Strategic Panic

birthday blues | open

“Yeah, I’ve seen you around!” Izuku said as the door opened up, a small smile on his face. Looking at Jaune and hearing the way he spoke, it almost reminded him of the way he was back before All Might transferred his quirk to him. When he first entered U.A., this exactly looked like how he acted. 

He was no stranger to feeling anxious, hell, sometimes he still got that way. It was practically rooted into his personality. Spotting the gift in his hands, he pointed at it. “Say, is that for me?”

That’s when he also decided to throw in an extra question for the blonde, “You’re one of Blake’s friends, right?”

    Seeing that Deku remembered him, Jaune flet a bit of his anxiety poof away as Deku also asked about the present.

    Presenting the small present, Jaune felt a more genuine smile appear on his face, “Y-yeah! I had to ask Blake about what you liked and she mentioned action figures so I went to the mall and found one that looked most like a super hero?”

     When Deku opens the present he will find a basic action figure with a red, white, and blue costume and the figure comes with two accessories; a grappling hook and a shield, which is also red, white, and blue.

    Jaune smiled, a little bit more relaxed, “Y-yeah! Blake and I fought together a lot! So, yeah! Totally friends!”

birthday blues | open

Humming to himself as he sat on his bed in the comforts of his room in the Prophecy Hotel, Izuku was taking a breather as he settled into night time. A certain time of year was coming up and he wasn’t exactly excited. While yes it was true, he had made a few friends here, met someone as amazing as Blake, he was still missing most of his classmates from U.A. and even his teachers. Aizawa. Present Mic. Nezu. Midnight. All Might.

Taking one of the weights that he had by his bed side, he lifted it up and down, keeping his thoughts in his head. There was no possible way anyone was aware of his birthday coming up, although if this strange place somehow did find out, it wouldn’t be so bad. Regardless, Izuku was looking forward to it.

“No need to stay down about this whole thing, it could turn out to be a great day. And everyone back home would want me to be happy on my birthday. Even if I’m lost out here in Wonderland, I know they’ll be cheering me on.” Izuku said with a small chuckle, “If I’m lucky, some might even drop by. Kacchan’s already here. And so is Kirishima. There’s always that probability.”

    It was common knowledge that Jaune had his issues with social anxiety, so when it came to things like parties he’d rather just bury himself in the ground and wait for Mother Earth to absorb him. But this time...it was different. No one should be alone on their birthday.

    With a small box in his hands, Jaune could feel a headache start to form at the base of his head as he slowly knocked on the door, “U-Umm...hey! Deku? It’s me! Jaune!”

    Jaune didn’t interact with Deku as much, since Nora, Ren, Blake, and Weiss were in the SSA too, but he found out that it was the guy’s birthday tomorrow...and as far as he knew he didn’t have that many familiar faces here in Wonderland.

Old Embers || Jaune & Pyrrha

   When Nora had suggested sneaking Pyrrha inside Team JNR’s home, she initially declined the offer. It seemed… wrong to her, even though any place they called theirs had once been hers as well. She hadn’t gotten the chance to properly re-introduce herself to the others, and she didn’t think entering their house uninvited would leave the best impression. However, once Nora had seen she was taking refuge in Wonderland Haven, she outright refused to let her return and Pyrrha struggled to say no to anything she wanted. They’d been apart for so long now, it was a relief to be close to her again. 

   The actual sneaking in had gone fine, all according to the girls’ plan. Ren had been out and it didn’t seem that Jaune had taken any notice to their presence, locked away in his room. The problem came after Nora fell fast asleep. 

   Pyrrha knew it was a bad idea to get up looking for a glass of water at half passed one a.m., but waking up the other thunderous huntress was a lost cause and she supposed if she was quiet enough she could skirt by. Slowly, silently, Pyrrha crept from Nora’s room and down the stairs, cringing at the creak that sounded from the cabinet she opened in hopes cups would be waiting for her. 

   She was right, luckily, instinctually remembering they kept their own cups in the middle cabinet in their first dorms. However, as she reached for the sink, phased by the darkness of the room, Pyrrha’s hand knocked a plastic bowl clattering to the floor from where she had assumed it’d been left to dry. She sucked in a deep breath and swung her body towards the entrance of the kitchen at the same time a gleam of metal shone through it. Throwing her arm up, her shield released and she entered a defensive stance. 

