Pearls on a String

Volume 1

Chapter 8: Pain

Vytal Festival

Evie was at the head of her team's impromptu outing as they headed for the landing pad. Truthfully, she was skipping in her excitement. "C'mon, you guys! Pick it up!"

"Relax, kitty cat," Pip laughed. "He's not due for another fifteen minutes."

"And I want to be there before his airship arrives!" the Cat Faunus replied with a grin.

"Can't believe it's been a month since we've seen him," Beryl commented.

Lustre nodded solemnly, though her pale blue eyes were twinkling with barely restrained eagerness. "I am very pleased he decided to travel out here for the festival."

"And even better, he said it's 'cause of us!" Evie giggled. "He's gonna be in the stands to cheer us on!"

"Now, you know we're not the only Beacon team here, he's gonna be cheering for them too," Pip warned.

Evie's face fell into a pout. "Well, he'll be cheering harder for us," she contended loftily.

"Hey, guys!" a cheery voice called out. "Wait up!"

The four paused to see a bobbing orange-red head sporting a very familiar bright yellow headband moving through the busy crowds towards them. If there were any doubts as to the identity of the speaker, they would be dispelled by the familiar purple-haired visage of Tara, the team leader for TRQS and one of their good friends there in Vacuo. She had a rather harassed look on her face as she looked to be towed behind her excitable partner.

"Hey Tara, Sunny!" Pip called out merrily. "How's it going?"

"Like a cart tied to a horse," Tara complained with a humorous grin. "Ow, dammit Sunny, you're pulling my arm off!"

"But I saw Beryl!" the Fox Faunus' voice chirped.

Pip grinned at the chagrined-looking blue-haired girl. "Maybe you should invest in a hat."

Both Evie and Lustre shared a snicker at their friend's expense. "Well," Beryl sighed, slipping in front of them, "at least I have warning this time."

A squeal of "Beryl!" was heard before a blur of red, orange, and yellow catapulted into the hapless diminutive girl. "Hi, Sunny," she wheezed, trying to gain her breath back as she returned the enthusiastic hug.

Evie ignored the odd pang that she seemed to keep getting whenever the two petite girls interacted, and stepped over to where Tara was also trying to regulate her breathing. "Hey, there, Tara," she greeted her friend warmly, wrapping her up in a one-armed hug. "You able to walk with us? We have an airship to meet."

"Yeah… sure…" the purple-haired team leader panted. "No… problem…"

Pip laughed as she went around to the other side and wrapped her arm around the recovering girl as well. "Here, we'll help. One would think they'd assign someone with Lustre's semblance to be Sunny's partner."

"Oum, that's an excellent idea," Tara laughed breathlessly as she straightened and began moving forward with the others. "Hey, Lustre, mind switching partners while you're here?"

"Sorry, no," Lustre smiled gently. "I am afraid that, unlike Q, I do not have an unlimited pool of aura to draw from."

"Yeah, she's got ya there," Pip chuckled.

Tara glanced behind them to make sure Sunny and Beryl were following them. Evie did the same and noticed that Sunny had her arm around Beryl's waist much as Evie and Pip did with Tara, though the sight of the pair behind them once again caused that odd pang in her chest.

Maybe I'm just afraid that Beryl will end up getting hurt? she wondered to herself. I don't know how else to explain this odd feeling I get with the two of them… Well, at least Beryl no longer looks terrified out of her mind. She had to chuckle under her breath at the memory of when they'd first arrived at Vacuo, the entire first week Beryl had been walking around with a perpetually panic-stricken look on her face, as if she might be ambushed at any time.

"So are you meeting someone?" Tara asked curiously.

"Yep!" Evie grinned, pushing her earlier musings to the side. "He's our mentor, more or less, Professor Atticus Lazuli. He's really awesome, I'm glad you're gonna get to meet him!"

"Oh, nice!" the purple-haired girl grinned back. "And he's just in time, you guys are on tonight, right?"

"We sure are, little over an hour from now!" Pip exclaimed.

"Though we still are uninformed of our opponents," Lustre commented. "It has Beryl worried."

Both Evie and Pip nodded at that. "Yeah, she does like to prep beforehand," the blonde replied, her voice a bit more somber. "Originally it was supposed to be Team Cinnamon, but there's still been no trace found of them, so…"

"Doesn't seem fair to spring it on you at the last minute, though," Tara frowned.

"Well, them's the breaks," Pip declared, her humor once again restored. "We're ready for whatever gets thrown at us!"

