#this ability can be SO USEFUL up until it’s cut off midway and suddenly uh oh it’s horrifying

[turtleblogatlast]

The fact that Leo can go literally anywhere on earth to be alone with his thoughts at a single moment’s notice is something that shakes around in my head all the time. Like, portals and teleportation are amazing and convenient abilities both in and out of battle, but they could also so easily be used to run away as well.

I don’t think Leo ever would, at least not most of the time. He loves his family too much, and is too dependent on their love and attention to cut himself off so suddenly like that, but it’s a very real possibility nonetheless.

It’s a good thing Leo’s overall temper is more on the mild side and he prefers going to his room or something to complete solitude, because it really is dangerous for a kid to have the ability to isolate themselves like that at their fingertips.

[defiant-firefly]

October Challenge Day 7

Aight so the prompt here is ‘Scream’ from the Cryptober prompt list by @tricksterdoodles and @diremirebee! It’s not an art thing I literally just used this prompt cause I had the idea and tried to match it to a prompt that wasn’t on the 31st so I could write it sooner.

Anyway, this one is probably more suited to a Whumptober entry honestly as I’ve been dubbing this the ‘I dump Labby in a blender ASMR’ for a while now. It ended up longer than expected so I’m seperating what I had planned for today into two different prompts. The next part of this at least three part idea will probably be written at the earliest possible date so lookout for that.

Today’s prompt though does require some warnings so... in summary, I essentially torture Labrys from P4A. She gets electrocuted a lot, she’s restrained at the time and will black out over it. If this isn’t your thing/this makes you uncomfortable, don’t read this.

Fic under the cut for this who do want to read...

“Alright 031. We’re gonna be doing something a little different today.” The untidy researcher spoke as 031 tilted her head from the maintenance chair. Did that mean she wouldn’t have to fight today? A hope started bubbling within her as she waited for clarification.

“You’re going to be fitted with a new upgrade that should alter your performance in the testing chamber and hopefully increase your effectiveness with self-preservative protocols.” The woman explained as she fiddled with her glasses and shifted her clipboard under her arm. “In order to issue this upgrade to you, we’ll need you to power down completely. Is that understood?”

“Understood.” She answered with a nod, a curious glimmer in her eyes. An upgrade huh? What could it be? Improved balancers or maybe a targeting system? But then they did say self preservative protocols so… hm…

Did this mean she was too reckless?

“Well the preparations are all complete so when you’re ready, you can proceed with the shutdown.” At that, 031 leaned back a bit more and started the shutdown process. Hopefully this wouldn’t take long and she could go tell 024 about her new upgrade.

As the world went dark, she couldn’t help but notice the worried tone in one of the researchers as they questioned how worth it this would be.

When her awakening was next triggered, she opened her eyes to find the researchers all at a slightly larger distance away from her. Did something happen whilst she was out?

“Good to see you’re back with us 031. Anything to report?” At the question, she ran a quick scan, finding no abnormalities. Instead she found that the new software had been integrated into every aspect of her self and had to wonder what exactly it was.

“Nothin’ to report.” She answered with a shake of the head. “No abnormalities.”

“Good, good. Now we can begin the testing aspect for today.” The researcher with the curled hair picked up his clip board and pen, holding the nib against what she could only assume was the first item on his checklist. “Now how should we do this…?” He mused as one of the other researchers glanced over his shoulder.

“Can we not just use the same methods as we did unit 014?” The woman asked with a raised eyebrow and 031 found her head tilting as she tried to figure out what they were planning. Did 014 have this new upgrade too? She briefly wondered if she could find her and ask about it later to see what testing she had to undergo but after some thought, she decided that was likely not a good idea. 024 was the only other person she found that had any semblance of a personality after all.

“I suppose we could… Its natural resistances should nullify any lasting effects and I guess given its much more advanced design…” The untidy researcher rolled his eyes at him.

“Look, it’ll be fine. Let’s just get the data already.” He walked towards 031, removing a rectangular object from a nearby box and stopping midway. “Well? Who wants to do it?” He addressed the rest of the researchers, presenting them with the weird, pronged object. There was silence for a while as they all exchanged looks.

“I’ll do it.” The woman stepped forward and dropped her notes onto the table, taking the object from the man with an uncaring expression.

“You sure?” The man let her take it and stepped aside whilst she tutted.

“Please. It’s not even human.” 031 felt herself frown at that, though she wasn’t entirely sure why.

