A reason to fight.

The next day, Akame finished some morning stretches and was going out for another trip around the Monastery. Every time she looked around she always learned something new, or met another interesting person. As she walked out she spotted Dorothea in the distance... she looked troubled so Akame decided to go see what was going on with her.

"Oh dear..." Dorothea said, like she was in the middle of a serious situation.

"You ok Dorothea?" Akame asked as she walked up to her class mate.

Dorothea looked at her "Oh, Akame... Hello. Truth is, my, um, my undershirt got blown away by the wind... A-and it's not important why, it only matters that it's pale blue".

"Oh. Well I can help you look for it if you want. What direction did it blow away in?" Akame asked.

Dorothea smiled "Thank you Akame. I could never ask a boy to help me with this" She then points her finger "I think it was in that direction".

"Alright, I will let you know if I find it" Akame said before she walked away. Dorothea smiled after her. Akame sure was dependable.

Akame went to the training grounds where she saw Caspar. She figured she'd ask him if he had seen anything resembling Dorothea's undershirt. As she walked towards him, Caspar noticed her and smiled.

"Hey there, Akame! Here to watch me train? Oh, that reminds me. I found this small cloth. It's kinda weird. Not really sure what it is, but it works great for wiping up sweat!" Caspar said as he held up a cloth.

Akame blinked when she saw it. It was pale blue... and did not look like a simple cloth... THAT WAS DOROTHEA'S UNDERSHIRT!

"Umm, sorry, I just remembered I need to do something important. I'll meet you later, Caspar" Akame said, doing her best to not sound nervous.

"Alright, see you around Akame" Caspar said as he continued to wipe himself with the undershirt. Still having no clue what it was.

Akame just decided to pretend she never saw anything. If Dorothea found out Caspar used her undershirt to wipe away sweat, then Akame did not want to be involved in what could happen. She only hoped Caspar would survive Dorothea's wrath if she ever finds out.

Meanwhile, Esdeath was reading a book. Or at least that's what she was going to do, but her thoughts where far away from anything in the book, she just held it in her hands, not noticing someone sneaking up behind her. Her thoughts were interrupted by a hard pat on her back which almost made her stumble forward.

"Hello Esdeath!" Came the cheerful voice of Catherine.

"For the love of the goddess Catherine! You almost made my heart stop" Esdeath said in mild annoyance.

"Oh? You must really be out of it then. Normally I would never be able to walk up behind you without you noticing. let alone give you a quick scare. What's on your mind?" Catherine asked.

"If you must know, I've been thinking of that new professor Rhea brought in. Her name is Byleth" Esdeath answered.

"Oh yes, her. I must admit, I was also surprised why Lady Rhea would let a stranger teach at Monastary. I heard she is Jeralt's daughter, but still" Catherine said.

"I thought the same thing. I fought her during the mock battle. She is strong. She even managed to score a hit on me. Something that hasen't happened in years" Esdeath said.

Catherine looked surprised "She managed to land a hit on you? Wow, she must be strong. Even I struggle to keep up with you".

"Struggle? You've lost ever duel we've ever had. I don't think it's a stretch to assume this Byleth has the chance of becoming my equal one day" Esdeath said.

"Hey, be nice now. I am your best training partner remember?" Catherine said with a pout.

Esdeath smiled at her "Oh don't be like that. You are my friend, Catherine. I am not going to replace you".

"That's good to hear. But other than her strength, what else has made you so interested in Byleth?" Catherine asked.

"Well, she is beautiful too" Esdeath said while licking her lips.

"Alright, I am done asking. I came here to ask if you are up for a drink later? I finally managed to talk Shamir in to joining us" Catherine said.

"Alright, I could use a nice drink. I'll meet up with you later in the evening" Esdeath said.

"Good, and maybe we can see who can drink the most. You may be stronger than me with a blade, but I'm sure I can drink you under the table" Catherine said proudly.

Esdeath smirked "Challenge accepted".

Later that day, Akame decided to get some training in. She grabbed a training sword and was about to start until she heard a voice "I thought I heard someone. Are you here to train?".

Akame turned around and saw Felix standing there "Oh, hello there Felix. And yes, I was just about to start. Care to join me?".

"Sure, I was going to ask the same thing anyway. Waving this sword around alone is boring. And I'm tired of crossing swords with worthless opponents. But after our first clash, you seem like a worthy adversary" Felix said as he grabbed a training sword "I never got the chance to fight you again during the mock battle. Esdeath struck me down before I could find you, her power is has prevented a proper clash between us twice now. But she is not here now, so there will be no one to interrupt us this time".

"Good, then we can train in peace. Let's do this" Akame said as she got ready. Felix hums as he got ready too.

They clashed their blades a few times before taking a step back.

"You know, I've always been interested in your technique" Felix said.

"Really?" Akame asked before they traded a couple more strikes before stepping back again "And why is that? What makes me so special?".

