I swear this was suppose to be a White Rose oneshot and then-- Chapter 1 - Cardin, Cardout They had finally done it. Years of pain, suffering, trauma. Some nearly gave up. Some realized how hopeless it all seemed. Some just didn't want to carry such a load on their shoulders, to bear the haunting curse to fight the Grimm. But they still got through. They still managed to become the one thing they dreamed the most about as a kid. And in the light of that color-changing dust-powered disco ball, they were all dancing. Having fun, and at the same time, they all felt something mutual. They all felt respect. They all felt happiness. Some felt love. There they were, dancing with eachother, having fun just like regular teens. But they weren't the same old kids before. They were hunters, huntresses, all of them, and yet they were having the time of their lives together. Who could of known that such a bundle of once-students were now all officially graduates? That's right. All of them graduates. Ruby, Weiss, Blake, Yang. Jaune, Nora, Pyrrha, Ren. Even Cardin, Russel, Dove and Sky. As stated before, they all felt respect for one another. If there was a time to tie the strings, to calm the storm, now was a better time than any. And apparently, Cardin was aware of this fact. "This is the part where you lose." "Over my dead-Gah!" Cardin had just parried a strike from Jaune's sword and kneed him in the stomach, knocking him back on to his behind. "No, not again!" Jaune cried. He still had his sword and shield in both hands, but Cardin was raising his club. Then, Jaune realized. An opening. He could just kick him, he was close enough. Cardin stopped raising his club, ready to strike. Having been a long grueling fight, Jaune was having difficulty, but managed to gather his strength to raise his leg and thrust it towards Cardin's groin. "Got you!" "Too slow!" Cardin anticipated his attack, and spun his hips so that Jaune's feet landed on the armor protecting his hips. Jaune yelled in pain, and Cardin did nothing but grin. "Deja Vu, eh, Jauney boy?" Jaune smiled. He was losing, he was going to get clubbed by his worst enemy, but he was still smiling. "You got that right..." Then came a laugh. From Cardin, but it wasn't that cold, heartless laugh he'd given him so many times before. This one was different, it was a heartwarming one. He dropped his club to his side and held out his hand. Jaune grabbed his hand, and now he was back on his feet. "Better luck next time, Jaune." Cardin playfully punched him in the shoulder, to which he did nothing but grin. "Yeah yeah, give me a moment, will you? I got something to...Sort out, first." He gave Cardin that look again. The look that meant 'My business, please don't intrude'. Giving a sigh, he shrugged. "Alright, but don't make me come after you. I brought all that juice so everyone would have a chance, and that includes you." Jaune nodded, and turned to go towards the fountain. But then he felt Cardin's hand on his shoulder. "One more thing..." "What is it?" Jaune turned, his face full of curiousity. He wasn't nervous anymore. His fear was finally gone, but Cardin looked like there was a heavy weight on his back. "I'm sorry." Jaune frowned. He wasn't expecting that. Cardin, the once tough old bully. Cardin, an armored titan that wouldn't let anything get through to him. Cardin, Cardin Winchester, apologizing to little Jaune Arc. "I'm sorry, and...Thanks for that help, if you can remember." Jaune's eyes wavered, mind spinning, trying to find that memory he was talking about, and then- "Oh...That. You didn't have to thank me, we both would of died if-" "No, it's not just that. I'm grateful for that, and maybe you're right, but...We've both changed. For the better, and I really am thankful for that." Cardin smiled, and lightly punched Jaune on the chest. "Carry your arc strong, Arc." He turned, and walked back to the school. Jaune stood there, and in the dark, one couldn't make out the expression he was making. But he was grinning. Most definitely a joyful smile. "Alright, then...I will!" Cardin's actions seemed to give him courage, because now Jaune was walking his way around the school to the fountain, where she was waiting. I have this on fanfiction.net What do you think? Hopefully this doesn't go in to the trashcan