By that point they had arrived at the landing pad, and just in time too as evidenced by the descending airship.

Evie let go of Tara and was bouncing up and down on her toes, her hands clasped together.

"Down, kitty!" Pip laughed, grabbing her partner from behind in a hug. "People are gonna start thinking you're having some kinda innapropriate relationship with the professor!"

Evie squawked at that and turned away from the hug to swat at the blonde. "Don't tease like that! He's just really important to me, same goes for all of you! It's because of him we're good enough to even be here!"

"That much is certainly true," Lustre stated calmly, her hands clasped behind her back and her expression serene. "Still, Pip's point is valid. You should attempt to maintain a certain decorum."

Evie grinned mischievously and sidled up to her silver-haired teammate. "Like you got with the food you had last night? What were they called again?"

Lustre's face had an uncharacteristic blush on it that was evident even through her dusky skin. "They were tamales," she stated levelly. "And they were delicious."

"Mmhmm, and we could tell," Evie snarked, skipping around to her friend's other side. "What was the word you used, Pip, to describe her expression?"

"I do believe it was 'orgasmic'," the blonde laughed.

"Yes, that's the one," the Cat Faunus chuckled.

Lustre sighed, her blush intensifying. "You are both incredibly irritating," she stated loftily.

Beryl and Sunny pushed their way through to join the small group. "Alright, you two, stop picking on Lustre," the blue-haired girl spoke up in loyal defense. Her partner graced her with an appreciative smile, which she returned with a wink.

"Honestly, I thought you all would be more nervous about tonight," Tara commented.

Pip shrugged easily. "Eh, worrying won't help anything, we're as prepared as we're gonna get. We've got our new call-outs down and we're ready to rock."

"Well, our team will be there to root for you guys," the purple-haired girl smiled.

"You bet!" Sunny exclaimed proudly while jumping up and down. "Doesn't matter if the other guys are from our school, we'll be behind you guys all the way!"

As the Fox Faunus hadn't relinquished her hold on Beryl, the blue-haired girl was bounced up and down as well, leaving her looking a little dizzy.

"Okay, don't go shaking up my resident tactical genius, Sunny," the blonde team leader laughed. "She's not a milk shake."

"Hmm, if she were, what flavor would she be?" Sunny mused with a sly grin. "Oh, I know, blueberry!"

Beryl chuckled as she shook her head. "You are such a strange girl sometimes…"

The Cat Faunus noted that tight feeling in her chest once again, but it was quickly dispelled.

"Well, there are my favorite girls!" a sonorous voice called out.

The four members of PERL turned to see a familiar person striding up to them. He wore his customary tweed jacket over a crisp white shirt and tan pants, though his boots looked to be newer.

"Hey, Professor!" Evie cheered, waving to him excitedly. "Welcome to Vacuo!"

"Thank you, Miss Black, it has been some time since I was here," Lazuli replied, running a hand through his unkempt grey hair. "How have you girls been? I see you have some new friends with you."

Pip introduced their mentor to Tara and Sunny, who greeted him politely. Lazuli pushed his spectacles up on his nose, peering at the two with his piercing blue eyes.

"Yes…" he murmured. "Team… Turquoise, is it not?"

"Er, yes sir, that's correct," Tara replied, surprised.

"You have a Mr Quicksilver Claret on your team, with a most unusual semblance," he smiled at her calmly. "It has gained my notice, and I would very like to meet the boy. If you would be so inclined, of course."

"Oh, yes sir, no problem!" Tara smiled back. "He's my boyfr- er, my friend, I'm sure he'll want to meet with you!"

"Excellent, excellent. Now then, Miss Beryl, let us walk while you tell me of how you plan to handle a team that you know nothing about just yet, hmm?" Lazuli thrust his ever-present baton into the air. "Onwards, children! I would like to obtain front-row seating for tonight's bout!"

"Yessir!" Evie chirped as she skipped alongside Tara and Pip in his wake. Sunny still stuck closely to Beryl's side, but she'd relinquished her grip on the blue-haired girl, seemingly content to stare at both her and Professor Lazuli raptly as they conversed while walking towards an airbus bound for the arena.

"Well, he's certainly… different," Tara opined quietly.

Evie snickered softly. "Yeah, he is at that. Seriously though, he's my very favorite instructor. I'm just so excited he's here to watch us!"

"Really? I couldn't tell," her blonde partner snarked, ruffling her hair in between her Faunus ears.

