Chapter Four: Questions and a Fight

Morgan POV

The newly formed team was walking down the hallways of Beacon, following their guide of Goodwitch, with whom Morgan had a pretty big bone to pick. He was still pissed that she had given him wrong info. He was also acutely aware that Aquaria was glaring a hole into his backside but that was unimportant at the moment.

"Hey, Goodwitch. I got a question for ya." he said bluntly.

He heard his three teammates gasp in shock as Goodwitch stopped in her tracks. She slowly turned around with the mother of all scowls gracing her sharp facial features. "Mister Rubrum, while you are at this academy, you will address a professor as 'Professor', 'sir' or 'ma'am'. Do I make myself clear, Mister Rubrum?"

Morgan grinned. "Crystal. Sir."

The silence was so complete that a pin could be heard dropping a half mile away. Goodwitch looked just about ready to have an aneurysm out of shock alone. Morgan found all of this highly amusing.

"Mister Rubrum… what did you call me?" the older Huntress asked quietly, a deadly steely edge to her voice that Morgan did not find threatening. At all.

"I called you 'sir'. You just said to address a professor as 'professor', 'sir' or 'ma'am' but you didn't make clear witch one you preferred. So I picked one at random. Did I pick the wrong one?" he asked with the biggest shit-eating grin on his face.

The teacher's left eyebrow twitched as she slowly inhaled and then slowly exhaled. "Did you… just make a witch pun?" she asked finally.

"Yep."

"I can give you mountains of homework and detentions."

"I know you can. Your point?"

Goodwitch sighed heavily. "What's your question, Mister Rubrum?" she asked, seemingly defeated. However, Morgan fully expected to have at least five detentions before the day was up because he figured Goodwitch would do a thing like that.

Morgan's grin dropped off his face and was replaced by a scowl that could make a Sea Feilong retreat into its watery den in fear. "You said Blanc was well known. You lied to me. Why? The news anchors yesterday didn't know much about her and I can't find a gods-damn thing online about her. Who is she and why did you lie to me?" he demanded.

Goodwitch kept glancing back at the other three members of his team nervously. "Mister Rubrum, I cannot discuss this with your team in the vicinity. You aren't even supposed to know who she is. I just told you that because I didn't think you'd actually check up on it!"

Morgan scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Well, obviously I did. And now I want answers. So, who is she?" he demanded.

Goodwitch glanced around the hallway, apparently checking for eavesdroppers. "Like I said, I cannot discuss this here. If you want answers, come by my office after classes tomorrow and I will answer what I can. Alright?" she proposed.

Morgan growled softly as he considered it. "Fine. But you'd better tell me everything. And I do mean everything." he demanded.

"As I said, I'll tell you everything I can. Now, this is your new dorm. I'd suggest you settle in and get some rest. Classes do start tomorrow at nine o'clock sharp, after all." she said, seemingly glad to get rid of Morgan and the other three and walked off.

Morgan snorted at her retreating frame. "She'd better tell me everything…" he said to himself. "Well, guys, this is it, I guess. Our new dorm." he said while turning back toward his team, only to find them staring at him like he was crazy. "What?"

Robin was visibly confused while Ehre and Aquaria shared a look. "Morgan… what was that all about?" his partner asked.

He sighed and ruffled his hair. "When I stopped Blanc the other day, I ran into her sister. I could tell she was strong. I want to find her and fight her. To test myself and see how I stack up against her. But I can't find anything on the Blanc I caught, let alone her sister. Goodwitch gave me false information regarding how well known she was and I don't like being misled."

Aquaria raises an eyebrow. "Why is this so important to you? Why do you want to find her so much? These Blanc sisters are criminals, after all. They are most definitely thieves, the Dust robbery proves that. But there's also a chance they could be murders, terrorists or any number of things. And you yourself just said that Chatte Blanc's sister was strong. Why would you risk your own life to find her?" she asked.

The Faunus teen rolled his eyes. "I've got that feelin' that gets your heart pumpin' and blood boilin' for a fight! And when I get that feelin', I can't just ignore it. Everything in my body is tellin' me to find her and fight her." he explained.

"Morgan… that kind of thinking will get you killed one day. These are criminals we're talking about. They won't have any compunctions about killing you if they get the chance. I don't think it's a good idea to chase her like this." Robin said.

Aquaria looked visibly pained as she opened her mouth to speak. "While it… pains me… to agree with Tori, she's right. It's a bad idea to chase down hardened criminals who've likely killed far more experienced Hunters than us."

Morgan shot her an annoyed glare, eyes momentarily shifting to scarlet. "Didn't you say all Faunus are criminals? How come you're trying to 'protect me'?"

