A/N I am very happy with how Volume 7 has gone it was a huge step in the right direction, and I am glad that it occurred.
The sounds of steel hitting steel could be heard all across Beacons' courtyard same with the cheering that followed it, Akame was quickly dashing around Esdeath feigning strike after strike, Esdeath was visibly growing frustrated that Akame was easily avoiding all damage she attempted to inflict on her, each time Akame appeared she was already gone or she defected her strike, she had grown significantly stronger since she and Esdeath last fought. Esdeath finally hit her limit when Akame disappear for the eighth time, with a growl of frustration she began swinging wildly around herself until she caught Akame attempting to sneak into her defenses, barely blocking the strike Akame was sent rolling away from her, quickly rising to her feet she locked blades with Esdeath the contest of speed then became a contest of strength, she was nowhere near as strong as Esdeath and it showed to everyone as her arms shook violently, she barely held off Esdeaths' strike with both hands, but Esdeath was pressuring her with only one hand
"You may have speed but, when it comes down to where it matters, I will always be stronger than you." Esdeath commented as she forced Akames' guard down and slammed her fist into Akames' cheek sending her flying, Akame slid to a stop inverted her grip on Murasame and swung, Esdeath dived over the strike landed behind Akame and kicked her leg back this time Akame blocked the strike but was still sent flying, with a pant Akame stood and held Murasame to her throat her instincts screaming at her to do it but she shook her head of those thoughts and dived to the side of a strike and swung at Esdeaths' throat who quickly noted that she overextended herself and did the only logical thing she could think of
"Mahapadma!"
Akame rolled wildly as a sudden force pushed her away from her mark, slamming into something which slowed her to a stop, looking over her shoulder she saw Qrow
"You alright?" Qrow asked helping her to her feet
"I'm fine, but I wasn't expecting that." Akame answered as they stood Qrow then turned his attention to Esdeath
"You know Esdeath, you seem to be far too willing to use that on my kid. Plus you pulled me from a drunken stupor so..." Qrow said as he drew Harbinger and transformed it into its scythe
"Shes the one who aimed for my throat." Esdeath reasoned calmly shifting the blame to Akame
"Yeah?" Qrow asked looking to Akame who nodded "Then shes doin' a good job." Qrow snarked as he began to walk around Esdeath, Akame followed his lead in the opposite direction
"Are you sure it'll only take two of you?" Esdeath asked confidently as her gaze jumped from one to the other as they got to opposite sides of her
"Well we're not trying to kill you." Qrow commented "So I'm sure we'll be fine, you just gotta take your lumps." as he finished he rushed forward just at Akame did the same, Esdeath turned to Akame and Qrow dodged a slash from a white Beowolf and cut it down quickly, turning around he saw Winter who rushed him trying to stab him, transforming Harbinger back to a blade as he spun and kicked her blade then slashed at her legs causing her to jump back both lurched forward and locked blades
"I didn't think you two would be causing trouble during the tournament, it seems I should expect less of you." Winter growled as she shook trying to match Qrows' strength
"And I'd expect that you wouldn't be dumb enough to work with her, I guess we both gotta deal with disappointment, huh?" Qrow snarked as he applied more pressure causing her to stumble back a bit just enough for Qrow to kick her in the gut sending her into the crowd causing the people to spread out
"Akame!" Qrow called looking over to Akame, who was struggling to keep the pressure off of herself, Akame jumped above Esdeaths' next strike placed her feet on the blade and kicked off rolling up next to Qrow and sending Esdeath off balance
"You're stronger than me." Akame commented to Qrow as she turned to Winter and Qrow turned to Esdeath
"Ugh, I hate fighting you." Esdeath groaned then pointed her blade at Qrow "Winter don't hold back."