She stuck her tongue out in response before giggling. "I've got a good feeling about tonight," she stated.

Vytal Tournament

"I've got a bad feeling about this," Evie moaned, reversing her earlier opinion.

Right before their fight, they were finally given the name of their opponent, Team BSDN. Tara was still with them, and when she heard, her face paled.

"Team Obsidian?" she quailed. "Oh, you guys… I'm so sorry…"

"Well, that's encouraging," Pip quipped. "What's so bad about them?"

"Well…" Tara hedged. "They're tough, but more importantly… really, really brutal."

"Hmm," the blonde mused, eyeing Beryl thoughtfully. "Guess we're gonna have to step up our game, then."

Beryl nodded firmly. "Okay, Tara, what can you tell us about them?"

The purple-haired girl closed her eyes in concentration. "Berry Frost, he fights with twin swords, ice semblance. Fast and vicious. Sinna… Myst, yeah that's her name. Flail, packs a punch."

"Wait a sec," Evie interjected. "What's a flail?"

"Ball and chain," Beryl replied absently. "Who else?"

Tara's brow furrowed. "They've got a sniper, she's pretty accurate too, Nix Flae. But the one you have to really worry about is Dusty." She opened her eyes, the purple irises filled with worry. "Dusty Vajo. He's… huge. Like, over seven feet, and uses a big club, but he's fast. And dangerous. Really hard to take down. They're all fourth years, so they've got a lot of experience."

"Okay…" Beryl chewed on her lip thoughtfully.

Just then they heard the announcer calling for their team to assemble, and they said their goodbyes to Tara and Sunny who went to join the rest of their team plus Professor Lazuli up in the stands.

While it was one thing to hear a description of the team they were facing, it was entirely another to actually face them across the arena.

"Evie, don't be negative," Pip was stating confidently in response to her earlier comment. "Beryl has this, we all do."

"No… no, I have to agree with Evie," the blue-haired girl moaned softly. She couldn't seem to tear her eyes away from the sight of the towering man in the middle of the opposing team's formation. He rather closely resembled an Ursa, though he seemed to be far more nimble on his large feet.

"Okay, Beryl, we have a couple minutes at best before our audio gets picked up and the fight begins," the blonde stated anxiously. "You got anything?"

The blue-haired girl nodded quickly, still staring at the ominous-looking Dusty. It didn't help that he, along with the rest of his team, regarded the four of them with confident sneers. "Yeah, we need to tie down the big guy, keep him occupied. Ignore the sniper for now, keep closely engaged and she shouldn't be able to get a decent shot. Um…" She blinked her light bronze eyes, finally tearing her gaze away to view her teammates. "Berry will take two of us. Maybe both Evie and Lustre? Take him down hard, and then… I guess I'll hold off Sinna?"

Pip sighed and placed her hands on Beryl's shoulders. "I know you don't wanna hear this, but I think you should take on Dusty."

"Me?" the blue-haired girl squeaked. "Are you serious?"

"You got this, babe," Pip replied, her face and voice injecting confidence in all of them. "Keep your shield up and keep him busy, we'll take down the others and then come help you. Okay?"

Beryl nodded hesitantly. "Um, one more thing… make sure you try and keep your opponent in between you and Nix, okay?"

The four of them looked up to see that the glowing signs surrounding them were beginning to scroll through the various environment. "Okay," Pip breathed. "Almost showtime. Any questions?"

"Do we have a better rally cry this time?" Evie grinned, trying to dispel the tension.

Lustre looked around at the group. "Never stop moving forward," she murmured.

The four of them simultaneously moved in for a group hug, their foreheads touching. "We got this," Pip whispered, just loud enough to carry to them over the noise of the elated crowd. "Stay strong, watch each other's backs, and remember our training. Just a fight like any other, right?"

"Right," Evie replied with a firm nod.

Beryl and Lustre echoed her sentiments.

The screens stopped scrolling, resulting in ruined urban terrain at their opponents backs and open, grassy fields at their own side. The four of them separated and spread out slightly, Evie bouncing on her toes in eager anticipation.

"Ladies and gentlemen!" the announcer boomed as the environments rose into place. "Tonight we have Team Obsidian of Vacuo facing off against Team Pearl of Beacon!"

"Alright, sisters of mine..." Pip grinned.

"Ready…!"

"...Let's kick some ass!"

"BEGIN!"