Aquaria's nostrils flared as she stuck her nose in the air. "While I do believe that, it's not as if I want them to die!" She turned back to Morgan with a nasty sneer. "After all, who'll do all the menial labor that we humans don't want to do?"

Morgan shot forward with a roar, grabbing Aquaria by the collar and pinning her to the wall. "Say something like that one more time and I swear I will rip your throat out with my bare fucking hands!" he snarled.

He felt someone put their hand on his shoulder. He turned and saw Ehre. "Morgan, you really don't want to do that. Yes, Donna is being an asshole right now, but her family is very wealthy and they have some of the best lawyers on Remnant who'll have you convicted in minutes, whether you do it or not. So maybe don't?"

Morgan turned his gaze back to Aquaria. Her face was filled with a smugness that just begged Morgan to attack her. He roared in her face before letting her go. "You're lucky you had your little beta pet to talk me down or you might not have been so lucky. Get in the fucking dorm. All three of you!" he yelled, reminding all four of them that he was, in fact, the leader of the team. Ehre practically dragged Aquaria into the room while Robin stayed out in the hall.

"Are you okay to sleep in the same room with her, Morgan?"

He lashed his tail. "Yeah. As long as she doesn't snore or talk or make any kind of noise. I might kill her otherwise." he growled. He stalked into the room. He stored his armor and weapons in one of the lockers to the left of the door. The living area was surprisingly spacious, if a little spartan. He turned to his right and walked through the sleeping area, where Aquaria and Ehre were getting ready for bed, into the bathroom and locked the door.

He stripped out of his jacket, shirt, pants and undergarments and stepped into the shower alcove. Strangely enough, there were only three shower heads while the dorms were built to house four. He let the water run over his tense muscles, relaxing them. Some of the water turned to steam as it impacted his body. He took several deep breaths in an effort to lower his body temperature. He came dangerously close to losing control. He couldn't let that happen again. Even if it was Aquaria.

He shut off the water and toweled himself dry. Once he'd pulled his underwear and shorts up, he walked back into the sleeping area. He put his clothes into the bedside cabinet next to the bed to the left of the window. Ehre had situated himself on the bed on the other side of the window and the girls had put their things on the other side of the room.

Aquaria looked impatient. "Finally! You were in there for over thirty minutes! Other people have to use the bathroom too!" she bitched.

He sent her a withering glare and managed to keep his eyes from turning red this time. "Aquaria, shut the fuck up. I just want to sleep without your constant yapping." he growled and climbed into the bed and drew the covers around himself and he was asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.

*Several hours later*

Morgan jolted awake as he felt a large volume of water impact his head. "Argh, what the fuck?!" he yowled as he leapt out of his bed.

He saw Aquaria in a red plaid skirt, dark purple stockings and a dark purple jacket with a tan vest and white polo with a red ribbon tied at the collar standing next to his bed looking irritable. "Classes start in half an hour, Rubrum. You might want to get ready. Your uniform is in the bathroom." she huffed before walking into the living area.

He heaved a deep sigh. "I'm gonna punch her in the face one of these days."

He heard a laugh beside him. "You really don't want to do that, you know. Army of lawyers and such." Ehre pointed out. He was wearing a black suit lined with gold with a blue vest and a white polo with a red tie.

Morgan grimaced. "That's the uniform? Fuck." he griped as he walked into the bathroom to freshen up. Once he had done so, he got to work putting the suffocating monkey suit on. Try as he might, though, he could not get the tie tied correctly. "Stupid fucking necktrap." he growled. He had to abandon the attempt and just go to breakfast.

When he exited the bathroom, he was the only one in the dorm. It seemed that the others had already left. He grabbed the bag with his armor and weapons from the locker in the living area and made his way to the cafeteria.

It took him a while to navigate the hallways full of older students going to class and breakfast but he managed to spot his team at a table near the entrance. He saw Robin in the same getup that Aquaria was in.

He laughed derisively. "Jeez, these uniforms are fuckin' awful! Whoever designed these needs their eyes checked." he chuckled.

Robin laughed at the joke and Ehre just rolled his eyes and smiled. Aquaria, on the other hand, glared at him. "The uniforms are fine, Rubrum. And why have you not tied your tie? You do realize that we need to look presentable?" she chided.

His grin fell into a scowl and his eyes adopted an odd mix of gold and red. "For fuck's sake, Aquaria! First off, I don't know how to tie a tie. I didn't realize I'd need that skill at a monster-killing school. Second, I am presentable. Third, I swear if you do not stop telling me what to do, I will fucking hurt you." he growled, tail lashing.

Aquaria's glare deepened and Morgan tensed his muscles.

"Okay, that's enough of that. I'm just trying to eat my breakfast and you two are getting ready to duke it out. Can you guys save it until the class where we're supposed to beat each other up?" Ehre interjected.

