Its back! Sorry it took so long I work 7 day a week now so I'm really struggling to find the time to write, anyway enjoy this extra long 11,000 word chapter and please leave a review, they help a lot. Please review and share with your friends.

...Something beginning with L

Team CRDL dorm room

Sky awoke with a dry mouth, his tongue felt like sandpaper against his gums, his throat tight and raspy. His slick skin was drenched with sweat and far paler than usual and his eyes ached as if his brain had swollen and tried to push them from their sockets. The unpleasant yet familiar feeling was something he hadn't felt since his first semester at Beacon. But what caused this feeling? Sky wracked his brain trying to remember the reason he was feeling like this.

Sky groaned quietly as he sat upright, the light in the room making his eyes water. He let his sore eyes adjust to the muted red light that forced its way through the scarlet curtains as the rising sun initiated its assault on Sky's senses.

It took him a moment to realize where and who he was. His memory came back to him in thin jagged pieces. He cast his blurred eyes towards his teammate's beds, Dove snored quietly above him, Cardin's bed was empty and Sky's still waking mind struggled to remember why. Hospital... Cardin was in hospital, yeah that sounds right. He'd been injured standing up for Russell, he remembered as he looked up to the top bunk. Where was Russell though? Sky spent a few moments wondering of Russell's whereabouts but couldn't piece together his fragmented memories to explain his teammates' absence.

However, his search for an answer to their whereabouts unearthed the reason for his sorry state.

Withdrawal.

He needed stimms. He needed them now.

I'll have some stimms, I still have a stash that Cardin didn't find and throw away. I'll have some stimms and then everything will be clearer. Sky threw on some grey jogging pants and a grubby navy blue t-shirt as fast as he was able and made his way to the locker room. He stumbled down the corridors, sweating profusely as the withdrawal symptoms took their toll.

Finally he reached his locker, number 1-58, and opened it. Inside the door some previous owner had scratched in the name Peter. Just above the inscription Sky had taped a photograph of himself stood alongside his stern faced parents in front of their sizeable estate. He reached into the locker and retrieved his halberd; his hands now shaking in anticipation. Sky twirled the weapon so the blade was pointing downwards and twisted off the indiscernible cap at the butt of the haft. A little re-sealable plastic bag lay within a small hollow compartment. Smooth white pills could be seen through the clear plastic. Sky sighed in relief as he shook a pill out onto his palm, better make it two he thought. Saliva built up as his mouth watered in anticipation, his body preparing for a hunger that could never be satisfied. He shook out another and swallowed both quickly. He calmly stashed the remainder of his stimms back inside his halberds secret compartment, placed his weapon back inside the locker and closed it before lying down on one of the benches, lacing his fingers behind his head as a cushion. Sky felt the high creeping up on him in a matter of moments, suddenly it was upon him. He felt his muscles tense up as the stimms wormed into his system.

'Stimms' was slang for stimulants or, more specifically, sense-altering hyper awareness stimulants. The euphoria was produced as each of the bodies senses became heightened to an inhuman level and the user's brain became overloaded with sensory information.

Sky could hear a janitor's whistling in the next building shrilling in his ears, he could smell the lemon scented detergent he was using, even at this distance the odor was overwhelming. Sky could taste the man's musky cologne. He could feel the janitor's heartbeat as though he was pressed up against him; he could see the near microscopic specks of rust on the steel ceiling panels above him.

Then Sky could see nothing, nothing at all as his eyes rolled back in his head in pleasure at the sensory overload. His body convulsed, rattling the steel bench as his brain finally succumbed to the sensory onslaught. Sky rolled onto the floor, his aura flaring out and cracking the tiles beneath him as it tried to defend against the intangible assault. His face contorted in a silent scream as every last nerve in his body was pushed past its limit.

Back in team CRDL's dorm room

Dove was jolted awake by a shove from Russell. He groaned and rolled over to face the wall. Russell shoved him more urgently, "Dove wake up you lazy bastard. Where's Sky?" Dove snapped upright suddenly, realizing his teammate's absence. He leapt from the bed wincing as the impact tugged at the wound to his thigh that Ruby had inflicted.

"Dunno," Dove finally said in a strained voice as he stretched and yawned.

"No idea at all?" Russell pressed.

"Nah, why's it matter anyway?" Dove replied lazily as he limped towards the dormitory's bathroom.

"When was the last time Sky used to be up and out before any of us?"

Dove stopped in his tracks as he finally realized what Russell was implying. "Last semester but I don't see why- Oh. Shit!"

"Yeah, exactly." Russell replied.

"But we took all his drugs away, he might just have gone for a shower or a run or-"

"-How do we know for sure we found all his stashes?" Russell interrupted.

"But he's been clean for nearly two months, why would he start now?" Dove countered.

"I don't know? Stress or something? I mean last time it was exam stress, this time his best friend almost lost a leg to some fifteen year old's scythe and his team leader got hospitalized." Russell shot back.

"Shit." Dove cursed. "We gotta find him."

"Start at the showers, I'll check the locker room." Russell ordered. "Listen out for your scroll. I bet he-"

A knock at the door cut short Russell's prediction. "Could be him." Dove said hopefully. Russell nodded.

Russell made his way to the door but another urgent knock resounded from the door as he reached for the handle. He opened it, intent on tearing out Sky thoroughly. He swung the door open and sure enough there was his teammate, kneeling on the ground barely conscious propped up between the students; Flint and Gray.

Affectionately known as the twins to all of Beacon, the identical twins Flint and Gray made up the F and G in the second year team RFGE. Both were attired in their beacon uniforms, wearing plain grey beanies that differed ever so slightly in hue (Flint's being the slightly darker of the two). The rarely glimpsed hair of the duo was a mess of black curls that didn't seem possible to tuck under a hat. Pale blue eyes lent Flint a ruthless quality while the same color gave Gray a more intelligent aspect. They were tall and a little skinny with a somewhat pale complexion resulting in an underwhelming physical appearance. However, there was nothing underwhelming about the massive caliber bolt action rifles slung diagonally across their backs.

"Sup." Flint said, nodding to Russell.

"Can we come in?" Gray asked. Russell peaked into the corridor and checked both ways before beckoning them inside. The twins hefted Sky's limp form between them and dragged him inside, Sky groaned quietly as the pair set him down on his bed.

The twins casually sat down on Cardin's vacant bed, Gray dusted off the seat of his pants before sitting. Dove eyed the pair suspiciously before checking Sky over. The pair unslung their weapons from their backs and leaned them against the bunk bed's ladder.

"Found him having some sort of seizure in the locker room." Gray explained, answering the unspoken question in Russell's eyes.

"His aura cracked the floor tiles, so we sprinkled some burn dust over the damage." Flint said.

"Makes it look like a dust cartridge accident that way." His brother explained.

"Um, thanks..." Russell said uncertainly.

