RWBY: Legacies

Forever Fall

It's a calm night, stars shining over Beacon's grounds as thin clouds strafe across the sky. Pyrrha sits on her dresser by the window side, deep in thought. She sombrely stares across the academy, occasionally turning to glance at the city in the distance, and the lights that dance on and off in its streets and buildings. She struggles to distract herself from the only thought in her mind, but after another few seconds the constant squeaking of Nora's bed is making her ears hurt and she looks down and sighs.

"How come Jaune gets home so late?" Nora asks, absentmindedly bouncing up and down on her bed, swinging her arms around a little every few jumps.

"He's become rather scarce ever since he started fraternising with Cardin." Ren answers distractedly rubbing a cloth over one of his pistols. He tilts his head slightly, looking down the iron sights of the pistol for a few heartbeats before returning to cleaning it, lightly gliding the cloth across the metal with care and fastidiousness.

"That's weird," Nora says, her fringe bobbing as she continues to bounce. "Doesn't he know we have a field trip tomorrow? We need our rest." She does a flamboyant flip and flops onto the bed, closing her eyes without even bothering to align herself or get under the covers.

"I'm sure our leader knows exactly what he's doing." Pyrrha frowns, glancing over at them before returning to stare into space.

It's obvious to Ren and Nora that her mood is poor, they look at each other sceptically at her words. "I guess so..." Nora mumbles, not wanting to upset her.

Unbeknownst to them, Jaune has been listening outside the door, the light from inside the room spilling through the small gap and onto his face. He sighs and gently closes the door, not wanting to alert his team to his presence. A long second goes by as he gently rests his head against the cold wood.

"Hey, Jaune." A familiar cheery voice says behind him, the sudden sound startling him enough that he almost loses his balance when he whirls around. "Long time no see, did you lock yourself out again?" Ruby asks with a smile; she is dressed in her pyjamas and giggles quietly at Jaune's flustered face, gesturing to his door.

"Oh, uh, nope. Got it." He stammers, awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck before holding up his scroll.

"So, where have you been lately." Ruby asks curiously.

"I, uh..." Jaune starts, intending to lie, but he's unable to when Ruby's cheerful face fills with concern. He sighs, hanging his head. "I messed up, I did something I shouldn't have, and now Cardin's got me on a leash. And Pyrrha won't even talk to me... I'm starting to think coming to this school was a bad idea." He sighs again, letting his head fall back against the door and sliding down it to the floor and resting his hands on his knees.

"I'm a failure." He mumbles dejectedly.

Uncharacteristically, Ruby thinks for a second, tapping her finger on her chin before responding. "Nope." She states.

"Uh, Nope?" Jaune asks.

"Nope," she repeats, stepping forward so that she is standing over him. He looks up at her. "You're a leader now Jaune, you're not allowed to be a failure," she tells him matter of factly, a small smile on her face.

Jaune furrows his brow in confusion. "But, what if I'm a failure at being a leader?" He asks, bobbing his head slightly before looking at the floor.

"Mmmm... Nope," Ruby hums.

"You know you aren't the easiest person to talk to about this kinda stuff," Jaune chuffs, a small smile finally gracing his features. He watches her sit down next to him, bracing herself with her hands on the floor.