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"I love you!"
Was it wrong that Pyrrha always hated this part?
Perhaps it was, perhaps it wasn't. Pyrrha didn't know, but she knew that she didn't like it.
It was always the same. Some stranger that she didn't know would run up to her and confess that they 'Loved' her. That they wished to be with her and wanted to cherish her and so on, so forth. It would've been flattering if it wasn't so frequent, and so false every time.
These confessions had started ever since she had turned 13, when she had won the Mistral Regional Tournaments for the first time, that event serving as the true beginning of her celebrity career. In the single month after that, she had received 13 different confessions, from men and women alike, from the young and the precarious, to the old and the sleazy. Each time, they had just been as fake as the last, focused and latched on entirely to the Invincible Girl, and not to Pyrrha Nikos. All of them, strangers who had never even talked to her beforehand at all, never even gotten to know her, never even gotten to know her as something over than an idealised version of perfection, an easy way to rise to stardom, or simply a lump of flesh that they could use to massage and carry out their disgusting desires.
Today was different, though.
Today, she was being confessed to by someone that she knew.
Only, it had been the wrong person.
Weiss Schnee of Team RWBY stood before her in the disused classroom, cheeks red and hands balled into fists in front of her, looking so earnest in her confession. When she had dragged Pyrrha into the room, the red-headed champion had thought that she'd try to talk to her about partnering up for the Vytal Festival, or something along those lines, not... That. Not this.
It was honestly so unexpected that Pyrrha had almost broken the posture and polite persona that she had spent years honing and jumped in place.
She quirked an eyebrow, "But... I thought that you were dating Neptune?"
Wasn't she? She had always seen Weiss chatting up and talking to Neptune, even more so after the Beacon Dance. Were they not a thing now? Had they never been a thing? Or was that Weiss just trying to hide her sexuality?
Perhaps she was just going through a bi-curious phase, or something. Or maybe she was bisexual? Or maybe she was just... Repressing her homosexuality, or something along those lines?
She didn't know, and for now, she wouldn't judge. She never liked to gossip about the people around her, and for Weiss' sake, she still wouldn't.
"Well, yes, I-I was, but... Th-That's not important!" Weiss called out in response, waving her arms and balled fists in the air before stopping, calming and composing herself, and going, "What's important is what I just said: I love you. I love you. I love you with all of my heart. I love you because you're amazing, and you're perfect, and you're the best at everything, and I want to be with you for all of my life."
Pyrrha was... Getting uncomfortable.
"Weiss", she began slowly, "I'm flattered that you... That you feel that way about me-"
"So you'll accept!?" Weiss asked excitedly.
Here comes the hard part. The part that she hated the most.
"Weiss, I'm flattered, but... But I don't feel the same way about you."
Pyrrha didn't consider herself a malicious person. She didn't like the thought and idea of her being a horrible person underneath her Invincible Girl persona that so many people seemed to want to spread and grow. The kindness that she showed to others: That was genuine, through and through.
So, with her being not a malicious person, she never liked the prospect of breaking people's hearts. It was a process that she had gone through time and time again: Get confessed to, turn it down. She had the entire process nailed down and readily made in her head. She had rehearsed and practiced and said that very same sentence that she had just told Weiss time and time again, to person after person after person.
But still, each time, it hurt to see their hearts break when they seemed to have genuine feelings for her, Invincible Girl or otherwise. Weiss' reaction was no different as she looked at her with wide, tearing up eyes and an wobbly frown. She had to force herself not to look away.
"W... What?" Weiss breathed out, in almost a murmur, "What are you... But I... I love you..."
"And I understand that", Pyrrha's response was automatic. She had done these enough times to know exactly what to say, "But I'm afraid that I cannot-"
"But I love you!" Weiss' fists slammed against the taller girl's chest and she looked up at her with wet eyes and cheeks, "I love you... Why can't you see that?"
Pyrrha just looked down at the white themed girl, and supressed the urge to sigh.
For the longest time, she had never particularly liked Weiss.
And she still didn't.
She found Weiss, at the beginning, to be childish, immature, too full of herself, egotistical, and, pardon her language, a brat in general who hung onto Pyrrha like a lynchpin just for her fame.
She still did.
Maybe it was just bitterness that she had taken Jaune's affections and had never bothered to even acknowledge them, much less turn him down gently instead of harshly like she always did. Maybe it was because Jaune had liked Weiss in the first place. Maybe that was unrelated and she just didn't like her on principle. Whatever the case, the feeling led to the same result: She just didn't like Weiss, and so, she couldn't reciprocate her feelings.
Right now, Weiss was just another fan who had gotten too attached, and she had to treat her like one.
"Weiss", Pyrrha began what seemed like the truth to herself, "I'm straight."
To be honest, she had never shown any signs of sexual orientation during any interviews or live events, and when she had been asked if she had a boyfriend or girlfriend, she had waved them off with a smile, so she could (Maybe) See where some people would draw their conclusions from when there was little evidence to support it. However, she was indeed, as the saying goes, batting for the other team.
There was only one person in her life now that she would show that level of affection towards.
