"I'm sorry, you want to what?!" Jae asked as he was gazing at Pyrrha on the bed with the faintest hint of a smirk on her face.
"I want to make this a date between the two of us…" Pyrrha mentioned as she kept her gaze on him while Yang and Weiss stood behind her were doing their best to try and not appear jealous since they realised that they were mostly at fault for this. "Nora told me about the "arrangement" that you three talked about and I'm not entirely sure that I'm convinced about the whole thing, especially after how things have changed since people started looking at you differently."
"So you want us to go on a date?" Jae asked as he was still confused by the logic of this particular thought. "This is weird…Especially with how she left things before…"
"I had some time to think it over and as much as it hurt when I heard you being honest about everything…But I don't want this to stop our relationship before it even starts, so I'd like to go on a real date together; No one else. It'll just be you and me so we can talk things out…And if you can give me a understandable reason as to why you feel like you do or don't want a part in this poly relationship….Then I'll respect it and maybe even join it with you." Pyrrha explained with two looks of surprise from Weiss and Yang followed by a curious look from Nora.
"Wait, what?" Yang did a double take after blinking.
"Wait, What?" Weiss seemed equally lost but ultimate flustered by the possibility of Pyrrha joining them together.
"Well, do you think this is reasonable?" Pyrrha asked as she got up and walked over to Jae; Keeping her serious look on her face though her heart couldn't help but race with the more that the prospect lingered.
"Yeah…After what happened, it's only fair that I treat you to a day out together…Just…Dress casual." Jae nodded and smiled a little at her, though making sure to be careful since he figured that he was still on thin ice with her.
"Meet me in Vale in the next few minutes…I'll be waiting to see what you have in mind." she mentioned before nudging him through the door and shutting it so she could change, though his comment about dressing casual confused her.
"Well…That went a lot smoother than I thought it would." Yang commented as she breathes a sigh of relief as Jae left the four alone.
"What good would it do if I were to just yell and shout at him? You've given me your side of things so it's only fair that he provides his input too…Besides, he could have easily kept this to himself and lied, it must mean something if he wants to be honest even though it wasn't nice." Pyrrha pointed out as she headed for the bathroom after picking out some clothes.
"So…You'd join in if he said he was interested~?" Nora asked with a slight smirk as Yang and Weiss left the dorm to try and give the remainder of Team JNPR some space.
Pyrrha blushed; "I-I was trying to come off as supportive and I-uh….Kind of, kept talking." She admitted since she kind of let her brain turn off as she talked; Which did make things easier to get off her chest but it was only after she was getting dressed that she realised the scope of things now.
Nora giggled a little as she watched Pyrrha fluster herself; "You know…I don't think it'd be that bad in all honesty." She admitted as she took a seat on her bed, "I mean, if he was using it to try getting in with anyone he finds then that's one thing but so far the ones that are trying to make moves are the ones who want him for more than his "Big Hero" image."
Pyrrha raised an eyebrow; "Okay, that makes sense for Yang and Weiss but what do you mean by ones…as in plural?"
Nora thought on it more as she recalled the numbers of people who weren't random bystanders; "Well, to start off there was you, most of Team RWBY and Velvet who seemed to like him a little more than most….Now there's that Cinder girl and Emerald who seem to be hanging around him more often." Nora listed off as she counted on her fingers; "I think even Scarlet from Sun's team gave him a glance or two sometimes."
"Sun's team? But aren't they all gu….Oh….Ooooooooh." Pyrrha was confused at first but then quickly recognised the elephant in the room as she went to change.
——Meanwhile——
Cinder, Neo, Mercury and Emerald were currently regrouping and formulating a plan in their dorm when a knock was heard at their door, the dark skinned girl quickly got up and opened it to see who was bugging them.
"Hey Em." Jae said to her with a gentle smile and waved at her, even though it hadn't been that long since the two had last talked but she had a fluttering feeling in her stomach like it had been ages.
"Jae? What are you doing here?" Emerald asked as she leaned in the doorway; "I thought you were with your friends.." She questioned as she kept her eye on Jae, though not out of suspicion but more of the fact that she felt the confidence to check him out; "Not that I don't mind, of course."
"I figured that I'd check in since you were feeling nervous about having people watching you so I wanted to see how you were doing." Jae offered as he glanced into their room to see Cinder and the disguised Neo talking; "You got a moment to talk alone? There's something that I kinda….wanted to say to you alone." He mentioned while Emerald walked him through towards her bedroom in the dorm and shut the door; "So…What's this story that you wanted to talk to me about?" He asked once they were alone.