"Well for one you were trained by the former captain of the Knights of Seiros, and traveled Fódlan fighting as a mercenary. Good sparring partners like you don't grow on trees" Felix said before blocking a strike, and they entered a blade lock.

"If that is your reason, why not just ask my sister for a sparring match? She is older and stronger than I am" Akame said as she and Felix tried to overpower each other, but neither of the budged.

"I'm sure that's true, but she is not the one here now is she?" Felix asked before breaking the blade lock and swung his blade at Akame's legs, forcing her to jump back "Besides, you both seem very strong, and I tend to surpass you both. But I need to surpass the weaker sister before I can take on the stronger one".

"And why do you focus so much on growing stronger? What is you goal in this?" Akame asked.

"Why? Hm. I never really thought about that. I learned to thrust a sword before I learned to write my name. Of course, my upbringing wasn't unique. That's how it is for all children in my country. You're of no use if you can't swing a sword, however mighty your Crest may be. It was the perfect environment for me. I could live free of stodgy values and virtues. Grow strong so you may live, and live to grow stronger. That's what I was taught" Felix answered "What about you? Why drove you to become strong?".

"I didn't have a choice, I wouldn't have survived otherwise. My childhood... wasn't exactly normal. My parents never wanted me, and I was put in an environment where I needed to become strong in order to survive... but until my new family took me in, I almost didn't want to survive" Akame answered.

"So your parents tossed you aside like you were garbage. Typical. So where did you end up after that?" Felix asked.

Akame shook her head "I'm afraid I've already shared enough than what I am comfortable with. But if you beat me in this duel, I may give you a hint. And make sure not to hold back. My mission this month involves hunting a rogue knight. I need to be ready for that".

"Then enough idle chatter. Ready your sword. My mind is emptied of all but the thrill of the challenge!" Felix declared.

"Right!" Akame said as she got ready.

Felix and Akame dash towards each other and clash blades again, however Felix overpowered Akame, and kicked her back a few feet before, slashing her multiple times, however Akame regained her balance again and clashed blades with Felix, halting his advance. Akame got a good look into Felix eyes, and saw determination. But she could tell he was hiding something behind those eyes... Pain.

Akame moved faster which caught Felix off guard as she struck at his, which he barely managed to block. She then strikes at his torso, however before Akame's blade could connect he grabbed her arm and kicks her back. He then delivered an overhead strike, and while Akame blocked it, the impact vibrated her hands a little. But she ignored the very mild pain and kicked him back

Akame gripped her blade tighter as she dashes towards Felix clashing blades again, they were evenly matched for a while until Felix delivered a upwards strike the forced Akame's arms up and he kicked her down her to the ground. Akame however quickly recovered, and quickly clashed blades with Felix once more, before they locked blades again, they give each other a hard look before forcing each other away a few feet again. Both readied one more strike and both strikes connected to their midsections, causing them to stumble back and fall to one knee.

Both were breathing hard as they kept their eyes focused on each other. They struggled to get back on their feet and began moving towards each other again, but just as they were about to reach each other, Akame suddenly stumbled and began to fall. Felix looked shocked for only a second before he dropped his blade and caught Akame in his arms.

"Hey! What's wrong with you?" He demanded... until he heard Akame's stomach roar.

"So hungry... can't fight... sorry..." Akame said with a blush. She hadn't eaten at all today, and the battle drained her of all her energy.

"Really? We can't finish our duel because you are hungry?" Felix asked, sounding very annoyed. He finally found a good training partner, but once again their duel were interrupted.

"Sorry... I can't fight on a empty stomach for long. I was going to do some small training before dinner. Had I known you would show up, I would've eaten before hand so I could fight you at full strength" Akame said.

Felix sighed "Idiot... Fine, you can go eat. But we will settle this duel another time".

"Could you... carry me to the dining hall? It would be faster than having to walk in my tired state" Akame said with a small blush.

"If you can still walk, you can go by yourself" Felix said.

"Pleeeeeeaaaassseeee" Akame begged with puppy dog eyes.

Felix looked at her for several second before he sighed in annoyance "Fine, but only because I don't want to risk you dropping dead from hunger before we can settle our score. But this is a one time thing, got it?".

Akame smiled "Got it".

Felix picked her up and began to carry her towards the dining hall. Hating every second of it. Akame only smiled, happy to see her puppy eyes works on more than just her sister and father. Then again, if they can't resist it despite raising her, then few could ever hope to resit. Still, Akame enjoyed her clash with Felix. He was strong and skilled, even if she had eaten before hand, there is a chance their duel could have ended in a draw. Not to mention Akame could feel they might have some things in common.

Felix made it clear he is not easy to approach, unless you want a fight. So Akame was going to make sure she remained a worthy rival to him so she could get to know him better. She wanted to know just what kind of man he was and why she feels he could potential be a kindred sprit.

Once again, Akame had discovered something new during her time in her new home.

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Tell me what you think.