As soon as the buzzer that accompanied the announcer's voice sounded, the four of them shot forward. Evie kept beside Pip as they ran, noting that Nix had already faded back to disappear into the urban ruins in front of them. She saw a blur of white as Lustre shot past her to reach Berry, and as soon as she saw her engage she activated her semblance, teleporting to the other side of the sword-wielder.

Berry had brought both of his swords up to intercept Lustre's initial strike. They looked to be slightly curved at the tip, like a katana, though one was several inches smaller than the other. Where his swords hit Lustre's staff, small spots of frost formed.

Evie immediately swept her scimitar at their opponent, but he managed to skip aside at the last moment. With a feral grin, he wagged the fingers clutching the smaller sword to encourage them to advance.

The pair of girls were certainly prepared to accommodate him.

Both the Cat Faunus and the silver-haired girl were well acquainted with each other's fighting techniques as they trained together even more often than with their own partners. As Evie spun in low to sweep Berry's feet out, Lustre would twirl her staff around to keep him occupied up high. They would switch positions often, using their mobility to keep him guessing as to where they would strike from next.

His earlier confidence was quickly replaced by first concern, then determination, as he stepped up his own whirlwind swordplay. The pair of girls managed to keep him on the defensive so far, though they would falter slightly whenever he landed a hit that would temporarily freeze a limb or part of their weapon.

Evie eyed the others to see how they were doing as she blinked from one side to the other, trying to keep Berry off-balance. Pip seemed to be handling Sinna just fine, leaping over the explosions that the flail-wielder would create by slamming her weapon into the ground, leaving small craters in her wake. The lanky blonde appeared to have also landed a few hits, as evidenced by smoking patches on her opponent's right arm and both legs.

Beryl, unfortunately, seemed to be faring far worse already. She'd activated her semblance and hunkered down, catching each relentless hammering of Dusty's enormous steel-shod club. He moved far faster than any man that size should have been able to, whirling his club around to hit the blue-haired girl from different angles, keeping her so occupied that she seemed unable to even get a shot in from her carbine.

"Lustre," she called out, wanting to know if she might be able to handle Berry on her own for a spell.

"Not advisable," she grunted back, spinning her staff around her torso. She fired off a few shots from the end of her staff, which Berry blocked adroitly with the shorter sword while fending off Evie's scimitar with the other.

She knew Lustre was right, Berry was just too much to handle for one of them right now. But still, she worried for Beryl. If she could just step up her efforts…

As soon as the idea came to her, she acted upon it. "Campfire!" she declared.

Without hesitation, Lustre used a short burst of her semblance to speed directly behind Evie just as she began a sweep of her trusty Dao, activating her red dust chamber as she did so. Berry brought both swords up to block, but as she suspected, his ice semblance left him more vulnerable to the flame attack. He let out a grunt of pain as he stumbled back, and Lustre was on him once again to press the attack.

Evie took a quick glance at the main screen that displayed the aura levels of the combatants. She and Lustre were well into the green, Pip's levels still green but heading down into yellow. Beryl, unfortunately, was already there in the yellow and fading. The Cat Faunus took a quick swing at Berry to keep him occupied before she could check on Beryl again.

The glowing blue girl was still on the defensive, but Dusty had shifted so that Nix could direct sniper fire on her as well. Most of the hits were absorbed by her oversized shield, but some must have gotten through.

And then, as Dusty began a low-sweeping strike on Beryls shield side, a hit from Nix caused Dahl to tilt up ever so slightly from the impact. It was just enough to allow for the club to arc in and strike the petite girl in the leg.

With her semblance activated, Beryl was well-nigh unmovable. Her feet anchored her and served as focal points that combined with her shield to block any attacks. Unfortunately, while her feet stayed still, her leg did not.

Evie stared in horror as her friend screamed in agony, the crack of her snapped leg carrying across the arena and underscoring her pain. The blue glow cut off as she collapsed to one knee. And then, with a manic grin, Dusty reversed the direction of his strike. The backswing hit Beryl's unprotected side and sent her flying into a ruined building, silencing the petite blue-haired girl.

The Cat Faunus screamed out Beryl's name, just as the announcer came on. "And with that brutal hit, Radiance Beryl is out of the fight!"

She ignored the color commentary that followed, her face slipping into a fierce snarl. He's gonna pay for that… Pip was already in motion, however, and called out, "Evie, take mine!"

The raven-haired Faunus obeyed her team leader without hesitation, blinking over to intercept the flail that was swung at the blonde's back with her scimitar. Evie danced to the side, avoiding a second strike before rolling under yet another.