Morgan glared at Aquaria a few more moments before relaxing, his eyes slowly fading back to their normal gold. "You're right. I'd rather fight in a proper arena than a cafeteria. But Aquaria needs to stop trying to take my fucking job."

Robin glanced at him. "Morgan, what do you mean?" she asked.

He scoffed. "Oh, don't tell me you haven't seen it. The bossy attitude? Criticizing my every action this morning? She's trying to act as leader in my stead. It's really quite annoying. Yeah, I never actually wanted this role, but I'm going to perform it to the best of my ability but I can't do that if Aquaria keeps undermining me."

Aquaria rolled her eyes. "Maybe I would be more confident in your ability to lead this team if you had shown any ability to do so. But you've shown nothing that suggests that you can! And you haven't exactly impressed anyone this morning. Waking up late and not knowing how to properly wear your uniform? I don't think you have what it takes to be leader."

Morgan stared at her in confusion. "I haven't shown any ability to lead? Did you forget that it was my plan that killed the Death Stalker while you were just firing at it blindly? Did you forget that you willingly followed my directions in that forest? And so what if I woke up a little late? I was recovering from a full powered blast of fucking lightning, fired by you under my order! While I was taking charge, you were running around like a headless chicken! Could you have figured out a plan to kill that fucking scorpion before it killed us? Could you?! No! So how about you get off my ass and let me do my job?" he growled, his ears flattened against his skull and his tail lashing back and forth.

Aquaria and Morgan glared at one another until she finally backed down. "You should still tie that tie. It's not a good idea to walk into class without looking your best." she suggested.

Morgan rolled his eyes. "Can someone help me tie it? Again, I never learned how."

Robin came around the table and set to work tying it for him. "I'll show you how to do it later when we have more time. How come you never learned, anyway? I'd assume that Signal has a uniform, right?" she asked.

Morgan shook his head. "Actually, no. We'd just wear our battle outfits. It's really only the major academies like Beacon or Haven that have uniforms like this. I thought you knew?"

"I'm only considered Mistralan because I was born in Anima. My village is actually a few miles south of the recognized border of the kingdom itself and is quite isolated. In total, I've only spent a couple weeks in the outside world, so I'm still learning a lot of things." Robin explained.

She finished tying Morgan's tie and went back to her breakfast. Morgan considered his eggs, sausages and ham. "I know how you're feelin'. When I first came to Vale, I had to navigate the city on my own. I was completely alone in what felt like an alien world. Vale's completely different from Atlas." he said quietly.

Half of the table stared at Aquaria as she took a very loud spit take. "You're from Atlas?!" she exclaimed.

Morgan cocked an eyebrow. "Yeah? So? I switched my citizenship to Vale four years ago, though, so I don't consider myself Atlesian but I was born there. Why? Is my being born in Atlas going to cause an issue for you, Aquaria?" he asked, suspicious.

Aquaria shook her head. "No, no! I was just… surprised. You're nothing like the Atlesians I've met. You're far more chaotic and unpredictable." she explained.

Ehre chuckled. "Yeah, if you being from Atlas was an issue for her, she'd hate me! I was born and raised in Atlas City."

The feline warrior chuckled. "Let me guess, most of the Atlesians you've met were stuffy, rich humans, going on and on about Atlas, how it's the 'best kingdom in the world' and 'Atlas makes the world better just by existing'."

Aquaria actually laughed at that. "Yes, actually! It got so boring! Like, we get it! Atlas is super rich. Get over yourselves!"

Ehre arched his eyebrows and pursed his lips in indignance. "To be fair, most Atlesians aren't like that. It's mainly the snobby, rich upper class with their heads up their own asses ruining the reputation of our great kingdom."

Aquaria smirked smugly. "Might I remind you, dear Lilo, that you are part of that snobby, rich upper class? Surely, you didn't forget about that? A potential heir to a very successful weapons company?"

Ehre's face turned rather red. "S-shut up! I'm not even very likely to inherit the company. I'd have to go through my four older brothers!"

Morgan, Robin and Aquaria laughed at his indignance. "You know, Rubrum, you're not completely terrible! You have a sense of humor, at least." Aquaria stated, still chuckling.

The Faunus teen stopped laughing at once. "What do you mean, 'not completely terrible'?" he demanded, a steely edge to his voice that instantly set Ehre and Robin on edge. Aquaria seemed not to notice.

"Well, most Faunus are… how do I put this? Criminals? And you're always angry and you look ready to kill pretty much everything at a moment's notice, so I'd assumed that you were a part of that majority and- Do you have something to say, Lilo?!" she snapped.