"No problem, your secret's safe with us." Flint replied. "We know he's on stimms," Russell felt his throat tighten. "Seen it before. Our dad was an addict, it ended his huntsman career." Flint continued.

"If someone else had found him they'd have called a nurse or a teacher. They'd have meant well but he'd get kicked out of Beacon. You can tell a mile off he's on stimms." Gray added.

"I know, who else knows? Is it just you two?" Russell asked worriedly.

"Just us and Rod right now, but we're telling Ember." Flint stated in a manner that made it clear there was no room for debate on the matter.

"No secrets between teammates. Don't worry they can be trusted." Gray added by way of explanation. Russell nodded in understanding.

"You need to get him some help discretely, or if all else fails, stop him from ever taking them again, by force if necessary." Flint counseled. "If he gets 'the feels' during combat, he'll either get himself or someone else killed." Flint added sternly.

"The... 'feels'? Dove said haltingly, rolling the unfamiliar term around his mouth.

"Episodes of hypersensitivity." Gray answered. Dove just looked at him nonplussed, prompting Gray to sigh and roll his eyes. "You don't piss out stimms; they stay in your system for a long time, in your brain chemistry. Dopamine renders them inert, the problem is your dopamine levels drop when you get stressed, allowing the drug to attack the brain again. Imagine having a gun go off right next to your ear when your hearing has improved ten fold, imagine having a paper cut feel like disembowelment. That's what Stimms do, they leave you in agony, kill people, or they get people killed." Gray explained to a wide eyed Dove.

"We best be off then, come on Gray" Flint said rising to his feet. "You might finally match my accuracy rating."

"I'll beat it." Gray replied as the pair made their way to the door.

"Yeah and Rod will seduce Yang, Goodwitch will laugh and Jaune will finally notice Pyrrha likes him."

"What does any of that have to do with it?" Gray asked in puzzlement.

"Oh sorry, I thought we were listing the impossible." Flint shot back with a grin as he stepped out into the corridor.

"You little shit!" Gray exclaimed. "See you around Russ." He added hastily as he closed the door behind him.

The bickering could still be heard as the pair continued down the corridor. "I'm older, don't call me a little shi-"

"-By twelve minutes!" Gray interrupted.

"We're identical twins Gray." Flint said with an exasperated sigh.

"So what?"

"That makes you a little shit too."

Back in team CRDL's room Russell and Dove listened to the twins argument fade away and looked at each other bemused before shrugging. Russell took a closer look at Sky and his nose wrinkled at the smell emanating from his sweat soaked teammate. He sighed before turning to Dove, "help me throw him in the shower" he ordered.

"Who put you in charge?" Dove whined.

"Check your scroll." Russell instructed with irritation.

Dove did as he was told and fished his scroll from his pocket. "Cardin did!?" he exclaimed with a mixture of incredulity and confusion.

"Yeah" Russell replied dragging the limp and groaning form of Sky upright. "Cardin did."

The firing range.

The twins finally made it to the firing range. A large rectangular hall with five small counters that exuded the odor of spilled dust and oil huddled along one wall for weapon preparation and calibration. A few meters opposite, five large rubber mats indicated firing positions; the floor mats were large enough that a shooter could comfortably fire from a prone or crouched position if they so preferred. Beyond the firing positions ran a series of rails along the walls, floor, and ceiling; low walls and small obstructions peppered the area as well. The targets were steel head and torso outlines with built in pressure sensors to detect hits and audio sensors to detect near misses. A computer program randomized the placement of the targets for each practice. Depending on what difficulty the user chose, the targets would shift suddenly or stay in motion along the rails for a more challenging experience. Above the door the twins had just entered through, a leaderboard would display statistics such as shots fired, hit/miss ratio, bulls-eye hit percentage, and so on. But for most people, the twins included, there was only one statistic that mattered, accuracy rating; a composite score of hit/miss ratio and bulls-eye hit percentage.

The pair still bickered over accuracy ratings, though due to their status on the leaderboard their preoccupation was understandable. Flint and Gray were third and fourth respectively; Flint possessing a 97% hit ratio to Gray's 96.8% rating, a fact Flint often reminded his younger brother of. Only two students were above them on the leaderboard, the young leader of team RWBY, Ruby Rose, had a 98.9% hit ratio landing her in second place. The twins often saw her on the range after lessons, always tweaking and recalibrating the sights of her weapon between shots. She'd spoken to the twins quite often; the pair were pleasantly surprised to find her to be friendly and modest. With an accuracy rating like that, they expected her to be overly competitive and confrontational. She'd even meekly asked to try out Flint's rifle, squeaking with excitement when he consented and squeaking again as the recoil of firing a 25mm rifle bruised her shoulder, sure she had a high impact sniper rifle of her own but the 50 calibre rounds it fired were barely half the size of the twin's ammunition.

The twins glanced at the leaderboard; just looking at the top student's name still sparked irritation in both of them, as did the 100% accuracy rating that accompanied it in gold lettering. The hyperactive rambunctious first year who loudly and immodestly claimed to be the greatest, most accurate, and coolest warrior in Beacon could always be found alongside her ever tolerant confidant, Lie Ren. The number one position on the leaderboard belonged to Nora Valkyrie; the large explosive damage from her grenade launcher's ammunition ensured that aiming in the general direction of the target guaranteed a hit. Her singing while reloading was distracting and her victorious whoops every time she hit a target grated on their nerves, how her silent companion Ren coped with her childish antics, the twins would never know. Despite how much she irked the pair on the firing range, they found her pleasant and personable on the rare occasions they spoke to her outside of classes.

Both twins drew their weapons and let off three clips down range, they pulled a lever that brought their targets forward for a closer look. Flint and Gray spent almost ten minutes debating who'd done better, comparing their groupings and arguing over every single shot. The door squeaked open and both students turned to regard Fox and Coco strolling in, the two pairs nodded to each other. Team CFVY and team RFGE having become somewhat close in the two years they had attended Beacon together. Having known them for so long, Flint and Gray could see that Coco wasn't in a good mood, probably something to do with yesterday's events they guessed, rumor had it professor Goodwitch was cooking up a severe punishment for both Coco and Cardin.

"We'll leave you guys to it" Flint said smiling.

"Yeah we've not had breakfast yet" Gray added.

"Thanks guys, if you hurry there may still be some pancakes left" Fox replied.

"Nora can take my damn spot on the leaderboard, but no way is she having my pancakes" Flint growled as the pair jogged out of the firing range.

Fox turned back to his leader and partner who had her back to him as she set her handbag down carefully on one of the counters. Fox approached silently from behind and wrapped his arms gently around Coco's stomach and held her close, her tense muscles relaxed in his embrace as she placed her hands over his. Coco reciprocated the contact by leaning back into his touch; she tilted her head back and slowly nuzzled her cheek affectionately into the rough stubble of her partner's chin. He breathed in deeply, detecting the aroma of Coco's caffeine infused shower gel.