   When her focused eyes landed on her attacker, Pyrrha’s throat had never been dryer. Jaune. Swallowing thickly, the huntress took a tentative step away from his sharp sword, allowing her shield to lower slowly. Bright gaze studied him intensely, not only watching for an offensive motion but to see how he’d changed. And he had changed. 

   His shoulders were broader, and he styled his hair different. His expression was set far more fiercely than it had been back then, and his footwork indicated he was sure of himself in his attack. Pride swelled in her chest, but another emotion swirled underneath and threatened to take over: fear. 

   She hadn’t prepared herself for this interaction. She new it was coming but thought she would have more time to think of what to say, how to apologize. She needed time to analyze every possible outcome, as she did with her battles, and the rug had been pulled from under her feet with this confrontation. Her breath picked up and her pulse quickened. 

   “Hello again…” Pyrrha spoke, voice sounding far more controlled than she felt as she curled and uncurled her fingers uncertainly. Should she call for Nora? Should she call for anyone? How do you go about telling someone you loved that you weren’t dead anymore and had been snuck into their home without their knowledge? How do you tell them you missed them even when you couldn’t miss anyone at all? “Jaune.”

    That voice...how long has it been since he last heard that voice. Memories of Beacon whipped through his mind’s eye of team JNPR’s training sessions, their first exam, the dance, and...and their kiss. Jaune felt his head start to spin in circles as he felt his grip on his sword loosen. Then he saw the shield unfurl and Jaune’s face revealed the shock that he felt.

    “H...how...this....this c-can’t be happening r-right now...”

     Hearing her voice say his name caused his heart to beat faster and his eyes start to water. His heat was telling him that this was possible and that this was Pyrrha. Pyrrha was back and he was being an absolute dick about it. Was this his reality now? With everything that happened at Atlas, being ripping from his home again, and now Pyrrha being brought here? What else could happen.

     Jaune dropped his sword and slid down the island that was behind him and tried to calm his breathing. His mind wouldn’t stop screaming at him to think logically, to fight this thing that was impersonating Pyrrha, but also to cry and give Pyrrha the tightest hug possible.

Starter for @theachilleshuntress​​

    The talk that Nora and he had the previous night had caused him to get little sleep. Guilt and a constant stream of vivid thoughts kept his mind up; the guilt from reacting so intensely during their conversation and the thoughts of...what if she was right? The Mirror had the ability to bring them here and people from other worlds...what’s to say it couldn’t bring her back from the dead-

    “No...that’s not possible...that’s hopeful thinking Arc. And here I thought you finally moved on...”

    Old frustrations started to surface in Jaune’s heart and he decided that he wasn’t going to sleep that night. Getting out of bed, Jaune padded his way to Nora’s room. He needed to apologize for the way he reacted last night. She was so happy that Pyrrha was supposedly back and...he kinda ruined that. Knocked on the door and calling her name, Jaune didn’t hear anything and he cocked an eyebrow.

     “Huh...maybe she’s dead asleep...I should probably wait until tomorrow...” turning around, Jaune heard a slight noise coming from downstairs. Every sense went on high alert as Jaune deftly entered his room and grabbed his sword and slowly walked down the stairs.

     Reaching the final step, Jaune heard another noise, coming straight from the kitchen that was to the left of him and around the corner. Taking a deep breath, Jaune quickly moved and brandished his weapon.

    “Who the hell are- ....n...wha....”

      The first thing that he saw of the intruder was her red hair in a single ponytail, but the detail that made Jaune the most stunned was the vibrant green eyes of a Pyrrha Nikos.

pushing daises / mai & jaune

@strategic-panic​

“If you do not leave this instant, I will not hesitate to skin you alive.”

Two beady black eyes stared back at Mai, unblinking even in the face of imminent death. The knives between her knuckles were poised to strike if the trespasser before her did not leave the premises soon. Instead of heeding her warning, the trespasser stomped around in a once perfect patch of daises. Mai’s mouth hung open, her eyes blown wide, and her heart lurched when the daises had been pulled from their stems and eaten.

“You’re dead meat.”

“B-aah.”

