hold on; [ closed ]

[reuser]

Who: Jaune Arc ( beaconed ) and Pyrrha Nikos ( reuser )
When: IC: 12/15; OOC: April 4th
Where: Shopping district.
What: Cybuddies. CY. BUDDIES.
Rating/Warning: Rated J for Jaune.



[ Running errands through the shopping district - or, Shopping District.EXE, if you will - hadn’t been a quick, seamless thing so much as half a day’s excursion. Often devolving into a play-filled field trip, but Pyrrha (thankfully) doesn’t feel like a chaperone inasmuch as a hapless friend dragged along for the ride. It’s a role she’s very willing to fill, especially when Jaune is the one doing the dragging.

Not that it had ever stopped her from reminding him of their (his and hers, but there’s little difference) budget restraints. Half the time, he was resigned to staring longingly through store windows while Pyrrha questioned the necessity of some of their - his - potential purchases.

This time is a little different. As Jaune leans over a pile of robot puppies yapping excitedly at him, Pyrrha is... strangely helpless. Balancing their bag of sundries carefully on one arm, she joins him at his side. ]

We should go in.

Comments

[reuser]

I don’t think that’s within our budget.

[ Even if it’s an honest answer, it’s also a teasing one - playing along as much as correcting him.

The kitten that had been occupying her hands for the last several minutes is deposited at the cashier counter - another one might be available, yes, but just because they’re identical robot pets doesn’t mean they’re interchangeable! Or something. The point is, this is the cat Pyrrha’s chosen. (It’s possible that she tends to get attached to the first friendly beings to happen upon her…)

Adding, after a beat, ]

You would have to get a second job.

[ Or tell her about the first one. ]

[beaconed]

[ Ahahaha....... ]

So, wait, the budget is the issue here? What happened to "no guarantees" and all that?

[reuser]

[ She noticed that oh-so subtle subject change, Arc.

Pyrrha simply shrugs, nonchalant and content all at once, waiting patiently as the transaction is finalised. Two cybuddy boxes are shuffled neatly into a shopping bag, which she holds out for Jaune to take. ]

[beaconed]

[ Aren't you the one avoiding his question, Nikos? He does take the shopping bag without question, however. Once it's in his hands, he takes a brief moment to stare at his partner beside him. Is it because they're robots that Pyrrha suddenly has room in her life for pets, or could he have said something to change her mind? ]

......You know I would, right? [ Buy the whole store that is, so be mindful of what you say around him! ]

[reuser]

Oh, I’m sure of that.

[ That’s why they’re leaving. ]

[beaconed]

[ Wow, she sure left rather fast! Jaune quickly catches up to her, though, matching her pace as he nudges her playfully. ]

So what are we naming them? It can't be Ren and Nora, I'm gonna pull rank if I have to! Besides, it should be something androgynous, right?

[reuser]

[ Pyrrha’s retort is almost immediate: ] Ren and Nora aren’t that gendered of names.

[ His playful nudge is answered with one of her own. The cybuddy shop falls away behind them, with the lights of the shopping district as bright at stars but dampened with neon cheapness. Reds, greens, yellows - it’s beautiful and fake all at once and, Pyrrha notices, leaving crowns of changing colour on Jaune’s hair.

She tries not to get too distracted by it. ]

What would you like to call them?

[ Note that she’s yet to give up on Ren the cat and Nora the puppy. ]

[beaconed]

I... admit I haven't given it much thought either...

[ Calling them Ren and Nora not only reminds him that they're gone, something he's been quietly internalizing, but it would go against the idea of individualism itself, wouldn't it? ]

Hey... you remember Professor Ozpin's speech on the day of the field trip, right? What if we named them based on colours as well? They may be just Cybuddies, but they should have a chance to be themselves, too... a-and it's a way of remembering our whole world as well!

[ He looks back at her, wondering if what he said sounds stupid, and what her reaction to it would be. He may have caught her staring at his hair, too, but he thinks nothing of it at this time. ]

[reuser]

[ It doesn’t sound stupid at all to Pyrrha. In fact, her smile grows, sun-tinged warmth practically igniting an otherwise unexciting moment of appreciation. ]

How about... Jade and Teal?

[beaconed]

Jade and Teal...

T-That's it, you did it! Those are their names! Jade and Teal!! Or Teal and Jade. Which one's which? --doesn't matter, we'll figure it out when we're home!

[ The names sound great and unique until they eventually meet a guy called Jade. Or maybe they never will. ]