“Fair enough. Be careful though.” At that warning, the restraints binding her arms and legs to the chair suddenly made themselves apparent to her. It must be a safety thing she supposed. The woman nodded at him, before approaching her. She stopped by her side and adjusted a dial on the device before reaching it out towards her.

“Now, this should feel a little different to anything you’ve felt before.” She explained as 031 watched her curiously. So they’d upgraded her sense of touch? Hm… “We’ll try the lowest possible setting first to see how you are and will go from there. Understood?”

“Understood.” She parroted back with a nod, wondering what this was supposed to feel like to her.

“Good. Then let’s proceed.” Without another moment, the woman held the button on the side down, a strange buzzing sound emanating from it that sounded like a low charge of electricity running through it.

The very moment those prongs were pressed against her arm, 031 jolted, eyes wide as she instinctively shifted away from it. What was that?

It was so quick, she didn’t even know how to describe it. The woman quirked an eyebrow pressing against her arm again. This time, when she jumped and shifted, the prongs were held against her.

031’s eyes were wide as she tried to discern the feeling of electricity pulsing off her arm like this. It felt… it felt bad. As if someone was continuously pushing needles into the area the prongs were and it stung. She kept, shifting, trying to get it off to stop the bad feeling, the woman watching her intently as she did so.

When the object was pulled away, she found the feeling hadn’t entirely left with it. She breathed a small sigh of relief as the sensation began to lessen until it was barely a dull throbbing in the back of her mind. Ruby eyes narrowed on the device that had caused such a feeling and tilted her head as she tried to put words to it all.

“Well? What did that feel like?” The woman asked as she began to adjust the dials again.

“Um… like…” a long hum, before inspiration struck, “It felt like the sound that you hear when metal scrapes on metal, but not as bad.” There was some mumbling between the researchers as they jotted things down on their notepads and clipboards, some examining the computer monitors and relaying that information back to them.

“Do you have a word for that feeling?” She asked and 031 shook her head. “That feeling is known as pain. It’s the physical indicator for something that has caused, or almost caused damage to you, or it lets you know when something is wrong with your body.” 031 hummed as that information processed.

So they gave her the ability to feel pain? What was the point in that? To make her more human? She hoped so.

“Upping the power level to two.” The woman announced as she finished fiddling with the device. What would it feel like this time? Would it feel better than before?

The moment the prongs hit, she got her answer. She startled, trying to move away from the object that was now pressed against her restrained leg. This… this hurt.

The electricity ran through her leg, sending signals every which way that this wasn’t good. It stung, the limb shaking as she tried to get the feeling to stop. Was this what 014 had felt when they’d tested it on her?

When they pulled away again, she felt a little relieved but the stinging didn’t seem to want to go away. It lingered longer than last time, the intensity just that little bit stronger.

“Now, was that better or worse?” The woman asked before returning to that dial, an uneasy feeling settling in her chest at not knowing just how strong this thing could go. How bad was this going to get?

“Worse.” She answered easily, leg still aching from the contact. “Is it supposed to hurt?”

“Of course. This is an important measure to take in order to both promote the development of your personality as well as improve your risk assessment and self-preservation skills.” The explanation didn’t make her feel much better. “Now how did that feel in comparison to the last one?”

“Uh… the same but worse…?” She offered, not really sure how else to say it. The researchers nodded as they scribbled more notes down and the remnants of the last contact faded away.

“I see. Increasing power to level three.” Without giving her time to prepare, the woman pressed the prongs to the back of her wrist. 031 felt herself yelp at the sensation, her arms struggling against the restraints as the pain increased tenfold. Why was this so much worse?

The moments seemed to drag on longer now, the stinging sensation becoming more akin to the sickening sound she’d heard when she burst the neck of one of the others. When the device was removed, she felt her breaths coming a little heavier, the pain hardly dying down at all, even as the researchers talked amongst themselves. She found herself eying the device warily, one question coming to mind that she had to voice.

“What is that…?” Whatever it was, she hated it. Why did something like this even exist? Who would ever think inventing that was a good-

It was at that moment, 031 realised that the same could be said about herself and decided to stop that train of thought. She had to prepare herself for the next contact.

“This is a taser, specifically designed to inflict pain upon the target but not so much that it leaves lasting damage.” The woman explained nonchalantly as the researchers continued to exchange theories in the background. She didn’t particularly care to listen to it this time. It never made much sense to her anyway.

“Increasing power to level four.” The woman spoke again, this time causing her to flinch and brace herself for what was to come, the stinging from the last contact still not having fully dissipated yet.

