together," he agreed, "and we'll beat it together."
And the train bore them inexorably onwards.
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Jaune and Pyrrha. They're both such dorks... but they're so cute. They're our cute dorks. Also if anyone makes fun of them, bones will be broken.
Can't remember but Jaune ever introduce Sunset and Ruby to his family as his teammates?
Those pictures are absolutely wonderful and just so heartwarming!
11301374
They are such adorably romantic derps, and we love them for it.
11301469
Sunset will probably be introduced to the Arc family in the rewrite, and Ruby as well, if she is sent with them. Given this happens before their visit it seems a bit of foreshadowing of those introductions.
i.pinimg.com/originals/0f/cd/0e/0fcd0e655f36b222f82539c058ef1430.jpg
Jaune and Pyrrha are adorkable together.
It need a
here
the art of Pyrrha is so damn cute. Now i wish we had some art for pony Blake and Penny