"N-No", Weiss stammered, grabbing her shoulders and digging her hands into her uniform, spoiling the fabric, "That's not... I confessed to you... You're meant to..."
To what? Pyrrha thought to herself, To change my sexual orientation? To return your feelings just because you confessed them when we've held no kind of bond at all?
Perhaps Pyrrha was just being cruel, in a rare moment of weakness. She knew that Weiss had always been trying to bond with her and make a connection with her as the semesters had gone by, but it had always been about business: About teaming up and passing together and riding off of the coattails of her fame. Never anything more than that. Never a single sign of friendship.
Pyrrha wanted to like Weiss as a friend. She did. The heiress just made it so hard to do so.
"Weiss", she repeated as she gently pushed the girl away, "I'm flattered, but-"
"It's because of him, isn't it?"
Pyrrha bit the insides of her lip.
"It's because of Arc, isn't it?"
She felt an eyelid twitch. The silence between them spoke for itself.
"...Why?" she whispered, her voice shaking, from both sadness and fury, "Why him? Why Arc?! He's not good enough for you! He'll never look at you the same way that I do!"
"I know", Pyrrha said in an even tone, "And that's why I love him for it."
For the longest time, Pyrrha had only ever been seen by people as 3 things, the 1st being an easy ride to fame, the 2nd was an easier way to make money, and the 3rd was a piece of sexual meat, ready to whore herself out and serve their needs like a prostitute. And even then, those views were tied back to her title of Invincible Girl.
No one had ever cared about Pyrrha Nikos. All that they cared about was the Invincible Girl. Not Weiss, not her manager, not even members of her own family. Just the Invincible Girl, and nothing more.
But then, he came along. Jaune Arc, in all of his dorkiness and clumsiness and his lack of training and Huntsman's wit, had come along and saw Pyrrha for something that no one else had ever done before:
Herself.
He had never even heard of her beforehand, so there was nothing that was stopping him from just looking at her and seeing her for herself. Seeing Pyrrha Nikos for Pyrrha Nikos. And even when he had learnt of her fame and titles, he had never let that colour his perception of her.
To him, she was always Pyrrha Nikos, and never the Invincible Girl.
How could she not fall in love with the first person to see her for who she was and not what she was?
Weiss looked angst. She looked so confused, "No, no... But he'll... He'll never see you for who you are", not the truth, at least from her perspective, "He'll never see how great you are, and-"
"I know."
"-He'll never appreciate you, and... What?"
"I don't want him to see me for my accomplishments, Weiss. I want him to see me for me."
"That doesn't... But he doesn't even look at you the same way as I do!"
"I know. I haven't given him a reason to."
Nora liked to joke that Jaune was too oblivious for his own good, but the truth was that she just never showed Jaune another side to herself other than her affectionate big sister like character, being herself. She had never shown a side to herself, or any hints or signs of romantic/sexual interest, that would indicate to him that she felt so strongly for him. And besides, it was not like she had made any kinds of moves on her own towards him in any way at all. She had even encouraged him to try and get together with Weiss just so that he could be happy, despite how much she didn't like the girl.
She was willing to let him be happy for his own sake, and not hers. To do otherwise would be selfish, and she didn't like the idea of being selfish.
However, she realised that soon, she'll have to confess her feelings for Jaune, before he got possibly snatched away by someone who didn't deserve him. She just needed to work up the courage to do so.
Huh, imagine that. The great Pyrrha Nikos, goddess of victory, slayer of Grimm, and champion of champions, got weak on her knees when thinking about confessing to a boy. One might find it humorous indeed.
If anything, she was glad that Jaune wasn't aware of her feelings. Heck, she was kind of glad that Jaune hadn't shown any feelings towards her at all. Not because she didn't want him to not feel the same way towards her that she did to him, but simply because, well, if he had confessed to her, she wouldn't have trusted it.
Pyrrha didn't trust confessions from other people. She didn't need to go over why again, but she felt like, if it was her doing the confessing, then that might mean that their relationship itself would be a lot more trusting on her part. A lot more genuine. Maybe it was just her competitive side talking, but she wanted to be the one to do the confessing and not the other way around, if only that she could feel like she had more control over the relationship as Pyrrha Nikos rather than her other persona.
And so, she kept Jaune in the dark about her own feelings, so that he wouldn't try to press the issue in any way. She kept him ignorant of how she felt about him, so that she might be able to work up the courage to finally tell him herself.
It just... It felt better this way.
Weiss looked on even more incredulously than before, spluttering and stammering for a response, before settling more, "But I'm- I'm so much more than him-"
Pyrrha was starting to lose her patience, which was strange considering that it usually took a lot more to drain it. Maybe it was just the circumstances of the situation.
"-I've got pedigree, like you! I'm more skilled than him, and I'm smarter than him, and I'm even more aligned with your status than him! I can understand you more than him!"
Can you? Pyrrha asked, but kept it in her head.
"W-We're perfect for each other! We're the best in this school! The 2 of us together can-"
"thank you for your offer Weiss", she began as politely as possible, the plain look on her face wavering a little as she said this, "But I'm afraid that I'm going to have to decline."