"Yes General." Winter agreed as she rushed towards Qrow only for Akame to knocked her strike off course and kicked her in the gut, as winter stumbled back she raised her blade and blocked a strike from Akame which forced her to drop to one knee, her arms shaking heavily
"How are you weaker than Qrow?" Winter asked through gritted teeth
"He's been holding back with you." Akame answered neutrally causing Winter to growl in anger and embarrassment
Qrow rolled back dodging strike after strike, finally he stopped dodging and stabbed forward both blocking a strike from Esdeath and landing one of his own, even if it was just a scratch, both jumped back a bit and swung at each other locking blades again, neither one giving up any ground to the other, the ground around them on the other hand shattered and cracked causing both Winter and Akame to fall under then sudden shift of terrain, Both Esdeath and Qrow nearly vanished from sight both leapt from ground to lamppost to the decorative archways around the courtyard, each movement causing the ground they landed on to break farther with each landed strike between the two. Akame rose to her feet and swung at Winter just as her regained her guard blocking the strike Winter kicked out at Akame who blocked it and jumped back, landing on a glyph which sent her into the air, Akame looked down she watched at Qrow and Esdeath landed back in the middle of the courtyard again and were greeted by cheers of the crowd, her eyes then turned to Winter and she threw Murasame at her before she could attack Qrow
"Qrow!" Akame called, spinning he blocked a strike from Esdeath and kicked her away just as Winter deflected Murasame which flashed red and bounced off her blade and flew to Qrow who caught it after throwing Harbinger to Akame, he then swung it at Esdeath as she rushed him, raised her blade to block it passed right through and caught her in the throat sending her to the ground and shattered her Aura just as Akame caught Harbinger and fired behind her shooting her towards Winter who blocked the strike but the large blade passed through her guard and slammed into her with full force sending her to the ground which exploded on her impact then her Aura shattered
"Good moves kid." Qrow complemented as he held Murasame out to her, she took it and held Harbinger out to him
"I need some way to move in the air without using Harbinger. Its not mine and I cant rely on it." Akame said earning a nod from Qrow as he took Harbinger back
"Yeah I saw that, for some people they got semblances for that, we could get you gauntlets that have fire dust in them, its cheaper than gravity but has bad mobility in comparison, unless you'd want me to talk to Jimmy about getting Due Process, he has like ten sets of them so he can bare the loss of one."
"General... or Reichsmarschall!" Winters' tired voice came from her prone form
"You just got your asses kicked and you're trying to arguing semantics, you specialists really are special." Qrow snarked as he walked up to her
"Technically both Akame and Ruby are also specialists." Winter pointed out as he pulled her to her feet
"Yeah? Both are almost half your age, why do they both out rank you? And in less then two months." Qrow snarked again earning a growl from Winter as he walked over to Esdeath who was getting help from Ruby
"You guys were awesome!" Ruby cheered when she looked at Qrow "I didn't even know you could actually use Murasame! And then you used Akames' semblance! How'd you do that!? Is that your-" Ruby began to question but Qrow placed his hand over her mouth
"One at a time kid. I didn't know I could use it either, it was really spur of the moment, next Akame and I learned that she could use her semblance on any weapon with her Aura in it, so that's what she did we've been trying to find a situation where she would actually have to use it, so this was a good opportunity, and finally no that's not my semblance." Qrow listed off, the final answered caused Ruby to groan in frustration and she ran off to Akame and Winter who were getting told off by Weiss
"Why haven't you told her?" Esdeath asked as she stood
"'Cause there's no reason yet, I just want her to enjoy spending time around me without having to worry a while longer." Qrow answered earning a nod from Esdeath
"I suppose I can understand that, as long as you plan to tell her." Esdeath agreed as they watched Ruby and Weiss tell off Akame and Winter
"Trust me, its not gonna take poison to get me to tell the truth... probably." Qrow snarked, Esdeath rolled her eyes at that
"Where did she get that anyways?" Esdeath finally asked earning a shrug from Qrow
"I stopped asking questions when I got out of the empire." Qrow commented as Esdeath sheathed her blade
"Ruby, Qrow, Akame, Esdeath. Ozpins' office. Now." Glyndas cold voice came, that caused Qrow, Esdeath, and Ruby to groan "Everyone else, go back to your business."