When the electricity hit, no amount of bracing could have prepared her for it. She jumped and jolted violently as the pain seared through her body, burning through her insides from where the taser pressed against her stomach. It hurt so bad…

It took a while to register she was making noise, vocalising her pain with yelps and yowls as she struggled. Why was this one taking so much longer?!

As the taser left, she felt her breathing suddenly become much easier, though still remaining shaky as the lingering pain continued to scream at her. Her head hung as she focused on trying to calm herself, she didn’t know how much was to come but she had a feeling it wasn’t over yet. Glancing back up, a nervous look at the woman showed she was once again fiddling with the dials. Just how much more was there?

“Upping power to level five.” She spoke, 031 already leaning away from her the best she physically could being restrained as well as she was. Her eyes scrunched shut, body tensing as she dreaded the shock to come.

Her eyes flew open as the worst pain yet, seared through her systems. She screamed at the sensation, her attempts to escape doubling since last time. Her mind went blank, the only thought being to get away from the danger at any cost. The prongs pressed harder into her chest and she felt her heart screech, the crystal shaking at the forces being pushed through her body.

The fans on either side of her head began to whirl in an effort to release some of the tension, to ease the blistering hurt relentlessly pulsing through her. Her eyes found the researcher’s, pleading for her to stop.

She didn’t even blink as she held the taser harder against her.

The moment, she finally pulled away, 031 slumped in her chair. The fans never stopped spinning as she tried to catch her breath and dull the pain any way she could. Her mind settled on trying to distract herself, trying to hold onto the image of 024 and Snowy playing fetch with each other outside, or trying to figure out what she’d meant when she said they were loved.

It was no use. She couldn’t seem to focus on anything, especially as she distantly heard the researchers fiddling with the dials again.

She hoped, no, prayed there wasn’t another level. Please let that have been it. She didn’t think she could take any more of it.

Slowly, her eyes raised to find the woman who’d been doing this to her. An incredible fear began to rise as she started registering what they were saying over the sound of whirring from her cooling fans.

“I believe now would be a good time to test her limits, don’t you?” The woman spoke to the others as if she were talking about the weather.

“Hm… Wouldn’t it be better to wait till tomorrow? The build up here might affect the results.” The untidy researcher offered thoughtfully as he eyed her with a hum.

“Maybe, but doing so today might give us insight into any faults once we get to the higher intensity levels.” The man with the curled hair tweaked his glasses and she decided she didn’t like him either.

“I believe it’s worth seeing just how far we can push her so that we know where the boundaries between too weak and too strong are.” The woman crossed her arms. “Besides, she won’t be fighting anything today. There’s no risk of it affecting her performance until the effects of the sensors wear off.” 031 felt her hands start clenching and unclenching in succession at her words. Was that a nervous quirk…? Come to think of it, was vocalising distress like she’d just done a normal human reaction?

“Hmm… I suppose you have a point. It would be more beneficial to know the limit sooner rather than later…” The untidy researcher hummed to her horror. They weren’t serious… were they?

“Then it’s decided.” The woman turned back to her and she immediately shrank into her chair. She turned the dials on her taser, hopefully for the last time today before her eyes found 031’s. Any hope of appealing to her better nature fled at the sheer lack of compassion in that steady green gaze.

“Increasing to maximum power levels.” Ruby eyes opened impossibly wide before she scrambled to at least try and prepare herself for the blast of electricity to come.

Nothing could have prepared her for this. Not a single level before this had held a candle to the sheer agony that coursed through her system like a forest on fire. She screamed, loud enough for her throat to hurt, the sound echoing back at her and ringing through her ears as the fan blades spun even faster.

She thrashed in her place, fighting against the restraints and begging them to open so it would stop. Her mind spun as her screaming turned to screeching as the pain only intensified as time went on. Why wouldn’t it stop?

Not a single other thought flew through her head. Her instincts pleading with her to try and find a way out of this, her heart trembling within its cage at the sheer torture of it all.

She wanted out. She’d never wanted out more in her life as she continued to twist and turn, attempting to force the restraints off her and let her go. As the prongs were pressed even harder against her side, something in her cut out.