Ehre had been making shushing motions since her first sentence. He facepalmed and pointed to Morgan, whose eyes were so bright a scarlet, they were practically glowing and he was shaking in pure fury. "You just have to make everything worse don't you, Aquaria? As I said the other day, not all Faunus are criminals. In fact, most of us are just trying to make our way through life, like most humans. But you just can't let go of your silly, misguided prejudice, can you? It's pathetic! You're a spoiled fucking brat who has never had to hear the word 'no'!" he snarled.

Aquaria bristled. "That's not even remotely true! My childhood wasn't exactly easy. My mother was extremely tough on me." she argued.

Morgan adopted a look of mock sympathy. "Aw, poor baby! Did Mommy take away your three thousand Lien a week allowance? Oh, it's just the end of the world! Well, not everyone is born with piles of money, set to inherit a successful company! Most of us have to work and earn what little we get! Like my parents! They were Dust miners for the SDC and they were damn good at what they did. The best in the town. But they were Faunus, so how did the Schnees repay them?! By fucking them over, again and again! Docked pay, cut hours! In the end, they ended up dying in a cave-in that was probably caused by the humans! You humans like to say you're so much better than us Faunus because you're in power in the kingdoms. But you're not. You're just better at causing pain and strife in the world." he ranted, steam now rising from his hair and hands, ears flattened against his skull, tail lashing and tears streaming down his face.

The five-minute warning bell rang and Morgan turned on his heel and left the cafeteria, food still uneaten.

Donna POV

She couldn't believe it. Was that how all Faunus felt? Why did she hate Faunus anyway? Apart from the White Fang, they hadn't done anything to her. She didn't know what to believe anymore. Meeting Rubrum had caused her to rethink everything. And she could hate him for that reason. He had confused her, made her second guess herself and that was something that Donna Aquaria never did. As her mother told her, "To doubt yourself is to fail."

"Donna." an angry voice sounded behind her. She turned around, only to be met by the fist of Tori impacting her face. Donna cried out in surprise and fell backwards onto the floor.

"You are such a bitch! Can you not think of how your words affect someone else?! Do you have any idea how much pain Morgan had to go through to mention his parents like that?! You and people like you are the reason why Morgan is so guarded, so angry all the time! News flash! If you hurt someone enough times, they're going to lash out a lot! I don't care if you hate the Faunus in private. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion and it isn't my place to change your mind. But you really need to stop spewing such hateful and toxic words! You are actively ruining the team dynamic and I won't stand for it! So you can either stop or I will go to Professor Ozpin and ask him to transfer you to another team!" Tori screamed before she, too, left.

By now, a large crowd had gathered to watch the altercation and had started whispering amongst itself. Lilo helped Donna to her feet and led her out of the cafeteria. She was much too dazed to move on her own. She was dimly aware of Lilo urging her on to classes but she didn't remember much of them.

She knew they had opening lectures from Professor Peach, who taught Plant Science, Professor Greene, who taught Stealth and Security, Professor Mulberry, who taught Weapon Crafting and Upkeep and Doctor Oobleck, who taught history. Their second to last class, Grimm Studies taught by Professor Port, she remembered though.

She and Lilo were sitting together near the door. Rubrum and Tori were on the other side of the room. Donna stared blankly at her notebook, not even paying attention to Port's lecture, something about some random Ursa he had managed to kill and supposedly stuff, which was completely ridiculous. Everyone knew Grimm disintegrated when they died.

The next thing Donna knew, Port had slapped his hands onto her notebook. "Ahh! What was that for?!" she demanded.

Professor Port appeared to be a man in early old age. He wore a double-breasted burgundy suit with gold piping and buttons. His pants were tucked into olive boots, similar in appearance and construction to cavalry boots. He had gray hair and a gray mustache and appeared to be slightly overweight.

Port chuckled. "Because you weren't paying attention, of course. If you don't listen to my lecture, how will you learn to combat the vile and villainous creatures of Grimm?" he asked.

Donna rolled her eyes. "This so-called 'class' is moronic. How would you even mount an Ursa's head on your wall unless it was fake? Grimm disintegrate when they die, old man! I don't need this stupid class. I can kill Grimm just fine on my own." she stated.

The aging warrior cocked an eyebrow. "Oh, really? Would you like to test that theory, young lady? I have a Boarbatusk in a cage for just this kind of occasion."

Donna and Port stared at each other for a few moments before Donna cracked a big, scheming kind of grin. "Let me just change into my armor and I'll take you right up on that offer, Professor." she chuckled.

*A few minutes later*

Donna swaggered back into the classroom, clad in her set of golden armor fit for a queen. Or a goddess. Donna chuckled darkly to herself. She was going to show everyone why everyone at Sanctum Academy called her The Lightning Goddess!

She grinned widely. "Alright, Professor, open the cage."