(o)
Entering the office they all saw Ozpin looking very angry, Glynda walked up to Ozpins' desk and sat down on the corner of it with a pained sigh
"The Vytal festival is a time of peace and unity, a time for the four kingdoms to come together and compete... so would someone care to tell me why a General, Specialist, and Colonel of the Atlas military were locked in combat?!" Ozpin questioned clearly peeved by their actions no one answered but they all shared looks
"I was also fighting." Qrow added earning a groan from Ozpin, after a few moments he sighed and leaned back in his seat
"I needed to talk to you all anyways, so this works out." Ozpin finally said his tone changed from an angry teacher to a tired man in a split second "I got some info from ; Apparently our enemies have already infiltrated Beacon." Ozpin explained as he watched everyone's reactions, Qrow, Esdeath, and Akame didn't react, Ruby on the other hand looked shocked, Qrow nodded after a few seconds for some reason that sounded familiar but he couldn't quite remember why
"What are we going to do?" Ruby finally asked looking to the adults for an answer
"Qrow you ran into them didn't you? When you saved the fall maiden?" Ozpin asked after a few moments of silence
"Yeah, but I haven't recognized anyone who looks like them 'round here." Qrow answered as he began to pace around the room
"Are you certain, because if you have any suspicion I need to know. Any suspicion at all." Ozpin pressured he looked far more tired than normal as he spoke
"I got nothing Oz. Well, nothing worth suspicion, they might have someone with a disguising semblance with them." Qrow answered, again Ozpin looked tired
"If they have already infiltrated we need to find a way to appeal to their wants. Why would they be here?" Esdeath asked, she clearly knew the answer but she wanted someone else to answer, her eyes were specifically on Ruby
"They want... whats left of the fall maidens powers right?" Ruby answered slowly earning a nod from Esdeath
"So I say we let them take it, then rip them to shreds." Esdeath explained earning a shocked look from both Ozpin and Glynda
"You cant be serious, if we do that then there's no telling what could happen." Ozpin waved off quickly "We must keep this secret."
"And what do you plan to do went they attack Beacon?" Esdeath asked as she began to pace perpendicular to Qrow
"They wouldn't be so bold as to attack the school, they were built specifically to ensure the relics safety." Ozpin waved off "At most they would cause a distraction to draw our attention from the school, such as attacking Amity or Vale, that's why we're here. To ensure that we stay at Beacon while the students deal with whatever is to come."
"Your plan is to let our cannon fodder to deal with their cannon fodder, that may work but tell me, who has more bodies to throw into the meat grinder?" Esdeath asked as she watched Ozpin closely
"We cant rely on the student body to just act as bodies to throw away, they have their own survival instincts unlike the Grimm." Ruby said as she joined Qrow and Esdeath as they paced
"Professor what powers do the maidens specifically have?" Ruby asked after a few moments of pacing
"It depends on both the maiden they are and the power they prefer, they have access to all the elements but most prefer to stick to one, why do you ask?" Ozpin explained
"I summoned ice blades during Esdeaths' class, I even summoned shards. So its not impossible to assume that they think I'm also a maiden, right?" Ruby offered earning looks of realization from Esdeath and Qrow
"But now that you don't-" Esdeath began but Ruby cut her off
"That's why I need you to give me Demon's Extract again." Ruby said "I'm scared of what might happen but I pacified it once I can do it again." Ruby said confidently
"That's a one time thing when you took my semblance, but if you take my blood, it will never go away. The constant screaming to end all life around you, and the endless bloodlust never goes away, so I recommend taking my soul instead of blood, though I doubt your soul would remain as you if you did." Esdeath explained happily earning a growl from both Akame and Qrow
"Why do you have to make everything nice you try and say sound evil?" Qrow asked glaring at her
"Because its who I am, James may have a leash but I'll be taking it off soon." Esdeath shot back
"What? Are you finally getting a trial for you actions?"
"I have nothing to pay for."
