beaconed | [ ic contact ]

[ HOLY FUCK YOU ARE TRAUMATIZING HIM HERE ]

Hey!! [ Are those tears dribbling out his eyes and down his chin? WHO KNOWS. ] Rapunzel, it's-- it's gonna be okay!! You can-- I mean you said, you, uwahhHH!!!

[ She can heal herself, right?? But she never said how. Maybe she was joking about it back then? Either way Jaune grabs a bunch of her hair and gently presses it against Rapunzel's face. ]

C'mon, heal yourself! Please!! Ughh-- h-how did it go again?! Flower gleam and glow, let your power shine, something lost--this, why!! Why is it so long?!? Help me! Glow! Glow!! [ Pressing harder now! ]

Ja-- [ askldnjfanf hair in her face! hair in her face! ] Jaune--

[ She's going to hate herself for putting him through this; he must be going through an entirely different kind of agony watching her writhe like someone possessed...

Then she feels it, the last of her magic like dying sparks at the end of a wire. Muscle and bone and tissue knitting together, repairing themselves, closing wounds and easing pain.

And her hair does glow! After all, her power knows no loyalty provided someone knows the song... ]

Ja-Jaune, I'm okay. [ weakly ] I'm here.

[ He finally wills himself to sit up, helping her stay upright, too. As the bus continues to cruise through the traffic as if two teenagers didn't just come crashing on top of it, Jaune takes a moment to check Rapunzel for any injuries, firmly patting her shoulders, arms, che-- whoops, skip that part, face, yeah he's feeling her face, too. It's a nice face... even if there's still blood left between her mouth and chin... ]

R-Rapunzel, I'm... you scared m-- [ The bus stops abruptly before proceeding again, causing Jaune to headbutt Rapunzel in the nose. WOW THIS IS KIND OF NOSTALGIC ] --I-I'm sorry! Wow!! Oh, no...!

[ Yeah, wow, crazy nostalgic. When she looks up from her blinding daze to find Jaune's forehead crashing into hers, she's stunned by a rush of positive, happy feelings. Endorphins or something like them. Her heart skips a beat and something like a laugh escapes her, though it's accompanied by a red bubble of blood... ]

I'm sorry. I -- Heh. Are we doing this again--?

[ Before either of them can respond, though, the bus takes a hairpin turn around the corner, sending Rapunzel sliding into Jaune and forcing their heads together yet again. ]

AH! Not for that! For - For scaring you...

[ His hands on her are like sunlight themselves, warm and heartening and magical.

She smiles, still weakly, though she feels supernaturally calm now despite a hoarse voice. ]

Thanks for watching my back, Leader.

You're the one who saved me, y'know.

[ He almost got them killed just now. He also doesn't say that part out loud, especially with her face nearly glued to his again. No need to dwell on what he almost lost when the Rapunzel he knows is finally back.

Back and... so close! If he hasn't accidentally tasted her blood by now, he can certainly feel her breathe on him. ]

Hey... what did you mean, by the way? When you said you couldn't keep your promise?

[ She frowns and looks down at their intertwined legs, mangled and bruised but whole. The crumpled metal of the bus's roof beneath them reminds her uncannily of the robo monsters out in apocalypse land. ]

Nothing. It's nothing. Just--

[ Lifting her gaze to meet his and... Oh, wow. Hey there, handsome. Sure are violating that personal space bubble, huh? ]

Heh.

I'm just glad you won't have to carry me around anymore.

Heh. [ Said in response to her "heh". ]

Are you sure you can walk after that fall? 'Cause I'm still kinda sore. --A-And I don't mind carrying you... ever-- I-I mean. Team. We... teams do that. Yeah! So. Yyyou got blood on your mouth and nose.

[ He backs up a little, only to reveal that... he has a lot of red splashed on his face, too. What's more embarrassing than that are the clean streaks across his cheeks where his tears flowed down and washed away a bit of the red.

Please don't mention he was crying. ]

[ She can't ignore him after ignoring him for so long. Without missing a single beat Rapunzel reaches out to cradle his face in her hands, brushing her thumbs softly against his cheeks to wipe away tears and sweat and blood. ]

I do like touching you. And... [ And askldnanf hands to herself!! Hands to herself!!

She coughs, clears her throat, and looks away just in time to grab hold of the edge of the bus as they turn once more.

Hopefully the turn will also cover up her stupid smile. ]

I don't mind being carried if you're carrying me I suppose. It was a long fall.

[ And she's going to be having nightmares about it for days. ]

Y-Yeah... it was my third biggest fall, too. [ His second one was over Emerald Forest.

The first one is for her. ]

--Hey, if we're lucky, this bus might drop us off near our-- your-- I mean, one of our places. Heh! Though I wouldn't mind stopping by somewhere to eat, too... Hopefully we don't look too messed up. D-Do I look okay?

[ She snorts. ]

You look terrible. We both look terrible.

[ It's nice watching the city go by like this, though - and nicer still after having experienced something so truly terrible and violent. Everything feels like heaven now. Sitting here flying through Cerealia's busy, futuristic streets with Jaune feels like a dream. ]

A new dream, huh...

[ Headshake. ] Ah, Jaune, this bus must go in a loop; I think we're going through the Entertainment District now. I don't come here enough... Uh. Food sounds good! Food and... maybe a bath? Maybe we should hop off at a hotel or something. That's the word, right?

Actually, ah... that's... they don't really go in a loop, heh. I used to think that they did, too, but... turns out a bus here will only go one round before it's swapped over at the depot. I learned that the hard way. I know, it doesn't make sense to me either!

