"...Lucas." She said, after a brief period of silence, still staring straight ahead. "Thank you for being her boyfriend, and thank you for caring." She said bluntly, Lucas would feel as though he were talking to Ieria on the first day of school again. "She was so scared when she first came here, but the idea of seeing you again kept her going until she found herself fitting in." She smiled thinly. "I'll get her back...we'll get her back."

"Hmm..." Ayers ground to a halt and swiveled around, looking at Rufus and Imuka. "Thoughts, Imuka? Just three queers, hanging out, gitting shit done? I figger we could head online, maybe find a way to publish some threats towards Arcana?" He shrugged. "Could also git a calendar out, plan this shit out. In light of... this..." He waved vaguely towards the living room. "I think I gotta git started on an, uh, plan, that I got. Y'all could sit with me and help me draft it up."

Imuka nodded a bit unsure what she was agreeing too, but any thing had to be better then this at the moment, then she thought for a few more seconds.

"I-I am thinking I should go get cleaned up first though"

Alexia let herself be shaken, a small bitter smile on her face. "Oh, Alfred..."

"....It's not like that at all. I know I'm weak. I just want...no. I need to be stronger."

"Alfred, for someone who claims not to care at all...you're a very caring man."

"Don't worry about me, Alfred. I won't break. I have everyone."

Lies...

She leaned forward an kissed him. Just a little peck. "....I'm still not sure what I feel about you. And I'm afraid I'll never be."

"Right," Lucas said, hiding his surprise at what Francesca said. He knew Carol was always wanting to be with him, but... being scared of being without him?

She kept going for me... and half the time she freaked me out. Some boyfriend I was...

"I'm going to head to my room to rest," Lucas said soon after. "I'm not going to heal as fast if I'm constantly using my semblance..."

"Don't you fucking tell me you won't break. What was today is barely a sneak peak to the horrors that you're likely to face. You know that. And yet you think you can lie to me? Do you really think I won't notice or that I'll ignore that, just because you give me a half-assed apology for this shit with goodbye peck on the cheek? I'm not Pius Lexi."

"...No. You're not. You're much more irritating." said Alexia, a slight smile on her face.

"...Of course I don't know whether I'll break or not. What I'm saying, Alfred..."

"....Is that I need you to trust me."

"You're gonna pull the damn trust card on someone who only recently barely started acknowledging its damn worth in this world? Hahahahaha, you've gotta be kidding me." He sighed and shook his head. He was barely sure what he was doing by now.

"You'd need to build it for more than two months in order for that to work."

Al returned to his anger again. He was already deep in this, there wasn't a way for him to stop.

"And speaking of trust, if you just waltz off and leave me behind what am I supposed to do then huh? You've made me feel things I haven't had the liberty of feeling before..." Mid-sentence, Lexi would notice a few tears started to roll of Alfred's cheeks, though he still kept the same furious expression. Seemingly unaware that he was crying. "Those feelings would get me killed back home. You actually fucking made me develop some form of trust in you. What the hell am I supposed to do about any of this?"

edited 9th Jan '15 11:06:17 PM by LiorVal

Dust, what have I done?!

Alexia embraced Alfred from behind, enveloping him with her arms. She buried her face in his back and sobbed.

"...I'm sorry. I'm terrible, really, doing this to you."

Stand firm...

"I have to do this, you know? I need to get stronger! This is for all of us."

"Alfred...j-just...I...I don't know, Al. I don't know what to tell you. I want to help you. Make the pain go away..."

"...But I don't know how."

"So...for now...maybe just let me hold you like this?"

"Fuck!" The building was filled by a loud scream, Jack was upright in his bed, staring at the stump. This-This wasn't right! He could feel his arm, it felt like pins and needles...But it wasn't there.

He quickly got off the bed, walking out of the room, not even noticing the mechanical arm on the bedside table. His eyes glued to where his arm used to be, luckily, the bleeding had stopped and it had mostly closed somewhat while he was asleep, but...

"Where the fuck is my arm!?" He wandered through the building, occasionally screaming a combination of the words 'where' 'fuck' and 'arm'.

edited 9th Jan '15 11:29:04 PM by TroyandHawk

As she embraced him, Al felt a sharp pain in his back and flinched, although the princess couldn't have known and likely doesn't notice as he is holding back. That back has faced quite a lot of torture. Though the man endured it, and looked downwards at the ground.