"It's the story about how the thief~" Emerald started but then nudged him backwards onto the bed and straddled his waist, "Managed to score one hell of a man from Beacon~" She smirked as she trailed her hand down his chest and inched it towards his pants.
"H-Hold on, Don't you think we should slow things down a little?" Jae asked as he got nervous; "Emerald?"
"Come on, I already know about how awesome you are in your training….How about we see what that endurance can do in other aspects~?" Emerald ignored him as she slowly pressed her hand on his stomach. "Firm~ Let's see what else you got down here~" She purred before unzipping his pants.
"Emerald…."
"EMERALD!"
The greenette snapped to attention from her room like she had just woken up and whoever was yelling for her didn't do it at a good time since she had just got to the good part. "WHAT?!" She barked a little more angrily than she would have liked.
"Cinder's been trying to get us together for a meeting, so wake up and get over to her room!" Mercury snapped from behind the door before walking away.
Emerald was livid to say the least; She had him right where she wanted him and the faint sheen on her fingers was eager to demonstrate just how close she was, "Gods damn it! What is it with the Universe and ruining things right when they get good?!" She mentally ranted before grabbing a nearby pillow and started screaming into it; She cursed Mercury's timing, she cursed Cinder's decision to hold a meeting on the day before the tournament and most of all: "I fucking hate that I find Jae so hot!"
——Meanwhile——
Jae was waiting outside of Vale where the airships from Beacon land; He had opted to dress up a little since it was his first actual date and went for forgoing his hoody and wearing a decent red dress shirt under a recently laundered dark blue hoody, a pair of black pants and dress shoes. "Sheesh…I can handle Grimm, high speed chases and dealing with Demon ladies but Airship travel and this is where my body draws the line?!" Jae mentally struggled as he got antsy with waiting for Pyrrha.
"Take it easy, if you keep busting your own ass over this…You're gonna actually be sick!" That same voice echoed in his head to try calming him down as Jae paced around; "Besides, you have nothing to worry about; We have a game plan, remember? Pyrrha knows us better than anyone and with the kind of stuff we have planned, there's very little chance that she won't like it."
"OR she could be petty and decided to leave me here…After me opening my big mouth about what happened between me and Yang, honesty is the best policy…My ass, it is…" Jae fired back as he sat on a nearby bench; it had been five minutes since he arrived but with the way that things had been recently, it felt like hours.
"So what would you have rather done? Keep this up and pretend everything was okay until you or Weiss and Yang slip up and she hears about it? Because I get the feeling that would go down far worse."
"Hey, Jae." Pyrrha's voice came from behind him as Jae snapped out of his thoughts; "I hope I hadn't kept you for too long…I was having a hard time with everyone else trying to find out what was casual enough but good enough for a date." She apologised as she walked over towards him.
Jae felt like his heart swelled from seeing her; She had kept her makeup how she normally did but let her long red hair down and flowing to her upper back, she had opted for a plain yet smart design as she wore a dull bronze shirt that exposed a little of her toned stomach along a brown jacket that seemed to compliment it, a pair of dark blue pants followed by some dark heeled boots that put her at Jae's height; "I…Wow…." Jae could barely stammer out a sentence as he looked at her.
Hearing him so lost for words and the fact that he had a tint in his cheeks made her blush a little in both pride and at the embarrassment of being stared at; "I-I'm guessing that this was a good choice." She tried to joke before going to sit with him; "So, you said you had a plan for today, what is the first step?"
Jae finally got ahold of himself and smiled; "Well, I know it's not exactly the best way to get this underway but I had a whole idea planned for stuff that normal people do…Because I figured that someone as popular and high standing as you never gets much chance to do things outside of a professional setting?" He asked her curiously.
Pyrrha felt her ears burn with embarrassment; "Well…Truthfully I haven't…Ever since I was picked up and started on things beyond school like extra shoots, advertising and taking interviews for my successes…I never really got much free time for myself." She admitted; "Though judging by your question, you have something in mind?"
"Come on, it's better that I show you." Jae coaxed her as he got up and walked with her into Vale so they could look around the Festival; They made stops at the arcade, tried various kinds of food that they had on offer and generally just made sure that they could enjoy as much of the quiet as they could before the Vytal Tournament, to some people it may have looked like the most mundane and unremarkable outing; But for Pyrrha, it was one of the most fun things she could have done since it was something she could share with a man she cared about. This also helped with Jae becoming happier too when he saw her smile genuinely lighting up everything around her.
