Natural Born Leader (Under construction)

          “…I came out on top at everything I did and people loved me for

               it; that was enough to make me happy…”

“… but in time…”

          “…. a distance grew between me and them… ”

“… by the time I realized it, there was nobody by my side anymore…”

He didn’t think about asking her, being so fixated on Weiss at the time and not knowing this is how she felt? It was no wonder his father called him ‘Dull as baby scissors’. “Jeez.” He rubbed the back of his neck for a moment and sighed ashamed for a moment as he spoke. “I don’t understand people like that, I also don’t see how that is ‘love’. If they were only there for you because you did something for them... Well, that’s just not people you would want in your life.”

Approaching her, he continued “Pyrrha, I don’t want you to think that I’m one of those people, you’re... Pretty amazing, but I don’t like you for your skills or how good you are at fighting or whatever. I like you for who you are, there’s no one else like you.” 

But what did she mean by she couldn’t stay? He knew it wasn’t him or the others, if that were the case she wouldn’t be following them… Did Salem have some sort of hold on her? He was too scared for the answer…. So he shamefully didn’t ask.

But his next question slipped from his lips “There has to be a way…” His grip became a little tighter, as if the question would cause Pyrrha to run. 

“It isn’t just dangerous for you if I stay!” She yelled at him, though it pained her to speak to him like she was. “Any disobedience and she could kill me with a snap of her cold, bony fingers!” She had ceased to be rational a long time ago, but she didn’t consider the affect seeing her wound would do to her partner, especially considering the story that must have been told to him by Ruby of seeing that arrow go through her. Her look softened and she reach out a hand toward him, slightly.  

A monster could....

Jaune wanted to do something “T-There has to be a way... Something we could do to break the spell...” He tried to keep up hope, that one day he would really have her back. Jaune eyes the hand she let out for him and he reached out for it, taking it in his own.

He picked her up bridal style and began to walk to his small camp, the night made the woods dangerous and caused him and his team to split up. He had a sleeping bag set up and a fire. 

Peeling off his finger-less gloves that he had to switch to because of a fight that had gone a little poorly ruined his new pair. He grabbed out the travel sized first aid and began bandaging her wounds.

His heart shook and tore each time a new wound would appear to him. How could someone do this to her? Who would ever want to? “Pyrrha… I’m so sorry.” He couldn’t help but to blame himself for the events of the fall and her disappearance. 

A gentle hand combed her hair, he wasn’t going to leave her side, lifting her head and placing it comfortably on his thigh he found a spot to lean against a tree and watch over her. He knew once she awoke he would have to get her to the nearest town to get her aura back up. But now, he just watched her rest.

She tried to move in a panic but was held back by the intensity of the pain she was in. She felt all over the most tender parts noting that she was bandaged and lying on a sleeping bag. Someone must have stumbled across her, though the hazy image of Jaune’s face lingered in her dim memory.

She tried to slowly sit up, a few whimpers of pain escaping her lips as her arms shook and buckled underneath her own weight. Whoever had found her, she was at their mercy. She was surprised she had even survived at all; surprised and disappointed. She was in no condition to leave this camp so she focused on trying to make sense of her surroundings and hopefully get some food and water. 

He approached her cautiously, he wasn’t certain if this was really Pyrrha or not, someone could be playing an awful trick on him or he had finally mentally collapsed.

“Come on! We don’t have a lot of time till sun sets.” Jaune grabbed her partner by the hand and lead her to the courtyard. He wasn’t thinking about a helmet or pads or anything, well… He’s never used them, but with how much Pyrrha worries, he wouldn’t say anything about that. 

He quickly mounted his skateboard and kicked off “Oh yea! It’s just like I remember!” He grinned wide, like he was reliving a childhood memory… Well, he was. 

A hand reached for the bottom of the board and he made a quick tug upwards while lifting off the deck, turning the board in mid air before landing on the deck once more and laughing before rolling up to Pyrrha and grinning. 

Whoa! He did that so effortlessly for not having practiced in such a long time. She was really impressed and REALLY turned on. If this kept up she wouldn’t be able to stand it. 

He was already gone, she was gonna watch him do another trick if she liked it or not and not known to him, she was pretty intent on watching. Kicking off once more he gained some speed.

Jaune was worried, seeing Pyrrha like that as he rounded the corner… He knew she was a bit standoff-ish today but he dind’t know it was this bad. He had never seen her cry before and seeing it now broke his heart. “Pyrrha…”

She wiped her face and nodded. Trying her best to shove all her feelings down and hide them from him. 

Jaune sat down beside her and let out a small sigh, his arm wrapping around her and pulling her into a gentle hug. He wanted to know what was wrong and for a moment, he stayed silent, just allowing her to either let herself cry or compose herself, which ever one she decided. 

It was scary, how vulnerable she felt with him, but also how much she trusted him. It terrified her to talk about her past but she craved some kind of support for it as well. Maybe, she would let him in just a little. 

“It wasn’t an easy road for me when I was her age. The headmaster of Sanctum, though nice enough to let me stay there, was not an affectionate or supportive person. Lucky as I am to have had the opportunity to train with such prestigious instructors from such an early age, I never really had a choice to do anything else. If I wanted to survive, that was my only path, so I did what I could to embrace that.”

He listened intently, here he was thinking that she was just magically skilled her whole life and things had just been easy for her but... It wasn’t, not at all, and he scolded himself for thinking that way in the first place. But he did find similarity on what she told him.

“That’s just another thing we have in common, huh? We both felt trapped in our own way.” He was happy she talked to him, he wanted to know more about her, he wanted her to be able to open up and talk about her problems because upon thinking about it, who did she have to do that with?