The stupid beast was mocking her! 

     Talking a walk through the Flower Park, Jaune could feel his mind start to relax again from the recent events in his life and he could think logically again...well, as logically as he could anyway. The softer colored flowered pleased Jaune’s eyes and the soft fragrances let him relax his shoulders.

    Sitting down on one of the benches, Jaune let out a sigh, “Ya know...I don’t know why I never came here when I first fell into this place...it’s really relaxing...”

    Jaune felt his eyes close and his body stretch as he felt his body start to prepare for a nap when a sound entered his ear.

    “B-aah.”

     “Yeah Mr. Goat, this place is pretty cool- what wha- since when were there goats here?”

     Looking over, Jaune found the animal grazing on some daises and a very...pissed off woman. How could Jaune tell the woman was less than please? Maybe it was due to the knives in her hands but who knows.

Impossible || Jaune & Nora

    Nora nervously messed with her hands as she closely watched Jaunes reaction. She knew better than to give him this information without properly talking with Ren and finding a better way to approach the subject. Pyrrhas death had hit him the worst and it was a subject they tried not to approach, but he was the team leader and she was certain that he would take this news well!

    She took a small breath and chased the nerves she had away. It wasn’t like her to suddenly second guess herself. She had nothing to fear afterall, this was like the greatest news they could ever have after all! They’re team could finally reunite! Pyrrha was alive and well here!

    “Of course I’m positive!!! Why would I ever lie about something like this?! If I wasn’t sure I wouldn’t even be telling you because I know we’re not supposed to bring up Pyrrha being gone!”

    Jaune’s mind was...confused, for multiple reasons but it boiled down to two voiced that screamed at him: one told him that this could solve so many issues. The team would be back together and they’d have another ally in the fight against Salem...it was the other voice was one that Jaune wanted to lean on due to its familiarity. It told him that this was a trick of Salem’s. They had no idea how powerful she really was.

     “Th-that’s...impossible...I’m sorry Nora, but Pyrrha died. Cinder killed her. There’s no way that she could be alive. I want her to be here with us. Hell, she should be here with us!” Jaune could feel himself start to get worked up; his old rage against Cinder starting to surface again.

    Jaune could feel his breath start to get shallow. It was like water was starting to go into his lungs and he was desperately trying to swim up to get even a gulp of air. Jaune’s gripped his jeans till his knuckles were white. He needed to calm down. He knew that they all missed Pyrrha and that her being back would basically be a miracle...

Continued from here with @solixdragon​

    It was rare to have a serious conversation with Yang Xiao Long, especially when the conversation partner was Jaune, While the two did have their serious moments, mostly dealing with almost dying or when one of the teammates was have a crisis, but they, along with Ruby and Nora, were the more laid-back of the group.

     Jaune nodded his head and felt a small smile form on his face hearing about Yang, “It’s...great that you’ve been workin’ on that Yang. I’m really proud of ya.”

     The air that hung around Jaune started to feel thicker and his mind kicked at his vocal folds to do something, to add onto the conversation.

    Sighing, “To be honest, I’m kinda jealous that you’ve made so much progress...I’ve been working on being a leader like Ruby since we all left together...and I don’t know if I’ve gotten any better...”

Starter for @erranthonorem​

    Sitting on the couch, Jaune was watching TV when Nora suddenly stormed into the house. Now, normally this wasn’t something to get his attention as Nora was literally lightning in human form, but Nora had immediately mentioned Phyrra. Hearing their deceased teammate’s name, Jaune felt his body freeze and his mind went blank.

    Out of reaction Jaune clutched at the red cloth that always draped at his hip. There was no way for her to be back. She was dead. Long dead. Her weapons were used to help strengthen his own out of memory. Jaune’s mind flashed back to when Ruby first broke the news to everyone that Phyrrha was...gone...

    Why was this happening? Jaune had just coped with the loss of someone so close to him...and now she was suddenly back? No. No this can’t be happening. This has to be a trick of some kind.

     Jaune felt his voice quiver as he spoke, “A...are you sure that it was her?”

Hewwo everyone! Brendon with an old muse of mine and I’m really excited to get him started!

CAP IS AT 6 and castmates do not need liking as I already wanna thread with ya’ll.