"It's going to be ok" Fox whispered softly in Coco's ear, "and if it isn't, I'll make it ok" he added with conviction. Coco turned and looked up into his blank stare; her brown orbs shimmered with unshed tears. She took Fox's calloused hands in her own for a moment before running her hands up his scarred arms, every knot and ridge familiar to her touch, Coco's hands rested on his shoulders as she pulled him down lightly into a loving kiss.

"Thanks babe," Coco finally replied ending the kiss, savoring the taste of Fox's lips that lingered on her own. She turned and retrieved her handbag from the counter. Stepping on to one of the firing station mats, Fox followed close behind. She pressed in the stud on the handle of her bag, the weapon deployed with a faint clank "so far, so good" Coco muttered. She pressed down the trigger; the weapon barrels spun, eliciting a soft whine from the repaired motor. But instead of the louder chatter of her rapid fire weapon a metallic clatter and stuttering sound emanated from the Gatling gun. "Fuck!" she bawled, refolding her weapon.

"It's ok you just need a new motor-" Fox began.

"-It's not ok. Where am I going to get 2000 Lien? It'll take at least a month to save that much!" Coco yelled.

Fox didn't flinch back from his leader's raised voice, he just fixed Coco with his blank stare before replying confidently "I'll make it ok."

The sparring hall.

Thankfully Sky's condition had improved enough to stomach some black coffee in the dining hall and he was just about well enough to move unaided, both Russell and Dove had tried to speak with him about the drugs but had been waved off dismissively. Now the trio took seats towards the back of the sparring halls spectator stands in order to reduce the chances of Goodwitch noticing Sky's condition.

"Good morning students, I'll call the first three matches in just a moment. But before I do I'm issuing you a reminder to refer to your scrolls during combat for your aura reading and listen for the alarm, if you hear it cease combat immediately." Goodwitch said in her usual commanding and irritated tone. Ruby shrank back and issued a small squeak as the professor fixed her gaze on the leader of team RWBY.

"One more thing. The headmaster and I have decided today's match ups will be second years versus first years. It was deemed necessary to help first years learn the finer points of one on one combat." A few of the first year students groaned as they weighed up their chances against the second years. "Hush students, huntsman and Huntresses must often fight against the odds to achieve victory. That beings said, any second years I judge to be going too easy will receive detention, restraint will not be shown on the battlefield so it is imperative that the combat the first year's experience is as real as possible." A few of the second years grinned and whispered excitedly as they were given the go ahead to let off some steam against their younger peers.

"Match one will be Rod Entbloom verses Sun Wukong." A few whoops and whistles followed the first announcement as Sun rose to his feet and flexed exaggeratedly. Rod for his part smiled and rolled his eyes as he and Sun made their way to the locker rooms to change into combat gear and retrieve their weapons.

"Match two shall be Yatsuhashi Daichi verses Blake Belladonna." Both silently rose to their feet seemingly unfazed, Blake headed towards the locker rooms while Yatsuhashi waited to hear the last two combatants be announced as Professor Goodwitch waited for the excited whispering to die down.

"Match three..." Glynda began, her voice silencing every student since none dared talk over her. Glynda's eyes surveyed the seated crowd. "...Fox Alistair verses Sky Lark." The excited whispering rose to a fever pitch and Glynda actually caught snatches of conversation.

"-Grudge match-!" Yang said to her younger sister.

"-BORING! We all know Sky's gonna get creamed-" Nora practically yelled into Ren's ear.

"-I hope Sky doesn't get hurt as bad as Cardin did by Coco-" Jaune said, voicing his genuine concern to Pyrrha.

Fox rose to his feet and made his way down to the walkway between the seats and the arenas awaiting his opponent. "Mister Lark?" The professor said a little louder, silence permeated the room at the sound of the professor's aggravation seeping into her voice. There, at the back, is that him hunched over? Dove leaned in and elbowed him in the ribs. Sky looked up bleary eyed and slack jawed as if in a daze.

"Huh? What?" He said glancing around the room in confusion.

"You're fighting against Fox." Glynda stated through gritted teeth, her patience tested. Sky groaned and lumbered to his feet. He looks pale and strung out, even at this distance Goodwitch thought to herself.

"Dust fucking damn it" Russell muttered under his breath as he glanced at Sky who was still obviously suffering from the feels. Even if he's lucky enough to live through this Professor Goodbitch is going to know he's on stimms and he'll be kicked out of Beacon.

"What did you just say Russell?" Glynda asked, scowling at the young student.

Russell's hand appeared on his teammates shoulder and pushed him back down into his seat. "I said may I replace Sky professor?" Russell asked as he stood.

"No, you may not." Glynda replied, arching one eyebrow in annoyance at Russell's brazen lack of discipline.

"But-" Russell began, seemingly unafraid of Goodwitch's wrath.

"-if I may interject Professor" Yatsuhashi interrupted. "Sky seems under the weather, I humbly suggest you give Fox an opponent fit for combat, both he and Russell would benefit far more from the experience than Sky would in his current state."

Glynda's head sagged as she found herself unable to fault the perceptive student's logic. "A good point Yatsuhashi, I'll allow Russell to stand in for his teammate, this time." She said softly. "So long as that's alright with you mister Alistair?" The professor asked turning to regard the blind second year.

"Doesn't matter to me" Fox growled, cracking his neck for emphasis before stalking towards the locker rooms.

A momentary frown flashed across Goodwitch's features before she regained her composure, What has happened to the world? Even the most obedient, respectful students are now questioning my decisions. "Its settled then. Russell will fight Fox." She pointed an accusatory finger at Sky, "however I expect you to be fit for sparring sessions next week. Three out of four team members currently unfit for combat is unacceptable." Her tone becoming venomous.

"Yes professor" a relieved Sky replied quickly. Russell nodded to him as he descended down the steps to Yatsuhashi's side. The pair walked down the corridor towards the locker rooms side by side.

"Thanks Yatsu." Russell said softly as he readjusted the beanie atop his head.

"No problem, though I doubt you will be thanking me when this is over." Yatsuhashi replied as they parted ways to retrieve their combat gear.

"We'll see." Russell mumbled to himself.

Rod and Sun stepped out on to the stage in front of the gathered students. Sun bowing exaggeratedly with the flourish of a Vacuo prize fighter. Rod merely smirked at the performance and nodded his head towards the twins seated on the front row. "That's quite enough Mister Wukong" Goodwitch admonished softly. Sun smirked and gave one last defiant bow to the crowd, prompting a lot of giggling as he entered the arena.

The two combatants contrasted heavily in terms of combat attire. Sun wore an open loose-collared white jacket with no shirt underneath, displaying his muscular abs. He also wore blue cargo pants tied up with a white belt. He sported yellow and black sneakers along with several accessories such as the chain hanging from the belt loop on the right side of his pants, a twisted golden necklace around his neck, with a round pendant bearing his monkey emblem and his two red wrist bracers.