"What is it with you bitches that you won't stay still?!" she heard Sinna growl.

Evie didn't answer as she had half of her attention on Pip. The lanky blonde was charging at Dusty with a defiant roar, her sword glowing white-hot and held low and behind her with both hands. The large man grinned and set his feet, swinging his club idly in one hand as he watched her approach. When she was almost in striking range he whipped his weapon up and around, trying to catch the team leader in her side to send her flying towards her fallen teammate.

Pip, however, had other plans.

She didn't even bother trying to strike at him, merely skidded to a halt and intercepted his weapon. By now Odachi Dahlia was glowing hotter than Evie had even seen before, so bright that it almost hurt to look at it. She swept it up and lopped off the upper third of the club.

Dusty stumbled as his club became unbalanced. He stared uncomprehendingly at the end of it as it bounced to the ground, but Pip didn't let up. She screamed angrily, her coral eyes flashing as she swung again and again. He vainly tried to block the strikes, but each time she took another piece off of his weapon until there was only the handle left. And then, with a whirl that sent her long blond ponytail arcing out, she swept his feet out from under him with a low strike from her sword.

Before he could hit the ground, Pip was up, leaping high to deliver another strike straight into his stomach. He slammed into the ground, clutching his smoking middle painfully, as his aura dipped into the red. Without hesitation, Pip landed next to him and delivered a vicious kick to his forehead, knocking him out as well as out of the fight.

"Well, looks like Pippin Cerise got revenge for her teammate! Dusty Vajo is out, much to everyone's surprise!" The announcer began to expound on the clash just seen, but by that point Evie had to focus on her own opponent as she'd stepped up her attacks. She swung her flail in a figure-eight pattern, twirling it quickly before shooting it out at her. She did a quick somersault backwards, avoiding the explosive ground strike as well as the follow-up that barely passed over her bent torso.

"Oh, and the exciting back and forth continues as Pippin Cerise falls to Nix Flae!"

"Dust damn it all!" Evie snarled at the announcer's words. Sure enough, Pip's aura was in the red and she was slumped onto the ground. It looked as if she were trying to advance towards a spot back in the ruins, and her Faunus eyes caught the reflection off of metal up in the second story of a ruined building.

Okay, time to get us back on even footing…

"Lustre!" she yelled. "Ping Pong!"

She knew she was going to owe her teammate big-time after this. The maneuver, which had fortunately been renamed from 'Pretzel' the week prior, called for Lustre to draw heavily upon her semblance in order to distract a pair of opponents while the other teammate took out a third. The Cat Faunus leapt back just in time, as a blur of white streaked past to slam into Sinna, bowling her over. As soon as she had hit, she was gone again, heading back to Berry.

Evie took advantage of the breathing room to activate her own semblance. Mentally crossing her fingers, she pushed a little extra aura into the effort and teleported into the building where she'd seen the sniper.

The Cat Faunus ended up miscalculating slightly and blinked in just above the floor of the ruined building, but she landed in an easy crouch with her tail out behind her for balance. It was enough to get Nix's attention, as the girl whirled around in surprise. Evie didn't allow her time to react, as her scimitar was already sweeping out in front of her. The application of green dust caused a concussive blast to strike the hapless sniper directly, shattering the wall behind her and sending her sailing out of bounds.

Grinning tightly at the sound of the buzzer indicating the elimination of another opponent, Evie darted forward and leapt out of the building.

"A surprise attack from Evelyn Black eliminates Nix Flae from the fight! Boy, she almost took out the whole building with her, didn't she?"

You ain't seen nothin' yet, she grinned to herself ferally. She eyed her opponents carefully as she raced forward as well as Lustre's position. Her silver-haired teammate was still bouncing from one target to the other, but she had to be almost spent.

With a wordless shout, Evie leapt into the air and blinked over directly behind Sinna. Her feet landed right between her shoulder blades to send the flail-wielder crashing face-down into the concrete.

Before she could recover, Lustre was there and swinging her staff in an overhand strike, landing a powerful blow on the top of the downed Vacuo native's head.

"Oh, my, Sinna Myst has been double-teamed and is now out as well! It's two-on-one, and things are not looking good for Team Obsidian!"

Evie caught Lustre as she staggered forward after her last sprint. The silver-haired girl sagged in her arms, panting heavily.

"Hey, nice job, sweetie," Evie murmured, keeping a wary eye on the slowly approaching Berry. "Think you got enough juice to take this last guy down?"