"I don't know how either Lexi. If I ever did maybe shit wouldn't be like this. But as far as I know, the pain of permanent scars doesn't leave, ever. That's just how our stupid bodies work."

"Which is why I'm not going to let you do this alone. You don't need those fucking scars."

"... Look, I'm a survivor from hell. And it's the first time I cared for those wishing to visit that place. I'm not letting you in there without me".

Rufus's word awoke her from her daze. "I'm sorry Rufus. I'm completely useless in this kind of situation, and I don't see where my skills are usefull, I can't scope out an enemy from this far away, I don't see what good drawing is in this situation. I'm not sure I'm even good for emotional support at the moment..." Silvia said.

Alexia looked at Alfred, her own heart a mixed jumble of feelings.

Stand firm!

No, you fool! You cannot do this alone!

A few seconds of indecision. Then finally, an answer. Slowly she nodded at him.

"..Very well then. Help me get stronger. Keep me from breaking. I..I'm counting on you."

...Yes, that's right. She needed to be stronger, but she needed someone to help her.

But.

She had to make sure he wasn't hurt because of her. She'll shoulder most of the burden. She wouldn't let herself drag him down.

Thus did the princess promise herself.

Welcome to Beacon: End of Volume One

...And they returned home, exhausted, broken, fearful of the future. Glynda was ashamed of herself. As soon as they returned, the Witch declared Dorm White Rose a Special Protectorate and forbade them from going anywhere unattended by at least one veteran team.

The young students trained and fought and studied and soon time passed. For those who trained with Francesca, for those who locked themselves in.

On the first day of Ventus, Ozpin returned to the school. Where he went and what he did there is still unknown.

On the fifteenth of Ventus, Ghatz Mienne was found heavily injured in an alleyway. The attacker? ...The Magician. Ghatz is still comatose to this day.

The twentieth of Ventus, a new student transferred in. Many resented him for taking the place of a fallen comrade.

So, the days passed. And now...

Welcome to Beacon: Volume 2

Crystallum 20, Five AM. Dorm White Rose, Friday

Alexia Louisse Vale went down to the kitchens, exhausted. She had been duelling Alfred and Noa nonstop since midnight. She needed food. Just food, a little rest...then another round.

Two months. Has it really been that long? Had she gotten stronger? ...She needed to work more regardless.

Carol was still missing. Ghatz still in the hospital. She couldn't stop.

On her way, she almost bumped into someone.

"...Hmm. Excuse me, Miss.."

"...Hope."

She was in full armor. She almost always was. So it was a good thing that she hadn't collided with the other girl.

@opnerf: Let's discuss what to do with Ventus 3 on the DT.

Crystallum 20

...hm. I like this drawing. Hope Remington glanced at her sketchbook. The sketch in question was a hanged man dangling from the noose, with vaguely Grimm-like creature pecking at his eye. The man, due to being, well, dead, remained indifferent to such treatments.

She glanced back to see the familiar voice. Alexia. Something twitched inside Hope's mind, but she shut down emotion without so much as a single thought.

"Hey." She spoke as she turned around to face her friend. There was no mistaking it: Hope looked barely alive at the moment. Judging by the size of shadows under her eyes and slightly twitching left hand she wasn't getting as much rest as she should. "Sorry for blocking the way. I just got absorbed in thought." Wheeling a little to the side and allowing the princess a free passage to the kitchen, Hope went back to the sketchbook, continuing to scribble her morbid drawing.

Alexia inwardly cried out when she saw the state Hope was in. She..hated it. She hated seeing her like that. She wanted to reach out and-!

But her face was calm. The raging storm was inside her. She musn't look weak, else Hope worry even more. She didn't want to add to her burden.

"....You should rest." She said, her gloved hand reaching out and pulling Hope towards her.

"...Getting yourself killed won't help anybody."

Her voice was calm and even. Her heart, anything but.

Hypocriiiiiiteeee!

Crystallum 20

Hope would feel something stir in her side. Sophie was leaning on her, lying down on the couch. She had been playing her handheld when she fell asleep. She jolted awake, looking around drowsily.

"Mmmmrrr... What time is it?"