Though Rod and Sun had similar complexion that was where the similarities ended. He was slightly taller than Sun with swept-back black hair to Sun's spiky blonde. A black leather duster almost totally concealed his black jeans and shirt. Normally a plain black Stetson would sit upon his head but today he'd elected not to wear it. His square jaw was speckled with a little stubble and his green eyes had an essence of mystery to them, their pupils dilated as if taking in a sight only he could see. His weapons were a pair of matched revolvers with a tomahawk blade built around and above the grip, the polished chrome gleamed in the arena lighting, heavily contrasting the black leather holsters that held them.

The fighters took up their ready positions. Sun bouncing lightly in a boxer's stance, throwing mock punches towards his opponent much to the amusement of the crowd. Rod for his part stood casually, his rat tail tapping impatiently at the ground near his left foot.

Glynda cleared her throat before speaking. "Begin."

Rod sprinted headlong towards his opponent, closing the distance in moments. Sun drew his weapons and flicked them into staff form as he swung it towards Rods head. Rod ducked and slid on his knees to Sun's right, his coat billowing out behind him in his slipstream. His right tomahawk pistol, Mustang, was ripped from its holster and flipped around so he was holding the barrel in the blink of an eye. The axe blade impacted Sun's abdomen, the momentum flung him into the air. Sun twisted clumsily in the air and managed to connect the tip of his staff with the back of Rods head as he slid beneath. Rod rolled to the side in order to slow his forward momentum. Sun landed unsteadily on his feet and risked a glance at his scroll, a quarter of his aura was already gone. Rod's aura was barely a hair away from full. No more showboating, get your head in the game, Sun's mind instructed.

Rod charge again this time wielding both his tomahawk-revolver hybrids, he'd affectionately named them Mustang and Sally. The chromed weapons flashed as they caught the light; the triggers were housed in the triangular hole in the axe head. He twirled the weapons as he closed the distance, his weapons becoming circular blurs as he skillfully changed his grip constantly to make it difficult for Sun to predict whether the next strike would be ranged or melee. Sun met him halfway and the pair clashed in the center of the arena. Their hands blurs of motion too fast for the eyes of most to follow. Bullets and buckshot flew out in all directions as weapon barrels were bashed or blasted aside at the last second. Sun took a step back, then another, slowly losing ground to Rod's relentless assault. Both fighters' auras were being quickly eroded by the flurry of blows exchanged. Sun had barely a third of his aura while Rod had just over half of his.

Rod ducked as Ruyi Bang whistled over his head and spun towards Sun, tossing mustang from his left hand to his tail in the split second his body blocked Sun's line of sight. He swung Sally in his right hand and parried Suns downward blow with Jingu bang as he came out of his spin and then countered attacked with his left fist. Sun danced out of reach but didn't see the axe held in Rods tail. The increased reach of the tail put Sun back in striking distance, Sun hastily blocked the first swing but his weapon wrapped around the handle of Rods tomahawk, Rod tugged suddenly and flicked Ruyi Bang from his opponent's grasp, the chains of the Nunchaku rattled as they impacted the wall.

Sun glanced at his fallen weapon with a pained expression, Rod's footsteps approached, Sun turned back to face him, a predatory glint flashed in the second year's eyes as he holstered his left pistol and with a flick of his wrist snapped the cylinder of his right revolver closed.

"Bring it!" Sun yelled as he leapt forward swinging his remaining weapon towards Rod's head. Rod ducked backwards, the Nunchaku passing barely an inch in front of his face. He pushed himself back upright with his tail and delivered a brutal dropkick to Sun's stomach that flung him upwards. Rod snapped off three quick shots from Sally clenched in his right fist, his left hand moved back and forth just above the weapon, re-cocking the hammer of his revolver as rapidly as he pulled the trigger. All three shots smacked into Sun's torso before he hit the ground. To his credit the first year pushed himself to his knees with one arm, the other wrapped around his stomach.

As he rose shakily to his feet the low aura alarm sounded, Rod strolled up and blew the smoke from his weapons barrel, spinning it once before holstering it. Sun forced himself upright, he held out his free hand to his opponent, Rod shook it smiling. "Rod Entbloom is the Victor" the professor announced as if it wasn't obvious to the spectators. The two fighters returned to the stands, both receiving many congratulatory pats on the back. Rod weaved through the crowd until he found his opponent. "Hey Sun, you did good." Goodwitch overheard and allowed herself a small smile as Rod's nurturing personality was made evident.

"You still had half your aura left?" Sun said demurely, seemingly a little put out.

"Last week I had a sparring match against Ember" Rod said jerking a thumb over his shoulder to his female teammate with her red mohawk, "I didn't even land a hit, so trust me Sun, you did good."

"Thanks Rod" Sun replied flashing one of his charming smiles as he regained some of his usual cheeriness. The other students commented on the match they had just witnessed, some talking about techniques while others such as Yang took the less serious path of conversation. Glynda overheard Yang shout over to Sun "Hey Sun! Too much monkeying around! Am I right?" All within earshot rolled their eyes at Yang's pun and a few, including her teammates Ruby and Weiss, groaned loudly.

"Please take your seats students, I'd like to get the second match underway" the professor said softly. At the prospect of another match the gathered students hurried obediently back to their seats and whispered their predictions to each other.

"Second match, Yatsuhashi Daichi verses Blake Belladonna" Goodwitch announced, silencing the excited whispering of the students yet again. Nora and Ruby were literally bouncing in their seats in excitement, Yang had also leaned forward. Normally, Yang would lounge back and churn out puns relevant to the fight she was only slightly paying attention to. She and Miss Belladonna have a strong bond Glynda thought approvingly; the fiery blonde could no longer feign disinterest and even went as far as to elbow her younger sister lightly in the ribs to hush her.

Yatsuhashi and Blake made their way into the arena. "Good luck Blake!" Yang and Ruby yelled in unison. The corners of Blake's mouth twitched into the barest hint of a smile before her expression hardened as she psyched herself up for the fight. Coco merely nodded at Yatsuhashi who returned the gesture smiling before strolling into the arena with Blake in tow.

The two students took up their ready positions, Blake kept Gambol shroud in its cleaver like sheath while Yatsuhashi had his colossal weapon held out in front of him at an angle, the tip tilted slightly towards his opponent. The din of the remaining students was replaced with bated silence, "good luck Blake" Yatsuhashi said smiling warmly.

Blake's expression softened, for him this is just a friendly match she thought contentedly. "You too Yatsu" Blake replied.

"Begin" the professor instructed.

