Huh. Convenient that they have a sparring ring here. Place seems sturdy enough. Should hold through he absolute thrashing I will be giving Raven soon. Speaking of vultures...

"Now then, as the challenger, I will allow you to call the start of the match."

"Fine."

YES... YEEEEES! I LIVE off of the fury and indignation that seeps into her voice.

"One."

She swung her sword, and, as an instinctual reaction to weapons being swung in my general direction, I tensed up, summoning some thin armor.

Her blade clanged off of it.

"You clever little sneak." That felt very good to say.

"Didn't you say not to underestimate people?"

Oh that smugfuck is gonna get it. I start sending out iron roots to snag her with.

"That I did, that I did, thankfully, whenever I tense up, my- Semblance will automatically activate."

"Really?"

Her eyes narrowed a fraction of a inch. If I wasn't a paranoid fuck, I would just dismiss it, but she might have caught on to me...

"Yes. in fact, as we are speaking..."

The iron vines I was laying about rose up and lashed her legs together, knocking her over.

"I have already won using it." Using another vine to bat away her sword, I did what any humble, kind, and just man would do in this situation.

Looking straight at her near-shell shocked eyes, I began to gloat.

"And here I thought you would be a good fight. You ARE named after a animal that is considered a omen of death, after all. What a shame."

I started to turn around, but what she responded with... Boded worse than the absent silhouette of a scythe.

"It's the same vines that killed that beowulf..."

O dios mi-

"ALLEN, STOP!"

"RAVEN, PLEASE DON'T KILL HIM!"

And now, the goons have joined.

"..."

"Huh?..."

"Not a weird about this."

"Fuck, this just got weird.

~~at home~~

"You know, I think I found out who I NEVER want to see again at Beacon."

"Come on, it isn't that bad! You made a new friend!... I think?"

"Rose, stay pure. I felt nothing but pure, conflagratory, godless rage."

"Does "godless" count as a insult now?"

"Irrelevant to the conversation. Qrow seemed kinda cool, but FUCK raven."

"Swear jar."

"WE SHARE ALL THE CASH, ROSE!"

"It's the principle of it."

"Summer, you cannot begin to imagine the number of things I let you get off easy with."

"It's cause you like me."

Sigh.

I am meant to be an unfeeling companion, but there is a severe burning in my core. I believe this is what you call "hatred".

"See!? Even the System agrees with me!

Yesss... The Crow was... Interesting, but the Raven nothing less than insufferable.

"The brain-snake too!"

...

Hol up-

"Brain-snake?"

Good evening, my King.

"...does the fact my "semblance" is talking to me make it a Stando?"

[Perspective shift: Raven]

How.

I have been sitting here, thinking just how he could have done that.

None of his clothes were getting bloody, meaning it couldn't have been coming out of his body. His Aura wasn't fluctuating, so it couldn't be a semblance like he said. I had suspicions, but this confirmed it. And there is no way he could have just conjured them out of nowhere; magic doesn't exist. How could he have done that?! Was it connected to his clothes?!

"Uh... Rave? Are you okay?"

"...Give me your bottle."

Never did I once think something would agitate or perplex me enough to make me drink. It tastes disgusting, and it kills your brain. When we get accepted into Beacon, because with our strength, it isn't a matter of "if", I WILL confront him. And I will make him scream every last secret of his. No matter what.

In the meantime, maybe a rotting head could help me puzzle through this; if not, it'll be a good enough distraction.

[Perspective shift: Murphy]

You know what, audience? "Team ARQS" sounds like a pretty neat thing. Let's make that a thing. Sounds HILARIOUS, wouldn't you agree, folks at home? We got the mind, the soul, the body, and the crack. What Could Go Wrong, hm?

(an: do you see all the irony here? could take it to a smith and make a replica of Lunatic with it.)