[ But he slides up right to the edge, too, with her still beside him. This will make it easier to hop off when they decide it's time later. ]

Hm.

........

W-Wait, what? Did you-- ha! Did you say hotel?!

Yes. [ She flinches once before remembering who she's with. This is her teammate. There's no need to feel guilty or self-conscious around him...

Yeah right. Of all the people she treated nastily over the past few days, Jaune certainly got it among the worst. Rapunzel, biting an already bloody lip, laughs but doesn't scoot away from him.

If they fall out onto the goddamn street... ]

Is... there something wrong with that? Our housing situations are a little weird right now. I mean - heh. We don't have to. But I know the Pleasure District has a lot of hotel-type places and I want you to be comfortable and happy after--!! ...After everything.

Y-Yeah, I know what kinda hotel-type places they got there...

[ He knows since he worked at the Pleasure District for a good two weeks. He also suspects that Rapunzel doesn't know which is WHY HE WILL DEFINITELY NOT READ TOO MUCH INTO THIS SUGGESTION EVEN THOUGH HE'S SWEATING A LITTLE. ]

H-heh... though, I think if anyone needs a happy boost here, it's probably you, right? I mean, you've been really gloomy for those three days. Like-- really, it was so freaky and I-- s-sorry, I didn't mean... [ He doesn't need to remind her of how difficult that must have been. ] --let's stay at a hotel, since... we're in the right district anyway. [ Entertainment, NOT Pleasure. ] I wanna eat, sleep and shower as fast as I can!

N-Not in that order, I mean. I'd definitely wanna get cleaned up first. And I'd take my time sleeping... that was stressful back there. Also your face is still-- hang on... [ How did she clean his face but hers?? Anyway, he returns the favour by wiping his wrist around her mouth like a weirdo. This is also super nostalgic. ]

[

Seriously, they've been back for like twenty minutes...??? ]

[ Not that she's complaining. In fact, she is giggling!! Giggling like an idiot and letting Jaune do what he pleases as she watches him through half-lidded eyes. Nothing about this is funny so much as it is incredibly stupid, but she can't help herself. ]

Heh. You know, I wouldn't worry about gloominess...

Great. That... sounds like a great idea.

[ Her lips are probably about as clean as they're going to get at this point but she's still not moving and still grinning like a half-conscious moron. ]

Know anywhere nice?

[ There! All clean! ...W-Why is the laughing so much? ]

I don't even know if we can afford anywhere "nice".

[ They might stay somewhere cheap and gross, which would be fantastic to see itself. ]

I-I guess now's a good time to hop off as any...?

Yes. [ She's already preparing to leap from the, yes, still moving vehicle. Hopefully this time they'll land a little softer... ]

--wait, why not? I make tons of money. We can stay wherever we want!

[ HAHAHA wait till you get a look at your bank account, loser. ]

[ LMAO THIS IS SO EMASCULATING ]

Oh, yeah, how could I forget?! They pay you in diamonds just for a few photos while I'm the one who keeps the streets clean! Unbelievable!

[ No, Jaune... the robot cleaners do that. You just got this job because it's the only thing you qualify for other than being a stripper. ]

A-Alright then... we'll make it your pick... [ It should be safe, given that they're still in the Entertainment district and not the other one. ]

[ Uh, duh, they're at least hitching to the border between districts. Hotels there are so much nicer, greener... spacious. Natural!

Nothing natural about flinging yourself off the top of a bus going at god-knows-how-many-km-per-hour, though. Rapunzel, still impossibly shaky on her feet but determined to see this bit through with sheer pluck, climbs to her feet and holds both arms out for balance, doing her best not to vomit.

Get with the program J-arc. No such thing as emasculation through income in 2016!! ]

Ready?

O-Okay...

[ Jaune rises slowly to his feet as well. Wobbling, but... HE CAN DO THIS. ]

Ready!

[ But because his belt got undone and he forgot, Jaune's jeans come dropping around his feet, causing him to trip and FALL OFF THE BUS FUCKKKKKKKK.

AND NO AURA!!!

Which means when Jaune hits the concrete now, he rolls along until he hits a signpost. ]

[ Rapunzel's first thought is: I hope this hotel has a hospital.

Her second thought is that her teammate is going to get hit by a car and it's going to be her fault.

JESUS JUST ONCE MAYBE THEY COULD HANG OUT WITHOUT NEARLY DYING

JUST ONCE!! ]

JAUNE...

[ She sounds like an angry tiger or something, growling at the street as she crouches low, then runs madly along the length of the bus, jumps from the backend, and then hits the ground.

Luckily Rapunzel is a fairly accomplished acrobat! She's not invincible like a certain someone, but she comes pretty damn close provided there are no graceless team leaders yanking her and her hair all over the place. Landing is as simple as rolling. Finding Jaune is a little harder.

But no! There he is. Mid-traffic.

Awesome. ]

Jaune, don't move! I'm - I'm coming!

[ Still lying on the ground with his polkadot bunny underwear for all to see, Jaune's face is covered with his own blood this time. Although his head is busted open and there's a bit coming out of it, it's really not as bad as it sounds.

WHO PUT THAT FUCKING SIGN THERE?! ]

Yep-- w-what's that? "Don't move" -- yeah, okay, got it. I-I'll just-- I mean I'll try really hard not to... do that... 'cause, y'know, I just, I'd really love to move right now.

That-- that was sarcasm, by the way. I don't think I can get up...

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