"Jae…I do have a question for you…" Pyrrha asked as Jae's final spot for her was on that very same hillside that overlooked the Forever Fall forest, providing a view of the trees that was more captivating than the Grimm that had lingered there. "Did you actually agree to this relationship because you liked me that way? Or because I was the one who asked you…"
Jae looked to her as they sat down for the final segment of their date where they could be alone. "What do you mean? Of course it's because I like you." He responded as he unfurled a blanket that he had taken off of Ripper for them to sit.
"And Yang and Weiss…You like them too…" Pyrrha followed that up; "How come you never actually told me about it before?" She quizzed him while she had the chance.
"Because how am I supposed to explain to the first girl that I ever liked who genuinely liked me back, just say "Hey Pyrrha, I happen to have a crush on my friend's teammates, that's cool right?" Because I don't think I could ever phrase it in a way that doesn't make it sound disingenuous or skeevy…" Jae decided to come clean about everything
Pyrrha raised an eyebrow; "Why would I? Jae, if you do then you do…We weren't exactly dating back then and if you would have asked me then I'd have helped you meet someone…We are teammates, remember?"
"I know but…It's just…" Jae grimaced as he faltered over himself, he knew what it was he wanted to say but if he DID say it then it could change how Pyrrha felt or saw him…Or perhaps not.
"Jae, you remember what we promised back in the Forest before? We'd be honest with each other…Not just as teammates or as friends but as people…Is it about what happened before Beacon?" She asked him curiously.
Jae nodded; "Yeah…But it's more than that; I never actually…Had someone that I had feelings for ever return them." He admitted as Pyrrha decided to listen intently; "Kids around my home village, in the foster homes I grew up in…Any time that I found someone that I liked….Well, you know how the worst for most people is they say no?"
Pyrrha nodded; "I've seen plenty of times that happened around me…And sometimes I've had to say it myself." She mentioned as she remembered every time that a fan came up to her and confessed that they liked her a lot more than she would expect.
"Well, for me; Being told no was probably the gentlest way to do it…There was the laughing, the other guys or girls who told me to basically stay away from them…I even managed to get spit on a few times…" Jae detailed with an uncomfortable expression as he let out the remainder of stuff that he kept in.
Pyrrha kept quiet but she could start to understand why he never actually approached any of them first when they developed feelings. "I see…So that's why…"
"Yep, I had enough of it so I just focused on other stuff…It meant less direct reasons to confront me so I considered that a win…" Jae reaffirmed but then his look of smiling sadness turned to a smaller smile towards her; "But I think I have something that'll better describe what I feel…For right now and for my time here with you." He mentioned as he then summoned up Behelith and seated it on his lap to start strumming.
"J-Jae, what are y-" She got confused and a little worried since the last time he strummed that guitar, he knocked Lancers out of the sky but this time there was the irrefutable sounds of a regular acoustic guitar being played.
Dudun dun dun, Dudun dun dun, Dudun dun duun, Dudun du DUN…The sounds of the strings delicately plucked and the simplistic tone seemed to stir at the smallest part of her being as Pyrrha could feel a gentle warmth from the music like it soothed her soul.
"I never felt~ That it was wise~ To wish too much~"
Duduun dun dun, dundun dun duun…
"To dream too biiiig~ Would only lead….To being crushed~"
Pyrrha could hear the low tones in Jae's voice as he sang to her, it felt a lot slower and less powerful than the song at the dance but that didn't diminish the fact that she could feel each verse of the songs tug at her heartstrings. She could also see a faint image behind Jae that almost resembled a memory; It was a Shadow of a small boy with horns and wearing a white mask covering their face talking to a girl with that same mask but she ended up walking away after dropping a flower that he gave her on the ground and trod it into the dirt while sporting a mocking expression. "This is…What is this?"
Dun dun Duun~
"Then I met you~ You weren't afraid~ Of anything~" The next verse made the image disappear and a new one appeared behind Jae, one that was of a familiar scene for her; It was of the first time that Jae and Pyrrha fought together in the forest when they were making teams, the Shadow that was Jae was backing away from a girl reaching her hand out to him; This girl however looked like a shadow too but it sported Pyrrha's hair in style and colour. The difference however was that the "Pyrrha's" face had a calm and welcoming smile on her face rather than the previous Shadow's distorted face.
"That's...From when we first met…it's more vivid than the last one…He must have cherished this memory a lot more…" Pyrrha thought to herself as the emotions spiralled inside of her and the lyrics to the song managed to uplift her spirits despite being a indirect peek into Jae's past and his opening up to her.