Port was standing by a cage covered in chains with his hand on a lever to open the door of said cage. He pulled it and said, "Good luck, Miss Aquaria!"

The pig like Grimm rolled out of the cage and tried to bowl Donna over but she was too quick for it. She dashed forward and slashed at the Boarbatusk with her trident but the prongs caught its heavily armored back and thus did little damage. She went in for another slash but the monster batted her weapon out of her hands with its tusks and bit her right forearm, scratching the metal. She punched it in the face with her other arm and it let go.

She backflipped away to where her trident fell to pick it up but before she could do so, the Boarbatusk slammed into her side and sent her flying into a desk, which she hit back first. She got up to her hands and knees and clutched her left shoulder, which was unprotected by armor and had gotten scratched up by the splintered wood.

She couldn't believe it! She had been injured by something as weak as a Boarbatusk! She dimly heard Rubrum chuckle. "Really? She's gettin' her ass kicked by a fuckin' Boarbatusk? How pathetic! I thought she was strong! But I guess she's just a weakling after all." he jeered.

Electricity played on her body as she played Rubrum's words in her head over and over again. Ass kicked… Boarbatusk… Pathetic… weakling… Now, Donna was just getting pissed. No one called her pathetic or weak. Ever.

She heard the Boarbatusk make a sound like a screeching tire as it revved up for another attack. More and more electricity played on her body as she slowly staggered to her feet. She turned her eye toward the pig monster.

It blazed forward, its tusks leaving actual marks on the classroom floor as it rolled toward her. However, Donna stopped it in its tracks by grabbing its tusks. "You have proven to be a thorn in my side. Prepare. To. Die!" she screamed as she went into Wrath Mode in an electrical burst of energy, her hair breaking out of its braid as it stood completely on end, her hair and eyes also adopted a brighter shade of blue and her eyes gained gold flecks.

She broke the beast's tusks clean off and kicked it in the face, sending it flying onto its back. Donna walked toward the Grimm and stabbed it in the chest with its own tusks. The beast disintegrated as she turned around and deactivated Wrath Mode. She glared directly into Rubrum's eyes, dark blue into bright gold, and silently dared him to say another word.

Lilo POV

Lilo couldn't believe it. Donna and Morgan were glaring at each other so hard that he half expected Morgan to fight her in his uniform. But, thankfully, Port interrupted the mood, completely oblivious.

"Congratulations, Miss Aquaria! You have the makings of a fine Huntress indeed! I bet you getting tossed around like that was just for show!" he praised.

Of course, Donna being Donna, she drank it all up. "I honestly thought it would make for a dramatic show! Though, getting slammed into that desk did hurt more than I thought it would, hehe!" she said.

The young duelist narrowed his eyes. What was she playing at? That was genuine anger in her voice when she screamed like that, Lilo knew her too well to be fooled like that. Clearly, she was trying to make herself look good, she was always trying to do that. But why was she doing it this time? To make Morgan look bad? Possibility but the Faunus teen wouldn't care about a ruined reputation. Lilo didn't know but he didn't like the way Donna was acting. She was planning something.

"Isn't she on the same team as the tiger guy?" a female voice sounded to his right. He turned to see a girl with long brown hair, wide brown eyes and a long pair of rabbit ears on top of her head. She was talking to another girl, likely on her team.

She had fair skin, short dark brown hair and her dark brown eyes were partially obscured by wire rimmed aviator sunglasses. She had wavy locks on one side of her face, dyed with a gradient that started as a dark brown and transitioned to caramel. She also wore a dark brown, almost black, beret on top of her hair.

"Yeah, she is. I wonder how they're gonna function. Half the team actively hates her. I really want to know what she said to him." she said.

Lilo narrowed his eyes again. Great. The other students were already trying to gossip about the team. Fantastic move, Donna. Fantastic move.

A few minutes later, Donna had changed back into her uniform and sat back down at her desk. "Donna, what the fuck is your deal?!" he hissed at the tanned heiress. Donna had always been the social butterfly and played the masses but this was ridiculous! Pretending like she planned all of that? Why? What was she planning?

Donna shushed him with a gesture, though. "Everything will make sense next class, I promise." she whispered, grinning darkly. She gestured at her hair, which was still free flowing after her electrified power up and Lilo began the familiar task of putting her hair back into its braided ponytail.

Lilo was rather annoyed. He had known Donna for fifteen years and still couldn't figure out what she could have been planning.

That annoyance aside, Lilo finished braiding his partner's hair and the pair listened to the rest of Port's lecture which was just as ludicrous as the first bit. The bell rang, signifying the end of the class. All of the first years made their way to the sparring arena, which was really very large. It seemed that Professor Goodwitch taught this one.

"Before we continue, I would suggest that all of you change into your combat gear, as we will be heading straight into practice matches after my brief explanation of the class." she informed. She led them into the locker area, which was oddly not gender separated.