The world suddenly started spinning, black spots beginning to cloud her vision and the whirring of her fans growing more and more distant. The pain never stopped until the darkness swallowed her whole.

~~~~~~

Her hearing returned to her first. Her body was numb, eyes sealed shut and mouth unable to move as sounds began reaching her sensors again.

“Is it coming around?” The distant question asked by a familiar voice didn’t seem directed at her.

“I hope so. How long’s it been now?” A man this time spoke up impatiently.

“It’s been less than a day, this could have easily been worse.” Another man answered. Less than a day…?

She managed a small noise as she tried to will herself awake. As her vision returned she found herself back in her maintenance chair, the familiar researchers standing around her, observing her as usual.

“Hey. You back with us?” The untidy researcher asked rather harshly. It took her a moment to remember how to answer, a moment that seemed to intrigue all of them.

“Yeah.” Her voice had come out like a quiet whisper, her gaze wandering over her restraints to check if they were still there. The knowledge they were made her body tense and her nerves become obvious.

“Hm, it seems to have associated the restraints with the pain inflicted on it from before.” The man with the curled hair pushed his glasses up his nose, a glimmer of excitement in his eyes. “To think it’d be so quick to make connections like that. Especially given how it’s been restrained before with no negative experiences attached.”

“I’m more amazed it managed to pass out on us for as long as it did.” The untidy man huffed a bit as he approached. “Was there a fault that could have caused that? Any abnormalities at all?” He asked as he looked over his notes again.

“A-all systems green. No abnormalities.” She responded, a slight stutter in her words that seemed to interest her spectators even more.

“Alright then 031. We’ll just run a few more tolerance tests and you can go enjoy your free time.” The man with the curled hair stepped forward, picking up the taser as he passed and as the fear began to rise, she couldn’t help but wonder whether she still preferred this to the testing chamber…

[razieltwelve]

Test (Final Rose AU Snippet)

Note: This is set in the Tifa/Lightning/Fang/Summer AU. In this AU, Ruby is Summer and Lightning’s kid.

X     X     X

“Care for a match?”

Blake paused midway through one of her stretches. The sparring areas were perhaps the most popular parts of Beacons’ ample training facilities. There was very little the students enjoyed more than testing themselves against each other. She had arrived a short time ago in hopes of seeing just how she compared to some of her new classmates. However, she had not expected her first challenger to be someone quite so famous.

Then again Ruby had warned her to be on the lookout for her big sister. What had Ruby’s exact words been again? Ah yes. Apparently, her sister could occasionally be an overprotective psycho who just happened to have arguably the most brokenly powerful Semblance in the world.

Averi had, it seemed, already pummelled Yang in the past, so further pummelling was unnecessary, at least until Yang put the moves on Ruby, which, from the looks of things, might not be that far away. Weiss, though, was due for a pummelling, but the heiress had evidently taken Ruby’s warning to heart and had made herself temporarily scarce. That left only one legitimate target for Averia’s pummelling: Blake.

“Uh… sure.” Blake finished her stretch. She might as well get this over with. “Any rules?”

Averia walked calmly into the middle of the sparring field without bothering to acknowledge all of the attention they were already getting. “Until Aura depletion is acceptable.”

“Semblances?” Blake asked.

“By all means use yours,” Averia replied. “I’ve been warned to keep unnecessary property damage to a minimum, so any use of mine will be fairly light.”

Blake would almost have been comforted if Ruby hadn’t already explained to her that Saviour had levels and that even level one was basically instant murder mode. “Okay.” She moved into position opposite Averia. “Shall we start?”

Averia inclined her head and drew her weapon with a flick of her wrist. Based on the footage she’d seen, Blake knew she’d have to be wary. The pink-haired girl’s weapon could transform between a sword, a spear, a rifle, and a whip, which made it both extremely flexible and suitable for close quarters and long-range combat. “Whenever you’re ready.”

Blake normally liked to test her opponents with a few feints and tricks to see how quick their reflexes were or how good their fundamentals were. This was not a battle where she could afford to act so lightly. Her posture shifted as she moved into her fighting stance. Despite her desire to remain calm, her pulse quickened. She was one of the youngest members of Menagerie’s National Guard, one of her nation’s most elite fighting forces.

She shouldn't be nervous, but she was. All fighters exuded a sort of pressure. The better someone was at reading an opponent’s abilities, the easier it was to understand how they exerted that pressure. Some people had overwhelming amounts of Aura. Other people had extremely powerful weapons. 