"I can't sleep. Thank you for concern, but I'm fine."

She knows how to be not-fine. It's not like I can call a convincing bluff either.

"You should rest yourself." Hope shook her head and folded the sketchbook back. "And not just fifteen minutes before jumping to another fight. Rest, as in, sleep."

Then, rather unexpectedly, she found someone almost all over her. "...way over five in the morning, Soph." She responded flatly, tempted to move out of the way and let her fall down... but that would be rather unnecessarily cruel. Plus, truth be told she barely even saw now anyway.

edited 10th Jan '15 1:46:50 AM by FergardStratoavis

Medus was in the forest and flying.

Well not the actual forest, he was in the training room which he had set up to look like a forest for this particular training, all of them had to have chaperones when leaving the dorm which had gotten old real fast and showed no signs of stopping.

Nor was he actually flying but while grappling from point to point with Venom, his new chain gauntlet, he imagined it was what flying felt like. Then again I could just compare notes with Pius since he has jet boots. Ah, to hell with it, later Te rocker focused on a small swinging target down below. Medus fired and caught a point of the floor five feet behind it. I love this part. Activating the gauntlet, the rocker sped towards the target, pushing both feet out at the last second in a stomping foot dive that knocked the target off it's pendulum.

He pumped his fist in the air. "Haha, I. Am. Awesome. Now just one more target." A wooden target with several deep slash marks that had clearly been painted over several times with caricatures of different arcana members (today featuring The World) popped up on it's stand. Medus threw Nightshaker forward and lanched Venom catching the axe and swing it into the target for the first time. Yes! He swung the axe back and forth and around on the chain, hitting two, four, six, eight, ten...Nightskaer flew loose and embedded itself deep in one of the mock trees.

Medus stared for a moment. "Well...crap." The rocker sighed and retracted Venom before walking over to retrieve his primary weapon.

edited 10th Jan '15 1:53:59 AM by guyshane

Flashback

There was no real light down here, so the beach was as dark as she would remember. She didn't have to look far for the Jade Matriarch, who was seated in the sand staring out at the lake water, seemingly lost in thought.

Crystallum 20

Her fists hurt. She had been practicing again after class for the third time this week, without her mother's help to boot. But now she regretted it as she held her bloodied fist to the ground, staring at the wall she had been beating on for the past half hour. Numerous dents dotted its surface, all in the shape of a fist that had rapidly impacted it over and over again. "Damn..." Ieria Jade hissed as she tried to unclench her left hand, only to find it still in too much pain.

"...Blaaaah..."

Sophie continued to lean on Hope. She was a great pillow. "The demon on the 43rd floor was really hard Hope...." She was fighting sleep. She wanted to keep playing.

edited 10th Jan '15 1:56:54 AM by Saturn

Umbra 13

"...I'm here, Lady Francesca." Alexia said. She was dead tired, but this had to be important.

"...What is it?"

The Present

Alexia looked at Hope with a raised eyebrow. "You look like a beowolf cub could beat you." She told her frankly.

"Besides, I've been training. I can handle it."

No change in tone.

She saw Sophie. She wanted to smile, but it seemed she had forgotten how.

"...Come on, let's go get coffee. Wake Miss Sophie up."

Beach

"...Just like me then..." She said with a sigh as she stirred in her seat, shaking her head as she rolled her shoulders. "...About as hopeless as I was. She mumbles again, gesturing for Alexia to sit.

Memories

Alexia did what she was told, sitting next to Lady Francesca with a frown in her face.

"Excuse me...what do you mean?"

Hope grumbled with displeasure. "Can't imagine fighting any Grimm while in the wheelchair, yes." She droned flatly, sighing. "But yeah, coffee would be great."

Turning her attention to the fellow gamer she quirked her eyebrow. "What were you playing again, Soph?" She asked, her curiosity piqued. Of course, one could not forget a few nudges to grab Sophie nback into reality.

edited 10th Jan '15 3:13:53 AM by FergardStratoavis

Alexia served coffee without a word. She still remembered how Hope liked her drink. Sitting a respectful distance away from the other girls, she took a sip of coffee.

And let out a harsh breath. Dust-! That hurt! Her left shoulder! What happenned? Was it a training injury?

Forcing herself not to wince, she rubbed the offending shoulder.