After Lilo and the rest of the students quickly changed, Goodwitch began her lecture. It was mainly on her expectations for the year, obligatory rules, rocket propelled lockers, etc, etc. As they moved into the classroom proper, Lilo marveled at the size of the arena itself. He guessed it could support at least four on four matches. He couldn't help but notice the dark looks that Donna and Morgan were sending each other.

He moved away from Donna and went to sit by Robin, who also separated herself from her partner. "So, why are you sitting away from your partner?" he asked. She glared at him. "Why do you care? You're probably just like that bitch. Only caring about yourself, your reputation and your money. You rich heir types are all the same."

Lilo rolled his eyes. "Wrong. I'm not at all like her. I'm not even set to inherit my family's company. I'm the youngest of five boys. And I did say Donna was abrasive, did I not? The Aquaria family's stance on Faunus disgusts me as much as it does you. But I can't do anything about it. And I care too much about Donna to just leave her in the dust. We've been through too much. Anyway, you still haven't answered my question."

Robin sighed. "He said he wanted some time alone. Said he didn't want to talk right now. I don't blame him." she said glancing at said leader, who was sitting with his arms crossed with a deep scowl on his face.

"The one on one sparring matches will now commence. I need to see where you're at, after all." Professor Goodwitch announced, jolting Lilo and Robin out of the moment. "Who wants to go first?"

Morgan POV

The matches weren't anything special by Morgan's standards. There were a few good moves and tricks here and there, like Robin using some rock to trip up Daichi, but apart from that it just faded into white noise for him.

"Alright, we only have one more matchup for today and it seems to be… Mister Rubrum and Miss Aquaria. Would you both come down to the arena?" Goodwitch stated.

Morgan started. Come to think of it, he hadn't seen her fight. He bared his teeth in a feral grin. A chance to show that entitled bitch why you didn't piss Morgan off. Why his classmates at Signal called him the Fiery Titan.

Before he made his way down into the arena, he drew his sword and left his shield in his seat. This was gonna be a serious fight, after all. He couldn't afford the dead weight. He felt that familiar rush of excitement and exhilaration that comes before a fight but also a deep rage in his chest. He knew who he was fighting.

He glanced at Aquaria. She had an expression that mirrored what he was feeling. Electricity played on her hands and hair and her eyes were already a lighter blue. Morgan narrowed his eyes as they turned scarlet.

They both stalked into the arena, Morgan crouching a bit and tensing to pounce and Aquaria stood even taller, trident already drawn.

Morgan felt the heat around his hands and hair but squashed it down. He could not afford to lose control. The power boost wasn't worth it. He settled into a battle stance as Aquaria settled into hers, already circling each other.

The air was tense as they stalked each other, waiting- no, begging- for Goodwitch to give the start signal. Goodwitch, seemingly oblivious to the tension, started up her spiel. "As you two are aware, this match will end when either one of your Aura levels dips to the red zone. I expect you to keep this a clean match. Begin." she stated.

Morgan pushed off the ground with blazing speed and flew at Aquaria with a primal roar, deep and rumbling. He aimed a slash at her, which she caught with her own weapon. Sparks flew as their weapons clashed again and again, Morgan being slightly stronger but Aquaria being slightly faster.

He couldn't find any holes in her technique, no gaps in her defenses. Her movements expertly flowed into one another, her sequences clearly honed over years and years of training. But even so, Morgan's sheer might and ferocity allowed him to break even.

She caught one of his attacks in the prongs of her weapon and wrenched it away from him. He backflipped away, dodging her repeated attacks. "Oh, what's the matter little kitty?! Can't deal without your weapon?!" she screamed, laughing maniacally.

That's when Morgan realized it. She had been trying to make him lose it since last night! Make him look like what she thought him to be: just a mindless animal. Clever bitch, Aquaria. But I'm not playing into your games. he thought. He had to maintain control. He leapt over her attacks and snatched up his sword.

Aquaria rushed him and he switched his weapon into its underutilized shotgun mode and blasted her full on in the chest, knocking her across the arena onto her back. He switched it back and smirked. "What's the matter, Aquaria? Didn't see that comin'?" he quipped.

The tanned heiress staggered to her feet and picked up her weapon. She glared at him with a murderous glare. Her already lighter eyes gained those odd gold flecks and her hair broke free of its braid and stood on end, lightning playing up and down her body.

Morgan felt her Aura spike considerably and instantly felt the atmosphere of the fight change. He narrowed his eyes and got ready for her attack, again squashing down the heat around his hands and hair.