Averia had something far more dangerous.

Against the most elite members of the National Guard, Blake had been forced to learn how to read and anticipate the movements of her opponents. It was perhaps the most valuable skill a warrior could possess, and the further ahead someone could read the flow of battle, the more dangerous they were. Blake was confident in her ability to read at least three or four steps ahead. That level of perception already made her far more skilled than almost anyone her age, and it put her in the top echelon of students even at Beacon.

Staring at Averia, she found herself frozen. It wasn’t fear. No. Blake had learned to conquer her fear years ago. Instead, it was understanding. Over the past several moments Blake had made dozens of minute changes to her posture as she considered different angles of attack and all the possible followups. Averia had subtly reacted to all of them in a way that let Blake know that not only had she seen them but she had also anticipated Blake’s followups as well.

How far could Averia read ahead? To her dismay, Blake realised she couldn’t tell. All she knew was that Averia could read much further ahead than she could. Was it five or six moves ahead? No. It was even further than that. She drew in a ragged breath. Had Averia already seen how the entire fight would go? Could she read so far ahead that the outcome had already been determined?

That was impossible. It had to be, right?

Unbidden, something else Ruby had said came to mind.

“Fighting my big sis is awful,” Ruby had grumbled after she trudged back from a sparring match against her sister. “It’s like fighting someone who can see the future.”

Blake’s brows furrowed. She’d dismissed the comment as sibling rivalry. Perhaps she’d been too hasty.

“If you won’t attack,” Averia murmured. “Then I hope you’re ready to defend yourself.”

There was a blur of motion, and Blake barely got Gambol Shroud up in time to block a downward slash from Averia’s weapon. The impact of the strike was almost enough to drive Blake to her knees, but there was no visible sign of effort from the other girl. Instead, the force of the blow was the result of perfect technique combined with effortless Aura reinforcement and control. As Blake shifted to push Averia’s weapon aside, Averia was already in motion.

The pink-haired girl skipped back as the sword became a spear that lanced toward Blake’s suddenly exposed side. The weapon transition was incredibly fast, and Blake jammed the sheath of her weapon down to parry the blow as she lunged forward to swipe at Averia’s side.

It was a mistake.

Averia let Blake divert her spear and used the momentum to lash out with a kick that struck the flat of Blake’s oncoming weapon. The kick knocked the blade out of Blake’s hands, and Averia’s spear became a sword again, the reduced length leaving Blake’s sheath swiping at empty air.

Blake’s eyes widened as Averia’s sword streaked toward her throat. She growled. She wasn’t about to be beaten that easily. She tugged on the ribbon attached to Gambol Shroud, and her blade jerked back toward Averia. To her disbelief, the other girl simply lifted one foot off the ground and kicked the weapon away again as her slash continued its trajectory.

Aura flashed, and Blake found herself tumbling back end over end until she skidded to a stop a dozen yards away. Once again, the sheer force behind the blow was stunning. Shaking her head to clear it, she tightened her hold on the sheath of her weapon as the other half clattered to the ground behind Averia. With a flick of her wrist, the pink-haired girl scooped the weapon off the ground with her sword and tossed it back to Blake.

The implication was obvious: she wanted to continue the match.

Blake’s jaw clenched. Fine. If that was how she wanted to do it, that’s what they’d do. She got back to her feet. She should have used her Semblance right from the start. Averia was too skilled to beat without it. The air beside Blake shimmered and a pair of clones appeared beside her.

Averia tilted her head to one side. “Tangible clones. Interesting.”

“How do you know they’re tangible?” Blake asked.

Averia pointed. “Look at the ground. Their feet are leaving indents in the grass. I also tagged your weapon with some of my Aura when I tossed it back to you. I can feel my Aura on those clones as well. An illusion would probably have been at least slightly disrupted by foreign Aura.”

Blake frowned faintly. Averia didn’t miss a thing, did she? “Well, let’s see how you do against three of me.”

The trio of Blakes launched themselves forward. Sure, her clones might not be as durable as she was, but they could still take a few hits, and their weapons were no joke either. Averia let them approach, seemingly unworried about the sudden increase in numbers.

Moving with seamless coordination, the two clones and the original launched into a whirlwind of blows. Strikes from their blades were intermingled with gunshots and ribbons as they sought to leverage their superior numbers. If they could slow Averia down - or even better entangle her - then they should be able to land a hit. 

