A/N: And the daily updates continue.

TIMESKIP AHOY!

As ever, reviews are my fuel; they keep me writing, and chatting with you all...well, that's why I'm here.

Don't mind me, just making a point here. Sorry if it seems short. Got my second covid shot and I feel like craaaaaaap so I'm not at my peak by any means. Thankfully, my fellow friend/student came in clutch and helped me me with this one, so I do apologize if the writing style seems a little...different. This ought to give her a chance to spread her wings a bit as she starts her own writing career.

She's an absolute godsend, bless her.

Chef of Beacon should be updating tomorrow, with some other surprises.

This chapter's more...episodic than I'd like, but here we go.

Oh. And do remember. Alma isn't shy about killing.

"We all change...when you think about it, Alma. We're all different. All through our lives. And that's okay. That's good. You've got to keep moving. So long as you remember the people that you used to be, who you want to be, you'll be fine. Don't let fear hold you back." Don't let anger weight you down. Don't let sorrow trap you in the past. We won't be here forever. Sooner or later, we'll die."

"So! In the meantime, lets just live.

We've only got one life, after all, we should enjoy it.

"What a coincidence! I was thinking the same. Now lay down...

~?

Karma (Second Interlude)

Gaara liked to think he knew fear.

You see, terror was something of an old friend. He inspired it in others, terrorized all who stood against him. His enemies feared him, and his allies didn't dare rouse his ire. He was fear incarnate. At least, he had been. Until a few minutes ago. Until he'd seen a true a master at work.

A chance encounter in the streets of this wretched village promised to wipe away all his boredom

On a certain level, Gaara could respect someone capable of inspiring mind-numbing dread with but a glance. He was more a connoisseur of gratuitous violence and gore himself, of spectacle over subtlety, yet in his line of work one learned to appreciate the finer points of terror and all that it entailed.

Case in point, the corpse lying before him.

Dead at a glance, Kankuro's prone form gazed blankly at the sky, his face frozen in a rictus of horror. You see, he had died screaming. Clawing at his face, trying to gouge his eyes out. Gaara wondered why. Had his blood witnessed something so distressing that his heart simply...gave out? Or was it sheer terror that did him him? No blades had been drawn, no jutsu unleashed. Simply a cross word between two perfect strangers and a harsh look. Merely a glance, really.

Just like that, his brother was dead and gone. Bah. He'd never liked him anyway.

Temari clamored backward with a shriek. "What did you do to him?!"

"He was tormenting that boy. I HATE bullies."

The culprit showed no remorse as they walked over Kankuro's prone form. Literally. Bare feet crunched over his twisted body, uncaring of the marks they made. Fiery footprints kissed the ground, leaving trails of fire where they walked. Before their very eyes the once proud puppeteer fell to ashes. Dust in the wind. A strong breeze caught his remains and blew them away. His gaze set upon her and narrowed, watching with intent. At a glance, she looked to be little more than a pale skinned girl in a red dress.

It was the eyes that gave her away.

They were pits of balefire, framed by midnight black hair and a smile so serene as to be unnatural. She seemed to look right through them; as thought they were ants unto her, no, less than ants. Bacteria. The mild curl of her lip seemed to suggest as much. She didn't even see the two of them as human.

"Well?" she quirked a brow and planted a fist upon her hip. "Care to try your luck?"

Temari found her voice at last. "Monster! Murderer! I'll kill you for this!"

"No." the strange girl declared with utter finality. "You won't."

Gaara frowned. "Not another word, Temari."

"Gaara?!" She rounded on him with a snarl. "But he killed our brother!"

"He was weak." Blank green eyes narrowed upon her. "I have no such brother.

His gaze swept back to this goddess of death. Something clicked. She must've sensed it too; because she pivoted on one heel to regard him intently. Two monsters gazed upon one another. One forged in Fire. Another of bloody Sand. Neither yielded. Sparks snarled as their eyes met.

...you're like me." Gaara rasped, eyes widening. "Perhaps I'll find my worth in killing you."

"Eh," Alma shrugged, "You're welcome to try, but I wouldn't, were I you."

"Tch." The redhead scowled. "And why is that-

Naruto's head peeked over her shoulder.

"Hello~!"

Gaara recoiled.

For if Alma Wade was fire and death and pain, the young man beside her was light. Not the good kind. Bright, blinding, scouring, the strong kind of light that burned everything away, friend and foe alike. Merely meeting his eyes threatened to bring on another attack. And yet for all that, there could be no denying his strength.

If this was the mayhem the Chunin Exams promised...then he looked forward to them.

He would prove his existence by killing these two. So he swore.

Oh, yes. There would be blood.

A/N: Feels good to write something not RWBY related.

As ever, reviews are my fuel. Without them, my spark flickers and dies.

So in the Immortal Words of Atlas...

...Review, Would You Kindly?

And enjoy the previews!

Its...a little crass.

(Preview!)

She plonked down in his lap.

"We'll kill them all, darling. Every last one of them."

"Alma. No. We don't kill the help."

R&R~!