Chapter 2 - Tears of the Valkyrie Surely, one of the more well-known of Beacon's graduates would be attending the party, no? Surely, that girl notorious for screwing so many things up but having fun at the same time would be dancing with her friends, yes? Surely, that little jiggly puff that loved spending time with comrades, that loved to do things her way, surely she, of all people, would most definitely be attending such a grand celebration! So why wasn't she? She wasn't even bouncing up and down on her bed. Instead, she was just sitting on the desk, barely moving, gazing out the window at the broken moon. Even those that barely knew Nora could tell that something wasn't right. There wasn't any Nora in her. None at all. And the first to notice her unlikely absence is her best friend. The door slowly creaked open, and Lie Ren stepped in. "Nora, you-" He spotted the Valkyrie almost immediately. "Something wrong?" He quietly closed the door behind him, and made his way towards her. "Nora...?" He asked again, tone conveying a sense of worry. After a long intense silence, the Valkyrie finally spoke with a broken shaking voice. "H-Hey, Ren..." Slowly, she turned her face, and Ren was shocked at what he saw. Nora Valkyrie was crying. "Nora, wh-What's going on?" Indeed, why such a happy girl cry now? Now at such a brilliant time for Graduates? Ah, but that was the exact reason why tears flowed from her eyes. Ren quickly made his way over her, then wrapped his arms around her. Usually, hugs cheered her up at least a little, and that was something that Ren wanted to do as soon as possible. It was rare for him to see Nora sad. He hated it, he wanted her to be back to her old self as soon as possible. After a few seconds, he let go and looked at her face. "Nora, why are you crying?" He repeated, this time his tone full of nothing but soft, heartwarming concern. "I-It's..." Nora never had trouble telling Ren anything. They were best friends, and Nora trusted him with her life, but now, she knew for the first time what it felt like to doubt your trust in a best friend. "I...I don't..." Ren stared in to her eyes. Ren and Nora had a special understanding of each other, a lot of the time they didn't have to use words to know what the other was trying to tell them. That just showed how strong their ties were to each other. "I...Everyone's leaving, and-and...I'll never get to see them again b-because-" Nora stopped there, although it didn't matter if she continued because Ren finally understood the situation. Nora was crying because she would lose all her friends at Beacon. It was completely understandable, Ren felt the same once. It was hard to read his blank expression. But then, Ren simply gave a small smile. "C'mon, Nora...I thought you were the one that taught me to have as much fun as possible before you leave your friends." "H-Huh?" Nora squeaked, wiping tears off her face. "Wh-When did I..." Ren shook his head, and he moved towards Nora. Their foreheads connected. "Remember, when we were young, before Beacon when we met in school?" Nora gazed, trying to lock on to the memory he was talking about. It was rising, slowly, to her eyes, and then they widened in realization. "O-Oh!" "Why does it matter if I have any friends anyway? We're all going to separate sooner or later so it doesn't matter." "Silly! Don't you get it? Having fun is a great experience! So what, we'll all leave sooner or later, but it doesn't matter because all the fun we had, all the memories we made together, is still there! In our hearts!" "I..." She started tearing up again, but this time, it was not in sadness. "I was d-dumb, sorry R-" "Don't apologize, Nora. This is normal, we all feel the same some time. But it's all the more reason to stick with your friends, right?" Nora said nothing, but as time passed on, her tears stopped and a small smile formed on her face. "Right...!" "Good! I'm heading back to the dance, there are some people that I'm meeting up with. Meet you later?" "Got it!" Ren walked towards the door, and left the room, gently shutting the door. Nora needed some time to get over the rest of her feelings, so she returned to sitting on the desk and staring outside. That's when she saw something strange. "Huuuh...?" She took a closer look. Near the fountain, it looked like Jaune and a certain red- The door opened, and Ren poked back in. "Forgot to mention, Cardin brought some red sap juice." And just like that, he left again. Nora stared, and then she grinned. "ALRIGHT!" Pumping her fists in the air, mind away from what was happening outside, Nora Valkyrie made her way out the door and to the celebration.