The two warriors in training circled each other, locking eyes, scrutinizing their opponents gaze for the slightest indication of the coming attack. Blake made the first move, swinging her sword horizontally towards the second year's neck, Yatsuhashi shifted his grip slightly and deflected the blow with ease. She followed this up with a series of quick vertical slashes which Yatsuhashi parried as he backed away. He realized he was losing ground and immediately countered with a slash at Blake's midsection, she somersaulted back out of reach before charging back towards her opponent. Yatsuhashi reversed his swing bringing his massive weapon to bear quicker than Blake thought possible. She deflected the blow and danced beneath a swing from Yatsuhashi's right fist. Blake sprang up from her crouched stance and swung her cleaver like blade at Yatsuhashi's head. The second year twisted his head to the side and jerked his shoulder upwards, his heavily armored sode deflected the blow as he tried to bring his sword back up. Blake pressed her advantage kicking Yatsuhashi sword arm back down before she landed. She spun in a crouch separating Gambol shroud's katana from its cleaver like sheath and slashing into her opponent's legs with both. He responded by slamming his sword into the ground between him and Blake, the shockwave flinging his opponent away from him and buying him time to return to his high guard stance. Blake landed on her feet but skidded for a few meters before coming to a halt.

Yatsuhashi ran forward, wielding his great sword above his head as if it weighed no more than a dagger. Blake froze, her brain stunned into motionlessness by the immense size of her opponent and his equally colossal weapon moving towards her at great speed, he brought the blade down and swung it horizontally as Blake finally started to react. The powerful blow slammed into her torso and took two thirds of her ample aura pool to stop. Her flailing form flew across the arena and some of the crowd winced instinctively as they anticipated her head first impact into the opposite wall. Yang rose to her feet, her concern for her partner spurring her into motion.

A single gunshot rang out, And Gambol shroud, now transformed into pistol form span out, the ribbon flowing out behind it as it anchored onto Yatsuhashi's shoulder armor. The black ribbon went taut and Blake was propelled back into the fight at high speed, her knee crunched into Yatsuhashi's cheek bone and staggered him. Blake flicked her weapon back into katana form and slashed mercilessly into her opponent's torso four times before she landed. Yatsuhashi slashed down at her in response, Blake's image flickered and was replaced with a shadow clone that disappeared as his sword made contact with it. She stabbed into his calf from behind before he could turn and then leapt out of the way of Yatsuhashi's elbow as he tried to react.

Blake's apparitions attacked from every direction. Every second he blocked another potential attack only to have a shadow dissipate around his sword. He dropped into a crouch and span, raising his sword above his head as Blake's weapon clanged loudly against his own, through the crossed blades Yatsuhashi shot her a smile. She yelled in frustration and somersaulted over the still crouching second year, her heel connected with the back of his head sending him sprawling. He lumbered to his feet and rubbed the back of his head, "good hit" he said as he pulled his weapon back into guard position, his sword glinting as it caught the light. Blake for her part merely nodded in response before leaping forward, both weapons slashing down towards him. Yatsuhashi side stepped with surprising grace and landed a left hook into the nape of Blake's neck, she crashed to the floor as the low aura alarm screeched into life.

Yatsuhashi helped his opponent to her feet and bowed graciously, "Well fought Blake."

"Thank you Yatsuhashi" Blake replied, returning the bow.

"Yatsuhashi is the victor, but a stunning performance from you too Miss Belladonna." Both combatants nodded their thanks and made their way back to the stands. Coco patted Yatsuhashi on the arm affectionately.

Blake got a much less muted response as Yang enveloped her in a crushing bear hug and lifted her from the ground; Blake flushed red in reaction to Yang's open display of affection and concern. Their relationship wasn't common knowledge yet and Blake wanted to keep it that way so she frantically patted her partner's back, trying to get her to release her as her legs wind-milled trying to find the floor. Ruby jabbered excitedly while Weiss chastised both Ruby and Yang for embarrassing their teammate, "put her down you dolt, she can't breathe." Yang dropped Blake to her feet and began fervently apologizing.

"Thanks Weiss" Blake wheezed gratefully.

Goodwitch cleared her throat to gain everyone's attention "Match three, Fox Alistair verses Russell Thrush" she announced prompting yet more outbursts of excited whispering.

Fox sauntered into the arena, Russell followed somewhat nervously behind. Fox held out his hand for Russell to shake. Fox pulled his opponent close as Russell's hand made contact with Fox's scarred palm. "What I'm going to do to you will make Cardin's wounds look like love taps" he growled quietly in his opponent's ear before stepping back to his start position. Russell suppressed a shiver as he drew his daggers.

The room went totally silent; Russell could hear his own heart hammering in his chest. Finally the professor spoke the word Russell had been dreading from the moment he stepped into the arena; "begin."

Fox leapt forward and swept his arms outwards in front of him, his opponent blocked both blades with his daggers but this forced a gap in his guard, which Fox's arms were already inside of... Crap. A flurry of punches to Russell's abdomen sent him staggering back before he could bring his weapons to before he could ready his weapons in response. Russell ducked under a left hook and delivered a slash to Fox's shin as he regained his balance eliciting a grunt from the second year as his aura took the blow. Russell tossed his right dagger into the air cycling the dust cylinder to ice and threw a vicious uppercut into Fox's groin as he rose, doubling the older student over. He followed up with a powerful jab into the second year's face before catching his dagger as it fell, tip down, slamming it into Fox's left shoulder. Ice crystals formed across Fox's shoulder and back, hunching over the once menacing blind brawler of team CFVY. Fox roared in frustration, flexing the corded muscle of his back and flaring his aura.

The crystals shattered into pieces, skittering across the arena floor as Fox immediately went on the offensive.

Russell danced out of reach of a right hook, though Fox used the momentum of the punch to spin and send a punishing heel kick into his opponent's chest. The kick staggered Russell and Fox used the opening to flip nimbly over his opponent, grabbing Russell's shoulders as he reached the pinnacle of his somersault. The moment Fox's feet touched the floor he used his tremendous core strength to straighten his back and pull his opponent's flailing form over him, slamming him face first into the floor, his beanie did nothing to cushion the impact. Russell rolled to lessen his momentum and was rewarded with a swift yet powerful kick that mashed his nose as he exited the roll, flinging him backwards into the arena wall. "Noht agen!" Russell slurred, wiping beneath his broken nose, leaving a red smear down one forearm.

Russell glanced at his scroll, his aura was already half empty while Fox's was at two thirds. So this is what Cardin went through for me, fucking Sky, it should be him getting his ass kicked he thought bitterly. Russell snarled as he threw himself forward, slashing with burn dust loaded into his daggers, throwing sheets of flame at his opponent. Fox ducked the first two blasts and deflected a third with his armblades, he leapt forward and kicked the younger combatant square in the jaw.

Russell used the blow's momentum to spin low and sweep his opponent's legs out from under him while he was off balance. The crowd cheered at the unexpected move as Fox hit the ground. He deflected a hastily aimed stab from the first year before flipping nimbly back to his feet and adopting a boxing stance. He turned; keeping Russell in line with his left shoulder as the first year slowly circled him. Suddenly Russell leapt forward, unleashing his semblance to increase his speed, he slashed at Fox's midsection with his right dagger, his left held loosely tip down ready to counter Fox's response. The surprising amount of power behind the blow knocked Fox's guard wide open. He twisted to avoid the next attack, barely dodging the stab from Russell's left dagger. A kick slammed into Fox's midsection followed by a second to his head a moment later, Fox struggled to keep up with the speed of his opponent's attacks.