"Perhaps," Lustre groaned, straightening out. "Allow me to engage at range, though."

Evie turned to face her, giving her a wink and a grin. "You got it." Without sparing a glance, she blinked herself backwards and directly behind their last remaining opponent.

While he might have been low on aura, his reflexes were still up to the task. Berry quickly spun, bringing one sword up to block Evie's strike while the other stabbed downwards. The Cat Faunus' eyes widened as her right foot got caught in the spreading ice on the ground, rendering her temporarily immobile.

Just as he swung one of his swords back with a wide smirk on his face, Berry was hit from behind with multiple rounds. He turned, the victorious expression now one of anger, to spin a blade and deflect the attacks, and so missed Evie's triggering of her dust chamber. The concussive blast sent her sprawling, free of the ice, but it served its primary purpose well as Berry's aura finally slipped past the line.

"And that's the match, as Berry Frost is eliminated! Team Pearl takes the win!"

Evie struggled to her feet, eyeing Lustre wonderingly. Well, how about that, we actually pulled it off… Oh, Dust, Beryl!

She squeezed the last of her aura into her semblance, teleporting over to where she'd seen her friend land.

"Beryl!" she yelled anxiously as she sheathed Dao. "Beryl, where are you?"

The raven-haired Faunus frantically dug among the rubble, pulling bits and pieces of concrete aside until she could spy a glimpse of blue steel.

"Oh, thank Oum," she whispered, pulling more of the debris aside. She uncovered Dahl, and gently moved it aside.

Her teammate was lying under it, unmoving but breathing shallowly. Streaks of blood ran through the concrete dust that dulled her blue hair and her face. She looked down and gasped to see the compound fracture in her leg.

Oh my Oum, she's lucky she didn't lose her entire leg!

"Medic!" she screamed over her shoulder. "Please, we need a medic here! Quickly!"

Pip arrived at that point, supported by Lustre as she still wasn't too steady on her feet. Both of them inhaled sharply at the condition of their teammate.

"I'm gonna go chop that asshole's leg off right now," the blonde growled furiously.

"No, Pip, do not do anything rash," Lustre warned, tightening her grip around her waist.

Evie didn't pay them much heed as she reached down and gently clasped one of Beryl's limp hands.

"Please," she whispered through the tears she hadn't realized were streaming down her cheeks. "Please be okay, Beryl… just hang in there."

She heard the sounds of a commotion behind her as medical personnel arrived with a stretcher.

Please be okay…

Shade Academy

Infirmary

Beryl had immediately been flown back to Shade and brought into their extensive infirmary. Her weary and dirty teammates stuck by her side all the way up until she was taken back into surgery.

Both Pip and Lustre sat next to each other, gratefully drinking down fluids, but Evie sat off by herself, staring at her hands that were clenched in between her legs.

Through the haze of exhaustion, the Cat Faunus tried to ponder why she acted the way she had at the end of the fight.

Of course I was concerned with Beryl, she's my teammate, my friend. My sister through a bond more powerful than blood. There's nothing wrong with that.

It was only due to her weary state of mind that she was even allowing herself to wander down this path of self-reflection. Normally she wouldn't consider her actions to be out of the ordinary, but something, some small little voice in the back of her head, was whispering to her that all was not as it seemed.

Ridiculous. She snorted to herself softly. What am I thinking, that I… like her in some fashion? I don't see her that way, and she certainly doesn't see me in such a fashion. Besides, Sunny has her sights set on her, and I want her to be happy.

There it was again, that little twinge that coiled in her chest whenever she thought of Sunny and Beryl together.

Yes, Dust be damned, I want her to be happy! I want her safe, and whole, and… and…

"Hey, you okay, babe?" Pip softly inquired.

Evie looked up at her blearily. "I'm… Yeah. Just worn out, I think I completely drained myself of my aura reserves."

"You and I both," Lustre murmured. She held up a bottle of electrolyte fluids inquiringly, and Evie nodded back in appreciation. The silver-haired girl sent it to her in an underhand toss, which she almost didn't catch.

"Yeah, okay, maybe you need to lie down a bit," the blonde stated, rising up from her chair to move over to her partner. "You're gonna fall over soon."

"Can't," she mumbled, fumbling with the drink bottle. Why can't I get this bloody thing open? "Have to… wait for Beryl…"

Pip sighed and plucked the bottle out of her hands. She deftly twisted it open before handing it back again.