The playing was starting to become more frequent as Jae picked up with the song; "You taught me how~ To leave the ground~ To use my wiiiiings~" He sang out as the hillside started to linger with his music on the wind.
Pyrrha watched him with enraptured awe, the sight of him playing such a tune was reigniting her feelings for him and setting them ablaze, she wanted to praise his song…To say that it was beautiful but something compelled her to sit and listen though it could've just been that it was impolite to interrupt during a song.
"I never thoooought a hero~ Would ever come my way~ And more than thaaat, I never tho-Pyrrha? Pyrrha, what's wrong?" Jae asked with concern as he stopped playing and saw something that he hadn't anticipated.
Even though she was listening and enjoying the song; Pyrrha's eyes had a thin stream of tears running down her eyes as she felt the emotions bubble over; "W-Wha?" She sniffled and then looked away as she wiped her eyes, only realising that she had teared up when the sudden wetness tickled at her cheeks. "I-I'm sorry, I never…This never happened before!" She stammered as she felt a little silly with feeling such a way over a song.
"Pyrrha, you were crying….Was it something I said during it?" Jae asked as he dispersed the guitar and sat closer to her; "Because I just…I don't know what but it just kept going and going a-"
"Jae…It's not a bad reason why I felt like this." Pyrrha chuckled as she sniffled once again and wiped her nose; "I just…I don't think I've ever heard a song that could hit me like that…But it was beautiful nonetheless." She would reassure him before the sudden lapse had her head gently rest on his shoulder as she cuddled up to him; "Where did you come up with such a song? I don't think I've ever heard it before."
Jae felt surprised when Pyrrha was practically snuggled up in his lap but gently put his arms around her; "I just…Spoke from the heart. I let everything that I've ever felt for you just…translate itself onto the strings." He elaborated as he welcomed Pyrrha's warmth, the sound of the trees rustling in the distance helped to soothe them both as the sun began to set in the distance and bathe them both in a gentle pink light.
"Jae…If you say yes to this and if I go with you…Would you like us all the same way…or will you play favourites?" Pyrrha asked her last question as she finally deliberated on an answer; She knew that moments like this where they could be close together would make her happier than anything but she didn't think she could handle being with someone who'd put the others over her.
Without even talking or any warning, Jae softly rested both hands on Pyrrha's cheeks so the two could stare directly into each other's eyes; "Pyrrha Nikos, I'll say this to you now as a vow; No matter what happens and no matter who we end up with in this relationship together…I promise that you will be the one to hold the nearest and dearest place in my heart, that I will do anything I can to ensure you remain safe and happy while we are a part of this."
Pyrrha's flush on her face grew as he spoke and took in every word of his promise, she realised that everything he said was genuine and that she had nothing to worry about; "Then…Show me…" She said adamantly as she leaned in close to kiss him, letting the evening take them from soft but passionate kissing into the night with a physical connection that was a lot less lust and more of legitimate love for one another.
——Meanwhile in Ozpin's Office——
Ozpin had just finished detailing the latest revelation from Qrow about Salem's unknown associates attacking and trying to siphon away the Fall Maiden's power for themselves. "We need a plan for this…But we can't distinguish the fact that this is completely different then what we've seen before."
"I know that what I've suggested before about…Storing it in someone else but the only thing we can really do is keep the current Fall Maiden in the Vault down below." Ironwood mentioned as Goodwitch gave him a sideyed glance of disgust.
"While I don't exactly agree with his sentiments, James does have a good point; What if they can track Amber's missing piece or what if they're already here…." Glynda reluctantly agreed with Ironwood; She had her reservations and her moral objections regarding his Aura Transferral machine but desperate times were calling for it.
"Miss Rose's testimony at the tower during the dance proved that they are…Though who they are is our big question." Ozpin noted as he looked to the screens that had Qrow's last message about things. "Though we don't have much of a choice in the matter…We can't just sit here and do nothing; The only thing that we can try is to put the Maiden's power into someone else…But who exactly?"
Ironwood hesitated for a moment but then stepped forward; "You said that the candidate to receive the power has to be a young woman, correct?" He asked and then mused on it more when they nodded in affirmation; "There is one student in your school whom I've noticed possesses more than enough potential to earn it…Someone I believe is our greatest asset and what could be a key figure in turning the tide against Salem's forces."
"James, you must understand that we do have a number of students who could potentially think of but means our question remains the same…Who did you have in mind?"
"Pyrrha Nikos…."