He blocked the next two slashes, and then countered with a series of mantis like strikes from his arm-blades. Russell blocked the first three strikes, then riposted stabbing at Fox's side while ducking under a fourth blow. Fox slammed both his arm blades down at his crouching opponent and Russell's daggers stopped the blades dead with a weighty clang, Russell's arms shook slightly from the exertion as he fought against Fox's superior strength pressing down on his weapons, his taut muscles burned with the effort as the two fighters locked eyes. Russell's blue eyes smoldered with anger as his piercing gaze met Fox's lifeless stare, his daggers whirred and clicked as the dust cylinder cycled to load explosive dust. Russell roared and pushed upwards with all the strength he could muster, the explosive dust detonated forcing Fox backwards. Barely a second later, the two combatants clashed again, slashing mercilessly at each other no longer bothering to block as rage overtook them both.

The low aura alarm blared into life and both fighters froze in place instantly. The two fighters locked eyes again as both tried to reign in their labored breathing; Fox smirked as a small amount of blood welled from the nick where his armblade was pressed lightly against Russell's neck.

Professor Goodwitch cleared her throat before speaking. "Fox Alistair is the victor, though that was a surprisingly close bout, so well done Russell" Glynda announced gesturing to the large screen mounted above the arena. Russell's aurameter was practically non existent save for a miniscule red line at one end of the bar, while Fox's aurameter showed less than a fifth. Fox was the only second year to fight that day whose aura hadn't finished in the green, his meter displayed as a disappointing yellow, humiliating he thought bitterly. Fox pulled his blade from his opponent's neck and Russell sagged in relief before sheathing his daggers. Fox span on his heel, his face a mask of barely controlled rage as he stormed from the arena and straight past his leader. He disappeared down the locker room corridor and ignored all attempts by Coco to stop him.

Russell moved to leave the arena but Goodwitch stepped into his path. She reached out and pinched his nose with a finger and thumb, his eyes started watering as he knew what was coming, he swore he saw the corners of his professors mouth twitch into the vaguest hint of a smile. Goodwitch twisted, with a sickening crunch Russell's nose was put back in place. Russell gasped at the sharp pain. "Ffffuuuu-"

"-Don't you dare young man!" Goodwitch interrupted, glaring at Russell.

"Oooh I bet that hurt" Ruby squeaked excitedly as Russell marched past her and took a seat by Sky. He snatched the proffered tissue from Dove's hand and caught sight of the second year student Ember looking at him with barely veiled interest as he dabbed at his nose, he blushed and looked away.

"Who knows" Yang answered with a smile. Nobody reacted. "I said who knows? As in 'who nose', get it?" She added loudly, elbowing Blake playfully.

"Yeah we got it" Weiss sighed rolling her eyes.

"That's quite enough students, Yang, since you seem so willing to be in the spotlight the next bout shall be you and Ember. Miss Xiao Long, Miss Kindle, please change into your combat attire."

The two students rose and headed towards the locker room, Ember glanced over her shoulder and caught Russell looking her way, she smirked before falling into step with her opponent and disappearing out of sight.

"Hey, thanks Russell, I wouldn't have lasted ten seconds against that guy." Sky whispered to his temporary leader.

"Shut up Sky." Russell replied bitterly, snatching another tissue from Dove's outstretched hand.

The infirmary roof several hours later.

The bell denoting the end of the school day rang out loudly, shattering the perfect moment that Velvet and Cardin had been savoring. Velvet's eyes snapped open and she jumped to her feet, eliciting a groan from Cardin as her sudden movements caused pain to flare up in his side wounds. "Sorry" she said in a hurry as Cardin looked up at her bleary eyed. We must have both fallen asleep Velvet thought to herself distractedly as she checked her watch, We've been sat like that for two whole hours, we're lucky nobody saw us. "I can't believe we both fell asleep!" Velvet said as she retrieved Cardin's Jacket from the floor where it had landed after falling from her shoulders and handed it back to him.

Cardin donned his jacket and cracked his neck to rid himself of the stiffness that had developed before grinning at Velvet. "I can, you passed out from exhaustion almost straight away."

"Sorry" Velvet said blushing "Why didn't you wake me?"

Now it was Cardin's turn to blush. "Y- you looked so peaceful, you were exhausted, a- and you have a cute snore..." Cardin trailed off as he realized what he had said and his cheeks flushed pink. Velvet couldn't even form a response since her panicked mind was already in overdrive wondering how to get back down the stairs before any visitors arrived in their room.

"Russell and Yatsu will be on their way back, we need to move!" Velvet blurted as she glanced over the edge of the roof at the students now filtering out from different school buildings. She spotted Yatsuhashi, his height making him stand out from the crowd, sure enough Russell walked with him as did a large gaggle of other students, all moving straight towards the infirmary entrance. "It's not just them! Everyone is coming!"

"Great! Maybe Coco can shoot me again." Cardin replied sarcastically.

"Can you at least try to make an effort with my teammates?" Velvet shot back as she opened the door to the stairwell.

Cardin opened his mouth to speak but thought the better of it nodded in agreement as he wheeled himself towards the stairs. Velvet followed him through onto the landing; Cardin glanced at her panicked expression as she looked quickly around the stairwell's landing trying to work out how to get him down the stairs quickly without risking him further injury. "Reckon you can push the chair?" he asked, Velvet's head snapped around to face him at the sound of his voice.

"Yeah but-"

"-Ok good, see you down there" Cardin said as he clambered out of his chair and pulled himself onto the metal handrail before sliding down it feet first, his chest pressed against the handrail. As he descended around the first corner he stole a quick glance upwards as Velvet stood jaw agape at his quick thinking before she shook herself and noisily rattled the wheelchair down the steps in pursuit.

They rendezvoused at the bottom of the stairs where a flushed Velvet set down the chair. Cardin fell from his perch on the handrail and into the seat in a clumsy fashion. He barely had time to orient himself in his seat properly as a panicked Velvet pushed him out of the stairwell and down the corridor into the ward, slamming his knees into the door to open them.

"Ow" Cardin whined, looking at and rubbing his sore knee. Velvet was silent, Cardin looked up. The room was full to bursting with their classmates, all of team RWBY, CRDL, CFVY and RFGE were present as were Pyrrha and Jaune of team JNPR.

"Oh there you guys are!" Ruby exclaimed happily.

"Shouldn't you both be in bed?" Weiss asked with concern.

"Yeah, probably" Cardin answered casually.

"Where were you?" Fox asked turning to Velvet.

"We went out for some fresh air, that's all" she replied.

"Disappearing off together eh? Sounds romantic..." Yang teased, oblivious to Fox's scowl boring into the back of her head.

"Surely we would have passed you on the way in?" Blake asked skeptically.