"Thanks," Evie murmured before taking a long pull of the fluid. It definitely helped, she could feel the rejuvenating aspect of the energy drink revitalizing her immediately. "Okay," she sighed in relief. "Yeah, that helped alot. I'm good now, honest."

Pip let out a noncommittal hum, but their heads all snapped around as the door to Beryl's room opened.

"Alright then, you are Team Pearl?" the female doctor asked. "We're done in here, you're welcome to come sit inside now."

The three girls eagerly sprang to their feet and followed the doctor inside. Beryl lay on her back, the sheets pulled aside to expose the large white cast that engulfed her lower leg. Seeing Beryl in the pale green hospital gown, swathed in bandages from the wounds she'd taken when thrown through the wall, she looked to be so…

"She looks so small and fragile," Pip whispered brokenly as she eased herself into a chair.

"Yeah," Evie nodded, wiping away a stray tear. "Yeah, she does."

Lustre walked over to the bedside and held Berl's hand in her own, staring down at her partner sorrowfully. "Pip," the silver-haired girl breathed.

"Yeah, babe?"

"I believe you had some plan to separate that man's leg from his body?"

Pip laughed humorlessly. "Yeah, but you were right earlier, cooler heads should prevail on this. Don't need to get us disqualified already."

"And there's no need for it," Lazuli announced as he eased the door to the room open. The girls greeted him softly, the toll from the day's fight clearly wearing on them.

"Don't be concerned with Mister Vajo," their combat instructor assured them. "I spoke with Headmaster Zaff personally, and he has assured me that his student's actions will not go unpunished." The grey-haired man smiled at them wryly. "I imagine having that young man's brutality showcased on live television did not do him any favors, either."

"Well, that's good, at least," Pip grumbled. "Any idea as to what his punishment is?"

"As I understand it, for starters he is restricted to campus for the remainder of the semester, as well as prohibited from utilizing the training facilities," Lazuli murmured. "Granted, he will still be graduating at the end of the semester, but I believe Headmaster Zaff has a few more ideas to make Mister Vajo regret his actions."

"Still doesn't help Beryl, though," Evie sighed despondently.

"No, it does not, but while small in stature, your teammate is far more willful and tenacious than most accredited hunters I have known," he assured her. "She will be back on her feet in no time. She just needs her rest."

"Thank you, Professor," Lustre smiled tearfully.

"No thanks are needed. Now, if you're willing, you have some friends outside who wish to come in."

Pip nodded gratefully. "Yeah, sure, show them in please."

Lazuli nodded to them and turned towards the door. "By the way," he mentioned over his shoulder. "You all did extraordinarily well today. I was most impressed with your ingenuity and teamwork, considering you had little chance to prepare for your opponents." Lazuli flashed them a warm smile. "Be proud of your efforts today."

With that he exited, ushering in the somber members of Team Turquoise.

Sunny immediately darted over to the side of Beryl's bed opposite of Lustre and clutched at the blue-haired girl's other hand, while Rufus walked over to engulf Pip in a warm hug.

Tara and Q came over to sit next to the Cat Faunus. "Hey, how are you doing, Evie?" the purple-haired team leader asked gently.

Evie sighed. "Been better." She laughed shortly and then amended, "Been worse, though."

Tara reached over and gave her a warm hug of support. "You know we're here for you guys, right?"

Evie nodded, resting her head on Tara's shoulder. "Yeah. Thanks."

"Hey, don't get down," Q admonished to the room at large. His quiet voice carried easily, causing them to look up at the dark-haired boy. "You guys did terrific today, and you advanced to the next round!"

"We did?" a weak voice answered. Everyone swiveled their heads to see Beryl peer out blearily from behind slitted eyelids. "Did we win?"

"Yes, we did," Lustre smiled down at her partner softly.

"Yay, us," Beryl cheered weakly. "Is it okay if I sit out the next round, though?"

Pip threw her head back and laughed loudly. She was soon joined by everyone else in the room.

"Yeah, you bet, babe," the blonde replied, wiping tears of mirth from her eyes.

Sunny leaned over and planted a kiss on Beryl's cheek. "And I'll be here to take care of you, so don't the rest of you guys worry any," she declared jubilantly.

Evie clutched at her chest from the stabbing pain that shot through her. What the hell…? She shook her head as she rose up from her seat. Ugh, I'm just tired, tired and achy and…

"Hey, you okay?" Tara asked her with a worried look on her face.