"Willful killing, torture, wanton destruction, taking hostages, rape, attacking civilians-"
"Oh, if were pointing out crimes now you two were enemies to the state-"
"Can you really blame us? It was a state of MURDER AND GREED-"
"A PLACE WHERE MY AMBITION COULD FLOURISH-"
"YOUR STUPID DREAM OF-"
"ENOUGH!" Rubys' voice cut both out of their shouting match "By the gods you two are starting to get annoying, Uncle Qrow not to be rude but you have no moral high ground you were an assassin, and Esdeath you cant argue the truth." Ruby said causing both of them to quite down after a few moments they shared a look
"I hate you." they both said glaring at each other then fell silent
"Thank you Ruby." Ozpin thanked as he leaned back in his seat "Can we get back to the matter of hand?"
"I agree." Ruby said looking to Qrow and Esdeath who were still glaring at each other
"Now then, lets get everything straight. I feel that Neopolitan has left out some vital information, and Ruby wants to pose as a maiden to draw out said enemy correct?" Ozpin explained, everyone voiced their understanding
"Why would she lie?" Ruby asked looking between Akame and Ozpin "You and Akame are trying to help her."
"Its common for a person to try and hide all the information they have from people who are holding someone they love hostage." Qrow explained as he went back to pacing
"Its more common for assassins and thieves to hide names of clients or business partners. It makes dealing with someone like Neo or me safer." Akame clarified as she walked up to Ozpins' desk earning his attention "We need to put our trust in her and she will do the same."
"Esdeath where is Roman being held?" Ozpin asked as he rubbed his eyes
"He's currently on my airship, why?" Esdeath answered as she began to pace again
"Do you think you could let Neo visit him?" Ozpin asked as he adjusted his glasses
"She was never ban from visiting him, all she has to do is ask." Esdeath answered earning a groan from everyone present causing Esdeath to tilt her head in confusion
"You have to say these things! Or everyone will just assume that you'll act like every other Atlas general!" Ruby explained after she finished groaning, Esdeath still looked very confused
(o)
"What do you mean!?" Cinder growled struggling to keep her voice down
"I mean exactly what I said; The operation is a failure, I don't know what happened but this tomb just got larger." Adams voice came from the other end of the call
"But who could have killed them all? There were hundreds of white fang in those tunnels!" Cinder questioned again
"I don't know but there's a lot of water and blood." Adam finished, a loud shot was heard after "Dammit-" was all he said before the signal cut
Cinders' eye twitched, she then crushed the scroll in her hand and threw it away
"Whats wrong ma'am?" Emerald asked carefully stepping closer to her, Cinder growled and slowed her breathing
"We need to get rid of Ruby Rose, she has begun to make a mess of our plans." Cinder growled her eyes began to burn "It will be a good step in the right direction... when we leave this place in ashes, I'll have the power of two maidens." Cinder confidently said
"But if we take her out then doesn't that mean-" Emerald began to question
"We'll kill her during all the chaos. It wont matter then." Cinder cut off causeing Emerald to fall silent and listen "Now; where's Neo?"
"I think shes somewhere on campus." Emerald answered looking at Cinders' feet
"Truly useful." Cinder growled then ordered coldly "go, find her."
(o)
Akame sat with Ruby, she had sent a message to Neo telling her to come and see them but it appears shes running more than a little late
"So have you made your choice? Either way you're losing a part of yourself." Akame asked looking over to Ruby who was sitting on the ground seeming to be absorbed in though
"I... what would you do?" Ruby asked looking to Akame
"I don't know, we are shaped by the events that occur in our lives, but everyone is scared of something, I'm assuming you're scared of losing yourself." Akame answered leaving Ruby no better "I cant choose this for you, especially if you choose the blood, that would make you one of four Teigu users on the planet... if you count Qrow."
"What does it feel like? Having a Teigu?" Ruby questioned after a few quite seconds
"you have to understand its a tool, but it has a comforting trait to it." Akame answered as she drew Murasame and held it out to Ruby, they were both confident that Ruby could wield it given their introduction, she looked at it for a few seconds then grabbed the hilt, as soon as her fingers closed around the hilt she felt comfortable and some what relaxed it was like she was holding Crescent Rose but amplified, after a few moments of sitting like that Ruby released the hilt and let Akame return the blade to its sheath
"Woah..." Ruby said as she stared at her hand which had strange tingling feeling in it "Does that happen every time?"