"We were on the roof" Velvet explained quietly.

"You and I, we would be alright, we could dance on the roof, we could light the night" Rod sang, referencing a Casey Williams song.

"Ha, nice!" Yang said, high fiving Rod. However the smirk soon disappeared from their faces when they saw the melancholy expression flash across Yatsuhashi's features before he got his emotions under control.

Both Cardin and Velvet looked down at the ground unsure of what to say or do, Cardin was first to break the ice, wanting desperately to end the awkward silence that had permeated the room. "So... where are Nora and Ren?..."

Jaune valiantly stepped in to answer the question, knowing someone had to save the unlikely pair from the awkward questions everyone wanted to ask about what was going on between them. "Nora drank an entire jar of red sap syrup, she's on a sugar rush. Ren suggested that he stay behind with her so she doesn't slow down your recovery since Velvet had um..." Jaune tailed off forgetting the technical term for Velvets condition.

"E.A.D.?" Velvet prompted.

"Yeah, that's the one." Jaune replied. "Anyone else get that? That mental block where you forget the most important bit of a sentence but remember the rest of it?" Several other student's concurred and this sparked a conversation about their own experiences of the phenomenon. This stopped any further interrogation of Cardin and Velvet and both were visibly relieved to have avoided more questions.

Velvet's eyes found Jaune's, he winked conspiratorially at her and flashed a grin in her direction while nobody was looking, Velvet nodded in gratitude to the scraggly blonde first year, she couldn't put into words how much she appreciated his intervention so a nod would have to do.

A well-manicured hand appeared on her shoulder "Come on Velvet, girl talk" Coco said as she steered her teammate out of the ward and across the corridor into the bathroom.

"Wha- what's up Coco?" Velvet stammered as her visibly tense leader locked the door and removed her sunglasses.

"I'm worried Velvet." Coco replied, finding her teammate's brown eyes with her own.

"About what?" Velvet asked meekly.

"About you." Coco said matter-of-factly. "About the team" she added, turning to face the bathroom mirror, she rested her hands on the sink and gazed into her own eyes. "We're falling to pieces..." Velvet could hear the strain in Coco's voice as she held back her emotions as best she could.

Velvet gently placed a hand on her leader's shoulder, "Come on Coco, talk to me."

The damn broke and Coco's concerns came flooding out. "I nearly killed that little shit" Coco growled punching the bathroom counter in frustration. "I would have killed him and gotten kicked out of Beacon for a pair of sunglasses and half a cigarette if you hadn't stepped in."

"It's ok Coco" Velvet soothed, "Who would have thought you'd get emotional over shooting Cardin" She added trying to inject some humor into the conversation.

"That's not the only thing bothering me" Coco countered. "Something's up with Yatsu, I don't know what, I don't think Fox does either, hell I'm not even sure Yatsu knows. I'm falling for Fox and I don't know what to do about it." Coco blurted, unable to stop herself.

Velvet took a deep breath before she replied, "Everyone does things in the heat of the moment, your blood was up, so was Cardin's and it just all escalated in a way it never should have. It's nobody's fault. I think Yatsu is just concerned about me, he thinks that Cardin is going to be a bad influence on me." Velvet took her teammate's hands in her own, running her thumbs along her leader's knuckles soothingly. "I told you last time you dragged me into a bathroom, you need to just tell Fox how you feel, you'd make a great couple."

Coco smiled, Velvet's words seemed to have lightened the load that burdened her heart some what. "Thanks, I needed that pep talk, also it's not just Yatsuhashi, we're all worried."

Velvet sighed, she'd been expecting this topic of conversation from the moment Coco said 'girl talk'. "I understand why you're worried, but I need you to trust me, I said the same thing to Yatsu. You don't have to like my choices, you just have to respect them."

"I trust your judgement more than my own Velvet, if it wasn't for you being level headed I would have murdered another student. What I need to know though... is why you nearly died for him?"

Velvet stared at the floor for a moment before meeting her leader's gaze. She was psyching herself up to say something, Coco knew it. "I- I think I like him" Velvet confessed quietly.

Coco's jaw dropped open. "After everything that asshole did to you?" Coco asked incredulously, her eyes narrowed.

"He's changed! He's not that person anymore. I saw a side to him that he kept hidden and I think it's just now being revealed. Just watch him when we go back in there, you'll see." Velvet pleaded.

Coco's expression softened, she sighed deeply and planted her sunglasses back on her nose. "I can't believe I'm saying this but... I'll give him a chance for you, the little shit better not disappoint though." Coco said cracking her knuckles and grinning mischievously at her teammate.

"Thanks" Velvet replied unable to stop herself from smirking as the two returned to the ward.

Meanwhile Cardin had clambered from his wheelchair and dragged himself onto his bed, waving off both Russell and Ruby who had tried to help him. "Get off, I can do this!" he hissed in protest, shaking free from Ruby's grasp again. Coco turned to Velvet and gestured to the scene unfolding in front of her, the message was clear. I told you so.

Ruby's was visibly saddened and Cardin winced at the look of sheer hurt expressed in the young huntresses eyes. "Sorry, sorry Ruby, I- I- I just need to do things for myself, it's not that I don't appreciate you trying to help." Coco overheard Cardin's apology and shot a questioning look to Velvet. "He's changed." Velvet mouthed. Coco raised a skeptical eyebrow in response.

"It's ok Cardin, I understand" Ruby said as a smile returned to her features. When we were younger Yang broke her hands she wouldn't let me help her with anything either. You shouldn't refuse all help though, Yang couldn't open our bathroom door and got stuck in there for three hours and-" A fist cut her off mid sentence and knocked her across the room.

"You said you wouldn't tell!" Yang exploded as the two sisters began fighting in earnest.

Russell ducked under a folding chair Yang had propelled across the room before reaching into his bag. "Got your wallet Cardin."

"Thanks, glad you remembered, team doing ok?" Cardin asked as Russell handed him his wallet.

"Um... Yeah..?." Russell replied awkwardly. Wincing inwardly at his crappy attempt at deception. Yeah, real smooth Russell's inner voice practically screamed in his head.

"That's good, I knew I could count on you" Cardin said distractedly. Russell followed his gaze to Velvets bed, where team CFVY accompanied by Jaune and Pyrrha surrounded the injured second year. Velvet looked past Fox and locked eyes with Cardin for a moment before turning to Pyrrha and resuming her discussion. Russell quickly looked away, not quite sure what to make of the meaningful look Velvet and Cardin had exchanged. There had been affection there hadn't there? Maybe.

He suddenly felt very uncomfortable around his leader, I'm starting to think I don't know him at all, Russell thought sadly.

Cardin cleared his throat and sat up slightly "Hey! Jaune, Coco can I talk to you both for a second?" He turned to Russell, "mind giving me a minute?" He asked in a quieter voice. Russell nodded and joined the rest of team CRDL, RWBY and RFGE in cleaning up the aftermath of Yang and Ruby's fight. He's definitely changed Russell thought bitterly, the old Cardin would have told me to go away, not asked me to. He's getting soft.

