Author's Note- Really sorry for late update. All I have to see is that Writer's Block SUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCKS! So after this chapter we will finally be getting to the 'Shit starts fucking happening.' segment. Anyways enjoy, review, follow, favourite, whatever. Though one thing I would really like to ask for all the people who have read this far into the story (You're all awesome by the way) is, what is your favourite thing about this story. It can be a running gag, a scene/chapter, a character, anything that you really enjoyed about this story. I really want to hear all your opinions so far and if you want to voice what you disliked about the story then that's great as well. Anything to help make this story more enjoyable for all you readers.

Chapter 24

We had just spent the last half an hour gathering all the unconscious bodies and piling them up outside of the warehouse. I looked over my shoulder to see Drake taking care of Rica who was still unconscious from the absolute thrashing she had been given.

I sighed deeply as I noticed Drake constantly checking to see if she was still breathing properly. I honestly didn't mind the growing feelings that Drake was showing towards Rica but Xochi made no secret about her distaste towards it. I couldn't exactly blame her reasoning behind it as Drake was obviously devoting more time towards Rica than he was to the entire team, but at the same time I couldn't exactly blame him. He seemed to see someone who he could truly relate to, unlike us.

Xochi was smart and definitely not heartless, but after hearing her quick little story of how she got to Beacon, after a sparring exercise with her, it was obvious that she hadn't ever experienced any real heartbreak in her life and was too accustomed to seeing everything in a black or white perspective. It made her a simple and easy partner to work with in any combat scenario but when it came to dealing with other people on a social level, she was utterly clueless. And although I knew where the two partners were coming from, they were much more open about their own pasts than I ever was with mine. I wasn't even able to come clean about it with Xochi while we were privately sparring and I knew she wouldn't judge me for what I had gone through. As far as I was concerned, Drake's obvious affection for our violent little faunus was good for the two of them… as long as Rica didn't find out and just decided to brutally murder our leader anyway. But it seemed like he had managed to get past that first hurdle.

My attention now turned to the merc who had managed to beat Rica so easily. If Xochi and I hadn't managed to catch him off guard then Rica would have been killed and would have left us three to fight him. Not something I would've looked forward to dealing with. It also struck me however, that the merc had said something to her to get her into that state of anger. It couldn't have been anything good though. We had tied his arms and feet together to make sure he couldn't do anything if he regained consciousness.

"Drake, Rica's fine already. She won't just die all of a sudden if you leave her alone for more than a minute. Now come and help us move these guards outside the warehouse." Xochi said while we were busy getting rid of all the bodies.

"She took quite a beating Xochi, I just want to make sure she's ok." Drake replied with a hint of annoyance in his voice. I had an uneasy feeling that this was going to turn out ugly somehow.

"I told you already Drake, she's been through worse than this. She'll live through it, now come and help us. Besides, you need to stop letting your emotions influencing all your decisions."

'Here we go now, this is not going to end well.'

"What was that Xochi?"

"Exactly what you heard Drake, you never stop to have a think about your actions. You always put Rica before either Gael or I and at times it seems that you completely forget that we exist. You're supposed to be our leader Drake but all you do is focus on Rica's well being all because you have some stupid feelings for her."

I watched the scene unfold as Drake looked at my partner in shock. "What are you talking about? She's my partner and my friend."

"Drake, don't pretend that's all you see in her. I would have to be blind, deaf and buried ten feet underground to not notice your feelings for her. You like her Drake and it's making you regard everything else as unimportant." Drake was glaring at Xochi while she ranted about what she saw as Drake's failure as a leader. This was going to turn ugly quickly if I didn't intervene and was opening my mouth to do so until Xochi went that one step too far. "Tell me Drake, what has Rica even done in the first place to deserve your special attention."

The next thing I knew, Drake had disappeared from Rica's side and was slamming his shoulder into Xochi, knocking himself and Xochi off their feet and sending them flying through one of the warehouse walls. I ran towards the hole in the wall that Drake had just made and leapt through it, only to see my two teammates facing each other with their weapons drawn.

"What the hell do you know about what Rica's been through?! She's been through more than you could ever imagine, while you've been taking it easy living a sheltered life with your parents!"

As Drake said those words, Xochi's eyes narrowed and her hands clenched around her weapon tighter than before "Go no further with that train of thought or you're going to regret it Drake." To my surprise, I could actually sense a hint of malice in her usually calm and calculating voice.

"Why should I? You seem to have no problem making bold assumptions so why shouldn't others get to do the same?"

"Rica has done nothing but proven herself as a hindrance to our team ever since we were chosen to fight alongside each other. She has attacked you multiple times out of anger, deliberately distanced herself from Gael and I, and is always the one who makes us deal with setback after setback whenever we're handed a mission. She's a loose cannon Drake and you never even try to deal with these issues she keeps giving us. These are not false assumptions Drake, they are facts that have been proven by Rica herself on multiple occasions."

I was now standing to the side of their argument and could see that they were both about to charge at each other and begin a stupid and pointless fight that would lead us nowhere. As they leapt at each other I quickly stepped in between the two and activated my semblance, sending volts of electricity surging from my body in a small field around me. As the two entered the field, they were immediately zapped with enough electricity to stop the two of them and end the stupid fight before it properly began.

As both of them collapsed to the floor and began to spasm while the volts continued to surge through their bodies I spoke, "Both of you, shut up and stop this pointless bullshit before it goes any further!" I was frustrated at this whole situation. "Xochi, you went too far and had no right to ask that! And Drake, what the hell were you thinking, attacking a fellow teammate?! Also, what good was that fight ever going to accomplish, especially considering that it was over a teammate who is currently unconscious and wounded!"

"Shut the fuck up Gael, I have one hell of a headache and I don't need you making it any worse." All our heads turned towards the hole in the wall where the all too familiar voice came from.

I turned my head to the Drake and Xochi and said in a quiet but casual voice, "If you want to argue about this stupid conversation, fine. But do it in your own bloody time."

After nodding their heads in acknowledgement, Drake rushed towards Rica with his semblance and asked, "Are you alright Rica? How are your wounds holding up?"

The faunus casually brushed him off and replied, "I'll survive Drake, you don't need to coddle me everytime I get hurt."

Before they could get into a round of banter, which no one was in the mood for right now, Xochi walked past the two and said, "Now that you're awake we can finally question the mercenary."

Oddly enough, Rica began to look into the building and whistle softly before saying, "Good luck with that."

I sighed deeply as I realised that we made the mistake of leaving Rica alone with the only source of information we had. We looked through the hole in the wall to see the merc with his throat slashed, various limbs missing and a bullet hole through the skull.