"Yes even in combat, its very hard to pressure a Teigu user to true rage or emotion." Akame answered as she stood and continued to speak "Its a double edged sword though, you may be calm at almost all times, but that also can prevent you from fighting emotionally, which could be a boost that you really need." Ruby didn't respond at all she just looked deep in though
"Then why was I so angry?" Ruby asked looking at her hands
"Because Esdeath cant distinguish between anger and every other emotion, much like how I don't let my emotions show much because I don't know how to express them, she never felt them, so I assume your mind compensated for the unknown factors of emotion in your heart with something equally unknown, thus your anger." Akame answered as she paced in front of Ruby
"Then... how would I get her to be more... normal?" Ruby questioned earning a tilt of confusion from Akame
"She is normal, as normal as she can be." Akame said clearly confused by Rubys words
"No, no, no, I mean how do I get her to act like... you know... normal." Ruby tried again
"No, I don't know." Akame replied causing Ruby to groan
"Why aren't you BOTH NORMAL!?" Ruby questioned loudly earning looks from the people walking past them "STAY IN YOUR OWN LANES! THIS IS NORMAL AROUND HERE!" Ruby shouted out causing the people to quickly go back to their business and confused Akame farther
"Well haven't you gotten assertive." A new voice came, both turned to see Coco and the rest of CFYV behind her
"After dealing with Esdeath and her army I figured out I cant take anyone's crap anymore." Ruby answered as she turned to them
"That's pretty good, but what are you doin' sitting around with someone like her?" Coco asked coldly as she gave Akame a once over
"We are waiting for one of our friends." Ruby answer far colder than Coco earning surprise from her team
"Kid I don't know if you know this or not but shes a Branwen, you know, that famous bandit tribe on southern Anima?" Coco said looking between the two "The same tribe that burn down three village in the last two weeks, there were no survivors." Coco continued as she turned her gaze to Akame, neither Ruby or Akame reacted to her statement
"I was not there, and I can assure you that Raven is not my favorite person, nor am I hers." Akame said shining her aura revealing a scar on the Aura of her right leg
"Woah, that's rare." Ruby said in awe watching as Akame aura flowed from her scar to the rest of her body
"This was a present from her." Akame said as her Aura faded "Her brother on the other hand; my father, is the one I've taken the name of, he is a huntsman and a powerful warrior."
"You mean that drunk that fought Esdeath with you?" Coco asked raising an eyebrow
"Yes." Akame answered confidently
"Somehow I don't think the 'powerful warrior' part is quite right." Coco snarked causing Akames gaze on her to harden quite a lot
"He was drunk and still defeated Esdeath, I think that speaks volumes of his abilities." Akame defended seemingly irritated by the woman's words
"I don't think an Atlas general is as good as any huntsman so-"
"Are you sure that's true?" a new voice asked, turning around everyone saw Esdeath standing behind them smiling at Ruby "I understand you're riding high from you... 'victory' but I have a hard time believing that you could come anywhere near my strength, you are more then welcome to die to try and prove me wrong..."