They might as well have been trying to catch the wind.

Averia ducked and dove through the storm of blows, a flickering shadow of constant movement that seemed to know exactly what Blake was going to do before she could do it. A spear thrust dispelled one clone before the slash of a sword got rid of the other. Blake summoned two more, but they were dispelled almost as quickly as she could create them by the flowing movement of a whip. Running low on Aura, Blake tried to retreat to get some room to come up with a better plan, but Averia was on her before she could get more than a step or two away.

Blake somehow managed to block a cut aimed at her side before a swipe at her shoulder threatened to connect. Only a desperate duck got her safely out of harm’s way, but it was only temporary. A knee caught her in the chin and launched her into the air before a kick sent her tumbling back. Her Aura flickered, and she looked up in time to see Averia’s blade screech to a halt a few inches from her chest.

“That is the match, I think.” Averia paused for a moment, green eyes piercing into Blake’s before she extended one hand. “Good match.”

“Yeah,” Blake murmured quietly. “Good match.” Had Averia continued the last strike, she’d probably be dead.

Anything else Blake was thinking of saying was interrupted by an angry cry as a blur of red cannonballed into Averia.

“AHHHH!” Ruby swung her arms around like a windmill. “Stop picking on my teammate!”

Averia weathered the blows, making no effort to dodge. “Ruby, can you stop hitting me?”

“Only when you stop bullying my teammate.” Ruby continued to swing her arms at Averia while turning to look at Blake. “Are you okay, Blake? She didn’t spear you or anything?”

“Uh… I’m fine. My Aura is a little low, but that’s about it.”

Ruby stopped swinging her arms. “Hmm… so she wasn’t bullying you?”

“We were having a sparring match,” Blake said before adding with an impish smile, “Although I do think she was bullying me a bit too.”

“Gah!” Ruby jabbed one finger at Averia and then grabbed Blake. “No bullying my teammate, big sis!”

“Or what?” Averia drawled.

“I’ll… I’ll…” Ruby looked about furtively. “Or else.”

“…” Averia ruffled Ruby’s hair. “Think of a better threat next time.” Her gaze shifted to Blake. “You’re good, and you use your Semblance well.”

“You still won though.”

Averia shrugged. “I have some ideas about training that could help you. I can tell you’re used to fighting as part of a team.”

Blake’s brows furrowed. That was true. The National Guard typically deployed in small squads. It allowed them to hit harder and to cover each other’s weaknesses. “Yes, and I’m part of a team here too.”

“Being in a team is great, but you could benefit from some more individual combat practice. With your Semblance, any improvements you make could have a huge difference since your clones fight like you do.” Averia glanced at Ruby and then shifted her attention back to Blake. “I’ve been talking with some of the other teams. We’re going to set up a regular practice circuit, so we can all get more practice fighting against a variety of opponents. You guys should join.”

“Sure.” Blake could already see the benefits of that. “We’ll do that.”

Ruby’s eyes narrowed in suspicion. “Why didn’t you tell me about this?”

“I did, but you were in the middle of inhaling that box of cookies Summer Mom sent. You may not have actually realised what I was saying.”

“Hmm… yeah. That could be it.”

“Anyway,” Averia said. “Your weapon is technically a chain-scythe, right? Although you do use it as a sword and sheath as well.”

Blake nodded.

“Then you should ask our Aunt Vanille for some tips. The chain-scythe is one of the weapons favoured by the Dia. She might prefer the binding rod, but our aunt is very, very, very good with a chain-scythe, and I’m sure you could pick up some new techniques since your style seems to be based more along Mistral lines. The Dia have their own styles, and they’ve got centuries of practice using those against and alongside the Yun.”

“I don’t know the professor that well…” Blake hedged. In truth, Professor Oerba Dia Vanille’s last visit to Menagerie more than a decade ago had been a disaster, with people protesting the fact that she’d married a human instead of a Faunus. The professor undoubtedly knew who Blake was, so there was no telling how she’d react…

“Blake, you’re Ruby’s teammate. For that reason alone our aunt would help you.” Averia turned. “And she’s not the sort of person to hold other people’s mistakes against you.”

“And if that doesn’t work,” Ruby said, throwing one arm over Blake’s shoulder. “We’ll just get Diana to help us badger her until she agrees!”

X     X     X

Author’s Notes

Well, big sis makes her presence known. In all honesty, Blake did pretty well here. Averia is basically a living chainsaw, and the number of students who have any chance of beating her (even without Saviour) is very, very small. That Blake lasted that long is impressive. Of course, Averia’s challenge is two-fold. She wants to make an impression, but she also wants to help Blake since Blake is Ruby’s teammate. A stronger Blake means a safer and more successful Ruby.

You can find me on fanfiction.net, AO3, and Amazon.