She blazed forward so fast Morgan couldn't react and whacked him across the face with the blunt end of her weapon. She kept bashing his chest and sides with the trident over and over and over again, little more than a blur as she jumped and flipped around him. He managed to switch his sword back into shotgun mode but she batted it out of his hands and out of the ring, rendering it useless. He'd have to ring himself out to get it. Fuck.

He fired a small blast of flame into her chest to momentarily daze her so he could get some damn breathing room. He backflipped away and started unbuckling his armor from his torso, arms and shoulders.

Aquaria cackled when she noticed. "Really? Do you want to lose?" she demanded.

Scarlet eyes met blue and gold. "No. It's not for my protection. It's just dead weight." he said as he settled back into his battle stance.

She chuckled as she twirled her trident. "Whatever. Your funeral." she said as she rushed him. Without all the deadweight, he managed to block a fair chunk of her attacks but she was still too fast and she was still landing the majority of them. She hit him over and over again and he could tell even without looking at his Scroll that his Aura was going down quick.

The heat rose up again, tempting him to lose all sense of control and reason but he squashed it down again. He managed to bring his hand up to blast her in the face with a quick stream of fire, knocking her out of her attack sequence, making her drop her trident and giving him some breathing room.

He stumbled as he backed away from her. They were already evenly matched before but this new power up really gave her a definite edge against him. Again his instincts begged him to take over but he refused to cave.

Aquaria, however, had recovered. "You… you filthy Faunus!" she shrieked as she blasted him with lightning. He collapsed with a cry of pain. "You actually thought that would do anything?! Well, it only served to piss me off!" she continued as she kept blasting him with electrified plasma. She hadn't even bothered to pick up her weapon. She just kept blasting him over and over while screaming insults that he couldn't hear.

In between one of her attacks, Morgan heard Goodwitch call out. "Miss Aquaria, that's enough! His Aura is in the red. This fight's over."

That woke him up. "NO!" he roared, getting everyone's attention. He staggered to his feet, slowly but surely. "I… am not… done yet. This fight ain't over till I say it is." he growled.

Goodwitch hesitated. "Are… are you sure? Your Aura is dangerously low!" she warned, a little bit of concern showing on her face.

The feline Huntsman chuckled. "That a touch of concern, Professor? I'm fine to keep fighting. I ain't goin' down that easy." he stated, settling into a battle stance and discretely used some of the energy he'd absorbed to reenergize him and giving him a not so little power boost.

Goodwitch looked from Morgan to Aquaria. "Miss Aquaria, are you okay with this?"

More lightning pulsed over Aquaria's body. "If he wants to keep throwing himself at me, that's his business. His funeral." she said, a dark grin on her face.

The professor sighed. "Fine. Begin!" she said again.

Aquaria immediately sent out another blast of lightning. But this time, however, Morgan met it with his own blast of flame. The heiress widened her eyes then twisted her face into an enraged grimace, putting even more power behind her attack.

Morgan was running out of Aura. He needed to close the distance somehow. He cut power to his flames and rolled to his right. He blazed toward Aquaria, sidestepping to the left or right to dodge her incoming attacks. He entered hand to hand range and immediately threw a right hook toward her jaw, which she promptly dodged.

They each launched flurries of punches and kicks that were either blocked or dodged by the other. Again, they proved to be evenly matched, with Morgan having a slight edge on power while Aquaria had a slight edge on speed.

Morgan poured almost everything he had left into this engagement, even using his tail to block attacks and to attack with it while keeping his ears flattened close to his skull. Even with all his effort, however, he was slowing. A missed punch here. A mistimed block there. All culminating in Aquaria landing a right hook square in the jaw, sending him flying onto his back.

He landed hard, knocking the wind out of him. He tried to get up but Aquaria planted a sandled foot on his chest to pin him down. He struggled even still but she just pressed her foot down harder. "Give up Faunus. You're done! You. Have. Lost."

Morgan snarled and tried to fling a fireball in her face. It missed but it still served to piss her off further. "Is it your life's mission to piss me off?! Because it certainly seems so! Well, I'm going to show you and everyone else why I'm better than you, why you'll never win!" she stated, cackling crazily. It seems she had finally reached the end of her patience and just lost herself. She lifted her foot off of him and reached her hand out to him and made a crushing gesture.

Morgan felt an unbearable, agonizing cold sensation and cried out in pain. She lifted her arm and, by extension, lifted him into the air. "You feel that, Faunus? That's the feeling of every single cell in your body freezing! I can stop this if you only surrender." she offered.

Morgan could barely breathe. He only just managed to choke out, "N-never!"

Aquaria widened her eyes. "W-what? Why?! I'm offering you a way out and you're refusing? Why aren't you surrendering?!" she demanded, still tightening her hand, making it even colder.