Coco seemed to be losing confidence very quickly by the pressure of Esdeath who had a form of black smoke engulfing her
"I- I- Its... just-" Coco tried to speak but failed due to fear
Walking slowly up to her Esdeath grinned, she knew Cocos' team wouldn't move they were all too scared, speaking in a quite almost caring tone "Its alright to fear me, its only natural for the weak to fear the strong." Esdeath then placed her hands on Cocos' shoulders and spoke out loud so her whole team could hear "Run." they didn't need to be told twice, the whole team practically vanished in every direction, after a few seconds she released Coco and she bolted suppressing her fear as much as possible
"Was that really necessary?!" Ruby questioned as Akame released Murasame and let out a sigh of relief
"No, but it is fun to watch them run, right?" Esdeath asked earning a sigh from Ruby
"No... its not." Ruby answered in a tired voice, it was clear that she was tired of having to explain to Esdeath how to act in public
"Well it was needed, here." Esdeath commented and held a plastic bottle to Ruby, it would have seemed normal if the bottle wasn't holding a dark red substance or that the container itself was covered in a thin sheet of ice, both of which had told them that it was Esdeaths' blood
"Is this really how this is done?" Ruby asked as she took the bottle and looked at the liquid inside it
"Yes it is, remember you have to drink it all down in one go, if you fail to do that you will die." Esdeath warned earning a sigh from Ruby "You should make your choice now; my soul or my blood."
"What does blood taste like?" Ruby questioned looking at the liquid swish around the icy bottle
"The best way to describe it is copper." Esdeath answered watching Ruby
"You shouldn't force this on her, we still have until the finals before they are certain to try anything." Akame finally spoke up joining in the conversation
"I'm not, I just want to see her when she does it, I'm curious on what it looks like from the outside." Esdeath explained her eye jumping from Ruby to Akame
"But aren't you concerned that you'll lose Demon's Extract?" Akame asked, she hid it well but Esdeath could tell she was very hopeful
"I still have my blood don't I? Besides multiple people can use the same Teigu what makes Demon's Extract any different?" Esdeath waved off
"The fact that its in your blood." Akame answered her hope unaltered
"Hmm, I doubt it." Esdeath said, as she grabbed Ruby by the shoulders and pulled her into her chest and spoke excitedly "I cant wait to see the choice you make."
"So... are you going to introduce us?" another voice came, Akame watched at a carbon copy of Esdeath but older walked up along side a large man with brown graying hair and tired blue eyes
"I was getting there, Ruby, Akame, this is my father and mother; Todd and Eisa Partas." Esdeath introduced them
"I honestly cant believe that you had nightmares of that girl." Eisa said coldly after looking Akame up and down
"Its only natural to fear your equal, besides it wasn't just her it was her father and his sister too." Esdeath reasoned placing a hand on Akames' shoulder, Akame quickly removed her hand and stepped away from her
"I think that's the first time I've ever heard you call anyone an equal." Eisa commented then turned to Ruby and walked up to her and looked her dead in the eye
"Hello, I'm Ruby Rose, the one who your daughter is... taken with." Ruby greeted earning a raised eyebrow from Eisa
"So you are the child Esdeath is so infatuated with... I don't see it." Eisa said after inspecting Ruby, Esdeath scoffed at that
"She is everything, I could have asked for and then some." Esdeath shot as she walked up to Ruby and rapped her arm around her shoulder "Far better than any of those suitors you tried to push on me." Esdeath continued her cold assault
"Pfft, do you have any idea how hard it was to get any of those men to meet with you after what you did in Atlas academy?" Eisa questioned coldly "You sent four of them to intensive care. Honestly you scared everyone for years."
"They were all weak and didn't fulfill my perimeters, I told you what would happen to them." Esdeath reasoned coldly her dislike of the old situation was surfacing along with her anger
"That's why we got solders and even then..." Eisa began but settled for a sigh of defeat "There's no getting that through your head, you may be able to expertly move around the political landscape of Atlas but you're still a Mantle brute at heart."