"But he's useless!" Weiss' fists slammed against her chest again, "He's nothing compared to you! He's weak, he's stupid, and he's-"
Pyrrha's patience drained away. She grabbed one of Weiss' wrists and motioned for her to look up. Her mouth was still and unemotive, but her eyes were narrowed. It was all that she needed to let Weiss know that she was to be silent.
"Weiss", she began crisply and coldly, "When you see me, what do you see? Do you see what I am, or who I am?"
"W...", it was clear that Weiss didn't fully understand, "What do you-"
"Answer the question, Weiss."
"I... I see someone who's so great that they overshadow everyone else", Weiss began hesitantly, "I see the embodiment of perfection. I see the greatest future Huntress around us, and-"
"That is what I am, Weiss. Now, tell me who I am."
"Y-You're Pyrrha Nikos. You're the Invincible Girl. You're the woman who's so great that you can get people to stand down just from looking at them, and-"
Pyrrha let go of her hand. Disappointment was retched on her face.
So that was it, then. Just like everyone else. Weiss was in love with the Invincible Girl, and not Pyrrha Nikos. She knew that she wouldn't have accepted her feelings anyways even if it was genuine due to her being heterosexual, but still, it hurt. It really did.
"Ms Schnee", Weiss' eyes widened at that. Pyrrha had never called her that before. It was a sign that the conversation was over, "I appreciate that you feel that way for me, but I am unable to return them."
"But I confessed to you!"
"That does not mean that I am obliged to return them."
Weiss took a step back, and shook in place.
Trying to salvage something from this miserable conversation, Pyrrha held out a hand and smiled.
"Perhaps, we can still be friends?"
Weiss just looked at the held out hand, and then looked down at her feet. Her face was scrunched up, as were her fists.
"Why him...", left her mouth in a quivering whisper, and before Pyrrha could say anything, the white themed girl was out of the door, and down the corridor.
…That could've gone better, she would admit.
Perhaps if she caught Weiss up, she could properly explain things to her.
…No, that wouldn't be wise. Her emotions were too flayed and temperamental right now. Hers and Pyrrha. It would be better to talk about it tomorrow, when they had both calmed down from it.
Taking in a deep breath and calming herself, she put on her public persona once more, and vacated the classroom, walking down the corridor and rounding a bend, only to see her teammates around the corner, though not waiting for her.
Jaune was being helped off of the floor by Ren, nursing a swelling eye as he went up, whilst Nora glared daggers at Weiss Schnee, who was being hauled away by Miss Goodwitch, most likely for detention. It only took a second for her to connect the dots.
She ran to Jaune and Ren's side, and asked, "Jaune, are you okay? Did she hit you?"
"Yes, she did", Ren answered for him as Jaune distracted himself by nursing his blackening eye, "We were walking along to our next class when Weiss appeared, followed by her teammates, and promptly slugged Jaune in the eye."
As soon as he said this, Pyrrha then noticed the rest of Team RWBY around the corner, looking awkward and confused, but then presumably coming to a shared conclusion together. Ruby looked like she was torn between helping Jaune and following Weiss, but kept to where she was, fumbling with her cloak and shifting her feet from side to side. Blake bit her bottom lip and darted her eyes from side to side, trying to look for a way to escape the situation. Yang looked the most guilty out of all of them, rubbing the side of her arm and looking to the side, a frown on her face.
Yang. She had obviously encouraged Weiss to be upfront with her feelings, and had roped the rest of her team into doing so. She was a matchmaker at heart, she supposed. Pyrrha had been secretive with her own feelings towards her partner that no one else (Sans for the ever perceptive Nora and Ren) Had figured it out at all, so she couldn't fault Yang for perceiving that Weiss had a shot.
A single ugly stare from her, and the 3 girls scampered off and went to follow Weiss, Yang and Ruby throwing one last shared look back, both of guilt but of different varieties, and then running off.
"That little brat...", Pyrrha was surprised to see that it was Nora that had muttered this, still glaring down the hallway as she crossed her arms in front of her, "Is this still about that whole 'Nice guy syndrome' phase, even though you apologised for it?"
"I don't think so, Nora", Ren responded with, "I don't think it was about that. She had screamed 'Why you' when she had hit him", Ren then looked to Pyrrha, a questioning look on his face, as if knowing that she knew something about that.
Before Pyrrha could come up with anything, Nora interrupted them with, "I swear, if she tries to do something like that again, I'll break her legs", she cracked her knuckles together as she scowled, "I'm not kidding, she's tries that again, and I'll-"
"Nora, it's fine", Jaune waved it off with his spare hand, trying to put a comforting smile on his face through the obviously aching pain in his eye, "She's probably just still mad about the stuff that I did before the dance, and me being Pyrrha's partner since she wanted to be. There's no need to start a fight between our teams because of it."
"Jaune-"
"Nora, it's okay, this'll heal. Water under the bridge", with a hand still on his bruising eye, he looked to Pyrrha and said, "You okay, Pyrrha?"
Pyrrha smiled to him, and lied, "Yeah, I'm okay?" pushing aside the bubbling anger at Weiss as she said it.
A relationship between Weiss and herself?
No.
That would never work out.