"Yeah, I'm good," Evie smiled back wanly. "Now that Beryl's awake, I think I'm gonna go sleep for a day or three."

"I'll go with you," Pip yawned. "Beryl, you rest and don't go anywhere, you hear me?"

"You got it, boss," the blue-haired girl joked quietly. "I think I'm just gonna go back to sleep myself, now."

Lustre smiled at her teammates, indicating that she would remain behind.

As Evie and Pip walked across campus and towards their dorm room, they held each other up with their arms around each other. "Hell of a day," the blonde murmured.

"Yep," Evie sighed. "At least we know she's okay, though."

"Yeah. Beryl's one tough fighter. She'll be fine, especially with everyone looking out for her."

The Cat Faunus nodded numbly. And she's happy… she is, she's happy with Sunny, I could see it in her eyes when she was kissed on the cheek…

She didn't even try to fight the little voice this time, the one that now adamantly declared that she should pay attention to that stabbing pain that cut through her every time she thought of the two of them being together.

Right now, however, she was simply too tired to care.

Undisclosed Location

"Well, well," the man in the shadows murmured. "What have we here…"

He was intently watching the replay of one of the Vytal Festival bouts. His hand was resting on the controls in front of him, sometimes pausing the action, other times rewinding it to view it again.

"My Lord?" a feminine voice called out.

The elegantly suited man snapped his gaze up to stare at his subordinate with his intense pale green eyes. "Yes, Whisper?" he asked levelly.

The tiny girl wore her dark purple hair in ringlets across her shoulders today, and they bounced slightly as she made a brief curtsy. The man smiled very slightly at her renewed deference.

"My Lord, have you had the chance to review the footage from our subject that was killed?" she asked, her small hands clutching at her dark skirt.

"I have indeed. You might find this interesting, actually."

He tapped a few keys and a pair of pictures were sent up on the screen. As it was transparent, she was easily able to see it, even though it was in reverse. On one, a pair of female teens in armor were facing the camera in a combat pose, one huddled behind a large blue shield while the other seemed to be in motion, running towards them and wielding a large sword. The other showed the scene before the tournament fight that evening, a group shot of four girls, two of which matched the ones in the first image.

"That's the group from tonight's fight…" Whisper mused quietly.

"Yes, they are," he replied with a trace of humor in his voice. "Team Pearl from Beacon."

"Seemed like they just barely won, though," Whisper commented as she stood upright, tugging her black jacket into place. "What were the names of the two who killed the subject?"

"Pippin Cerise and Radiance Beryl," the suited man replied slowly, rolling the names across his tongue as if savoring the flavor of them. "The only students so far to have survived an encounter with our project."

"So," the girl began, taking a seat across from him. "What do you intend to do?"

He sat quietly, gazing intently at the two image captures. "This one," he finally murmured absentmindedly, "has a heat-related semblance…"

"My Lord?"

"Nothing just yet, my dear, though they might be of use in the future for a more advanced phase…" He leaned forward slightly, enough that the glow from his monitor reflected off of his glittering pale green eyes.

"For now, though… Perhaps we should look into relocating to Vale…"

"Um, I see…" Whisper replied uncertainly. "Shall I ask Leech to look into it?"

"Not just yet, no," he dissented quietly. "He's needed where he is." He leaned back once more and steepled his fingers. "That will be all, Whisper."

"Yes, My Lord," the tiny girl responded before departing.

The suited man touched another few keys, and the tournament from earlier once again played on the screen. He froze it at the image of Pip as she charged at the towering Dusty.

"Someday, perhaps soon…" He murmured to himself. "You just might be very valuable to me…"

A/N: Hmm, so we got us some kick-ass action, a wounded Beryl being tended to by Nurse Sunny, a mopey kitty cat, and the mystery man of the hour plotting fiendishly. Oh, and yes, there's mention of a new player on the bad guy's side. Leech will show up later, have no fear. He's a real charmer.

Fortunately I had this chapter pretty well planned out already, so it wasn't too hard to piece together. Next one up, we get to the doubles round!

Thanks for reading so far, and much love to my favoriters, followers, and reviewers! Please do drop a quick review, no matter how short, if you would be so kind and let me know what you think!

knight7572: Sorry, mate, but the events of this story take place about 40 years after the events of RWBY, and at this point in time all of the members of that team are deceased. (See my previous one-shot, Retired.)

Commando2341: Aww, now you didn't think it'd be that easy, did you? :-)

Stay shiny!