"I am using the knowledge you gave me to the best of my abilities, just as you wanted, after the Vytal festival, I'll either be Councilwoman Partas, or Reichsmarschall Partas, either way, I'll get a council seat, last I checked that's far better than you mother." Esdeath said confidently earning a double take from Akame who placed her hand on Murasame
"Akame?" Ruby asked watching her action
"Don't worry Akame, that wont give me any massive power over Atlas, unless things go perfectly then I might get both seats on the council, then we can settle our 'rivalry', and I'll be able to display your head on my mantelpiece." Esdeath said without even turning to her, Akame eyed her a while longer before releasing the hilt of Murasame
(o)
"I cant believe this is our punishment." Qrow complained as he continued to write an apology letter to Glynda. They were sitting in a nearly empty classroom with quite classical music playing
"I'm angrier about the fact that I'm also doing this, I was barely involved." Winter replied as she did the same
"Yeah, why isn't Esdeath or Akame doing this?" Qrow asked looking over to Ozpin who was casually lounging in front of them
"Because Esdeath is in a position of power, and Akame is you daughter so I figured I'd punish you in her stead." Ozpin answered after sipping some coffee
"I actually had a question about that, where did she come from?" Winter asked looking to Qrow
"She was raised in the Branwen tribe until she reached the age of sixteen, that's when I ran into her-" Qrow began but was cut off by Winter
"I have read her journal and heard Esdeaths' stories of you, her, and Night Raid, I want to know the actual truth." Winter asked giving Qrow her full attention
"Well first off you need to stop listening to Esdeath, she'll be the death of you, I should know." Qrow said earning a growl from Winter
"What is the truth?" Winter growled clearly not wanting Qrows' bullshit... as normal
"You've already been told it, you just don't wanna know it." Qrow answered genuinely as he drew his flask and drank from it then returned it to his coat
"There's no way that's true, its impossible." Winter shot still angered by his words, surprisingly they heard a long sigh from the front of the classroom
"Nothing is impossible, do you think that humanity began to thrive because it was easy or conventional? That is one of the things that makes me dislike the youth of our world, they believe that the impossible is a reality and not a challenge to be better or to work harder." Ozpin cut in earning both their attention, Qrow rolled his eyes at that, Winter looked deeper in thought
"You know Oz, I sometimes think that your always thinkin' up little speeches like this in your spare time and just wait to use them in public." Qrow commented as he and Ozpin stared at each other
"That's not entirely true. I also think up cruel and unusual punishments." Ozpin replied jokingly earning a chuckle from Qrow
"Fair... that is fair." Qrow agreed, he then went back to writing, after a few minutes he held his head and groaned about a hangover which confused the other two occupants of the room, considering he was functioning as normal up until then
(o)
They finally stopped running looking over her shoulder Coco let out a sigh of relief "How the hell..."
"Coco." Velvet gasped through breaths, earning her leaders attention
"Yeah?" Coco replied as she hunched over and put her hands on her knees and panted heavily
"So you met her... and the general now, what do you think?" Velvet asked as she dropped to the ground with a sigh
"Akame... shes... I guess shes not that bad." Coco said through pants which quickly became deeper breaths
"What are you jealous?" Velvet asked sarcastically flowing her leaders lead
"Maybe a little. Did you see her? Her body is perfect, that's so angering, plus she dresses like that on the daily, she has a perfect body and shes hiding it like that, she can probably pull off anything I put her in." Coco vented as she stomped her foot then dropped to the ground looking downtrodden
"If you want to ask her to go shopping later you could." Velvet offered as her breathing returned to normal
"Not after what I said..." Coco said sadly, clearly regretting her words
"Rubys told me about her, I don't think that words matter to her." Velvet said earning a look from Coco who looked back at the ground sadly
"Don't worry about it so much, you should just sit down and apologize to her then its water under the bridge, then you two can go on a shopping spree." Velvet continued causing Coco to nod in agreement her confidence quickly growing
"Okay, I'll give it a shot. Besides what do I have to lose?" Coco agreed as she and Velvet stood and began to walk towards their dorm
A/N Esdeath has grown her intelligence on the subtleties of diplomacy and has become a loved person in both Atlas and Mantle, kinda like Robyn but you know... not good, so she acts kinda like a link between the two earning her a large majority of votes from both, she is both a hero of the rich and poor alike, and has easily gained the appreciation of both save Jacques who cant speak badly of her because of said influence, she also tries to attend all his parties, just to watch him squirm. I feel I should also stress that the only people who took Qrow and Akame vs Esdeath and Winter seriously were Akame and Winter, Qrow and Esdeath were playing around for most of that, just showing off, like with Qrow vs Winter, in the original.