"I… don't… give in… to bullies!" Morgan choked out. It now felt so cold that he started blacking out. Before he lost consciousness, a face flashed across his vision. His mother's face. He also remembered her dying words. "Be strong, embers. Be strong and live for me."

He felt the heat rise up again and he finally relented. He let loose a primal roar as his hands and hair burst into yellow flames, entering Berserker Mode and breaking free of Aquaria's grip. He slowly looked up at her, his tears evaporating off his face.

Aquaria looked scared for a moment before shaking it off and rushing Morgan, aiming a punch. He deftly dodged it and threw a right hook towards her jaw that sent her flying. He slowly walked toward her, every step cracking the floor of the ring. The heiress staggered to her feet and attempted to punch him in the chest, which he blocked easily and threw another punch in her face. He grabbed her throat and slammed her into the ground. He knelt down to keep choking her, silent tears streaming down his face as he punched her in the face over and over, feeling her Aura shatter.

He was about to throw another when he felt an iron grip on his arm. He looked to his right and it was Robin, looking worried. All of a sudden, he just felt tired as his flames went out and Robin pulled him into a hug. "It's okay. You're okay." she whispered into his ears.

He was dimly aware of Ehre making sure Aquaria was okay. Robin helped him up and led him into the changing area. Once there, she helped clean him up and made sure he was stable, in more ways than one. "Are… you okay?" she asked.

He nodded. "I am now. Thanks. For stopping me." he said.

Robin was about to reply when the bell rang, signifying the end of class. Morgan's ears perked up. "Damn, how long were we fighting?"

Robin chuckled. "It was a good twenty minutes! You were both incredible! I've only seen one other person have that kind of strength and speed!" she exclaimed.

Morgan chuckled weakly. "Nice."

And then Goodwitch burst into the changing area, promptly ruining the fucking moment like the uptight bitch that she was! "I cannot believe you! Do you realize the damage you could have done to Miss Aquaria had Miss Tori not stopped you?! She's just dazed, thankfully, but it could have been a lot worse! Were you trying to have a repeat of what happened with… What happened three days ago." she halted once she remembered Robin was there.

Morgan rolled his eyes. "You mean, what happened with Blanc? No, actually. I was trying to maintain control but it ain't exactly easy when someone is literally freezing you! Speaking of Blanc, it's after classes, so spill. Now." he demanded.

Goodwitch had a very pained expression. "Not with Miss Tori in the room. She will have to leave." she said.

Robin got up to leave. "Okay. See you, Morgan."

He shook his head. "No. Fuck that. She stays. Or I go directly to Blanc and get my fucking answers that way." he threatened.

Goodwitch furiously shook her head. "No, no! Absolutely not! Alright, fine! Miss Tori, you can stay. But you must promise to not breathe a word of this to anyone else. Especially Professor Ozpin. I don't even know how he'd react if he found out you knew." she said.

Robin nodded. "Okay. I promise." she said, sitting down next to Morgan.

Goodwitch sighed. "Okay. I can't give you the whole story, partly because I don't know myself. But, as I told you before, Chatte Blanc is the second in command of Le Syndicat Blanc, a mafia of sorts dealing in Dust and advanced technology. We've been trying to stop them for years but we've had no luck. They raid Dust shops and shipments as well as tech labs for anything useful. And… there have been some unsolved murders that we're pretty sure Blanc was involved in. We don't know why they need the Dust or the tech but that is neither here nor there." she explained.

"What about her sister? What's her part in all this?" Morgan asked.

Goodwitch did a double take. "How… how do you know about Blanc's sister?" she asked incredulously.

Morgan shrugged. "She was watching the robbery. She talked to me after I left for the Mistral place. I could tell she was really strong and I'm itchin' to see just how strong she is." he explained. Goodwitch and Robin were staring at him with a fair amount of concern. "What?"

Goodwitch hesitated. "Mister Rubrum… Chatte Blanc is almost certainly a murderer and now you want to go after her older sister? We don't know anything about her, not even her name! The only thing we know is that she's the head of the Syndicat! She is dangerous and you need to dispel the notion of going after her, let alone fighting her. She will have no compunctions killing you and I am not having your blood on my hands. This is the last I want to hear of this. This conversation is now over. You have the rest of the day to yourselves. Go to your dorm and rest. Mister Ehre and Miss Aquaria are there. Goodday." she said, turning on her heel and leaving the room.

Morgan sighed. "Damn… Whatever. Let's go, Robin. Let's go deal with the aftermath."

AN: That took so goddamn long to write! I'm so sorry for it taking nearly a year to update but a combination of computer issues, personal issues and more computer issues, I haven't had a lot of time recently. I hope all of you are staying healthy and alive in these plaguey times and I hope you enjoyed the chapter! I really hope the fight turned out well.

Alright, review and let me know what you think of the chapter! Until the next one!