Jaune and Coco approached Cardin's bedside. Cardin seemed to be working up to something, his brow was furrowed as the former bully was deep in thought, Jaune could tell by the the way he chewed his bottom lip that Cardin wanted to say something but didn't quite know how to say it.

"Hey guys, I'll make this quick..." Cardin began. Coco and Jaune glanced at each other in mutual confusion. "Jaune..." Cardin sighed. "Thanks." Cardin looked down at his boots kicking the bed frame with his heel weakly. Jaune opened his mouth to talk but Cardin took a deep breath and then continued speaking. "Sky told me about you stopping me from bleeding out. Thanks for saving my life, again, even when I didn't deserve your help." he blurted in a strained voice, struggling to stomach the self inflicted blow to his pride.

"I... uh... you're welcome?" Jaune replied, awkwardly rubbing the back of his head as he tried to work out if this was some sort of ploy or another one of Cardin's practical jokes.

Cardin nodded before speaking, "I'd like to speak to Coco alone... please."

"Oh right, sorry, get well soon I guess" Jaune said as he backed away from the pair to give them some privacy.

Cardin gazed down at his shoes once more. "Coco... Look, I heard how your weapon got broken and...I uh... Here." He raised his arm toward her. Coco took the folded piece of paper from his outstretched hand, a perturbed frown marring her features. She unfolded it and her frown was replaced with astonishment, her wide eyes partially concealed behind a replacement pair of aviator sunglasses she'd borrowed from Yang.

Coco looked down at the cheque in her hands. "T- two thousand Lien?" She stammered.

"That's right isn't it?" Coco nodded, still slightly in shock. "I overheard Yatsuhashi telling Velvet how much it was going to cost." Cardin added by way of explanation.

Coco's eyes hardened as she grew suspicious, "Why?"

"Why what?"

"Cardin... I shot you, I damn near killed you, I probably would have if Velvet hadn't intervened."

"Yeah I know, no need to rub it in." Cardin replied lifting up his T-shirt to momentarily expose his bandage bound torso.

"Then why? Why are you helping me?" Coco hissed.

Cardin sighed, knowing he could avoid the question no longer. He looked into Coco's eyes with sincerity before nodding across the room. "For her."

"I-"

"-I know it doesn't make up for what I've done, but its a start." Coco could feel the conviction in his voice, he really was telling the truth.

This was too much to take in, Velvet was right, he'd really started to change. Coco's eyes went glassy as she envisioned her weapon, Arma, restored to its former glory. Coco looked down at the cheque still cradled in her hands, before meeting Cardin's eyes "thank you."

The leader of team CRDL shrugged before replying. "No worries." he replied quietly, cheeks faintly tinting red, somewhat embarrassed with his act of charity. "So... I hear Russell got his ass kicked by Fox?" He added, changing the subject in a comically obvious fashion.

"I'm surprised Russell told you." Yatsuhashi said as he lumbered over to Cardin's bedside. Joining his leader's conversation with Cardin.

"He didn't" Cardin replied, still wondering how much of his conversation Yatsuhashi had heard. He held up his scroll displaying a video on Scrolltube, the video was titled 'Foxy beats Brussell LMAO LOL ROFL'.

"Who uploaded that?" Cardin scrolled down to the uploaders profile, Nora Valkeryie. "Oh, I should have guessed with the title I suppose" said Yatsuhashi.

"You should actually check her channel out, it's called 'Queen of the castle' and half of the videos are just her scaring Ren awake with loud sloth noises, it sounds weird but they're actually pretty funny."

"They are pretty funny" Rod interjected as he approached, damn it just how many people were listening in on his conversations, Cardin wondered. "Hey Cardin, first Saturday of the holidays we'll all have a night out at Junior's club. I owe you a drink anyway." Rod interrupted.

"Why do you owe me one?" Cardin asked perplexedly.

Rod Jerked a thumb over his shoulder to the twins. "These two idiots bet me 300 Lien each that you wouldn't last a minute against Coco. You lasted a minute and a half, so I'm 600 Lien richer." He answered cheerily, oblivious to Flint and Gray's frowns behind him.

"I'm afraid you won't be heading to 'Junior's club' with Cardin that weekend" a woman's voice intoned from the doorway. All the students in the ward turned to regard professor Goodwitch. "The headmaster and I have finally agreed on a punishment for Coco and Cardin. Both you and your teams will be heading on a three team mission with professor Port."

"Why do they get cool punishments and I get to clean blackboards." Ruby whined.

"Because you'd enjoy the mission, if you take pleasure in it it's not really a punishment." Glynda said turning to the young team leader.

"Clearly you haven't read Blake's ninjas of love books" Yang quipped.

Blake's face flushed Scarlet and she looked about ready to kill Yang. Glynda's cheeks also tinted slightly pink as she remembered bumping into Blake at Tukson's book trade a few months before the stores sudden closure, both clutching the latest installment of ninjas of love to their chest. They'd agreed never to speak of the encounter.

"Well just us, RWBY and JNPR then. Should still be a good night." Rod said rubbing his hands together, he stopped suddenly and his eyes went wide. "Wait, you said three teams?"

"Yes Rod, three teams, professor Ozpin wanted me to ask for volunteers." She held up a hand to halt Ruby's excited waving. "But since gambling on school grounds is against the rules I believe team RFGE have just volunteered themselves." Glynda said before turning to Coco and Cardin. "Relying on each other should prove a good way to reconcile team CFVY's and CRDL's issues, isn't that right Cardin, Coco?" Both nodded meekly in response under the professors withering glare. "Good." Goodwitch said as she spun on her heel and exited the ward. The clack of her heels on the corridor tiles receding as the busy professor hunted down her next students to catch in violation of Beacon's rules.

"Damn it" Flint growled

"Embers going to be pissed" Gray sighed.

Professor Peach waltz in whistling a jaunty tune, the door swung shut behind him as his whistle died in his throat. "You think this is some sort of rave? You're allowed two visitors each. This is a hospital not a damn club. These patients need rest not crowding, Velvet I'm especially disappointed in you, you should know better."

The students filtered out one by one, saying their fond goodbyes and wishing a speedy recovery to the two injured students as the unhappy professor shooed them out of the ward. In the corridor Fox's hand found Coco's, she turned, stealing one last glance at Velvet as the doors swung shut. Professor Peach was already busy lecturing her on the dangers of secondary infection when so many students were allowed into the infirmary.

Velvet looked straight past him to the opposite bed, her eyes finding Cardin's. She began to lose herself in the depths of his indigo eyes.

Remember to review!

I hope you enjoyed this chapter please give me your thoughts. Tell me what you liked, or what you didn't.

PS there's a reference to a bible passage in this chapter (don't worry I'm not religious), let me know if you find it ;)

Beta: OneTruePastrami